American Bar Foundation

A new article by ABF Director of Research and Programs Matthew Burnett and Faculty Fellow Rebecca L. Sandefur explores—"the role of access to justice in building and enlivening democracy through a critical mechanism to demonopolize and democratize the law: justice workers."

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Federal court strikes down California ammo background checks, sparking gun safety debate Gun control efforts in California took a big hit on Thursday as the 9th Circuit Court struck down a state law requiring background checks to buy ammunition.

“It really is a peculiar feature that these two federal judges are striking down the will of the people as well as the will of the California legislature,” says ABF Affiliated Research Prof. John Donohue — @cbsnews.com discussing California’s recently struck ammo background check law.

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Bryant Garth Named as ABF Interim Executive Director Ahead of Upcoming Search - ABF American Bar Foundation Names Bryant Garth as Interim Executive Director Ahead of Upcoming Search

The American Bar Foundation has announced the reappointment of ABF Affiliated Research Professor and University of California-Irvine School of Law Distinguished Professor Emeritus Bryant Garth as Interim Executive Director, effective September 2, 2025.

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What It Means to Be a Lawyer When the Rule of Law Is Under Attack Opinion: Former Starbucks Chief Legal Officer Paula Boggs reflects on what it means to be a lawyer and standing up for the rule of law, even if it isn't in a courtroom.

"Like a delicate hand-blown sculpture, “rule of law” is valued for its artistry, but we now know it requires a high level of care and protection if we want it to survive." Former ABF Board Member Paula Boggs writes in a new @bloomberglaw.com article.

Read more:
news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...

William H. Neukom Leaves Enduring Legacy at the ABF - ABF ABF is saddened to share news of the passing of William H. “Bill” Neukom, Philanthropist Fellow, former ABF Board Member, and advocate for the rule of law.

"We’ve lost a lion for justice.”

The American Bar Foundation is deeply saddened to share news of the passing of William H. “Bill” Neukom, esteemed Philanthropist Fellow, former ABF Board Member, and tireless advocate for the rule of law.

www.americanbarfoundation.org/william-h-ne...

The Hyper-Presidency Taking stock of Trump’s radical experiment with executive power.

"Our democratic survival requires that the presidency be brought back under the system of checks and balances that the Founders envisaged. They would ask no less of us." ABF Research Prof. @tomginsburg.bsky.social examines the dangers of “Hyper-Presidency” in a new piece for Persuasion.

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The ABF thanks Mark Suchman for nearly two years of dedicated service and contributions to the organization’s mission. As of July 11, Suchman stepped down from the role of Executive Director and will continue with the ABF as a Research Professor, jointly appointed at @purdueuniversity.bsky.social.

Fellows Spotlight: William G. Paul - ABF William G. Paul (Life Leadership Fellow) was the past Chair of the Fellows, ABF Board Member, and President of the American Bar Association.

In this Fellows Spotlight, Bill Paul reflected on his long commitment to the ABF, where he was also a Life Leadership Fellow since 2017. He spoke with warmth about his work championing justice, as well as about the community of Fellows he deeply admired:
www.americanbarfoundation.org/spotlight/wi...

ABA mourns the death of former president William G. (Bill) Paul CHICAGO, July 1, 2025 — The American Bar Association is saddened at the news of the passing of one of its former presidents, William G. (Bill) Paul, and offers its deepest condolences to his family an...

We are saddened to learn of the passing of Bill Paul, who served w/ distinction as Chair of the Fellows and on our Board of Directors. A former ABA President, Paul left an indelible mark on the ABF through his belief in research to strengthen the legal profession.
www.americanbar.org/news/abanews...

Parental Rights, Free Speech Issues Survive Trans Care Decision Opinion: Southwestern Law's Hila Keren writes that the Supreme Court's Skrmetti decision leaves questions about due process and the First Amendment unanswered.

Former ABF Visiting Scholar @hilakeren.bsky.social argues that the Supreme Court’s US v. Skrmetti ruling leaves "key questions about due process and the First Amendment unanswered."

