Simon H. Rifkind

Simon Hirsch Rifkind (1901–1995) was a prominent American federal judge and trial lawyer.

Biography

Born in Lithuania, Rifkind emigrated to the United States in 1910. He attended DeWitt Clinton High School, and received degrees from City College of New York and Columbia Law School. From 1927 to 1933, he was legislative secretary to Senator Robert F. Wagner, in which capacity he helped create important aspects of New Deal legislation including Section 7(a) of the National Industrial Recovery Act. He was partner at Wagner, Quillinan & Rifkind from 1930 to 1941, and served as a Federal District Court judge in New York City from 1941 until 1950. In 1945, Rifkind took a leave of absence from the bench to serve as adviser on Jewish affairs to the Theatre Commander of United States forces in Europe, helping the U.S. Army aid Holocaust survivors in the wake of World War II. From 1950 until his death in 1995 Rifkind was partner at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP. Over the course of his tenure he came to be seen as the guiding spirit of the firm.

Career

Rifkind's work as a lawyer covered a vast range of matters affecting American political, social and economic life. He was appointed by the United States Supreme Court to sort out the rival claims of various western states to the Colorado River, was tapped by President John F. Kennedy to investigate railroad labor issues, and helped create (and later served as General Counsel of) the Mutual Assistance Corporation for New York City during New York's in the 1970s.

Rifkind represented a number of famous clients in high-profile court cases. He worked for Jacqueline Kennedy, United States Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas in a U.S. House of Representatives impeachment inquiry, and represented Madame Chiang Kai-shek in a defamation suit. In less glamorous, but equally important cases, Rifkind represented a wide variety of corporations, including General Motors Corporation and Pennzoil.

United States Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas called Rifkind "the most outstanding advocate of all" the lawyers who appeared before the Court between 1939 and 1975.

References

cite news
last = Pace
first = Eric
coauthors =
title = Simon Rifkind, Celebrated Lawyer, Dies at 94
work = The New York Times
date = November 15, 1995
url = http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B04E0DC1139F936A25752C1A963958260
accessdate = 2008-04-10

cite news
last = Brooks
first = John
coauthors =
title = Advocate
work = The New Yorker
date = May 23, 1983

External links

* [http://www.paulweiss.com Paul, Weiss homepage]
* [http://www.paulweiss.com/firm/principles/ Paul, Weiss firm principles, penned by Simon H. Rifkind]
* [http://www.ccny.cuny.edu/rifkind/about.html City College of New York City center named for Rifkind]