From politics to pop music: A look back at fall 2014 at HLS

A former NBA All Star turned humanitarian. Supreme Court justices. Student protests. Take a look at some highlights of the people who visited and events that took place this semester at Harvard Law School.

Harvard Magazine: The Legal Olympian

Cass Sunstein and the modern regulatory state Cass Sunstein ’78, has been regarded as one of the country’s most influential and adventurous legal scholars for a generation. His scholarly articles have been cited more often than those of any of his peers ever since he was a young professor. At 60, now Walmsley University Professor […]

Reflections on the Digital World: Internet Monitor releases 2014 report

Internet Monitor, a research project based at Harvard Law School’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society, recently published the project’s second annual report, “Internet Monitor 2014: Reflections on the Digital World.” The report is a collection of roughly three dozen short contributions that highlight and discuss some of the most compelling events and trends in the […]

Minow in Boston Globe: Trust in the legal system must be regained

In an op-ed in the Boston Globe, “Trust in the legal system must be regained,” Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow and Yale Law School Dean Robert Post discuss the importance of finding a way forward after recent events in Ferguson, Staten Island and elsewhere. In the wake of the recent grand jury decisions in […]

District attorneys discuss Vera Institute findings on racial disparity in criminal cases (video)

Addressing racial disparities in criminal prosecutions was the focus of discussion at Harvard Law School on Nov. 20 at an event sponsored by the new Criminal Justice Program of Study, Research and Advocacy at Harvard Law School.

At HLS, panelists discuss the future of digital media in sports marketing

At a December 2 event sponsored by Harvard Law School's Brazilian Studies Association and its Committee on Sports and Entertainment Law, experts convened at to discuss digital media's place in the future of the global sports business model.

The Lee and Li Foundation establishes a fund for the public interest at Harvard Law School

Harvard Law School is pleased to announce that The Lee and Li Foundation, based in Taiwan, has made a generous gift to establish The Lee and Li Foundation Fund for the Public Interest at Harvard Law School.

In chair lecture, Feldman examines Madison, Frankfurter and the meaning of the Constitution (video)

On November 12, Harvard Law School professor Noah Feldman delivered a talk, “James Madison and Felix Frankfurter: Friends, Enemies, and the Meaning of the Constitution,” on the occasion of his appointment as the Felix Frankfurter Professor of Law.

New head of VA looks to put system’s troubles behind

At the inaugural Disabled American Veterans Distinguished Speaker Series at Harvard Law School, U.S. Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert McDonald said the troubled agency is making progress in getting its house in order, citing more — and more timely — appointments and authorizations to see private doctors for veterans who live far from VA hospitals.

Jane Harman on the evolving threat of terrorism (video)

Former Congresswoman Jane Harman ’69 was the keynote speaker at Harvard Law School on Nov. 6, at an event sponsored by HLS Democrats and HLS Republicans. In a question-and-answer session with Dean Martha Minow, Harman reflected on her political career and discussed a range of issues from the fallout from the midterm elections to U.S. intelligence, foreign policy and the evolving threat of terrorism.

Faculty Sampler: Short takes from recent op-eds

  “How to Deregulate Cities and States” Professor Cass R. Sunstein ’78 and Harvard economics Professor Edward Glaeser The Wall Street Journal Aug. 24, 2014 “In 2011 the Obama administration, with bipartisan support, called for an ambitious process through which federal agencies would periodically evaluate existing rules, eliminating or streamlining them when cost-benefit analysis suggested that elimination […]

Home Rule within Enemy Lines: Capturing life in a WWI internment camp

During World War I, about 400,000 “enemy aliens” were imprisoned by all sides in camps on nearly every continent. During that time, Germany’s only exclusively civilian prison camp, Ruhleben Gefangenenlager, became a model of civil functionality.

Gallery: The 2014 Chayes International Public Service Fellows

Since 2001, a select group of HLS students have undertaken public service internships under the auspices of the Chayes International Public Service Fellowship, dedicated to the memory of HLS Professor Abram Chayes '49.

Gallery: 2014 Chayes International Public Service Fellows

Since 2001, a select group of HLS students have undertaken public service internships under the auspices of the Chayes International Public Service Fellowship, dedicated to the memory of HLS Professor Abram Chayes '49.

