August 17, 2001
Ernest M. Haddad (right) will be leaving his position as general counsel at the end of the year, after 21 years of service to Partners HealthCare and the MGH. He also served as secretary to both organizations. Haddad plans to return to a position at Boston University School of Law, where he served as a faculty member and dean from 1966 to 1971.
"Ern Haddad is a man of extraordinary principle, character and integrity who has served as the conscience of our organization," says Samuel O. Thier, MD, president and CEO of Partners. "He constantly reminds us that when confronted with difficult situations, we must keep asking the simple question, 'What is the right thing to do?' He has used this approach time and again to manage the most sensitive and complicated issues, whether personnel-related, regulatory or financial. The thorough compliance programs in place throughout our system are testaments to his commitment to doing the right thing."
Haddad will continue working with Partners and its affiliates on a consulting basis beyond the end of the year. He also will continue to serve as a board member of the Boston Bar Association, the Boston Bar Foundation, the New England Legal Foundation and the Black Achievers Branch of the Greater Boston YMCA.
"You'd be hard pressed to find someone who has been more dedicated to and worked harder on behalf of the MGH and Partners than Ern," says Christopher Clark, who was recruited by Haddad into the MGH Office of the General Counsel 12 years ago. "He is extraordinarily committed to the missions of the MGH and Partners, and I know he's felt genuinely honored to be such an important and integral part of them. He has been a wonderfully supportive mentor to those of us who have had the great pleasure and privilege to work for him."
Haddad joined the MGH as general counsel in January 1981. For the next 14 years, he shaped the Office of the General Counsel into a full-service law office able to handle not only clinical and research issues, but also complex corporate transactions, labor and employment matters, land use and real estate transactions, federal and state regulatory matters and litigation.
In 1994, Haddad played an integral role in sorting through the complex issues involved in joining the MGH and BWH to form Partners HealthCare System. In 1995, he consolidated the law offices of the two founding hospitals into a single Partners program, which was one of the first services to be fully integrated between the two institutions.
Before joining the MGH, Haddad served as general counsel for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Massachusetts, assistant secretary-general counsel for the Massachusetts Executive Office of Human Services, assistant dean and faculty member of Boston University School of Law and as an attorney in private practice.
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