John Larry Nichols (born July 6, 1942) is the co-founder and former chairman,

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

, and

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especial ...

of Devon Energy. Nichols is a member of the board of directors of

Baker Hughes Baker Hughes Company, organized in Delaware and headquartered in Houston, is one of the world's largest oil field services companies. The company provides products and services for oil well drilling, formation evaluation, completion, productio ...

and

Sonic Drive-In Sonic Corporation, founded as Sonic Drive-In and more commonly known as Sonic (stylized as SONIC), or "The Drive-In," is an American drive-in fast food restaurant chain owned by Inspire Brands, the parent company of Arby's and Buffalo Wild Win ...

Early life and education

In 1960, Nichols graduated from Casady School in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, an ...

. In 1964, he received a B.A. in Geology from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the n ...

. In 1967, he received a JD from

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 (MC ...

Career

After graduating, he served as a law clerk to both Associate Justice Tom C. Clark and Chief Justice

Earl Warren Earl Warren (March 19, 1891 – July 9, 1974) was an American attorney, politician, and jurist who served as the 14th Chief Justice of the United States from 1953 to 1969. The Warren Court presided over a major shift in American constitutio ...

of the

Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point ...

. He also worked for

William Rehnquist William Hubbs Rehnquist ( ; October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American attorney and jurist who served on the U.S. Supreme Court for 33 years, first as an associate justice from 1972 to 1986 and then as the 16th chief justice from ...

when Rehnquist was the

United States Assistant Attorney General Many of the divisions and offices of the United States Department of Justice are headed by an assistant attorney general. The president of the United States appoints individuals to the position of assistant attorney general with the advice and ...

. In 1971, along with his father, John Nichols, an oilman, J. Larry Nichols co-founded Devon Energy. He served as chief executive officer of the company from 1980 to 2010, was president from 1976 until 2003, was chairman from 2000 to 2012, and was executive chairman from 2013 to 2016. In 2001, he was inducted into the

Oklahoma Hall of Fame The Oklahoma Hall of Fame was founded in 1927 by Anna B. Korn to officially celebrate Statehood Day, recognize Oklahomans dedicated to their communities, and provide educational programming for all ages. The first Oklahoma Hall of Fame Induction Cer ...

Personal life

In 1972, Nichols married Polly. They have 2 children: a daughter, Sally, and a son, Tyler.

Politics

Nichols is a Republican. In the third quarter of 2014, just before the midterm elections, Nichols made a $136,000 contribution to the Republican "Targeted State Victory" committee. In 2015, Nichols agreed to lead the energy steering committee of Florida Senator

Marco Rubio Marco Antonio Rubio (born May 28, 1971) is an American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States senator from Florida, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, he served as Speaker of the Florida House ...

and made a $50,000 contribution to the political action committee supporting Rubio. Nichols stated that "excessive regulation squashes" energy innovation. Nichols has contributed to Oklahoma Strong, the political action committee supporting

Scott Pruitt Edward Scott Pruitt (born May 9, 1968) is an American lawyer, lobbyist and Republican politician from the state of Oklahoma. He served as the fourteenth Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from February 17, 2017, to J ...

Philanthropy

Nichols is the namesake of the J. Larry Nichols Community Foundation Scholar Award by the Oklahoma City Community Foundation.

References

External links

Voices of Oklahoma interview with Larry Nichols; March 1, 2012
* 1942 births Businesspeople from Oklahoma City Law clerks of the Supreme Court of the United States Lawyers from Oklahoma City Living people Princeton University alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni {{Oklahoma-stub