The Law Has Lost a Giant: The Legacy of Judge Stephen Williams – Yale Journal on Regulation

I ve often said that this is the greatest opening line in the history of the D.C. Circuit: In the Spring of 1985, as Mikhail Gorbachev was assuming the duties of General Secretary and inaugurating perestroika, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission launched its own restructuring of the natural gas industry.

The sentence reflects the best of the D.C. Circuit. It is interesting. It required real learning. And there isn t meanness to it. It takes someone who loves reading and thinking and hard work to write that sentence.

That sentence, of course, was penned by Judge Stephen Williams one of the finest judges the D.C. Circuit has been fortunate enough to call its own.

Judge Williams reportedly has passed away. By any measure, the law has lost a giant. Whenever Williams wrote an opinion, I paid special attention because I knew it would be worth my time.

via www.yalejreg.com

I was saddened to learn of Steve’s death. He was my senior colleague for a year at Colorado, back in the day. I put in a good word for him when he was being vetted for his seat on the DC Circuit, something he never let me forget.