HLS News September 2005

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  High Court justices compare their roles

  On Wednesday, September 28, Supreme Court Justices Stephen Breyer and Antonin Scalia were joined by their British counterparts for a wide-ranging panel discussion on the similarities and differences between the judicial systems in the U.S. and U.K.
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  Japanese and U.S. financial experts convene in Japan

  On September 30, 2005, approximately 130 leaders of the financial systems of the United States and Japan will convene in Gotemba, Japan for discussions over three days on issues affecting the future of the global financial system.
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  Harvard Law grad John Roberts confirmed as chief justice of the United States

  Following a 78 to 22 confirmation vote by the U.S. Senate, today Harvard Law School graduate John Roberts became chief justice of the United States, the highest ranking position in the American judiciary.
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  Gerken examines the use of ranking systems to improve elections

  Professor Heather Gerken: Yesterday, the Election Assistance Commission (EAC) released the results of a national study of election practices. Created in the wake of the 2000 presidential election, the commission is charged with improving how elections are run. Unfortunately, Congress gave the new agency a modest mandate, little money, and less clout.
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  Professor Irving compares Australian and U.S. court nominations

  The following op-ed by Visiting Professor Helen Irving, Judging the judges, originally appeared in The Sydney Morning Herald on September 25, 2005: The contrast could not be starker. On Tuesday, the Attorney-General, Philip Ruddock, announced the Government's choice of Susan Crennan, Federal Court judge, to replace Justice Michael McHugh in the High Court. For the public, it was the start and end of the process.
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  Chayes Fellows go global to see the law in action

  The following story is from the September 2005 issue of Harvard Law Today: This summer, while some classmates in New York and Boston drafted briefs or finalized memos in high-rise office buildings, the 28 Harvard Law students selected as 2005 Chayes Fellows encountered entirely different challenges.
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  Webcast of Dean Kagan's 'state of the school' address

  Dean Elena Kagan gave her annual "state of the school" address in Ames Courtroom this week to mark the beginning of the academic year. Click here to watch an archived webcast of the address.
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  Professor Heymann on the Patriot Act

  A Boston Globe op-ed by HLS Professor Philip Heymann and Kennedy School lecturer Juliette Kayem -- and HLS graduate -- on congressional reauthorization of the Patriot Act.
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  Op-ed by Professor Dershowitz: A painful absence of balance

  The following op-ed by Professor Alan Dershowitz, A painful absence of balance, originally appeared in The Times (UK) on Septeber 21, 2005: On the Day of Simon Wiesenthal’s death, Sir Iqbal Sacranie, the Secretary-General of the Muslim Council of Britain, could be found in The Guardian proposing the abolition of Holocaust Memorial Day because it is offensive to Muslims.
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  Professor Warren on bankruptcy and the middle class

  On April 20, 2005, George W. Bush signed into law a bankruptcy bill that had been pending in Congress for eight years. More than just a giveaway to the credit-card companies, the bill was a moral judgment against the bankrupt.
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  HLS Professors file brief in Supreme Court case on military recruiting

  At noon today, Professors Martha Minow and Laurence H. Tribe held a press conference on the steps of Langdell Hall, at which they released a friend-of-the-court brief arguing that the Solomon Amendment -- the 1994 law that allows the secretary of defense to block federal funds to universities that restrict military recruiters' access to students -- does not prevent Harvard from enforcing its nondiscrcmination policies.
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  Gerken discusses compromise on the Voting Rights Act

  This fall, Congress will begin debating whether to renew one of the most powerful, and controversial, civil rights laws ever passed: Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act (VRA). Section 5 requires certain state and local governments--mostly in the Deep South--to ask the federal government's permission before making any change, no matter how small, in the way they run elections.
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  Obama delivers keynote address at Celebration of Black Alumni

  On Saturday, September 17, Sen. Barack Obama, a member of the class of 1991, will deliver a keynote address following his acceptance of the Harvard Law School Association Award. The event is part of this weekend's Celebration of Black Alumni and will be webcast live at approximately 12:30 p.m.
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  Professor Glendon examines the Court's use of foreign law

