Milton C. Handler (1903 – November 10, 1998) was an American lawyer and professor of law. He was considered a "leading antitrust expert and drafter of some of the nation's best-known laws."

Early life and education

Born in the Bronx in 1903, he was the youngest of seven children. After his father died when he was 2, they moved to Brooklyn. He graduated from

Columbia College Columbia College may refer to one of several institutions of higher education in North America: Canada * Columbia College (Alberta), in Calgary * Columbia College (British Columbia), a two-year liberal arts institution in Vancouver * Columbia In ...

in 1923, originally thinking of teaching literature. He graduated from

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked ...

in 1926 with top honors. He clerked for Justice

Harlan Fiske Stone Harlan is a given name and a surname which may refer to: Surname * Bob Harlan (born 1936 Robert E. Harlan), American football executive * Bruce Harlan (1926–1959), American Olympic diver * Byron B. Harlan (1886–1949), American politician * Byr ...

of the Supreme Court for one year.

Career

Handler taught at

Columbia University Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...

for 45 years. His tenure began after he was invited to teach at summer session. When he left, he had the longest tenure in the history of the school. He was President

Franklin D. Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

's chief adviser on antitrust matters, served as the first general counsel to the

National Labor Relations Board The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) is an independent agency of the federal government of the United States with responsibilities for enforcing U.S. labor law in relation to collective bargaining and unfair labor practices. Under the Nati ...

. He helped draft several landmark statutes such as the

Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act The United States Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (abbreviated as FFDCA, FDCA, or FD&C) is a set of laws passed by the United States Congress in 1938 giving authority to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to oversee the safety of f ...

of 1938, the

National Labor Relations Act The National Labor Relations Act of 1935, also known as the Wagner Act, is a foundational statute of United States labor law that guarantees the right of private sector employees to organize into trade unions, engage in collective bargaining, and ...

and the

G.I. Bill of Rights The Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, commonly known as the G.I. Bill, was a law that provided a range of benefits for some of the returning World War II veterans (commonly referred to as G.I.s). The original G.I. Bill expired in 1956, bu ...

. In the 1950s, he became a partner in the New York law firm, Kaye, Scholer, Fierman, Hays & Handler where he represented corporations such as

Xerox Xerox Holdings Corporation (; also known simply as Xerox) is an American corporation that sells print and digital document products and services in more than 160 countries. Xerox is headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut (having moved from St ...

PepsiCo PepsiCo, Inc. is an American multinational food, snack, and beverage corporation headquartered in Harrison, New York, in the hamlet of Purchase. PepsiCo's business encompasses all aspects of the food and beverage market. It oversees the man ...

, the American Tobacco Company and

Texaco Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an independent company until i ...

Personal life

Handler married Marion Winter Kahn in 1931, who died in 1953. He married second wife Miriam Adler in 1955 (she predeceased him in 1997). He is survived by his daughter

Carole E. Handler Carole Enid Handler is an American lawyer who specializes in intellectual property litigation in the areas of trademark, copyright and antitrust laws, particularly those related to entertainment and media industry. She is commonly known as the "l ...

and two granddaughters, Alisa Marion Schoenbach and Ilana Abigail Schoenbach.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Handler, Milton 1903 births 1998 deaths American legal scholars Columbia Law School alumni Columbia Law School faculty Kaye Scholer partners Law clerks of Harlan F. Stone Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States People from the Bronx Antitrust lawyers 20th-century American lawyers Columbia College (New York) alumni

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References