Thomas Franck (lawyer)

Thomas Martin Franck (July 14, 1931 – May 27, 2009) was a lawyer, law professor, and expert on international law. Franck was the Murry and Ida Becker Professor of Law at New York University and advised many nations on legal matters, even helping some to write their constitutions.

Franck was born on July 17, 1931 in Berlin, the son of a Jewish family. In November 1938, his family fled Nazi Germany and spent six months in Switzerland. After being denied visas to emigrate to the United States, the Franck family obtained Canadian visas and moved to Vancouver.

Franck attended the University of British Columbia, where he received his B.A. in 1952 and Bachelor of Laws in 1953. He then began his teaching career as an assistant professor at the University of Nebraska in 1954. He further studied at Harvard University where he received a Master of Laws in 1954 and a Doctor of Juridical Science in 1959. He joined the faculty of New York University in 1957 as an associate professor, becoming a full professor in 1962, and receiving a named chair, as the Murry and Ida Becker Professor of Law in 1988.

Franck published prolifically, as the author or co-author of 31 books. He also held various leadership positions and fellowships. In 1973 and 1982, he received Guggenheim Fellowships. From 1998 to 2000, he served as the president of the American Society of International Law, and in 1965 he served as the first director of the Center for International Studies at NYU. In addition to teaching at NYU, Franck taught as a visiting professor at the University of Cambridge, Stanford University and York University.

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