Professor of Law, Emory University School of Law
Charles A. Shanor was president of the student government at Rice University and a Rhodes Scholar. After earning both his BA and MA (in jurisprudence) from Oxford University, he received his JD from the University of Virginia.
Before joining the Emory faculty in 1975, he served as a law clerk to Judge Elbert P. Tuttle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and practiced with the Atlanta law firm of Sutherland, Asbill & Brennan. After three years as General Counsel of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in Washington, D.C., he returned to Emory in 1990, where he teaches and writes about the areas of employment discrimination, constitutional law and counterterrorism law.
Professor Shanor is a Fellow of the American College of Labor and Employment Lawyers and was Secretary of the American Bar Association Labor and Employment Section in 2008.
Professor Shanor served in a part-time of counsel position in the Washington, D.C. and Atlanta offices of Paul, Hastings, Janofsky and Walker from 1990-1997. He continues to do occasional consulting, expert witness and appellate work on employment discrimination and constitutional law matters.
*Russell W. Hasan is a New York attorney. He is a graduate of Vassar College and an Honors graduate of the University of Connecticut School of Law. He writes for Liberty Magazine and also maintains a website of libertarian informationalresources. He welcomes emails at russhasan@gmail.com and he tweets at@RussHasan
Distinguished University Professor, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University
University Professor Nelson Lund is the author of Rousseau’s Rejuvenation of Political Philosophy: A New Introduction. He has also written widely in the field of constitutional law, including articles on constitutional interpretation, federalism, separation of powers, the Second Amendment, the Commerce Clause, the Speech or Debate Clause, the Equal Protection Clause, and the Uniformity Clause. In addition, he has published articles in the fields of employment discrimination and civil rights, the legal regulation of medical ethics, and the application of economic analysis to legal institutions and legal ethics.
Professor Lund graduated from St. John's College in Annapolis, Maryland, after which he received an MA in philosophy from the Catholic University of America and a PhD in political science from Harvard University. He left the faculty of the University of Chicago to attend its law school, where he served as executive editor of the University of Chicago Law Review and chapter chairman of the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies. After law school, he held positions at the United States Department of Justice in the Office of the Solicitor General and the Office of Legal Counsel. He also served as a law clerk to the Honorable Patrick E. Higginbotham of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and to the Honorable Sandra Day O'Connor of the United States Supreme Court. Following his clerkship with Justice O'Connor, Professor Lund served in the White House as associate counsel to the president from 1989 to 1992.
Since joining the faculty at George Mason University's Antonin Scalia Law School, Professor Lund has taught Constitutional Law, Legislation, Federal Election Law, Employment Discrimination, State and Local Government, and seminars on the Second Amendment and on a variety of topics in Jurisprudence.
Professor of Law, Quinnipiac University School of Law
Stephen G. Gilles joined the Quinnipiac School of Law faculty in 1995. He teaches courses in tort, insurance, administrative, and advanced constitutional law and in law and economics. His research interests include tort law, especially negligence and strict liability, and constitutional law, especially parental and abortion rights. His recent publications include “The Judgment-Proof Society,” in the Washington & Lee Law Review and “Parental (and Grandparental) Rights after Troxel v Granville” in the Supreme Court Economic Review. Before joining the School of Law, he clerked for Judge Robert Bork and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, practiced as an appellate litigator, and taught at the University of Chicago Law School. He is married and has six children.
Professor of Law, University of San Diego School of Law (Retired)
Gail Heriot is a recently retired law professor from the University of San Diego. She also served as a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights from 2007 to 2025. She is also the chairman of the board of the American Civil Rights Project and the chair emerita of the Civil Rights practice group at the Federalist Society for Law & Public Policy.
Professor Heriot is a prolific writer in the area of civil rights. She is the author of many law review articles. She is also the editor (along with Maimon Schwarzschild) of the 2021 anthology, A Dubious Expediency: How Race Preferences Damage Higher Education. Her upcoming book is entitled, Why We Walk on Eggshell: How Our Civil Rights Laws Helped Bring About the Woke Era—And the Trump Era, Too.