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news.bloomberglaw.com/us-law-week/...

Judged by an Algorithm: Are judges, juries next to be totally automated? The ABA Journal is read by half of the nation's 1 million lawyers every month. It covers the trends, people and finances of the legal profession from Wall Street to Main Street to Pennsylvania Avenue.

Are judges and juries next to be automated? ABF Research Professor Shari Diamond is featured in a new ABA Journal article exploring the future of AI in the courtroom. Should AI play a role in legal decision-making? Read more:

www.abajournal.com/web/article/...

Opinion | This senator’s comment on Medicaid cuts was brutal but accurate It is hard to articulate a justification for ballooning the federal debt in service of saving fewer lives.

ABF Research Professor Jacob Goldin is featured in the @washingtonpost.com, highlighting findings from his study, Health Insurance and Mortality: Experimental Evidence from Taxpayer Outreach.

📝Study: law.stanford.edu/wp-content/u...

📰Washington Post:

What’s Happening Inside This ICE Facility in Texas Should Shock Your Conscience We know this is the America that some have fought hard to create. Is this the America that we will accept?

Thirty-one men at Bluebonnet Detention Center in Anson, Texas, positioned their bodies in the shape of the letters “SOS." "The SOS is not an isolated event but a symptom of a greater problem."

New from @johnmajoreason.bsky.social the William H. Neukom Fellows Research Chair in Diversity and Law:

It's publication day for Indefensible Spaces: Policing and the Struggle for Housing, available in paper & free .epub! It traces a century of struggle over Los Angeles' periphery, culminating in the use of policing to expel and repress Black tenants. Here's a look at its chapters:

Who Gets to Be an American? Since the earliest days of the Republic, American citizenship has been contested, subject to the anti-democratic impulses of racism, suspicion, and paranoia.

📚 ABF Affiliated Scholar @migrantherstory.bsky.social is featured in the @newyorker.com on the Trump administration’s push to restrict birthright citizenship—placing it in historical context with 19th-century Chinese American experiences.

Read more:
www.newyorker.com/news/the-led...

Discounting Life: Necropolitical Law, Culture, and the Long War on Terror by ABF Research Professor Jothie Rajah (Cambridge University Press), Cambridge Studies in Law and Society series

In Discounting Life, ABF Research Prof. Jothie Rajah takes readers through the unsettling normalization of extrajudicial killings. As a critical reflection on contemporary justice, this is essential reading. Get 20% off with code RAJAH2025. @cambup-law.cambridge.org www.cambridge.org/9781009074650

The ABF Welcomes 2025 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellows - ABF The SURF Program allows students from underrepresented backgrounds to gain a hands-on learning experience with an ABF researcher.

📖 The American Bar Foundation has chosen five outstanding undergraduate students from across the nation to take part in the 2025 Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Program.

Read more about the SURF Program:
www.americanbarfoundation.org/the-abf-welc...

The Justice Worker - The American Scholar Rebecca Sandefur’s mission is to provide help to tens of millions of Americans in solving their legal problems

"Rebecca Sandefur’s mission is to provide help to tens of millions of Americans in solving their legal problems" writes Lincoln Caplan in a new @theamscho.bsky.social article.

Read more about ABF Research Prof. Rebecca Sandefur and her work:
theamericanscholar.org/the-justice-...

Carol A. Heimer, "Governing the Global Clinic: HIV and the Legal Transformation of Medicine" (University of Chicago Press, 2025) by New Books in History

ABF Research Prof. Carol Heimer discusses her new book Governing the Global Clinic in a new @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social interview. Her research draws on years of research in HIV clinics in the United States, Thailand, South Africa, and Uganda.

🎧Listen here: megaphone.link/NBNK7961059866

What Was Said at the TIME Impact Dinner: The Road to Justice Speakers included scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw, former WNBA player Maya Moore, historian Dylan Penningroth, trans activist Raquel Willis, artist Tajh Rust, and #metoo founder Tarana Burke.

