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David B. Wilkins

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David B. Wilkins (born January 22, 1956) is an American legal scholar who is the Lester Kissel Professor of Law and faculty director of the Center on the Legal Profession at Harvard Law School. He is a senior research fellow of the American Bar Foundation, the Harvard Law School's vice dean for global initiatives on the legal profession, and a faculty associate of the Harvard University Edmond J. Safra Foundation Center for Ethics.[1]

David B. Wilkins
Wilkins speaking at Singapore Management University in 2018
Born (1956-01-22) January 22, 1956 (age 68)
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
EducationHarvard University (BA, JD)
Occupation(s)Lawyer, professor

Early life and education

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Wilkins is a Chicago native, and a graduate of the University of Chicago Laboratory Schools. His father, Julian Wilkins, headed the law firm of Wilkins, Wilkins & Wilkins, and became the first black partner at a major Chicago law firm in 1971.[2]

Wilkins graduated with honors from Harvard College in 1977 with a Bachelor of Arts in government. He earned a Juris Doctor degree in 1980 from Harvard Law School. While at Harvard Law, he served as the Supreme Court editor of the Harvard Law Review and was also a member of the Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review and the Harvard Black Law Student Association.[3]

Career

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After graduating law school, he clerked for Judge Wilfred Feinberg, a United States Circuit Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. He then clerked for Justice Thurgood Marshall at the United States Supreme Court between 1981 and 1982.[4]

After clerking, in 1982, Wilkins became an associate with a specialization in civil litigation at the law firm of Nussbaum Owen & Webster in Washington, D.C.[5] Wilkins is a member of the Bar in the District of Columbia and the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.

In 1986, Wilkins joined the faculty at Harvard Law School, earning tenure six years later, and he has recently been mentioned as a potential candidate to become dean of Harvard Law.[6] His research focuses primarily on the legal profession, and he is the co-author (along with his Harvard Law School colleague Andrew Kaufman) of one of the leading casebooks in the field.[5]

In 2005, graduating seniors voted him the top teacher in Harvard Law's Center for Ethics.[7]

Personal life

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Timothy A. Wilkins and David B. Wilkins

Wilkins and his wife, Anne Marie, live in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with their son.[4] Anne Marie Wilkins is an entertainment executive who has managed the career of entertainer Harry Connick Jr. since he was 18 years old.[8] She is also Director and Senior Advisor at Marsalis Music, a company she co-founded with Branford Marsalis in 2001. She is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Berklee College of Music and holds a Juris Doctor degree from Harvard Law School. In 2015 President Barack Obama appointed Anne Marie Wilkins as a General Trustee of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.[9]

David Wilkins instructed former First Lady Michelle Obama[10] and is friends with former U.S. president Barack Obama.[11] His father, Julian Wilkins,[12] was the first Black partner at a major law firm in Chicago.[13] He is the grandson of J. Ernest Wilkins Sr. and the nephew of J Ernest Wilkins Jr.[14] His brother, Timothy A. Wilkins, is a partner with Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.[15]

Awards and distinctions

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ School, Harvard Law. "David B. Wilkins | Harvard Law School". Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  2. ^ "David B. Wilkins is Chicago-Kent's Order of the Coif Distinguished Visitor" (Press release). Chicago: Chicago-Kent College of Law. 2008-09-28. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  3. ^ "David Wilkins | Speaker Profile and Speaking Topics". The American Program Bureau. Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2013-12-02.
  4. ^ a b "David B. Wilkins's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  5. ^ a b "Professor David Wilkins Faculty Director Harvard Law Program Legal Profession". Harvard Law School. 2012-12-01. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  6. ^ Groll, Elias J. (2009-06-03). "HLS Dean Search Narrows to Four | News | The Harvard Crimson". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  7. ^ "Ethics at Harvard Law School". Harvard University. 2009-07-01. Archived from the original on 2013-12-06. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  8. ^ "Harry Connick Jr."s Boston connections". Boston Herald. 2017-04-11. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
  9. ^ "President Obama Announces More Key Administration Posts". whitehouse.gov. 2015-05-01. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
  10. ^ "Profile of Michelle Obama - Michelle Obama Biography". About.com Women's Issues. Archived from the original on 2013-12-04. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  11. ^ Kodama, Marie C. (2007-01-19). "Obama Left Mark on HLS | News | The Harvard Crimson". The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved 2013-12-03.
  12. ^ Booker, Simeon (1984-07-23). Jet. Johnson Publishing Company.
  13. ^ "David B. Wilkins's Biography". The HistoryMakers. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
  14. ^ Wilkins, Carolyn Marie (2010-10-10). Damn Near White: An African American Family's Rise from Slavery to Bittersweet Success. University of Missouri Press. ISBN 978-0-8262-7240-9.
  15. ^ "Race, Sustainability, and Social Justice: A Conversation with the Wilkins Brothers". Harvard CLP. Retrieved 2021-05-27.
  16. ^ "David Wilkins Awarded The Albert M. Sacks-Paul A. Freund Award for Teaching Excellence". Harvard CLP.
  17. ^ Wilkins, David Brian. "David Brian Wilkins resume" (PDF). Retrieved 2013-12-02.
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