Her writings for a general audience have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the San Diego Union-Tribune, the National Review and many other newspapers and magazines.
In 1996, she co-chaired the successful “Yes on Proposition 209” campaign, which amended the California Constitution to prohibit state-sponsored discrimination or preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin. In 2020, she co-chaired the “No on Proposition 16” campaign, which successfully prevented Proposition 209’s repeal.
Partner, Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP
Peter focuses his legal practice on representing management in employment-related litigation and in contract negotiations, NLRB proceedings, EEO matters and arbitration.
Peter Kirsanow is a partner with Benesch’s Labor & Employment Practice Group. He returned to Benesch in January 2008 after serving as a presidential appointee to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) in Washington D.C. for two years. While serving on the NLRB, he was involved with significant decisions including Oakwood Healthcare, Inc., Dana/Metaldyne and Oil Capital Sheet Metal, Inc. In addition, Peter testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on the nominations of John Roberts, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court. He also continues to testify before and advise members of the U.S. Congress on employment law matters, most recently on November 18 before the House Subcommittee on Investigations and Oversight regarding disparate impact theory.
Peter was recently reappointed by the Majority Leader of the House of Representatives to his fourth consecutive six-year term on the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. This is a part-time position which will expire in December 2025.
Recently, Peter and a team of Benesch attorneys served as lead counsel to the National Association of Manufacturers in litigation before the U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Columbia against the NLRB, challenging the Board’s Notice of Employer Rights Posting Rule. The court ruled in favor of Benesch’s client, striking down the NLRB’s Rule in its entirety. This ruling impacts over 6,000,000 employers nationwide which would have been subject to the posting requirement.
Additionally, Peter is past chair of the board of directors of the Center for New Black Leadership and is a member of Benesch’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee. This committee helps ensure that the firm promotes an environment in which differences are respected, employees are treated fairly, and individual skills and talents are valued.
Shareholder, Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart P.C.
Mr. Chapman serves on the Firm’s five-member Board of Directors. He is Board Certified in labor and employment law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and represents employers in all areas of labor and employment law, including discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour, non-competition and non-disclosure covenants, leaves of absence, employment agreements and policies, union campaigns, collective bargaining, unfair labor practices, and workplace safety.
Mr. Chapman has defended clients in over 25 states and the U.S. Virgin Islands, including class and collective actions, and regularly provides counseling to help clients navigate both legal and practical considerations. Representative clients include Dr. Pepper Snapple Group, FedEx Office, Fossil, GameStop, Hertz, Omni Hotels, Raytheon, Texas Instruments, and Valero.
Special Counsel, Hunton & Williams
Mr. Meisburg is a former National Labor Relations Board Member and General Counsel.
Prior to joining Hunton & Williams LLP, Ronald co-chaired the labor-management relations practice at an international law firm. Over the course of his 40-year career, which began with the Office of the Solicitor of the US Department of Labor, Mr. Meisburg has handled matters arising under federal labor and employment law in complex business transactions before federal agencies and courts.
Mr. Meisburg joined the NLRB in 2004, following a recess appointment by President George W. Bush. Two years later, President Bush appointed him to a four-year term as NLRB General Counsel, a position independent from the Board. Serving under the Bush and Obama Administrations as the chief prosecutor under the National Labor Relations Act and chief administrator of the agency’s 32 regional offices, he oversaw a $280 million budget and 1,200 staff.
Ronald has been quoted as a labor law authority by numerous national publications and news organizations, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, SHRM Online, Associated Press, Corporate Counsel Magazine, Bloomberg, Reuters, Employment Law 360 and BNA. He is a frequent speaker at national conferences sponsored by trade associations, professional groups and educational institutions, including the US Chamber of Commerce, numerous elite law schools and universities around the world, the Council on Labor Law Equality, Committee for a Democratic Workplace, Labor and Employment Research Association, Equal Employment Advisory Council, Human Resources Policy Association, Labor Relations Advisory Committee, National Retail Federation, Retail Leaders Industry Association, Energy and Mineral Law Foundation, American Arbitration Association and numerous bar associations. Mr. Meisburg has also been recognized by Legal500 USA.
