A legal background in the business world.
It’s common for leaders of large corporations to have a master’s in business administration degree. An MBA can be a major asset for those with CEO or C-suite ambitions. But a small contingent of top business executives have a law degree on their resume. Here are 15 Fortune 500 CEOs who are law school graduates.
Priscilla Almodovar, CEO of Fannie Mae
Law school: Columbia University Law School in New York
U.S. News law school rank: 8
Median LSAT score: 173
Acceptance rate: 12.2%
Almodovar was named CEO of mortgage financing company Fannie Mae in 2022. She was previously president and CEO of Enterprise Community Partners. Before earning her law degree at Columbia, she got her bachelor’s from Hofstra University in New York.
Robert M. Blue, chair, president and CEO of Dominion Energy
Law school:Yale University Law School in Connecticut
U.S. News law school rank: 1 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 175
Acceptance rate: 5.6%
Blue was named president and CEO of Virginia-based Dominion Energy in October 2020 and chair of the board of directors in April 2021. Before joining the company, he served as counselor to the governor and director of policy for Virginia Gov. Mark Warner, and worked as an attorney. He earned his law degree in 1994.
Calvin Butler, president and CEO of Exelon Corporation
Law school: Washington University in St. Louis School of Law
U.S. News law school rank: 16 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 173
Acceptance rate: 17.2%
According to the company’s website, Exelon “is the nation’s largest utility company by customer count, serving 10.5 million electric and gas customers.” Butler held senior leadership roles in the print, digital and supply chain solutions industry before joining Exelon, where he was named CEO in 2022.
Safra Catz, CEO of Oracle
Law school: Carey Law School at the University of Pennsylvania
U.S. News law school rank: 4 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 172
Acceptance rate:9.9%
Catz joined software giant Oracle in 1999 and was named CEO in 2014. Catz, who is also a director of The Walt Disney Company, immigrated to the U.S. from Israel at six years old. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 1983 and a law degree in 1986.
Robert M. Davis, president and CEO of Merck
Law school: Pritzker School of Law at Northwestern University in Illinois
U.S. News law school rank: 9 (tie)
Median LSAT score:172
Acceptance rate: 15.5%
Davis was named president of pharmaceutical company Merck in April 2021, then was named CEO three months later. In addition to his law degree, Davis has an MBA from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management and a bachelor’s from Miami University–Oxford in Ohio.
Kenneth David DeGiorgio, CEO of First American Financial
Law school:University of California–Los Angeles School of Law
U.S. News law school rank: 13
Median LSAT score: 170
Acceptance rate: 16.8%
DeGiorgio was named CEO of First American Financial in February 2022 after serving as president from 2021 to 2022. In addition to his law degree, he has a graduate degree from Harvard University in Massachusetts and an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management.
Nicholas Fink, CEO of Fortune Brands Innovations
Law school: Pritzker School of Law at Northwestern University
U.S. News law school rank: 9 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 172
Acceptance rate: 15.5%
Fink joined Fortune Brands Innovations, which manufactures brands like Master Lock and SentrySafe, in 2015. He was named CEO in January 2020 after serving as president and COO. Before earning his law degree, Fink earned his bachelor’s at the Institut d’Etudes des Relations Internationales in France.
Glenn D. Fogel, president and CEO of Booking Holdings Inc.
Law school: Harvard University Law School
Chris Leahy, chair and CEO of CDW
Law school: Boston College Law School in Massachusetts
U.S. News law school rank: 28 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 167
Acceptance rate: 13.4%
CDW provides information technology solutions for businesses, governments, educational institutions and health care systems in the U.S. and abroad. Leahy was named CEO in 2019 after serving as chief revenue officer. Before earning her law degree, she graduated with a bachelor’s from Brown University in Rhode Island.
Jeffrey W. Martin, CEO of Sempra
Law school: The University of Miami School of Law in Florida
U.S. News law school rank: 82 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 162
Acceptance rate: 32.9%
Martin was appointed CEO of California-based energy infrastructure company Sempra in May 2018. In addition to his law degree, he has a bachelor’s degree from the United States Military Academy at West Point in New York and a master’s in public administration from the University of Texas at El Paso.
Brian Moynihan, CEO of Bank of America Corporation
Law school: University of Notre Dame Law School in Indiana
U.S. News law school rank: 20 (tie)
Median LSAT score:169
Acceptance rate: 24.4%
Moynihan joined Bank of America Corporation in 2004 after the company merged with FleetBoston Financial. He was appointed CEO in January 2010 after leading each company’s operating units. Before his law degree, he earned a bachelor’s from Brown.
Teresa J. Rasmussen, president and CEO of Thrivent
Law school: University of North Dakota School of Law
U.S. News law school rank: 168 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 150
Acceptance rate: 62%
Financial services company Thrivent tapped Rasmussen as its CEO in 2018. Her previous roles include serving as president of the company’s core life, health and annuities business as well as senior vice president, general counsel and secretary. Rasmussen also earned a bachelor’s in accounting from Minnesota State University–Moorhead.
Alan D. Schnitzer, chairman and CEO of Travelers
Law school: Columbia University Law School
U.S. News law school rank: 8
Median LSAT score: 173
Acceptance rate: 12.2%
Schnitzer was named CEO of personal, business and specialty insurance company Travelers in December 2015 after joining the company in 2007 as vice chairman and chief legal officer. He graduated with a bachelor’s in finance and accounting from the Wharton School.
Michael Tipsord, chairman and CEO of State Farm Insurance
Law school where he earned his degree: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign College of Law
U.S. News law school rank: 36 (tie)
Median LSAT score: 165
Acceptance rate: 43.7%
Tipsord began his career with State Farm in 1988 and was named chief financial officer in 2004. He became COO in 2011 and CEO in 2015. He earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting at Illinois Wesleyan University.
David Zaslav, president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery
Law school:Boston University School of Law in Massachusetts
U.S. News law school rank: 24
Median LSAT score: 170
Acceptance rate: 17.8%
WarnerMedia and Discovery merged in 2022 to become Warner Bros. Discovery, one of the country’s largest media and entertainment companies. Zaslav had served as CEO of Discovery since 2006. Previously a practicing attorney, he graduated from law school with honors.
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Fortune 500 CEOs Who Earned a Law Degree
— Priscilla Almodovar, Fannie Mae
— Robert M. Blue, Dominion Energy
— Calvin Butler, Exelon Corporation
— Safra Catz, Oracle
— Robert M. Davis, Merck
— Kenneth David DeGiorgio, First American Financial
— Nicholas Fink, Fortune Brands Innovations
— Glenn D. Fogel, Booking Holdings Inc.
— Chris Leahy, CDW
— Jeffrey W. Martin, Sempra
— Brian Moynihan, Bank of America Corporation
— Teresa Rasmussen, Thrivent
— Alan D. Schnitzer, Travelers
— Michael Tipsord, State Farm Insurance
— David Zaslav, Warner Bros. Discovery
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15 Fortune 500 CEOs Who Earned a Law Degree originally appeared on usnews.com
