MONTPELIER — Robert Gensburg, a lawyer who successfully challenged the way schools are funded in Vermont and brought about sweeping reform, died at his Lyndon home on Nov. 9. He was 78.

Mr. Gensburg was the lead attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union as it argued children in poor towns were at a disadvantage because lower property values meant less tax revenue for schools.

In 1997, the Vermont Supreme Court agreed, forcing lawmakers to establish a new system to ensure more equitable funding.

Carol Brigham’s daughter was the lead plaintiff in the case. She told the Burlington Free Press it was incredible how much time Mr. Gensburg put into the case, considering he wasn’t being paid.

US Representative Peter Welch, a Democrat who served as one of the attorneys on the case, described Gensburg as an “extraordinary legal mind.’’

“He was as modest and humble as he was intelligent and energetic,’’ Welch said.