Stephen R.
Stephen Reid Knox was born on March 28, 1947, in Glen Ridge, New Jersey, to Stuart Kelsey Knox and Virginia Gray (Tunstall) Knox. Glen Ridge developed as a residential community within the urbanizing New York metropolitan region, and Knox's later career remained centered in northern New Jersey and nearby New York.
He married Bonnie Lee Peebles on February 20, 1971. They have two daughters, Caroline Kelsey Knox and Susannah Reid Knox.
Knox received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wesleyan University in 1969. Founded in 1831 in Middletown, Connecticut, Wesleyan is a liberal arts university known for combining undergraduate study with traditions of independent scholarship and civic engagement.
He earned a Juris Doctor from the University of Texas at Austin School of Law in 1974. The law school, established in 1883, is the principal law school of Texas's flagship public university and provides professional legal education within the state's major public research institution. Knox was admitted to the New Jersey bar in 1975 and later to the United States bar in 1981 and the New York bar in 1985.
Knox began his legal career as an election-law clerk for the Essex County Election Commission in Montclair in 1974. After completing his legal education, he served as a law clerk to Judge June Strelecki of the Superior Court of New Jersey from 1975 to 1976. The Superior Court is New Jersey's statewide trial court, handling civil, criminal, family, and other major matters under the state's unified judicial system.
From 1976 to 1979, Knox was an assistant prosecutor in Essex County, New Jersey. He also served as a special deputy attorney general for the State of New Jersey from 1977 to 1978, combining county prosecutorial work with state legal responsibilities. These offices placed his early practice within New Jersey's public-law and law-enforcement institutions.
Knox subsequently practiced with Kummer, Knox & Naughton and later with Kummer, Knox, Naughton & Hansbury, a Parsippany firm whose work included civil and criminal litigation, environmental matters, commercial transactions, employment, intellectual property, and the Uniform Commercial Code. He became a partner in Kummer, Knox & Naughton, and represented clients in state and federal litigation, including a 1987 civil-rights case in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.
He later practiced as a member of Bressler, Amery & Ross, P.C., in Florham Park, New Jersey. His practice has included commercial and corporate matters, commercial litigation, construction law, environmental regulation, employment law, professional liability, real estate, bankruptcy and creditors' rights, antitrust and trade regulation, products liability, administrative law, and intellectual property. His admissions have included the New Jersey and New York bars, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, the United States Supreme Court, and several federal district courts.
Knox has belonged to professional legal organizations including the American Bar Association, the Federal Bar Association, the New Jersey State Bar Association, the New York State Bar Association, the Essex County Bar Association, and the Morris County Bar Association. These associations support legal education, professional standards, advocacy, and collegial exchange among attorneys.
His documented community affiliations have also included the Nishuane School Parent-Teachers Association, the Bloomfield County Mentoring Program, the human-needs ministry of First Baptist Church of Montclair, the Gary W. Schultz Scholarship Fund, the Bradford Bath & Tennis Club, and the Museum of Modern Art. His professional association work has included participation in the American Bar Association's Litigation Section and the New Jersey State Bar Association's Environmental Law Section.
Essex County Bar Association , United States
Morris County Bar Association , United States
Member of the Environmental Law Section.
New Jersey State Bar Association , United States
New York State Bar Association , United States
Federal Bar Association , United States
Member of the Litigation Section.
American Bar Association , United States
Nishuane School Parent-Teachers Association , United States
Bloomfield County Mentoring Program , United States
Trustee of the human-needs ministry.
First Baptist Church of Montclair , United States
Trustee.
Gary W. Schultz Scholarship Fund, Inc. , United States
Member of the Board of Governors.
Bradford Bath & Tennis Club , United States
Museum of Modern Art , United States
Knox married Bonnie Lee Peebles on February 20, 1971. Their children are Caroline Kelsey Knox and Susannah Reid Knox.
