Allan van Gestel is a retired American judge, who served as an associate justice of the Superior Court of Suffolk County, Massachusetts, located in Boston. He was that court’s first specialist business court judge, and has been described as the father of its Business Litigation Session.
Allan van Gestel | |
|---|---|
| Judge, Superior Court of Suffolk County, Massachusetts | |
| In office 1996–2007 | |
| Appointed by | Governor William F. Weld |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1935 Boston, Massachusetts |
| Education | Colby College (1957), Boston University School of Law (1961) |
Judicial service
editIn 1996, Governor William F. Weld appointed Allan van Gestel as a judge to the Superior Court of Suffolk County, located in Boston, Massachusetts. In 2005, van Gestel reached the mandatory retirement age of 70, but was recalled and continued serving on that court through 2007.[1][2][3]
In October 2000, van Gestel became the first judge in the Suffolk Superior Court's Business Litigation Session (BLS), a specialized business court docket in the Superior Court. He was the sole BLS judge until 2002, and issued numerous legal opinions, at least some of which were without the assistance of law clerks.[4][5][6] During his time on the BLS, van Gestel issued over 250 opinions.[7] van Gestel's "decisions have helped shape the law in Massachusetts concerning business disputes."[8] He has been described as integral to the BLS's establishment and viability,[9] and the father of the BLS.[10] He participated in the first meeting of the American College of Business Court Judges in 2005.[11]
Legal practice
editFrom 1961 to 1996, van Gestel was a lawyer in private practice with the law firm of Goodwin, Procter & Hoar.[1] In the 1980s, he was involved with notable litigation concerning Native American land claims in upstate New York.[12]
Education
editvan Gestel received his undergraduate degree from Colby College in 1957, and his law degree from Boston University School of Law in 1961.[1][13]
As an educator, van Gestel has served on the faculty of the National Institute for Trial Advocacy, and as an instructor at the Boston University School of Law and Harvard Law School.[1]
Awards and positions held
editIn 2015, van Gestel received the American College of Trial Lawyers Samuel E. Gates Litigation Award.[14][15] In 2006, van Gestel received the Haskell Cohn Award for Distinguished Justice from the Boston Bar Association.[16] In 2003, he received the Judicial Excellence Award from the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.[1]
He is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, and was Chairman of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Standing Advisory Committee on the Rules of Civil Procedure from 1986 to 1993.[1]
He is a Trustee of Colby College,[17] and received its Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2002.[18]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f Staff, Mass Lawyers Weekly. "VAN GESTEL, ALLAN – Judicial Profiles". Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ Gesmer, Lee (2005-09-13). "Allan Van Gestel to Retire From Business Litigation Session? • Mass Law Blog". Mass Law Blog. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Judge Van Gestel to Retire at Year End | Casetext". casetext.com. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Lawyers Journal-2005-September". www.massbar.org. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Business Litigation Resource Committee, The Massachusetts Business Litigation Session: Docket and Caseload Analysis" (PDF). December 2004.
- ^ DelVecchio, Suzanne V. (May 2, 2019). "The birth of the Business Litigation Session". Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.
- ^ Gesmer, Lee (2005-10-10). "Business Litigation Session Conference • Mass Law Blog". Mass Law Blog. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Lawyers Journal-2005-September". www.massbar.org. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Here Comes the Biz Judge". www.businessnhmagazine.com. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "The Business Litigation Session Turns 15". Boston Bar Association. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ American College of Business Court Judges, AEI-Brookings Joint Center for Regulatory Studies, Judicial Education Program, Washington, D.C., Advanced Law and Economics Institute, October 30 - November 1, 2005, Judicial Participant List
- ^ Times, Special to the New York (1986-04-13). "LAND CLAIMS BY INDIANS IN NEW YORK ARE AIRED AT SYMPOSIUM". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Lawyers Journal-2005-September". www.massbar.org. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "JAMS Panelist Hon. Allan van Gestel (Ret.) Honored by American College of Trial Lawyers". www.jamsadr.com. 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Samuel E. Gates Litigation Award". www.actl.com. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ Staff (July 3, 2006). "Boston Bar Association Bestows its Haskell Cohn Award for Distinguished Justice". Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.
- ^ "Allan van Gestel '53 - Colby Funding". colby.academicworks.com. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
- ^ "Colby, Alumni Awards, Dinstinguished Alumna/us Award".