From US Presidents to Notorious Criminals, Legal Gladiator Takes Readers Inside the Storied Career of Attorney Alan Dershowitz
BUFFALO, N.Y. — The only biography of America’s most controversial lawyer, Legal Gladiator by Solomon Schmidt is the story of Alan Dershowitz, a poor, failing high schooler from Brooklyn who became the youngest professor in the history of Harvard Law School, where Ted Cruz, Natalie Portman, Mike Pompeo, Jamie Raskin and others sat under his tutelage. It is also the story of a passionate Zionist who advocated for Israel on the world stage and became a confidant of Israeli prime ministers, including Benjamin Netanyahu. And it is the story of a zealous young liberal who, as an old man, stood in front of the Senate to declare that they would be violating the Constitution by removing a Republican president he himself opposed.
As a lawyer, Dershowitz has had a major impact on the most notorious legal cases in modern U.S. history. From Claus von Bulow to Mike Tyson to O.J. Simpson to Jeffrey Epstein to Donald Trump, he has devoted his life to championing the bedrock principle of the American justice system: that every person — no matter how despised — has the right to a rigorous legal defense. Legal Gladiator explores Dershowitz’s rise to prominence, gives the inside story of his most high-profile cases and controversies, and provides a shockingly intimate look into his personal life.
Dershowitz gave author Solomon Schmidt unprecedented access to his personal and professional life, including his private archives at Brooklyn College and dozens of interviews with him virtually and in New York City, Miami, Martha’s Vineyard and Israel. This book includes exclusive interview content from Bob Shapiro, Jeffrey Toobin, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Glenn Greenwald, Rep. Jamie Raskin, Eliot Spitzer, Justice Stephen Breyer, Mike Huckabee, Woody Allen, Noam Chomsky, Geraldo Rivera, Mike Pompeo, Megyn Kelly, Mike Tyson, Ted Cruz, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., O.J. Simpson and Donald Trump, among others.
About the Author
Solomon Schmidt is the author of eight books in a series called History Bites. He wrote his first book at the age of 12, graduated high school at the age of 16, and was described by Fox & Friends as “the youngest child historian in America.” In addition to running historical tours in England and Scotland, Schmidt hosts the History Bites YouTube channel, where he has posted over 150 educational videos and interviews, including with Jocko Willink, Gov. Mike Huckabee, Alan Dershowitz, Mike Tyson and Dame Jane Goodall. Schmidt has traveled to Tanzania, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, Jordan, Australia and New Zealand to film videos for his channel and has given lectures at nearly 50 conferences throughout the United States. He is also working to help expand education in rural parts of Nepal through the JAPA Workbook Initiative. He lives in Buffalo, New York.
BOOK INFORMATION:
Legal Gladiator: The Life of Alan Dershowitz
Publisher: Skyhorse Publishing
Release Date: August 20, 2024
ISBN: 978-1510780644
Available from Amazon.com
Amazon Link: https://www.amazon.com/Legal-Gladiator-Life-Alan-Dershowitz/dp/1510780645
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Praise for Legal Gladiator
“Alan Dershowitz’s clear-headed defense of the rule of law and his fearless stances on behalf of the Jewish people and their nation-state make him a fascinating person to study and learn from. Solomon Schmidt has written a captivating story that highlights Alan’s rise to prominence and his work on behalf of dissidents, U.S. presidents, and notorious criminals alike. This is a significant new biography about a significant figure. Do read it.”
— Lord Daniel Finkelstein, OBE, former executive editor of The Times; member of the house of Lords; author of the bestselling Hitler, Stalin, Mum and Dad
“Alan Dershowitz has consistently, courageously championed the rule of law and civil liberties, even when the immediate beneficiaries are unpopular, and even when his principled advocacy has made him unpopular. His lifelong devotion to defending the rights of all people – no matter who they are or what they believe – mirrors our legal system’s promise of ‘liberty and justice for all.’ Solomon Schmidt has turned Alan’s compelling life story into a compelling book.”
— Nadine Strossen, John Marshall Harlan II Professor of Law Emerita, New York Law School; Past National President, American Civil Liberties Union (1991-2008)
“The Alan Dershowitz I know today is the same Alan Dershowitz I knew when I was a student of his at Harvard Law School. He is a principled man who cares deeply about the Constitution. As well, his public defense of Israel and the counsel he has shared with multiple presidential administrations has helped Israel remain a strong and vibrant country. This important biography by Solomon Schmidt is an objective and fascinating look at Professor Dershowitz’s life story. It should be read by all those who care about the rule of law and the welfare of the nation-state of the Jewish people.”
