216.696.8700
Robert H. Jackson
Partner Emeritus
216.736.7271
RHJ@kjk.com
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Robert H. Jackson

Partner Emeritus
216.736.7271
RHJ@kjk.com
Contact my Client Service Coordinator
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OVERVIEW & EXPERIENCE

Robert’s legal career spans more than 55 years. Now retired, he has been a partner with KJK since 1968, counseling clients in a wide variety of general corporate matters.

Robert is also a noted collector, writer and scholar of tribal art and rare books who for decades has traveled the world delivering more than 400 lectures on literature and art. Bob recently served as the first Kelvin Smith Library Distinguished Visiting Scholar at Case Western Reserve University, enriching the library’s collection and advising the library on programming related to rare books and literature. He also sits on the advisory board of CWRU’s Baker-Nord Center for the Humanities.

Robert has shared his collections and expertise with dozens of other local, national and international organizations. He has donated a number of his pieces to the Cleveland Museum of Art, including a 13th-century Koran and an assortment of African ceremonial swords. Other Northeast Ohio arts organizations that have benefited from Bob’s wisdom and expertise include the 124-year-old local bibliophilic society The Rowfant Club, the Western Reserve Historical Society, the Contemporary Art Society at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Holden Arboretum, Oberlin College and many others.

Nationally and internationally, he is affiliated with such prestigious literary organizations as The Grolier Club, the Association Internationale de Bibliophilie in Paris and the Fellowship of American Bibliophilic Associations, where he is a co-founder and chairman. His collection of rare books have been displayed at Brown University, the de Young Fine Art Museum in San Francisco, The Whitney Museum in New York City and many others.

In his world travels, Robert continues to add to his collection, deliver lectures and write about art, rare books and his life experiences. His writings have appeared in Biblio magazine, Fine Books & Collections and the book “Book Talk: Essays on Books, Booksellers, Collecting and Special Collections.” He is also currently writing a memoir titled “Life at the Edge.”

Representative Experience
AWARDS & PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

Awards

  • Selected to Ohio Super Lawyers 2005 – 2018
  • “Army of Believers Five Star General,” Cleveland Municipal School District, 2009
  • Distinguished Alumni, Cleveland Heights High School, 2007
  • Distinguished Service Award, Ohio Chamber Orchestra, 2000

Professional Affiliations

  • American Bar Association
  • Cleveland Metropolitan Bar Association
  • Ohio Bar Association
BAR / COURT ADMISSIONS
  • Ohio State Courts
CIVIC INVOLVEMENT
  • Case Western Reserve University Baker-Nord Center for the Humanities
    • Advisory Board, Member
  • The Holden Arboretum
    • The Holden Council, Member
  • Apollo’s Fire
    • Board of Trustees
  • Urban Community School
    • Board of Trustees
  • Bond Accountability Commission, Cleveland Municipal School District
    • Commissioner, 2006 – Present
    • Finance Committee, 2006 – Present
  • Western Reserve Historical Society
    • Trustee and Executive Committee, Member, 1991 – Present
    • Collections and Exhibitions, Chairman, 2004 – Present
  • Cleveland Museum of Art
  • Accessions Committee, 2002 – Present
  • Corporate Council, 1994 – Present
  • Contemporary Art Society
    • Former Trustee and President
  • Rowfant Club (literary organization)
    • President, 1987 – 1988
    • Fellow and Trustee, 1985 – 1988
    • Member, 1977 – Present
  • Fellowship of American Bibliophilic Societies
    • National Co-founder, 1993
    • Chairman, 2007 – Present
    • Vice Chairman, 2003 – 2007
  • Symposium Arrangements Committee, 1997 – Present
    • Chairman
  • Intermuseum Conservation Association, 2002 – 2006
    • Trustee and President
  • Oberlin College Library, 1988 – Present
    • Acquisitions Committee
  • Ohio Chamber Orchestra
    • Former Chairman and Trustee
MEDIA MENTIONS
PRESENTATIONS & PUBLICATIONS
  • More than 400 speeches delivered world-wide and dozens of published articles, including:
    • “Victorian Serials: Essential Parts of the 19th Century Imagination,” Rare Book School, University of Virginia
    • “Welcome to Hard Times — This Time,” Gazette of the Grolier Club, 2010
    • “The Future of the Book and the Future of Academic Libraries,” Kent State University, Oct. 28, 2008
    • “Can the Book Survive the Information Revolution?”, Fellowship of American Bibliophilic Societies, U.S. Library of Congress, Oct. 13, 2007
    • “To Greenland, After Kent,” Fine Books & Collections, Nov./Dec. 2006
    • “The Psychology of Collecting: The Agony and the Ecstasy,” Baltimore Bibliophilic Society, Johns Hopkins University, May 2002
    • “Collectors Issues and Estate Planning,” The Cleveland Museum of Art Symposium, Oct. 2001
    • “Are Things Awry in Hay-On-Wye?”, Biblio, April 1997

PRACTICE AREAS

    EDUCATION

    • Case Western Reserve University School of Law, J.D. 1961
    • University Of Illinois, B.A., Philosophy, 1958

    RECENT KJK INSIGHTS

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    KJK’s attorneys are the smartest I’ve met, clear in their thinking and talented problem-solvers. The firm is small, but we’re able to handle big issues and complex matters.

    Robert H. Jackson
    Partner Emeritus