Teed up for success

Steve Boutin ’72, founder and principal of Sacramento business law firm Boutin Gibson Di Giusto Hodell Inc., is driven by a commitment to make society better.

It is what motivated him to enroll in the new Law School at UC Davis in the 1960s and is what inspired him, and his wife, Linda to give back to UC Davis.

Boutin, who spent the day with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as an undergrad, was profoundly affected by King’s assassination and the Vietnam War. So much so that he decided  to enroll UC Davis’ School of  Law where he met faculty members that gave him the tools he needed to become one of the capital region’s most successful and respected business litigators.

“I’m fortunate to have experienced what some people might call success, and I can draw a direct line between what I’ve been able to do in this community and the education I received at UC Davis,” said the King Hall alumnus.

Motivated by personal gratitude and the desire to provide others with a similar opportunity, the Boutins have donated their time and resources to the School of Law at UC Davis. In 2009, the couple started an annual golf tournament to benefit the King Hall Legal Foundation—a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting public interest legal work and supporting King Hall students in addressing the needs of those without adequate access to legal services. 

“I have this old fashioned but deeply held notion that lawyers are a profession that serves society and makes it a better place. And as alumni, we need to do what we can to keep the Law School accessible to all,” Boutin said. “Giving to UC Davis is a way to provide opportunity, and opportunity means hope.”