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Plenary Panel 4: Justice Alito’s Impact on Religious Liberties & Speech Apr 03, 2026

Show notes

This panel will analyze Justice Alito’s contributions to the Supreme Court’s religious liberty and free speech jurisprudence. Panelists will examine his role in shaping the Court’s approach to the Free Exercise and Establishment Clauses, and the First Amendment more broadly, including cases involving religious accommodations, expressive freedom, and the interaction between government authority and individual conscience.
Featuring:
Prof. Stephanie Barclay, Professor of Law and Faculty Co-Director for the Georgetown Center for the Constitution, Georgetown University Law Center
Prof. Nicole Garnett, John P. Murphy Foundation Professor of Law and Associate Dean for External Engagement, University of Notre Dame Law School
Matthew A. Schwartz, Partner, Sullivan & Cromwell LLP
Moderator: Hon. Steven J. Menashi, Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit

Plenary Panel 3: Justice Alito’s Impact on Criminal Law & Procedure Apr 03, 2026

Show notes

Justice Alito has played a significant role in shaping contemporary criminal law and procedure, particularly in cases involving the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, and Eighth Amendments. This panel will explore his influence on doctrines governing search and seizure, sentencing, the rights of criminal defendants, and the administration of the criminal justice system. Panelists will analyze key opinions and dissents to assess Justice Alito’s emphasis on text, history, and practical consequences, as well as his views on the balance between individual rights, public safety, and institutional competence.
Featuring:
Hon. Sarah K. Campbell, Justice, Supreme Court of Tennessee
Hon. Benjamin Cassady, Commissioner, Sacramento County
Hon. Amul Thapar, Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
Moderator: Hon. Andrew Oldham, Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit

Plenary Panel 2: Justice Alito's Jurisprudence Apr 03, 2026

Show notes

This panel will examine Justice Samuel Alito’s jurisprudence as a whole, with particular attention to the principles and methodologies that have guided his judicial analysis and decision-making. Panelists will discuss Justice Alito’s approach to constitutional interpretation, precedent, and judicial restraint, as well as his views on the proper role of courts within the constitutional structure.
Featuring:
Prof. J. Joel Alicea, Of Counsel to Cooper & Kirk and St. Robert Bellarmine Professor of Law at the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law
Prof. Sherif Girgis, Professor of Law, University of Notre Dame Law School
Prof. E. Garrett West, Associate Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Hon. Michael H. Park, Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
Moderator: Hon. Stephanos Bibas, Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit

Plenary Panel 1: Justice Alito's Impact on Statutory Interpretation Apr 03, 2026

Show notes

Justice Alito’s statutory interpretation jurisprudence reflects a sustained commitment to textual analysis, structural coherence, and due respect for legislative prerogatives. This panel will assess his approach to interpreting federal statutes, including his treatment of statutory text, legislative history, and administrative deference. Through an examination of significant cases, panelists will explore how Justice Alito’s methodology has shaped outcomes across a range of substantive areas and contributed to broader debates over the judiciary’s role in construing and applying enacted law.
Featuring:
Hon. Charles J. Cooper, Partner, Cooper & Kirk PLLC; Former Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Counsel, U.S. Department of Justice
Hon. Gregory Katsas, Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Eric M. Palmer, Partner, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP
Moderator:Prof. Robert George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence, Princeton University

[2025 NLC] Showcase Panel 4: Science in the Courts After COVID and Skrmetti Nov 25, 2025

Show notes

CLE credit for this event is available at On-Demand CLE.
From litigation challenging COVID regulations to the recent legal challenges to state laws regulating transgender surgery and medications to recent actions to reassess the EPA's "Endangerment Finding," important questions have emerged about how courts should evaluate scientific claims. What are the challenges “with appealing and deferring to the authority of the expert class,” as Justice Thomas wrote in his Skrmetti concurrence? What is the role of the judge and the jury in evaluating scientific claims made by the parties?
Featuring:
Mr. Benjamin M. Flowers, Partner, Ashbrook Byrne Kresge Flowers LLC
Prof. Michael Gerrard, Professor, Columbia Law School; Faculty Director, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law
Mr. Rob Johnson, Senior Attorney, Institute for Justice
Mr. J.J. Snidow, Partner, Keller Postman LLP
Moderator: Hon. Jennifer Mascott, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Introducer: Mr. David Haungs, President, Yale Student Chapter

