John Joseph Gibbons (December 8, 1924 – December 9, 2018) was a

United States circuit judge In the United States, federal judges are judges who serve on courts established under Article Three of the U.S. Constitution. They include the chief justice and the associate justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the circuit judges of the U.S. Cou ...

of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and later a

partner Partner, Partners, The Partner, or, The Partners may refer to: Books * ''The Partner'' (Grisham novel), by John Grisham, 1997 * ''The Partner'' (Jenaro Prieto novel), 1928 * ''The Partners'' (book), a 1983 book by James B. Stewart * ''Partner'' (m ...

at the

law firm A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients (individuals or corporations) about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to r ...

of Gibbons P.C. After service ub the US Navy he began his legal career at Crummy & Consodine and later became a partner of the firm, which incorporated his name into its title. He was nominated to the Third Circuit by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

in December 1969 and served on that court until his retirement in 1990. During the last three years he served as chief judge and during his tenure wrote more than 800 legal opinions. After retirement Gibbons returned to his original firm and worked on human rights cases, in commercial arbitration and intellectual property disputes. He received a lifetime achievement award from ''The American Lawyer'' in 2005 and in 2006 was named as one of the ''National Law Journal''s "100 most influential lawyers".

Education and career

Born in

Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

, Gibbons was raised in Belleville, New Jersey.Biography of John J. Gibbons
, Gibbons P.C. Accessed May 11, 2012. He graduated from

Saint Benedict's Preparatory School St. Benedict's Preparatory School is a Catholic college preparatory school in Newark, New Jersey run by the Benedictines. The school serves boys and girls in kindergarten through twelfth grade on a urban campus. The school has been accredite ...

in 1942. He served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

from 1943 to 1946. Gibbons graduated from the

College of the Holy Cross The College of the Holy Cross is a private, Jesuit liberal arts college in Worcester, Massachusetts, about 40 miles (64 km) west of Boston. Founded in 1843, Holy Cross is the oldest Catholic college in New England and one of the oldest ...

in 1947 with a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree and from

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 ...

in 1950 with a

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

. After graduation, Gibbons joined the firm of Crummy & Consodine. After several years with the firm, he was named a partner and the firm's name changed to Crummy, Consodine & Gibbons.Gibbons P.C. firm history
In 1967, Gibbons became President of the

New Jersey State Bar Association The New Jersey State Bar Association (NJSBA) is a voluntary bar association for the state of New Jersey. History In June 1899, 74 attorneys launched NJSBA in Atlantic City; annual dues were $5.00. Within the next decade, the Canon of Ethics was ...

, and also a member of the Governor's Commission on Civil Disorders. This was during the time of the

Newark riots The 1967 Newark riots were an episode of violent, armed conflict in the streets of Newark, New Jersey, United States. Taking place over a four-day period (between July 12 and July 17, 1967), the Newark riots resulted in at least 26 deaths and ...

which left 23 people dead and more than 1,500 arrested. The firm responded by sending cars full of lawyers to courthouses to speed up the processing of bail applications and reduce jail overcrowding. The firm represented many of those charged on a

pro bono ( en, 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. In the United States, the term typically refers to provision of legal services by legal professionals for pe ...

basis.

Federal judicial service

Gibbons was nominated to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

on December 5, 1969, to a seat vacated by Judge Gerald McLaughlin. Gibbons was confirmed by the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

on December 17, 1969, and received his commission on December 18, 1969. He served as Chief Judge of the Third Circuit between 1987 and 1990 and retired on January 15, 1990.

Post-judicial career

Gibbons returned to the firm bearing his name in 1990 (which was then renamed

Gibbons, Del Deo, Dolan, Griffinger & Vecchione Gibbons P.C. is a large U.S. law firm with 200 lawyers in offices across four states including in New York, Philadelphia and Newark. The firm is best known for its litigation department, which included retired judge John Gibbons. The departmen ...

), and founded the John J. Gibbons Fellowship in Public Interest & Constitutional Law. He also taught

constitutional law Constitutional law is a body of law which defines the role, powers, and structure of different entities within a State (polity), state, namely, the executive (government), executive, the parliament or legislature, and the judiciary; as well as th ...

at Seton Hall University School of Law until 1997. Gibbons was involved in defending 660 of the detainees at the

Guantanamo Bay detention camp The Guantanamo Bay detention camp ( es, Centro de detención de la bahía de Guantánamo) is a United States military prison located within Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, also referred to as Guantánamo, GTMO, and Gitmo (), on the coast of Guant ...

. He successfully opposed their detention without judicial review. He also worked as a mediator and arbitrator in commercial disputes between large corporations and in litigation in the fields of antitrust, intellectual property law and securities regulation. He was a member of the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

's house of delegates and was chairman of its Committee on Fair Trial and Free Press. Gibbons was named "lawyer of the year" by the New Jersey Law Journal in 2004 and received a lifetime achievement award from The American Lawyer in 2005. In 2006 he was named on the National Law Journal's list of "100 most influential lawyers". Gibbons was appointed a life member of the

American Law Institute The American Law Institute (ALI) is a research and advocacy group of judges, lawyers, and legal scholars established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of United States common law and its adaptation to changing social needs. ...

and was also a fellow of the

American Bar Foundation The American Bar Foundation (ABF) is an independent, nonprofit national research institute established in 1952 and located in Chicago. Its mission is to expand knowledge and advance justice by supporting innovative, interdisciplinary and rigorous ...

. He was a director of the

American Arbitration Association The American Arbitration Association (AAA) is a not-for-profit organization in the field of alternative dispute resolution, providing services to individuals and organizations who wish to resolve conflicts out of court, and one of several arbitr ...

and trustee emeritus of both the Practicing Law Institute and Holy Cross College and a trustee of the Fund for New Jersey. Gibbons died on December 9, 2018, the day after his 94th birthday.

References

External links

*
Gibbons' attorney bio from Gibbons P.C.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbons, John Joseph 1924 births 2018 deaths College of the Holy Cross alumni Harvard Law School alumni Judges of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Lawyers from Newark, New Jersey Military personnel from Newark, New Jersey People from Belleville, New Jersey Seton Hall University School of Law faculty St. Benedict's Preparatory School alumni United States court of appeals judges appointed by Richard Nixon 20th-century American judges United States Navy personnel of World War II