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{{Short description|American lawyer and political activist (1950–2024)}} |
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{{other people|William Mellor}} |
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'''William H. "Chip" Mellor''' ( |
'''William H.''' "'''Chip'''" '''Mellor''' (December 31, 1950 – October 11, 2024) was an American lawyer who co-founded the [[Institute for Justice]] (IJ).<ref name="death">{{cite news |last1=Kramer |first1=John |title=Chip Mellor, Institute for Justice Visionary Cofounder and Former President, Has Passed Away |url=https://ij.org/press-release/chip-mellor-institute-for-justice-visionary-cofounder-former-president-has-passed-away/ |access-date=14 October 2024 |publisher=Institute for Justice |date=October 14, 2024}}</ref> Mellor served as IJ's founding president and [[general counsel]] and later as chairman of the organization's [[board of directors]].<ref name = "nro">{{cite journal|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/article/429141/nstitute-justice-chip-mellor-legacy-fighting-american-dream|title= Fighting for the American Dream|journal=[[National Review]]|date=December 31, 2015|first=John E.|last=Kramer}}</ref> During his career at IJ, Mellor pursued constitutional litigation in four areas: [[Economic freedom|economic liberty]], [[property rights]], [[school choice]], and [[free speech]]. |
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==Early career== |
==Early career== |
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Mellor received his B.A. from [[Ohio State University]] in 1973 and his [[Juris Doctor|J.D.]] from the [[University of Denver Law School]] in 1977.<ref>{{cite journal|url=https://www.abajournal.com/legalrebels/article/chip_mellor_libertarian_law|title= Chip Mellor: Libertarian Law|journal=[[ABA Journal]]|date=September 24, 2009|first=Siobhan|last=Morrissey}}</ref> From 1979 to 1983, he practiced public interest law with the [[Mountain States Legal Foundation]] in [[Denver]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://reason.com/2008/03/03/litigating-for-liberty/|title= Litigating for Liberty|journal=[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]]|date=March 2008|first=Nick|last=Gillespie|author-link=Nick Gillespie}}</ref> Following his time there, he served in the [[Ronald Reagan]] administration as Deputy General Counsel for Legislation and Regulations in the [[United States Department of Energy]].<ref name = "Bradley" >{{cite web| url= https://www.bradleyfdn.org/prizes/winners/william-h.-mellor|title=William H. Mellor|publisher=[[Bradley Foundation]]|access-date=2021-04-02|date=2012}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | From 1986 until 1991, Mellor served as president of the [[Pacific Research Institute]], a [[think tank]] located in [[San Francisco, California]]. Under Mellor's leadership, the organization commissioned and published books on [[civil rights]], [[property rights]], [[technology]], and the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|First Amendment]] that would later serve as the [[Institute for Justice]]'s long-term strategic litigation blueprint.<ref name ="Bradley" /> |
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Mellor received his B.A. from [[Ohio State University]] in 1973 and his J.D. from the [[University of Denver Law School]] in 1977. From 1979-1983, he practiced public interest law with [[Mountain States Legal Foundation]] in [[Denver]]. Following his time there, he served in the [[Ronald Reagan]] Administration as Deputy General Counsel for Legislation and Regulations in the [[United States Department of Energy]]. |
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| ⚫ | From 1986 until 1991, Mellor served as president of the [[Pacific Research Institute]], a [[think tank]] located in [[San Francisco, California]]. |
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==Institute for Justice == |
==Institute for Justice == |
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| ⚫ | In 1991, [[Clint Bolick]] and Chip Mellor founded the [[Institute for Justice]], a nonprofit libertarian public interest law firm.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/17/magazine/the-unregulated-offensive.html|title= The Unregulated Offensive|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=April 17, 2005|first=Jeffrey|last=Rosen|author-link=Jeffrey Rosen (legal academic)}}</ref> Under Mellor's leadership, the [[Institute for Justice]] litigated five [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]] cases, winning four of them.<ref name = "nro" /> In addition, the organization helped pursue the landmark ''[[District of Columbia v. Heller]]'' case, in which the Supreme Court held that the [[Second Amendment to the United States Constitution|Second Amendment]] to the [[U.S. Constitution]] protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for private use. |
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Mellor personally litigated lawsuits that broke open Denver's 50-year-old taxi monopoly,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bizjournals.com/denver/news/2011/10/27/law-group-appeals-for-mile-high-cab-to.html|title=Law group appeals for Mile High Cab to Colorado Supreme Court|publisher=[[Denver Business Journal]]|date=October 27, 2011|first=Cathy|last=Proctor}}</ref> ended the funeral industry's monopoly on casket sales in Tennessee,<ref>{{cite journal|access-date=April 2, 2021|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vgAp__wf5C4C&q=chip+mellor+%22tennessee%22+casket+sales&pg=PA48|title= Dusty Doctrines|journal=[[ABA Journal]]|date=May 2001|first=Steve|last=Franch}}</ref> and defended New Jersey's welfare reform.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://reason.com/1994/10/01/a-right-to-welfare/|title=A Right to Welfare?|journal=[[Reason (magazine)|Reason]]|date=October 1994|first=Chip|last=Mellor}}</ref> He also established the [[Institute for Justice]] Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the [[University of Chicago]]<ref>{{cite news|url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fsb/fsb_archive/2004/06/01/373294/index.htm|title=Libertarians and Justice for all?|publisher=[[Fortune Small Business]]|date=June 1, 2004|first=Julie|last=Sloan}}</ref> and worked with [[University of Chicago]] professor [[Richard Allen Epstein|Richard Epstein]] on [[amicus briefs]] for eight [[property rights]] cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. |
