University of Minnesota, B.S.L., J.D.
Uppsala University, Sweden, LL.D. (Hon.)
Professor Robert A. Stein rejoined the faculty as Everett Fraser Professor of Law in the fall of 2006.
Previously, from 1994 to 2006, Professor Stein was the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the American Bar Association (ABA). He was responsible for management of the world's largest professional membership association, with more than 400,000 members, a 900-person staff and annual budgets of more than $180 million at the ABA's headquarters in Chicago and its Washington, D.C., office.
Prior to that, Professor Stein was a member of the faculty of the Law School from 1964 until 1994. He served as Dean of the Law School from 1979 to 1994 and was the first William S. Pattee Professor of Law from 1990 until 1994. Before becoming Dean of the Law School, Professor Stein was Vice President for Administration and Planning of the University from 1977 to 1979.
Professor Stein was a visiting professor at the University of Chicago Law School in 1975-76 and UCLA Law School in 1969-70. He was a visiting scholar at the American Bar Foundation in 1975-77. He also served as the University's representative to the NCAA, the Big Ten, and the WCHA. He continued to be involved with the NCAA even after leaving the University in 1994, serving on the NCAA's Division I Infraction Appeals Committee.
Professor Stein is of counsel to the law firm of Gray Plant Mooty. He is a Commissioner from Minnesota to the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, and serves on the Executive Committee of the National Conference. He is a member of the Council and the Executive Committee of the American Law Institute and serves as an advisor to several of the Institute's Restatements.
Professor Stein is a nationally recognized authority in the areas of estate planning, trusts, and probate law. He is an Academic Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, and an Academician in the International Academy of Estate and Trust Law. He is also a Fellow in the American College of Tax Law.
Professor Stein holds leadership positions in numerous organizations. He is Vice Chair of the Professional and Public Interest Division of the London-based International Bar Association. He is the Immediate Past President of the University of Minnesota Alumni Association and currently serves on its Board of Directors. He was a charter member of the Minnesota Law Review Advisory Board, serving from 2005 to 2006.
He currently serves on the Board of Directors for several companies, including Great Northern Iron Ore Properties, Fiduciary Counseling, Inc., and Educational Credit Management Group.
In the 2006-07 academic year, Professor Stein taught Estate Planning, a new seminar examining the rule of law, and a course to undergraduate students about the great cases that have shaped and shocked our nation.
Law School Success In A Nutshell: A Guide To Studying Law And Taking Law School Exams (co-authored with Professor Ann M. Burkhart) (West Publishing Company, 2008).
Minute in remembrance of William B. Lockhart, Minutes in Remembrance, American Law Institute, 1976-1997 (American Law Institute, 1998).
Foreword, Net Law: How Lawyers Use the Internet (Songline Studios, Inc., 1997)
How to Study Law and Take Law Exams in a Nutshell (co-authored with Professor Ann M. Burkhart)(West Publishing Company, 1996)
In Pursuit of Excellence: A History of the University of Minnesota Law School (Mason Publishing Company, 1980).
Estate Planning Under The Tax Reform Act of 1976 (co-authored with Professor A. James Casner) (2d ed.) (West Publishing Company, 1978).
The Probate Explosion of 1985 (co-authored with Judge Melvin J. Peterson, John M. Zangs, Esq. and Steve A. Brand, Esq.) (National Practice Institute, 1985).
Administration of a Minnesota Decedent's Estate, 1984 (co-authored with Judge Melvin J. Peterson and John M. Zangs, Esq.) (National Practice Institute, 1984).
Handling a Minnesota Decedent's Estate (co-authored with Judge Melvin J. Peterson and John M. Zangs, Esq.) (National Practice Institute, 1982).
Probate and Inheritance Tax: 1979 (co-authored with Judge Melvin J. Peterson and John M. Zangs, Esq.) (National Practice Institute, 1979).
Probate and Inheritance Tax: 1978 (co-authored with Judge Melvin J. Peterson and John M. Zangs, Esq.) (National Practice Institute, 1978).
Estate Administration Under the 1975 Probate Code (co-authored with Judge Melvin J. Peterson) (National Practice Institute, 1976).
Causes of Popular Dissatisfaction with the Administration of Justice in the Twenty-First Century, 30 Hamline L. Rev. 499 (2007).
In Memoriam: Judge Donald P. Lay, 92 Iowa L. Rev. 1577 (2007).
The Future of the Legal Profession, 91 Minn. L. Rev. 1 (2006).
Independence of the Judiciary, The State Bar of South Dakota Newsletter 9 (July 2006).
Executive Director's Report, appears each month in the American Bar Association Journal.
President's Column, appears each issue (6) of Minnesota magazine, 2005-2006.
What the Legal Profession Expects of Law Schools: A Response, 34 Ind. L. Rev. 15 (2000).
Multidisciplinary Practices: Prohibit or Regulate? 84 Minn. L. Rev. 1529 (2000).
The Dean of Deans, 92 Minn. Law & Politics 24 (Jan. 1998).
Maynard Pirsig Lives On, 23 William Mitchell Law Rev 801, (1997).
