Peter William Huber (November 3, 1952 – January 8, 2021) was a lawyer and author who served as a senior
fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
at the
Manhattan Institute
The Manhattan Institute for Policy Research (renamed in 1981 from the International Center for Economic Policy Studies) is a conservative American think tank focused on domestic policy and urban affairs, established in Manhattan in 1978 by Ant ...
and was a founding partner at the law firm of
Kellogg, Huber, Hansen, Todd, Evans & Figel
Kellogg, Hansen, Todd, Figel & Frederick PLLC is an American law firm based in Washington, DC. The "uber-elite, D.C.-based litigation boutique" was founded in 1993 by three former Harvard Law School classmates, Michael K. Kellogg, Peter W. Hube ...
. He is credited with popularizing the term "
junk science
The expression junk science is used to describe scientific data, research, or analysis considered by the person using the phrase to be spurious or fraudulent. The concept is often invoked in political and legal contexts where facts and scientifi ...
" in 1991, and articulating a conservative approach to environmentalism in his 2000 book, ''Hard Green: Saving the Environment from the Environmentalists''.
Life and career
Huber was born on November 3, 1952, in
Toronto, Canada
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anchor ...
, and grew up in
Geneva, Switzerland
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
.
He entered the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
at age 17. He received a
Ph.D.
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...
in
mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is the study of physical machines that may involve force and movement. It is an engineering branch that combines engineering physics and mathematics principles with materials science, to design, analyze, manufacture, and ...
in 1976 at the age of 23 and joined the MIT faculty as a professor, receiving tenure two years later.
While a professor at MIT, Huber began attending
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 ...
. He was an editor of the ''
Harvard Law Review
The ''Harvard Law Review'' is a law review published by an independent student group at Harvard Law School. According to the ''Journal Citation Reports'', the ''Harvard Law Review''s 2015 impact factor of 4.979 placed the journal first out of 143 ...
'' and graduated in 1982 with a
Juris Doctor
The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law
and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...
''
summa cum laude
Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sou ...
''. Huber was the only Harvard Law graduate between 1975 and 1996 who received the ''summa cum laude'' distinction.
Huber then
clerked first for judge (later Supreme Court justice)
Ruth Bader Ginsburg
Joan Ruth Bader Ginsburg ( ; ; March 15, 1933September 18, 2020) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1993 until her death in 2020. She was nominated by President ...
of the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (in case citations, D.C. Cir.) is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. It has the smallest geographical jurisdiction of any of the U.S. federal appellate cou ...
from 1982 to 1983, and then for justice
Sandra Day O'Connor
Sandra Day O'Connor (born March 26, 1930) is an American retired attorney and politician who served as the first female associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. She was both the first woman nominated and th ...
of the
U.S. Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
from 1983 to 1984.
Books
*
*
*
*
*
* (with Kenneth R. Foster)
*
*
*
* (with Mark P. Mills)
*
See also
*
Notes
External links
*
* Peter Hube
at MIT Press
* Peter Hube
at Manhattan Institute's City Journal quarterly magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huber, Peter W.
American non-fiction writers
Harvard Law School alumni
Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States
MIT School of Engineering alumni
1952 births
2021 deaths
Manhattan Institute for Policy Research