Mr. Meisburg is admitted to practice in the United States Courts of Appeals for the Second, Third, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Ninth and District of Columbia Circuits, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
Member, NLRB
Bill works with a broad range of clients, including trade associations, hospitals and other health care institutions, school districts, transportation and logistics companies and manufacturing companies.
He is a member of Littler Mendelson's Traditional Labor Practice Group and editor of the firm's traditional labor blog, Labor Relations Counsel. He also authored several amicus curiae briefs on behalf of trade associations in cases challenging state laws that allow labor unions to trespass on the private property of employers, including a landmark case now pending at the California Supreme Court.
Executive Vice President, The Federalist Society
Dean Reuter is Executive Vice President at the Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies. He has served in two federal government agency Offices of the Inspector General, as Counsel to the Inspector General and Deputy Inspector General, responsible for policing the use of federal funds granted and contracted through those agencies. As such, he helped conduct and oversee criminal investigations across the country. He is the principal author of the non-fiction book, The Hidden Nazi: The Untold Story of America's Deal with the Devil, and editor of Liberty’s Nemesis: The Unchecked Expansion of the State and Confronting Terror: 9/11 and the Future of American National Security. He was appointed by the President and served as Vice-Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Corporation for National and Community Service, and recently served as an appointee on the U.S. Commission on Presidential Scholars. He is a graduate of Hood College (BA with Honors) and the University of Maryland School of Law.
Senior Counsel, Vice President of Allied Legal Affairs, Alliance Defending Freedom
Brett Harvey serves as senior counsel and vice president of Allied Legal Affairs with Alliance Defending Freedom.
Since joining ADF in 2000, Harvey has coordinated the efforts of the volunteer network of attorneys who collaborate with ADF. In 2002, his role expanded to direct the grant program. To date, Harvey and his team have awarded approximately $54 million in grant funds to thousands of legal projects and cases, many of which have set national and multinational precedents.
Harvey leads the Allied Legal Affairs team, which is dedicated to creating opportunities for attorneys aligned with the ADF mission to actively engage in the protection and promotion of religious liberty. Harvey and his team focus on recruitment, professional engagement, and integration of allies into ADF’s advocacy efforts, including coordinating amicus efforts at state supreme courts, circuit courts, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Harvey has also litigated in a variety of state and federal courts, focusing on the protection of life and religious freedom. Most notably, he successfully spearheaded a national litigation strategy culminating in Town of Greece v. Galloway, in which the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the freedom of Americans to pray at public meetings.
Harvey earned his J.D. in 1995 from the Walter F. George School of Law at Mercer University in Georgia. He is admitted to the bar in the states of Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, and Virginia. He has also been admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court in Colorado, the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 4th, 6th, 9th, 10th, and 11th Circuits, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Senior Counsel, Alliance Defending Freedom
Joel L. Oster serves as senior legal counsel with Alliance Defending Freedom at its Kansas City Regional Service Center in Kansas, where he plays a significant role in litigation efforts defending church autonomy. Before joining Alliance Defending Freedom in 2004, he earned his J.D. from the University of Kansas School of Law. Oster is admitted to the bar in Kansas, Missouri, Florida, and numerous federal courts, and has practiced law since 1997.
Partner, Kirkland & Ellis LLP
H. Christopher Bartolomucci is a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Chris’ practice focuses on appellate litigation, products liability litigation, and litigation in the higher education space. He presented oral argument in the U.S. Supreme Court in South Carolina v. North Carolina, 558 U.S. 256 (2010) and prevailed in the case. He served as lead trial counsel and presented the closing oral argument before a three-judge federal court in a high profile preclearance action under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. See South Carolina v. United States, 898 F. Supp. 2d 30 (D.D.C. 2012). In 2007, as a short-listed candidate for nomination to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the Virginia State Bar gave Chris its highest rating of “Highly Qualified.”