— Mike Pompeo, Director of the C.I.A. (2017-2018) and 70th Secretary of State (2018-2021)
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“Alan Dershowitz is perhaps the greatest living lawyer in America. His knowledge of the law and reverence for the Constitution and its protections for EVERY citizen are unmatched. It’s been my privilege to get to know him. I have told him that, despite the fact he is a liberal and probably would never vote for me, I do ask two things of him if I ever call him in the middle of the night. One, take the call. Two, I’m guilty and I REALLY need him! He has lived the equivalent of several lifetimes, but somehow Solomon Schmidt has fit it all into one authoritative and compelling story of Alan Dershowitz.”
— Mike Huckabee, governor of Arkansas (1996-2007); presidential candidate; bestselling author and host of the TV show Huckabee on TBN
“Solomon Schmidt has written a compelling and important book Legal Gladiator about one of the most influential and controversial lawyers and advocates of our time, Alan Dershowitz. My relationship with Alan goes back to the first class, the first day, I took at Harvard Law School, his Introduction to Criminal Law; without qualification he was the best professor I had during my three years at Harvard. It continued when Alan brought Avital Sharansky to meet with me in my Carter White House office, and her advocacy on behalf of her husband Anatoly (now Natan) and his helped lead to President Carter’s bold decision to declare in the midst of his Soviet trial that Sharansky was not a U.S. spy, which I believe saved his life. Alan also discussed Israeli peace process issues with me, and later spoke at my family lecture series. While I was initially dismayed by many of the defendants and others he represented, I came to understand that they stemmed from the same belief he instilled in us in our criminal law course at Harvard: everyone under our Constitution is entitled to a vigorous defense in a court of law or a court of public opinion.”
— Ambassador (ret) Stuart E. Eizenstat, former Chief White House Domestic Policy Adviser to President Jimmy Carter; former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union, Under Secretary of Commerce, Under Secretary of State, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, and Special Representative to the President and Secretary of State in the Clinton administration; and Special Adviser on Holocaust Issues to several secretaries of State
“Here is the case for Alan Dershowitz, the celebrated Harvard lawyer who has spent his long and lustrous life cudgeling his brains on behalf of America’s deplorable – murderers and pornographers, Jeffrey Epstein, Leona Helmsley, and Donald Trump (to name a few). He exemplifies the highest professional standard of a defense lawyer, committed to ensuring that no matter how vilified, citizens may engage counsel to stand between them and the state so that, in an adversary system, the law is not mocked. This frank but friendly biography is not written by or for lawyers, and it is all the more enjoyable for that reason.”
— Geoffrey Robertson, prominent human rights and civil liberties lawyer; bestselling author of Rather His Own Man
“A fascinating account about one of the greatest lawyers of our generation. This is a must read.”
— Jay Sekulow, free speech and religious liberties litigator; Chief Counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ); host of the radio and TV show Sekulow
“Solomon Schmidt has written the first comprehensive biography of the nations, and perhaps the world’s, most active and famous lawyer, legal academic, political activist, and author, Alan Dershowitz. The reader will get an intimate picture of the unique life and career of this peripatetic figure, no longer an enigma. It will doubtless provoke others to study how this academic went beyond the classroom and the courtroom to become a significant world figure.”
— Harvey Silverglate, renowned First Amendment lawyer; co-founder of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE)
“Alan is one of the most impactful lawyers of the last half century. He is a tireless champion of truth and civil liberties who never wavered in his commitment to his core values. Generations of law students and journalists like myself have been enriched by his wisdom, excellence and legal work.”
— John Solomon, award-winning journalist and host of Just the News on Real America’s Voice
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“Alan Dershowitz is a real lawyer who doesn’t heed the shouts of the mob when deciding whether to take on a client. Alan is also old-fashioned in the best sense: he doesn’t think the Constitution is just a piece of paper. Solomon Schmidt’s biography explores the highs and lows of Alan’s life in a gripping narrative. Read this book!”
— Greta Van Susteren, news anchor and former host of programs on CNN, Fox News and MSNBC; current host of Newsmax’s On The Record with Greta Van Susteren
“Alan Dershowitz’s portfolio is unique in the annals of legal history, and Solomon Schmidt has told his life story brilliantly in Legal Gladiator. To anyone who values our Constitution and the protections it affords, I encourage you to read this powerful biography of an important historical figure.”
