Michael C. Dorf
Encyclopedia
Michael C. Dorf is an American
law professor and a noted U.S. constitutional law scholar. He is currently a Professor of Law at Cornell Law School
. In addition to constitutional law, Professor Dorf has taught courses in civil procedure
and federal courts. He has authored or edited three books, including No Litmus Test: Law Versus Politics in the Twenty-First Century, and Constitutional Law Stories, as well as scores of law review articles about American constitutional law. He is also a columnist for Findlaw.com
and a regular contributor to The American Prospect
. Dorf is a former law clerk
to U.S. Supreme Court
Justice Anthony Kennedy
and Judge Stephen Reinhardt
of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
.
Before joining the Cornell faculty in 2008, he was a professor at Columbia University
School of Law and, before that, at Rutgers University
School of Law in Camden, N.J. He graduated from Harvard College
and Harvard Law School
. While at Harvard as an undergraduate, he was the American Parliamentary Debate Association national champion. Before attending law school, he co-authored several academic articles in physics.
As of January 1, 2008, Professor Dorf is Special Counsel
at the international law firm
Dewey & LeBoeuf
. In the past, he has advised organizations involved in constitutional litigation, and he has authored an amicus brief filed with the United States Supreme Court.
Professor Dorf appears in American news media occasionally as a legal expert, and has been interviewed by and/or quoted in, for example, The New York Times
, CNN
National Public Radio, and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He has also been cited in numerous judicial opinions, including the majority opinion of Justice John Paul Stevens
in the Supreme Court case City of Chicago v. Morales
.
He is a practitioner of blogging, veganism
, and juggling
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
law professor and a noted U.S. constitutional law scholar. He is currently a Professor of Law at Cornell Law School
Cornell Law School
Cornell Law School, located in Ithaca, New York, is a graduate school of Cornell University and one of the five Ivy League law schools. The school confers three law degrees...
. In addition to constitutional law, Professor Dorf has taught courses in civil procedure
Civil procedure
Civil procedure is the body of law that sets out the rules and standards that courts follow when adjudicating civil lawsuits...
and federal courts. He has authored or edited three books, including No Litmus Test: Law Versus Politics in the Twenty-First Century, and Constitutional Law Stories, as well as scores of law review articles about American constitutional law. He is also a columnist for Findlaw.com
FindLaw
FindLaw is a business of Thomson Reuters that provides online legal information and online marketing services for law firms. FindLaw was created by Stacy Stern, Martin Roscheisen and Tim Stanley in 1995, and was acquired by Thomson West in 2001....
and a regular contributor to The American Prospect
The American Prospect
The American Prospect is a monthly American political magazine dedicated to American liberalism. Based in Washington, DC, The American Prospect is a journal "of liberal ideas, committed to a just society, an enriched democracy, and effective liberal politics" which focuses on United States politics...
. Dorf is a former law clerk
Law clerk
A law clerk or a judicial clerk is a person who provides assistance to a judge in researching issues before the court and in writing opinions. Law clerks are not court clerks or courtroom deputies, who are administrative staff for the court. Most law clerks are recent law school graduates who...
to U.S. Supreme Court
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
Justice Anthony Kennedy
Anthony Kennedy
Anthony McLeod Kennedy is an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court, having been appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1988. Since the retirement of Sandra Day O'Connor, Kennedy has often been the swing vote on many of the Court's politically charged 5–4 decisions...
and Judge Stephen Reinhardt
Stephen Reinhardt
Stephen Roy Reinhardt is a circuit judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, with chambers in Los Angeles, California. He was appointed in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter.-Education and practice:...
of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is a U.S. federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* District of Alaska* District of Arizona...
.
Before joining the Cornell faculty in 2008, he was a professor at Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
School of Law and, before that, at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
School of Law in Camden, N.J. He graduated from Harvard College
Harvard College
Harvard College, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is one of two schools within Harvard University granting undergraduate degrees...
and Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School
Harvard Law School is one of the professional graduate schools of Harvard University. Located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, it is the oldest continually-operating law school in the United States and is home to the largest academic law library in the world. The school is routinely ranked by the U.S...
. While at Harvard as an undergraduate, he was the American Parliamentary Debate Association national champion. Before attending law school, he co-authored several academic articles in physics.
As of January 1, 2008, Professor Dorf is Special Counsel
Counsel
A counsel or a counselor gives advice, more particularly in legal matters.-U.K. and Ireland:The legal system in England uses the term counsel as an approximate synonym for a barrister-at-law, and may apply it to mean either a single person who pleads a cause, or collectively, the body of barristers...
at the international law firm
Law firm
A law firm is a business entity formed by one or more lawyers to engage in the practice of law. The primary service rendered by a law firm is to advise clients about their legal rights and responsibilities, and to represent clients in civil or criminal cases, business transactions, and other...
Dewey & LeBoeuf
Dewey & LeBoeuf
Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP is a prominent global white shoe law firm, headquartered in New York City. Originally founded in 1909, the firm currently has over 2400 lawyers spread throughout 26 offices in 15 countries on 4 continents, and is known primarily for its corporate, insurance, litigation, tax and...
. In the past, he has advised organizations involved in constitutional litigation, and he has authored an amicus brief filed with the United States Supreme Court.
Professor Dorf appears in American news media occasionally as a legal expert, and has been interviewed by and/or quoted in, for example, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
National Public Radio, and The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. He has also been cited in numerous judicial opinions, including the majority opinion of Justice John Paul Stevens
John Paul Stevens
John Paul Stevens served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from December 19, 1975 until his retirement on June 29, 2010. At the time of his retirement, he was the oldest member of the Court and the third-longest serving justice in the Court's history...
in the Supreme Court case City of Chicago v. Morales
City of Chicago v. Morales
City of Chicago v. Morales was an important United States Supreme Court case that held that a law cannot be so vague that a person of ordinary intelligence can not figure out what is innocent activity and what is illegal.-Background and facts:...
.
He is a practitioner of blogging, veganism
Veganism
Veganism is the practice of eliminating the use of animal products. Ethical vegans reject the commodity status of animals and the use of animal products for any purpose, while dietary vegans or strict vegetarians eliminate them from their diet only...
, and juggling
Juggling
Juggling is a skill involving moving objects for entertainment or sport. The most recognizable form of juggling is toss juggling, in which the juggler throws objects up to catch and toss up again. This may be one object or many objects, at the same time with one or many hands. Jugglers often refer...
.
Books authored or edited by Michael C. Dorf
- No Litmus Test: Law Versus Politics in the Twenty-First Century
- Constitutional Law Stories
- On Reading the Constitution (with Laurence H. Tribe)
Selected law review articles authored by Michael C. Dorf
- Foreword: Problem-Solving Courts: From Innovation to Institutionalization, 40 American Criminal Law Review 1501 (2003) (co-author Jeffrey A. Fagan).
- The Supreme Court 1997 Term—Foreword: The Limits of Socratic Deliberation, 112 Harvard Law Review 4 (1998).
- A Constitution of Democratic Experimentalism, 98 Columbia Law Review 267 (1998) (co-author Charles F. Sabel).
- Incidental Burdens on Fundamental Rights, 109 Harvard Law Review 1175 (1996).
- Facial Challenges to State and Federal Statutes, 46 Stanford Law Review 236 (1994).