As a result of G. Robert Blakey's work with the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, the American Bar Association, the federal government, and 35 states passed legislation on racketeering.
PARADISE VALLEY, AZ, November 13, 2018 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Marquis Who's Who, the world's premier publisher of biographical profiles, is proud to present G. Robert Blakey with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. An accomplished lawyer, Mr. Blakey celebrates many years' experience in public service teaching, and litigation, and has been noted for achievements, leadership qualities, and the credentials and successes he has accrued in the practice of law. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
With more than 50 years of public service, teaching, and litigation experience, Mr. Blakey retired in 2012, earning the title of Professor Emeritus from the Notre Dame Law School. Before retiring from teaching, he served the esteemed academic institution as the William J. and Dorothy K. O'Neill Professor of Law from 1985 to 2012 and as a professor of law from 1980 to 1985 and from 1964 to 1969. In his time at Notre Dame, he taught classes on federal criminal law, federal criminal procedure, and jurisprudence. Moreover, he served as co-counsel or consultant on several cases, both civil and criminal, most including the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). From 1973 to 1980, he was also a Professor of Law and Director of the Cornell Institute on Organized Crime at Cornell Law School, where he hosted a summer seminar on the investigation and prosecution of organized crime.
Mr. Blakey has acted in a number of capacities for the United States government. In 1988, he was a consultant to the United States House Judiciary Committee to Congressman John Conyers, where he worked on white-collar crime control and had a role in overturning McNally v. United States, 483 U.S. 350 (1987). Previous work in white-collar crime control includes time with Senator Joseph Biden as a special counsel with the United States Senate Judiciary Committee from 1985 to 1986. While investigating the performance federal agencies in the investigation of the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and President John F. Kennedy, he was the Chief Counsel and Staff Director of the United States House Select Committee on Assassinations (Congressman Louis Stokes as Chairman) from 1977 to 1978. For his work in investigations and hearings with modern forensics, he was honored with the National Academy of Forensic Sciences Award of Merit in 1979.
From 1969 to 1973, Mr. Blakey was the Chief Counsel on the Subcommittee on Criminal Laws and Procedures (Senator John L. McClellan as Chairman) in the United States Senate. For his work in drafting the Organized Crime Control Act of 1970, he was the recipient of the Legal Award from the Association of Federal Investigators in 1969.
He began the practice of law as Special Attorney in Organized Crime and Racketeering Section of the United States Department of Justice. There, he worked as a trial attorney, selected under the Attorney General's Honors Program, where he investigated and tried racketeering cases.
Mr. Blakey's college education began at the University of Notre Dame. He graduated cum laude in 1957 with a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy. A recipient of the John J. Cavanaugh Law Scholarship, he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence from the Notre Dame Law School in 1960, where he was the associate editor of the Notre Dame Law Review. Subsequently, he was admitted to practice in North Carolina in 1960, the District of Columbia in 1960, Colorado in 1986, the United States Supreme Court in 1963, and various federal district courts and circuit courts of appeal.
Mr. Blakey is a member of Phi Beta Kappa, the American Law Institute, and Order of the Coif. Mr. Blakey was also honored with the Charles Crutchfield Award from the Black Law Students Association in 1996 and the Faculty Member of the Year Award from Notre Dame Law School in 1989. During that period, he was named one of the 100 Most Influential Lawyers in the United States by the National Law Journal in 1985, 1988, and 1991. Mr. Blakey's role in organized crime and RICO litigation was recognized with an Appreciation Award from the Federal Bureau of Investigation's New York office in 1985. He assisted in the formulation of the theory of the RICO prosecution of the five heads of New York organized crime families, which was upheld in United States v. Salerno, 868 F.2d 524 (2nd Cir. 1989) See S. Rep. No 9168 at 364-43 (1969) (naming six of the eleven individuals indicted as leaders of organized crime families in New York).
As a result of his work with the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, the American Bar Association, the federal government, and 35 states passed legislation on racketeering. In fact, according to the F.B.I., family membership in 1963 was recorded to be about 5,000 members in 22 families across the United States. Today, the estimate is 1,700 members in three families in New York City. The reduction is the result of the FBI's innovative investigations and the Department of Justice's aggressive RICO litigation.
Mr. Blakey has published extensively on organized crime, including "Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO): Basic Concepts -- Criminal and Civil Remedies," Temp L. Q. 1008 (1980) (with Brian Gettings); "The RICO Civil Fraud Action in Context," N. D. L. Rev. 237 (1982): "Equitable Relief Under Civil RICO," 526 (1987)(with Scott D. Cessar), "Reflections on Reves v. Ernst & Young: Its Meaning and Impact on Substantive, Accessory, Aiding Abetting and Conspiracy Liability Under RICO," 33 Am. Criminal L. Rev. 1345 (1996)(with Kevin P. Roddy), and "Organized Crime in the United States: A Review of the Public Record on Organized Crime" (1982).
Mr. Blakey has written numerous other law review articles including most recently, "Time Bars under State and Federal RICO,) 88 N. D. L. Rev. 1581(2013) and "Eliminating Overlap, or Creating a Gap? Judicial Interpretation of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and RICO," N.D. Journal of Law, Ethics, & Public Policy 435 (2014) (with Gerardi). He has also written several books, including "The Plot to Kill the President" in (1992) (with Billings).
In recognition of outstanding contributions to his profession and the Marquis Who's Who community, Mr. Blakey has been featured on the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement website. Please visit www.ltachievers.com for more information about this honor.
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