Peggy Cooper Davis Oral History

Peggy Cooper Davis served as Associate Counsel for the Legal Defense Fund’s (LDF) Capital Punishment Project for four years beginning in 1973. During her tenure, she challenged the death penalty in states across the nation, with several cases reaching the U.S. Supreme Court. Following her time at LDF, Davis became the first Black female professor at Rutgers University School of Law in 1977, where she taught criminal procedure and civil rights law. She later served as the Judge of the Family Court of the State of New York before joining the faculty at New York University School of Law in 1983. Davis was named the John S. R. Shad Professor of Lawyering and Ethics in 1986 and began her service as Director of the NYU’s Lawyering Program and Experiential Learning Lab, where she prepares law students to address the social and ethical demands of the profession. 

Highlighted excerpt:

Peggy Cooper Davis reflects on how her time at LDF informed her work as a law professor

FULL INTERVIEW

Oral History

Peggy Cooper Davis Interview transcript

Listen on Soundcloud

CITE THIS ITEM:

Peggy Cooper Davis interview for the Legal Defense Fund Oral History Project. Interviewed by Melody Hunter-Pillion on November 25, 2024 in New York, New York. Conducted in collaboration with the Southern Oral History Program at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.