At 92, Antitrust Lawyer Has More Years at DOJ Than Any Other

Ninety-two-year-old Bernard Hollander has worked for 59 years in the antitrust division of the Justice Department, more years than any other lawyer there.

Legal Times reports that Hollander earned just $3,700 his first year on the job and one of his first big cases involved helping break RCA’s monopoly on color TV technology. Since then he acquired a reputation as a respected but sometimes gruff mentor.

Hollander passed up an opportunity to become a top aide to Attorney General Edward Levi in the 1970s because he liked working in the trenches. He remains there today, the legal publication says. “Every workday, he knots a bow tie, laces up a pair of New Balance sneakers, and drives his Saab in for another shift,” the story reports.

Hollander says he opted not to retire based on the advice of others. “Most of my friends who retired said to me afterwards that they were sorry, [and that] this was the best thing they ever had,” he says.

He attributes his long life to good genes. “As far as how I do it, I’m full of spare parts,” he told the publication.