Justin Driver

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law and Counselor to the Dean

(on leave, fall 2022)


Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law and Counselor to the Dean at Yale Law School. He teaches and writes in the area of constitutional law and is the author of The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for the American Mind.

FULL BIOGRAPHY
Justin Driver

Contact Information



Faculty Assistant


Ann-Marie Cooper

Education & Curriculum Vitae


J.D., Harvard Law School, 2004

M.S., Oxford University, 2000

M.A., Duke University, 1998

B.A., Brown University, 1997

Courses Taught


  • Constitutional Law
  • Education Law
  • Narratives from Prison
  • The Law of Racial Inequality

Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law and Counselor to the Dean at Yale Law School. He teaches and writes in the area of constitutional law and is the author of The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for the American Mind. The book was selected as a Washington Post Notable Book of the Year and an Editors’ Choice of The New York Times Book ReviewThe Schoolhouse Gate also received the Steven S. Goldberg Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Education Law, and was a finalist for the American Bar Association’s Silver Gavel Award and Phi Beta Kappa’s Ralph Waldo Emerson Book Award.  

A recipient of the American Society for Legal History’s William Nelson Cromwell Article Prize, Driver has a distinguished publication record in the nation’s leading law reviews. He has also written extensively for general audiences, including pieces in SlateThe AtlanticThe New York TimesThe Washington Post, and The New Republic, where he was a contributing editor. An elected member of the American Law Institute and of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, Driver is also an editor of the Supreme Court Review. In 2021, President Biden appointed Driver to serve on the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States.

Previously, Driver was the Harry N. Wyatt Professor of Law at the University of Chicago. Driver is a graduate of Brown, Oxford (where he was a Marshall Scholar), Duke (where he received certification to teach public school), and Harvard Law School (where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review). After graduating from Harvard, Driver clerked for then-Judge Merrick Garland, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor (Ret.), and Justice Stephen Breyer.

 

Monday, January 30, 2023


Force Multiplier

Collaborations between faculty and students on academic papers enhance the process — and the scholarship.

Sunday, October 30, 2022


In Clash Over Affirmative Action, Both Sides Invoke Brown v. Board of Education

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on the use of Brown v. the Board of Education by people on both sides of the issue of affirmative action. 

Wednesday, October 26, 2022


Affirmative Action Isn’t Dead Yet — A Commentary by Justin Driver

Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law at Yale Law School. 

Tuesday, October 18, 2022


Does Campus Diversity Justify Affirmative Action? Our Study Says Yes. — Adam Chilton, Justin Driver, Jonathan Masur and Kyle Rozema A Commentary by

Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law.

Monday, October 17, 2022


Fencing Can Be Six-Figure Expensive, but It Wins in College Admissions

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on whether preferences for athletes in niche sports in Ivy League admissions could be affected by a Supreme Court ruling on affirmative action. 

Tuesday, October 4, 2022


Rules of Engagement

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver reviews Waging a Good War: A Military History of the Civil Rights Movement, 1954-1968 by Thomas E. Ricks.

Friday, September 30, 2022


You Thought the Supreme Court’s Last Term Was Bad? Brace Yourself.

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments in an opinion piece about the upcoming Supreme Court term.

Friday, August 26, 2022


Affirmative Action Was Banned at Two Top Universities. They Say They Need It.

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on the impact of ending affirmative action in the California and Michigan university systems.

Thursday, August 11, 2022


‘The Greatest Talker of His Time’

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver reviews Democratic Justice: Felix Frankfurter, the Supreme Court, and the Making of the Liberal Establishment by Brad Snyder ’99.

Wednesday, July 13, 2022


Elite Colleges’ Quiet Fight to Favor Alumni Children

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in regards to the practice of legacy admissions at American universities.

Sunday, July 10, 2022


The New Threat to Good Schooling For Minority Americans

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver’s scholarship is cited in regards to possible legal challenges to Plyler v. Doe, the 1982 case that gave undocumented children access to public schools.

Wednesday, June 15, 2022


First Roe, Then Plyler? The GOP’s 40-Year Fight to Keep Undocumented Kids Out of Public School

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver's book, The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for the American Mind, is quoted in an article about the case Plyler v. Doe.

Tuesday, May 24, 2022


A Conservative Lawyer’s New Target After Abortion: Affirmative Action

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted about a challenge to affirmative action law in Texas.

Wednesday, May 18, 2022


Does the First Amendment Bar Public Schools from Removing Library Books Based on Their Viewpoints?

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted about efforts by schools to ban books from school libraries and students’ First Amendment rights.

Wednesday, May 11, 2022


How a 40-Year Old Supreme Court Ruling May Quash the Book Banning Wave

Robert R. Slaughter Professor Justin Driver is quoted about recent efforts by schools to ban books from school libraries and students’ First Amendment rights.

