Robert Norton serves as Vice President for External Affairs at the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Prior to joining The Bradley Foundation, Mr. Norton was the Assistant General Counsel for Chrysler where he served as the Chief Class Action & Worldwide Vehicle Regulatory Counsel.
After beginning his law practice at the Butzel Long law firm in Detroit, Michigan, Mr. Norton transitioned to in-house counsel for automotive suppliers to the auto industry. Along the way he worked for LucasVarity plc (a/k/a by its brake and wheel division Kelsey Hayes), TRW and Visteon, a spin-off of Ford Motor Company.
Mr. Norton was part of a select legal team that consulted with the Chinese government while it established its first automotive regulatory agency.
Mr. Norton has taught numerous undergraduate courses in business law, federal trade regulation, contracts and contract negotiations. Mr. Norton has also taught administrative law at Cooley Law School. In addition to his role as professor, he has been a guest lecturer for the University of Michigan MBA program and the University of Michigan and Michigan State University Law Schools.
Mr. Norton’s family owned several automotive repair facilities while he was growing up and he worked in this business and in a consulting practice geared toward tire and automotive repair facilities prior to going to law school.
Mr. Norton lived abroad in England during an expatriate assignment for Lucas Varity / TRW with his wife, Kathryn and their three children.