June 2009

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  Goldsmith in Washington Post: The Detainee Shell Game

  In a May 31, 2009 Washington Post op-ed, HLS Professor Jack Goldsmith writes, “The revelation last weekend that the United States is increasingly using foreign intelligence services to capture, interrogate and detain terrorist suspects points up an uncomfortable truth about the war against Islamist terrorists. Demands to raise legal standards for terrorist suspects in one arena often lead to compensating tactics in another arena that leave suspects (and, sometimes, innocent civilians) worse off.”

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  Parker on protecting the flag: "I hope it will be much easier to amend the constitution"

  In the following interview in the June issue of The American Legion Magazine, HLS Professor Richard Parker ’70, a Constitutional law scholar, discusses his views on the Constitution and his support for a constitutional amendment that would return the right to protect the U.S. flag from physical desecration. Parker is chairman of the board of directors for the Citizens Flag Alliance and the author of “Here, the People Rule: A Constitutional Populist Manifesto.” The title of the American Legion interview is “The Power to Protect.”

• 

  Bebchuk in WSJ: Key Ways to Reform Corporate Elections

   The following article “Key Ways to Reform Corporate Elections” by HLS Professor Lucian Bebchuk LL.M. ’80 S.J.D. ’84 appeared in the May 27 edition of The Wall Street Journal. Bebchuk is the director of the Program on Corporate Governance at Harvard Law School, and the author of “The Case for Shareholder Access to the Ballot,” “The Myth of the Shareholder Franchise” and “The Case for Increasing Shareholder Power.”

• 

  Willard Tom ’79 is appointed to Federal Trade Commission post

  Willard Tom ’79 has been tapped to become general counsel of the Federal Trade Commission.  Tom, currently an antitrust partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius in Washington, D.C., is rejoining the commission, having served as deputy director of the Bureau of Competition and head of the policy office during the Clinton administration.

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  Elizabeth Warren Wins Sacks-Freund Award for Teaching

  During Class Day exercises on June 3, Professor Elizabeth Warren received the Class of 2009’s Sacks-Freund Teaching Award in honor of her teaching ability, openness to student concerns and contributions to student life at HLS.

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  Ellen Cosgrove Wins Richardson Award

  Dean of Students Ellen Cosgrove received the Suzanne L. Richardson Staff Recognition Award during Class Day exercises. She was selected by the class of 2009 for her demonstrated commitment to the student experience and her concern for students’ lives and work at HLS.

• 

  William A. Gunn ’86 sworn in as general counsel of the Department of Veterans Affairs

  William A. Gunn ’86, a retired Air Force colonel, has been sworn in as general counsel of the Department of Veterans Affairs.  He was recently confirmed by the Senate.  Prior to his confirmation, he had a private practice in northern Virginia representing military members and veterans.

• 

  Harvard Law School will provide tuition for up to twelve veterans next year under federal Yellow Ribbon Program

  In the 2009-10 academic year, Harvard Law School will provide up to 12 qualifying post-9/11 veterans full tuition under the federal government’s new Yellow Ribbon Program, Acting Dean Howell Jackson ’82 announced today.

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  United States Solicitor General Elena Kagan ’86 addresses HLS graduating Class of 2009

  In a Class Day address on June 3, U.S. Solicitor General Elena Kagan ’86 acknowledged that this year’s graduating class finds itself at an inflection point in society, facing great economic and political changes. But, she said, students should take advantage of these changing times because the greatest challenges often produce the biggest opportunities.

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  Class of 2009 Racks up Record 308,605 Hours of Pro Bono Service

  Demonstrating a strong commitment to public service, the class of 2009 put in a record total of 308,605 pro bono hours, more than any previous class.

• 

  Petraeus at HLS for military promotion ceremony

  On June 3, General David Petraeus, the current Commander of U.S. Central Command, was on hand for the re-commissioning ceremony of two military officers who were being promoted to the rank of Captain—one in the Army and the other in the Air Force. Kyle Scherer ’09 and Nicholas Siler took their oaths in the Caspersen Room of Langdell Library.

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  Cogan and Saris receive Harvard Medal

  Two Harvard Law School alumni received the 2009 Harvard Medal during the annual meeting of the Harvard Alumni Association (HAA) in conjunction with Harvard Commencement on June 4. Jack Cogan, Jr. ’52 and Patti Saris ’76 were recognized for their extraordinary service to Harvard University.

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  Ronald Dworkin ’57 receives honorary doctorate from Harvard

  Legal philosopher Ronald Dworkin LL.B. ’57 received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Harvard University during the 358^th Commencement Exercises in Tercentenary Theater on June 4. 

