Associate, Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC
Ken Daines is an associate at Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC. His practice focuses on trial and appellate litigation in federal and state courts, including matters presenting constitutional law, redistricting, and election-related issues.
Before joining the firm, Ken clerked for Judge Ryan D. Nelson on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and Judge Dee V. Benson on the U.S. District Court for the District of Utah. He also practiced election law and government ethics at a large law firm in Washington, D.C.
Ken earned his J.D. from Stanford Law School and a B.A. in International Relations and Chinese, magna cum laude, from Brigham Young University. While in law school, he worked as a student attorney for the Religious Liberty Clinic and served as Executive Vice-President for the Stanford Law chapter of the Federalist Society. Ken is a member of the District of Columbia and Maryland Bars, the J. Reuben Clark Law Society, and the Federalist Society.
Senior Associate, Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky PLLC
Drew Watkins is a senior associate with Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky PLLC, providing counsel in the areas of campaign finance and election law, lobbying and ethics compliance, and tax-exempt organizations.
Prior to joining the firm, Drew served as a law clerk to the Honorable Joseph R. Goeke, Senior Judge of the United States Tax Court in Washington, D.C., and worked in the Office of General Counsel for the Governor of Kentucky, Matthew G. Bevin. While in law school, Drew served as a law clerk for the Kentucky Executive Branch Ethics Commission and interned for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell in his office in Washington, D.C.
Drew graduated from the University of Louisville with a B.S. in Justice Administration. He earned his Juris Doctor, magna cum laude, from the University of Kentucky College of Law and was a member of the Order of the Coif. During law school, he served as a senior staff editor on the Kentucky Law Journal and authored a published student note on the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act. He is a member of the Kentucky, D.C. and Virginia bars and the Federalist Society.
Former President & CEO, The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies
Eugene B. Meyer, former President and CEO of the Federalist Society, has served as Executive Director, CEO, and/or President of the organization for more than 40 years. He is responsible for shepherding the organization from a small group of law students to a community of 90,000 lawyers, law students, academics, judges, and others interested in the rule of law. The Society now includes a Student Chapter at nearly every ABA-accredited law school in the country and Lawyers Chapters in 220 major cities across the nation. Gene earned his B.A. in history at Yale in 1975 and his M.A. in political science from the London School of Economics in 1976. Gene currently serves on the boards of the U.S. Chess Center, the Holman Foundation, the Sarah Scaife Foundation, and the advisory board of the Adam Smith Society. He holds the title of International Chess Master.
Senior Associate Legal Fellow, The Buckeye Institute
Alex M. Certo is a Senior Associate Legal Fellow at The Buckeye Institute. In this role, Certo advances Buckeye’s public policy efforts by litigating cases that protect individuals’ rights and by contributing to more than 75 amicus briefs filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as dozens of amicus briefs in state and lower federal courts. Additionally, Certo supports Buckeye’s policy work by analyzing the legal implications of proposed and pending legislation and by testifying before Ohio legislative committees.
Certo has been a member of the Federalist Society since 2019 and currently serves on the board of the Columbus Lawyers chapter, where he is vice president.
Certo’s legal experience includes working as a judicial extern for the Supreme Court of Ohio and as a summer extern in the Investigations Division of the Allegheny County District Attorney’s Office. Certo also worked as a law clerk for Agee, Clymer, Mitchell & Portman in Columbus, Ohio, focusing on workers’ compensation litigation.
Certo received his bachelor’s degree from Slippery Rock University and his Juris Doctor (magna cum laude) from Capital University Law School. In law school, Certo served on the associate board of the Capital University Law Review and competed on the Child Welfare and Adoption Law Moot Court team. Certo was the president of Capital’s Federalist Society chapter and vice president of the Labor and Employment Law Association. Certo also served as a teaching assistant for Capital’s Second Amendment course and a research assistant for a pair of faculty-written articles on public safety. Certo was awarded the CALI Excellence for the Future Award in Patent Law and the Ronald I. Friedman Memorial Service Award, and he was inducted into The Order of Barristers.
Before law school, Certo worked as a staff accountant. His work focused on preparing individual and small business tax filings and assisting small business owners with daily accounting needs.
Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy, Department of Justice
GianCarlo Canaparo serves as Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Office of Legal Policy at the Department of Justice. There, he oversees the Office's regulatory work and is the Department's liaison to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. He also assists the White House in the process of selecting nominees for federal judgeships and advises Department leadership on policy and legal matters.
Before joining the Department, Canaparo was a senior legal fellow at The Heritage Foundation’s Edwin Meese III Center for Legal and Judicial Studies where he researched constitutional law, administrative law, and civil rights.
