Lawyers working with public institutions must understand the complex relationship between law and public policy to be effective at shaping it. UVA Law School's strength in public policy and regulation law draws from faculty members who have brought their experiences working for the government or other institutions back to the classroom. These connections benefit students in a variety of ways. When professors work for Congress or federal agencies such as the State Department, volunteer for government commissions, consult for state and local governments, or work with advocacy organizations that seek to influence public policy, the experiences enrich their teaching, give students an opportunity to network with practicing attorneys in a variety of fields, and inspire fresh insights in research and scholarship.
Connections With D.C.
The Law School's proximity to Washington, D.C., provides rich opportunities for a close-up view of how regulations, policies and the government interact. The location also allows top government lawyers and Washington-based practitioners to teach part-time at Virginia, which exposes students to the kinds of concrete issues they may one day face as government officials, practicing lawyers or policy advocates.
Alumni Network
Virginia's alumni also connect the school and students to Washington and other public policy networks. The Law School’s graduates work for the White House, the Justice Department, Congress, the military and numerous federal agencies.
Gradualism should have won out in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, exerting gravitational influence on the majority and dissenters alike. In general...
There is a live debate going on over whether antitrust should take a broader view of the economics of market concentration. When antitrust reformers...
Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resource Defense Council, Inc. is frequently discussed in general terms without sufficient attention to the specifics...
We propose the creation of a Prosecutor Jury—a mechanism designed to balance the need to hold politicians accountable for their crimes, and the need...
Gradualism should have won out in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health, exerting gravitational influence on the majority and dissenters alike. In general...
There is a live debate going on over whether antitrust should take a broader view of the economics of market concentration. When antitrust reformers...
Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resource Defense Council, Inc. is frequently discussed in general terms without sufficient attention to the specifics...
We propose the creation of a Prosecutor Jury—a mechanism designed to balance the need to hold politicians accountable for their crimes, and the need...
Citation counts are a common quantitative metric used by researchers and analysts to assess scholarly output. When U.S. News & World Report announced...
For far too long, the federal government has failed to exercise its constitutional authority to mitigate the harms imposed by local policing. Absent...
As this Essay shows, the fertility discourse of the last half century deals with the profound effects that come from the transformation of the economy...
In the period immediately preceding the Constitution’s adoption, New Yorkers engaged in a spirited debate over whether a proposed delegation from the...
Governments regulate private conduct. They also exercise rights of ownership and contract that are like those of private people. From the founding to...
A number of technological and political forces have transformed the once staid and insider dominated notice-and-comment process into a forum for large...
In the United States, cost-benefit analysis plays a substantial role in government policy making in traditional regulatory areas, such as automobile...
The Supreme Court’s most recent foray into clarifying when courts ought to “defer” to agency interpretations of their own regulations—Kisor v. Wilkie—...
The legitimacy of the administrative state is premised on our faith in agency expertise. Despite their extra-constitutional structure, administrative...
Assistant Professor of Research, Department of Public Health Sciences, University of Virginia
Courses and Seminars
The following is a list of courses offered during 2021-24. Numbers in parentheses indicate which academic year(s) the courses were offered, i.e., 2021-22 is coded (22), 2022-23 is coded (23) and 2023-24 is coded (24). (SC) stands for short course and (YR) stands for yearlong.
