Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Stephanos Bibas is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Judge Bibas was previously a professor of law and criminology at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. As director of the Penn Law Supreme Court Clinic, he argued six cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and filed briefs in dozens of others. He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Columbia University in 1989 with a B.A. in political theory and from Oxford University in 1991 with a B.A. in jurisprudence. He then earned his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1994.
After graduating from Yale Law, Judge Bibas clerked for Judge Patrick Higginbotham of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court and was a litigation associate at Covington & Burling LLP in Washington, D.C. Thereafter, Judge Bibas served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, where he successfully prosecuted the world’s leading expert in Tiffany stained glass for hiring a grave robber to steal priceless Tiffany windows from cemeteries. Before his tenure at Penn Law, Judge Bibas taught at the University of Chicago Law School and the University of Iowa College of Law and was a research fellow at Yale Law School. He has published two books and seventy scholarly articles.
District Attorney, City of Philadelphia
Lawrence S. Krasner was officially sworn in on January 2, 2018, as the City of Philadelphia’s 26th District Attorney. Before being elected District Attorney, Mr. Krasner served of-counsel at Greenblatt, Pierce, Funt, and Flores, LLC. Larry was born in 1961 in St. Louis, the son of a World War II veteran and author father and evangelist mother. After attending public schools in St. Louis and the Philadelphia area, Larry earned degrees from the University of Chicago and Stanford Law School with the help of student loans and scholarships.
Mr. Krasner attended public school in the St. Louis and Philadelphia areas. He received his undergraduate degree at the University of Chicago in 1983 and his law degree from Stanford Law School in 1987, where he was selected to the Stanford Law Review. After multiple offers of employment in prosecutors’ and public defenders’ offices throughout the country, he worked as a public defender in Philadelphia from ’87 – ’91 and was then promoted to the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Philadelphia (’91- ’93). In 1993 he started his own private practice, specializing in criminal defense and police misconduct matters. He has remained in private practice ever since. During that time, Mr. Krasner has tried thousands of bench and jury trials in criminal and civil court in the Philadelphia area as well as other counties and states.
Throughout his 30 year career, Mr. Krasner has also proudly demonstrated a steadfast commitment to social justice, having defended protesters pro bono who were involved with movements including ACT UP, Black Lives Matter, progressive clergy with POWER, Casino-Free Philadelphia, DACA Dreamers, Decarcerate PA, anti-gun clergy with Heeding God’s Call, anti-poverty and homelessness advocates with Kensington Welfare Rights Union, Occupy Philly and Reclaim Philadelphia, and Grannies for Peace, among many others.
He has resided in Philadelphia for over 30 years with his wife of 28 years. His wife has been a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for 17 years. They have two adult sons.
Walton Hale Hamilton Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Tracey Meares is the Walton Hale Hamilton Professor and a Founding Director of the Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School. Before joining Yale, she was a professor at the University of Chicago Law School from 1995 to 2007. She was the first African American woman granted tenure at both law schools. Meares is a nationally recognized expert on policing in urban communities, who has worked extensively with the federal government, including being a member of President Barack Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. In 2019, Meares was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Partner, King & Spalding LLP
Former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California, a 34-county district with an area that stretches from the Oregon border to Bakersfield, Greg Scott is an experienced trial lawyer who represents major companies facing government investigations and litigation, with a focus in the healthcare, retail, and construction industries. He has extensive knowledge on matters involving consumer protection, construction disputes, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the False Claims Act (FCA).
Greg represents corporations under investigation by state district attorneys concerning potential violations of consumer protection laws, as well as corporations operating senior assisted livingfacilities under investigation by the state attorney general regarding potential violations of elder abuse laws. In addition, he represents construction companies under investigation by state district attorneys when employees are involved in serious accidents at worksites.
A retired Lieutenant Colonel after serving more than 20 years in the California Army National Guard & United States Army Reserve, Greg went on to become a deputy district attorney in Contra Costa County and twice-elected District Attorney of Shasta County. He also served as an Adjunct Professor of National Security Law at the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law following his first term as U.S. Attorney for the E.D. of California. Between his two terms as U.S. Attorney for the E.D. of California, Greg was the vice chair of the white-collar defense and corporate investigations practice at an AmLaw 50 firm.
Sheriff (Ret.); Co-Founder and Principal Consultant, Public Safety Strategies Group LLC
Rich Stanek is co-founder and Principal Consultant with Public Safety Strategies Group, LLC., bringing his wealth of knowledge from 36 years of public safety experience to clients across the country, including organizational leadership, agency management, national law enforcement best practices, crime reduction strategies, public policy advocacy, corporate security, and expert testimony.
