Centenarian Oliver W. Hill Is the First Winner of an Award Established in His Name at the University of Richmond School of Law

Oliver W. Hill, who practiced law in Richmond, Virginia, for more than 60 years and was a member of the legal team that ended racial segregation in the nation’s schools, colleges, and universities, recently celebrated his 100th birthday. To mark the occasion, Hill was presented with the inaugural Oliver W. Hill Social Justice Award which has been established by the law school at the University of Richmond.

Hill is a graduate of Howard University. In 1933 he graduated second in his class from the Howard University School of Law. Thurgood Marshall was the class valedictorian. Hill was the lead attorney for the plaintiffs in a Virginia litigation which was one of five cases that were joined together under the title Brown v. Board of Education.