• 

  Mark Roe on the role of the government in automaker bankruptcy

  In a recent podcast for the American Bankruptcy Institute, HLS Professor Mark Roe ’75 along with Professor David Skeel of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and Professor Todd Zywicki of the George Mason University School of Law give their thoughts on the manner in which the federal government has inserted itself into the Chapter 11 process in recent automaker bankruptcies. The experts touch on such topics as whether the government has the power to pick the winners and losers among the stakeholders in bankruptcy cases, if the process engineered for Chrysler is a violation of the code’s absolute priority rule and what the future effects are on lenders who now must weigh new potential risks of their investments.

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  Kraakman in NYT: What does the government know about choosing corporate directors?

  HLS Professor Reinier Kraakman co-wrote the following op-ed, “The Directors Guild,” with Ronald J. Gilson, a professor of law and business at Stanford and Columbia. The piece— on the government’s role in selecting corporate directors as a result of its growing investments in private industry—appeared in the June 7, 2009, issue of the New York Times.

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  Jesse Fried will join HLS faculty

  Jesse Fried ’92, a leading expert in executive compensation, corporate governance, corporate bankruptcy, and venture capital, will join the Harvard Law School faculty in the fall. He is currently a professor of law at the University of California at Berkeley.

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  WEBCAST: Warren testifies before Joint Economic Committee

  HLS Professor Elizabeth Warren testified at the hearing entitled, “TARP Accountability and Oversight: Measuring the Strength of Financial Institutions” on Tuesday June 9, 2009. 

• 

  Nicole Y. Lamb-Hale ’91 and Quentin Palfrey ’02 appointed to Administration posts

  Two HLS alumni have been appointed to positions in the Department of Commerce’s Office of General Counsel.  Nicole Lamb-Hale ’91 joins the Commerce Department as deputy general counsel and Quentin Palfrey ’02 as associate general counsel.

• 

  WEBCAST: Bebchuk testifies before House Financial Services committee

  Harvard Law School Professor Lucian Bebchuk LL.M. ’80 S.J.D. ’84 testified before the House Financial Services Committee in a hearing titled “Compensation Structure and Systematic Risk,” on Thursday, June 11, 2009.  Watch a webcast of the hearing. 

• 

  David Kennedy ’80 to return to Harvard Law School

  David Kennedy ’80, a renowned expert in international law, returned to Harvard Law School as a full-time professor in the fall of 2009. Kennedy was on the HLS full-time faculty for more than three decades until he became vice president for International Affairs at Brown University in 2008.

• 

  Feldman in NYT: When arrogance takes the bench

  The following op-ed by Harvard Law School Professor Noah Feldman, “When arrogance takes the bench,” was published in the June 11, 2009 edition of the New York Times.

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  PIFS symposium brings U.S. and Chinese financial leaders to Cambridge

  This weekend, leaders from the United States and China will gather in Cambridge to examine challenges facing the financial sectors of the two countries. The annual “Symposium on Building the Financial System of the 21st Century: An Agenda for China and the United States” is organized by Harvard Law School’s Program on International Financial Systems (PIFS) and the China Development Research Foundation (CDRF).

• 

  Harvard Law School’s Child Advocacy Program (CAP) and the Center for Adoption Policy win key backers for International Adoption Policy Statement

  Support for International Adoption principles is growing, says HLS Professor Elizabeth Bartholet, citing endorsements for Policy Statement and the recent Malawi ruling in the Madonna case.

• 

  Roe assesses the Chrysler bankruptcy sale in Forbes

  The following op-ed, by Harvard Law School Professor Mark Roe ’75, “The Chrysler Bankruptcy Sale: An Assessment,” appeared in the June 15, 2009 edition of Forbes.

• 

  Scott and Committee on Capital Markets Regulation issue major report urging financial regulatory reform

  The Committee on Capital Markets Regulation, which is directed by Harvard Law School Professor Hal Scott, has released a comprehensive report detailing recommendations to reform the U.S. financial regulatory structure. The report is entitled, “The Global Financial Crisis: A Plan for Regulatory Reform.”

• 

  Burke-White ’02 appointed to position in Office of Foreign Policy Planning

  William Burke-White ’02, an assistant professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, has accepted a two-year assignment in the Office of Foreign Policy Planning, an internal think tank at the State Department. He will focus on long-range policy issues concerning Russia and international law.
  

