Justice, Alabama Supreme Court
Justice William B. Sellers was appointed by Governor Kay Ivey in May 2017. He was elected to a full term in 2018 and re-elected in 2024. His current term expires in 2031.
Justice Sellers received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Hillsdale College in 1985, a Juris Doctorate from the University of Alabama in 1988, and a Masters of Laws in Taxation from New York University in 1989. Justice Sellers practiced law in Montgomery for 28 years. He maintained a general business practice with emphasis on taxation, business organizations and finance. A major part of Justice Sellers's practice involved tax litigation.
Justice Sellers is a member of numerous civic organizations and professional associations. In 2012, he received the President's Award for service to the Alabama Bar Association. In 2013, Governor Robert Bentley appointed Justice Sellers to the Alabama State Council on the Arts. In August 2014, Justice Sellers was elected chairman of the Fair Ballot Commission. He is past president of the Rotary Club of Montgomery, past chairman of the Montgomery Area Business Committee for the Arts, chairman of the River Region United Way Campaign in 2008, and past chairman of the YMCA of Greater Montgomery. Justice Sellers was a member of the Electoral College in 2004, 2008, 2012, and 2016.
Justice Sellers is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the Supreme Court of Alabama, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals, the United States District Courts for the Middle and Northern Districts of Alabama, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and the United States Tax Court. He is a member of the Alabama State Bar, the Montgomery County Bar Association, and the District of Columbia Bar. Since 2014, he has served as the community liaison with the International Officers School at Maxwell Air Force Base.
Justice Sellers and his wife, Lee, have been married for 37 years. They are members of Trinity Presbyterian Church and have three adult children and two grandchildren.
Senior Fellow and Director of Constitutional Studies, Manhattan Institute
Ilya Shapiro is a senior fellow and director of constitutional studies at the Manhattan Institute and a contributing editor of City Journal. Previously he was executive director and senior lecturer at the Georgetown Center for the Constitution, and before that a vice president of the Cato Institute.
Shapiro is the author of Lawless: The Miseducation of America’s Elites (2025) and Supreme Disorder: Judicial Nominations and the Politics of America’s Highest Court (2020), coauthor of Religious Liberties for Corporations? (2014), and editor of 11 volumes of the Cato Supreme Court Review (2008-18). He has contributed to a variety of academic, popular, and professional publications, including the Wall Street Journal, Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, National Review, and Newsweek. He also regularly provides commentary for various media outlets, writes the Shapiro’s Gavel newsletter on Substack, and once appeared on the Colbert Report.
Shapiro has testified many times before Congress and state legislatures and has filed more than 500 amicus curiae “friend of the court” briefs in the Supreme Court. He lectures regularly on behalf of the Federalist Society, is a member of the board of fellows of the Jewish Policy Center, was an inaugural Washington Fellow at the National Review Institute, and has been an adjunct law professor at the George Washington University and University of Mississippi. He is also the chairman of the board of advisers of the Mississippi Justice Institute, a barrister in the Edward Coke Appellate Inn of Court, and a former member of the Virginia Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
Earlier in his career, Shapiro was a special assistant/adviser to the Multi-National Force in Iraq on rule-of-law issues and practiced at Patton Boggs and Cleary Gottlieb. Before entering private practice, he clerked for Judge E. Grady Jolly of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. He holds an AB from Princeton University, an MSc from the London School of Economics, and a JD from the University of Chicago Law School.
Dean; J. Gilbert Reese Chair in Contract Law, Moritz College of Law, The Ohio State University
Kent Barnett is the 21st dean of the Michael E. Moritz College of Law at The Ohio State University and the J. Gilbert Reese Chair in Contract Law. He is focused on bringing people in—by enriching the College’s inclusive community and increasing financial support for students—and then bringing them up—by focusing on community-building, career development, and rigorous legal training.
As a scholar of separation of powers and administrative law, his scholarship has been published in, among other places, the New York University, Michigan, Duke, Vanderbilt, and Notre Dame Law Reviews. Barnett’s work has been cited by leading administrative law casebooks, federal district and appellate courts, and the U.S. Supreme Court. He has taught contracts and sales, consumer law, legal ethics, and administrative law.
