Fred Zacharias

[I am posting this memorial notice on behalf of Fred's friend Bruce Green -- BW]

It is with sadness that I report the death of Professor Fred Zacharias on November 8, at the much too young age of 56, after a valiant, months’-long battle with a rare form of cancer.  Fred was a good friend of mine and of many others in the legal ethics community as well as a leader in, and outstanding contributor to, the field. 

Fred was a prolific scholar.  It was my privilege to co-author nine articles with him over the past decade, and that was just a small proportion of his prodigious output.  Fred was happy to tackle, and bring his insights to, virtually any issue in the field, and rarely turned down a chance to contribute to a conference or symposium.  A former defense lawyer, Fred often brought his experiences from practice into his scholarship, while at the same time keeping current on academic writings in order to advance scholarly conversation in the field.  Fred was among the handful of most frequently cited scholars of his generation.

As past chair of the AALS Professional Responsibility Section and regular contributor to the section’s newsletter, Fred sought to advance teaching no less than scholarship.  Having attended many of Fred’s talks at the ABA National Conference and at academic conferences, I can attest that Fred took his role in the classroom as seriously as he took his writing.  He also served the profession with dedication, including as a consultant on the Restatement of the Law Governing Lawyers and on other ALI projects and as a member of his city bar’s ethics committee.  In recognition of his outstanding contributions, Fred received numerous distinctions at the University of San Diego School of Law, where he taught for almost two decades, including most recently as the Herzog Endowed Research Professor and, this summer, as the inaugural holder of the Donald Weckstein Summer Research Professorship.

On a personal note, among the things I most valued in our friendship were Fred’s generosity of spirit and his commitment to friends and family.  Fred is survived by his wife, Sharon, and by his sons, Eric and
Blake, and by his mother, brother and sister-in-law.  Letters of condolence may be sent care of the law school.  I mourn his passing.

-Bruce Green

Comments

[john steele]

I am stunned. In addition to his massive outpouring of scholarship, Fred was open, and engaging on the issues, and just a very nice guy. My condolences to all his family, friends, and colleagues. Here is a video of him delivering the Robert Lawry Lecture:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6yl_SdBNv04

[Alice Woolley]

Fred was indeed prolific, but also something much rarer: always thorough and worth reading, whether one agreed with him or not.

[Andrew Perlman]

What terrible and shocking news. My deepest condolences to those of you who had the good fortune of knowing Fred as a family member, friend, or colleague.

[Bill Simon]

Fred's death is a terrible loss for the field. He was one of the most able and productive people. I didnt know him well, but I have a fond memory of an afternoon in San Diego arguing (and agreeing) with him about PR issues while touring the coast.

[William Gallagher]

Terribly sad news. Fred was also very generous with ideas for junior scholars.

[Prof. Peter B. Bayer, William S. Boyd School of Law]

I knew Fred when we both were grade-schoolers at Manhattan's ultra-progressive Ethical Culture School. Although we were not close friends, I liked him. Even a child could see Fred was particularly thoughtful, curious and nice.

Interestingly, we both chose the same profession, but he ran in different circles. I am not surprised he is held in such high regard by his colleagues and students -- the qualities of an outstanding teacher were evident when he was a child.

I saw Fred only very occasionally if we happened to be at the same meeting. But, I can say, he certainly fulfilled the promise of his childhood.

[stephen.gillers]

What a loss, professionally and personally. Who hasn't he affected? I would get these envelopes full of articles 2 or 3 times yearly. It was hard to keep up. They are imaginative, clever, perceptive. 56 is far too young. We should have an event of memorial at the AALS in January. Perhaps at the PR section event. I'll tell Laurel.

[Laura Appleman]

He will be greatly missed.

[Anita Bernstein]

A terrible and very premature loss for the professional responsibility community.

[David Cameron Carr]

Fred was a great scholar who got involved on a practical level with legal ethics through his contributions to the San Diego County Bar Association Legal Ethics Committee. He was also fearless and never flinched from expressing his opinion, even when he made others uncomfortable. He also never stopped questioning the conventional wisdom, as his recent paper examining the myth of lawyer self-regulation shows. His example should not be lost on us as we mourn our loss.

[Taobao]

nous allons louer une voiture pour le week-end*_*