Aviam Soifer


Aviam Soifer is an American legal scholar and currently the Dean of the William S. Richardson School of Law in the U.S. state of Hawaii.

Background

Soifer earned his Bachelor of Arts at Yale University in 1969, and a Master of Urban Studies at the same institution in 1972. He also earned his Juris Doctor at Yale Law School, in 1972, where he was an editor on the Yale Law Journal. Upon graduation, Soifer became a law clerk for a Federal Judge, Jon O. Newman.
As an undergraduate, Soifer played a fundamental role in convincing then-Dean Kingman Brewster to commit to coeducation at Yale College.

Career

From 1993 to 1998, Soifer was dean of the Boston College Law School, where he remained as a professor until he accepted his current Deanship in 2003. Soifer is the author of many articles and book chapters, most recently in the areas of religious freedom, rights of the disabled, constitutional history, and judging/judgment. He has also authored a book, Law and the Company We Keep, which received several professional awards.

Selected bibliography