James R. Gavin III, MD, PhD

James R. Gavin III, MD, PhD is a noted leader in the field of diabetes, serving as CEO and Chief Medical Officer of Healing Our Village, Inc, Clinical Professor of Medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, and Clinical Professor of Medicine at Indiana University School of Medicine. Dr. Gavin is a former president of the American Diabetes Association, recipient of the Banting Medal for Distinguished Service, and in 1991 received the Association's Clinician of the Year award for his contributions to diabetes care. In 2010, Dr. Gavin, along with the rest of the Kapche Litigation Team, received the Association's Public Policy Leadership Award for his work in defending the right of people with diabetes to live free of discrimination.

Dr. Gavin played a critical role as medical expert in Kapche v. Holder, a case that involved a challenge to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's hiring policies for people with insulin-treated diabetes. When Jeff Kapche was told the FBI wouldn't hire him as a Special Agent because he manages his diabetes with injections rather than an insulin pump, Dr. Gavin responded to a request from Kapche's lawyers to help as a medical expert. Gavin helped lawyers establish that Kapche's diabetes was a disability under federal law. At trial, Dr. Gavin was such a fabulous witness that the FBI was desperate to discredit him and tried to make it seem like he was just saying good things about Kapche because he had been paid to do so. The courtroom was listening intently when Dr. Gavin answered the FBI's question about his role in the case:

"No, I'm not being paid, and I did not expect to be paid, because this is really something that's an important issue for me. I come out of a background where I was always taught, if you—you've got to be twice as good to get the opportunities, you've got to work twice as hard. And if you do make those sacrifices and you put that kind of work in, you can get the type of opportunities to do what your heart's desire is. And for me, for people like Jeff Kapche, this is precisely that kind of situation."

Testimony of Dr. James Gavin III
Kapche v. Holder, D.C. District Court, May 2009

We are grateful to Dr. Gavin for the time he spent on Jeff Kapche's case, and for his continued excellence in the field of diabetes.