Labor / Law
James P. Hoffa
born 1941 · Teamsters General President (1999–2022), labor lawyer
Detroit-born son of Jimmy Hoffa who practiced labor law in the city and led the Teamsters for five terms, from 1999 to 2022.
- Born
Detroit, Michigan
age 85- Birth name
- James Phillip Hoffa
- Also known as
- Jim Hoffa · James Hoffa Jr.
- Detroit years
- 1941–
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
James Phillip Hoffa was born in Detroit in 1941, the son of the rising Teamsters leader Jimmy Hoffa, and grew up on the city's northwest side, graduating from Cooley High School and spending summers at the family cottage in Orion Township. He studied at Michigan State University and earned a law degree at the University of Michigan, then practiced labor law in Detroit for decades, representing working people and Teamsters members. His father's disappearance in 1975 made the family's name a permanent Detroit mystery, and the son long pressed for answers. In 1998 he was elected general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, taking office in 1999, and he was re-elected four times, serving until 2022, the second-longest tenure in the union's history. He championed pension relief for retired Teamsters, which became law in 2021, and in 2011 introduced President Barack Obama at a Labor Day rally in Detroit, where his fiery remarks drew national attention.
Highlights
- Born in Detroit in 1941; graduated from Cooley High School
- Labor lawyer in Detroit before leading the union
- General President of the Teamsters, 1999–2022, five terms
- Introduced President Obama at Detroit's 2011 Labor Day rally