Title: Law Educator, Director, Academic Administrator
Company: University of Denver
Location: Denver, CO
Education: LLD (Hon.), Bundelkhand University, Jhansi, India (2000); LLD (Hon.), Soka University, Tokyo, Japan (1997); Postgraduate Coursework, Yale University (1962-1965); LLM, Northwestern University (1962); LLM, University of Delhi (1958); LLB, University of Delhi (1955); MA, University of the Punjab (1952)
Career History: Distinguished University Professor, University of Denver (2018-Present); Director, The Ved Nanda Center for International and Comparative Law (2014-Present); Professor of Law, University of Denver Sturm College of Law (1970-Present); Honorary Professor of Law, University of Delhi (India) Faculty of Law (2017); Vice Provost, University of Denver (1994-2008); Evans University Professor, University of Denver (1992-Present); Thompson G. Marsh Professor, of Law Emeritus, University of Denver Sturm College of Law; Founding Director, International Legal Studies Program, University of Denver College of Law; Assistant Provost, University of Denver (1993-1994); Associate Professor, Law, University of Denver College of Law (1968-1970); Assistant Professor, Law, University of Denver College of Law (1965-1968)
Ved Nanda, Law Educator, Director, and Academic Administrator at the University of Denver, has been recognized as a Marquis Emerging Leaders for their contributions and achievements in the fields of law and education.
A renowned figure in legal education, academic administration, and the fight for human rights, Mr. Nanda has dedicated himself to helping students reach their highest standards, predominantly at the University of Denver—where he has been a Professor of Law at the Sturm College of Law since 1970, an Evans University Professor since 1992, and was recognized as a Distinguished University Professor in 2018. In addition, at the university, he has served as director of the Ved Nanda Center for International and Comparative Law since 2014, through which he and other colleagues promote quality writing and research in international law and excellence in international law teaching, scholarship, and practice among faculty, staff, and alumni. He was previously active as the assistant provost from 1993 to 1994; an associate professor from 1968 to 1970; and an assistant professor from 1965 to 1968—and was the founding director of the university’s international legal studies program. Among the many students he helped to guide and mentor was former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.
On top of these primary endeavors, Mr. Nanda has also lent his expertise to numerous other institutes of learning, finding success as a visiting professor at Florida State University, the University of Iowa’s College of Law, the University of San Diego, the University of Colorado, and for numerous summer programs between 1973 and 1992. In the midst of those appointments, he also excelled as a consultant for the Solar Energy Research Institute from 1978 to 1981, a consultant for the U.S. Department of Energy from 1980 to 1981, a distinguished visiting professor at Chicago-Kent College of Law in 1981, a distinguished visiting professor of international law at California Western School of Law from 1983 to 1984, and a distinguished visiting scholar at the University of Hawaii from 1986 to 1987. In 2010, he was honored as a distinguished visiting scholar at the John Marshall Law School. A dedicated member and chair across several national and international civic organizations, he has been affiliated with the Board of Trustees for both the Hindu University of America and Hindu Temple & Cultural Center of the Rockies since 2019, and previously served on the Interfaith Alliance of Colorado and World Federation of United Nations Associations in Geneva, Switzerland. Additionally, Mr. Nanda has been the honorary vice president for the American Branch of the International Law Association since 2001, honorary president of the World Jurist Association since 2000, a counselor for the American Society of International Law since 2000, and a member of the governing council for the United Nations Associations since 1990, among several other professional organizations.
Just as prolific in his written works, Mr. Nanda has authored and edited numerous publications over the course of his career, acting as the co-editor of several texts in the field, including “A Treatise on International Criminal Law,” “Water Needs for the Future,” “The Law of Transnational Business Transactions,” “Global Human Rights,” “World Climate Change,” “Human Rights and Third World Development,” and “Climate Change and Environmental Ethics,” among many others. He also recently co-wrote “Litigation of International Disputes in US Courts” and “Private International Law: Avoiding and Resolving Conflict of Law,” has been a columnist for the Denver Post, and has served on the editorial boards for the American Journal of Comparative Law, Indian Journal of International Law, and Transnational Weekly. In recognition of his impact on the world of education and law, he has earned several accolades, including the World Legal Scholar Award from the World Peace Through Law Center in China in 1990; Civil Rights Award from the Anti-Defamation League in 1996; Medal of Honor from the World Congress of Ukrainian Lawyers in 1999; was named an Ambassador for Peace by the Interreligious and International Federation for World Peace in 2001; a Lifetime Teaching Award from All India Law Teachers Congress in 2009; and a Founder’s Faculty Award from the University of Denver in 2020, among others.
Born and raised in India, Mr. Nanda obtained a Master of Arts from the University of the Punjab in 1952 and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Delhi in 1955. Then, in 1960, he immigrated to the United States, where he earned a Master of Laws from Northwestern University in 1962, completed postgraduate coursework at Yale University from 1962 to 1965, and later received honorary degrees from Soka University in Japan in 1997 and Bundelkhand University in India in 2000. A significant voice in the area of human rights, Mr. Nanda has greatly valued his ability to help people and take care of his students.