Anthony John "A.J." Kotich

A.J. Kotich, 69, died peacefully at home surrounded by his family on October 20, 2015. He was born on July 30, 1946, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the son of George Kotich and Anna Pardo Kotich. A.J. was a Kansas lawyer for more than 42 years, a Judge Advocate and proud officer with the US Marine Corps, recipient of the Navy Achievement Medal, a long-time Kansas public servant, and a part-time Washburn business law and labor relations instructor from 1988 to 2015. He was selected by the Kansas Democratic Party as its nominee to be Attorney General of Kansas during the 2014 elections during which he campaigned on reducing the expensive outsourcing of legal services. A.J. graduated from Northwestern Oklahoma State University where he met Linda Ybarra. They were married on June 24, 1972. He received his doctor of jurisprudence degree from Washburn Law School. A.J. was an expert in employment law and the author of several primers on unemployment insurance and public employee relations. From 1975 through 2011 he was an advisor and counselor to every Secretary of the Kansas Department of Human Resources under three Republican and four Democratic Governors. His longevity amid the turbulence of Kansas politics is testament to his honesty and integrity and the respect he was given by all who knew him. He was at his best when his sound legal advice was not what public officials wanted to hear but what they needed to know. He was also appointed a Special Assistant Attorney General for more than a quarter of a century. In 2011 he was appointed Chief Counsel to the Secretary of the Kansas Department of Administration. He retired from public service in 2013 but continued to practice law and teach labor law, legal environment of business, and human resource management at Washburn until June 2015. A.J. was a past president of the Knights of Columbus. He enjoyed coaching youth sports including AAU and Optimist basketball and Ken Berry and SCABA baseball and was famous for exhorting members of his teams, as well as his legal staff and friends to “finish”. It was his expectation that anything worth doing was worth doing well and fully. He lived the Marine Corps motto: Semper Fi. He was always faithful to his wife Linda, his five children, five grandchildren, and his clients, always providing legal advice with honesty and integrity. A.J. was the consummate legal professional and a courtroom lawyer without peer. Out of court he could, at times, be gregariously competitive and was sometimes given to over-the-top observations, but he was also equally self-deprecating. A. J. is survived by Linda, his wife of more than 43 years; and their five children, Victoria Kotich Carpenter (Matt), Merriam, Annie Kotich, Lenexa, Michael Kotich (Leza), Honolulu, Hawaii, Rachel Kotich-Verthein (Ryan), Topeka, and Mark Kotich (Amanda), Topeka; and five grandchildren Tristan, Ramona, Phoenix, Layla, and Carmen. A parish rosary will be prayed at 5 p.m. Friday at Kevin Brennan Family Funeral Home, 2801 SW Urish Road, Topeka KS 66614. Family will greet friends following until 7 p.m. Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday at Christ the King Catholic Church. Entobment will be 2 p.m. Saturday at Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Kansas City KS. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Hire Heroes USA, 1360 Union Hill Road, Bldg. 2, Suite A, Alpharetta, GA 30004.

Anthony John "A.J." Kotich

July 30, 1946 - October 20, 2015