Prior to joining Ohio State, Barnett served as the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and the J. Alton Hosch Professor at the University of Georgia School of Law. He received the C. Ronald Ellington Award for Excellence in Teaching, the school’s highest teaching honor, and was selected to serve as a faculty marshal by three graduating classes for commencement ceremonies. Barnett also clerked for Judge John Rogers of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and practiced law at Weil, Gotshal & Manges in its complex commercial litigation and appellate groups.
After years as an appointed public member, Barnett is a Senior Fellow of the Administrative Conference of the United States (ACUS) and was the chair of AALS Administrative Law Section.
Judge, United States District Court for the Western District of Kentucky
Prior to joining the bench, Judge Beaton was a Partner at Squire Patton Boggs LLP, where he co-chaired the firm’s Appellate & Supreme Court practice group. Judge Beaton’s represented clients engaged in complex commercial litigation in Federal and State courts, and before administrative agencies. Judge Beaton also served as an adjunct professor at the University of Louisville Brandeis School of Law, where he taught constitutional interpretation. Before joining Squire Patton Boggs, Judge Beaton practiced in the Washington, D.C. office of Sidley Austin, LLP, and also served as a legal fellow with the International Justice Mission in Kampala, Uganda. Upon graduation from law school, Judge Beaton served as a law clerk to Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the United States Supreme Court, and to Judge A. Raymond Randolph of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Judge Beaton earned his B.A., summa cum laude, from Centre College, and his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he served as an Articles Editor on the Columbia Law Review.
Dean, University of Louisville School of Law
Dean Melanie B. Jacobs is an internationally and nationally recognized expert in Family Law and has published extensively on the subject. In particular, she has advocated for legal recognition of non-traditional family units and the evolution of parentage law to engage with continuing developments in assisted reproductive technologies. Her most recent research explores the links between procreative autonomy and intentional parenthood. She is a former chair of the Association of American Law Schools’ Family and Juvenile Law Section. Dean Jacobs is also a notable as a feminist voice in legal scholarship and has several pieces in the Feminist Judgements Project series.
Dean Jacobs has entries in three books and published articles in a dozen law reviews. She has presented her scholarship at conferences and universities around the world and has also given many presentations on best legal education pedagogy practices. Dean Jacobs has taught courses in Child, Family & the State; Assisted Reproductive Technologies & the Law; Trusts & Estates; Property; and Law & Gender.
Dean Jacobs received her B.A from Columbia University in New York City, and her J.D. from Boston University, shortly after which she was admitted to the Massachusetts Bar, later gaining her LL.M. from Temple University.
Law Clerk, U.S. District Court, Western District of Kentucky
Benjamin Pontz is a law clerk on the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky. He previously clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and served as President of the Harvard Federalist Society
Chief Counsel, Arizona Chamber Law Center
Prior to joining the Chamber, Nate was an Attorney at the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF) and an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Arizona. At TPPF, he brought cases seeking to limit federal government overreach. As an Assistant AG, he practiced criminal appeals in Arizona appellate courts, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court. He began his legal career as a clerk at the Arizona Supreme Court for Justices Clint Bolick and John Lopez before going on to clerk at the U.S. District Court for Judge Susan Brnovich.
Nate earned his J.D. from the University of Arizona, where he was an Articles Editor for the Arizona Law Review and President of the Federalist Society. He is licensed to practice law in Arizona and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth, Sixth, Ninth, and DC Circuits.
Director, Children's Law Clinic, Center for the Rights of Abused Children
Tom Jose is a lawyer who protects the rights of abused children throughout the foster care process and beyond.
Tom heads up our one-of-a-kind pro bono Children’s Law Clinic, where he represents abused children, foster parents, kinship placements, and biological parents in dependency and severance proceedings to ensure that the state respects their rights. He litigates to protect the rights of abused children throughout the foster process and beyond. Tom also represents transition-aged youth in a variety of matters to give them their best chance at starting adult lives.
Tom’s passion for protecting abused children was ignited while working for an appeals court, shortly after he graduated from law school. He was shocked at the sheer volume of abused children who passed through—and remained in—the foster system every year and how little was being done to protect the rights of these innocent children. Since then, he has spent his legal career helping abused children in Arizona.
Before joining the Center for the Rights of Abused Children, Tom worked for the Arizona Attorney General’s Office in its Child and Family Protection Appeals Unit. He handled hundreds of appeals, filed over 75 substantive briefs, and had five oral arguments before the Arizona Supreme Court and the Arizona Court of Appeals. In 2020, the Attorney General’s Office presented Tom with an award for Outstanding Appellate Advocacy.
