Maurice J. Holland, former dean and professor emeritus of the University of Oregon School of Law, died on January 5, 2020. He was 83.

Holland served as Oregon Law’s dean from 1986 to 1991 and professor until his retirement in 2008. Prior to joining Oregon Law as the school’s 14th dean, Holland was a member of the faculty of the Indiana University School of Law, where he was named associate dean in 1983 and acting dean in 1984.

He came to Oregon Law during a time of severe economic turmoil; state funding was dramatically reduced, and Holland was charged with aligning a quality legal education with affordability.

“It is because of Dean Holland’s leadership that the School of Law made it through that difficult time,” said Marcilynn A. Burke, Dean and Dave Frohnmayer Chair in Leadership and Law. “We appreciate his dedicated service to Oregon Law.”

Dean Holland is described as being “first and foremost a scholar” by those who knew him. He earned an undergraduate degree in history from Yale and three degrees – a law degree, a masters of law degree and a doctoral degree in history – all from Harvard.

When it came to being Dean of a public law school, he believed that the purpose was not only to educate generations of new lawyers, but to serve the State of Oregon. He said that society is dependent upon the caliber of those who are in the legal profession.

“Given the enormous importance of law in the United States, the education of lawyers is a matter of great significance,” said Holland in The Case for Public Law Schools. “The breadth and depth of their training, the standards to which they are held, and the values with which they are inculcated during the formative years of law school, are all fraught with meaning, not just to the professions, but to American society in general.”

Holland’s life-long dedication to the profession was recognized by his peers across the nation, when he was elected as a member of the prestigious American Law Institute.

“Maury loved the law and devoted his life to legal education,” said Michael Moffitt former law dean and current Philip H. Knight Chair in Law and Professor. “He held intellectual inquiry in a place of reverence. His conversations with the bench, bar, and alumni were marked with candor and erudition.”

After his tenure as dean ended, Holland continued on at the law school as a full-time professor teaching English Legal History, Remedies, Federal Jurisdiction and Procedure and Conflict of Laws.

When teaching, Holland believed in exploring the historical and philosophical aspects of American law, as well as the social, economic, and political context in which it functions. His thought was that without a clear understanding of these, a lawyer would lack “the comprehension, the intellectual confidence, the scholarly competence, the humanity and imagination that have always been characteristic of American lawyers at their best.”

Associate Professor Jen Reynolds who taught Procedure and Conflict of Laws after Holland’s retirement reflects on his teaching.  “In the classroom, Maury regularly demonstrated his passions for English legal history on the one hand and for thorny problems of multistate practice on the other,” Reynolds said.  “He viewed the law as both historical artifact and intellectual puzzle, perspectives that provided tremendous benefit to the students in his classes.”

While some remember Holland “the dean” or Holland “the professor,” M. D. "Mark" Gall, professor emeritus at the UO College of Education, remembers Holland as a dear friend and golfing companion.

“Maury loved golf, baseball, and the outdoors,” Gall said. “He was a man of intellectual depth. His greatest passion was the history of the Elizabethan Era. He was a gentleman and a man of true refinement. When I look back on our friendship, I remember Maury as easy-going and never contentious, an excellent listener and respectful of other people’s opinions. I will miss him.”

Holland is survived by close family and many friends. His wife, Mary Gay Holland passed away in 2015.

Because of his love of ice cream, Holland's family is hosting an Ice Cream Social to honor and celebrate his life at Cascade Manor (65 W 30th Ave, Eugene, OR 97405) on Saturday, January 25, from 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Holland’s name can be made to:

Eugene Public Library Foundation
100 W 13th Ave Suite 317
Eugene, OR 97401
541-338-7018
info@Eplfoundation.org

By Rayna Jackson, School of Law Communications