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| ⚫ | In 1991, [[Clint Bolick]] and Chip Mellor founded the [[Institute for Justice]], a nonprofit libertarian public interest law firm. Under Mellor's leadership, the [[Institute for Justice]] |
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| ⚫ | In 2008, Mellor co-authored with [[Robert A. Levy]] of the [[Cato Institute]] ''[[The Dirty Dozen (book)|The Dirty Dozen]]: How Twelve Supreme Court Cases Radically Expanded Government and Eroded Freedom''. The book takes on twelve Supreme Court cases that effectively amended the Constitution and argues for a Supreme Court that will enforce what the Constitution says about civil liberties, property rights and other controversial issues.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.manhattan-institute.org/html/young-leaders-circle-forum-william-chip-mellor-8192.html|publisher=[[Manhattan Institute]]|access-date=2021-04-02|title=Young Leaders Circle Forum With William "Chip" Mellor}}</ref> |
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Mellor personally litigated lawsuits that broke open Denver's 50-year-old taxi monopoly, ended the funeral industry's monopoly on casket sales in Tennessee, and defended New Jersey's welfare reform. He also established the [[Institute for Justice]] Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the [[University of Chicago]] and worked with [[University of Chicago]] professor [[Richard Allen Epstein|Richard Epstein]] on [[amicus briefs]] for eight [[property rights]] cases before the U.S. Supreme Court. |
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| ⚫ | In a January 2012 profile of Mellor titled ''Litigating for Liberty'', ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' wrote, "Move over, ACLU. Chip Mellor, president of one of America's most influential law groups is expanding freedom on political speech, organ transplants and other economic frontiers."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052970203513604577144902274972614|publisher=[[Wall Street Journal]]|date=2012-01-07|first=Collin|last=Levy|title=Litigating for Liberty}}</ref> |
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| ⚫ | In 2008, Mellor co-authored with [[Robert A. Levy]] of the [[Cato Institute]] |
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On June 7, 2012, Mellor was awarded the [[Bradley Foundation]]'s Bradley Prize.<ref name = "Bradley" /> |
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Mellor's regular "Constitutional Crossroads" column is carried on Forbes.com and his work has appeared in various media outlets. |
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==Death== |
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| ⚫ | In a January 2012 profile of Mellor |
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Mellor died from leukemia at his home in [[Moab, Utah]] on October 11, 2024, at the age of 73.<ref name="death"/> |
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On June 7, 2012, Mellor was awarded the [[Bradley Foundation]]'s Bradley Prize for leading “the fight for freedom in America’s courts by challenging laws that stifle constitutional rights.”<ref>http://www.ij.org/l-l-8-12-chip-mellor-2012-bradley-prize-winner</ref> |
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{{reflist}} |
{{reflist}} |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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*[http://ij.org/staff/william-h-mellor/ William Mellor at Institute for Justice] |
*[http://ij.org/staff/william-h-mellor/ William Mellor at Institute for Justice] |
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*{{C-SPAN|40794}} |
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{{Authority control}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Mellor, Chip}} |
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mellor, Chip}} |
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[[Category:1950 births]] |
[[Category:1950 births]] |
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[[Category:20th-century American lawyers]] |
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[[Category:21st-century American lawyers]] |
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[[Category:American civil rights lawyers]] |
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[[Category:Deaths from cancer in Utah]] |
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[[Category:Deaths from leukemia in the United States]] |
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[[Category:Sturm College of Law alumni]] |
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[[Category:Utah lawyers]] |
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[[Category:People from Moab, Utah]] |
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Latest revision as of 11:09, 29 November 2024
William H. "Chip" Mellor (December 31, 1950 – October 11, 2024) was an American lawyer who co-founded the Institute for Justice (IJ).[1] Mellor served as IJ's founding president and general counsel and later as chairman of the organization's board of directors.[2] During his career at IJ, Mellor pursued constitutional litigation in four areas: economic liberty, property rights, school choice, and free speech.
