$2 million gift from wife of late SMU Professor Alan Bromberg will endow Dedman Law Centennial Chair

DALLAS (SMU) – Anne R. Bromberg of Dallas has committed $2 million to SMU for the creation of the Alan R. Bromberg Centennial Chair in Corporate, Partnership and Securities Law in honor of her late husband, a renowned professor in the Dedman School of Law.

Alan R. Bromberg Related Link:   • The Dallas Morning News

The new chair will support Dedman School of Law in strengthening research and coursework in corporate, partnership and securities law, honoring Professor Bromberg’s prolific scholarship and mentoring style of leadership.

The gift will provide $1.5 million in endowment funds to guarantee permanent support for the faculty position, as well as $500,000 in operating funds. The chair’s special “centennial” designation represents the foresight of donors who recognize the need for operational funds to provide immediate impact while the endowment matures.

“This is a gift from the heart, and it will provide great benefits for the students that Alan Bromberg was devoted to serving,” said SMU President R. Gerald Turner. “Endowed chairs are vital to SMU because their creation allows us to attract and retain faculty of great distinction, better prepare students and help SMU rise among the best private universities in the nation. Alan will remain a perpetual presence in Dedman Law through the chair that carries his name.”

Anne Bromberg is the Cecil and Ida Green Curator for Ancient Art at the Dallas Museum of Art, where she has worked for more than 40 years. She was inspired to honor her late husband through an endowed chair after learning of a similar gift to Dedman Law in May by SMU law alumna and professor emerita, Ellen K. Solender, who endowed a faculty chair in Women and the Law shortly before her death in August 2015.

“This gift is the most suitable way of remembering Alan since he was so devoted to the Law School and his students,” said Dr. Anne Bromberg. “Alan loved being a professor and encouraging his students to think harder and better.  Having a professorship in his name is the ideal way to honor his life, which was dedicated to enriching the legal profession.”

“We are deeply grateful to Anne for her decision to honor our cherished professor in a way that so directly benefits the students and law school he loved so dearly,” said Jennifer Collins, Dedman Law’s Judge James Noel Dean and professor of law. “We miss Alan’s expertise and leadership, but mainly we miss his friendship and kindness. He gave us almost 60 years of faculty camaraderie and dedicated teaching, and he made significant contributions to scholarship in the law of business enterprises.”

A prolific author, Alan Bromberg’s legal writings on corporate tax, partnership, securities and commodities have been relied upon in more than 500 judicial opinions, including 10 in the U.S. Supreme Court. His work and expertise also have appeared in thousands of articles, including many in the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times. He also helped write substantial portions for the Texas statutes on corporations, partnerships, securities and fraud crimes. He was a senior fellow of the Yale University law faculty and a visiting professor at Stanford Law School, among numerous other accomplishments.

Alan Bromberg earned his undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1949 and a J.D. from Yale University in 1952. After working several years at the law firm Carrington, Gowan, Johnson, Bromberg and Leeds, he joined the faculty of SMU in 1957. In 1983 he served as a distinguished professor of law until his death March 27, 2014, at age 85.

“Anne Bromberg’s gift will support a position in an area of growing importance at Dedman Law, honoring Alan Bromberg’s memory in a way he would have appreciated and positioning the University for future successes.” said Brad Cheves, SMU vice president for Development and External Affairs. “We thank her for the benefits this gift will bring to the community of students and legal scholars who embraced Alan.”

The gift to endow the Alan R. Bromberg Centennial Chair in Corporate, Partnership and Securities Law counts toward SMU Unbridled: The Second Century Campaign. On Sept. 24 the University announced it had surpassed its $1 billion goal to support students, faculty and academic excellence, and the campus experience. The campaign’s official completion date is Dec. 31, 2015; campaign gifts will continue to be counted to that date. The campaign has raised support for 582 new student scholarships; 49 new endowed faculty positions, now reaching a total of 111; 66 academic programs and initiatives; and 18 substantially funded capital projects, including new facilities for academic programs, student housing and athletics. Other gifts for campus enhancements support expanded career services and leadership programs.

# # #

Southern Methodist University is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls approximately 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools.

The School of Law at SMU was founded in 1925. It was named Dedman School of Law in 2001 in honor of Dallas benefactors Nancy and Robert H. Dedman, Sr., and their family. SMU Dedman Law enjoys a national and international reputation of distinction. It is among the most competitive law schools in the country for admission, as well as one of the most successful in the placement of its graduates.

21386-nr-11/TBD/15-dg