DeFazio to deliver address at Oregon Law Commencement 2023

Congressman Peter DeFazio MA ’77, is set to be the distinguished speaker for the University of Oregon School of Law commencement on Saturday, May 20, 2023. This year’s ceremony will take place at 1:00 p.m. at Matthew Knight Arena. Over 100 Juris Doctorate and Master of Laws degrees are expected to be conferred.

Congressman DeFazio proudly represented Oregon’s Fourth Congressional District from 1987 to 2023. As the longest serving member in Oregon’s history and the 65th longest-serving member of the House in U.S. history, DeFazio earned the title of “Tiger of the House.”

His fierce advocacy began while as a graduate student at UO, leading him on a path of environmental advocacy and conservation. DeFazio’s legacy is the wilderness spaces that he helped preserve for future generations. During his career, DeFazio passed and signed into law protections for over 30,000 acres of old growth forest, 250 miles of wild and scenic rivers, and over 100,000 acres of critical steelhead and salmon habitat.

Congressman DeFazio (OR-04) also worked on some of the most critical issues facing our society serving as a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure beginning in 1987 and as Chair in 2019 to 2023.  Additionally, he served on the House Committee on Natural Resources from 1987 to 2015.

For more information about the 2023 Commencement, please visit law.uoregon.edu/about/events/commencement/jd-llm