William F. (Bill) Causey was born in Baltimore, MD in 1949. As a baby, his mother, a former World War II Army nurse, knew something was wrong. At the age of three, Causey underwent open heart surgery at John Hopkins Hospital. Despite such significant surgery, his mother instilled in him a sense of living without limitation. This attitude led Causey to a self-described “eclectic” legal career that spans over 45 years.
As a student, Causey was always interested in politics. He would often travel to Washington, D.C. to walk through the halls of Congress and to watch Supreme Court arguments. A chance meeting with Senator Robert Kennedy led to Causey’s involvement with Kennedy’s 1968 presidential campaign. The campaign ended in tragedy, but it led Causey to enroll in American University’s school of Government and Public Administration. He later attended the University of Maryland Law School.
In his oral history, Causey recalls his time as a staffer on Capitol Hill, and as a litigator in private practice, including cases before U.S. District Court Judges Joyce Hens Green and Royce Lamberth. In addition, he discusses his time as Assistant General Counsel for the American Red Cross, as Assistant Counsel for
the Office of Professional Responsibility at the U.S. Department of Justice, and in the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, where he appeared before U.S. District Court Judge Emmet Sullivan in a complex, high stakes case for the District of Columbia, which he was able to settle in a mediation overseen by then retired U.S. District Court Judge, James Robertson.
Causey served as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center for 34 years. He enjoys being a docent at the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of Air and Space, serving on various boards, and traveling with his wife, Elizabeth (Sally) Gere.
This only touches the surface of this well-worth reading oral history. See for yourself, here.