Roger Noreen - Remarkable Friend of Legal Education, 89 Law Library Journal 600 (1997).
Probate Reformation: The Impact of the Uniform Laws, Probate Lawyer (1997).
An America Without Lawyers (1997).
Trina Grillo-A Passionate Advocate for Justice, Minn. L. Rev. (1997).
From Tax-Favored to Tax-Penalized: The Challenge of Estate Planning for Qualified Plan Benefits in the Face of Shifting Federal Tax Policy, 79 Iowa L. Rev. 1127 (1994).
Report of the AALS Special Committee on Problems of Substance Abuse in the Law Schools, 44 J. Legal Educ. 35 (1994).
The Future of Legal Education, 75 Minn. L. Rev. 945 (1991).
A Tribute to Irving Younger, 73 Minn. L. Rev. 815 (1989).
Introduction: Women and the Constitution, 6 Law & Ineq. J. vii (1988).
The Demography of Probate Administration, 15 U. Balt. L. Rev. 54 (1985) (with Ian G. Fierstein).
Robert C. McClure: A Tribute on His Retirement, 69 Minn. L. Rev. 1217 (1985).
A Tribute to Professor Steven M. Block, 69 Minn. L. Rev. 722 (1985).
The Role of the Attorney in Estate Administration, 68 Minn. L. Rev. 1107 (1984).
A Tribute to Robert F. Grabb, 68 Minn. L. Rev. 897 (1984).
Foreword: Carl A. Auerbach: A Tribute, 68 Minn. L. Rev. 255 (1983).
Arlette M. Soderberg: A Tribute on Her Retirement, 67 Minn. L. Rev. xv (1983).
New Survey of Professionals Finds Broad Support for the "Estate Planning Team" Idea, 8 Est. Plan. 354 (1981) (with Jane S. Dunn).
Use of Insurance Proceeds in Irrevocable Trust for Payment of Death Costs, 3 Notre Dame Est. Plan. Inst. 71 (1979).
Specialization in the Probate Bar, 13 Am. B. Found. Res. Reporter 1 (1979).
In Pursuit of Excellence -- A History of the University of Minnesota Law School, Part I: The Pattee Years -- A Time of Accommodation, 62 Minn. L. Rev. 485 (1978).
In Pursuit of Excellence -- A History of the University of Minnesota Law School, Part II: The Vance Years -- A Time of Ascendancy, 62 Minn. L. Rev. 857 (1978).
In Pursuit of Excellence -- A History of the University of Minnesota Law School, Part III: The Fraser Years -- A Time of Excellence and Innovation, 62 Minn. L. Rev. 1161 (1978).
In Pursuit of Excellence -- A History of the University of Minnesota Law School, Part IV: The Pirsig Years -- A Time of Transition, 63 Minn. L. Rev. 229 (1979).
In Pursuit of Excellence -- A History of the University of Minnesota Law School, Part V: The Lockhart Years -- A Time of Achievement and Challenge, 63 Minn. L. Rev. 809 (1979).
In Pursuit of Excellence -- A History of the University of Minnesota Law School, Part VI: The Auerbach Years -- A Time of Building, Controversy and Frustration, 63 Minn. L. Rev. 1101 (1979).
Probing the Probate Administration Process, 8 Real Prop., Prob., & Tr. L. J. 1 (1977).
Multi-State Probate Administration Study: Journey into the Known and Unknown, 5 Prob. & Prop. 11 (Spring 1976).
Multi-State Probate Administration Study: Journey into the Known and Unknown, 2 Probate Notes No. 2, p. 14 (Winter 1976).
To Make the Probate Process as Simple and Inexpensive as Can be Done, 32 Bench & B. Minn., Nov. 1975, at 21.
Probate Administration Study: Some Emerging Conclusions, 9 Real Prop., Prob., & Tr. L.J. 596 (1974).
Profile of Probate Administration in Minnesota, 30 Bench & B. Minn., Jan. 1974, at 5.
New Law School Building-A Year of Decision, The Hennepin Law., Nov.-Dec. 1973, at 4.
Scholarly Papers (Unpublished)
What are Law Schools For? (Paper delivered at the Academics' Forum, International Bar Association, 26th Biennial Conference, Available from IBA as BP100 (August, 1996)).
Perpetuities: The Common Law Rule; the Minnesota Rule; Reform of the Rule (Teaching materials) (with Professor John Cound) (1968).
Named Lectures
Marvin J. Anderson Lecture, Hastings College of Law, March 3, 1995.
Probate Reformation: The Impact of the Uniform Laws, Joseph Trachtman Lecture, American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, March 15, 1997.
Presentations to National College of Probate Judges
Fall 1990 Seminar, Orlando Florida
"The 1990 Revised Uniform Probate Code, Article II
Spring 1989 Probate Course, Cambridge, Massachusetts
"An Update on the U.P.C."
Fall 1985 Probate Seminar, Boca Raton, Florida
"Federal Tax Affects on Probate"
Fall 1984 Probate Seminar, Las Vegas, Nevada
"Provisions of the Tax Reform Act of 1984 Affecting Probate Administration"
