By Jim Ragsdale

It's no secret that Walter Mondale is a "lifetime achiever." But now he has been given that honor by The American Lawyer, a national legal publication.

Mondale has been: Minnesota Attorney General, U.S. Senator, Vice President, Democratic presidential nominee (the first to name a female running mate) and ambassador to Japan.He was a last-minute replacement as Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in 2002 following the plane crash that killed Sen. Paul Wellstone. Mondale lost that race to Norm Coleman.

Mondale remains, at the age of 83, a senior counsel at Dorsey & Whitney. The American Lawyer called Mondale a "transformatively activist" vice president who helped redefine the role when he served under President Jimmy Carter from 1977-1981. Mondale was among 8 lawyers given 2011 Lifetime Achiever awards by the publication.