Tuesday, May 10, 2022


Leaked Abortion Draft Has Supreme Court Education Cases in Political Cross-Hairs

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on cases before the Supreme Court that focus on education.

Thursday, May 5, 2022


Texas Governor Ready to Challenge Schooling of Migrant Children

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on the signifigance of the1982 court decision that required public schools to educate all children, including undocumented immigrants. 

Friday, April 29, 2022


Justin Driver Elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences

Professor Justin Driver has been elected to the 2022 class of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences.

Wednesday, March 23, 2022


“We’re Going to Be Conservative.” Official Orders Books Removed From Schools, Targeting Titles About Transgender People.

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments in an investigative report about the legality of efforts to remove books about LGBTQ people from school libraries in Texas.

Tuesday, March 15, 2022


Ginni Thomas’ Revelation She Went to Jan. 6 Rally Puts Squishy Supreme Court Rules in Spotlight

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on the recusal of Supreme Court justices.

Thursday, March 3, 2022


Prisoner Rights Weakened by ‘Incoherence’ of Prison Law: Paper

Scholarship by Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is the subject of an article.

Friday, February 25, 2022


Judge Strikes Down Elite Virginia High School’s Admissions Rules

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted about a Virginia court decision that overturned a high school’s admissions process as being discriminatory to Asian Americans.

Wednesday, February 16, 2022


Conservatives Open New Front in Elite School Admission Wars

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted about court challenges to the admissions process in public high schools.

Wednesday, February 16, 2022


The Cancel Culture of the Right

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver’s book, The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for the American Mind, is mentioned in a commentary.

Monday, January 24, 2022


Supreme Court Will Hear Challenge to Affirmative Action at Harvard and U.N.C.

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted about a case challenging affirmative action programs that will be heard by the Supreme Court this fall.

Wednesday, December 15, 2021


Yanking Books From School Libraries: What the Supreme Court Has Said, and Why It’s Murky

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted about the legalities of banning books from school libraries.

Thursday, November 11, 2021


The Supreme Court Tactic That Aims to Kill Affirmative Action

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on the effort by two groups to have the Supreme Court hear their challenge to affirmative action admissions practices at two universities.

Sunday, October 31, 2021


The Supreme Court Case That Created the ‘Dreamer’ Narrative

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver discusses the impact of the 1982 case Pyler v. Doe on so-called ‘Dreamers’ and their families.

Wednesday, June 30, 2021


Schools Weigh Discipline After Supreme Court Ruling on Student Speech

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted on the Supreme Court decision regarding the First Amendment and off-campus speech by public school students.

Tuesday, June 29, 2021


This Supreme Court Guards the First Amendment — and Neglects the Fourth

A column on the recent Supreme Court decision in favor of a public school student in a First Amendment case quotes Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver.

Friday, June 25, 2021


The Supreme Court’s Cheerleader Decision Has Something to Frustrate and Disappoint Everyone

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted on the Supreme Court decision regarding the First Amendment and off-campus speech by public school students.

Thursday, June 24, 2021


A Cheerleader Lands an F on Snapchat, but a B+ in Court — A Commentary by Justin Driver

Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law at Yale Law School.

Wednesday, June 23, 2021


Supreme Court Rules for Cheerleader Punished for Vulgar Snapchat Message

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver comments on the Supreme Court decision in favor of a public school student in a First Amendment case. 

Tuesday, June 22, 2021


Can Schools Discipline Students for Off-Campus Speech?

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver and Jeffrey Rosen ’91 discuss whether schools should be able to discipline students for what they say online.

Wednesday, June 2, 2021


New Study Provides Evidence That Diversity Enhances Higher Education Outcomes

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver co-authored a study that has provided some of the first empirical evidence in support of the diversity rationale for affirmative action in higher education. 

Wednesday, June 2, 2021


As Harvard Case Looms at Supreme Court, Study Tests Value of Diversity

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver co-authored a study showing that articles published in law reviews that adopted diversity policies for choosing student editors were cited more often, a finding that supports the diversity rationale for affirmative action in higher education.

Wednesday, June 2, 2021


Law Professors Aim to Show Value of Diversity in New Study

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver co-authored a study showing that articles published in law journals that adopted diversity policies for choosing student editors were cited more often.

Friday, April 30, 2021


Why We All Should Want the Suspended Cheerleader to Win Her Supreme Court Case — A Commentary by Justin Driver

Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law at Yale Law School.

Wednesday, April 28, 2021


Can A School Punish A Cheerleader For Cursing On Snapchat? Supreme Court Leans Toward ‘No’

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in a Forbes article about a case before the Supreme Court that centers around the First Amendment and off-campus speech.

Tuesday, April 27, 2021


US Supreme Court Set for Landmark Gun Control and Free Speech Cases

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in an article in The Times (UK) about the First Amendment and off-campus speech.

