Deval Patrick, former U.S. assistant attorney general for civil rights, has been appointed a lecturer on law at the Law School. Patrick will teach the Government Lawyer: Civil Rights during the spring 1998 semester.

Patrick is a partner in the Boston office of the law firm of Day, Berry & Howard, practicing in the areas of employment litigation, civil rights, government investigations, fair lending, and commercial litigation.

Patrick has an extensive record of accomplishments in the areas of employment, disability, fair-lending, and other civil rights matters. As assistant attorney general under President Clinton, he led the agency responsible for enforcing federal laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, gender, disability, ethnicity, and religion. He supervised litigation at all levels of the federal courts and developed and consulted on policy with the president, the attorney general, other Cabinet officials, and members of Congress.

His governmental experience also includes the area of fair-lending. He played a key role in uncovering and combating discrimination in lending policies, and is widely recognized for bringing about a major change in the way banks underwrite and price loans.

Patrick has worked on behalf of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, serving as director of the Fund's National Board and as a member of its Executive Committee.

Patrick graduated cum laude from Harvard College and received a J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he was president of the Legal Aid Bureau and recipient of the George S. Leisure Award for Excellence in Advocacy. He clerked for the Hon. Stephen Reinhardt of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

His honors include the National Easter Seal Society's Outstanding Advocate Award, the Ford Foundation Commendation for Excellence in Government, and honorary J.D. degrees from Morris Brown College, Curry College, and the District of Columbia School of Law.