Davidson Sommers was born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1905. He received an undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1926, and later graduated from the Harvard Law School in 1930. After his graduation, Sommers practiced law for the firm of Parker and Garrison in New York City from 1930 to 1937, and later served as the Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of New York from 1937 to 1939. He additionally practiced law with the firm of Parker and Duryee in New York City from 1939 to 1942.

During World War II, Sommers served in the United States Army Air Forces from 1942 to 1945, and later as the Special Assistant to the Secretary of War from 1945 to 1946.

Sommers joined the World Bank legal department as a lawyer in 1946. He later served as Assistant General Counsel for the World Bank from 1946 to 1949, and then as the General Counsel from 1949 to 1956. He additionally served as General Counsel for the International Finance Corporation from 1956 to 1958, and as the Vice President and General Counsel for the World Bank from 1956 to 1960. In 1960, Sommers retired from the World Bank, but continued to serve as consultant for the World Bank in the 1970s and 1980s.

After the World Bank, Sommers served as Chairman, Senior Vice President, and General Counsel for the Equitable Life Assurance Society from 1960-1982.

Sommers died in Washington, D.C. on December 17, 2001.