Douglas Eakeley

Professor Eakeley joined Rutgers Law School in 2012 as the first occupant of the Alan V. Lowenstein Chair in Corporate and Business Law, after several decades in private practice specializing in complex commercial litigation.  He is the founder and co-director of the Rutgers Center for Corporate Law and Governance and the Rutgers Law School Entrepreneurship Clinic.  He teaches courses in business organizations, corporate governance, and compliance & enterprise risk management.

A former Rhodes Scholar and graduate of Yale College (summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa), Oxford University and Yale Law School, Professor Eakeley served as First Assistant Attorney General of the State of New Jersey during the administration of Governor James J. Florio. In 1993, he was appointed by President William J. Clinton (with the consent of the United States Senate) to the board of directors of the Legal Services Corporation, which he chaired until April 2003.   His current professional affiliations include serving as a founding trustee (and former Chair) of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, and trustee (and former Chair) of Legal Services of New Jersey.

An inductee into the New Jersey Equal Justice Library and Archive Circle of Justice, Professor Eakeley has received numerous awards for his pro bono work and contributions to the community, including the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice Alan V. and Amy Lowenstein Social Justice Award, American Jewish Committee’s Judge Learned Hand Award, Thurgood Marshall College Fund Award of Excellence, American Bar Association Litigation Section John Minor Wisdom Public Service and Professionalism Award, National Housing Institute’s Outstanding Service Award, California Rural Legal Assistance Reynoso-Abascal Don Quixote Award, League of Women Voters of New Jersey Making Democracy Work Award, Lead New Jersey's Lifetime of Leadership Award, and the first Legal Services of New Jersey Pro Bono Publico Award (renamed the Debevoise-Eakeley Award).