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  Bebchuk and Fried in WSJ: Equity Compensation for Long-Term Results

  The following op-ed, co-written by Harvard Law School Professors Lucian Bebchuk LL.M. ’80 S.J.D. ’84 and Jesse Fried ’92, entitled “Equity Compensation for Long-Term Results,” was published in the June 16, 2009, edition of the Wall Street Journal.

• 

  Two HLS students assist with asbestos case heard before the Supreme Court

  Justin Raphael ’09 and Andrew Furlow ’09 both had gained litigation experience during their summer law firm work. But sitting in the U.S. Supreme Court on March 30, watching constitutional scholar Samuel Issacharoff present an oral argument they’d helped research and prepare, they gained an entirely new appreciation of the process.

• 

  Obama proposes creation of Financial Product Safety Commission

  In a speech today on changes to the financial regulatory system, President Barack Obama ’91 proposed the creation of a new government agency, the Financial Product Safety Commission, to help consumers obtain financial products and services without being subjected to predatory or deceptive financial practices. The proposed watchdog agency is the brainchild of Harvard Law School Professor Elizabeth Warren.

• 

  Andrew McLaughlin ’94 Leaves Google to Join Obama Administration

  Andrew McLaughlin ’94 has been named deputy chief technology officer for the Obama Administration. Most recently, McLaughlin served as head of global public policy for Google.

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  Ogletree testifies before senate on criminal justice reform bill

  Harvard Law School Professor Charles Ogletree ’78 testified before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs in June on the proposed National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009, telling the subcommittee the bill would address “severe inequities in the criminal justice system.”

• 

  Fried in Boston Globe: Another predictable Supreme Court

  The following op-ed written by Harvard Law School Professor Charles Fried, “Another predictable Supreme Court,” appeared in the June 19, 2009, edition of the Boston Globe.

• 

  Goldstein in NYT on Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor

  The following op-ed “Her Justice Is Blind” by HLS Lecturer Tom Goldstein, appeared in the June 15 issue of the New York Times. Goldstein, a partner at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld, is a founder of the Scotusblog Web site and a law lecturer at Stanford and HLS.

• 

  Bruce Mann elected to historical council

  In June, HLS Professor Bruce H. Mann, was elected to the Council of the Omohundro Institute for Early American History and Culture in Williamsburg, Va., for a three-year term. He is a legal historian who studies the relationship between law, economy and society in early America and also teaches Property and Trusts and Estates.

• 

  In Washington Post op-ed, Berkman Center directors discuss Twitter revolution in Iran

  The following op-ed “Reading Twitter in Tehran? Why the real revolution is on the streets -- and offline” was co-written by HLS Professor John Palfrey, vice dean of the library and information resources at HLS and co-director of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society; Berkman Research Director Robert Faris; and Bruce Etling, director of the Internet & Democracy Project at Berkman. Their op-ed appeared in the June 21 issue of The Washington Post.

• 

  Weiler to receive honorary degree at York University’s 50th Anniversary

  Paul Weiler LL.M. ’65, the Henry J. Friendly Professor of Law, Emeritus, at HLS, was selected to receive an honorary degree from York University in Toronto, Canada, as part of its convocation ceremonies running from June 24 to 30.

• 

  Larry Strickling ’76 joins the Obama Administration

  In May, Larry Strickling ’76 was confirmed as assistant secretary for Communications and Information, Department of Commerce, by the Senate Commerce Committee. As head of the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, he oversees billions of dollars in broadband rollout grants and the DTV-to-analog converter box coupon program. 

• 

  Guinier in NYT: No affirmative right to vote

  The following op-ed by Harvard Law School Professor Lani Guinier, “No affirmative right to vote,” appeared on the New York Times blog, Room for Debate, on June 23, 2009. Guinier offered commentary on the Supreme Court’s ruling on the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

• 

  Kennedy delivers speech at Phi Theta Kappa’s Honors Institute

  Randall Kennedy, the Michael R. Klein Professor of Law at HLS, addressed members of Phi Theta Kappa at the 2009 Honors Institute at the University of Richmond in Virginia in June.

• 

  Goldsmith in The Washington Post: Will Obama follow Bush or FDR?

  The following op-ed “Will Obama Follow Bush Or FDR?” by HLS Professor Jack Goldsmith and Benjamin Wittes, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, appeared in the June 29 issue of The Washington Post. Goldsmith served as an assistant attorney general in the Bush administration and is the author of “The Terror Presidency.” Wittes is the author of “Law and the Long War: The Future of Justice in the Age of Terror.” Both are members of the Hoover Institution's Task Force on National Security and Law.