Rich served as the 27th Sheriff of Hennepin County, Minnesota for 12 years, with responsibility for the safety and security of 1.2 million residents. He managed over 1100 employees and volunteers, a budget of $125 million, and provided care and custody for inmates in the largest Jail and Sheriff’s Office in the Upper Midwest.
He is the author of numerous publications providing education for residents regarding emerging public safety and justice issues: Mental Illness among Jail inmates, Opioid Abuse and Addiction, the nexus between Mass Shootings and Mental Illness, the Collapse of the 35W Bridge, Intelligence-led Policing, and FirstNet, the dedicated National Public Safety Broadband Network for First Responders.
Rich served two terms on the Board of Directors for FirstNet: its mission is to develop, build and operate the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network that equips first responders. FirstNet operates within the U.S. Department of Commerce with a nonpartisan Congressional authorization and $7 billion appropriation. Rich was first appointed in 2014 and in his second term, Rich served as FirstNet’s Chair of Outreach and Advocacy efforts nationwide.
Rich started his policing career in 1983, with the Cottage Grove Police Department and joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 1986; he rose through the ranks to Captain and led the Criminal Investigations Division (Homicide, Burglary, Robbery, Rape, Gangs & Narcotics). During those years, Rich developed strong relationships with residents, pastors, business owners, community groups and local elected leaders; they developed strategies to fight and lower violent crime in Minneapolis. They worked to elect Rich as Hennepin County Sheriff and he re-prioritized Agency personnel and resources for three proven crime fighting initiatives: a Violent Offender Task Force, Criminal Information Sharing & Analysis Unit (CISA) to serve the Sheriff’s Office and 36 local Police Departments in Hennepin County and 7 Counties regionally; and new Crime Lab technology (DNA testing, firearms testing, and Property Crime initiatives). As a result of his leadership, these efforts, and new partnerships, violent crime in Hennepin County dropped by 38% from 2006-2018.
Prior to serving as Sheriff, Rich was appointed by Governor Tim Pawlenty as the State’s Commissioner of Public Safety, and Director of Homeland Security, overseeing nine State Agencies with over 2200 employees; including the Minnesota State Patrol, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Emergency Management, Office of Justice Programs and State Fire Marshal.
Rich came to the forefront of State leadership when he was appointed Chairman of the State Peace Officer Standards & Training Board (POST) and then elected as a State Legislator; he served for 5 terms while also working as a Minneapolis Police Officer. He chaired the House of Representatives Public Safety Policy & Finance Committees and authored numerous key legislative initiatives, including Minnesota’s entry into the Nation’s Emergency Management Assistance Compact (“EMAC”), and post-9/11 information sharing and communications initiatives to better equip First Responders.
At both the state and national level, Rich has become well-known for his strong and visible advocacy for advancements in law enforcement public policy, technology, education, and best practices, through his elected and appointed leadership roles. As a result, Rich is a much sought-after media spokesperson, faculty presenter and keynote speaker.
During his service as Sheriff, Rich served as President of the Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA), Vice President of the National Sheriffs Associations (NSA); and President of the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association (MSA). He served as a Law Enforcement Senior Advisor to the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), Secretary of Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); He is the Past President of the Leaders in National Counterterrorism (LinCT); and served on the Criminal Intelligence Coordinating Council (CICC) and FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), where he held a top-secret national security clearance. Rich has testified numerous times before Congress regarding community policing strategies, 21st century Policing, countering violent extremism and community engagement.
Rich’s educational background includes an M.A. in Public Administration from Hamline University and a B.A. in Criminal Justice from the University of Minnesota. Additional professional training includes; the Southern Police Institute in Louisville, PERF’s Senior Management Institute for Police at Cambridge University, the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania, FBI National Executive Institute in Virginia and the Leaders in National Counterterrorism Training in Australia and the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA) in Israel.
Rich lives in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and has been married to his wife, Sally for 36 years; they have 2 adult children and a dog named Teddy. Rich is an avid Northwoods outdoorsman; where he enjoys time at his northern Minnesota cabin; hunting, fishing, boating, hiking and snowmobiling.
Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Stephanos Bibas is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Judge Bibas was previously a professor of law and criminology at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. As director of the Penn Law Supreme Court Clinic, he argued six cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and filed briefs in dozens of others. He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Columbia University in 1989 with a B.A. in political theory and from Oxford University in 1991 with a B.A. in jurisprudence. He then earned his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1994.
After graduating from Yale Law, Judge Bibas clerked for Judge Patrick Higginbotham of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court and was a litigation associate at Covington & Burling LLP in Washington, D.C. Thereafter, Judge Bibas served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, where he successfully prosecuted the world’s leading expert in Tiffany stained glass for hiring a grave robber to steal priceless Tiffany windows from cemeteries. Before his tenure at Penn Law, Judge Bibas taught at the University of Chicago Law School and the University of Iowa College of Law and was a research fellow at Yale Law School. He has published two books and seventy scholarly articles.
