Roderick Maltman Hills (March 9, 1931 – October 29, 2014) served as chairman of the
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government, created in the aftermath of the Wall Street Crash of 1929. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market ...
between 1975 and 1977. Later he worked at the investment bank of
Drexel Burnham Lambert and then at the law firm of
Donovan, Leisure, Newton & Irvine.
Biography
Hills was born in
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region ...
and grew up in
Whittier, California
Whittier () is a city in Southern California in Los Angeles County, part of the Gateway Cities. The city had 87,306 residents as of the 2020 United States census, an increase of 1,975 from the 2010 census figure. Whittier was incorporated in ...
, where he played high school football under the same coach as former President
Richard M. Nixon. A janitor's son, Hills was the first in his family to go to college.
Hills received his bachelor's degree from
Stanford University and then his
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 Ch ...
at
Stanford Law School
Stanford Law School (Stanford Law or SLS) is the law school of Stanford University, a private research university near Palo Alto, California. Established in 1893, it is regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world. Stanford La ...
in 1955, following which he served as law clerk to Justice
Stanley F. Reed
Stanley Forman Reed (December 31, 1884 – April 2, 1980) was an American lawyer and jurist who served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court from 1938 to 1957. He also ser ...
,
Supreme Court of the United States, during 1955 to 1957.
In 1962, he founded the law firm of Munger, Tolles, Hills, and Rickershauser (now
Munger, Tolles & Olson) along with six other lawyers. He was also Founder and Chairman Emeritus of the
US-ASEAN Business Council
The US-ASEAN Business Council (also known as "US-ABC" or "USABC") is an advocacy group that aims to foster economic growth and trade ties between the United States and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)'s ten member countries. I ...
.
During his career he also served as a partner in the Washington law firm of
Latham & Watkins
Latham & Watkins LLP is an American multinational law firm. Founded in 1934 in Los Angeles, California, Latham is the second-largest law firm in the world by revenue. As of 2021, Latham is also one of the most profitable law firms in the world ...
, as the chief executive officer of
Peabody Coal
Peabody Energy is a coal mining and energy company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Its primary business consists of the mining, sale, and distribution of coal, which is purchased for use in electricity generation and steelmaking. Peabody ...
and—in the early 1980s—as the Washington-based head of a merchant banking arm of Sears that was known as Sears World Trade. He had been, since 1996, a partner at the law firm of Hills & Stern. From 1984 until his death in 2014, he served as chairman of Hills Enterprises, Ltd. (formerly The Manchester Group, Ltd.).
Personal life
He was married to former
United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development
The United States secretary of housing and urban development (or HUD secretary) is the head of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, a member of the president's Cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furnitur ...
Carla Anderson Hills
Carla Anderson Hills (born January 3, 1934) is an American lawyer and a public figure. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 5th United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development under President Gerald Ford from 197 ...
from 1958 until his death. His son, Roderick M. Hills Jr., is a law professor at the
New York University School of Law
New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it is the oldest law school in New York City and the oldest surviving law school in N ...
, and his daughter, Laura Hills, attended Stanford Law School.
Hills died on October 29, 2014, at
Johns Hopkins Hospital
The Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH) is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, located in Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. It was founded in 1889 using money from a bequest of over $7 million (1873 m ...
in
Baltimore
Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
at age 83 of heart failure.
Notice of death of Roderick Hills
bloomberg.com; accessed November 1, 2014.
See also
*
References
External links
Interview with Roderick M. Hills
October 11, 1982, University of Kentucky Libraries
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hills, Roderick M.
1931 births
2014 deaths
Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States
Members of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
People from Whittier, California
Stanford University alumni
Stanford Law School alumni
Drexel Burnham Lambert
People associated with Latham & Watkins
People associated with Munger, Tolles & Olson
Ford administration personnel
Carter administration personnel