This blog launched on September 27, 2009, originally at JoshBlogs.wordpress.com. Somehow, I convinced the Federalist Society to designate me as the official live-blogger of the 2009 Federalist Society Lawyer’s Convention. In exchange for the blogging, I managed to snag a free registration–very much appreciated when I was still on a law clerk’s salary. Today FedSoc has a sophisticated social media operation. Back in 2009, they didn’t even have a designated hashtag for the event (I think I was the first person who proposed it in 2010).
It was at this convention that the so-called Mayflower Compact occurred, where Randy Barnett, Todd Gaziano, and others hatched the legal arguments to challenge Obamacare’s individual mandate. As I was witnessing history, I was also recording it with a series of videos and blog posts. My production quality was low, but my potential was high.
Welcome
Welcome and Opening Address, Senator Sessions
Showcase Panel I: Redistribution of Wealth
Thursday, Nov. 12
9:45 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Grand Ballroom
– Prof. Richard A. Epstein, James Parker Hall Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Visiting Professor of Law, New York University Law School
– Mr. Steve Forbes, Chairman and CEO, Forbes Inc. and Editor, Forbes Magazine
– Prof. Jed Rubenfeld, Robert R. Slaughter Professor of Law, Yale Law School
– Mr. Andrew L. Stern, President, Service Employees International Union
– Moderator: Hon. J. Harvie Wilkinson III, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
Litigation: The Future of Federal Pre-Emption
Thursday, Nov. 12
11:30 a.m. – 1:45 p.m.
State Room
– Dr. Michael S. Greve, John G. Searle Scholar, American Enterprise Institute
– Prof. Alan B. Morrison, Lerner Family Associate Dean for Public Interest/Public Service, The George Washington University Law School
– Prof. Catherine M. Sharkey, New York University School of Law
– Hon. Daniel E. Troy, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, GlaxoSmithKline
– Moderator: Hon. William H. Pryor Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
I even managed to interview SCOTUS-short-lister Bill Pryor (even then he was screaming Roll Tide):
Criminal Law: Drug Enforcement Policy
Thursday, Nov. 12
11:30 a.m. – 1:45 p.m.
East Room
– Prof. John S. Baker Jr., Dale E. Bennett Professor of Law, Louisiana State University Law Center
– Prof. Mariano-Florentino “Tino” Cuéllar, Special Assistant to the President for Justice and Regulatory Policy, White House Domestic Policy Council
– Mr. Aryeh Neier, President, Open Society Institute
– Hon. John P. Walters, Executive Vice President, Hudson Institute
– Moderator: Hon. Robert P. Young, Jr., Michigan Supreme Court
Professional Responsibility: The Role of Government Attorneys and the Global War on Terror
Thursday, Nov. 12
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Grand Ballroom
– Mr. Miguel A. Estrada, Partner, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, LLP
– Prof. W. Bradley Wendel, Cornell University Law School
– Moderator: Hon. Diane S. Sykes, U.S. Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit
Intellectual Property: Intellectual Property and Economic Growth
Thursday, Nov. 12
11:30 a.m. – 1:45 p.m.
Chinese Room
– Prof. Richard A. Epstein, James Parker Hall Distinguished Service Professor of Law and Visiting Professor of Law, New York University Law School
– Prof. F. Scott Kieff, The George Washington University Law School
– Prof. Michael J. Meurer, Michaels Faculty Research Scholar, Boston University School of Law
– Mr. Daniel B. Ravicher, President and Executive Director, Public Patent Foundation
– Moderator: Prof. Mark F. Schultz, Associate Professor of Law, Southern Illinois University School of Law
Environmental Law: The Future of Cost-Benefit Analysis in Environmental Policy
Thursday, Nov. 12
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
East and State Rooms
– Hon. Susan E. Dudley, Director, George Washington University Regulatory Studies Center
– Mr. Michael A. Livermore, Executive Director, New York University School of Law Institute for Policy Integrity
– Mr. Daryl L. Joseffer, Partner, King & Spalding
– Ms. Lisa E. Heinzerling, Senior Policy Counsel, Office of the Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
– Moderator: Hon. Stephen F. Williams, U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit
Interview with Roger Pilon
I interviewed Roger, who thought the biggest case of the upcoming term was McDonald v. Chicago. I managed to plug my then-forthcoming article with Ilya Shapiro in the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy.
Only a few months after I graduated from the George Mason School of Law, I managed to interview my former Property Professor about all things, including baseball.
Federalism: Federalism and the Economic Crisis
3:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m. Grand Ballroom
- Dean John C. Eastman, Dean and Donald P. Kennedy Chair in Law, Chapman University School of Law
- Prof. Malcolm M. Feeley, Claire Sanders Clements Dean’s Chair Professor of Law, University of California Berkeley School of Law, Boalt Hall
- Prof. Roderick M. Hills, William T. Comfort, III Professor, New York University School of Law
- Prof. Ilya Somin, George Mason University School of Law
Moderator: Hon. Jeffrey S. Sutton, U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
Civil Rights: Affirmative Action in the Obama Era
Thursday, Nov. 12
3:45 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
East Room and State Room
– Ms. Shirley J. Wilcher, Executive Director, American Association for Affirmative Action
– Prof. Theodore M. Shaw, Professor of Professional Practice, Columbia University School of Law
– Ms. Linda L. Chavez, Chairman, Center for Equal Opportunity
– Hon. Peter N. Kirsanow, Commissioner, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights
– Moderator: Hon. Carlos T. Bea, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit