Michael Kantor (born August 7, 1939) is an American attorney who served as the

United States Trade Representative The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is an agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting Foreign trade of the United States, United States ...

from 1993 to 1996 and United States Secretary of Commerce in 1996 and 1997.

Early life and education

Born and raised in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, Kantor comes from a family of

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

furniture retailers led by his parents, including his father, Henry Kantor. Kantor earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in business and economics from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private university, private research university in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and railroad magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provide ...

in 1961. He then served four years as a supply officer in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

and subsequently earned a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

in 1968.

Career

Initially, Kantor worked for the

Legal Services Corporation The Legal Services Corporation (LSC) is a publicly funded, 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation established by the United States Congress. It seeks to ensure equal access to justice under the law for all Americans by funding organizations providing c ...

, providing legal assistance to migrant farm workers. From 1976 to 1993, he practiced law with the Los Angeles law firm of Manatt, Phelps, Phillips & Kantor (now Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP), and was active in Democratic politics and fundraising. He formerly served and is founder of the LA Conservation Corps. An advocate of

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold Economic liberalism, economically liberal positions, while economic nationalist politica ...

, Kantor, as Trade Representative, led U.S. negotiations that created the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland that regulates and facilitates international trade. Governments use the organization to establish, revise, and enforce the rules that g ...

(WTO), such as the

Uruguay Round The Uruguay Round was the 8th round of multilateral trade negotiations (MTN) conducted within the framework of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), spanning from 1986 to 1993 and embracing 123 countries as "contracting parties". The ...

, and North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Kantor also engaged in organizing the Miami Summit of the Americas and three meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, including the U.S.-hosted First Leaders' Meeting. With the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

of the newly formed European Union, he expanded the trans-Atlantic market. Kantor became United States Secretary of Commerce on April 12, 1996, succeeding Ron Brown, who had been killed in the 1996 Croatia USAF CT-43 crash. Kantor practices law in the Los Angeles office of Mayer Brown, an international law firm based in Chicago. He is the board of directors co-chair of Vision to Learn and the

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy; a board officer of Drug Strategies; a leadership council member of the Sargent Shriver Center on Poverty Law; a steering committee member of Japan House; and a board member of Lexmark International, Inc. and the Pacific Council on International Policy.

Personal life and honors

Kantor has been married to broadcast journalist Heidi Schulman since 1982, following the death of his first wife, Valerie Woods Kantor in a 1978 plane crash in

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

. He has three children. Another son, Russell, died in a single-car crash in October, 1988, while a senior in high school.. He formerly served on the board of directors of CBRE, board of visitors for Georgetown Law, and international advisory board for FleishmanHillard. Kantor was awarded the Order of the Southern Cross by the government of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

in 2001.

References

External links

* , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Kantor, Mickey 1939 births Clinton administration cabinet members 20th-century American politicians American corporate directors Georgetown University Law Center alumni Jewish members of the Cabinet of the United States Living people Politicians from Nashville, Tennessee Tennessee Democrats United States Navy officers United States secretaries of commerce United States trade representatives Vanderbilt University alumni People associated with Mayer Brown

Early life and education

Career

Personal life and honors

See also

References

External links