Howard Alan Janet, an attorney who represented plaintiffs who suffered medical malpractice and sexual abuse, died of complications related to heart disease Sept. 18 at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. The Pikesville resident was 70.
Born in Baltimore and raised in Baltimore County, he was the son of Irwin Janet, a carpenter, and his wife, Ann. He was a Woodlawn High School graduate, where he played football. He earned a degree at the University of Maryland, College Park, and was a graduate of the University of Baltimore School of Law.
In 1978, while at College Park Hillel, he met his future wife, Rina Lee Smelkinson. They were married for 39 years until her death in 2018.
Mr. Janet established a law firm in 1989 and worked on behalf of clients who were involved in medical malpractice, sexual abuse and personal injury cases.
His son, Andrew Janet, said in his eulogy: “How did a man with a blue-collar upbringing, the son of a carpenter, become such a respected legal mind? The answer is a lot of hard work and fastidious attention to detail. When he was on trial, he would not sleep at all. He would just stay up all night working, reviewing every document again, refining every word. He would start working on his opening statement a month before trial and keep editing it up to the last day beforehand. Then he’d edit that version until the last hour beforehand, and then the last minute beforehand, and then while he was delivering it.”
His father took pride in helping survivors of sexual abuse find the courage to come forward, his son said. Mr. Janet encouraged them to seek redress from their abusers and the institutions that protected them.
Mr. Janet often cited his representation of Victim 6 in the confidential settlement in the Penn State coach Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse litigation.
He was also class counsel in a $190 million settlement with the Johns Hopkins Hospital related to secret and unauthorized video recordings made by Dr. Nikita Levy at an East Baltimore health clinic.
Mr. Janet, a member of Beth El Congregation, was past chair of the Israel Bonds for the state of Maryland and past president of the Woodholme Country Club. He also enjoyed golf and was an Orioles and Ravens fan.
“He loved family Shabbat dinners every Friday night and taking his family on many memorable vacations, and his role as a dedicated and loving ‘Zaydoo’ to his four grandchildren,” his son Andrew said.
A statement from the Maryland State Bar Association said: “He was widely recognized as one of the nation’s preeminent medical malpractice attorneys, especially for his work representing children who developed cerebral palsy from preventable birth injuries.”
He received the Maryland Association for Justice 2015 Trial Lawyer of the Year award.
In 2010, he helped found the Cerebral Palsy Family Network, which provides vital resources to families of children with cerebral palsy.
Survivors include his son, Andrew Samuel Janet, of Pikesville; four grandchildren; a significant other, Ronnie Ann Glaser, of Rockland; and a daughter-in-law, Corinne Janet, of Pikesville. His wife, Rina Lee Smelkinson Janet, died in 2018. A son, Adam Phillip Janet, died in 2019.
Services were held Sunday.
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