The renamed Center on the Legal Profession sets new course with digital magazine and relaunch of website

Harvard Law School’s Center on the Legal Professionnhas announced the release of their revamped website and the launch of the first-of-its-kind digital magazine, The Practice

It’s moot, but it matters: Scalia helps to judge Law School case competition

Third-year Harvard Law School students clashed in the high drama of the venerable Ames Moot Court Competition on Tuesday under the jurisdiction of visiting federal judges, including one of the nation’s foremost legal authorities, U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia. “It was fully as good as one would expect at Harvard Law School,” a pleased Scalia […]

Judge Easterbrook delivers inaugural Scalia lecture: ‘Interpreting the Unwritten Constitution’ (video)

On Monday, Nov. 17, Judge Frank Easterbrook of the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals kicked off an inaugural lecture series named after his old friend, colleague and intellectual compatriot, Justice Antonin Scalia, who attended the talk titled “Interpreting the Unwritten Constitution.”

Gallery: A look inside the 2014 Ames Moot Court Competition

The final round of Harvard Law School's annual Ames Moot Court competition was held this year on November 18, and was presided over by the Hon. Antonin Scalia ’60, associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States; the Hon. Adalberto Jordan, U.S. Court of Appeals Eleventh Circuit; and the Hon. Patricia Millett ’88, U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit.

The man with the ‘golden ear’: Star-maker Clive Davis shares his six-decade journey with Dean Minow

It’s not often that Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow gets rattled. But then, it’s not every day that Clive Davis, the legendary record label executive, producer, and talent nurturer, stops by Wasserstein Hall to reminisce about his illustrious, six-decade career in the music industry.

Ferencz receives HLS Medal of Freedom

Benjamin B. Ferencz ’43, known for his role as chief prosecutor in the Nuremburg Trials and for his work promoting an international rule of law and the creation of an International Criminal Court, has been awarded Harvard Law School’s highest honor: the Medal of Freedom.

Obamacare, back on trial: Elhauge on new challenges to the ACA

In a move that caught many observers off guard, the U.S. Supreme Court last week announced it would review one of four cases currently challenging provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). Currently, qualified consumers can receive tax subsidies to help them purchase health insurance through the federal- or state-run exchanges. But the plaintiffs […]

At HLS, former secretary of state Kissinger reflects on career, surveys current affairs

Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger visited the Harvard Law School campus last week to share some of the lessons learned as adviser to Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford.

Dean Minow challenges students to seek solutions to problems in the U.S. food system

This fall, Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow and Julio Frenk, dean of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, issued the "Deans' Food System Challenge" (one of several competitions held by the Harvard Innovation Lab and sponsored by Harvard Schools), encouraging students across the university to come up with fresh ideas for solving complex problems facing our food system.

To Tell the Truth: Alumna’s new film about family secrets to show at Boston film festival (video)

Lacey Schwartz ’03 will return to Cambridge this weekend to speak about her new documentary “Little White Lie,” showing Saturday Nov. 15 and 17 as part of the Boston Jewish Film Festival. The film traces her personal story of being raised as a white Jewish girl in Woodstock, N.Y., only to find out as a young adult that her biological father was an African-American man with whom her mother had an affair.

Clinic investigation: Senior Mynamar officials implicated in war crimes and crimes against humanity

On Nov. 7, the International Human Rights Clinic at Harvard Law School released a legal memorandum, War Crimes and Crimes Against Humanity in Eastern Myanmar, which examines the conduct of the Myanmar military during an offensive that cleared and forcibly relocated civilian populations from conflict zones in eastern Myanmar.

Mary Bonauto reflects on a quarter century of seeking equal treatment under law

Mary Bonauto, director of the Civil Rights Project of the Gay & Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD), spoke Tuesday at a brown-bag luncheon at Harvard Law School, during which she was interviewed by Dean Martha Minow and fielded questions from students in the audience.

HLS Veterans Legal Clinic lands victories for veterans

In just two years, more than 30 HLS students have enrolled in the Veterans’ Legal Clinic—housed at the WilmerHale Legal Services Center (LSC) in Jamaica Plain, of which HLS Clinical Professor Daniel Nagin is faculty director—and represented more than 100 clients in the areas of federal and state veterans’ benefits, discharge upgrades, and estate-planning matters.

Alumni fare well in midterm elections

Harvard Law School graduates across the country won political victories as part of the nation’s midterm elections. Rep. Tom Cotton ’02 (R-Ark.) successfully challenged two-term Democratic Senator Mark Pryor in a contentious Senate race, helping the GOP win control of the Senate. A number of HLS alumni currently serve in the Senate. In this year’s […]

Dean Minow hosts a conversation with Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Nancy Ramirez (video)

On Wednesday, Oct. 22, Martha Minow hosted a Q&A session with Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Nancy Ramirez at an event sponsored by the Black Law Students Association, La Alianza and The Journal on Racial and Ethic Justice.

