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Harriet Miers Biography
Harriet Miers serves as Counsel to the President. Most recently, she
served as Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff, and
prior to that she was Assistant to the President and Staff Secretary.
Ms. Miers
has a long and distinguished professional career.
Before joining the President’s staff, she was Co-Managing
Partner at Locke Liddell & Sapp, LLP from 1998-2000. She had worked at
the Locke Purnell, Rain & Harrell firm, or its predecessor, from 1972
until its merger with the Liddell Sapp firm. From 1995 until 2000, she
was chair of the Texas Lottery Commission. In 1992, Harriet became the
first woman president of the Texas State Bar, and in 1985 she became the
first woman president of the Dallas Bar Association. She also served as
a Member-At-Large on the Dallas City Council.
Ms. Miers
received her bachelor's degree in Mathematics in 1967 and J.D. in 1970
from Southern Methodist University. Upon graduation, she clerked for
U.S. District Judge Joe E. Estes from 1970 to 1972.
Ms. Miers
had a distinguished career as a trial litigator, representing such
clients as Microsoft, Walt Disney Co. and SunGard Data Systems Inc.
Moreover, when she left her law firm of Locke, Liddell & Sapp, Ms.
Miers was serving as Co-Managing Partner of the firm which had more than
400 lawyers.
Throughout her career, Ms. Miers has been committed to public service.
In addition to her extensive involvement in the State Bar of Texas and
the American Bar Association, Ms. Miers has been an elected official, a
statewide officeholder, and a strong advocate of pro bono work.
During
her time
in the Administration, Ms. Miers has addressed numerous legal and policy
questions at the highest levels of decision making, most recently
serving as the Counsel to the President of the United States.
Ms. Miers
has been a trailblazer for women professionals.
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In
1972, Ms. Miers became the first woman hired at Dallas's Locke
Purnell Rain Harrell. In March 1996, her colleagues elected her the
first female President of Locke, Purnell, Rain & Harrell, at that
time a firm of about 200 lawyers. She was the first woman to lead a
Texas firm of that size.
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In
1985, Ms. Miers was selected as the first woman to become President
of the Dallas Bar Association.
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In
1992, she became the first woman elected President of the State Bar
of Texas. Ms. Miers served as the President of the State Bar of
Texas from 1992 to 1993.
Ms. Miers
recent career has been marked by her participation at the highest levels
of government.
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She
was appointed Assistant to the President and Staff Secretary on
January 20, 2001. As Staff Secretary, Ms. Miers acted as "the
ultimate gatekeeper for what crosses the desk of the nation's
commander in chief." In addition to this important role, Ms. Miers
supervised more than 60 employees in four departments.
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In
2003, Ms. Miers was named Assistant to the President and Deputy
Chief of Staff. As part of the Office of the Chief of Staff, she
was a top domestic policy advisor to the President.
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Ms.
Miers has served as Counsel to the President since February 2005.
In this role, she has served as the top lawyer to the President and
the White House, and in particular has been the principal advisor
judicial nominations.
Ms.
Miers's professional accomplishments have been recognized time and time
again.
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Ms.
Miers made partner at her law firm in 1978; the next year, she was
honored as the Outstanding Young Lawyer of Dallas by the Dallas
Association of Young Lawyers.
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On
numerous occasions, the National Law Journal named her one of the
Nation's 100 most powerful attorneys, and as one of the Nation's top
50 women lawyers.
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She
has received countless awards recognizing her distinguished career,
including 1997 Woman of the Year, the 1996 Louise Raggio Award, the
1993 Sarah T. Hughes Award, and the 1992 Dallas Bar Association's
Justinian Award for Community Service. In 2005 she received the
Sandra Day O'Connor award.
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In
1996 alone, she was honored with the Anti-Defamation League's
Jurisprudence Award and the Legal Services of North Texas 1996
Merrill Hartman Award.
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She
also has been the recipient of a Women of Excellence Award,
sponsored by Dallas's Women's Enterprise, for her work with the
Dallas Bar Association and Dallas's Girls Inc.
Ms. Miers
has been an active participant in our nation's political process.
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In
1989, she was elected to a two-year term as an at-large candidate on
the Dallas City Council. She chose not to run for re-election when
her term expired.
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Ms.
Miers served as general counsel for the transition team of
Governor-elect George W. Bush in 1994.
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From
1995 until 2000, Ms. Miers served as Chairwoman of the Texas Lottery
Commission, a voluntary public service position she undertook while
maintaining her legal practice and other responsibilities. After
then-Governor Bush appointed Ms. Miers to a six-year term on the
Texas Lottery Commission, she served as a driving force behind its
cleanup. In an editorial, The Dallas Morning News complimented her
distinguished service and her success in ensuring the lottery's
integrity.
In
addition to her trailblazing role in the Dallas Bar and Texas State Bar,
Ms. Miers has been a strong voice in the American Bar Association, the
leading professional organization for lawyers across the country, and
the Texas State Bar.
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She
was one of two candidates for the number two position at the ABA,
chair of the House of Delegates, before withdrawing her candidacy to
move to Washington to serve in the Bush Administration.
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Ms.
Miers also served as the chair of the ABA's Commission on
Multi-jurisdictional Practice and was a member of the ABA Governance
Committee.
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She
has also served as the Chair of the Board of Editors of the ABA Bar
Journal.
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Similarly, she has served as the chairwoman of the Legal Services to
the Poor in Civil Matters Committee of the State Bar of Texas.
Throughout
her career, Ms. Miers has successfully balanced her professional
obligations and community involvement.
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For
example, while she served as President of the State Bar of Texas,
Ms. Miers also logged 125 pro bono hours handling an immigration and
naturalization case for Catholic Charities of Dallas.
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In
addition to her service to the Bar and her pro bono commitments, Ms.
Miers has served on the Executive Board for the Southern Methodist
University School of Law and as a Trustee of the Southwestern Legal
Foundation.
Ms. Miers
is single and very close to her family: two brothers and her mother live
in Dallas, and a third brother lives in Houston.
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Harriet Miers
Counsel
The White
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Miers Speaks at ATRA
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