“I really owe to [Catholic Law] my career. Because it gave me the education and the direction to have a very interesting legal career that took me around the world. Everything else falls in place later on when you become an active lawyer.” Sixty years after graduating from law school, Robert Budelman ’62 has led an extraordinary career, showing dedication and commitment to his work and to the betterment of the legal profession. As a 2022 recipient of the William Callyhan Robinson Alumni Award, Budelman looked back on his Catholic Law education and successful law career.
Budelman was born in Queens, New York, in 1937. By age five, the family had moved to Westwood, New Jersey, where he spent the rest of his childhood. Budelman’s father was of German ancestry and his mother was of Mexican ancestry. His mother had immigrated to the United States from Mexico with her mother and was very active in the Westwood community. Budelman recalled her participation in organizations like the women’s club. At the local high school, she initiated an Americanism award to encourage young people to love this country. She was “strongly American.” The latter half of Budelman’s time in high school coincided with the end of the Korean War. While he ultimately did not have to serve in the war, Budelman opted to enlist in the National Guard and Army Reserve — completing his military service in the time between the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
Following his public-school education, Budelman attended Fairleigh Dickinson University where he studied American Government. Despite having a family history in the legal profession (Budelman’s grandfather had been a judge in Mexico) as Budelman neared the end of college, he was initially interested in attending Georgetown School of Foreign Services. On a trip to Washington, D.C., to visit the school, Budelman decided to add a quick stop at Catholic Law to the list. What started as a last-minute detour ultimately changed the direction of his life. “I went into the Law School, which was in downtown D.C. at the time, just to find out about the Law School, and I spoke to Fr. John McGrath, the Administrator of the Law School. So, I sat down with Father McGrath, and we had a long conversation and at the end of the conversation, he said, ‘If you want to come to Catholic University Law School, I can get you a fellowship here.’”
This was a good enticement and Budelman took the opportunity to pursue his J.D. Throughout his time at Catholic Law, Budelman lived on campus and worked as a resident assistant in the evening. His time at Catholic was a wonderful experience providing a top legal education from “great professors.” Budelman remembered many memorable occasions that he and his classmates had to talk with active legal practitioners who practiced before the Supreme Court and federal agencies. In one instance, his Labor Law class had the opportunity to visit the Teamsters building and converse with Jimmy Hoffa, its President, which made a huge impact on the whole class. “It was things like that that made going to the Law School in Washington so significant. It brought you into contact with so many people who were playing an active role in our country — but it wasn’t just theoretical, it was practical, because they had lived it.”
For two of his years in law school, Budelman gained his own practical experience in a job as a staff assistant with U.S. Senator Clifford P. Case. Classes would end at lunch, and he would go straight to the senator’s office to work for the afternoon then catch the bus from the Capitol back to campus. His time in Washington was very enlightening. Budelman shared, “Going to Washington is the best experience for a young lawyer that they can have. Catholic University gave me experience that I don’t think I could have gotten anywhere else.”
At the end of law school, Budelman considered pursuing a position as a JAG officer, but the recruiting officer told him he had completed his military service with his previous service, and he received his honorable discharge in 1962. With a newfound sense of opportunity and an introduction through his professor, Arthur J. Keefe, Budelman accepted a clerkship with Pitney, Harden, and Kipp in Newark, New Jersey. “I owe a lot to Professor Keefe. He sent me on my career path. He was a great professor at the Law School.”
Budelman then went on to be the law secretary to the Assignment Judge for the Superior Court of New Jersey in Newark. “It was another absolutely wonderful experience: to see the inside of the judiciary.” Budelman was interested in international law and he interview with a number of New York City law firms, finally taking a position at Bingham, Englar, Jones, and Houston in New York City. This new position took his career in another way, taking him to Central and South America and Canada. He spent these early years of his career as an associate, learning crucial lawyering skills as he worked. “It taught me how to write a brief, counsel clients, and investigate cases.”
After a brief stint in politics (he was elected Councilman for the Township of Washington in Bergen County, New Jersey, from 1968 to 1969 and served as Deputy Mayor in 1969), Budelman became a managing and founding partner for Bingham, Englar, Jones, and Houston’s London office. A big case cropped up for the firm’s client, Lloyds of London, while there, and what was supposed to be a nine-month stint extended over six years. While there, he represented Lloyds in matters all over the world including Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. An opposing counsel in a case noticed his work ethic, and after Budelman returned to the United States, in 1985, he accepted a position as a founding and Managing Partner of Sedgwick Deter Moran & Arnold New York City office, where he was happy to do litigation work until his retirement in 2002. During his legal career, he handled many cases arising out of financial crimes on Wall Street and all over the world.
Upon returning from London, Budelman accepted an invitation to serve on the Board of Trustees of Fairleigh Dickinson University. He has also served on the Board of Visitors of the Law School. He now serves as a Trustee for Seton Hall University and on the Board of Trustees of a seminary in the Diocese of Brooklyn. Engaging with Seton Hall in preserving its Catholic identity and mission has helped him to further exercise his faith. “I had become very much involved in my faith toward the end of my career, and I became more engaged with things involving my faith. And so, when the opportunity came up to go to Seton Hall University, I accepted saying, ‘I appreciate the opportunity to serve the University by my interest will be primarily in preserving and promoting the Catholicity of the University.”
Budelman’s faith has also helped him to find a sense of balance, especially in the later part of his career. He noted, “God calls you in various ways.” A flier for a lecture series offered by the Neocatechumenal Way group in his parish church caught Budelman’s eye and he and his wife decided to attend. The series went on to have a profound impact on him. Budelman shared, “I became touched by what I heard and got involved with this group. We meet on Saturday nights for the celebration of the Eucharist. I now have been involved, pro bono, as a legal advisor to a number of different groups in the Catholic Church.”
As he concluded his reflections, Budelman reiterated, “Attending the Catholic University is the thing that molded my entire career — from a faith standpoint and from a legal standpoint. It gave me both of those pillars that I have gone forth with really. It’s great.”