UC Davis School of Las has received a $2 million gift to fund an endowed chair in family law. The gift, given by Garrett Dailey, a 1977 graduate, is one of the largest ever received by the law school.
A longtime King Hall benefactor, Dailey practices family law in Oakland. He is also the publisher, CEO and co-founder of Attorney’s BriefCase, Inc., the world’s first self-contained computer legal research database. Established more than 30 years ago, Attorney’s BriefCase is California’s leading research software for family law.
Dailey acknowledges a debt to public education in general and King Hall in particular.
“My wife, Lynn, and I have benefited greatly from California’s and Arizona’s essentially free systems of higher education,” he said. “It breaks our hearts to see students now burdened with tens of thousands of dollars in debt.”
Dailey said they have pledged to give back to the schools that gave them so much. This gift will enable the School of Law to appoint a faculty member as chair in family law, thus facilitating greater research and wider dissemination of scholarship in this area.
“Garrett Dailey’s generosity will allow UC Davis School of Law to build on its outstanding scholarship in the area of family law,” UC Davis School of Law Dean Kevin R. Johnson said. “We are grateful for this opportunity to expand our faculty excellence in this field and for Garrett’s steadfast support over the years.”
Dailey’s gift “will have an impact on the School of Law for generations,” added Karen Charney, executive director of development and alumni relations for UC Davis School of Law.
Dailey attributes his initial interest in family law to a class he took from founding King Hall faculty member Brigitte M. Bodenheimer, noting “how interesting she made it seem.”
“Then I chose my first law firm because Dean Edward Barrett was of counsel,” Dailey said, referring to UC Davis School of Law’s founding dean. “The firm asked me to do one year as a family-law associate, and the rest is history.”
Dailey has received many legal accolades, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the State Bar of California, Family Law Section. Before attending law school, he was a pilot in the United States Air Force.