District Attorney, City of Philadelphia
Lawrence S. Krasner was officially sworn in on January 2, 2018, as the City of Philadelphia’s 26th District Attorney. Before being elected District Attorney, Mr. Krasner served of-counsel at Greenblatt, Pierce, Funt, and Flores, LLC. Larry was born in 1961 in St. Louis, the son of a World War II veteran and author father and evangelist mother. After attending public schools in St. Louis and the Philadelphia area, Larry earned degrees from the University of Chicago and Stanford Law School with the help of student loans and scholarships.
Mr. Krasner attended public school in the St. Louis and Philadelphia areas. He received his undergraduate degree at the University of Chicago in 1983 and his law degree from Stanford Law School in 1987, where he was selected to the Stanford Law Review. After multiple offers of employment in prosecutors’ and public defenders’ offices throughout the country, he worked as a public defender in Philadelphia from ’87 – ’91 and was then promoted to the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Philadelphia (’91- ’93). In 1993 he started his own private practice, specializing in criminal defense and police misconduct matters. He has remained in private practice ever since. During that time, Mr. Krasner has tried thousands of bench and jury trials in criminal and civil court in the Philadelphia area as well as other counties and states.
Throughout his 30 year career, Mr. Krasner has also proudly demonstrated a steadfast commitment to social justice, having defended protesters pro bono who were involved with movements including ACT UP, Black Lives Matter, progressive clergy with POWER, Casino-Free Philadelphia, DACA Dreamers, Decarcerate PA, anti-gun clergy with Heeding God’s Call, anti-poverty and homelessness advocates with Kensington Welfare Rights Union, Occupy Philly and Reclaim Philadelphia, and Grannies for Peace, among many others.
He has resided in Philadelphia for over 30 years with his wife of 28 years. His wife has been a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for 17 years. They have two adult sons.
Walton Hale Hamilton Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Tracey Meares is the Walton Hale Hamilton Professor and a Founding Director of the Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School. Before joining Yale, she was a professor at the University of Chicago Law School from 1995 to 2007. She was the first African American woman granted tenure at both law schools. Meares is a nationally recognized expert on policing in urban communities, who has worked extensively with the federal government, including being a member of President Barack Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. In 2019, Meares was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Partner, King & Spalding LLP
Former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California, a 34-county district with an area that stretches from the Oregon border to Bakersfield, Greg Scott is an experienced trial lawyer who represents major companies facing government investigations and litigation, with a focus in the healthcare, retail, and construction industries. He has extensive knowledge on matters involving consumer protection, construction disputes, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the False Claims Act (FCA).
Greg represents corporations under investigation by state district attorneys concerning potential violations of consumer protection laws, as well as corporations operating senior assisted livingfacilities under investigation by the state attorney general regarding potential violations of elder abuse laws. In addition, he represents construction companies under investigation by state district attorneys when employees are involved in serious accidents at worksites.
A retired Lieutenant Colonel after serving more than 20 years in the California Army National Guard & United States Army Reserve, Greg went on to become a deputy district attorney in Contra Costa County and twice-elected District Attorney of Shasta County. He also served as an Adjunct Professor of National Security Law at the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law following his first term as U.S. Attorney for the E.D. of California. Between his two terms as U.S. Attorney for the E.D. of California, Greg was the vice chair of the white-collar defense and corporate investigations practice at an AmLaw 50 firm.
Sheriff (Ret.); Co-Founder and Principal Consultant, Public Safety Strategies Group LLC
Rich Stanek is co-founder and Principal Consultant with Public Safety Strategies Group, LLC., bringing his wealth of knowledge from 36 years of public safety experience to clients across the country, including organizational leadership, agency management, national law enforcement best practices, crime reduction strategies, public policy advocacy, corporate security, and expert testimony.
Rich served as the 27th Sheriff of Hennepin County, Minnesota for 12 years, with responsibility for the safety and security of 1.2 million residents. He managed over 1100 employees and volunteers, a budget of $125 million, and provided care and custody for inmates in the largest Jail and Sheriff’s Office in the Upper Midwest.
He is the author of numerous publications providing education for residents regarding emerging public safety and justice issues: Mental Illness among Jail inmates, Opioid Abuse and Addiction, the nexus between Mass Shootings and Mental Illness, the Collapse of the 35W Bridge, Intelligence-led Policing, and FirstNet, the dedicated National Public Safety Broadband Network for First Responders.
