Judge Michael J. Davis (’72) Wins Sarah T. Hughes Civil Rights Award

The Federal Bar Association has announced that Senior Judge Michael J. Davis (’72) of the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota has been honored with the 2016 Sarah T. Hughes Civil Rights Award. Named for the first woman to serve on the federal bench in Texas, the award is presented each year to an attorney or judge whose career achievements have made a difference in advancing the causes that were important to Judge Hughes, who was a pioneer in the fight for civil rights, due process, equal protection, social concerns, and the rights of women.

“For 45 years, Judge Michael J. Davis has had a passion for equal access and equal justice for all,” the Federal Bar Association said in its award citation. “His lifelong commitment to and pursuit of equal access and equal justice for all shows through his work with the Legal Rights Center, Neighborhood Justice Center, Hennepin County Public Defender’s Office, and throughout his 11 years as a state court judge in Hennepin County. This flame burned bright as the editor-in-chief of the comprehensive and influential Minnesota Supreme Court Racial Bias Task Force report issued in 1993. Judge Davis is the first African American judge appointed to the District of Minnesota and, in 2008, he became the first African American chief judge of the district. He has made groundbreaking achievements and sustained a body of work in the area of civil rights, due process, and equal protection.”

For a summary of Davis’s career, click here.

To read the Minneapolis Star Tribune story on his Hughes Award, click here.