Tom holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and a law degree from Arizona State University. He lives in Mesa, Arizona, with his son Eric, where he enjoys collecting (and playing) vintage video games and going camping around our beautiful state.
Vice President for Litigation & General Counsel, Goldwater Institute
Jon Riches is the Vice President for Litigation for the Goldwater Institute’s Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation and General Counsel for the Institute. He litigates in federal and state trial and appellate courts in the areas of economic liberty, regulatory reform, free speech, taxpayer protections, public labor issues, government transparency, and school choice, among others.
Jon has developed and authored several pieces of legislation, including the landmark Right to Earn a Living Act, which provides some of the greatest protections in the country to job-seekers and entrepreneurs facing arbitrary licensing regulations. He also developed legislation eliminating deference to administrative agencies in Arizona—a first-of-its-kind regulatory reform that can serve as a model for the rest of the country.
His work at the Institute has been covered by national media, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, CBS This Morning, Bloomberg News, and Politico. Jon is also a member of the Federalist Society’s Regulatory Transparency Project: State and Local Working Group.
Prior to joining the Goldwater Institute, Jon served on active duty in the U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps. While on active duty, Jon represented hundreds of clients, litigated dozens of court-martial cases, and advised commanders on a vast array of legal issues.
He previously clerked for Sen. Jon Kyl on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, worked for the Rules Committee in the Arizona State Senate, and clerked in the Office of Counsel to the President at the White House. Jon received his B.A. from Boston College, where he graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He earned his J.D. from the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law.
Jon served as a presidentially appointed Panel Member on the Federal Service Impasses Panel. He is an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve and an Adjunct Professor at Arizona State University School of Law. Jon is a native of Phoenix.
Judge, Florida First District Court of Appeal
Rachel Nordby was appointed to the First District Court of Appeal on October 16, 2019 by Governor Ron DeSantis; she took office on October 23, 2019.
Before her appointment to the bench, Judge Nordby was a partner in the Tallahassee office of Shutts & Bowen LLP and served as Vice-Chair of the firm’s Appellate Practice Group. Before joining Shutts & Bowen, Judge Nordby served as the Senior Deputy Solicitor General for Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi. In this role, she represented the State, its agencies, and public officials in cases involving constitutional challenges and issues of statewide impact.
Before joining the Office of the Attorney General, Judge Nordby clerked for Judge Bradford L. Thomas on Florida’s First District Court of Appeal. Judge Nordby is a 2008 graduate of the Florida State University College of Law, where she served as Editor-in-Chief of The Florida State University Law Review and interned in the chambers of Florida Supreme Court Justice Harry Lee Anstead. She earned her undergraduate degree in Classical Studies, summa cum laude, from the University of Florida.
Professor, School of Civic Leadership, University of Texas, Austin
Yonatan Green, an Israeli-American attorney, is a Professor at the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas, Austin, where he also serves as Director of The Ackerman Program on Jewish and Western Civilization. He is the author of the acclaimed book Rogue Justice: The Rise of Judicial Supremacy in Israel (Academica Press, 2025). He was previously a Fellow at the Georgetown University Center for the Constitution. Yonatan is co-founder and former Executive Director of the Jerusalem-based Israel Law & Liberty Forum, a project of the Tikvah Fund inspired by the Federalist Society. He holds a degree in Law and Communications from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
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.
Attorney General of Utah
Attorney General Derek Brown discovered his passion for public service early in his career. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from Brigham Young University, complemented by minors in business administration and music. Afterward, he accepted an offer to attend law school. However, he and his wife, Emilie, embarked on a transformative journey by deferring for a year to travel. Upon their return, Derek embraced opportunities as an intern at the Utah Legislature and at the Office of the Utah Attorney General under Jan Graham. Importantly this laid the groundwork for a meaningful career dedicated to serving others.
Attorney General Brown’s journey embodies determination and excellence. As editor-in-chief of the Pepperdine Law Review at Pepperdine Law School, he laid the foundation for a remarkable career. Then, graduating in 2000, he honed his skills by clerking for Ruggero Aldisert, the esteemed former chief judge of the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals. His passion for justice continued while he practiced litigation and appellate law with Mayer Brown. Meanwhile, he continued to forge a path dedicated to making a difference.
