Jordan Lorence serves as senior counsel and director of strategic engagement with Alliance Defending Freedom, where he plays a key role with the Strategic Relations & Training Team. His work has encompassed a broad range of litigation, with a primary focus on religious liberty, free speech, student privacy, conscience rights of creative professionals, and the First Amendment freedoms of public university students and professors.
Lorence argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in the precedent-setting Southworth v. Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System case in 1999, challenging the university’s requirement that forced unwilling students to contribute to campus activist groups. He led the challenge to New York City’s ban on private worship services after hours in vacant public school buildings in the long-running Bronx Household of Faith v. Board of Education of the City of New York case. Lorence also defended the right of conscience in Elane Photography v. Willock at the New Mexico Supreme Court.
Lorence has made media appearances on television and radio shows including Fox News, NBC’s Today Show, and National Public Radio’s All Things Considered. His commentary has also appeared in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Daily News, The New York Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Washington Times, The Hill, and National Review.
Before officially joining the organization in 2001, Lorence was a productive allied attorney for many years, actively involved in significant litigation for ADF. He has also worked for the Home School Legal Defense Association, Concerned Women for America, and the American Center for Law and Justice. Lorence earned a J.D. from the University of Minnesota Law School and received a B.A. in journalism from Stanford University. He is admitted to the bar in Minnesota, Virginia, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Supreme Court, and multiple federal appellate and district courts.
*****
A person listed as a contributor has spoken or otherwise participated in Federalist Society events, publications, or multimedia presentations. A person's appearance on this list does not imply any other endorsement or relationship between the person and the Federalist Society. In most cases, the biographical information on a person's "contributor" page is provided directly by the person, and the Federalist Society does not edit or otherwise endorse that information. The Federalist Society takes no position on particular legal or public policy issues. All expressions of opinion by a contributor are those of the contributor.
Jordan Lorence on Coach Kennedy and How the Supreme Court Overruled the Lemon Test
Orange County Lawyers Chapter
First Floor Conference Room2040 Main Street
Irvine, CA 92614
A Discussion on Religious Liberty
Cornell Student Chapter
Cornell Law SchoolMyron Taylor Hall
Ithaca, NY 14850
Inside the Supreme Court
San Diego Student Chapter
University of San Diego School of Law Warren Hall 2A5998 Alcala Park
San Diego, CA 92110
Can a Buddhist Student Group Require its Leaders to Be Buddhist? Univ. of Iowa v. 8th Cir.
Iowa Student Chapter
Levitt Auditorium130 Byington Road
Iowa City, IA 52246
Flagpoles and the First Amendment: Shurtleff v. City of Boston
Florida Student Chapter
Levin College of Law309 Village Dr.
Gainesville, FL 32611
Beyond Legal Aid: Exploring Careers in Nonprofit & Public Interest Law
Catholic Student Chapter
The Columbus School of Law3600 John McCormack Dr NE
Washington, DC 20017
State Court Docket Watch: DeWeese-Boyd v. Gordon College
Note from the Editor: Mr. Lorence's organization, Alliance Defending Freedom, was retained by Gordon College to...
Can a student Christian group require its leaders to believe in in Christianity? University of Iowa: no (again); Eighth Circuit: still yes
Last month, the Eighth Circuit rebuked the University of Iowa for its efforts to derecognize...
Feddie Night Fights: Fulton v. City of Philadelphia: Fostering Faith or Fostering Hate?
Columbia Student Chapter
On November 20, 2020, The Federalist Society's Student Division and the Columbia Student Chapter hosted...
Feddie Night Fights: Fulton v. City of Philadelphia: Fostering Faith or Fostering Hate?
Columbia Student Chapter
On November 20, 2020, The Federalist Society's Student Division and the Columbia Student Chapter hosted...
First Amendment Controversies: Free Speech and Religious Liberty
Inaugural Wisconsin Lawyers Chapters Conference
This panel debated perspectives from both sides of two important national discussions: the debate over...