White, Barry B., 1943-

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Barry B. White (born 1943) is an American lawyer and diplomat. He notably served as U.S. Ambassador to Norway (2009-2013).

White holds an A.B. from Harvard College, magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude, where he was an Editor of the Harvard Law Review. He was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the United States Public Health Service and served from 1967 to 1969 in the legislative liaison office in the Office of the Surgeon General at the United States Department of Health, Education and Welfare.

Prior to his appointment as ambassador, White served for over 13 years as chairman and managing partner (CEO) of Foley Hoag LLP, where he was a senior partner in the firm's business, corporate, international and government strategies practice areas. He practised law at Foley Hoag for 40 years. He also served as chair of Lex Mundi, the world's largest international association of independent law firms, and co-founded the "Lex Mundi Pro Bono Foundation", to provide pro bono legal advice to social entrepreneurs around the world.

White was confirmed as ambassador to Norway by the United States Senate on September 22, 2009 and was sworn in as ambassador on October 21, 2009. In a confirmation hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on September 15, 2009, White emphasized the commitment shared by Norway and the U.S. to promoting human rights, democracy, and freedom throughout the world. He said that he looked forward to working to preserve and build upon this invaluable relationship, and to increase economic development opportunities both for U.S. companies in Norway and Norwegian firms in the United States. He left his position as ambassador in September 2013.

White is married to Eleanor G. White, an affordable housing expert. They have three sons and two granddaughters. In 2005, he and his wife were awarded the American Jewish Committee of New England's Award for Community Service.

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Role Title Holding Repository
Relation Name
associatedWith American bar association corporateBody
associatedWith Boston Municipal Research Bureau corporateBody
employeeOf Department of State corporateBody
associatedWith Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce corporateBody
alumnusOrAlumnaOf Harvard Law School corporateBody
alumnusOrAlumnaOf Harvard University corporateBody
associatedWith Massachusetts Association for Mental Health corporateBody
associatedWith Northeastern university Boston, Mass. corporateBody
employeeOf United States. Public Health Service corporateBody
Place Name Admin Code Country
Boston MA US
Oslo 12 NO
Subject
Occupation
Ambassadors
Diplomats
Lawyers
Activity

Person

Birth 1943

Male

Americans

English

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