Early career
[edit]Mellor received his B.A. from Ohio State University in 1973 and his J.D. from the University of Denver Law School in 1977.[3] From 1979 to 1983, he practiced public interest law with the Mountain States Legal Foundation in Denver.[4] Following his time there, he served in the Ronald Reagan administration as Deputy General Counsel for Legislation and Regulations in the United States Department of Energy.[5]
From 1986 until 1991, Mellor served as president of the Pacific Research Institute, a think tank located in San Francisco, California. Under Mellor's leadership, the organization commissioned and published books on civil rights, property rights, technology, and the First Amendment that would later serve as the Institute for Justice's long-term strategic litigation blueprint.[5]
Institute for Justice
[edit]In 1991, Clint Bolick and Chip Mellor founded the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit libertarian public interest law firm.[6] Under Mellor's leadership, the Institute for Justice litigated five U.S. Supreme Court cases, winning four of them.[2] In addition, the organization helped pursue the landmark District of Columbia v. Heller case, in which the Supreme Court held that the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution protects an individual's right to possess a firearm for private use.
Mellor personally litigated lawsuits that broke open Denver's 50-year-old taxi monopoly,[7] ended the funeral industry's monopoly on casket sales in Tennessee,[8] and defended New Jersey's welfare reform.[9] He also established the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago[10] and worked with University of Chicago professor Richard Epstein on amicus briefs for eight property rights cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.
In 2008, Mellor co-authored with Robert A. Levy of the Cato Institute The Dirty Dozen: How Twelve Supreme Court Cases Radically Expanded Government and Eroded Freedom. The book takes on twelve Supreme Court cases that effectively amended the Constitution and argues for a Supreme Court that will enforce what the Constitution says about civil liberties, property rights and other controversial issues.[11]
In a January 2012 profile of Mellor titled Litigating for Liberty, The Wall Street Journal wrote, "Move over, ACLU. Chip Mellor, president of one of America's most influential law groups is expanding freedom on political speech, organ transplants and other economic frontiers."[12]
On June 7, 2012, Mellor was awarded the Bradley Foundation's Bradley Prize.[5]
Death
[edit]Mellor died from leukemia at his home in Moab, Utah on October 11, 2024, at the age of 73.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Kramer, John (October 14, 2024). "Chip Mellor, Institute for Justice Visionary Cofounder and Former President, Has Passed Away". Institute for Justice. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ a b Kramer, John E. (December 31, 2015). "Fighting for the American Dream". National Review.
- ^ Morrissey, Siobhan (September 24, 2009). "Chip Mellor: Libertarian Law". ABA Journal.
- ^ Gillespie, Nick (March 2008). "Litigating for Liberty". Reason.
- ^ a b c "William H. Mellor". Bradley Foundation. 2012. Retrieved 2021-04-02.
- ^ Rosen, Jeffrey (April 17, 2005). "The Unregulated Offensive". The New York Times.
- ^ Proctor, Cathy (October 27, 2011). "Law group appeals for Mile High Cab to Colorado Supreme Court". Denver Business Journal.
- ^ Franch, Steve (May 2001). "Dusty Doctrines". ABA Journal. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
- ^ Mellor, Chip (October 1994). "A Right to Welfare?". Reason.
- ^ Sloan, Julie (June 1, 2004). "Libertarians and Justice for all?". Fortune Small Business.
- ^ "Young Leaders Circle Forum With William "Chip" Mellor". Manhattan Institute. Retrieved 2021-04-02.
- ^ Levy, Collin (2012-01-07). "Litigating for Liberty". Wall Street Journal.