Teaching & Learning

In her Last Lecture to the Class of 2017, Professor and professional ballet dancer Khiara Bridges described her family’s roots in the Jim Crow South, and growing up in a family of doctors as a child who loved reading and writing, and knew, early on, that she wanted to become a lawyer instead.

Professor Bob Bordone began his talk to the Class of 2017 with words of appreciation: Getting to know them, he said, ‘has been a tremendous gift.” But then he apologized, explaining that he would follow last year’s lecture, “Best Job Ever,” with one with the more sobering title of “Worst Year Ever.”

A look back at the beginnings of Harvard Law School

Each May since 2011, Harvard Law School has presented "HLS Thinks Big," a TED Talks-style event that invites faculty members to present a "big idea" in front of an audience of faculty, students and staff.

The Class of 2017 selected Professor Mark Wu for the prestigious Albert M. Sacks-Paul A. Freund Award for Teaching Excellence for his work as a dedicated professor and mentor who cares not only about the intellectual development of his students, but also their emotional well-being.

As she prepares to step down as Dean, Martha Minow focused in her Last Lecture to this year’s graduating class on mistakes she has made — “these are all pre-Deanship,” she quipped, “because we only have an hour” — and the lessons she has learned from them.

Keith Fogg, an expert in tax law and procedure and director of Harvard Law School’s Federal Tax Clinic at the Legal Services Center, has been named Clinical Professor of Law at HLS.

Sabrineh Ardalan ’02, assistant director of the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program and a lecturer in the fields of immigration and refugee law and advocacy and trauma, refugees, and the law has been appointed assistant clinical professor at Harvard Law School.

During this year’s Commencement ceremonies, Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow told graduates and their families and friends that at a moment when differences sharply divide people in this country and around the world, members of the Class of 2017 “share something indelible.”

Sally Yates, the acting attorney general whom President Trump fired for refusing to enforce his tightened strictures on entering the country, said Wednesday that she acted out of a belief that defending the executive order would have meant falsely claiming it was not directed at Muslims.

On May 18, on behalf of affected Colombian communities, a coalition of human rights groups including the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School called on the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the complicity of executives at Chiquita Brands International in crimes against humanity.

Imagine that you’re on the board of IBM, and the opportunity comes to partner with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to counter infant mortality. A no-brainer, right? Not necessarily, if you have shareholders to satisfy and a bottom line to maintain.

In Alan Stone's classes, his delight in teaching is palpable, and the topics can be startling.

Looking back and ahead with Dean Martha Minow

Since its founding nine months ago, Harvard Law School’s Access to Justice Lab has aimed to revolutionize thinking about access to legal help. Often misunderstood and sometimes controversial, the lab sponsored a five-hour symposium in April that drew scholars from across the country to Harvard Law School.

The Harvard Law Review has announced the creation of a public interest fellowship, which will enable one recent Harvard Law graduate to spend a year following law school working in public service.

Starting this fall, Harvard Law School will allow any college junior to apply for admission through its Junior Deferral Program, under which college juniors can be admitted to HLS on the condition that they successfully finish college and then take a minimum of two years to work, study, or pursue research or fellowship opportunities.

On April 5, the Harvard Association for Law and Business (HALB) hosted Stephen Schwarzman, chairman, CEO and co-founder of the Blackstone Group -- the largest alternative asset management firm in the world -- to discuss lessons from his long career in business, and his many years of work as a philanthropist.

Harvard Law School student William Ahee ’17 and alumnus Lam Nguyen Ho ’08 have received the Gary Bellow Public Service Award, established in 2001 to honor HLS Professor Gary Bellow ’60, his commitment to public service, and his innovative approach to the analysis and practice of law.

Several members of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ Commission on Countering Violent Extremism gathered at HLS in March to discuss findings from the commission's November 2016 report, which outlines a strategy for the United States to diminish the appeal of extremist ideologies and narratives.

More than 60 Harvard Law students and 27 HLS faculty members took over the typically quiet tables of the library reading room for the first “Notes and Comment” event.