Administrative Law (23,24,25) Advanced Administrative Law (SC) (23) Advanced Crimes and Defenses (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Advanced Topics in Law and Public Service (23,24,25) Advanced Topics in Professional Responsibility (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Advanced Topics in the Law of Armed Conflict (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Advancing the Commitment to Service Through Law Firm Pro Bono (SC) (23,24,25) AI and the Law: Navigating the Legal Landscape of AI Technologies (SC) (24) Animal Law (23,24) Antitrust (23,24,25) Antitrust Review of Mergers in a Global Environment (23,24,25) Artificial Intelligence and Democracy (25) Banking and Financial Institutions (23,24,25) Baseball (SC) (23,24,25) Behavioral Law and Economics (SC) (23) Bioethics and Law Internship Seminar: Health Policy and Administration (23,24,25) Bioethics and the Law Seminar (24,25) Biotechnology and the Law (25) Blood Feud (SC) (23,24) Border Policy and Politics (23,24,25) Business and Governmental Tort Liability (23) Cannabis Legalization (SC) (24) Children and the Law (23,24,25) Civil Rights Litigation (23,24,25) Climate and Debt (24) Climate Change Law (23) Climate Law and Climate Ethics (24) Congress, Oversight and the Separation of Powers (SC) (24) Constitutional Law and Economics (23,24) Contemporary Challenges in Military Justice (SC) (24) Contemporary Housing Policy Debates (25) Corporate Social Responsibility Seminar (25) Crimmigration Law: Intersection of Criminal and Immigration Law (24,25) Critical Analysis of the Military Justice System (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Critical Race Theory and Criminal Justice (25) Cryptocurrency Law and Policy (SC) (23,24) Cybersecurity and Privacy Boot Camp (SC) (25) Datafication, Automation and Inequality (SC) (23) Designing Democracy: Participation (23) Designing Democracy: Representation (24) Digital Evidence from Theory to Practice (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Economic Statecraft and Public International Law (SC) (23,25) Education Inside U.S. Prisons Seminar (23,24,25) Education Law Survey (23) Emerging AI Legal Issues (SC) (25) Employee Benefits Law (25) Employment Law: Health and Safety (24,25) Employment Law: Wage and Hour Regulation (23) Energy and Environmental Products Trading and Commodities Regulation (SC) (23) Energy Regulation and Policy (23,24) Environmental Law (23,24,25) European Union Law (SC) (24) Federal Income Tax (23,24,25) Federal Regulation of Investment Companies (SC) (25) Feminism and the Free Market (24,25) Food and Drug Law (24) Food Systems Law and Policy (23) Genetics and the Law (SC) (24,25) Genetics and the Law: Exercises in Rulemaking (SC) (23) Geopolitics, Law and the World Economy (25) Government Contract Law (23,24) Government Ethics: Conflicts of Interest, Lobbying and Campaign Finance (23) Government Secrecy (24) Health Care Marketplace: Competition, Regulation and Reform (SC) (23,25) History and Evolution of Victims’ Rights (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Housing Law and Poverty Seminar (23,24,25) Immigration Law and Policy (22) Immigration Law and Policy (23,24,25) Innovating for Defense (23,24) International Human Rights (JAG) (SC) (23) International Settlement of Disputes: Methods and Forums (SC) (25) International Trade Law and Policy (23,24,25) Internet Law (23) Introduction to Legal Aspects of Cyberspace Operations (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Land Use Law (23,25) Law and Artificial Intelligence (23,25) Law and Economics (23,24,25) Law and Economics Colloquium (23,25) Law and Economics Workshop (24) Law and Inequality Writing Seminar (24) Law and Leadership in the Public Interest (24,25) Law and Public Service (23,24,25) Law and Riots (23,24,25) Law and Technology Colloquium (23,24) Law of Corruption (23) Law of Sea, Air and Space Operations (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Law of the Police I: Rules, Rights and Regulation (23,25) Law Reform and Impact Litigation Seminar (23,24,25) Law, Inequality and Education Reform (25) Law, Literature and Social Policy Seminar (23) Legislation (23,24) Legislation and Regulation (23,25) Legislative Drafting and Public Policy (23,24) Litigating the 2024 Presidential Election (25) Litigation and Public Policy (SC) (23) Litigation Skills and Professional Liability Law (23,24,25) Management of BigLaw Firms: Balancing Culture and Profits (SC) (23,24,25) Medicalization and the Law (23) Monetary Constitution Seminar (23,24,25) Monument Litigation (SC) (25) National Security Law Proseminar I and II (JAG) (SC) (24) Native American Law (24) Natural Resources Law and Policy (23,25) New Research in Criminal Justice (25) Organizational DEI Programs (SC) (24) Pain and the Law (25) Parental Choice in K-12 Education (SC) (23) Philosophical Legal Ethics (SC) (23) Poverty in Law, Literature and Culture (23) Poverty Law and the Lawyer’s Role (24) Poverty Law, Advocacy and Policy (23) Practical Perspectives on Policing: Fair and Effective