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Regulation or “Don’t Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste” Jun 17, 2020

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The fifth panel of the Federalist Society's COVID-19 & the Law Conference discussed "Regulation or 'Don't Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste'". The panel took place via teleconference on Friday, June 12, 2020.
During this crisis government has assumed new powers that no one would claim it has except in an emergency. Will government cease exercising all these powers when the emergency passes? Historically government has almost always increased its power during crisis and then kept some of that power afterward. Will people try to invoke COVID-19 powers to address other pressing issues, such as drugs, climate change, crime, terrorism etc, on the ground that these too are very serious problems? On the flip side, there are also regulations that have been lifted. Should they remain lifted in some situations? FDA approvals: tests (restricting to CDC), drugs, devices, PPE? Occupational licensing/Practice of medicine across state lines. Some government contracting rules? What regulatory obstacles are still proving to be an issue? (e.g. food supply questions) Would a new BRAC commission make sense for this purpose? In general, to what extent does it make sense to reason – in either a pro-regulatory or deregulatory fashion -- from crisis situations to general notions of governmental role?
Featuring:
Prof. Sally Katzen, Professor of Practice and Distinguished Scholar in Residence; Co-Director of the Legislative and Regulatory Process Clinic, New York University School of Law
Dr. Roger D. Klein, Faculty Fellow, Center for Law, Science & Innovation, Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law, Arizona State University
Prof. Erika Lietzan, Associate Professor of Law, Center for Intellectual Property and Entrepreneurship, University of Missouri School of Law
Prof. Paul G. Mahoney, David and Mary Harrison Distinguished Professor of Law, University of Virginia School of Law
Prof. Cass Sunstein, Robert Walmsley University Professor, Harvard Law School
Moderator: Prof. Susan E. Dudley, Director, GW Regulatory Studies Center & Distinguished Professor of Practice, Trachtenberg School of Public Policy & Public Administration, The George Washington University
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speakers.

COVID-19 and the 2020 Elections Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

The second day of the Federalist Society's COVID-19 & the Law Conference commenced with a panel discussion on "COVID-19 and the 2020 Elections". The panel took place via teleconference on Friday, June 12, 2020.
The onset of the COVID-19 epidemic in the midst of an election year has presented election officials with an array of unprecedented challenges. Some states hurriedly cancelled or delayed primary elections while others forged ahead. It is widely assumed that the remaining primaries and likely the November general election will include a substantial increase in vote-by-mail options, and possibly occur with all mail ballots. Who should make such decisions about timing and means of voting: legislatures? Governors and other executive branch officials? Courts? Elections in the U.S. are conducted by states, but Congress has the authority to regulate the “time, place, and manner” of congressional elections, and the “time” for choosing presidential electors and the day of their votes: Should Congress get involved, and if so, how far does its power under the “time, place, and manner” clause reach?
It has long been accepted that absentee balloting and voting-by-mail have potential for voter fraud not present in in-person voting. And tools that make it easier to vote--such as "ballot harvesting"--also increase opportunities for fraud. What policies should states adopt to ensure that people can vote without endangering their personal or the public health, while assuring that the fraud is minimized and the results retain integrity? Are states ready to handle a substantial increase in mail voting? What steps need to be taken before November to get ready? And what are the pluses or minuses to such changes. Are permanent changes necessary, or should any changes in voting procedures be temporary, for this election only?
Featuring:
Dr. Rachel Kleinfeld, Senior Fellow, Democracy, Conflict, and Governance Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Prof. Michael T. Morley, Assistant Professor, Florida State University College of Law
Prof. Richard H. Pildes, Sudler Family Professor of Constitutional Law, New York University School of Law
Hon. Bradley A. Smith, Josiah H. Blackmore II/Shirley M. Nault Professor of Law, Capital University Law School
Moderator: Hon. R. Patrick DeWine, Associate Justice, Supreme Court of Ohio
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speakers.

