Thompson received his B.A. from DePauw University and his J.D. at the University of Michigan School of Law. He served as a clerk to United States District Judge Miles Lord and then taught at William Mitchell for three years before being named to the Hamline Law School faculty in 1976. There, he taught trial evidence and civil procedure, criminal law, and eventually alternative dispute resolution classes.
Thompson was named acting dean of Hamline Law School in 1987. He developed a strategic plan and the law school’s diversity program, which led to a Distinguished Service Award from the Minnesota Minority Lawyers’ Association. Thompson also significantly raised alumni, faculty, and staff participation in the annual fund.
After his service as dean, Thompson continued to teach and publish several works on evidence, class actions, and court procedures. He has served the bar in many capacities, including as a federal court special master and chair of the Minnesota Supreme Court Advisory Committee on the Rules of Evidence and its Committee for Professional Responsibility in Continuing Education programs. Thompson retired in 2014.