Policymaking by Law Enforcement (SC) (24) Privacy (23,24,25) Privacy Law and Theory Seminar (23,24,25) Property, the Police Power and Emergencies (23,24,25) Public Interest Law and Advocacy Skills (23) Public Law Colloquium (25) Public Utility Regulation Seminar (23,25) Race, Education and Opportunity (23) Race, Meritocracy and Justice on Campus (SC) (25) Regulation of Political Advocacy Seminar (24,25) Regulation of the Political Process (23,25) Regulatory Law and Policy (23,25) Religious Freedom and Reproductive Rights (24) Reparations: Identity, Law and Politics (23,25) Reproductive Ethics and Law (SC) (23,24,25) Reproductive Rights and Justice (24,25) Rights of the Accused (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Rules (24,25) Second Amendment and Gun Violence Colloquium (25) Securities Regulation (23,24,25) Securities Regulation (Law & Business) (23,24,25) Single People and the Law (25) Social Identity, Critical Theory and the Law (SC) (23) Special Topics in Client Services (JAG) (SC) (23,24) Stakeholderism and Business Law (SC) (24) State and Local Government Law (24) State Attorneys General (24,25) Taboo Trades (23,24,25) TaxFlix (SC) (23) Ten-Year Checkup of the Affordable Care Act (24) The Business of Banking and Prudential Regulation (SC) (23,24,25) The Executive Branch: Comparative and Political Aspects (SC) (24) The January 6th Investigation and How Courts Can Shape Congress’ Power to Investigate (SC) (24) The Right to Protest (SC) (24) Theory and Practice of Biodiversity Conservation (23,25) Topics in Banking and Financial Regulation (24) Urban Law and Policy (23,24) U.S. Refugee and Asylum Law Seminar (25) Veteran Benefits and Retirement Planning (JAG) (SC) (23,24) War Crimes and Atrocity Law (JAG) (SC) (23,24)
Clinic students at the University of Virginia School of Law worked with state lawmakers to draft bills on mental health and education, which were recently signed into law.
Campaign Legal Center founder and President Trevor Potter ’82 delivered the keynote address at the 2020 Ele(Q)t Project for LGBTQ+ Leadership symposium. He reflected on his experiences as a gay man in the Republican Party, as chairman of the Federal Election Commission and as general counsel to John McCain’s 2000 and 2008 presidential campaigns. He also spoke about rising inequality in campaign finance.
Community Organization and Social Enterprise Clinic I and II
This clinic prioritizes work that advances equity and/or supports members of marginalized communities, particularly in the Central and Southwest Virginia area.
Students in this semester-long clinic have the opportunity to work on real-world environmental problems in a variety of venues — legal advocacy before courts, expert testimony before administrative agencies and coalition building directly with the communities impacted by environmental harm.
Students in this yearlong clinic advise and work directly with local nonprofit boards on a “legal health checkup” and other matters such as initial formation, establishing tax-exempt status, charitable solicitation, state/local taxation issues, contracts and continuing legal compliance.
The Law School's externships program allows students to earn a semester of credit while working full-time for nonprofit or government employers anywhere in the world, and students also can work part-time for credit closer to home. Third-year law student Annalise Lisson had a full-time externship working in the major crimes division of the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Northern District of Georgia. "I was able to take on long-term projects and fully participate in a two-week trial," Lisson said. "About half of my work related to sex and labor trafficking investigations, and I spent the other half of my time on a marriage fraud case." More
Antonella Nicholas, a third-year student at the University of Virginia School of Law, recently presented a paper she co-authored with Professor Andrew Block analyzing rural inequities in her home state.
Two former White House officials on different sides of the political aisle, Melody Barnes and John Bridgeland ’87, talk about ways to strengthen democracy and work across differences.
Virginia’s professors have extensive experience in public policy through government posts, as consultants and as volunteers. Professors have started their careers in, or taken leave to work at, the Justice Department, the State Department, the Solicitor General’s Office, the Department of Homeland Security and more. Others have advised state officials on proper policing policies, or served on committees or commissions on intellectual property, mental health, legislative reform and national security issues. Still others have worked for NGOs and advocacy organizations focused on shaping public policy. Examples of current and past work include:
ALICE ABROKWA, senior counsel, U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights; senior attorney, National Center for Youth Law; trial attorney, Disability Rights Section, U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division.
