Since 1976, Milton L. Chappell has been a staff attorney with the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, a non-profit legsl aid organization located in Springfield, Virginia. During his 38 years of practice, he has specialized in representing nonunion public employees and teachers in litigation before the United States Supreme Court, and other federal and state courts and administrative agencies, against the abuses of compulsory unionism. The litigation has resulted in the establishment of procedures and notices that assist nonunion teachers in reducing the amount of their compulsory union fees the public sector unions spend on political and other non-collective bargaining activities that his clients oppose. In addition to representing clients claiming a political objection to joining or financially supporting a labor union, he has also represented clients claiming a religious objection to unions, as well as defending against numerous union attacks on the Right to Work laws passed in Indiana and Michigan, and Wisconsin’s Act 10, which includes right to work protection for most public employees. Mr. Chappell is an expert in constitutional and labor law, especially the First Amendment. Mr. Chappell has represented clients in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
Mr. Chappell is a member of the following bars: Maryland, the District of Columbia, United States Supreme Court, United States Courts of Appeals for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 11th, and District of Columbia Circuits, and the United States District Courts for the Districts of Maryland, Northern California, Western Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. He is the author of “From Abood to Tierney: The Protection on Nonunion Employees in an Agency Shop,” 15 Ohio Northern University Law Review 1 (1988) and “Seeking a New Foundation,” 16 Government Union Review 1 (1995). He is coauthor of “Protecting the Rights of State Employees Against Compulsory Unionism,” California Public Employee Relations 143 (August 2000).
Vice President of Legal Affairs & Director of Legal Defense & Education Center, EdChoice
Leslie Hiner, Esq. is an advocate of educational freedom, a crusader fighting for the unencumbered opportunity of parents to decide how and where their children will be educated. She believes in the power of individuals to change the world, and believes personal liberty will be enhanced when our method of funding K–12 education is changed to empower parents and students before institutions.
As vice president of legal affairs at EdChoice, the nation’s leading educational choice organization, Leslie leads the EdChoice Legal Defense and Education Center for this nonpartisan, charitable nonprofit and engages with other national organizations to support school choice. She is a proven leader, advancing educational freedom and choice for all as a pathway to successful lives and a stronger society.
Hiner is an attorney with extensive state legislative and executive branch experience. In Indiana, she was the first woman chief of staff to the speaker of the house, counsel to the senate president pro tempore, and general counsel/elections deputy to the Secretary of State. She is also a former small business owner, and former litigator in private practice.
A founding board member of one of Indiana’s first charter schools, Leslie served as chairman of the board for the first several years, guiding the school’s growth from about 150 to over 1000 students. She was also directly involved in developing Indiana’s original charter school law, one of the best in the nation, and Indiana’s voucher law, the largest in the country to date.
Leslie is a member of the American Enterprise Institute Leadership Network, serves on the Schools That Can National Advisory Council, and is a Policy Advisor for The Heartland Institute. Leslie is a long-time member of the Federalist Society and a Lugar Series Excellence in Public Service alumna.
Hiner travels the country speaking on educational issues and testifying at public hearings. Recent engagements include the American Enterprise Institute With all deliberate speed: Brown v. Board of Education II 60 years later; Center for Urban Renewal and Education National Policy Summit, “Changing Policy to Change Lives”; National Conference of State Legislatures Summit debate, School Vouchers and Education Savings Accounts: Are They Constitutional; Network of Enlightened Women National Conference, Three Things You Need To Know About Education Policy; International Conference on School Choice and Reform, The Constitutionality of Educational Choice; 100 Black Men of Greater Dallas/Fort Worth, Project Soar’s Mobilizing the Village; Louisville Federalist Society Lawyers’ Chapter, Is School Choice Good Public Policy; American Conservative Union CPAC 2017.
She’s been cited in several publications, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Washington Times, Forbes, US News & World Report, The Hill, Real Clear Policy, Federalist Society DocketWatch, National Review, The Federalist, Zman Magazine, Watchdog, and has appeared on EWTN News Nightly, Wall Street Journal Video Opinion Journal podcasts, David Webb Show on Sirius/XM, ChoiceMediaTV, The Heartland Institute podcasts and school choice events, The Morning Blaze, Issues in Education and many state level broadcasts.
A native of Ohio, she earned her Juris Doctorate from the University of Akron School of Law, her Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of Wooster, and attended Rostad Teachers College as an exchange student in Sweden where she was a student teacher in grades 2 and 3. She and her husband reside in Indianapolis, and have two grown children.
Professor Emeritus of Law, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University
In 1994, Professor of Law Michael I. Krauss became the law school's first recipient of the university's "Teacher of the Year" award for his engaging and challenging approach in the classroom. Born in the United States but raised in Canada, Professor Krauss speaks legalese in two languages. He earned his B.A. cum laude from Carleton University, his LL.B. summa cum laude from the Université de Sherbrooke, and his LL.M. from Yale Law School, where he was a Commonwealth Scholar. He was Columbia University's Law and Economics Fellow in 1981. He has been teaching at George Mason since 1987 and also has taught at the law schools of Seattle University, the University of Toronto, and the Université de Sherbrooke.
