Corbridge, James N., Jr.

English

bepress Legal Repository

David H. Getches: 1942-2011

Colorado Law

University of Colorado Law School Colorado Law Scholarly Commons Articles Colorado Law Faculty Scholarship 2021 Put More Women in Charge and Other Leadership Lessons from COVID-19 Peter H. Huang University of Colorado Law School Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/articles  Part of the Comparative and Foreign Law Commons, Health Law and Policy Commons, Law and Gender Commons, Law and Politics Commons, and the State and Local Government Law Commons Citation Information Peter H. Huang, Put More Women in Charge and Other Leadership Lessons from COVID-19, 15 FIU L. REV. 353 (2021), available at https://scholar.law.colorado.edu/articles/1371. Copyright Statement Copyright protected. Use of materials from this collection beyond the exceptions provided for in the Fair Use and Educational Use clauses of the U.S. Copyright Law may violate federal law. Permission to publish or reproduce is required.  This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Colorado Law Faculty Scholarship at Colorado Law Scholarly Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Articles by an authorized administrator of Colorado Law Scholarly Commons. For more information, please contact lauren.seney@colorado.edu. 

Corbridge, James N.

University of Denver

Water Law Review Volume 15 Issue 1 Article 5 9-1-2011 David H. Getches 1942-2011 James N. Corbridge Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.du.edu/wlr Custom Citation James N. Corbridge, David H. Getches 1942-2011, 15 U. Denv. Water L. Rev. [x] (2011). This Front Matter is brought to you for free and open access by the University of Denver Sturm College of Law at Digital Commons @ DU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Water Law Review by an authorized editor of Digital Commons @ DU. For more information, please contact jennifer.cox@du.edu,dig-commons@du.edu. DEDICATIONDAVID H. GETCHES1942-2011David Getches, who succumbed to pancreatic cancer on July 5 at theage of 68, was a giant in the field of water resources law. Teacher, schol-ar, administrator and public servant, he left a lasting mark of excellencein each of these areas of service.Educated at Occidental College and the University of Southern Cali-fornia School of Law, David practiced law in California and was co-directing attorney for California Indian Legal Services. In 1970, he cameto Boulder to be the founding executive director of the Native AmericanRights Fund. There his compassion and commitment led to a remarkablelifetime impact on the development of American Indian Law. The Na-tional Congress of American Indians posthumously awarded David itsLifetime Achievement Award, noting that "Your piercing intelligence,diligent work and compassion for the Native cause brought hope andjustice to Indian communities nationwide. We thank you and lift you upin our hearts."In 1979 David joined the faculty of the University of ColoradoSchool of Law. During more than thirty years of teaching and research,he wrote several widely acclaimed books and numerous articles on Indianlaw, water law, and the management of natural resources. His foresightand perception of the issues were applauded by a generation of scholarsand practicing attorneys, along with the hundreds of law students towhom he communicated his unfailing enthusiasm for the law. He graspedthe changing environment for land and water in the American West andwas a leader in the establishment of the Natural Resources Law Center,created to examine these issues in depth.Forever committed to public service, David served from 1983 to 1987as Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resourcesunder Governor Richard D. Lamm. The challenges of that position - at afocal point of natural resources administration in the West - sharpenedthe common-sense approach to wise resources management for which hewas much respected.David Getches was appointed Dean of the University of ColoradoSchool of Law in 2003, a time of unusual challenge. The School's plansfor a much-needed new building had been sidelined because of a sluggisheconomy and reduced state revenues. Undeterred by the obstacles, Davidwelded together the support of the faculty, students and alumni, fash-ioned an ambitious fundraising campaign, and brought the new Wolf LawBuilding through to completion. In addition to its design and environ-mental merits, the facility is a testimonial to David's tireless efforts andintense personal commitment.After eight years of successful leadership, David stepped down asDean on June 30 of this year, looking forward, as he said, to returning toteaching and writing. Sadly, it was not to be.The milestones of David Getches' distinguished career mark him asan intellectual visionary in the development of Indian law and water law.To those of us who had the joy of knowing and working with him, he wasfar more. He was a dear friend, mentor, leader, advisor, and delightfulcompanion. He was a man of many interests who passionately lived a fulllife, filled with compassion. As his close friend and colleague, ProfessorCharles Wilkinson, noted of David at the time of his passing, "We willnot see his kind again."James N. Corbridge, Jr.Professor of Law andChancellor EmeritusUniversity of Colorado Boulder