Thomas Penfield Jackson '58 never envisioned himself as a public figure. Nor did he ever expect to work on a case that would garner as much attention as the Microsoft Corporation trial.
Indeed, the U.S. District Court judge and Dartmouth alumnus hesitated before taking on the case against Microsoft.
Jackson's decision to hear the case was followed by lengthy proceedings prior to his April 2000 verdict. By the time a friend from Perth, Australia, sent him a copy of the local paper with his decision as the headline, he knew he had become something of a celebrity.
"It comes too late in life," Jackson joked in an interview with The Dartmouth. "I'm too old for groupies and I didn't get any film contracts."
Jackson, who majored in government at the College, said he never studied much law as an undergraduate, never mind any anti-trust policy. But he is a big proponent of a liberal arts education.
In a previous interview, Jackson said, "I can't overestimate the importance of a broad, liberal arts education in being a competent lawyer. You need to have the background to put the legal problems you have into perspective."
Early on, Jackson said he wanted to become either a lawyer or a journalist. He was an editor of his high school newspaper, but ultimately decided to follow in his father's footsteps and become a lawyer.
"It was my impression that journalists wrote about a lot of things that fell on deaf ears, and they didn't produce results. Lawyers were able to go into court and produce a result that would have concrete consequences."
While at Dartmouth, Jackson took part in the campus ROTC program and was a brother at the now defunct Delta Upsilon fraternity.
He said he always enjoys coming back to Hanover, saying it is like coming home. And although the campus feels the same as when he left it, Jackson also made casual remarks about some fundamental differences.
"There are traffic lights in Hanover. There were no traffic lights when I was an undergraduate. There are women. There were no women when I was here."
After graduating, the young Jackson served in the Navy for three years.
"I regard the three years I spent in the Navy as three of the most useful years I have ever spent. It was a very significant maturing experience for me."
In 1964, Jackson received his law degree from Harvard Law School, after which he went into private practice as a lawyer in the Washington, D.C. area. In 1982, then-President Ronald Reagan appointed Jackson to the U.S. District Court.
When asked whether he ever thought about eventually becoming a judge, Jackson said most lawyers think about becoming judges at some point.
"You like having the ability to make decisions rather than have to persuade judges or juries," he said.
Speaking on the future of the Microsoft case itself, Jackson said, "I have absolutely no predictions."
During the trial, in which most of the evidence was computerized, Jackson said that the court used Microsoft programs to display evidence.
"Almost everything we've got is Microsoft."
Looking back, Jackson said he greatly enjoyed working on the case.
"The lawyers were absolutely superb ... Every day I went in there, I knew I was going to hear relevant, significant testimony."
After the excitement of the case passes, it's "back to the usual grist" for Jackson, who referred to the Microsoft case as "ideal" for a trial judge.
However, although he enjoyed it, Jackson said he wouldn't want to do it again.
"It was exhausting," he admitted.
