Sten Heckscher (born 29 July 1942) is a Swedish

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solici ...

and

Social Democratic Social democracy is a Political philosophy, political, Social philosophy, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocati ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. He graduated with a degree in

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vari ...

from

Uppsala University Uppsala University ( sv, Uppsala universitet) is a public research university in Uppsala, Sweden. Founded in 1477, it is the oldest university in Sweden and the Nordic countries still in operation. The university rose to significance durin ...

. Even though his father was leader of what later became the

Moderate Party The Moderate Party ( sv, Moderata samlingspartiet , ; M), commonly referred to as the Moderates ( ), is a liberal-conservative political party in Sweden. The party generally supports tax cuts, the free market, civil liberties and economic liber ...

, Heckscher himself engaged in Social Democratic politics. He served in numerous public positions in and out of government until

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

Ingvar Carlsson Gösta Ingvar Carlsson (born 9 November 1934) is a Swedish politician who twice served as Prime Minister of Sweden, first from 1986 to 1991 and again from 1994 to 1996. He was leader of the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1986 to 1996. H ...

appointed him Minister of Industry and Employment on the eve of the Social Democrats' election victory in 1994. In 1996, he resigned to become National Police Commissioner. Heckscher served until 2005 when he was appointed chief judge of the Administrative Court of Appeal in Stockholm. On 1 October 2007, he became President of the

Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden The Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden ( sv, Högsta förvaltningsdomstolen, before 2011 ''Regeringsrätten'', acronym ''RR'' or ''RegR'') is the supreme court and the third and final tier for administrative court cases in Sweden, and is loc ...

Early life

Heckscher was born on 29 July 1942 in Stockholm, Sweden, the son of former leader of the Right Wing Party, Professor Gunnar Heckscher, and his wife Anna Britta (née Vickhoff). He is grandson of economist

Eli Heckscher Eli Filip Heckscher (24 November 1879 – 23 December 1952) was a Swedish political economist and economic historian. Biography Heckscher was born in Stockholm, son of the Jewish Danish-born businessman Isidor Heckscher and his spouse Rosa Meyer, ...

. Heckscher received a

Candidate of Law Candidate of Law (Latin: ''candidatus/candidata juris/iuris'') is both a graduate law degree awarded to law students in the Nordic region as well as an academic status designation for advanced Law School students in German-speaking countries. N ...

degree from

in 1968.

Career

Heckscher did his clerkship from 1969 to 1971. Heckscher was a member of the 1968 Education Investigation (''1968 års utbildningsutredning'') from 1971 to 1973 and became an aspirant in the

Svea Court of Appeal Svea Court of Appeal ( sv, Svea hovrätt), located in Stockholm, is one of six appellate courts in the Swedish legal system. It is located in the Wrangel Palace, on Riddarholmen islet in Gamla Stan, the old town of Stockholm. History The Svea ...

in 1973, and a Legal Clerk in 1974. He was an expert in the

Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention The Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention ( sv, Brottsförebyggande rådet, abbreviated Brå) is a Swedish government agency organized under the Ministry of Justice, and acts as a center for research and development within the judicial s ...

from 1976 to 1978 and in the

Ministry of Justice A Ministry of Justice is a common type of government department that serves as a justice ministry. Lists of current ministries of justice Named "Ministry" * Ministry of Justice (Abkhazia) * Ministry of Justice (Afghanistan) * Ministry of Just ...

in 1979. Heckscher became an

assessor An assessor may be: * ''Assessor'' (fish), a genus of fishes * Assessor (law), the assistant to a judge or magistrate * Assessor (Oxford), a senior officer of the University of Oxford * Assessor (property), an expert who calculates the value of pr ...

in 1982 and was a member of the Commission on Narcotic (''Narkotikakommissionen'') from 1982 to 1984. He was deputy director-general (''departementsråd'') in the Ministry of Justice from 1984 to 1986 and director-general for legal affairs (''rättschef'') in the Ministry of Employment from 1986 to 1987. Heckscher served as State Secretary in the Ministry of Justice from 1987 to 1991 and as Director General and head of the Swedish Patent and Registration Office from 1991 to 1994. In 1996, Heckscher was appointed National Police Commissioner. Heckscher was also responsible for legal and institutional issues in Sweden's EEA negotiations from 1989 to 1991, investigator in the legislation for Sweden's accession to the EU from 1993 to 1994, investigator in Legal Aid Law (''Rättshjälpslagen'') from 1993 to 1994, chairman of the board of Retriva AB from 1993 to 1994, and was investigator in the authorization and supervision of auditors in 1994.

Personal life

In 1990, he married Louise Nermark (born 1959), the daughter of Jerker Nermark and Gull Snellman.

References

1942 births Living people Swedish Social Democratic Party politicians Uppsala University alumni Justices of the Supreme Administrative Court of Sweden Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 3rd Class Swedish people of Jewish descent 21st-century Swedish judges Swedish Ministers for Industry {{sweden-politician-stub