Robert D. Sack

Robert David Sack (born 1939) is a senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Early life and education

Born to Eugene and Sylvia Sack in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Sack was later raised in Brooklyn, New York. His father was a rabbi at reform Congregation Beth Elohim in Brooklyn, New York, for 35 years.

Sack received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Rochester in 1960 and received his Bachelor of Laws from Columbia Law School in 1963.

Legal career In his first year following graduation from Columbia, he clerked for Judge Arthur Stephen Lane of the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Following his government service, Sack returned to Patterson Belknap. In 1986, he joined the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher as a partner until his appointment as a circuit judge in 1998. Throughout his 33-year career in private practice, Sack specialized in national and international press law, representing numerous United States and foreign-based media companies.

Federal judicial service Sack was nominated by President Bill Clinton on November 6, 1997, to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated by Judge Roger J. Miner.

Notable opinions Doe v. Trump Corporation, 6 F.4th 400 (2d Cir. 2021): Sack, writing for the panel, held that defendants Trump Corporation, Donald J. Trump, and members of his family were not entitled to have the district court enforce an arbitration agreement in a suit for unfair business practices and deceptive statements regarding a multi-level marketing company.

In re Arab Bank, PLC Alien Tort Statute Litigation, 808 F.3d 144 (2d Cir. 2015): Sack, writing for the panel, held that the Alien Tort Statute did not confer original jurisdiction over claims of terrorism victims against bank that allegedly financed and facilitated organizations who committed attacks in Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.

Blanch v. Koons, 467 F.3d 244 (2d Cir. 2006): Sack, writing for the panel, affirmed the district court's decision that artist Jeff Koons was protected by the doctrine of fair use, and therefore not liable for copyright infringement, when he incorporated a photographer's copyrighted photo of a woman's feet and lower legs into a larger collage painting, even though Koons had benefited commercially from the work.

Other writings, activities, and awards Sack has written and lectured on the subjects of national and international press law. He is coauthor with the late P. Cameron DeVore of the first edition of Advertising and Commercial Speech: A First Amendment Guide (1999). His article, "Protection of Opinion Under the First Amendment: Reflections on Alfred Hill," Defamation and Privacy Under the First Amendment, was published in the 100th Anniversary issue of the Columbia Law Review; and "New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, 50-Year Afterward," 66 Alabama L. Rev. 273 (2014), on the 50th Anniversary of Sullivan. Sack has three children from a previous marriage.