William Jacobus vanden Heuvel (/ˈvæn.dɛnˈhjuː.vəl/ VAN-den-HYOO-vul; April 14, 1930 – June 15, 2021) was an American attorney, businessman, author and diplomat of Dutch descent.

[2][6] He was admitted to the New York Bar in 1952, and then joined the law firm of Donovan, Leisure, Newton & Irvine as an associate.

In 1958, vanden Heuvel served as special counsel to New York State Governor W. Averell Harriman.

As special assistant to Attorney General Kennedy, vanden Heuvel played the key role in court, orchestrating the desegregation of the Prince Edward County school system, which expanded the scope of the landmark decision, Brown v. Board of Education.

[17] He was also a member of Collegium International, an organization of leaders with political, scientific, and ethical expertise whose goal is to provide new approaches in overcoming the obstacles in the way of a peaceful, socially just and an economically sustainable world.

[18] In 1960, vanden Heuvel ran as a Democrat for New York's 17th congressional district against incumbent Republican John Lindsay.

[20] In June 1973, vanden Heuvel challenged Frank Hogan in the Democratic primary for the position of Manhattan District Attorney.