Chris Hampson

A new reading of Sherman’s march shows how enslaved people sought to free themselves A recent book focuses on the experience of those who used the event as an emancipatory movement

Parten is a historian to watch!

www.theguardian.com/news/2025/au...

Bad Boys of Bankruptcy: S2E8: The Pirates of the Penitentiary Podcast Episode · To the Extent That... · 08/05/2025 · 37m

This was fun! Mac Verstandig and I talk with U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Elizabeth Gunn about some of the longest contempt cases in U.S. history, featuring sunken treasure and foreign self-settled trusts.

Many thanks to the great editors at CLR Online and the reviewers who gave us great feedback on a quick turnaround. [fin]

We conclude: "With litigation pending and the deals in doubt, the call for courage is not over. ... [W]ith each new set of choices, it is no less vital for the legal profession to meet the moment with clarity and conviction." [4/5]

We also point out that the gravest threat isn't the direct attack on law firms that Donald Trump doesn't like or the commitment to adjust pro bono programs, but a deep undermining of the independence of the private bar. [3/5]

We chronicle what's happened (as best as we can from public information) and push back on some easy narratives of courage and complicity. We underscore that a significant chunk of the legal profession has remained silent in the face of unprecedented attacks. [2/5]

Ethics & Independence In Trump’s War on Big Law — California Law Review In his second term, President Donald Trump has launched an unprecedented assault on the nation’s largest law firms. Through a series of executive orders and highly unusual EEOC (Equal Employment Oppor...

🚨🪶⚖️ @elisebmaizel.bsky.social and I just came out with a new essay on Trump's assault on Big Law. Available in the California Law Review Online here: www.californialawreview.org/online/trump... [1/5]

You can read my essay here if you are curious about where Florida is and where the nation might go: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.....

Inclusion Overcomes Intimidation: Toward Identity Safety Download Citation | Inclusion Overcomes Intimidation: Toward Identity Safety | In Florida, an Anit-Woke statute encourages college and university students to secretly record faculty and other students...

Professor Robertson at FIU just referred to me (alongside others) as a "first-responder scholar" for my little essay on anti-CRT laws in Florida😊 Great piece on cues and inclusivity: www.researchgate.net/publication/...

Judge Fagone (Bankr. D. Me.) and Eric Brunstad Jr. spoke on Appellate Trends at the ABI Conference at Bretton Woods last week. I got to sit amidst the stars and say a few words about discharge exceptions and solvent debtors. High-octane stuff for 8am!

I took Fed Courts from Richard Fallon and was an RA and TA for his undergrad Con Law class. He was impeccably thoughtful about scholarship and teaching, and I learned a ton. He will be fondly remembered and deeply missed.

(Attenuating) the Taint of Poverty: How Fourteenth Amendment Jurisprudence and the Attenuated Doctrine Lead to Lesser Fourth Amendment Rights for the Poor - Harvard Law Review Then consequently, those must be bad Laws, which authorize the Imprisoning [of] any Man for Debt, who does honestly give up to his Creditors...

Excellent student Note in the @HarvLRev, building on bans on debtors' prisons and on punishment for poverty in 14A, to draw key 4A implications. Ability-to-pay should be assessed before warrant issues. harvardlawreview.org/print/vol-13...

If the Big Beautiful Bill passes, ICE will have billions more to play with. That means more checkpoints, detention centers, arrests of hardworking, taxpaying, peaceful people -- and broken families [2/2]

65 Percent of People Taken by ICE Had No Convictions, 93 Percent No Violent Convictions ICE’s deportation agenda is not what is being advertised to the American public. ICE is not interested in prioritizing public safety, yet it constantly pretends that anyone who objects to its tactics ...

Key analysis by Cato. Trump set a goal of 3000 arrests/day and told ICE to seize people wherever (courthouses, schools, churches). So ICE can't focus on violent offenders and is picking up peaceful immigrants to meet its quota. [1/2] www.cato.org/blog/65-peop...

Hot off the presses, Susman Godfrey wins. The law firms win four-for-four in the D.D.C. against the Trump administration.

YouTube video by Hope Church Having a fresh start with Jesus | "Once in a Lifetime" Message -- 5.25.25

On this Juneteenth, I thought I'd share this sermon I gave at Hope Church (RI) as part of their Jubilee celebration. I don't preach very often, but when I do, I try to work in some bankruptcy law!

(They did carve out bankruptcy expressly, which I appreciate.) [4/4]

That little bit of ink suggests that courts could NOT consider irreparable harm, likelihood of success on the merits, or whether the litigant could afford to pay costs and damages. Massively damaging effect on access to justice for the poor and oppressed. [3/4]

If adopted, the provision would no longer be retroactive, but it would require litigants to put up security to cover the Federal Government's "costs and damages" under Rule 65(c), and that courts must consider ONLY the "value of the costs and damages sustained," and not any other factor. [2/4]

⚠️ For anyone following the "Big Beautiful Bill," the Judiciary Committee's proposed changes are out. The contempt clause is worse, not better, as many outlets are reporting. [1/4]

www.grassley.senate.gov/imo/media/do...

Note the nominal security to meet the requirements of the “big beautiful bill” that would allow contempt of preliminary injunctions issued with no security.

Budget Bill Injunction Proposal Poses Snag for Bankruptcy Courts A long shot provision in President Donald Trump’s budget bill raises questions about whether proposed court limits would apply to enforcing contempt citations in bankruptcy cases.

The “Big Beautiful Bill” would undermine contempt proceedings. I spoke with Angélica Serrano-Román at Bloomberg Law about whether this could impact bankruptcy cases.

news.bloomberglaw.com/bloomberg-go...

Board of Governors rejects Santa J. Ono as UF president - The Independent Florida Alligator The Florida Board of Governors rejected Santa Ono as UF’s next president in a 10-6 vote.

I'll share without comment.

www.alligator.org/article/2025...

It's publication day! "Bankruptcy Fiduciaries" is out with the #IowaLawReview. Many thanks to all the commentators and editors who vastly improved the article. Take a look if you'd like to dig into whether bankruptcy is all about the bottom line. ilr.law.uiowa.edu/volume-110-i...

It’s amazing how a well-placed colon can change the meaning of a law review title. For example: “Property Rules, Liability Rules, and Inalienability: One View of the Colon”

Mem Op Granting Jenner & Block Mot for SJ | Chris Hampson UPDATE: Jenner & Block wins. So far, every judge to review Trump's EOs against law firms has issued temporary (2) or permanent (2) rulings in the law firms' favor. From the district ju...

Jenner & Block wins against Trump. www.linkedin.com/posts/chrish...

Bankruptcy professor here. Today the federal government starts collecting delinquent student loans again. If you are a borrower and aren’t sure whether you are behind or not, go to studentaid.gov. DO NOT IGNORE THE PROBLEM! The federal government can garnish tax returns and social security payments.

@msmith750's "Missouri's Law of Constitutional Interpretation" is now out in the @UMKCLawReview. I like state constitutions -- that's where we banned debtors' prisons!

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