Tom Beauchamp III (1939-2025)
Tom L. Beauchamp III, professor emeritus of philosophy at Georgetown University and one of the most influential philosophers of bioethics, has died.
Professor Beauchamp was well-known for his work on various topics in, and the methodology of, biomedical ethics, as well as on the philosophy of David Hume.
He is the co-author, with James Childress, of Principles of Biomedical Ethics (first published in 1979, with several revised editions released over the years), widely acknowledged as one of the most important and central books in bioethics. The book laid out four “mid-level” principles—respect for autonomy, non-maleficence, beneficence, and justice—that came to dominate how ethicists and medical practitioners approached the moral problems of medicine. (Before Principles was published, Beauchamp worked as part of the staff of the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, where he wrote part of The Belmont Report.)
He is the author of many other works in biomedical ethics, with several of his articles in this area gathered together in Standing on Principles: Collected Works. He is also the author A History and Theory of Informed Consent (with Ruth Faden, 1986) and, with four others, The Human Use of Animals (first published in 1998, with a second edition in 2008). He is the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award of the American Society of Bioethics and Humanities (2004), the Henry Beecher Award of the Hastings Center for a lifetime of contributions to research ethics and other areas of bioethics (2010) and the Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Research Ethics by Public Responsibility in Medicine and Research (2011).
Beauchamp was also an esteemed Hume scholar, co-authoring Hume and the Problem of Causation (with Alex Rosenberg), among other works on Hume, and serving as one of the editors of the Clarendon critical editions of Hume’s works published by Oxford University Press.
You can learn more about his research here and here.
Beauchamp joined the Department of Philosophy at Georgetown University in 1970, and a few years later took up an additional appointment at Georgetown’s Kennedy Institute of Ethics, retiring in 2016. He earned his PhD from Johns Hopkins University and his BA from Southern Methodist University.
He died on February 19th.
There will be a funeral service on Monday, February 24th at 10:00am, which will be livestreamed. Details about the funeral are here.
The Washington Post has published an obituary for Beauchamp here.
Don’t forget his Introduction to Philosophical Ethics – still a great format for a first year course in moral philosophy.
Or his work on the ethics of using animals in research.
Prof. Beauchamp was an incredible professor in addition to being a pathbreaking scholar. I was one of his undergraduate students at Georgetown. I remember his history of modern philosophy class fondly, in part because it was the first time I ever felt treated by a professor as an interlocutor-in-training. He pushed his students while being so warm, inviting, and kind. I eventually decided to pursue a career in academic philosophy and can honestly say that I wouldn’t be the philosopher I am without his guidance, support, and influence. He will be missed!
This was just shared from Georgetown.
It is with great sadness that the Kennedy Institute of Ethics shares the news that Tom L. Beauchamp III, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy and retired Senior Research Scholar of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics at Georgetown died suddenly on February 19, 2025.
Tom first joined the faculty in Philosophy in 1970, having received his BA from Southern Methodist University and his PhD from Johns Hopkins. He became one of the first research scholars of the newly formed Kennedy Institute of Ethics in 1974, an appointment that followed four years of weekly conversations about ethics and medicine over lunch at the Tombs with the Institute’s first Director, André Hellegers, MD. In 1975 he joined the staff of the National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, where he became the chief drafter of the famous Belmont Report, which has guided the ethics and regulation of human subjects research since its publication in 1978. Along with his colleague at the Kennedy Institute, James Childress, he co-authored the renowned textbook, Principles of Biomedical Ethics, which has been translated into multiple languages and underwent multiple revisions with the 8th edition published in 2019. Distilling the essence of medical ethics into principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice, it has been the most influential work in medical ethics in the world. Among his other books are A History and Theory of Informed Consent, co-authored with his wife, Ruth Faden, and Hume and the Problem of Causation, co-authored with Alex Rosenberg.
Tom was a remarkable teacher and a towering intellect. His students have become leaders in bioethics all over the world. He taught regularly in The Kennedy Institute’s Intensive Bioethics Course, which has introduced thousands to the field of bioethics since the program first began in 1974. He taught countless undergraduate and graduate students courses in Hume, ethical theory, and bioethics. He directed dozens of dissertations. He was a tireless yet unobtrusive mentor to countless junior colleagues as he recruited them to Georgetown, guided them through the promotion process, and offered them a model of how to be a person for others as an academic.
He was a generous interlocutor with his colleagues in the Department of Philosophy and the Kennedy Institute, known for his quick mind and wry humor. He retired in 2016.
He received numerous awards over the course of his career, including the Lifetime Achievement Award of the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities, the Henry Beecher Award of the Hastings Center, and Georgetown’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. He delivered Georgetown’s Life of Learning Address in 2016.
Dan Sulmasy, Director of the Kennedy Institute of Ethics, remarked, “It is not an exaggeration to say that, through his work in bioethics, he has had more impact on medical practice than most physician scientists. Clinicians around the world not only learn but also put into practice the principles of autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice that Tom first articulated 50 years ago. Georgetown and the world have lost a great scholar and teacher.”
Funeral services were held on Martha’s Vineyard on February 24. A Memorial Service in the Washington DC area is planned for the Spring. The family has requested that donations in Tom’s name be made to: CHAT (Communication Health, Advocacy & Therapy), 310 South Main Street, Suite D, Lombard, IL 6014.