Rich served two terms on the Board of Directors for FirstNet: its mission is to develop, build and operate the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network that equips first responders. FirstNet operates within the U.S. Department of Commerce with a nonpartisan Congressional authorization and $7 billion appropriation. Rich was first appointed in 2014 and in his second term, Rich served as FirstNet’s Chair of Outreach and Advocacy efforts nationwide.
Rich started his policing career in 1983, with the Cottage Grove Police Department and joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 1986; he rose through the ranks to Captain and led the Criminal Investigations Division (Homicide, Burglary, Robbery, Rape, Gangs & Narcotics). During those years, Rich developed strong relationships with residents, pastors, business owners, community groups and local elected leaders; they developed strategies to fight and lower violent crime in Minneapolis. They worked to elect Rich as Hennepin County Sheriff and he re-prioritized Agency personnel and resources for three proven crime fighting initiatives: a Violent Offender Task Force, Criminal Information Sharing & Analysis Unit (CISA) to serve the Sheriff’s Office and 36 local Police Departments in Hennepin County and 7 Counties regionally; and new Crime Lab technology (DNA testing, firearms testing, and Property Crime initiatives). As a result of his leadership, these efforts, and new partnerships, violent crime in Hennepin County dropped by 38% from 2006-2018.
Prior to serving as Sheriff, Rich was appointed by Governor Tim Pawlenty as the State’s Commissioner of Public Safety, and Director of Homeland Security, overseeing nine State Agencies with over 2200 employees; including the Minnesota State Patrol, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Emergency Management, Office of Justice Programs and State Fire Marshal.
Rich came to the forefront of State leadership when he was appointed Chairman of the State Peace Officer Standards & Training Board (POST) and then elected as a State Legislator; he served for 5 terms while also working as a Minneapolis Police Officer. He chaired the House of Representatives Public Safety Policy & Finance Committees and authored numerous key legislative initiatives, including Minnesota’s entry into the Nation’s Emergency Management Assistance Compact (“EMAC”), and post-9/11 information sharing and communications initiatives to better equip First Responders.
At both the state and national level, Rich has become well-known for his strong and visible advocacy for advancements in law enforcement public policy, technology, education, and best practices, through his elected and appointed leadership roles. As a result, Rich is a much sought-after media spokesperson, faculty presenter and keynote speaker.
During his service as Sheriff, Rich served as President of the Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA), Vice President of the National Sheriffs Associations (NSA); and President of the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association (MSA). He served as a Law Enforcement Senior Advisor to the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), Secretary of Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); He is the Past President of the Leaders in National Counterterrorism (LinCT); and served on the Criminal Intelligence Coordinating Council (CICC) and FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), where he held a top-secret national security clearance. Rich has testified numerous times before Congress regarding community policing strategies, 21st century Policing, countering violent extremism and community engagement.
Rich’s educational background includes an M.A. in Public Administration from Hamline University and a B.A. in Criminal Justice from the University of Minnesota. Additional professional training includes; the Southern Police Institute in Louisville, PERF’s Senior Management Institute for Police at Cambridge University, the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania, FBI National Executive Institute in Virginia and the Leaders in National Counterterrorism Training in Australia and the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA) in Israel.
Rich lives in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and has been married to his wife, Sally for 36 years; they have 2 adult children and a dog named Teddy. Rich is an avid Northwoods outdoorsman; where he enjoys time at his northern Minnesota cabin; hunting, fishing, boating, hiking and snowmobiling.
President, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty; Professor of Law and Co-Director of the Center for Religious Liberty, Catholic University; Visiting Professor, Harvard Law School
Mark joined the Becket team in 2011 and splits his time as Associate Professor at The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, and as Visiting Professor at Harvard Law School. Mark teaches constitutional law, religious liberty, torts, and evidence. He has been voted Teacher of the Year three years in a row by the Law School’s Student Bar Association.
Mark has broad experience litigating First Amendment religious exercise and free speech cases. He has represented the winning parties in a variety of Supreme Court First Amendment cases including Hobby Lobby, Little Sisters, Wheaton College, and Holt. In January 2014, Mark argued before the Supreme Court in McCullen v. Coakley, a First Amendment challenge to a Massachusetts speech restriction outside of abortion clinics. The Justices ruled in favor of his clients 9-0. Mark also led a successful eight-year litigation battle against Governor Blagojevich’s effort to force religious pharmacists to distribute the morning-after and week-after pills.
Mark’s academic writing focuses on the First and Fourteenth Amendments, and has appeared in a variety of prestigious journals, including the Harvard Law Review.
