(1910-1994)
Inducted into the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame, 1987
A Hartford native, Weinstein played football at Hartford Public High School and at Trinity College in the late 1920s and early 1930s. A lineman, he played every minute of every game from his freshman to his senior year at Trinity and was named co-captain in his senior year. He was one of two players to receive a Gold Football award from Trinity.
He earned degrees from Trinity College and Harvard Law School and was a lawyer in private practice for 60 years. He was chair of the Committee on Administration of Civil Justice of the Hartford County Bar Association and served as a member of the Bar Examining Committee for ten years. Weinstein was active with the YMHA and was its president in 1936. At the Emanuel Synagogue he was president of the Brotherhood. He was one of the founders of Beth El Temple and served as the congregation’s first elected president from 1954 to 1956.
His legal work in the aftermath of the Hartford circus fire of 1944 brought him national attention. With two other lawyers, he conceived of the notion of using a receivership for circus monies, allowing the Ringling Brothers Circus to continue operating. The receivership set aside a certain portion of the circus’ funds, guaranteeing there would be money for victims of the fire. Weinstein was also credited with writing the arbitration agreement that allowed the cases to be settled out of court. The case was one of the first instances of complex mass litigation stemming from a major disaster.