E. Gary Spitko earned his A.B., with distinction in all subjects, from Cornell University and earned his J.D., with high honors, from the Duke University School of Law, where he was elected a member of Order of the Coif. While a law student at Duke, Spitko served as an editor of the Duke Law Journal and as the executive editor of the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Forum. Following law school, Spitko served as a law clerk for the Honorable Gerald Bard Tjoflat, who was then Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. He practiced law for several years as an associate at Covington & Burling in Washington, D.C., and at Paul, Hastings, Janofsky & Walker in Atlanta, Georgia.
 
Spitko began his career in law teaching as an assistant professor and then associate professor at the Indiana University School of Law. He joined the faculty at the Santa Clara University School of Law as a tenured associate professor in 2002, becoming a full professor in 2005. Spitko also has taught as a visiting professor at the Ohio State University College of Law. He has published extensively in the areas of dispute resolution, employment law, family law, and inheritance law. He teaches courses in Alternative Dispute Resolution, Employment Discrimination, Employment Law, and Wills and Trusts.

Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis - Assistant Professor, 1997-2000; Associate Professor, 2000-02
Ohio State University College of Law - Visiting Associate Professor, Spring 2001
Santa Clara University School of Law - Visiting Associate Professor, Fall 2001; Associate Professor, 2002-2005

Inheritance Law, Arbitration, Employment Law

Professor Spitko served on the Executive Committee of the Association of American Law Schools Donative Transfers Section from 2003 until 2008.  In 2006, he served as Chair of the Section.

Professor Spitko directed the Santa Clara University School of Law Study Abroad Program in Sydney, Australia in 2006 and 2007.