Steven S. Honigman (14 May 1948 – 26 July 2022) was an American

lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...

who served as

General Counsel of the Navy The general counsel of the Department of the Navy is the senior civilian lawyer in the U.S. Department of the Navy and is the senior legal adviser to the secretary of the navy. The Office of the General Counsel of the Navy provides legal advice ...

from 1993 to 1998.

Early life and education

Honigman was born and raised in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, graduating from

Midwood High School Midwood High School is a high school located at 2839 Bedford Avenue in Brooklyn, New York City, administered by the New York City Department of Education. It has an enrollment of 3,938 students. Its H-shaped building, with six Ionic order, Ioni ...

in 1965. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

in 1969 and his

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

Yale Law School Yale Law School (YLS) is the law school of Yale University, a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. It was established in 1824. The 2020–21 acceptance rate was 4%, the lowest of any law school in the United ...

in 1972. Honigman was admitted to the New York State bar in 1973.

Career

From 1972 to 1973, Honigman was a law clerk for District Judge Jacob Mishler. He then served on active duty in the Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps until 1977. From 1977 to 1982, Honigman was an associate at the law firm of

Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (known as Paul, Weiss) is an American multinational white-shoe law firm headquartered in New York City. Paul, Weiss's core practice areas are in litigation and corporate law. The firm has histori ...

specializing in civil litigation. From 1982 to 1993, he was a partner at the law firm of Miller, Singer, Raives & Brandes. In 1993,

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...

nominated Honigman as

, and, after

Senate confirmation Advice and consent is an English phrase frequently used in enacting formulae of bills and in other legal or constitutional contexts. It describes either of two situations: where a weak executive branch of a government enacts something previ ...

, he held this office from June 1, 1993, until March 15, 1998. One of his first duties as General Counsel was to assist

United States Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the United States Department of the Navy, Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On Mar ...

John Howard Dalton John Howard Dalton (born December 13, 1941) is an American politician and investor. Dalton was Secretary of the Navy from July 22, 1993, to November 16, 1998. Education and Navy service Dalton attended Louisiana State University for a year befo ...

in his confidential investigation of the

Tailhook scandal The Tailhook scandal was a military scandal in which United States Navy and United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps aviation officers were alleged to have assaulted up to 83 women and seven men, or otherwise engaged in "improper and indecent" ...

. Dalton recommended removing

Chief of Naval Operations The chief of naval operations (CNO) is the highest-ranking officer of the United States Navy. The position is a statutory office () held by an Admiral (United States), admiral who is a military adviser and deputy to the United States Secretary ...

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in many navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force. Admiral is ranked above vice admiral and below admiral of ...

Frank Kelso Frank Benton Kelso II (July 11, 1933 – June 23, 2013) was an admiral of the United States Navy, who served as Chief of Naval Operations from 1990 to 1994. Early life Kelso was born in Fayetteville, Tennessee, on July 11, 1933. He attended public ...

for his role in covering up the scandal. As General Counsel of the Navy, Honigman oversaw procurement litigation reforms. In 1997, President Clinton named him a Special Assistant responsible for purchasing encryption technology government-wide. He was awarded the

Navy Distinguished Public Service Medal A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations ...

for his service to the Navy. Upon leaving the

United States Department of the Navy The United States Department of the Navy (DON) is one of the three military departments within the United States Department of Defense. It was established by an Act of Congress on 30 April 1798, at the urging of Secretary of War James McHenr ...

in 1998, Honigman joined Thelen LLP as a partner. Honigman was also a member of the

EastWest Institute The EastWest Institute (EWI), originally known as the Institute for East-West Security Studies and officially the Institute for EastWest Studies, Inc., was an international not-for-profit, non-partisan think tank focused on international conflic ...

Personal

Honigman married Irene Elizabeth Finel. They have a daughter.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Honigman, Steven S. 1948 births 2022 deaths Lawyers from Brooklyn Midwood High School alumni New York University alumni Yale Law School alumni United States Navy officers General Counsels of the United States Navy Clinton administration personnel Recipients of the Navy Distinguished Public Service Award