Spencer LeVan Kimball (August 26, 1918 – October 26, 2003) was an American lawyer and professor at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

, the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (branded as 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 Comparati ...

and the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

. Kimball was the oldest son of Spencer W. Kimball and his wife Camilla Eyring Kimball. He was born in

Thatcher, Arizona Thatcher is a town in Graham County, Arizona, United States. According to the 2010 Census, the population of the town is 4,865. It is part of the Safford Micropolitan Statistical Area. Thatcher is the home of Eastern Arizona College (EAC), ...

and raised in Safford, Arizona. He received his undergraduate degree from the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it ...

and then served in the United States navy on the Admiral's staff as a Japanese interpreter during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He received his law degree from the

. He was later a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international Postgraduate education, postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world. Esta ...

studying at

Lincoln College, Oxford Lincoln College (formally, The College of the Blessed Mary and All Saints, Lincoln) is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Lincoln was founded in 1427 by Richard Flemin ...

. He received his SJD from the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

. He later served on the law faculty there and was the youngest dean of law in the history of the University of Utah. He was also on the faculty of the

and the

University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the Law school in the United States, law school of the University of Chicago, a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It employs more than 180 full-time and part-time facul ...

. At the University of Chicago he was the Seymour Logan Professor of Law. Kimball helped to established an

American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...

chapter in Utah. Although he was widely associated with the LDS Church because of his father's prominent leadership positions, Kimball ceased his activity with the church while in his thirties and remained irreligious for the rest of his life. Kimball never desired to formally leave the LDS church, and took pride in his Mormon pioneer heritage and his father's position as church president, but gradually stopped believing in the divine claims of the LDS church and all other religions.

References

"Spencer L. Kimball dies at 85"
''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS ...

'', November 5, 2003. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kimball, Spencer L. 1918 births 2003 deaths Alumni of Lincoln College, Oxford American Civil Liberties Union people Latter Day Saints from Utah American legal scholars United States Navy personnel of World War II American Rhodes Scholars Deans of law schools in the United States People from Thatcher, Arizona University of Arizona alumni University of Michigan faculty University of Utah alumni University of Utah faculty University of Wisconsin Law School alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison faculty University of Chicago faculty Latter Day Saints from Arizona Latter Day Saints from Wisconsin Latter Day Saints from Michigan 20th-century American academics