Fra Noi Embrace Your Inner Italian
The Sicilian American Cultural Association presented attorney Umberto S. Davi with its Medal of Merit on Sept. 24 at Monastero’s Banquets in Chicago.
Umberto S. Davi
The Sicilian American Cultural Association is proud to present attorney Umberto S. Davi with its coveted Medal of Merit.
Davi is a founding member of the Sicilian American Cultural Association, a lifetime member of the Joint Civic Committee of Italian Americans and a past president (1995) of the Justinian Society of Lawyers. He is proud to have served as the first immigrant president (2015-2016) of the 33,000-plus-member Illinois State Bar Association. For the first time in the organization’s 139-year history, Davi displayed the Italian flag alongside the American flag at his installation ceremony. He was sworn-in by Illinois Supreme Court Justice Thomas Kilbride who stated, “Umberto Davi brings to the presidency a classic combination of leadership, professionalism, humor, compassion, and the heart and soul of a hardworking small law firm lawyer.”
Active in numerous bar associations at the local and national level, Davi was an Illinois delegate (2013-2016) to the American Bar Association and currently serves on several ABA committees. He is Second Vice President of the ISBA Mutual Insurance Company.
The first-born son of Emanuele Nino and Renata (Gliori) Davi, Umberto came to America in 1964 with his mother and two younger brothers. His 42-year-old father had tragically died in an accident so his mother brought her family to America for better opportunity, independence, and the freedom to attain goals and dreams for herself and her sons. While Davi maintains close ties to his family in Sicily to this day, he realizes that his mother’s decision to move to America provided him with even greater opportunities to grow, advance his career and meet an expanded network of Italian Americans.
Like so many other first-generation immigrants, it was quite a challenge for Umberto and his family to learn the language and acclimate to life in America. Having lost his father at a young age and being the oldest sibling, Davi also had to assume adult responsibilities early on. Nevertheless, he rose to the challenges along the way, and through hard work and perseverance he dedicated himself to his profession, his family, his heritage and to giving back to his community. According to Leonard Amari, “Umberto is respected, charismatic, bright, articulate and serves as a wonderful community leader and role model. Umberto climbed the ladder of the American Dream and makes sure that the ladder is there for those that follow him.”
According to Davi, “While I’m grateful for the people and mentors I’ve met in America, my father was my role model and I learned much from him even though he died when I was 13 years old. He had a trucking business in Sicily. I would accompany him on customer’s calls and help him deliver goods to the small towns across the mountainous countryside. This experience taught me how to respect others, conduct business transactions, and how to deal with different kinds of people and situations.” Davi continues, “My mother believed in education. She taught herself how to read and write. The oldest of nine children, she was taken out of school to care for her younger siblings and maintain the household while her parents ran a local family business. My mother remained an avid reader into her nineties. She also attended college classes in America.”
Davi received his undergraduate degree from Western Illinois University where he graduated a Phi Kappa Phi National Honor Society member on the Dean’s List with High Honors. He received his law degree from The John Marshall Law School where he graduated with Distinction in the upper 10 percent. He was President of The John Marshall Law School Alumni Board of Directors from 2005-2006 and member of the law school’s Board of Trustees from 2007-2012.
The Law Offices of Umberto S. Davi, P.C. were opened in Western Springs in 1984. He is also licensed in Wisconsin. Davi focuses his practice in family law, real estate, and other related legal matters. Davi is rated by his peers as a SuperLawyer (2012-2017) and maintains a perfect AVVO Rated 10 as a Top Family Law Attorney. He has been honored by The John Marshall Law School, ISBA, Cook County and DuPage Justinians, Illinois Midwest Municipal Conference Organization, Illinois Bar Foundation, and Women’s Bar Association of Illinois, to name a few.
Umberto is the proud father of four boys and two grandchildren. He and Janet, his wife of 39 years, live in Willowbrook, where he serves as a Village Trustee and president of the Willowbrook Police Pension Fund.