[2025 NLC] Showcase Panel 3: AI for the Law, and Law for AI Nov 25, 2025

Show notes

CLE credit for this event is available at On-Demand CLE.
The advent and rise of AI over the past several years poses radical questions for lawyers and the law. How will AI change the practice of law, including the work of law firms and inside judges’ chambers (“AI for the Law”)? And how should courts respond to the myriad legal issues implicating AI – copyright and beyond (“The Law of AI”)? Do the last five years of legal cases against social media companies tell us anything about the future of AI companies in the courts? Will there be a “techlash” against AI similar to the “techlash” against social media? How might national security concerns inform the AI legal and regulatory landscape?
Featuring:
Mr. Ryan L. Bangert, Senior Vice President, Strategic Initiatives & Special Counsel to the President, Alliance Defending Freedom
Mr. James M. Burnham, Managing Partner, King Street Legal; President, Vallecito Capital
Hon. Kevin C. Newsom, United States Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
Mr. Mike Trinh, Associate General Counsel, OpenAI
Mrs. Tobi Young, General Counsel, Saronic Technologies
Moderator: Hon. Jennifer Walker Elrod, United States Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit
Introducer: Mr. Gabriel Powell, President, Notre Dame Student Chapter

[2025 NLC] Showcase Panel 2: Immigration and Originalism Nov 25, 2025

Show notes

CLE credit for this event is available at On-Demand CLE.
What do the tools of originalism teach us about significant immigration legal issues? For example, what was the President’s authority to remove aliens at the time of the Founding? How much of immigration is left to the President versus Congress? What can originalism tell us about immigration and due process? Experts discuss cutting edge issues in immigration law and ask how and whether originalism can help provide answers.
Featuring:
Prof. Akhil Reed Amar, Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science, Yale Law School
Prof. Stephanie Barclay, Professor of Law at Georgetown University Law Center & Faculty Co-Director, Georgetown Center for the Constitution, Georgetown University Law Center
Mr. Trevor W. Ezell, General Counsel, Office of Texas Governor Greg Abbott
Mr. Gene P. Hamilton, President & Co-Founder, America First Legal Foundation
Moderator: Hon. James P. Sullivan, Texas Supreme Court
Introducer: Ms. Jordan Lamb, Former President, Texas Student Chapter

[2025 NLC] Showcase Panel 1: Landmark SCOTUS Decisions of the 2020s Nov 25, 2025

Show notes

CLE credit for this event is available at On-Demand CLE.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Roberts Court. Many of the Court's most high-profile rulings have occurred this decade—and the decade is only half over. The advocates who argued and won five of the most high-profile rulings of the Roberts Court discuss trends of the Roberts Court; the path to victory in their respective cases; and what is on the horizon for the Roberts Court. Cases discussed include Dobbs, Students for Fair Admissions, Loper Bright, Skrmetti, and Bruen.
Featuring:
Hon. Paul D. Clement, Partner, Clement & Murphy, PLLC
Mr. Cameron T. Norris, Partner, Consovoy McCarthy PLLC
Mr. Matthew Rice, Solicitor General, Tennessee
Mr. Scott G. Stewart, Solicitor General, Mississippi
Moderator: Hon. Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, United States District Court, Middle District of Florida
Introducer: Mrs. Morgan Larson, President, Arizona State Student Chapter

Closing Banquet and Fireside Chat with Hon. James C. Ho and Allyson Newton Ho, and Presentation of the Annual Joseph Story Award and Feddie Apr 08, 2025

Show notes

Overflow: Hutchins Hall Michigan Law School
We are pleased to announce that the Honorable James C. Ho & Allyson Newton Ho will be the keynote speakers for a Fireside Chat at the Saturday evening banquet.
Hon. James C. Ho, Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
Allyson Newton Ho, Partner, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
Moderator Katherine Rifiotis Slivensky, Michigan Student Chapter President
Moderator JJ Marshall, Michigan Student Chapter, Symposium Co-Director

Panel IV: Congress and Court Reform: Jurisdiction Stripping, Court Packing, and Beyond Apr 08, 2025

Show notes

Featuring:
Prof. Jamal Greene, Dwight Professor of Law, Columbia Law School
Prof. Tara Leigh Grove, Professor and Vinson & Elkins Chair in Law, University of Texas School of Law
Prof. Richard Primus, Theodore J. St. Antoine Collegiate Professor of Law, University of Michigan Law School
Prof. Amanda Tyler, Thomas David & Judith Swope Clark Professor of Constitutional Law, University of California, Berkeley School of Law
Prof. Keith E. Whittington, David Boies Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Moderator: Hon. Raymond Kethledge, Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit

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