Norman Minor was a legendary African-American trial lawyer whose mentoring of a generation of black civil rights attorneys helped transform the justice system. As a member of the firm Payne, Green, Minor & Perry, he won the acclaim of his peers for his successful defense of the rights of impoverished clients accused of criminal activity. The state took note, and in 1930, he was appointed Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor, the first African-American to be accorded that honor. Over the years, he prosecuted 5,000 felony cases and won convictions in 13 capital murder cases. He returned to private practice in 1948, specializing in criminal defense. In 1980, in celebration of his contributions to the bench and bar, local lawyers formed the Norman S. Minor Bar Association, the Cleveland affiliate of the National Bar Association.