Humanitarian and NBA All Star Dikembe Mutombo tells HLS students: ‘We need you to become a leader in your generation’

As an NBA All Star, Dikembe Mutombo battled Hakeem Olajuwon on the court. These days, his opponents, malaria and Ebola, are requiring much more than an emphatic block and his trademark “not in my house” finger waggle. Mutombo now uses his considerable stature to address his lifelong goal of improving the health, wellbeing, and future […]

‘Our justice system has become inaccessible to millions of poor people,’ says Dean Martha Minow

“Our justice system has become inaccessible to millions of poor people and so every day, we violate the ‘equal justice under law’ motto engraved on the front of the grand United States Supreme Court.” That is the message shared by Harvard Law School Dean and Vice Chair of the Legal Services Corporation (LSC) Board of […]

Generous Gift from Bradley L. Goldberg Will Support Animal Advocacy Program at Harvard Law School

Harvard Law School has announced that Bradley L. Goldberg, founder and president of the Animal Welfare Trust, has made a generous gift to endow the Animal Advocacy Program at Harvard Law School. By funding curriculum development, experiential learning, scholarly gatherings and exchanges, forums for discussion and debate, and the establishment of an Academic Fellows program, […]

Analysts discuss the origins, motivations, and ambitions of surging ISIS movement

Whether it’s called ISIS or ISIL, few people a year ago had even heard of the radical Sunni Islamist group that had splintered from al-Qaida. But as the Iraq-based terrorist organization rapidly swarmed and took control of cities and towns in Iraq and Syria, it suddenly became a front-burner issue in American foreign policy. After […]

The Islamic State of play

Analysts dig into the origins, motivations, and ambitions of surging ISIS movement Whether it’s called ISIS or ISIL, few people a year ago had even heard of the radical Sunni Islamist group that had splintered from al-Qaida. But as the Iraq-based terrorist organization rapidly swarmed and took control of cities and towns in Iraq and […]

HLS professors reflect on 50 years with the Civil Rights Act of 1964

In an Oct. 16 Harvard Law School panel discussion commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, four HLS professors reflected on its influence and examined how life for African-Americans has changed since its enactment. Professor Kenneth W. Mack, providing historical background, characterized the Act as the culmination of decades of struggle […]

Technology and data analytics should transform municipal government, Harvard professors say

Rarely is the term “city hall” considered synonymous with the words “innovation” or “efficiency.” Too often, the public image of municipal government is of a static bureaucracy staffed with disinterested clock-watchers focused on petty tasks and arcane processes. But two Harvard authorities on government and technology say it doesn’t have to be that way. In […]

Porn Mad? Vast Majority Of Brits Refuse Government Filter

British broadband users are overwhelmingly rejecting the government's recently introduced 'porn filters', with six out of seven choosing to opt out. Under the system, introduced at the beginning of the year, the country's four biggest ISPs agreed to slap on the filters for all new customers unless specifically asked not to [...]

Classroom to courtroom: Law School immigration counseling program helps the powerless while educating students

Harvard Law School students with the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program (HIRC) were working with Greater Boston Legal Services on a case involving a Guatemalan man in the summer of 2013 when they collectively had an “aha” moment. The pressure was high, and everybody was working on two sets of legal briefs that were due before the court. “We […]

Freeman, Lazarus discuss legal fate of EPA proposal to toughen emissions rules

In a discussion on the EPA's proposed regulations on power-plant emissions, HLS Professors Richard Lazarus and Jody Freeman said that the proposed rules have the potential to both transform the national energy scene and invigorate international climate-change negotiations.

Harvard Gazette: A watershed on weddings

Harvard Overseer and legal scholar Kenji Yoshino said he was surprised by the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision Monday to let stand appeals court rulings that in effect allow same-sex marriages to proceed in five states, but he has no doubt about where the issue is headed.

Center on the Legal Profession explores challenges of family-led firms in India (video)

Bharat Anand, a partner at Khaitan & Co., in New Delhi, India, was the keynote speaker on Sept. 23 at an event sponsored by the Center On The Legal Profession at Harvard Law School. Khaitan & Co. partners with the Center on the Legal Profession’s Globalization, Lawyers and Emerging Economies (GLEE) on research in India.

Paycheck Fairness Act debated at HLS

Is legislation the best way to address the pay gap between men and women? And is such a pay gap even real? Both questions were debated at Harvard Law School on Monday, Sept. 29 at an event weighing the pros and cons of the Paycheck Fairness Act, hosted by the Federalist Society and the Women’s Law Association.

