Gordon B. Spivack was a prominent American antitrust lawyer and former senior Justice Department

United States Department of Justice

The United States Department of Justice , is the United States federal executive department responsible for the enforcement of the law and administration of justice, equivalent to the justice or interior ministries of other countries.The Department is led by the Attorney General, who is nominated...

 official. As a lawyer for Coudert Brothers

Coudert Brothers

Coudert Brothers LLP was a New York-based law firm with a strong international outlook that practiced from 1853 until its dissolution in 2006.-History:...

 and earlier for the firm of Lord Day & Lord

Lord Day & Lord

Lord Day & Lord was a large, blue-chip New York City law firm. It was established in 1845 by Daniel Lord, his son Daniel De Forest Lord, and his son-in-law Henry Day. The firm had retained the same name until 1988 when it merged with smaller firm Barrett Smith Simon & Armstrong to become Lord Day &...

, both now defunct, Spivack's roster of clients included some of the nation's biggest companies, including Cargill

Cargill

Cargill, Incorporated is a privately held, multinational corporation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Founded in 1865, it is now the largest privately held corporation in the United States in terms of revenue. If it were a public company, it would rank, as of 2011, number 13 on the Fortune 500,...

, Chevron Corporation

Chevron Corporation

Chevron Corporation is an American multinational energy corporation headquartered in San Ramon, California, United States and active in more than 180 countries. It is engaged in every aspect of the oil, gas, and geothermal energy industries, including exploration and production; refining,...

, Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...

, Texas Utilities and Union Carbide

Union Carbide

Union Carbide Corporation is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Dow Chemical Company. It currently employs more than 2,400 people. Union Carbide primarily produces chemicals and polymers that undergo one or more further conversions by customers before reaching consumers. Some are high-volume...

.

Born in New Haven, Spivack graduated from Yale University

Yale University

Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

 in 1950. After graduation he joined the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

, becoming a sergeant first class in the Army's medical corps. Spivack returned to New Haven in 1952 to enroll in Yale Law School

Yale Law School

Yale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...

, from which he graduated first in the class of 1955. He then joined the Justice Department's antitrust division ultimately rising to its top career position as Chief of Field Operations where he supervised 350 trial attorneys. Among his many accomplishments at the Division was his work as the government's lead lawyer when it sued executives at General Electric

General Electric

General Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...

 and Westinghouse

Westinghouse Electric (1886)

Westinghouse Electric was an American manufacturing company. It was founded in 1886 as Westinghouse Electric Company and later renamed Westinghouse Electric Corporation by George Westinghouse. The company purchased CBS in 1995 and became CBS Corporation in 1997...

 in 1960, accusing them of fixing the price of large electrical generators.

In 1967 Spivack returned to Yale Law School as a professor of antitrust law and civil procedure. Three years later, however, Lord Day & Lord hired him to start their antitrust group. In 1986, Spivack took himself, 17 other lawyers and all of his clients to Coudert Brothers. While in private practice Spivack represented in significant cases and investigations many major corporations. In 1978 he was appointed to serve on the President's Commission for the Revision of Antitrust Law and Procedures.

He died of colon cancer at his home in New Haven at age 71.