Chris’ government service includes experience in every branch of the federal government. He served in the White House as associate counsel to President George W. Bush. He also served in the Solicitor General’s Office, as associate special counsel to the U.S. Senate Whitewater Committee, and as counsel to the D.C. Inspector General. He clerked for Judge William L. Garwood of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Austin, Texas.
Senior Attorney, Institute for Justice
Michael Bindas is a senior attorney with the Institute for Justice (IJ) and leads IJ’s educational choice team. In this role, he oversees a talented group of IJ attorneys who help policymakers design constitutionally defensible educational choice programs and who defend educational choice programs in courtrooms nationwide. He joined IJ in 2005.
Michael was part of IJ’s litigation team in Espinoza v. Montana Department of Revenue, in which the U.S. Supreme Court held the exclusion of religious options from Montana’s educational choice program unconstitutional, and he led IJ’s defense of the Choice Scholarship Program for elementary and secondary students in Douglas County, Colorado. He also successfully challenged Washington’s denial of special education services to children in religious schools, as well as the state’s exclusion of sectarian options from its state work study program. Currently, he leads IJ’s team in Carson v. Makin, challenging Maine’s exclusion of religious options from its educational choice program.
Prior to leading IJ’s educational choice team, Michael litigated extensively to secure economic liberty, property rights, and freedom of speech throughout the nation. He was counsel of record at the U.S. Supreme Court for Kimbrough Fine Wine & Spirits in Tennessee Wine and Spirits Retailers Association v. Thomas, a successful challenge to Tennessee’s durational residency requirements for retail liquor licenses. He also led successful challenges to the municipal sign codes of St. Louis, Mo. and Norfolk, Va., after those cities attempted to silence protests of their abusive eminent domain practices.
Prior to joining IJ, Michael spent three years as an attorney with Perkins Coie LLP. He is a former law clerk to Judge Rhesa Hawkins Barksdale of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and served as an engineer officer in the United States Army and Pennsylvania Army National Guard before beginning his legal career.
Michael received his law degree cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 2001, where he served as Articles Editor for the Journal of Constitutional Law and was elected to the Order of the Coif. He received his undergraduate degree from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1995.
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center v. Nassar - Post-Decision SCOTUScast
Charles Shanor
On June 24, 2013, the Supreme Court announced its decision in University of Texas Southwestern...
Winning the Copyright War: Copyright’s Merger Doctrine and Natural Rights Theory as Solutions to the Problem of Reconciling Copyright and Free Speech
Russell Hasan
I. Introduction A. Overview Concerns that the enforcement of copyright law might conflict with First...
Mandatory Liability Insurance for Firearm Owners: Design Choices and Second Amendment Limits
Nelson Lund, Stephen G. Gilles
Some twenty-five years ago, one of us sketched out a rationale for using mandatory liability...
Fisher v. University of Texas - Post-Decision SCOTUScast
Gail L. Heriot, Peter Kirsanow
On June 24, 2013 the Supreme Court announced its decision in Fisher v. University of...
A Conversation With Judge Bill Pryor
Birmingham, AlabamaIdentification Please: State Voter ID Laws and the Voting Rights Act
The Austin Lawyers Chapter
Austin, TXThe NLRB and Class Action Waivers: D.R. Horton v. NLRB - Podcast
Ron Chapman, Ronald E. Meisburg, William J. Emanuel, Dean Reuter
This case involves an epic clash between two federal statutes enacted many decades ago. On...
Oklahoma Supreme Court Strikes Down Informed Consent Law
Christine Kimberly Pratt
On December 4, 2012, in Nova Health Systems v. Pruitt, 2012 OK 103 (Okla. 2012),...
Douglas County’s Choice Scholarship Program: The Policy and the Litigation
Denver, ColoradoWho Said That?: A Simple Question That May Change the Way Courts View Legislative Prayer
Brett Harvey, Joel Oster
Related Opinions & Briefs: • Petition for Writ of Certiorari, Town of Greece v. Galloway:...