Henry Rose

ROSE

HENRY ROSE (Age 96)

Surrounded by his family, on Thursday, November 2, 2023, HENRY ROSE of Chevy Chase, MD died peacefully after a short illness. He was preceded in death by his parents, Sarah and Irving Rose, and his beloved sister and brother-in-law, Lorraine and Norman Bercoon. He is survived by his children, Ben (Ronit), Andra, and Jonathan, grandchildren Adam and Jesse Rose, Solomon and Fred Goldstein-Rose, and Amy and Emery Rose, many nieces and nephews, and a great-granddaughter. Henry was born on March 28,1927, in Olean, NY, and his family moved to Buffalo in 1934. He served in the U.S. Navy from 1945 through 1946, and after his discharge, attended the University of Buffalo and the University of Buffalo School of Law, graduating in 1951. In law school, he was a founder and editor of the Buffalo Law Review. After law school, Henry taught law at Northwestern University, the University of Toledo and the University of Buffalo. He was a Sterling Fellow at Yale and received an LLM. His interest in labor law led him to the National Labor Relations Board and later, the U.S. Department of Labor. In 1969, he became the Associate Solicitor of Labor for Legislation where he was the principal draft of, among other laws, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), which regulates pension and health benefits and created the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC). He was appointed as the PBGC's first General Counsel, serving from 1974-1984. As PBGC's General Counsel, Henry argued and won the first case under ERISA before the U.S. Supreme Court, Nachman Corp. v. PBGC (1980). After leaving the PBGC, Henry had a successful career in private practice, where he had the opportunity to argue and win a second important ERISA case before the Supreme Court, Demisay v. Local 144 Nursing Home Pension Fund (1993). Henry was always extremely grateful to his mentors in law, and he paid it forward by mentoring many young lawyers during his time in government. He was a devoted teacher, parent, grandparent, and friend to so many. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Memorial contributions in Henry's memory can be made to the fund he created at his alma mater: UB School of Law-Henry Rose Book Scholarship Fund, UB School of Law, 608 O'Brian Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260. Arrangements entrusted to TORCHINSKY HEBREW FUNERAL HOME, 202-541-1001.