Duquesne Mourns the Loss of Law Professor Al Peláez

Professor Emeritus Alfred S. Peláez, who served on the School of Law faculty for 50 years, passed away on Nov. 27.

Peláez first joined the law faculty in 1966 and taught Contracts, Federal Courts and the Federal System, Admiralty, and Chinese Law and the Chinese Legal System, among other courses. During his career at Duquesne, he served as a distinguished visiting professor at China University of Political Science and Law in Beijing and as director of the joint Duquesne University-China University Summer Legal Study Program in Beijing—a program he co-founded—which attracted lawyers and law students from throughout the world.

“He was a mentor to many of us and was loved and respected by his students,” said Interim Law Dean Maureen Lally-Green.

In 2009, the University dedicated The Bridget and Alfred Peláez Legal Writing Center at the School of Law, named for Peláez and his late wife, recognizing the professor’s impact on the law school and the thousands of students he taught. In 2012, Peláez and a small group on Duquesne law faculty received the highest rating for ethical standards and professional ability based on peer review evaluations from Martindale-Hubbell, one of the nation’s leading legal publishers and reference companies.

Peláez earned an LL.M. degree from Yale Law School in 1966, after serving as a Sterling Fellow. He received his J.D. from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1960 and his B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh in 1957. Peláez was a member of the bars of the Supreme Court of the United States, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania and the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

The Peláez family will host a memorial service at Duquesne in January 2017. Details will be shared as they become available.