Areas of Interest
Constitutional Law
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Amendments should start with states
December 6, 2022
Stephen Sachs, the Antonin Scalia Professor of Law, outlines a way to smooth the Constitutional amendment process without softening it.
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Change the Senate
November 29, 2022
Constitutional law expert Vicki Jackson argues that the disproportionate voting power of smaller states in the U.S. Senate creates a ‘significant democratic deficit.’
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Former Canadian Supreme Court Justice Rosalie Abella on how the US approach differs — and why justice matters
November 28, 2022
Rosalie Abella, former Canadian Supreme Court justice and Harvard’s Pisar Visiting Professor of Law, believes that ‘it’s the majesty of justice’ that is ‘the law’s purpose.’
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Enshrine an affirmative right to vote
November 21, 2022
Tomiko Brown-Nagin argues that a Constitutional amendment enshrining the right to vote would demonstrate ‘absolute commitment’ to full participation in U.S. democracy.
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Should the Supreme Court care about tradition?
November 18, 2022
At Harvard Law’s Rappaport Forum, panelists debated the Supreme Court's reliance on history and tradition in recent decisions in Dobbs and Bruen.
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‘Effectiveness in government is not something one can just assume’
November 18, 2022
In a Library book talk, Professor Vicki Jackson and panelists discuss constitutionalism, and rights to effective government
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Why has the Supreme Court come under increased scrutiny?
November 16, 2022
In the third of a yearlong lecture series examining “The Supreme Court in a Constitutional Democracy," panelists debate reforming the Court.
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The Ames Game
November 14, 2022
At the 2022 Ames Moot Court Competition, two teams battled over Article III judicial power and climate change.
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Let’s fix how we fix the Constitution
November 14, 2022
Constitutional law expert Sanford Levinson on the ‘enduring dysfunctionality’ of Article V.
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‘An unparalleled opportunity as a law student to get hands-on experience doing appellate litigation’
November 9, 2022
The Final Round of the 2022 Ames Moot Court Competition kicks off on Thursday, November 10, 2022, at 7:30 p.m., in the historic Ames Courtroom at Harvard Law School.
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Supreme Court Preview: Brackeen v. Haaland
October 31, 2022
Harvard Law Professor Joseph Singer says the Supreme Court’s decision in Brackeen v. Haaland has the potential to upset tribal sovereignty.
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Lesson from Latin America for US abortion rights movement
October 28, 2022
This article was originally published in the Harvard Gazette. Mexico and Colombia recently legalized abortion in landmark rulings that offer a stark contrast to…
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Was Antonin Scalia originally an originalist?
October 26, 2022
In remarks made as part of the biennial Vaughan Academic Program, Harvard Law Professor Adrian Vermeule argued that the late Supreme Court justice Antonin Scalia began his judicial career as a champion of the administrative state.
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HLS alum named the next Chief Justice of India
October 26, 2022
D.Y. Chandrachud LL.M. ’83 S.J.D. ’86, who has served on the Supreme Court of India since 2016, has been appointed to serve as the next Chief Justice of India.
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Reflections on serving in the judiciary
October 25, 2022
In a talk moderated by HLS Professor Intisar Rabb, Ret. Supreme Court Justice Stephen G. Breyer ‘64 and Justice Syed Mansoor Ali Shah, Supreme Court of Pakistan, reflect on serving in the judiciary.
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What are the limits of presidential power?
September 27, 2022
A panel of experts say that a seminal Supreme Court decision on the powers of the president may raise more questions than it answers.
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Supreme Court preview: Merrill v. Milligan
September 23, 2022
Harvard Law Professor Nicholas Stephanopoulos explains how the Alabama redistricting case could affect the future of the Voting Rights Act.
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In the first of a Harvard Law School series on the Supreme Court and its role in American democracy, panelists debated the impact of politics on the Roberts Court.
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Florida blues
September 6, 2022
In the wake of the FBI’s raid on President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago home, former White House counsel and Harvard Law lecturer Neil Eggleston reveals how departing presidents have typically preserved official records.
