The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation announced today that Larry Kramer, dean of Stanford Law School, will be its new president.

Mr. Kramer replaces Paul Brest, who also served as dean of Stanford’s law school before joining Hewlett in 2000. He will remain in the role until Mr. Kramer takes over on September 1.

“When we began this search, we certainly didn’t think we would hire another dean of Stanford Law School to lead the Hewlett Foundation,” Stephen C. Neal, a board member who led the search committee, said in a written statement announcing the news. “But we were committed to finding the most talented, visionary person we could, no matter where he or she came from.

“Over the last several months, we met with leaders in all sectors of society—business, government, academia, the nonprofit sector—and talked to them about who could best lead this foundation. In conversation after conversation, Larry emerged as just the kind of leader we were looking for.”

Mr. Kramer, 53, grew up in working-class towns outside Chicago. He attended Brown University and the University of Chicago law school. He joined Chicago’s law school faculty a few years later and became a full professor at age 31.

Mr. Kramer was named dean of Stanford Law School in 2004. His accomplishments at Stanford have included expanding or creating law centers dedicated to social justice, public service, and international legal training, according to Hewlett.

He is a trustee of Equal Justice Works, a nonprofit that provides legal support and training to benefit disadvantaged people.