Faculty Scholarship

Keith Fogg, clinical professor of law emeritus at Harvard Law School, says that IRS audits of two former FBI officials deserve an investigation, but he doubts tampering.

Clinical Professor Deborah Anker LL.M. ’84, ‘one of the architects of modern refugee law’ and founder of the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program, moves to emerita status.

Tomiko Brown-Nagin’s book recounts the remarkable — and too little-known — life and achievements of civil rights lawyer and judge Constance Baker Motley

Adrian Vermeule proposes an approach to constitutional interpretation rooted in classical legal tradition

From the Hughes Court to stock market short-termism to the U.S.'s "defend forward" cyber strategy

Articles by four Harvard Law faculty were selected in an annual poll of corporate and securities law professors as three of the ten best corporate and securities articles of 2021.

Harvard Law Professor Jack Goldsmith says laws and norms established after President Nixon's resignation 'had a great run,' but the Trump presidency proved that new reforms are needed.

Harvard Law Professor Rebecca Tushnet discusses the copyright infringement lawsuit against 'Top Gun: Maverick.'

Professor Kristen Stilt, faculty director of the Animal Law & Policy Program, weighs in on the campaign by one animal rights organization to release Happy the elephant from the Bronx Zoo.

Professor Guy-Uriel E. Charles, the Charles Ogletree, Jr. Professor of Law at Harvard, has been elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

On Earth Day, we highlight some of the work being done by Harvard Law students, scholars, clinics, and programs to address some our most pressing environmental issues.

The Supreme Court stands poised to decide whether a high school coach’s penchant for prayers with players poses First Amendment problems.

In celebration of National Poetry Month, HLS lecturer and poet Jessica Fjeld reads a passage from a poem by Terrance Hayes, and discusses the importance of poetry in building empathy and connection.

Subsidies offered by the federal government for the purchase of new electric vehicles (EVs) may actually increase total greenhouse gas emissions without similar aid for secondhand buyers, concludes a new study led by Ashley Nunes, Ph.D., a fellow at Harvard Law School’s Labor and Worklife Program.

In the first of the series, “Cases in Brief,” Harvard Law Professor Dehlia Umunna discusses the infamous “Scottsboro Boys” case, Powell v. Alabama (1932), in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled for the first time that defendants in capital cases have the right to adequate legal counsel.

Alexander Chen of Harvard Law’s LGBTQ+ Advocacy Clinic says Florida’s Parental Rights in Education bill likely will face First Amendment and Equal Protection Clause challenges.

In recent paper, Howell Jackson and Timothy Massad propose that the U.S. Treasury Department implement a new mechanism to improve financial services for financially vulnerable households and expedite delivery of government benefits.

Sports law expert  Peter Carfagna discusses Major League Baseball's new collective bargaining agreement and the impact it will have on the game of baseball.

Professor Matthew Stephenson, an anticorruption law expert and founder of the Global Anticorruption Blog, explains the myriad ways corruption may play a role in Russia's war in Ukraine.

Amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Alex Whiting, deputy specialist prosecutor at the Kosovo Specialist Prosecutor’s Office in The Hague, outlines the path from investigation to trial, and ultimately to justice.

As the Russian invasion of Ukraine continues to unfold, of particular concern, says arms expert Bonnie Docherty, is the reported use of cluster munitions and other explosives in highly populated areas.

To understand the implications of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine under international law, Harvard Law Today reached out to Professors Gabriella Blum and Naz K. Modirzadeh, both experts in the laws of war.

Harvard Law expert Shaun Goho explains how a complicated Supreme Court case could have major implications for government agencies and the environment.

Harvard Law Professor Rebecca Tushnet says that, despite the $73 million settlement between Sandy Hook families and Remington Arms, victims of future gun crimes still ‘face an uphill road.’

Harvard Law negotiation expert Rachel Viscomi ’01 analyzes the playing field as the U.S. and its allies confront Russian troop buildup on Ukraine’s borders.

On the 50th anniversary of President Nixon's visit, China experts William Alford and Mark Wu discuss whether the president may be getting too much credit for his history-making journey.

Georgetown Law Professor Sheryll Cashin ’89 once asked her mentor, Thurgood Marshall, why he had passed over Constance Baker Motley to succeed him when he…

Two Harvard Law experts say the suit filed by former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores faces many challenges, but that if he can get it heard in court, Flores has ‘a good story.’

In his new book, Noah Feldman offers a fresh perspective on the decisions Abraham Lincoln made regarding the U.S. Constitution — many of which he describes as legally indefensible.

Lloyd Weinreb ’62, professor emeritus at HLS, who passed away in December (see Page 48), was the author of many important articles and books, several on legal…

A wide range of books by faculty, from a collection of essays on the ethics of consumer genetic testing to a look at the fate of constitutional institutions in populist regimes to a delightful children's book by a legal philosopher

With the rise of social media and the decline of traditional news outlets, especially local news, “constitutional democracy itself is in the balance,” writes Minow in her new book.

Randall Kennedy seeks nuance in an age of absolutism

Richard Lazarus ’79, a Supreme Court advocate and the Howard and Katherine Aibel Professor of Law, reflects on Justice Breyer's "striking pragmatism" — and passion — during his 28 years on the Court.

Former Federal Reserve Bank member Daniel Tarullo says the Fed has “fallen behind the curve” in raising interest rates to help tame rising inflation and “needs to play some catch-up.”

HLS Professor Andrew Crespo was one of 59 members elected to the American Law Institute this year. Thirteen Harvard Law School alumni were also elected.

Sabrineh Ardalan, of the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic, praises Biden for jettisoning some Trump-era policies, but says he has also “doubled down on” on the former administration’s “draconian … border policies.”

“This administration needs to get out of its own way, … take action where it can, and create pathways for others to take action where it cannot or will not,” says Premal Dharia, executive director of the Institute to End Mass Incarceration.

Former White House Counsel Neil Eggleston says President Biden has “restored dignity and public purpose to the White House” but that his agenda faces strong opposition from some state attorneys general.

Harvard Law Professor Christine Desan says the Biden administration is harnessing fiscal and monetary policy to bolster the economy, but should move faster to address climate change, crypto markets, public banking.

In this series, Harvard Law experts turn a critical eye to the Biden administration’s efforts on health care, the economy, criminal justice reform, and other areas important to Americans — and share their thoughts on its agenda for the future.

In “Civil Rights Queen: Constance Baker Motley and the Struggle for Equality,” Harvard Law Professor Tomiko Brown-Nagin traces the tactics of the groundbreaking lawyer amid pivotal protests.

Harvard Law Professor Richard Lazarus says Biden has ‘quickly and effectively’ reversed many of former President Trump’s executive orders on the environment, but Congress ‘presents a major obstacle’ to the new administration.

Harvard Law School expert Mark Tushnet says the Biden administration has succeeded in appointing federal judges and also “opened space” for discussion of Supreme Court reform.

Harvard Law School election law expert Ruth Greenwood applauds the Biden administration’s support for new voting legislation, but says the filibuster remains an obstacle to finishing the job.

Sanford Levinson speaks with Harvard Law Today on the question before the Supreme Court: Whether Boston can deny a religious group permission to fly a Christian flag on a Boston City Hall flagpole it labeled a “public forum” for “all applicants.”

Glenn Cohen and Carmel Shachar reflect on the administration’s successes, failures, and agenda for the future.