Edward J. Hawkins

HAWKINS EDWARD JACKSON HAWKINS Edward Jackson Hawkins, 82, of Keswick, Virginia, passed away on January 15, 2010 at Our Lady of Peace, Christopher Center, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Ed left us quietly in his sleep after a long illness. Ed was born on June 24, 1927 in Fall River, Massachusetts to Edward J. Hawkins, Sr. and Harriet Sherman Hawkins, and grew up in Walpole, Massachusetts. He graduated from Phillips Andover Academy in 1945 and entered Princeton University, interrupted by a year of service in the US Army Quartermaster Core. In 1950 Ed graduated summa cum laude from Princeton''s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, where he won the Herrick and Larkin prizes for his thesis "Capital Formation in the United Kingdom in 1948" and earned a plaudit from his advisor, noted economist Jacob Viner, as "intellectual fireworks." In addition he was President of the Whig-Clio Society and a member of the Quadrangle Club. He then attended Harvard Law School, graduating Magna Cum Laude in 1953, winning the Beale Prize and serving as an Editor of the Harvard Law Review. After joining the global law firm of Squire, Sanders and Dempsey, Ed enjoyed a long and successful career as a tax attorney. He pursued his interest in tax simplification in a number of ways during his 40-year involvement with the ABA''s Tax Section, and served as its Vice Chair of Government Relations from 1987 to 1989. He was a member of many tax organizations, a frequent speaker and writer on a range of tax issues, and testified in front of the House Ways and Means Committee on tax simplification. In 1979 Ed was tapped by Senator Russell Long (D) to become the first Chief Tax Counsel to the Senate Finance Committee, initially as Majority Tax Counsel from 1979 to 1980, then as Minority Tax Counsel in 1981. In his three years in Washington, D.C., he worked effectively across party lines and was instrumental in getting an impressive series of tax simplification initiatives enacted. After service to the Senate, Ed returned to private practice with Squire, Sanders and Dempsey, and stepped down in 2000, four years after his official "retirement." Longtime SS&D Chairman, Tom Stanton, called Ed one of the "giants who helped build the firm. His intellect coupled with his humor and self-effacing manner was admired by all." Beyond his professional accomplishments, Ed is remembered for his interest in history and current events, love of reading, gardening, music, family, and his exacting standards -honesty, integrity, and kindness. He thought deeply about many issues, and often wrote to friends and family in his simple and engaging way, full of dry humor and always articulating a new or intriguing point of view. Ed is survived by his wife, Janet Schwerdt, five siblings, Sherman Hawkins of Hershey, PA, Dick Hawkins of Oconomowoe, WI, John Hawkins of New York City, Mary Sachs of New York City, and Jim Hawkins of Attleboro, MA. In addition, he is survived by his four children, Dan Hawkins of Newton, MA, George Hawkins of Washington, DC, Rob Hawkins of Cleveland, OH, Harriet Hawkins Quigley of Livermore, CA, and two stepchildren, Todd Hack of Sedalia, CO, and Stacey Hall of Mableton, GA, and 15 grandchildren. He will be missed by all. Ed will be layed to rest in the Hawkins family plot at the Maple Grove Cemetery on January 23, 2010 in Walpole Massachusetts. In lieu of flowers a memorial fund in Ed''s memory has been established with Our Lady of Peace, Christopher Center, 751 Hillsdale Avenue, Charlottesville, VA 22901.