Mark is a widely sought after speaker on constitutional issues, particularly concerning abortion and the First Amendment. Professor Rienzi has been invited to discuss these issues at Harvard Law School, Columbia University Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, Boston College Law School, Notre Dame Law School, the National Press Club, and the Capitol. He has been quoted on constitutional law issues on NPR, in the Washington Times, The New York Daily News, and the Chicago Sun-Times. Mark has also been featured on the Kelly File, Fox News Sunday, Your World with Neil Cavuto, Geraldo at Large, CNN Tonight, CNN Live, Andrea Mitchell Reports, and Wall Street Journal Live.
Prior to joining Becket, Mark served as counsel for the litigation department and the intellectual property litigation practice group of WilmerHale LLP. His practice focused on complex civil and appellate litigation with a particular emphasis on intellectual property and First Amendment issues. Prior to joining WilmerHale, he served as law clerk to the Hon. Stephen F. Williams, senior circuit judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Prior to that, Mark was an editor of the Harvard Law Review, and earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School and B.A. from Princeton University, both with honors.
Sterling Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Akhil Reed Amar is Sterling Professor of Law and Political Science at Yale University, where he teaches constitutional law in both Yale College and Yale Law School. After graduating from Yale College, summa cum laude, in 1980 and from Yale Law School in 1984, and clerking for Judge (later Justice) Stephen Breyer, Amar joined the Yale faculty in 1985 at the age of 26. He is Yale’s only living professor to have won the University’s unofficial triple crown — the Sterling Chair for scholarship, the DeVane Medal for teaching, and the Lamar Award for alumni service.
Amar’s work has won awards from both the American Bar Association and the Federalist Society, and he has been cited by Supreme Court justices across the spectrum in more than 50 cases — tops among scholars under age 70. According to both Fred Shapiro’s landmark 2021 study of lifetime scholarly citations and Heinonline’s most recent tabulation of lifetime law-review citations, Amar is America’s second most-cited legal scholar still under age 70. He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has written widely for popular publications, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Time, and The Atlantic. He was an informal consultant to the popular TV show The West Wing and his scholarship has been showcased on many broadcasts, including The Colbert Report, Morning Joe, AC360, Velshi, Fox News @ Night with Shannon Bream, Fareed Zakaria GPS, Erin Burnett Outfront, and Constitution USA with Peter Sagal.
He is the author of more than a hundred law review articles and several books, including The Bill of Rights (1998 — winner of the Yale University Press Governors’ Award), America’s Constitution (2005 — winner of the ABA’s Silver Gavel Award), America’s Unwritten Constitution (2012 — named one of the year’s 100 best nonfiction books by The Washington Post), and The Constitution Today (2016 — named one of the year’s top ten nonfiction books by Time magazine). The first volume of his ambitious trilogy on American constitutional history from the Founding to the present, The Words That Made Us: America’s Constitutional Conversation, 1760-1840, came out in May 2021. The second volume, Born Equal: Remaking America’s Constitution, 1840-1920, will be published in September 2025 and is already available for pre-order. All together, his nonfiction books have won two starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and three starred reviews from Kirkus—tops, it is believed, among legal scholars under age 70. Together with Vikram David Amar (YLS ’88), he has a bi-weekly column on the Supreme Court on the distinguished website SCOTUSblog. Along with Andy Lipka, he co-hosts a popular and free weekly podcast, Amarica’s Constitution, whose listeners are eligible for CLE credit in most American jurisdictions. A wide assortment of his articles and op-eds and video links to many of his public lectures and free online courses may be found at akhilamar.com.
James L. Oberstar Professor of Law and Public Policy, University of St. Thomas School of Law
William Rand Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law, University of North Carolina School of Law
William (Bill) Marshall joined the Carolina Law faculty in 2001 and serves as the William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law. His teaching and research interests include the first amendment, presidential power, election law, federal jurisdiction, federal judicial selection, civil procedure, and media law. Marshall is the author of numerous book chapters, articles, and essays on free speech, separation of powers, the Establishment Clause, and the Free Exercise Clause. His work has appeared in the Harvard Law Review, the Yale Law Journal, the Supreme Court Review, and the University of Chicago Law Review, among others.
Marshall received his law degree from the University of Chicago and his undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Marshall was Deputy Counsel to the President and Deputy Assistant to the President during the Clinton Administration and also served as the Solicitor General for the State of Ohio. He has taught at the Northwestern, Boston University, Vanderbilt, Ohio State, DePaul, Case Western Reserve, William and Mary, and the University Connecticut law schools. Prior to beginning his teaching career, Marshall was a Special Assistant Attorney General for the State of Minnesota.
Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Lawrence VanDyke serves as a circuit judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Prior to that appointment in January 2020, he served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General in the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the United States Department of Justice. Before that, he served consecutively as the Solicitor General of two western states – Nevada and Montana. At the beginning of his legal career, he worked as an attorney in the Appellate and Constitutional Issues practice group at Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, LLP.
