Credit: Kathleen Dooher Frank Sander ’52, David Herwitz ’49 and David Shapiro ’57
142 years of combined service to HLS
Imagine for a moment a lawsuit involving, as so many of them do, a dispute over accounting practices. Now add some complex questions of federal jurisdiction and procedure. Then assume that the parties decide—wisely—to settle. As the saying goes, “Who you gonna call?”
One would be hard-pressed to assemble a more talented Dream Team for that case than David Herwitz ’49, Frank Sander ’52 and David Shapiro ’57, all eminent members of the Harvard Law faculty (Herwitz since 1954, Sander since 1959 and Shapiro since 1963).
But you’d have to talk them out of retirement. For, at the end of the past academic year, all three took emeritus status. Here, some former students pay tribute.
Credit: John Chapin David L. Shapiro ’57
David L. Shapiro ’57
A judgment, stated
David Shapiro represents the true Renaissance man of legal academia. He has been a scholar, reformer, advocate, public servant and teacher, and at every turn, he has been a leader and model of excellence. There is much in his brilliant career to celebrate.
Credit: Martha Stewart
Frank E.A. Sander ’52
An undisputed pioneer
When I first began to work with Frank Sander ’52 as a 3L at Harvard Law School in 1997, I realized that when it came to finding a mentor in alternative dispute resolution, I had struck gold. During the past decade, I have come to admire and respect him as a scholar of titanic proportions, as a noble and revered leader of HLS and—most important to me—as a generous and kind colleague and friend.
Credit: Kathleen Dooher David R. Herwitz ’49
David R. Herwitz ’49
One lawyer’s account
The influence of a great teacher like Dave Herwitz brings him nearer to immortality than most of us get. In my own nearly 50 years of professional life, I have met numerous wonderful individuals and benefited from the wisdom and character of many. However, Dave is a standout as a man of character, professional, teacher and friend. In my three stints at “the law school” (as a student, teaching fellow and visiting professor), I witnessed the esteem in which he has been held by three generations of students. It is of the highest order.