Biography
Jack Jacobs has more than 45 years of legal experience most notably serving on the Delaware Supreme Court from 2003–2014, and before that, as Vice Chancellor of the Delaware Court of Chancery since 1985. Before his appointment as Vice Chancellor, he practiced corporate and business litigation in Wilmington since 1968. Former Justice Jacobs is currently an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Law Schools of New York University, Columbia University, Vanderbilt University and the University of Pennsylvania. His practice includes advising companies and boards of directors on Delaware law issues, including fiduciary duties and with respect to mergers and acquisitions. Former Justice Jacobs is also available for mediation and arbitration proceedings and Special Committee and Special Litigation Committee investigations and monitorships in response to shareholder demands or government requirements.
Former Justice Jacobs is a member of the American Law Institute and served as an advisor to the Restatement (3rd) of Restitution project, and currently, on its Principles of the Law, Compliance, Enforcement and Risk Management for Corporations, Nonprofits, and Other Organizations project. He is also a member of the Delaware and American Bar Associations, a fellow of the American Bar Foundation and an Advisory Board Member of the Rand Center for Corporate Ethics and Governance. Former Justice Jacobs also serves as a member of the Board of Advisors of the University of Pennsylvania Law School Institute for Law and Economics, and as a member of the advisory board of the Harvard Law School Program on Corporate Governance.
Former Justice Jacobs has participated in numerous academic symposia and continuing legal education programs related to corporate and securities law sponsored by various law schools and continuing legal education programs related to corporate and securities law. He also has been a guest lecturer at numerous American and foreign law schools, having delivered the Distinguished Jurist Lecture at the University of Pennsylvania Law School; the Regent’s Lecture in Residence at the UCLA Law School; and the William J. Brennan Lecture at NYU School of Law, and as the Distinguished Visiting Jurist at the Harvard Law School Corporate Governance Program. Former Justice Jacobs has been recognized since 2016 through the current edition of The Best Lawyers in America®.
Education
- Harvard Law School (J.D., 1967)
- Widener University Delaware Law School (L.L.D., 2011)
- University of Chicago (B.A., Phi Beta Kappa, 1964)
Bar Admissions
Court Admissions
Clerkships
- William Duffy, Delaware Court of Chancery (1967-1968)
- Albert J. Stiftel, Superior Court of Delaware (1967-1968)