Andrew H. Schapiro
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Andrew H. Schapiro (born April 25, 1963) is an American attorney and
diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...
who served as
United States Ambassador to the Czech Republic The diplomatic post of United States ambassador to the Czech Republic was created after the dissolution of Czechoslovakia and the United States recognizing the new nation of the Czech Republic on January 1, 1993. In June 1992, the Slovak parli ...
from September 30, 2014, to January 20, 2017. He was nominated by President Barack Obama March 6, 2014 and confirmed by the Senate in July 2014. He was sworn in on August 14, 2014, and presented his credentials to President Miloš Zeman on September 30, 2014. He is currently a partner of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan.


Early life and education

Schapiro grew up in the Chicago metropolitan area, the son of Raya Czerner Schapiro and Joseph Schapiro. His mother, a Czech immigrant who was born in Prague, was a psychiatrist and Holocaust refugee. His father was a pediatrician. Schapiro graduated from
Homewood-Flossmoor High School Homewood-Flossmoor High School (H-F) is a comprehensive public high school in Flossmoor, Illinois. The district encompasses nearly 11.5 square miles drawing students from Homewood, Flossmoor, Chicago Heights, Glenwood, Hazel Crest, and Olympia ...
in 1981. He attended Yale University, graduating with a B.A. in history ''magna cum laude'' in 1985. Schapiro then attended the
Merton College, Oxford Merton College (in full: The House or College of Scholars of Merton in the University of Oxford) is one of the Colleges of Oxford University, constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. Its foundation can be traced back to the ...
on a Marshall Scholarship, earning a B.A. (later promoted to an M.A.) in philosophy, politics and economics, with first-class honors, in 1987. He then entered
Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...
, where he served on the Law Review with Barack Obama. Schapiro was awarded a J.D. degree in 1990.


Legal career

Schapiro served as a law clerk for Judge Richard Posner of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago, and then clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Harry Blackmun Harry Andrew Blackmun (November 12, 1908 – March 4, 1999) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1970 to 1994. Appointed by Republican President Richard Nixon, Blac ...
, in Washington, DC. Schapiro is credited with helping to shape Blackmun's eventual position as a death penalty "abolitionist". Schapiro wrote to the justice, "Efforts to fine-tune the machinery of death cannot succeed". Following his clerkships, Schapiro spent five years as a public-interest lawyer in the office of the Federal Public Defender in New York City, defending individuals charged with federal crimes who could not afford to hire their own attorneys. As a partner at two global law firms—first Mayer Brown and then Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan—he specialized in intellectual property and commercial litigation and appeals. Following diplomatic service, he returned to Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, again as a partner. He has been ranked in ''Best Lawyers In America'' and ''Legal 500 USA'', and was twice chosen as the ''American Lawyers "Litigator of the Week" for landmark victories on behalf of YouTube and Google in the $1 billion ''Viacom v. YouTube'' litigation. He has been described in the press as a "superstar" and "one of the brightest legal minds of his generation".


Ambassadorship

On March 6, 2014, President Obama nominated Schapiro to be U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic. He was confirmed by the U.S. Senate by a voice vote on July 23, 2014. In his first year as ambassador, he visited each of the country's 14 regions. Schapiro's 2015 appearance on the popular Jan Kraus talk show drew notice after he sang and played " Jumpin' Jack Flash", by The Rolling Stones, with the house band, at the host's invitation. In April 2015, Schapiro suggested in a television interview that it could be "awkward" for Czech President Milos Zeman to go ahead with plans to attend a military parade in Moscow, which other Western leaders were avoiding due to the Ukraine crisis and where Zeman was expected to be the only European head of state on the reviewing stand. President Zeman responded by condemning Schapiro for his comments. Zeman's reaction drew criticism from across the Czech political spectrum, and Zeman then decided not to attend the parade. Schapiro has emphasized the importance of a strong NATO partnership, and in 2015 traveled to Afghanistan with Czech military commanders to visit Czech and American troops serving together at Bagram Air Base. During Schapiro's tenure as ambassador, the US Embassy increased its focus on innovation and entrepreneurship, and initiated a new Ambassador's Fund for Women's Empowerment to assist Czech groups working to deepen the participation of women in business, government and public life.


Civic and political activity

Schapiro has served on the board of directors of the Chicago Low-Income Housing Trust Fund, the Criminal Justice Act Advisory Board of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the Board of Directors of the
Jewish Council on Urban Affairs Jewish Council on Urban Affairs (JCUA) is a nonprofit organization based in Chicago that mobilizes the Jewish community of the region to advance racial and economic justice. JCUA partners with diverse community groups across the city and state to c ...
, and the advisory board of the institute on the Supreme Court of the United States. He was a member of the Democratic National Committee's 2012 Platform Committee as well as its National Finance Committee.“Andrew Schapiro, U.S. Ambassador to Czech Republic,”
retrieved Dec. 12, 2016


Personal

Schapiro is married to Tamar Newberger, and they have two children, Galia and Alex.


See also

* List of law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States (Seat 2)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Schapiro, Andrew H. 1963 births 20th-century American lawyers Alumni of Merton College, Oxford Ambassadors of the United States to the Czech Republic American expatriates in the Czech Republic Harvard Law School alumni American Jews American lawyers Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States Lawyers from Chicago Living people Marshall Scholars Obama administration personnel Yale University alumni Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan people Homewood-Flossmoor High School alumni 21st-century American diplomats Public defenders