Abner Mikva

Abner Mikva
Mikva in 1977
White House Counsel
In office October 1, 1994 – November 1, 1995
President	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	Lloyd Cutler
Succeeded by	Jack Quinn
Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
In office January 19, 1991 – September 19, 1994
Preceded by	Patricia Wald
Succeeded by	Harry T. Edwards
Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
In office September 26, 1979 – September 19, 1994
Appointed by	Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	Seat established
Succeeded by	Merrick Garland
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Illinois
In office January 3, 1975 – September 26, 1979
Preceded by	Samuel H. Young
Succeeded by	John Porter
Constituency	10th
In office January 3, 1969 – January 3, 1973
Preceded by	Barratt O'Hara
Succeeded by	Samuel H. Young (redistricting)
Constituency	2nd
Personal details
Born	Abner Joseph Mikva (1926-01-21)January 21, 1926 Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	July 4, 2016(2016-07-04) (aged 90) Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Education	University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee Washington University (BA) University of Chicago (JD)

Abner Joseph Mikva (January 21, 1926 – July 4, 2016) was an American politician, federal judge, and legal scholar. He was a member of the Democratic Party. After serving in the Illinois House of Representatives, Mikva ran for congress in 1966 but lost the primary to incumbent congressman Barrett O'Hara. In 1968, Mikva defeated O'Hara. Mikva served in the United States House of Representatives representing Illinois's 2nd congressional district (1969–1973) and 10th congressional district (1975–1979). He was appointed as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit by President Jimmy Carter, serving from 1979 to 1994. He served as the White House Counsel from 1994 to 1995 during Bill Clinton's presidency. He was one of the few people in modern times to serve in the executive, legislative and judicial branches of the Federal government.

In his later career, Mikva taught at the University of Chicago Law School, the Georgetown University Law Center and the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. He mentored future President of the United States Barack Obama and future United States Attorney General Merrick Garland (who also succeeded him on the D.C. Circuit) during their early years in law. In 2014, Obama honored Mikva with the Presidential Medal of Freedom.