Dennis W. Archer was born on January 1, 1942, in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in Cassopolis, Michigan. He graduated from Western Michigan University, receiving his B.S. degree in education in 1965. After graduating from Western Michigan University, Mr. Archer taught special education in Detroit Public Schools from 1965 to 1970.
In 1966, he enrolled at the Detroit College of Law, where he received his J.D. degree
and passed the Michigan Bar in 1970. In 1970, he began working for the law office of
Gragg & Gardener, P.C. He left the firm in 1971 to help found Hall, Stone, Allen &
Archer. In 1973, he joined Charfoos & Charfoos, which later became Charfoos
Christensen and Archer P.C. In 1983, Mr. Archer became president of the National Bar
Association. He was elected the first African-American president of the State Bar of
Michigan the following year. In 1985, Mr. Archer was appointed by Governor James
Blanchard to serve as an associate justice on the Michigan Supreme Court. He was
elected to an eight-year term but resigned in 1990. In 1991, he became an equity
partner at Dickinson Wright.
In 1993, Mr. Archer was elected mayor of the City of Detroit. He served two four-year terms as mayor of the City of Detroit from 1994 to 2002 and earned national and international respect for his success in changing Detroit’s image and direction. Following his second term as mayor, Mr. Archer became Chairman and later Chairman Emeritus of Dickinson Wright, a national AmLaw 200 law firm based in Detroit. He is past president of the American Bar Association, breaking the color barrier as the first African-American ABA president in 2003. In addition to his service to the legal profession, Mr. Archer served on the Board of Directors of Compuware, Johnson Controls, Inc., MASCO, and TopBuild, Inc. He served on the For Profit Corporation Board of Directors of AlixPartners, Inc. He has served on numerous charitable and civic boards, including the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, the Bipartisan Policy Center, and the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan.
Throughout his illustrious career in law and public service, Mr. Archer has been honored by organizations for his achievements. In 2013, Mr. Archer was awarded The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon by the Emperor of Japan, and the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Michigan Corporate Counsel of America for his advocacy for diversity and inclusion.
In March, 2022, Mr. Archer announced that his Dennis W. Archer Foundation through the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan had surpassed $1 million each in scholarships for students attending Wayne State University and Western Michigan University. In addition to his scholarship fund at the Community Foundation, Mr. Archer was instrumental in creating the Dennis W. Archer Community Development Fund. Since 2003, the Community Development Fund has provided more than $1.3 million in support to local organizations.
Other accolades include the ABA Medal, the highest award of the American Bar Association; the Lifetime Achievement Award from Burton Awards; named "Public Official of the Year" by Governing Magazine; named "25 Most Dynamic Mayors in America" by Newsweek; named "Most Respected Judge in Michigan" by Michigan Lawyers Weekly; named one of its “Most Influential Black Americans” by Ebony Magazine; “Newsmaker of the Year”, an “Award of Excellence” by Engineering News-Record; and named one of the "100 Most Powerful Attorneys in the United States" by the National Law Journal.
Dennis and his wife, Trudy DunCombe Archer, recently celebrated their 57th wedding anniversary. They have two sons, Dennis W. Archer, Jr. and Vincent DunCombe Archer, and two grandsons, Dennis W. Archer, III and Chase Alexander Archer.