ADITYA BAMZAI, member, Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board; attorney-adviser, Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel
ASHLEY DEEKS, White House associate counsel and deputy legal adviser to the National Security Council; assistant legal adviser for political-military affairs, State Department Office of the Legal Adviser; legal adviser, U.S. Embassy in Baghdad
MICHAEL DORAN, attorney advisor and acting deputy benefits tax counsel in the Office of Tax Policy at the U.S. Treasury Department
JOHN DUFFY, member, Administrative Conference of the United States; attorney-adviser, Justice Department
KRISTEN EICHENSEHR, special assistant, State Department Office of the Legal Adviser
AMANDA FROST, staff attorney, Public Citizen; worked for the Senate Judiciary Committee
ALISON GOCKE, legal fellow, Natural Resources Defense Council
RACHEL HARMON, senior policy advisor for criminal justice, Domestic Policy Council; trial attorney, Justice Department, Civil Rights Division, Criminal Section
JOHN C. HARRISON, counselor on international law, State Department; deputy assistant attorney general, Justice Department Office of Legal Counsel
EDWIN HU, senior economic policymaker, White House National Economic Council; chief economist, SEC Commissioner Robert J. Jackson Jr.
CALE JAFFE, director, Virginia office, Southern Environmental Law Center
MICHAEL LIVERMORE, member, Administrative Conference of the United States; executive director, Institute for Policy Integrity
PAUL G. MAHONEY, member, Securities and Exchange Commission Investor Advisory Committee
JOHN MONAHAN, member, Committee on Law and Justice of the National Research Council; member, Institute of Medicine
THOMAS NACHBAR, judge advocate, U.S. Army Reserve; senior adviser, Department of Defense, Office of Rule of Law and Detainee Policy; member, Communications Security, Reliability and Interoperability Council
RICHARD M. RE, attorney, Justice Department, Criminal Appellate Section
A. SPRIGHTLEY RYAN, inspector general, Smithsonian Institution; trial attorney, Environmental Crimes Section of the Justice Department
MOLLY BISHOP SHADEL, attorney-adviser, Justice Department Office of Intelligence Policy and Review
PAUL B. STEPHAN ’77, counselor on international law, State Department; consultant to Treasury Department and World Bank; consultant to the International Monetary Fund and the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development
LEON SZEPTYCKI, general counsel, Trout Unlimited; associate director, UVA Environmental Institute
University of Virginia School of Law professor Ashley Deeks discusses the legal and ethical concerns with San Francisco voting to allow its police department to use robots to kill suspected criminals.
UVA Law professors John Duffy and Dan Ortiz discuss whether the Supreme Court will or should overturn one of its most famous decisions, Chevron, which gave administrative agencies deference in interpreting statutes.
In her new Yale Law Journal paper, Professor Alison Gocke of the University of Virginia School of Law explores a midcentury energy overhaul in New York to show how public utility commissions can facilitate the transition to clean energy.
Professor Amanda Frost of the University of Virginia School of Law examines proposals to enact term limits and a binding code of ethics for U.S. Supreme Court justices.
U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a 1975 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law who championed efforts to promote equality during her 30-year career in Congress, died Friday from pancreatic cancer. She was 74.
Clinics at the University of Virginia School of Law shaped public policy, helped clients in court, appealed cases to the Supreme Court and more in the 2023-24 academic year.
Alice Abrokwa, a U.S. Education Department lawyer with expertise in disability law, health law and antidiscrimination law, will join the University of Virginia School of Law faculty this summer.
A new study by University of Virginia School of Law professor Richard Schragger and librarian Sarah New found underdevelopment in Charlottesville, even before recent zoning regulations loosened homebuilding restrictions.
The American Law Institute recently approved a restatement on children and the law co-authored by Professor Richard Bonnie ’69, among other achievements and recognition for members of the University of Virginia School of Law community.
Clinic students at the University of Virginia School of Law worked with state lawmakers to draft bills on foster care, behavioral health, human trafficking and other policies that were recently signed into law.
Brenda Mallory, who chairs the White House Council on Environmental Quality, will lead an April 8 discussion co-sponsored by the University of Virginia School of Law.
Former White House officials Melody Barnes and John Bridgeland ’87 talk about how to work together across differences and strengthen democracy on the latest “Common Law,” a podcast of the University of Virginia School of Law.
