Stephen Harmelin

Stephen Joseph Harmelin (May 7, 1939 – May 3, 2025) was an American lawyer who specialized in corporate and transactional law. He was the co-chairman of the Philadelphia-based law firm Dilworth Paxson LLP. He also served as the White House Director of Speechwriting and as a White House aide for President Lyndon B. Johnson from 1964 to 1965.

Early life and education Harmelin was born on May 7, 1939, into a Jewish family in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Harmelin attended Central High School. He later went on to graduate from the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Law School. He served in the United States Coast Guard.

Career From 1964 to 1965, Harmelin served as the White House Director of Speechwriting and as a White House aide to President Lyndon B. Johnson. Johnson tasked Harmelin with the creation of the White House Fellows program. He joined Dilworth Paxson LLP in 1965 and worked under former Philadelphia Mayor Richardson Dilworth. Harmelin was awarded the Replansky Award by the Philadelphia Bar Association Corporate Law Committee for distinguished accomplishments in civics, law, and professionalism. He also sat on the boards of the Barnes Foundation, the Atlantic Legal Foundation, the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, and The Philadelphia Inquirer. He appeared in the History Channel show Save Our History where he spoke about the National Constitution Center. Harmelin helped draft the Russian Federation's Constitution, which was enacted in 1993. In 2013, Harmelin led a project to return Pennsylvania's original copy of the Bill of Rights, which was held in the New York Public Library. He arranged an agreement with the library that allowed the copy to be shared between the library and the state of Pennsylvania for 100 years. According to Jeffrey Rosen, who serves as the president and CEO of the National Constitution Center, "[there is] no one else in American history who's responsible for restoring two original copies of the Bill of Rights to their owners."

Stephen Harmelin died from Parkinson's disease at home in Society Hill, on May 3, 2025, four days before his 86th birthday.