Sunday, April 25, 2021


A Cheerleader’s Snapchat Rant Leads to ‘Momentous’ Supreme Court Case on Student Speech

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in an article in The Washington Post about the First Amendment and off-campus speech.

Wednesday, April 14, 2021


Yale Law Faculty, Alumni Named to Presidential Commission on Supreme Court Reform

A new Presidential Commission on Supreme Court Reform will be co-chaired by Leighton Homer Surbeck Professor of Law Professor Cristina Rodríguez ’00 and includes a total of 14 Yale Law School faculty and alumni.

Tuesday, March 23, 2021


Schooling Qualified Immunity — A Commentary by Justin Driver

Justin Driver is the Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law at Yale Law School.

Friday, January 8, 2021


U.S. Supreme Court to Weigh Whether Schools May Discipline Students for Internet Speech

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in Education Week about a case involving free speech and social media that will be heard by the Supreme Court later this year.

Monday, December 28, 2020


A Cheerleader’s Vulgar Message Prompts a First Amendment Showdown

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in the New York Times about free speech and social media.

Thursday, December 24, 2020


As Biden zeroes in on attorney general pick, some worry one contender is too moderate on criminal justice issues

Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in the Washington Post about potential choices for the next attorney general.

Thursday, November 12, 2020


Harvard Victory Pushes Admissions Case Toward a More Conservative Supreme Court

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in The New York Times about the recent court ruling that found Harvard’s admissions process did not violate civil rights law.

Tuesday, November 10, 2020


Professor Driver Receives The Steven S. Goldberg Award

Yale Law School Professor Justin Driver has recently been awarded The Steven S. Goldberg Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Education Law for his book, The Schoolhouse Gate: Public Education, the Supreme Court, and the Battle for the American Mind.

Monday, October 19, 2020


Originalism in a diverse America: How does Amy Coney Barrett’s judicial philosophy square with who was left out of the Constitution?

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in a Washington Post article about constitutional originalism.

Tuesday, September 29, 2020


Legal Scholars Worry About Affirmative Action and Civil Rights if Barrett is Confirmed

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in a Diverse Issues in Higher Education article about Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett.

Tuesday, July 21, 2020


Where the Sick Get Sicker and the Sane Are Driven Mad: Behind Bars — A Commentary by Justin Driver

Justin Driver is Professor of Law at Yale Law School.

Friday, July 10, 2020


In a Term Full of Major Cases, the Supreme Court Tacked to the Center

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in The New York Times about the most recent Supreme Court decisions.

Thursday, May 14, 2020


‘A momentous decision’: What the resolution of Detroit’s literacy case could mean for American schools

Professor of Law Justin Driver was interviewed by Chalkbeat regarding the recent federal court decision that found that students in the Detroit public school system have a constitutional right to basic education.

Monday, May 4, 2020


WATCH: Professor Driver Delivers Lecture at the U.S. Supreme Court

Professor Justin Driver delivered a lecture at the U.S. Supreme Court that recently aired on C-Span.

Wednesday, April 29, 2020


Federal Court Rules Detroit Students Were Denied Constitutional Right to Basic Education

Professor of Law Justin Driver appeared on the public radio show The Takeaway to discuss a decision by a federal court that declared American public school students have a constitutional right to an adequate education.

Monday, April 27, 2020


Detroit Students Have a Constitutional Right to Literacy, Court Rules

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in the New York Times about a decision by a federal court that declared American public school students have a constitutional right to an adequate education. His book, The Schoolhouse Gate, was cited in the underlying decision.

Thursday, April 23, 2020


U.S. Appeals Court Recognizes a Federal Right of Access to Literacy

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in Education Week about a recent decision by a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit (Cincinnati), that recognizes a fundamental federal right to a basic minimum education and access to literacy.

Monday, January 6, 2020


The Battle for the Constitution

Justin Driver is Professor of Law at Yale Law School.

Thursday, December 5, 2019


Professor Driver on How the Courts Influence Public Schools

Justin Driver accepted a tenured appointment as Professor of Law at Yale Law School on July 1, 2019. Upon Professor Driver’s arrival in New Haven, the Yale Law Report sat down with him to discuss The Schoolhouse Gate’s contributions to legal scholarship.

Friday, November 15, 2019


'This Isn't Just About a Pronoun.' Teachers and Trans Students Are Clashing Over Whose Rights Come First

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in an article about cases pending against public schools in Indiana, Virginia, and Ohio brought by teachers who say they were disciplined for refusing to use the preferred names or pronouns of transgender students.

Thursday, July 25, 2019


45 years later, this case is still shaping school segregation in Detroit — and America

Professor of Law Justin Driver is quoted in an article about the legacy of Milliken v. Bradley in Detroit.

Monday, March 18, 2019


Professor Justin Driver to Join Yale Law School Faculty

Dean Heather K. Gerken has announced the appointment of Justin Driver to the Yale Law School faculty as Professor of Law effective July 1, 2019.