Ryan D. Doerfler
Professor of Law
Ryan Doerfler’s research focuses on the role of the judiciary within a democratic system. His recent work includes a critical reassessment of the embrace of judicial review within the liberal legal tradition and an analysis of the relationship between theories of statutory and constitutional interpretation and a fundamental commitment to democratic self-rule. Ryan’s academic work has been published in numerous leading law journals. His popular writing has appeared in the Atlantic, Jacobin, the Nation, the New Republic, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.
Ryan graduated from Wake Forest University with a BA in philosophy. He then received a PhD in philosophy from Harvard University and a JD from Harvard Law School. Prior to joining the Harvard faculty, Ryan was a Professor of Law at the University of Chicago. Before that, he was an Assistant Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania
Education
- B.A. Philosophy Wake Forest University, 2004
- Ph.D. Philosophy Harvard University, 2011
- J.D. Harvard Law School, 2013
Representative Publications
- Ryan D. Doerfler, How Clear Is "Clear"?, 109 Va. L. Rev. 651 (2023).
- Ryan D. Doerfler & Samuel Moyn, With This Supreme Court, the Way Liberals Dissent Matters, N.Y. Times (Dec. 20, 2022).
- Ryan Doerfler & Samuel Moyn, A Plea to the Liberals on the Supreme Court: Dissent with Democracy in Mind, N.Y. Times (Dec. 20, 2022).
- Ryan D. Doerfler & Samuel Moyn, The Constitution Is Broken and Should Not Be Reclaimed, N.Y. Times Aug. 19, 2022.
- Ryan D. Doerfler & Samuel Moyn, Liberals Need to Change the Rules, N.Y. Times (Aug. 21, 2022).