In 2002, Mike Lee, who would later become a senator from Utah, recognized Attorney General Brown’s potential. Sen. Lee then recruited him to practice constitutional and appellate law at Sidley Austin, where he flourished until 2004. After this pivotal period, Attorney General Brown served as legal counsel to Senator Bob Bennett from 2004 to 2006. And then he served as counsel to Senator Orrin Hatch from 2006 to 2007, contributing his expertise to the nation’s governance.
Transitioning back to the private sector, Attorney General Brown embraced the opportunity to teach communications law as an adjunct professor at Brigham Young University, shaping the minds of future leaders. In 2010, he took on the honor of representing House District 49 in the Utah House of Representatives, making a difference in his community.
Legal Director, ACLU of Utah
Jason M. Groth joined the ACLU of Utah in October 2024 as the Legal Director.
Jason received his bachelor’s degrees from the University of Dubuque, his master’s degree in creative writing at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and his law degree from the University of Iowa College of Law where he was awarded the Willard L. Boyd Public Service Distinction with Highest Honors.
Jason began his legal career as a public defender in Colorado, where he represented juveniles and adults in misdemeanor and felony cases. He moved to Utah in 2018 to lead the ACLU’s Campaign for Smart Justice to advocate for statewide criminal legal reform. His advocacy role expanded to litigating civil rights cases as the ACLU of Utah's Deputy Legal Director.
Jason briefly left the ACLU to return to public defense at the Salt Lake Legal Defender Association where he represented indigent clients in serious felony cases while regularly volunteering his time with the S.J. Quinney College of Law Pro Bono Initiative. He then joined the Indigent Appellate Defense Division representing clients in post-conviction relief cases before returning to the ACLU in his current role.
In his spare time, you can find Jason going on hikes with his spouse and dog, playing Magic: the Gathering at a local game store, or smoking a brisket in his backyard.
Associate Professor of Law, J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University
Tyler Lindley joined BYU Law School in 2024 as an Associate Professor of Law. His research centers on the judicial role and the historical evolution of the judiciary in America. He has extensively examined and published on judicial remedies, federal courts, constitutional law, and administrative law. His scholarly contributions have been or will be featured in the Alabama Law Review, BYU Law Review, Georgia Law Review, Virginia Law Review, and Wake Forest Law Review.
Professor Lindley holds a bachelor's degree in economics from Brigham Young University (2018) and a Juris Doctor from The University of Chicago Law School (2021). During his legal studies, he served as a judicial extern for Judge Ryan Nelson on the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Prior to joining the faculty at BYU Law, he clerked for Chief Judge William Pryor on the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and Judge Gregory Katsas on the US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. He also served as a Research Fellow at BYU Law between his clerkships.
Criminal Deputy Attorney General, Utah Attorney General's Office
While in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Utah, Stewart Young served as Senior Litigation Counsel and Training Officer. He also worked in the Financial Fraud Section, the Violent Crime Section, and the Narcotics Section. He has been lead or co-counsel on twenty felony jury trials and 22 appellate briefs. Young recently returned from Amman, Jordan, where he served as a counterterrorism prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice.
Young has investigated and prosecuted public corruption, bribery, mail/wire fraud, Ponzi schemes, criminal tax violations, narcotics trafficking, and continuing criminal enterprise. He has also trained federal prosecutors at the National Advocacy Center and been responsible for large-scale investigations involving multiple defendants relating to complex white-collar and securities violations, narcotics trafficking, and violent street gang-affiliated conspiracies.
Young, a Stanford Law School and Princeton University graduate, started his prosecutorial career as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of California. He spent several years as a tenure-track law professor at the University of Wyoming College of Law, teaching classes on criminal procedure, criminal adjudication, and border crimes. He also clerked at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and for Judge Paul Cassell at the United States District Court for the District of Utah.
Solicitor General, Tennessee Attorney General's Office
Matt Rice serves as the Solicitor General of Tennessee. Before joining the State, Matt worked in private practice at Williams & Connolly LLP. He clerked for Justice Clarence Thomas on the United States Supreme Court as well as Judge Sandra Ikuta on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Before his legal career, Matt played professional baseball in the Tampa Bay Rays organization.
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