Robert Keeton

Robert Ernest Keeton (December 16, 1919 – July 2, 2007) was an American lawyer, jurist, and legal scholar. As a law professor at Harvard Law School and a federal judge he was known for his work on torts, insurance law, and practical courtroom tactics. Keeton, with Jeffrey O'Connell of the University of Virginia School of Law, played a key role in the advancement of no-fault automobile insurance.

Keeton was born in Clarksville, Texas, on December 16, 1919. He was the second youngest of five children of William Keeton (who owned a general store) and Ernestine Teuton Keeton. One of his brothers, W. Page Keeton, also became a prominent lawyer and educator.

Keeton earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Texas and his law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. As an undergraduate he became one of three students inducted into the Friar Society, an honor society at the University of Texas. In law school he was the assistant editor-in-chief of the Texas Law Review.

Keeton went into private practice with the law firm of Baker & Botts in Houston before joining the U.S. Navy in World War II. As a lieutenant serving aboard the escort aircraft carrier USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) he survived the sinking of the ship on November 24, 1943, by a torpedo from the Japanese submarine I-175. Keeton, clinging to debris for hours, was later pulled from the ocean. He was awarded a Purple Heart.

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