Robert A. Butkin is an American law professor, academic administrator and politician who served as State Treasurer of Oklahoma from 1995 to 2005. Butkin subsequently served as dean of the

University of Tulsa College of Law The University of Tulsa College of Law is the law school of the private University of Tulsa in Tulsa, Oklahoma. For 2021, ''U.S. News & World Report'' ranked the University of Tulsa College of Law at No. 111 among all law schools in the United S ...

from 2005 until 2007.

Background and career

Butkin is currently a tenured professor at the University of Tulsa College of Law. Butkin drafted legislation that created Oklahoma's College Savings Plan, and co-chairing the effort to pass two state constitutional amendments that now allow public Oklahoma universities to engage in technology-transfer and commercial development of their own ideas. He also co-chaired the successful effort that created a permanent constitutional trust fund for tobacco-settlement monies. Dean Butkin chaired Governor-elect

Brad Henry Charles Bradford Henry (born July 10, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician who was the 26th governor of Oklahoma from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected governor in 2002. Henry won re-election for a second term ...

's transition team, recruiting a bi-partisan group of business, civic and political leaders who assisted the governor in identifying key issues. He has served in various organizations including holding the presidency of the Southern State Treasurers Association. He chaired the Banking, Collateral and Cash Management Committee for the National Association of State Treasurers. Butkin received a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree from

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

in Connecticut, graduating

magna 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 So ...

in 1975 with distinction in history. He received his

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 ...

from the

University of Pennsylvania Law School The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School (also known as Penn Law or Penn Carey Law) is the law school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is among the most selective and olde ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

in 1978. He was one of 15 Americans named a

Henry Luce Scholar A Luce Scholar is a recipient of a cultural exchange and vocational fellowship sponsored by the Henry Luce Foundation, a private foundation established by Time, Inc. founder Henry R. Luce. The program Founded in 1974, The Luce Scholars Progra ...

in 1978 and served as visiting fellow at the

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; fil, Pamantasan ng Pilipinas Unibersidad ng Pilipinas) is a state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by Republic Act No. 9500 (UP Charter of 200 ...

Law Center in

Quezon City Quezon City (, ; fil, Lungsod Quezon ), also known as the City of Quezon and Q.C. (read in Filipino as Kyusi), is the List of cities in the Philippines, most populous city in the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a populatio ...

. He also held the position of assistant attorney general for the state of Oklahoma and was an associate attorney with the Washington, D.C. law firm of

Hogan and Hartson Hogan Lovells is an American-British law firm co-headquartered in London and Washington, DC. The firm was formed in 2010 by the merger of the American law firm Hogan & Hartson and the British law firm Lovells. It employs about 2,400 lawyers acr ...

References

Sources

University of Tulsa College of Law Faculty PagesTU Announces New Law Dean
{{DEFAULTSORT:Butkin, Robert Living people Year of birth missing (living people) University of Tulsa College of Law faculty Deans of law schools in the United States State treasurers of Oklahoma Oklahoma Democrats Jewish American people in Oklahoma politics University of Pennsylvania Law School alumni Yale College alumni 21st-century American Jews