Judge VanDyke received his law degree magna cum laude from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor on the Harvard Law Review. He has engineering and theology undergraduate degrees and a masters degree in engineering management. He served as a law clerk to the Honorable Janice Rogers Brown of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Judge VanDyke and his wife Cheryl live in Reno, Nevada, and they have three children.
Vice President and Senior Counsel, The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
Lori Windham is vice president and senior counsel at Becket, where she has represented clients on cutting-edge religious freedom issues since 2005. She has represented parties before the Supreme Court, arguing Becket’s unanimous victory on behalf of foster families in Fulton v. Philadelphia, as well as working with the Becket team on its Supreme Court victories in Hosanna-Tabor, Hobby Lobby, and Little Sisters of the Poor. She won a victory for the world’s largest religious media network in EWTN v. Azar, staving off millions of dollars in government fines under unlawful the HHS mandate. She has won more than a dozen victories in federal appellate courts, including successful defense of cities and school districts sued for accommodating religion, victories for houses of worship facing discrimination in the land use process, and overturning a multimillion-dollar judgment against a major evangelical ministry. She recently won a first-in-the-nation injunction for an adoption agency threatened with shutdown for its religious beliefs.
Recognized in Washington as an expert on religious freedom issues, Lori has testified in Congressional oversight hearings before the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee and before the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. Outside Washington, Lori is sought-after speaker on First Amendment law, including appearances at Yale Law School, Harvard Law School, Stanford Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, Central European University, and many others.
In addition to these venues, Lori also defends her clients in the media, including television appearances on CBS This Morning, Hardball, CNN Tonight, On the Record, America’s Newsroom, Opinion Journal, and many others. Her work has been covered by the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and dozens of other papers. She is also a regular guest on radio, with appearances on shows ranging from Sean Hannity to NPR.
Lori has successfully represented a wide array of clients, including a Santeria priest prohibited from making animal sacrifices, synagogues prohibited from building on their own land, and religious student organizations penalized for their religious speech. One of her most challenging cases involved travel to a remote farming community to ensure that members of the local Amish community were not jailed for using their traditional building methods.
Lori is a graduate of Harvard Law School and earned her B.A. summa cum laude at Abilene Christian University. She has served on the Board of Visitors of Abilene Christian University and received the ACU Young Alumnus of the Year award for her work at Becket. She sits on the board of Dominion Christian School and the visiting committee of the Fund for American Studies’ Summer Law Fellowship.
Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
Stephanos Bibas is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Judge Bibas was previously a professor of law and criminology at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. As director of the Penn Law Supreme Court Clinic, he argued six cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and filed briefs in dozens of others. He graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Columbia University in 1989 with a B.A. in political theory and from Oxford University in 1991 with a B.A. in jurisprudence. He then earned his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1994.
After graduating from Yale Law, Judge Bibas clerked for Judge Patrick Higginbotham of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Justice Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court and was a litigation associate at Covington & Burling LLP in Washington, D.C. Thereafter, Judge Bibas served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York, where he successfully prosecuted the world’s leading expert in Tiffany stained glass for hiring a grave robber to steal priceless Tiffany windows from cemeteries. Before his tenure at Penn Law, Judge Bibas taught at the University of Chicago Law School and the University of Iowa College of Law and was a research fellow at Yale Law School. He has published two books and seventy scholarly articles.
District Attorney, City of Philadelphia
Lawrence S. Krasner was officially sworn in on January 2, 2018, as the City of Philadelphia’s 26th District Attorney. Before being elected District Attorney, Mr. Krasner served of-counsel at Greenblatt, Pierce, Funt, and Flores, LLC. Larry was born in 1961 in St. Louis, the son of a World War II veteran and author father and evangelist mother. After attending public schools in St. Louis and the Philadelphia area, Larry earned degrees from the University of Chicago and Stanford Law School with the help of student loans and scholarships.
Mr. Krasner attended public school in the St. Louis and Philadelphia areas. He received his undergraduate degree at the University of Chicago in 1983 and his law degree from Stanford Law School in 1987, where he was selected to the Stanford Law Review. After multiple offers of employment in prosecutors’ and public defenders’ offices throughout the country, he worked as a public defender in Philadelphia from ’87 – ’91 and was then promoted to the Federal Public Defender’s Office in Philadelphia (’91- ’93). In 1993 he started his own private practice, specializing in criminal defense and police misconduct matters. He has remained in private practice ever since. During that time, Mr. Krasner has tried thousands of bench and jury trials in criminal and civil court in the Philadelphia area as well as other counties and states.