Canaparo’s scholarship has appeared in various law reviews including the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy, the Notre Dame Law Review, the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy, the Texas Review of Law and Politics, and the Administrative Law Review. His research has been cited by Justice Neil Gorsuch and featured in the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post. His analysis has appeared in Law & Liberty, Civitas, Fox News, The National Review, Law 360, FedSoc Blog, and other outlets.
Canaparo co-hosted The Heritage Foundation’s SCOTUS 101 podcast, which follows the Supreme Court’s arguments and opinions and features interviews with judges, advocates, and scholars.
After graduating Georgetown law, Canaparo spent three years at the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom and two years as a federal law clerk. He earned his bachelor’s degree in economics from the University of California at Davis.
Canaparo is a classical pianist and organist.
Clinical Professor and Director of the First Amendment Clinic, Florida State University College of Law
Denise Mayo Harle is a clinical professor and director of the First Amendment Clinic at FSU College of Law, where she leads student advocacy and litigation on free speech, religious liberty, and press freedom issues. Her teaching and scholarship focus on constitutional law, appellate practice, and First Amendment rights. Before entering academia, Professor Harle was a partner at Shutts & Bowen LLP in Tallahassee, where she was a member of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group and Constitutional Law Practice Area. Prior to that, she served as Deputy Solicitor General in the Office of the Florida Attorney General. Professor Harle has briefed and argued high-profile cases involving significant constitutional issues and questions of statutory interpretation in both state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Professor Harle’s early career includes clerking for Justice Ricky L. Polston on the Florida Supreme Court and practicing appellate law in California. In 2022, she was selected as a finalist for a seat on the Florida Supreme Court. She was appointed by Governor Ron DeSantis to Florida’s Faith and Community Advisory Council and currently serves on the Judicial Nominating Commission for Florida’s Second Circuit. She was also selected for the prestigious U.S. Supreme Court Fellowship through the National Association of Attorneys General in 2017. She earned her J.D. cum laude from Duke University Law School and her B.A. and B.S. summa cum laude from Florida State University.
Professor Harle is active in the legal and academic communities. She is a member of the American Enterprise Institute’s Leadership Network and the Federalist Society’s Speakers Bureau. She has served on the board of Tallahassee Women Lawyers, the Florida Bar’s Client Security Fund Committee, and the First District Appellate American Inn of Court.
Before practicing law, Professor Harle completed doctoral coursework in Political Science at Stanford University as a Stanford Graduate Fellow, where she taught undergraduate courses on public policy, law, and American politics, and earned a Master’s degree. She continues to serve as a dissertation faculty advisor for Concordia University–St. Paul mentors doctoral students in research and writing.
A frequent speaker and media commentator on constitutional law, Professor Harle has been quoted in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, and The New York Times, and has appeared on national outlets including C-SPAN and Fox News. She has also testified before the U.S. Senate on matters of constitutional significance.
Associate Justice, Alabama Supreme Court
James L. “Jay” Mitchell was elected to the Alabama Supreme Court in 2018.
Prior to serving on the Supreme Court, Justice Mitchell was an accomplished litigation attorney with Maynard, Cooper & Gale, P.C. During his time in private practice, he tried a number of complex cases to verdict, successfully handled appeals, and obtained favorable settlements for clients. He was rated as one of the top litigators in the United States and Alabama, and received the highest possible rating for professional ethics. He also served on Maynard, Cooper & Gale’s executive committee, helping to lead strategic and growth initiatives for the firm.
Justice Mitchell was born in Mobile and grew up in South Alabama and in Homewood. He is a graduate of Homewood High School and received his Bachelor of Arts with honors from Birmingham-Southern College, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa, served as president of the student body, and played forward on the school’s 1995 national championship basketball team. He holds a Master of Arts from University College in Dublin, Ireland, and received his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.
Justice Mitchell has long been active in organizations that benefit the community and enhance the legal profession. In addition to his service with other organizations, he is a member of the Rotary Club of Birmingham and serves on the board of directors at Cornerstone School, an inner city Christian school. He is also a member of the Federalist Society.
Justice Mitchell and his wife, Elizabeth, have been married for 20 years and have four children. They reside in Homewood and are longtime members of Church of the Highlands.
