Rosenkranz Originalism Conference Held at Yale Law School

The Rosenkranz Originalism Conference was held on Oct. 15 at Yale Law School, featuring a keynote address by Judge Neomi Rao of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

The conference, which is sponsored by Nicholas Quinn Rosenkranz ’99, Professor of Law at Georgetown Law, was initiated at the School in 2019. Its mission is to bring together prominent jurists and scholars to discuss and debate various approaches to and critiques of originalism in constitutional thought and practice.

Led by Doyle-Winter Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law Steven G. Calabresi ’83 and Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science Akhil Reed Amar ’84, this semester’s daylong event featured panel and roundtable discussions on the theme “the Original Meaning of the Privileges or Immunities Clause” of the 14th Amendment.

Dean and Sol & Lillian Goldman Professor of Law Heather K. Gerken delivered welcoming remarks. 

“As we often remind our students, the habits of mind that make for great scholars are the same habits that make for great lawyers — the ability to listen, to evaluate, and to change one’s mind. That spirit of intellectual growth and discovery is at the heart of what we’re here to do today,” said Gerken.

Along with Judge Rao, the conference featured John Harrison ’80, James Madison Distinguished Professor of Law and Joseph C. Carter Research Professor at the University of Virginia School of Law, and Rebecca Zietlow ’90, Distinguished University and Charles W. Fornoff Professor of Law and Values at the University of Toledo College of Law, who each participated in “crossfire”-style panels with Amar and Calabresi. The event concluded with a roundtable discussion with audience participation.