Throughout his 30 year career, Mr. Krasner has also proudly demonstrated a steadfast commitment to social justice, having defended protesters pro bono who were involved with movements including ACT UP, Black Lives Matter, progressive clergy with POWER, Casino-Free Philadelphia, DACA Dreamers, Decarcerate PA, anti-gun clergy with Heeding God’s Call, anti-poverty and homelessness advocates with Kensington Welfare Rights Union, Occupy Philly and Reclaim Philadelphia, and Grannies for Peace, among many others.
He has resided in Philadelphia for over 30 years with his wife of 28 years. His wife has been a judge of the Court of Common Pleas for 17 years. They have two adult sons.
Walton Hale Hamilton Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Tracey Meares is the Walton Hale Hamilton Professor and a Founding Director of the Justice Collaboratory at Yale Law School. Before joining Yale, she was a professor at the University of Chicago Law School from 1995 to 2007. She was the first African American woman granted tenure at both law schools. Meares is a nationally recognized expert on policing in urban communities, who has worked extensively with the federal government, including being a member of President Barack Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing. In 2019, Meares was elected a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Partner, King & Spalding LLP
Former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of California, a 34-county district with an area that stretches from the Oregon border to Bakersfield, Greg Scott is an experienced trial lawyer who represents major companies facing government investigations and litigation, with a focus in the healthcare, retail, and construction industries. He has extensive knowledge on matters involving consumer protection, construction disputes, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) and the False Claims Act (FCA).
Greg represents corporations under investigation by state district attorneys concerning potential violations of consumer protection laws, as well as corporations operating senior assisted livingfacilities under investigation by the state attorney general regarding potential violations of elder abuse laws. In addition, he represents construction companies under investigation by state district attorneys when employees are involved in serious accidents at worksites.
A retired Lieutenant Colonel after serving more than 20 years in the California Army National Guard & United States Army Reserve, Greg went on to become a deputy district attorney in Contra Costa County and twice-elected District Attorney of Shasta County. He also served as an Adjunct Professor of National Security Law at the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law following his first term as U.S. Attorney for the E.D. of California. Between his two terms as U.S. Attorney for the E.D. of California, Greg was the vice chair of the white-collar defense and corporate investigations practice at an AmLaw 50 firm.
Sheriff (Ret.); Co-Founder and Principal Consultant, Public Safety Strategies Group LLC
Rich Stanek is co-founder and Principal Consultant with Public Safety Strategies Group, LLC., bringing his wealth of knowledge from 36 years of public safety experience to clients across the country, including organizational leadership, agency management, national law enforcement best practices, crime reduction strategies, public policy advocacy, corporate security, and expert testimony.
Rich served as the 27th Sheriff of Hennepin County, Minnesota for 12 years, with responsibility for the safety and security of 1.2 million residents. He managed over 1100 employees and volunteers, a budget of $125 million, and provided care and custody for inmates in the largest Jail and Sheriff’s Office in the Upper Midwest.
He is the author of numerous publications providing education for residents regarding emerging public safety and justice issues: Mental Illness among Jail inmates, Opioid Abuse and Addiction, the nexus between Mass Shootings and Mental Illness, the Collapse of the 35W Bridge, Intelligence-led Policing, and FirstNet, the dedicated National Public Safety Broadband Network for First Responders.
Rich served two terms on the Board of Directors for FirstNet: its mission is to develop, build and operate the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network that equips first responders. FirstNet operates within the U.S. Department of Commerce with a nonpartisan Congressional authorization and $7 billion appropriation. Rich was first appointed in 2014 and in his second term, Rich served as FirstNet’s Chair of Outreach and Advocacy efforts nationwide.
Rich started his policing career in 1983, with the Cottage Grove Police Department and joined the Minneapolis Police Department in 1986; he rose through the ranks to Captain and led the Criminal Investigations Division (Homicide, Burglary, Robbery, Rape, Gangs & Narcotics). During those years, Rich developed strong relationships with residents, pastors, business owners, community groups and local elected leaders; they developed strategies to fight and lower violent crime in Minneapolis. They worked to elect Rich as Hennepin County Sheriff and he re-prioritized Agency personnel and resources for three proven crime fighting initiatives: a Violent Offender Task Force, Criminal Information Sharing & Analysis Unit (CISA) to serve the Sheriff’s Office and 36 local Police Departments in Hennepin County and 7 Counties regionally; and new Crime Lab technology (DNA testing, firearms testing, and Property Crime initiatives). As a result of his leadership, these efforts, and new partnerships, violent crime in Hennepin County dropped by 38% from 2006-2018.
Prior to serving as Sheriff, Rich was appointed by Governor Tim Pawlenty as the State’s Commissioner of Public Safety, and Director of Homeland Security, overseeing nine State Agencies with over 2200 employees; including the Minnesota State Patrol, Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, Emergency Management, Office of Justice Programs and State Fire Marshal.
