The Hon.
Henry
duPont
Ridgely
The Honorable Henry duPont Ridgely is a Retired Justice of the Supreme Court of Delaware.
Justice Ridgely has a distinguished record of more than 30 years of service as a jurist in the Delaware Judiciary. Upon his retirement from the Delaware Supreme Court in 2015 he was Senior Counsel at DLA Piper LLP(US) until 2019. During his tenure of more than a decade on the Delaware Supreme Court, he participated in more than 700 published opinions, including every major decision issued during his tenure involving directors' and officers' liability, merger and acquisition disputes, contests for corporate control, and other issues impacting corporate law and governance. Before his appointment as a Justice, he was Chair-Elect of the National Conference of State Trial Judges with service as a trial judge on Delaware's Superior Court from 1984 until 2004, including 14 years as the President Judge of the Court. During that period, the Delaware Courts earned a number one ranking from the United States Chamber of Commerce. In 2015, the Governor of Delaware awarded Justice Ridgely the Order of the First State, the highest recognition the Governor can give, for outstanding efforts, knowledge, integrity, prudence and ability in serving the State of Delaware. Justice Ridgely has authored law review articles and lectured throughout the world on corporate law topics. He served on the Board of Editors of The Business Lawyer, a publication of the American Bar Association's Section of Business Law and is an emeritus member of the Advisory Board to the John L. Weinberg Center for Corporate Governance of the University of Delaware and an emritus member of the Business and Finance Advisory Council of the George Washington University Law School. He is a Fellow of the American College of Governance Counsel.
Justice Ridgely was elected as a Member of the American Law Institute in 2009. He also has served as an Adjunct Professor at the George Washington University Law School. He is a Contributing Author of Shareholders Rights and Obligations: A Global Guide, United States Chapter, First Edition 2017, Global Law and Business, Ltd.
Justice Ridgely is a Fellow of the National Conference of State Trial Judges, a Life Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, a former Member of the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates, a former Advisor to the American Bar Association's Business Law Section, a former Member of the Executive Committee of the Appellate Judges Conference of the Judicial Division of the American Bar Association and a Member of the American Inns of Court Leadership Council.
Justice Ridgely received his B.S. in Business Administration from Syracuse University in 1971, his J.D. from The Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law in 1973, and his LL.M. in Corporation Law from George Washington University Law School in 1974. He was awarded na Honorary Doctor of Laws from Widener University School of Law in 2010.