University Committee to Begin Search for New Head Lawyer

A special closed-session committee meeting will get one step closer today to deciding who will replace James Holst, former general counsel and vice president of legal affairs, after his nearly 20-year tenure at the university.

The committee includes appointed members and five regents from the UC Committee on Finance.

They will be discussing potential recruitment strategies and issues related to the appointment in the meeting today.

The session marks the first step in finding a replacement for Holst and more special committee meetings will be scheduled in the future to finalize the process, said UC spokesperson Trey Davis.

While no potential candidates have been named, Jeff Blair, an attorney in the office of the general counsel, has been serving as acting general counsel since June, Davis said.

Blair has worked on the UC general counsel since 1989 and will continue to fill the post until a permanent replacement is named.

Davis said that no official timeline has been set to fill Holst's position.

Holst has represented the 10 UC campuses in a string of noteworthy cases, including a class-action lawsuit against Enron. He stepped down from the position in June as part of his career plan.

As a UC attorney for more than four decades, Holst became the university's chief legal officer in December 1985, serving hundreds of regents and seven chancellors over the course of his career.

Working from the university's legal headquarters in Oakland, Holst led a staff of 40 attorneys and 45 paralegals representing the UC system.

The UC Berkeley alumnus graduated from the political science department in 1960 and received his law degree from the UC Berkeley law school in 1963.

The following year, he became part of the UC legal team.

Gerald Parsky, chair of the board of regents and a member of the special committee, said in a statement that Holst's position will be a difficult one to fill.

"In a profession steeped in precedents and landmarks, (Holst) will leave an indelible legacy of dedication and integrity by which future public servants will be measured," Parsky said.

While Holst has spoken with the committee members about his former position, he does not have a major role in deciding his successor, Davis said.

Membership on the committee-which will meet via teleconference-includes academic senate chair John Oakley, former UC senior vice president of business and finance Wayne Kennedy, former regent John Davies, UC Santa Barbara Chancellor Henry Yang and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Director Steven Chu.

In addition to Parsky, regents who were selected to sit on the committee include UC President Robert Dynes, Leslie Tang Schilling, Russell Gould, Eddie Island and John Moores.

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