Bruce Alan Mann Receives Business Law Section's Lifetime Achievement Award

• Publication year: 2017
• Author: Mark Moore

Bruce Alan Mann Receives Business Law Section's Lifetime Achievement Award

Mark Moore

Bruce Alan Mann

We are pleased to announce Bruce Alan Mann as the recipient of the 2017 Business Law Section (BLS) Lifetime Achievement Award (LAA). The LAA is given annually to a lawyer such as Bruce who, "over an extended period has made significant contributions to the [Business Law] Section or to business law generally in the State of California and who has achieved high status in the legal community." For more than 60 years, Bruce has pioneered developments in securities offerings, merger and acquisition, and general corporate governance. Early in his career, Bruce helped establish the rules for what we now so easily call "venture capital" and private equity financing, launching so many Silicon Valley start-ups. He has also been an exceptionally generous lawyer, freely sharing his passion for excellence, as well as his experiences and insights, with other corporate lawyers in California and nationwide.

It is fair to say that Bruce laid the groundwork for success in the venture capital world both as a lawyer and as a businessman. His contributions have been significant and he has, without doubt, earned status in our legal community that few others can aspire to match. All of this made Bruce an easy and unanimous choice to be our 2017 LAA winner.

Bruce was born and raised in Racine, Wisconsin, a town that was hurt by the Depression and in some ways never has really recovered. In 1952, Bruce graduated at the top of his High School class and looked around to survey his future. While most of his contemporaries seemed to be headed to factories and industrial jobs, Bruce felt the need to go to college and left to study at the University of Wisconsin. He had a full scholarship, for being at the top of his high school class, but Bruce needed part time jobs to cover his living expenses. One of these jobs, selling advertising for the Daily Cardinal, University of Wisconsin's college newspaper, resulted in his becoming the business manager of the university newspaper. He also served as President of the Independent Students Association while an undergraduate. As if this were not enough to fill up his days, Bruce also went to took Summer School each year. The result was that Bruce graduated from college in three years, and was a member of Phi Betta Kappa.

In fact, Bruce was able to shave even more off of the "normal" course of study. He enrolled in the University of Wisconsin Law...