TIME's Impact Dinner, "The Road to Justice," held on May 20th in Washington, D.C., featured ABF Affiliated Research Professor Dylan Penningroth—who spoke on the power of family stories and the "urgency of historical truth."

Learn more about the event:
time.com/7286463/time...

Congrats to Valerie P. Hans (@jurygirl.bsky.social) of @cornelllaw.bsky.social for co-winning LSA’s 2025 Harry J. Kalven, Jr. Prize!

View all winners here: bit.ly/LSAAwards2025

Congrats to Robert L. Nelson of Northwestern University and @abfresearch.bsky.social for co-winning LSA’s 2025 Harry J. Kalven, Jr. Prize!

View all winners here: bit.ly/LSAAwards2025

From left to right: Richard Wilson, University of Connecticut School of Law; Jeffrey Omari, Gonzaga University School of Law; Elizabeth Mertz, American Bar Foundation; Pablo Rueda-Saiz, University of Miami School of Law; and Riaz Tejani, University of Redlands

What happens when we study law not as doctrine but as lived experience? At "New Legal Realism at 20" at #LSAChicago2025, ABF alum Jeffrey Omari chaired a lively discussion on how NLR is made for moments like this and explored what we learn by comparing how societies confront similar populist crises.

Congratulations to Robert L. Nelson (MacCrate Research Chair in the Legal Profession) & @jurygirl.bsky.social (Wheeler Committee Chair), corecipients of @lawandsociety.bsky.social's 2025 Harry J. Kalven, Jr. Prize! Honored for a body of work advancing law & society research. 🎉 #LSAChicago2025

Looking forward to raising a glass w/ the LSI community, @abfresearch.bsky.social, and @thelssse.bsky.social! Join us for a rare, in-person symposium w/ no word limits, unlimited coauthors, and refreshments at the 2025 @lawandsociety.bsky.social Annual Mtg. #LSAChicago2025 @cambup-law.cambridge.org

Come one, come all as ABF and @thelssse.bsky.social convene to celebrate our communities and the Golden Anniversary of @lsijournal.bsky.social. RSVP to join us at the @chiarchitecture.bsky.social from 7 to 9 PM on Fri., 5/23: forms.office.com/r/pvq4axwdRe #LSAChicago2025 @lawandsociety.bsky.social

Juries in the Americas: Variation and Change / Conference Organizers: Shari S. Diamond, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law/ABF and Valerie P. Hans, Cornell Law School / Wednesday, May 21, 2025 8:00-5:00 PM CT

Can't wait for #LSAChicago2025? Join ABF and Northwestern Pritzker Law on Wed., 5/21 for a free webinar, Juries in the Americas: Variation and Change, examining how jury systems across the Americas have taken shape and changed over time. #lawandsociety www.americanbarfoundation.org/juries-in-th...

Tuesday, May 20, 2025 - 12:00pm - 1:00pm
Hendrik Hartog will discuss his book Nobody's Boy and His Pals: The Story of Jack Robbins and the Boys' Brotherhood Republic. He will be joined in conversation by Farah Peterson at @seminarycoopbooks.bsky.social.
RSVP Here:
www.semcoop.com/event/hendri...

What's at Stake as Trump's Assault on Birthright Citizenship Heads to the Supreme Court Donald Trump’s executive order to end birthright citizenship heads to the Supreme Court for oral arguments on Thursday. Here’s what’s at stake.

🚨New from @rollingstone.com, by @althea.bsky.social: ABF Research Prof. Christopher W. Schmidt breaks down the Supreme Court’s decision to hear oral arguments over the Trump Admin's order to end birthright citizenship. Read more and find out what it means for the 14th Amendment: ⬇️

ABF Scholars to Present Research at the LSA Annual Meeting - ABF This year’s LSA Annual Meeting in Denver will feature presentation from over 50 ABF Researchers and Program Scholars.

📢 Join us at the @lawandsociety.bsky.social Annual Meeting in Chicago, May 22–25! With over 50 current and former ABF Scholars presenting, this year’s theme—Politics of the Body at the Crossroads—will explore urgent legal & social issues from LGBT equality to global health, policing, and more.