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‘One Generation … from Segregation to the Supreme Court’
July 15, 2022
Ketanji Brown Jackson ’96 becomes the first Black woman to serve on the Court
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Justice Stephen Breyer returns to Harvard Law School
July 2, 2022
Retired United States Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer ’64 is returning to Harvard Law School, where he will teach seminars and reading groups, write, and produce scholarship.
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Nikolas Bowie ’14, a scholar of constitutional law, local government law, and legal history, was named a professor of law at Harvard Law School.
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Watergate-era reforms 50 years later
June 8, 2022
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.
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The Petrie-Flom Center hosted ‘Roe in limbo: A town hall on the leaked Dobbs opinion.’
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Professor Guy-Uriel E. Charles, the Charles Ogletree, Jr. Professor of Law at Harvard, has been elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.
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In this installment of “Cases in Brief,” Harvard Law Professor Richard Lazarus ’79 discusses the landmark citizen-suit case, Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife (1992), which hindered the ability to bring environmental citizen suits for much of the 1990s.
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‘Change the world around you’
April 29, 2022
In a philosophical and wide-ranging Last Lecture, Harvard Law School Assistant Professor Nikolas Bowie ’14 reminded the Class of 2022 that they are on the verge of changing the world.
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Supreme Court preview: Kennedy v. Bremerton School District
April 20, 2022
The Supreme Court stands poised to decide whether a high school coach’s penchant for prayers with players poses First Amendment problems.
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Cases in Brief: Powell v. Alabama with Dehlia Umunna
April 5, 2022
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.
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Loretta Lynch is Harvard Law School’s 2022 Class Day speaker
March 31, 2022
The Hon. Loretta Lynch ’84, who was Attorney General of the United States from 2015 to 2017, will be this year’s speaker for the Class Day ceremonies at Harvard Law School.
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During Winter Term, Cravath International Fellows pursued independent clinical placements or research projects, exploring legal frameworks and practices in six countries.
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Combating corruption
March 9, 2022
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.
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President Biden nominates Ketanji Brown Jackson ’96 for Supreme Court
February 25, 2022
Ketanji Brown Jackson ’96 was nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court by President Biden. If confirmed, Jackson would be the first Black woman to serve on the nation’s highest court.
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Who we are
February 23, 2022
Jeffery Robinson ’81 has made challenging false narratives about racism his life’s work.
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Preserve, Protect, and Defend
February 8, 2022
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.
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Home Court
January 31, 2022
“There aren’t a lot of jobs where your only job is to figure out what the law is and apply it to the facts without anybody from the outside pressuring you to take a certain position or view it in a certain way,” says Jonathan Papik.
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Faculty Books in Brief: Winter 2022
January 31, 2022
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
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Bad News
January 31, 2022
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.
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A Position of Authority
January 31, 2022
In his book “The Authority of the Court and the Peril of Politics,” Justice Stephen Breyer explored how the Court can continue to maintain its vital role as a check on the rest of the government.
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Breyer retires
January 28, 2022
Harvard Law Today offers a look back at Justice Stephen Breyer's career and his legacy, and his lifelong connection to Harvard Law School.
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Pragmatic Justice
January 27, 2022
Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer ’64, who focused on the consequences of his judicial decisions, has announced that he will step down after more than a quarter century on the Court.
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On the Court, Breyer had a ‘deeply thoughtful, learned, humane, and pragmatic approach’
January 27, 2022
In the wake of the news that Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen G. Breyer ’64 will retire at the end of the current term, Harvard Law School faculty members offer their thoughts on his tenure, legacy, and how the nation’s highest court could change after his departure.
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Justice Stephen Breyer — a passionate pragmatist
January 27, 2022
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.
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Andrew Manuel Crespo elected to American Law Institute
January 21, 2022
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.
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Weighing President Biden’s first year: Executive power
January 18, 2022
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.
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Weighing President Biden’s first year
January 18, 2022
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.
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Crimmigration Clinic helps score First Circuit victory for asylum-seeker, Boston-area immigrants
January 18, 2022
In a case that could have national implications, the Harvard Law School Crimmigration Clinic recently convinced judges at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit to discredit the use of controversial municipal gang databases in immigration proceedings.