  Professor Mary Ann Glendon writes: At first glance, it is hard to see why these side-glances at what other countries do have provoked such alarm. True, the references have increased somewhat, but they remain rare, and no one suggests that the court has directly based any of its interpretations of the Constitution on foreign authority.
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  Celebration of Black Alumni begins this weekend

  This weekend, Harvard Law School will hold its second Celebration of Black Alumni. Highlights of the three-day event include a keynote address by Sen. Barack Obama, a 1991 Harvard Law graduate, and speeches by Harvard President Lawrence Summers and Law School Dean Elena Kagan. Hundreds of alumni are expected to return to campus for the event.
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  Fried to testify in Roberts hearings

  Today, Harvard Law Professor Charles Fried will appear before the Senate Judiciary Committee to testify in support of chief justice nominee John Roberts, a member of the class of '79, regarding Roberts' qualifications for the position. In his service as the chair of the practitioners’ reading committee, Fried examined Roberts' previous decisions to evaluate Roberts for the Standing Committee on the Judiciary of the American Bar Association.
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  Launch kicks off Houston Institute for Race and Justice

  The Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice will hold its official launch at Harvard Law School on Thursday, September 15. Speeches and ceremonies will be webcast live.
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  Clark honored at University of Iowa legal symposium

  The work of Professor Robert Clark, a corporate law specialist and the 10th dean of Harvard Law School, was the focus of a major symposium this past weekend at the University of Iowa College of Law. The nation's leading corporate law experts convened for two days of panel discussions and presentations that focused substantially on Clark's landmark treatise, "Corporate Law," which was first published in 1986.
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  HLS Professors debate confirmation process

  On Tuesday, September 13, three leading legal scholars from Harvard Law School will come together to discuss the Senate hearings of Supreme Court nominee John Roberts '79 and the role of the Senate in the judicial confirmation process. Professors Charles Fried, Alan Dershowitz and Richard Fallon will speak at the panel discussion sponsored by the HLS Federalist Society.
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  Assistant Professor Jed Shugerman: Revisiting the Senate's 'nuclear' option

  The following op-ed by Assistant Professor Jed Shugerman, Revisiting the Senate's 'nuclear' option, originally appeared in The Boston Globe on September 12, 2005: A second opening on the Supreme Court raises the stakes for the Senate hearings and doubles the chances of the Senate going "nuclear": The Senate Democrats filibuster, the Republicans vote to change the rules for closing debate, and the Democrats grind the Senate to a halt.
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  Op-ed by Professor Alan Dershowitz: Lasting peace in the Middle East?

  The following op-ed by Professor Alan Dershowitz, This time, peace may be real thing, originally appeared in the Chicago Tribune on September 9, 2005: There have been many false starts in establishing a two-state solution to the Arab-Palestinian-Israeli conflict, but this time all the basic elements appear to be in place.

• Op-ed by Professor William Stuntz: The Anti-Theorists

  George W. Bush has lost his favorite Supreme Court Justice. No, Antonin Scalia has not quietly resigned. (Does Scalia quietly do anything?) And yes, Bush does like to say that Scalia is his favorite Justice. But I have a sneaking suspicion his heart beats faster for William Rehnquist.
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  Op-ed by Professor Tribe: Gentleman of the Court

  The following op-ed by Professor Laurence Tribe, Gentleman of the Court, originally appeared in The New York Times on September 6, 2005: In October 1971, the White House tapped Assistant Attorney General William H. Rehnquist to respond to my critique of someone at the top of its short list for one of the two vacancies created by the nearly simultaneous resignations of two justices.
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  Dean Kagan announces hurricane relief efforts

  Dean Elena Kagan sent the following letter to the Harvard Law School community today, outlining some of the school's efforts to assist those affected by Hurricane Katrina.
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  Op-ed by Visiting Professor Dudziak: Hurricane damage

  The following op-ed by Visiting Professor Mary Dudziak, Huricane Damage, originally appeared in The Boston Globe on September 2, 2005: As waters rose in the streets of Biloxi and New Orleans, President Bush took to the airwaves in San Diego on Tuesday in an effort to capture the nation's attention with a different crisis. The war in Iraq, which he framed as part of a ''war on terror" tied to Sept. 11, had its legacy in World War II, he argued, and the nation must devote itself to this new war.