Thomas J. Horton
Thomas J. Horton was a Professor of Law and the Heidepriem Trial Advocacy Fellow at the University of South Dakota School of Law. Professor Horton transitioned to a full-time academic career at USD in 2009, following a 28-year career as an antitrust attorney and complex litigator. Professor Horton taught Trial Advocacy Techniques, Antitrust Consumer Protection, Civil Procedure, Discovery Practice, and an undergraduate honors seminar on “The History and Philosophy of America’s Antitrust Laws". He was also a leader in applying evolutionary models and theories to structural and behavioral competition and antitrust analysis. Professor Horton spent 15 years in the private sector, including partnerships in the Washington, DC offices of major international law firms Howrey Simon and Orrick, Herrington Sutcliffe. His representations included a diverse array of corporations and states. In his 13 years of public service, Professor Horton served stints as a Trial Attorney at the Federal Trade Commission and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice. He has represented the United States as a lead trial attorney in major antitrust cases and investigations. From 1981-1983, he served as a law clerk for United States District Judge William K. Thomas (N.D. Ohio). From 1990-1991, he was appointed by the Governor of Rhode Island as Assistant Special Counsel to investigate the collapse of major RISDIC-insured banks and credit unions in the state. In 1996, he ran as the Democratic candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives in Virginia’s 11th District. Prof. Horton passed in November 2022.