Joseph P. “Joe” Klock, Jr., one of the best-known Miami trial lawyers of his generation, died on October 4, 2026, surrounded by his children.
For most of the country, Joe Klock will always be the lawyer for Florida Secretary of State Katherine Harris in the 2000 presidential election litigation. He argued for the Secretary of State twice before the Supreme Court in eleven days, first on December 1, 2000, in Bush v. Palm Beach County Canvassing Board, and again on December 11 in Bush v. Gore, sharing the lectern with Ted Olson, Paul Hancock, Laurence Tribe, and David Boies. He was, for a moment, late-night TV comedy fodder because he called two Supreme Court Justices the wrong names. Afterwards, he told reporters, “I was so tired that I was happy I didn’t call one of them Justice Gore.” Joe took it all in stride and kept his sense of humor. Few lawyers anywhere have argued two Supreme Court cases in less than two weeks, let alone two that decided a presidency.
The national headlines were a sliver of the career. Joe was a Miami lawyer through and through. Born and raised in Philadelphia, his entire family (including seven younger sisters) re-located to Miami when he enrolled in law school at the University of Miami in 1973. He then spent more than three decades at Steel Hector & Davis, one of the city’s institutional firms, where he rose to managing partner and chairman. After Steel Hector merged with Squire Sanders & Dempsey in 2005, he moved to Epstein Becker & Green and, in 2009, joined Rasco Klock in Coral Gables, where he practiced until his passing. He had many clients, among them the Fanjuls, the sugar magnates. He inspired fierce loyalty and, as a result, the acronym FOJ came to be understood as Friend of Joe’s.
Joe also leaves a long legacy of work in and for the community. Putting aside his many paid cases, Joe was known for his prolific pro bono work, and he served on both the boards for Carrollton School of the Sacred Heart and Belen Jesuit Preparatory School. I know one person who, in an emergency, introduced himself to Joe and said some version of “Joe, I went to Belen and need your help.” Without more, Joe helped, and when pressed to accept compensation, merely said “pay it forward.” He is a man that did a lot of good, oftentimes without thought of lucre.
Ironically, he once had a sign that—in twisted imitation of the sign that hangs in 73 West Flagler—said “We Who Labor Here Seek Only Fees.” It was crass on the surface, but surprisingly deep. He explained that the sign was to remind his clients that the legal process was painful and should not be engaged lightly. If they asked him to, he would march to the courthouse because he was “seeking fees” but they should really reflect on what they were seeking and if it would be worth it.
He is, as far as I know, the only man my father ever envied. After a particularly long dinner sharing stories and laughs, the waiter approached Joe Klock (and not my father) to say, “Mr. Klock, is it alright with you if we close the buffet?” My father claims he was only envious for a moment, but I am not sure he ever got over it.
He leaves behind four children, Susan E. Klock, Robert C. Klock, Peter J. Klock, II, and Kathleen Mendez, with Kathleen being the only one that is not a lawyer in the community. Our condolences to his family, to his colleagues at Rasco Klock and his previous firms, and to the many lawyers who learned from him. The family has kindly allowed me to share information regarding the memorial services, and I will update this post once I have that information. Rest in Peace, Joe.
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