Amicus Attorney, The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
Abby joined FIRE after her tenure at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, where she litigated First Amendment student group cases from coast to coast. She also worked at a trial litigation boutique in southern California. Abby has filed briefs on the First Amendment in state and federal court at the trial and appellate court levels, including before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Abby received her B.S. in economics and her B.A. in Chinese language and literature from the University of Pittsburgh, where she graduated summa cum laude. During college, she also spent a year at Tsinghua University as a Boren Fellow. She later received her J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School, where she won the 2018 Hinton Moot Court Competition. After law school, Abby clerked for the Honorable Michael B. Brennan on the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She is admitted to practice in New York and California, as well as several federal appellate courts and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Abby lives outside Dallas, Texas, with her husband and family. They enjoy reading together, volunteering with their local church, and continuing to fix their leaky pool.
Attorney, Institute for Justice
Anya Bidwell (née Cherkasova) leads IJ’s Project on Immunity and Accountability (“PIA”). Through this project, Anya works to promote judicial engagement and ensure that government officials are held to account when they violate individuals’ constitutional rights. Anya also serves as an adviser on the American Law Institute’s Restatement of the Law, Constitutional Torts project.
One of Anya’s PIA cases—Gonzalez v. Trevino—was heard by the United States Supreme Court on March 20, 2024. She argued the case for the petitioner, with the goal of convincing the Justices that retaliatory arrests not involving on-the-spot decisions by police officers should be actionable under the First Amendment regardless of probable cause. The decision is expected in June.
This was Anya’s third appearance before the U.S. Supreme Court. She second-chaired Brownback v. King (an excessive force case) and Tennessee Wine & Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas (a commerce clause case) in November 2020 and January 2019 respectfully.
Before joining IJ, Anya worked for a top national law firm, handling cases in trial and appellate courts. She earned her J.D. with honors from the University of Texas. Two years prior to entering law school, Anya received a master’s degree in Global Policy Studies, also from the University of Texas, and wrote a thesis on asymmetric warfare.
Anya spent her childhood in Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan. At 16, she left her family behind and came to America on a university scholarship. Her upbringing motivated her to study law and become an advocate for a strong, independent judiciary.
Anya’s work has been featured in numerous publications, including the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, and the Guardian. She is also the host of live recordings of our Short Circuit podcast and a co-producer of our documentary-style podcast Bound by Oath.
Solicitor General, Arkansas
Autumn Hamit Patterson is currently the Solicitor General of Arkansas.
Autumn’s previous experience includes serving as a Special Assistant Solicitor General for the Office of the Louisiana Attorney General, a Senior Attorney at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, an Issues and Appeals Associate at Jones Day, and a Solicitor General Fellow for the Office of the Texas Attorney General. Autumn also clerked for Justice Eva Guzman on the Supreme Court of Texas and Judge Andrew Oldham on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. In 2021 and 2022, Autumn was named one of “Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch” for appellate practice.
Autumn earned her J.D. from Duke University School of Law, where she graduated magna cum laude. While in law school, she served as co-president of the Federalist Society. Autumn graduated summa cum laude from Furman University, where she received a B.A. in History and Political Science.
Felon Re-Enfranchisement Requirements Upheld by North Carolina Supreme Court
Ken Daines, Andrew Watkins
When lawsuits challenge state legislative enactments as racially discriminatory or motivated by invidious intent, courts...
Annual Report 2022
Eugene B. Meyer
As we reflect on the first 40 years of our Federalist Society, I stand in...
Proposed “Reproductive Freedom” Constitutional Amendment May Be Placed on the Ballot After Ohio Supreme Court Ruling
Alex Certo
The Ohio Constitution reserves for the people the right to propose an amendment to the...
Narrow Right to Abortion in State Constitution Divined and Reaffirmed by Oklahoma Supreme Court
GianCarlo Canaparo
In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the United States Supreme Court held that there...
Abortion Laws In Oklahoma Subject of Fractured Decision at State Supreme Court
Denise M. Harle
Immediately after the U.S. Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization,[1]...
Textualism in Alabama
Jay Mitchell
Federalist Society Review, Volume 24
Textualism is alive and well in Alabama. This interpretive doctrine teaches that legal texts have...
Supreme Court of Texas Says Calling Abortion Murder Is Protected Speech, Not Defamation
Abigail Smith
In Lilith Fund for Reproductive Equity v. Dickson, the Supreme Court of Texas held that...
The Nevada Supreme Court Recognizes a Damages Remedy Directly Under Its State Constitution
Anya Bidwell
Last year, two state supreme courts, within five months of each other, issued two decisions...
The Federalist Paper, Summer 2023
After a busy spring and an exciting Supreme Court term, the Federalist Society is excited...
North Dakota Supreme Court Concludes State Constitution Protects the Right to Abortions to Preserve Life or Health
Autumn Hamit Patterson
In Wrigley v. Romanick,[1] the North Dakota Supreme Court addressed a trigger law that criminalized...