Henry J. Steiner

Between 1947 and 1955, Steiner earned his Bachelor, Masters and Law Degrees at Harvard University. Before returning to the Law School in 1962 as assistant professor, he spent a year on a Traveling Fellowship granted by the Law School, a year as Law Clerk to Justice John M. Harlan of the U.S. Supreme Court, and several years as a lawyer in corporate and government practice. Throughout his 43 years as an active faculty member, he concentrated on international and transnational law. The legal-political writings were published in several books and coursebooks, articles in journals, and chapters in edited books. In 1984, Steiner founded the Law School’s Human Rights Program, and devoted two decades as its director to work on international human rights, the related field of democratic government, and development of the Program. His lectures and courses (in English, French, German and Portuguese) as well as consulting carried him to about 40 countries, for periods ranging from a few days to 1 ½ years. In his years as professor emeritus, Steiner engaged in different activities, including teaching in a state prison. Throughout his career, photography was an avid pursuit leading to his publication Eyeing the World showing his pictures.