Dale Minami (born October 13, 1946) is a prominent Japanese American civil rights and personal injury lawyer based in San Francisco, California.
He is best known for his work leading the legal team that overturned the conviction of Fred Korematsu, whose defiance of the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II led to Korematsu v. United States, which is widely considered one of the worst and most racist Supreme Court decisions in American history.
[1][2][3] In addition to his civil rights work, Minami has been recognized as one of the top personal injury attorneys in the United States.
He was named a top ten personal injury lawyers in Northern California in each year from 2013 through 2018 by Law & Politics Magazine.
[4][5] Minami was born in Los Angeles, California, on October 13, 1946, to Nisei parents who were victims of the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II.
He graduated from Gardena High School where he was active as student body president and played varsity basketball and baseball.
[10][4] He was also involved in numerous legal cases and issues promoting the civil rights of Asian Pacific Americans.
[4] In 1996, he was appointed by President Bill Clinton as chair of the board for the Civil Liberties Public Education Fund in 1996.
The board which administered grants created by the Civil Liberties Act of 1988 to educate the public about the incarceration of Japanese Americans.
[28][29][30] Minami was co-executive producer with Philip Kan Gotanda of Drinking Tea and Life Tastes Good, both of which were screened at the Sundance Film Festival.
[54] "Guerrilla War at UCLA: Political and Legal Dimensions of the Tenure Battle", Amerasia Journal, Vol 16, Number 1, 1990.
[16] "Internment During World War II and Litigations", Asian Americans and the Supreme Court, edited by Hyung-Chan Kim, 1992, pp.