Twanna M. Powell Lecture Series - 4/12/2000
Kenneth Starr
Judge Kenneth Starr served as Independent Counsel from August 1994 to October 1999. Currently he is a professor at New York University School of Law and George Mason University School of Law while on a leave of absence from the firm of Kirkland & Ellis, P.C., where he is a partner.
Judge Starr served as Solicitor General of the United States from 1989 to January 1993. He argued twenty-five cases before the Supreme Court and represented the U.S. Government on legal issues involving regulatory and constitutional statutes. He also served as United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit (1983-1989), as Counselor to U.S. Attorney General William French Smith (1981-1983), and as law clerk to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger (1975-1977).Judge Starr received his B.A. from George Washington University (1968), his M.A. from Brown University (1969), and his J.D. from Duke Law School (1973). He has been admitted to the California, District of Columbia, and Virginia Bars.
Judge Starr has numerous professional affiliations, including serving on the Boards of Directors of the Institute of Judicial Administration, the American Law Institute, and the American Judicature Society. He has received numerous honors and awards, including the Jefferson Cup Award from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Edmund J. Randolph Award for Outstanding Service in the Department of Justice, and the Attorney General's Award for Distinguished Service.
Judge Starr was born on July 21, 1946, in Vernon, Texas, and was raised in San Antonio. He and his wife, Alice, and their three children, Randy, Carolyn, and Cynthia, have made their home in McLean, Virginia, since 1978.