President of Ghana visits HLS (video)

The president of the Republic of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, visited Harvard Law School on Friday, Sept. 26, to meet with Dean Martha Minow and to attend a private lunch hosted by the Human Rights Program.

‘Food Better’ week kicks off at Harvard

Individuals and communities can improve the food system, according to members of the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic, which has launched a year-long, university-wide focus on how to make food distribution more equitable, sustainable, and nutritious.

Anita Hill at HLS: From awareness to action

Anita Hill, along with her former legal adviser, Harvard Law Professor Charles Ogletree, and Nan Stein, senior research scientist at Wellesley’s Centers for Women, came together at Harvard Law's Wasserstein Hall to view a screening of the 2013 documentary “Anita,” and to talk about what has changed since she started a national conversation about sexual harassment in 1991.

Michael Stein receives award from ABA Commission on Disability Rights

Michael A. Stein '88, co-founder and executive director of the Harvard Law School Project on Disability, received the American Bar Association’s Paul G. Hearne Award for Disability Rights in August.

Eric Lesser wins primary race

Last spring, Eric Lesser took a leave from his Harvard Law School studies to run for a seat in the Massachusetts Senate. In September, he won the Democratic primary and will move on to the November election in his bid to represent First Hampden and Hampshire District.

A circle completed: Boston native who helped found D.C. charter school returns to HLS

Aldel Brown grew up just a 20-minute drive from Harvard’s campus, but attending the University seemed like distant possibility. Yet this year Brown — who regularly describes himself as “just a kid from Boston” — has arrived as a member of the Harvard Law School Class of 2017.

Meet this year’s new HLS faculty

A host of new faculty members arrived at Harvard Law School this academic year, and over the summer, Dean Martha Minow announced two new faculty who will join HLS in 2015.

Twenty-three from HLS receive Public Service Venture Fund grants

Twenty-three public service visionaries and social entrepreneurs from Harvard Law School have been selected as recipients of grants from the Public Service Venture Fund, a unique program that awards up to $1 million each year to help graduating Harvard Law students and recent graduates obtain their ideal jobs in public service.

HLS Authors: Selected Alumni Books

Although common-law jurisdictions have the same legal origins, in practice they exhibit major differences from one another as shown by varied corporate governance systems, according to Bruner. The professor at Washington and Lee University School of Law examines the power of shareholders in public companies, emphasizing that those in the United States have less influence than those in places such as the United Kingdom and Australia.

Court sense: Kagan provides peek into Supreme Court’s everyday workings

In an entertaining talk in HLS’s Wasserstein Hall with Dean Martha Minow on Wednesday, Associate Justice Elena Kagan '86 displayed her trademark wit and wisdom, honed during her years as a Harvard Law School student, professor, and dean, her work with the Clinton administration, and her stint as solicitor general.

HLS faculty weigh in on recent legal news

A selection of analyses and opinions from Harvard Law School experts.

Porn Mad? Vast Majority Of Brits Refuse Government Filter

British broadband users are overwhelmingly rejecting the government's recently introduced 'porn filters', with six out of seven choosing to opt out. Under the system, introduced at the beginning of the year, the country's four biggest ISPs agreed to slap on the filters for all new customers unless specifically asked not to [...]

HIRC plays key role in landmark decision recognizing domestic violence as grounds for asylum

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) issued a ground-breaking decision yesterday that recognized domestic violence as a basis for asylum. The court’s decision in Matter of A-R-C-G- reflects years of work by the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinical Program (HIRC) and other advocates around the country who have pushed for the recognition of gender-based asylum […]

Running the show: a conversation with MLB commissioner-elect Rob Manfred ’83

In one of the first interviews since his election as Major League Baseball's 10th commissioner, Rob Manfred '83 recently spoke with the Harvard Gazette about the challenges facing baseball and his vision for the future of the game.

Video: Train Slams Into School Bus And Kills 19

In India, a train slammed into a school bus, killing at least 18 children. People are furious about Indian Railways delaying putting up barrier at the level crossing. In South Korea, relatives of the victims of the Sewol Ferry disaster marched to mark the 100th day since the tragedy. Last [...]

Getting a handle on inversion: A Q&A with Mihir Desai

Harvard Law School Professor Mihir Desai recently spoke with the Harvard Gazette about the factors driving the practice of tax inversion, a maneuver by which U.S.-based corporations with significant international holdings shift their headquarters overseas in an attempt to lower their tax bills.