Hired as a law clerk by Justice Louis-Philippe Pigeon of Canada's Supreme Court, Professor Krauss practiced law for Quebec City's largest law firm before entering academia. He also served for five years on Québec's Human Rights Commission. A Salvatori Fellow of the Heritage Foundation and an academic fellow of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Professor Krauss sits on the advisory boards of several think tanks. He served as president of the Virginia Association of Scholars and on the Board of Governors of the Education Section of the Virginia State Bar, and is currently a member of the Board of Governors of the National Association of Scholars.
Professor Krauss teaches Torts, Legal Ethics and Jurisprudence, and has a strong interest in national security issues. His research on torts and ethics is nationally known. He co-authored the first edition of Legal Ethics in a Nutshell in May 2003. This book digests the Model Rules in an engaging and often critical fashion. The second edition was published in 2006. Professor Krauss is now under contract with West Publications to produce an innovative textbook on Products Liability in late 2008.
Professor Krauss received his B.A. cum laude from Carleton University, his LL.B. summa cum laude from the Université de Sherbrooke, and his LL.M. from Yale Law School.
Partner, Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
Andy excels at solving complex problems for his clients using a variety of effective strategies. As former Chief Deputy Attorney General for the State of Wisconsin, Andy Cook has extensive experience representing businesses before state Attorneys General involving investigations and lawsuits. His strong relationships with Attorneys General and their senior staff frequently facilitate the successful resolution of client issues through diplomacy and negotiations. When litigation becomes necessary, Andy effectively advocates for clients throughout the litigation process.
Andy combines his legal expertise in numerous areas of law covered by state Attorneys General, an understanding of how state AG offices operate, and vast knowledge of legal and regulatory issues facing his clients. This substantive and comprehensive legal approach is crucial to effectively representing clients before state Attorneys General. Andy also has substantial experience drafting and enacting complex civil liability reforms before state legislatures to successfully address client goals.
Andy’s main practice focuses on advising Fortune 500 companies before state Attorneys General in the areas of antitrust, consumer protection, False Claims Act, environmental law, and cybersecurity and data privacy. Andy, in collaboration with a team of attorneys, successfully navigated a client through antitrust regulatory review by state Attorneys General in one of the nation’s largest mergers of two major telecommunication companies. Andy also worked with a team of lawyers representing a large corporation involving the multistate opioids litigation brought by state Attorneys General.
Andy gained valuable experience serving as Deputy Attorney General for the State of Wisconsin where he was the second in command of the 700-plus state agency. In his role as Chief Deputy Attorney General, Andy oversaw the day-to-day operations at the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ); directed the State’s litigation strategy; negotiated, reviewed, and approved all settlements; drafted and reviewed attorney general opinions; managed the agency’s budget; oversaw civil and criminal investigations handled by DOJ; and managed DOJ’s legislative agenda.
Andy played college hockey and remains active by running, cross country skiing, and playing golf. On the weekends, Andy and his wife enjoy watching their kids’ sporting events, including soccer, baseball, gymnastics, and track. In his rare spare time, Andy reads history books.
Vice President and Director of Litigation, EdChoice
Thomas M. Fisher served as a Deputy Attorney General for 22 years and as Indiana’s first Solicitor General from 2005-2023. In that role he handled high profile litigation for the State, defended state statutes against constitutional attack, advised the Attorney General on a range of legal policy issues, and managed the State’s U.S. Supreme Court docket. A two-time recipient of the National Association of Attorneys General Best Brief Award, Fisher has argued five times before the High Court.
His U.S. Supreme Court experience also includes authorship of dozens of cert-stage and merits-stage amicus curiae briefs on a wide range of issues. In addition, Fisher has argued dozens of important and high-profile cases before both the Indiana Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Fisher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers and was recently named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Governor Eric Holcomb.
A native Hoosier, Fisher is a graduate of Wabash College and Indiana University Maurer School of Law, where he serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law.
United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
David Frank Hamilton is a United States federal judge, currently serving on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He previously was the Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana.
Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
Judge Sykes was nominated to the Seventh Circuit by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the Senate in 2004. Prior to her appointment to the federal bench, Judge Sykes served as a justice on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Governor Tommy G. Thompson appointed her in September 1999 to fill a mid-term vacancy on the state supreme court, and she was elected to a full ten-year term in April 2000. From 1992-1999, Judge Sykes served on the state trial bench in Milwaukee County (elected in 1992 and re-elected in 1998). From 1985-1992, Judge Sykes practiced law with the Milwaukee firm of Whyte & Hirschboeck, S.C., and from 1984-1985, was a law clerk to Federal Judge Terence T. Evans.