Rich came to the forefront of State leadership when he was appointed Chairman of the State Peace Officer Standards & Training Board (POST) and then elected as a State Legislator; he served for 5 terms while also working as a Minneapolis Police Officer. He chaired the House of Representatives Public Safety Policy & Finance Committees and authored numerous key legislative initiatives, including Minnesota’s entry into the Nation’s Emergency Management Assistance Compact (“EMAC”), and post-9/11 information sharing and communications initiatives to better equip First Responders.
At both the state and national level, Rich has become well-known for his strong and visible advocacy for advancements in law enforcement public policy, technology, education, and best practices, through his elected and appointed leadership roles. As a result, Rich is a much sought-after media spokesperson, faculty presenter and keynote speaker.
During his service as Sheriff, Rich served as President of the Major County Sheriffs of America (MCSA), Vice President of the National Sheriffs Associations (NSA); and President of the Minnesota Sheriff’s Association (MSA). He served as a Law Enforcement Senior Advisor to the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), Secretary of Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); He is the Past President of the Leaders in National Counterterrorism (LinCT); and served on the Criminal Intelligence Coordinating Council (CICC) and FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), where he held a top-secret national security clearance. Rich has testified numerous times before Congress regarding community policing strategies, 21st century Policing, countering violent extremism and community engagement.
Rich’s educational background includes an M.A. in Public Administration from Hamline University and a B.A. in Criminal Justice from the University of Minnesota. Additional professional training includes; the Southern Police Institute in Louisville, PERF’s Senior Management Institute for Police at Cambridge University, the U.S. Army War College in Pennsylvania, FBI National Executive Institute in Virginia and the Leaders in National Counterterrorism Training in Australia and the Jewish Institute for National Security Affairs (JINSA) in Israel.
Rich lives in Maple Grove, Minnesota, and has been married to his wife, Sally for 36 years; they have 2 adult children and a dog named Teddy. Rich is an avid Northwoods outdoorsman; where he enjoys time at his northern Minnesota cabin; hunting, fishing, boating, hiking and snowmobiling.
Partner, Lehotsky Cohn
Mithun Mansinghani is an experienced appellate and trial litigator who has argued cases at all levels in state and federal court, including at the U.S. Supreme Court. His practice focuses on commercial litigation, regulatory issues, and appeals. Mr. Mansinghani has been ranked by Chambers & Partners both in Oklahoma and nationwide for his litigation work. He also has been recognized in Lawdragon’s 500X – The Next Generation list for his appellate expertise and Benchmark Litigation’s 40 and Under list for his commercial litigation.
From 2017 to 2022, Mr. Mansinghani served as Oklahoma Solicitor General, the state’s chief advocate on appellate matters, constitutional issues, and challenges to federal regulation. In that role, he also advised the Attorney General, the Governor, the Legislature, and other state leadership on critical and high-stakes legal issues. Mr. Mansinghani has argued more cases before the Justices of the Oklahoma Supreme Court than any other litigator in the last decade.
Mr. Mansinghani has been nationally recognized for amici briefs he authored at the U.S. Supreme Court. These amici briefs have been cited in Supreme Court opinions, referenced by the Justices at argument, and received a National Association of Attorneys General “Best Brief” award. He also provides commentary on U.S. Supreme Court cases for media outlets including NPR, The New York Times, SCOTUSblog, and Bloomberg.
In addition to appellate litigation, Mr. Mansinghani has first-chaired several bench trials to successful verdicts. He has conducted all stages of district court litigation, and has prevailed in numerous cases on summary judgment and motions to dismiss.
Mr. Mansinghani’s extensive experience includes federal and state constitutional law, litigating federal and state regulation, and work with state attorneys general. He has particular expertise in matters related to energy and the environment. Mr. Mansinghani also has significant experience negotiating with Native American tribes and has litigated some of the nation’s most important federal Indian law cases.
Prior to serving in the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office, Mr. Mansinghani was a litigator with Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher in Washington, D.C. He served as a law clerk to the Hon. Jerry E. Smith on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Mr. Mansinghani graduated with honors from Harvard Law School, where he was as an editor of The Harvard Law Review.
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.
Criminal Justice 2021 and The Rule of Law
Stephanos Bibas, Lawrence S. Krasner, Tracey Meares, McGregor W. Scott, Rich Stanek
The 2021 National Lawyers Convention took place November 11-13, 2021 at the Mayflower Hotel in...
Criminal Justice 2021 and The Rule of Law
Stephanos Bibas, Lawrence S. Krasner, Tracey Meares, McGregor W. Scott, Rich Stanek
The 2021 National Lawyers Convention took place November 11-13, 2021 at the Mayflower Hotel in...
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