Professors John Duffy and Daniel Ortiz debate the validity and future of Chevron — the U.S. Supreme Court case that gave deference to agencies in interpreting ambiguous statues — on the latest “Common Law,” a University of Virginia School of Law podcast.
As ethics questions continue to swirl around the U.S. Supreme Court, University of Virginia School of Law professors discuss whether justices need more regulation on the sixth season kickoff of the podcast “Common Law.”
University of Virginia School of Law professor Deirdre Enright has partnered with Norfolk’s chief prosecutor to determine whether any other defendants were swept into prison by the misdeeds of disgraced local detective Robert Glenn Ford.
University of Virginia School of Law professor Moira O’Neill led a yearlong California-funded investigation that culminated last week in the release of a report that requires the city to improve a zoning and permitting process that has stymied construction.
Professor Richard Bonnie is retiring from the faculty of the University of Virginia School of Law after nearly 51 years of teaching and research, 44 years of death row advocacy, and decades of shaping public policy and law on drugs, mental health, youth offenders and guns.
Leaders across the education field helped kick off the Education Rights Institute at the University of Virginia School of Law on Monday, launching an effort designed to improve access to high-quality education for disadvantaged students.
Paul B. Stephan, a University of Virginia School of Law professor who has written extensively about the crumbling post-World War II international legal order, weighs in on the legal questions surrounding the war between Israel and Hamas.
The new Education Rights Institute at the University of Virginia School of Law aims to help eliminate racial and class disparities in K-12 education. The institute, led by Professor Kimberly Jenkins Robinson and supported by a $4.9 million gift, will mark its launch with an Oct. 16 event.
Professor and privacy expert Danielle K. Citron of the University of Virginia School of Law calls for reforming the “permanent surveillance state” imposed on American public school students.
Alice Abrokwa, a U.S. Education Department lawyer with expertise in disability law, health law and antidiscrimination law, will join the University of Virginia School of Law faculty this summer.
Na’ilah Suad Nasir, president of the Spencer Foundation, delivers the keynote address at the launch of the Education Rights Institute, “Toward a High-Quality Education for All Students: Contemporary Questions for Law and Policy.” Dean Risa Goluboff, UVA President Jim Ryan ’92 and Education Rights Institute inaugural director Professor Kimberly Jenkins Robinson also deliver remarks.
In honor of Constitution Day, join retired Judge J. Michael Luttig ’81, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina and John Hardin Young, chair of the American Bar Association Senior Lawyer Division and adjunct professor of law at William & Mary Law School, to examine how adhering to the rule of law and ensuring free elections as outlined in our foundational document provide the bedrock for our democratic system of government. This conversation is moderated by Ian H. Solomon, dean of the Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy. Food will be provided for those who register.
Virginia Law Foundation
American Bar Association
Karsh Center for Law and Democracy
UVA Frank Batten School of Leadership and Public Policy
A group of immigration experts and activists will discuss how immigration issues may influence the upcoming election, and how the outcome could shape U.S. immigration policy. Lunch will be provided on a first-come, first served basis beginning at 11:15 a.m.
Panelists:
Stuart Anderson, Executive Director, National Foundation for American Policy
Tanishka V. Cruz, Founding Attorney, Cruz Law
Amanda Frost, David Lurton Massee, Jr., Professor of Law; John A. Ewald Jr. Research Professor of Law; Director, Immigration, Migration and Human Rights Program, UVA Law School
Jennifer Lawless, L. Reaves and G.W. Spicer Professor of Politics, UVA
Moderator:Kevin Cope, Associate Professor of Law and Public Policy; Director, Immigration, Migration, and Human Rights Program, UVA Law School
Given the well-documented attempts by Russia, China, and others to influence American elections through false information and “deepfakes,” what should voters expect as we approach the final weeks of the 2024 presidential election cycle? What can the U.S. do to combat the actions of foreign adversaries and ensure election integrity? A panel of experts discusses foreign interference in U.S. elections and the implications for the future of American democracy. Speakers include Professor Danielle Citron and David Salvo, senior fellow and managing director of the Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. UVA professor Mara Rudman will moderate.
The practice of investing in funds and companies that pay attention to environmental, social and corporate governance issues could be at a turning point, say UVA Law professors Quinn Curtis and Paul G. Mahoney.