— Robert Shapiro, acclaimed criminal defense attorney, co-founder of LegalZoom
“Alan Dershowitz is an American-Jewish hero who helped to pioneer brilliant, eloquent, well-reasoned, and extremely persuasive, factual arguments in favor of majestic, Democratic Israel. All of us who follow in Alan’s footsteps of dedicating our lives to stopping the defamation and libel of the glorious Jewish state are in his debt for his courage and fortitude. Solomon Schmidt has written a moving and intriguing biography of my friend Alan. In a world where few have the courage to speak out on behalf of the Middle East’s only free nation, Alan stands tall and proud, courageously taking on Israel’s enemies and galvanizing its supporters. I would urge anyone who has an interest in this giant of Israel’s defense to read Legal Gladiator.”
— Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, famed speaker, author and media commentator; known as “America’s Rabbi”; author of The Israel Warrior
“Alan Dershowitz is one of the sharpest, bravest, and most principled legal minds in America. Interviewing him is always a challenge, because you have to be on your A-game, but an enjoyable one.”
— Piers Morgan, internationally renowned media personality
“A lively portrait of America’s most famous lawyer, revealing the funny and endearing man behind the legal theories, the celebrity clients, and the colorful controversies.”
— Steven Pinker, Johnstone Professor of Psychology, Harvard University; bestselling author of Rationality
“Legal Gladiator: The Life of Alan Dershowitz reads like a legal thriller on a roller coaster. Perhaps no other lawyer in American history has taught more high-profile and influential legal and public figures in the past fifty years, nor provided counsel in more controversial court cases that dominated popular culture in their day. From his bully pulpit at Harvard, where he taught more than 10,000 students, to arguing before the high and mighty benches of the Supreme Court, no American jurist has elicited more media coverage, passionate resistance, and support, as well as abandonment by former friends, than Alan Dershowitz. Solomon Schmidt’s authorized biography reveals the flesh and blood man behind the glitter and lights, a humorous, generous and personable friend to many, a combative, fearless, and principled legal genius of international reputation, and an ardent defender of the nation of Israel. Given unprecedented personal access to Professor Dershowitz’s life, including close family and friends in America and Israel, as well as former students, high-profile clients, and opponents, historian Solomon Schmidt has revealed the life of a man whose influence will help define the turbulent second half of the 20th Century and the opening decades of the 21st.”
— William Potter, distinguished tour leader, speaker and American historian
“At last, people can see the full, unique life story of Alan Dershowitz! In this notable biography, Solomon Schmidt not only chronicled the major criminal cases of this outstanding lawyer but also brought to light incredible accounts of Alan’s work on behalf of numerous persecuted Jews in the Soviet Union. As one of these Jews, I spent almost a decade in the Soviet Prison. Among many people from all over the world who fought for my release, Alan Dershowitz made his unique and very important contribution. Legal Gladiator should be read by freedom-loving people everywhere.”
— Natan Sharansky, legendary human rights advocate; Soviet dissident; former Deputy Prime Minister of Israel (2001-2003); awardee of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
“Solomon Schmidt has written a captivating book about one of the most dynamic, intelligent, and influential lawyers in U.S. history. Many lawyers, myself included, have been indelibly impacted by his unique career. His well-known cases have defined the last fifty years of the American justice system, and his work on behalf of Soviet Jewry is an incredible story of compassion and defiance in the face of an oppressive government. Solomon has skillfully recounted Alan’s life in Legal Gladiator, and the result is a fascinating, inspiring story.”
— Arthur Aidala, noted criminal defense lawyer; host of the radio show The Arthur Aidala Power Hour
“For better or worse (worse), Alan Dershowitz has been one of the most famous and influential lawyers and political activists for decades. He has also had a rich and complex life. It is long past time for a critically rigorous biography that reveals the truth about Dershowitz’s work and character, and Solomon Schmidt has delivered that in gripping prose based on rigorous research. A must-read for those who want to understand how America produces over-sized, corrupting and relentlessly loud public figures.”
— Glenn Greenwald, Pulitzer-Prize winning journalist; host of the popular Rumble show System Update: bestselling author of No Place to Hide: Edward Snowden, the NSA and the U.S. Surveillance State
