James Justesen White (born 1934) is an American legal scholar working as the Robert A. Sullivan Professor of Law at the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparative Law (MCL ...

. He has published the most widely recognized treatise on commercial law, ''

Uniform Commercial Code The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC), first published in 1952, is one of a number of Uniform Acts that have been established as law with the goal of harmonizing the laws of sales and other commercial transactions across the United States through U ...

'' with

Robert S. Summers Robert Samuel Summers (September 19, 1933 – March 1, 2019) was an American legal scholar who was the former William G. McRoberts Research Professor in the Administration of the Law at the Cornell Law School. He retired in 2011. Early life and ...

.University of Michigan Law School Faculty & Staff
/ref>

Education

White earned a Bachelor of Arts degree

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educati ...

in 1956, graduating ''magna cum laude'' and

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States, and the most prestigious, due in part to its long history and academic selectivity. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal ...

. He earned a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...

from the

in 1962, graduating as a member of the

Order of the Coif The Order of the Coif is an honor society for United States law school graduates. The name is a reference to the ancient English order of advocates, the serjeants-at-law, whose courtroom attire included a coif—a white lawn or silk skullcap, ...

. During law school, White was an editor of the ''

Michigan Law Review The ''Michigan Law Review'' is an American law review and the flagship law journal of the University of Michigan Law School. History The ''Michigan Law Review'' was established in 1902, after Gustavus Ohlinger, a student in the Law Departmen ...

''. He was admitted to the California Bar in 1963, which he resigned from in 1974, and he was admitted to the Michigan Bar in 1967.

Career

Before joining the faculty at the

in 1964, Professor White practiced law with

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 ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

. From 1978 until 1981, White served as the associate dean of the University of Michigan Law School. White has published nearly 20 books on contract and bankruptcy law, and he has published nearly 70 academic articles in numerous legal journals, including the ''Michigan Law Review'', the ''

Cornell Law Review The ''Cornell Law Review'' is the flagship legal journal of Cornell Law School. Originally published in 1915 as the ''Cornell Law Quarterly'', the journal features scholarship in all fields of law. Notably, past issues of the ''Cornell Law Rev ...

'', the ''

Yale Law Journal The ''Yale Law Journal'' (YLJ), known also as the ''Yale Law Review'', is a student-run law review affiliated with the Yale Law School. Published continuously since 1891, it is the most widely known of the eight law reviews published by students ...

'', and the ''Cardozo Law Review''. White received the L. Hart Wright Award for Excellence in Teaching for 2001–2002 and the Homer Kripke Achievement Award, given by the American College of Commercial Finance Lawyers. White took a three-year hiatus from the University of Michigan Law School in 2012; however, he returned in 2015. White has been a visiting professor at

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each c ...

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 i ...

Cornell Law School Cornell Law School is the law school of Cornell University, a private Ivy League university in Ithaca, New York. One of the five Ivy League law schools, it offers four law degree programs, JD, LLM, MSLS and JSD, along with several dual-deg ...

University of South Carolina School of Law The University of South Carolina School of Law, also known as South Carolina Law School, is a professional school within the University of South Carolina. The school of law was founded in 1867, and remains the only public and non-profit law scho ...

, Tel Aviv University Law School, University of Toledo College of Law, and

Wayne State University Law School Wayne State University Law School (Wayne Law) is the law school of Wayne State University in Detroit. Wayne Law is located in Midtown, Detroit's Cultural Center. Founded in 1927, the law school offers juris doctor (J.D.), master of laws (LL.M.), ...

. White is a Reporter and member of the Drafting Committee for Implementation of the UN Convention on Independent Guarantees and Stand-by Letters of Credit. He is a member of the Permanent Editorial Board for the ''

''. White also served as a fighter pilot in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Si ...

Personal life

White is married to Nancy White and resides in

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County. The 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all ...

References

Amherst College alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni 1934 births Living people University of Michigan Law School faculty American legal scholars People associated with Latham & Watkins {{US-law-bio-stub