Federal Executive Power and COVID-19 Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

The first day of the Federalist Society's COVID-19 & the Law Conference finished with a panel discussion on "Federal Executive Power and COVID-19". The panel took place via teleconference on Thursday, June 11, 2020.
Has the federal executive branch overreacted or underreacted to the Covid-19 threat? To what extent is the proper federal role legislative rather than executive? Within the executive, what is the appropriate role of the White House and the agencies? Which aspects of the response call for political judgment and which call for technical judgment – and to what extent are the relevant agencies technical rather than political actors? What tools are legally available to the President and the rest of the federal executive branch to respond to COVID-19? How should they be used? What is the proper role of guidelines, like the various CDC guidelines, that are not legally binding as a regulatory matter but likely have liability implications and seem to have had considerable practical impact on decisions by State and private actors?
Featuring:
Hon. C. Boyden Gray, Founding Partner, Boyden Gray & Associates
Prof. Daniel B. Rodriguez, Harold Washington Professor of Law, Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law
Prof. Lisa Grow Sun, Professor of Law, BYU J. Reuben Clark Law School
Moderator: Prof. Gary Lawson, Philip S. Beck Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speakers.

Address by Ajit Pai Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

Ajit Pai, Chairman of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission, gave an address at the Federalist Society's COVID-19 & the Law Conference. The address took place via teleconference on Thursday, June 11, 2020.
Hon. Ajit Pai, Chairman, U.S. Federal Communications Commission
Introduction: Eugene Meyer, President and CEO, The Federalist Society
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speaker.

Government vs. Private Decisionmaking Jun 17, 2020

Show notes

The Federalist Society's COVID-19 & the Law Conference began with a panel discussion on "Government vs. Private Decisionmaking". The panel took place via teleconference on Thursday, June 11, 2020.
How should societies respond to pandemic crises, and to what extent has the American response tracked ideal models? The key questions are the extent to which public and private actors take responsibility for actions and how those actors coordinate with each other. What considerations should govern the allocation of public/private decision making in confronting COVID-19? What are the risks and benefits of decisions being made by the government (at all of the different levels of government), businesses, and individuals? What, in the response thus far,has worked and what hasn’t? Do government decisions about what to close down and when to reopen them create serious crony capitalism and public choice problems or in such an emergency will politicians rise above those temptations? What, if anything, does COVID-19 tell us about Medicare for All?
Featuring:
Prof. Ian Ayres, William K. Townsend Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Prof. David Hyman, Scott K. Ginsburg Professor of Health Law & Policy, Georgetown University
Prof. Jason Johnston, Henry L. and Grace Doherty Charitable Foundation Professor of Law; Armistead M. Dobie Professor of Law; and Director, John M. Olin Program in Law and Economics, University of Virginia School of Law
Prof. Anup Malani, Lee and Brena Freeman Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law School
Moderator: Eugene Meyer, President and CEO, The Federalist Society
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speaker.

Federalism and COVID-19 Jun 17, 2020

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The Future of Originalism: A Federalist Society Zoom Dialogue Jun 08, 2020

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Panel IV: What the Constitution Means by Executive Power [Archive Collection] Jun 04, 2020

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Luncheon and Address by William H. Webster [Archive Collection] May 21, 2020

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Panel V: The Virtues and Vices of Democracy in Conducting Foreign Affairs [Archive Collection] May 14, 2020

Show notes

On November 6-7, 1987, The Federalist Society held a symposium at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Washington, DC on "Foreign Affairs and The Constitution: The Roles of Congress, The President, and The Courts". This panel was titled "The Virtues and Vices of Democracy in Conducting Foreign Policy".
Featuring:
Irving Kristol, The Public Interest
Prof. Gordon Tullock, University of Arizona College of Business and Public Administration
Godfrey Hodgson, Author
Moderator: Charles Krauthammer, The New Republic
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As always, the Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues; all expressions of opinion are those of the speakers.

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