Born and raised in the Milwaukee area, Judge Sykes earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University in 1980 and a law degree from Marquette University Law School in 1984. Between college and law school, Judge Sykes worked as a reporter for The Milwaukee Journal.
Judge Sykes has two sons.
Since 1976, Milton L. Chappell has been a staff attorney with the National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, a non-profit legsl aid organization located in Springfield, Virginia. During his 38 years of practice, he has specialized in representing nonunion public employees and teachers in litigation before the United States Supreme Court, and other federal and state courts and administrative agencies, against the abuses of compulsory unionism. The litigation has resulted in the establishment of procedures and notices that assist nonunion teachers in reducing the amount of their compulsory union fees the public sector unions spend on political and other non-collective bargaining activities that his clients oppose. In addition to representing clients claiming a political objection to joining or financially supporting a labor union, he has also represented clients claiming a religious objection to unions, as well as defending against numerous union attacks on the Right to Work laws passed in Indiana and Michigan, and Wisconsin’s Act 10, which includes right to work protection for most public employees. Mr. Chappell is an expert in constitutional and labor law, especially the First Amendment. Mr. Chappell has represented clients in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
Mr. Chappell is a member of the following bars: Maryland, the District of Columbia, United States Supreme Court, United States Courts of Appeals for the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 9th, 11th, and District of Columbia Circuits, and the United States District Courts for the Districts of Maryland, Northern California, Western Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia. He is the author of “From Abood to Tierney: The Protection on Nonunion Employees in an Agency Shop,” 15 Ohio Northern University Law Review 1 (1988) and “Seeking a New Foundation,” 16 Government Union Review 1 (1995). He is coauthor of “Protecting the Rights of State Employees Against Compulsory Unionism,” California Public Employee Relations 143 (August 2000).
Robert H. McKinney Professor of Law Emeritus and Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies, Indiana University Bloomington - Maurer School of Law
Professor Conkle has been a member of the Maurer School of Law faculty since 1983, Professor Conkle teaches Constitutional Law, the First Amendment, and Law and Religion. His research addresses constitutional law and theory, religious liberty, and the role of religion in American law, politics, and public life. His most recent book is Religion, Law, and the Constitution, Second Edition (Foundation Press, 2022).
Conkle has been honored for his achievements both within and beyond the classroom. He is a two-time recipient of the Leon H. Wallace Teaching Award and has twice won the Gavel Award for outstanding contribution to the graduating class. He has received six faculty fellowships for outstanding scholarship, and in 1999 he was named the Robert H. McKinney Professor of Law. He retired from full-time teaching in December 2017 but continues to be involved in the Law School community.
Vice President and Director of Litigation, EdChoice
Thomas M. Fisher served as a Deputy Attorney General for 22 years and as Indiana’s first Solicitor General from 2005-2023. In that role he handled high profile litigation for the State, defended state statutes against constitutional attack, advised the Attorney General on a range of legal policy issues, and managed the State’s U.S. Supreme Court docket. A two-time recipient of the National Association of Attorneys General Best Brief Award, Fisher has argued five times before the High Court.
His U.S. Supreme Court experience also includes authorship of dozens of cert-stage and merits-stage amicus curiae briefs on a wide range of issues. In addition, Fisher has argued dozens of important and high-profile cases before both the Indiana Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. Fisher is a Fellow of the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers and was recently named a Sagamore of the Wabash by Governor Eric Holcomb.
A native Hoosier, Fisher is a graduate of Wabash College and Indiana University Maurer School of Law, where he serves as an Adjunct Professor of Law.
Right to Work in the Midwest - Podcast
Milton L. Chappell
In 2012 and 2013, Indiana and Michigan, respectively, passed Right to Work laws covering both...
Right to Work in the Midwest
TeleforumLuncheon with Governor Mike Pence
Luncheon with U.S. Senator Dan Coats
Indianapolis, IndianaThe Role of State Attorneys General in Addressing Federal Overreach
Indianapolis, IndianaThe Constitutionality of Legislative Prayer
Indiana Supreme Court Upholds Constitutionality of Vouchers for K-12 Education
Leslie Davis Hiner
In a landmark 5-0 decision, Chief Justice Brent Dickson of the Indiana Supreme Court delivered...
Virginia Supreme Court Expands Wrongful Discharge Cause of Action
Michael I. Krauss
In Van Buren v. Grubb,1 the Virginia Supreme Court ruled for the first time that...
Tort Reform Update: Recently Enacted Legislative Reforms and State Court Challenges
Andrew Cook
Introduction Since the 2010 elections altered the makeup of many state legislative and executive...
The Death of Jurisprudence?
Thomas M. Fisher, David Hamilton, Diane S. Sykes
The Indianapolis Lawyers Chapter hosted this discussion on Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III's book, Cosmic...