Religious Lawyering at 20

Building on the seminal work of Tom Shaffer (1981’s On Being a Christian a Lawyer), the late 1990s saw a very creative growth in reflection on how religious values might inform legal education and the practice of law.

In 1997 and 1998, lawyers, judges, law students, and law professors from various religious traditions gathered at Fordham Law School for two interfaith conferences: The Relevance of Religion to a Lawyer’s Work (1997) and Rediscovering Religion in the Lives of Lawyers and Those They Represent (1998).

At about the 20 year mark, we pause to gather insights from personal and institutional journeys thus far—and to look toward the future.

Schedule of Events

Thursday, September 13
Festschrift in honor of Howard Lesnick, Professor Emeritus, University of Pennsylvania Law School, author of “Religion in Legal Thought and Practice,” “Listening for God,” “The Moral Stake in Legal Education,” and numerous other articles and essays that are foundational to the field of religious lawyering.

Afternoon Discussion (4 p.m.): Humanizing Legal Education
The Honorable David Shaheed, retired Superior Court Judge, Associate Professor at IUPUI School of Public and Environmental Affairs and Amy Uelmen, (Lecturer, Georgetown Law), will spearhead a discussion with graduates who benefitted from Howard Lesnick’s work (Georgetown Law alumni Daniel DiRocco, Lindsey Keiser, Patricia Jerjian, James Simmons, David Schwartz)while in law school .

Dinner Panel: In Appreciation of the Work of Howard Lesnick
Deborah J. Cantrell, Professor of Law, University of Colorado Law School
Emily Albrink Hartigan, Professor of Law, St. Mary’s University School of Law
Timothy Floyd, Tommy Malone Distinguished Chair in Trial Advocacy and Director of Experiential Education, Mercer University School of Law
Darryl Trimiew, Visiting Professor of Christian Ethics and Interim Director of Black Church Studies At Candler School of Theology

Friday, September 14, 2018
Morning Session (9 a.m.): Religious Lawyering at Twenty: In Conversation with the Next Generation
David Zeligman, SJD Candidate, Emory Law School
Asifa Quraishi-Landes, Professor of Law, University of Wisconsin Law School, Founding Board Member of the National Association of Muslim Lawyers
Russell G. Pearce, Professor of Law; Edward and Marilyn Bellet Chair in Legal Ethics, Morality, and Religion, Fordham University School of Law
Marcia Pally, Professor of Multilingual Multicultural Studies at New York University and at Fordham University; Guest Professor of Theology at Humboldt University, Berlin
David Opderbeck, Professor of Law and co-director of the Gibbons Institute of Law, Science and Technology, Seton Hall University School of Law
CLE credit available for this session.

Workshops (11 a.m.)
Muslim Perspectives
Jewish Perspectives
Hindu Perspective on Criminal Defense
“Rejoice and Be Glad” for Lawyers: Insights from Pope Francis

Afternoon Session (1:15 p.m.): Religious Lawyering and the Commitment to Justice
Gadeir Abbas, President, National Association of Muslim Lawyers
Doug Ammar, Executive Director, Georgia Justice Project, Atlanta
Mary Novak, Associate Director for Ignatian Formation, Georgetown Law, Chair of the Board for Catholic Mobilizing Network to End the Use of the Death Penalty and Promote Restorative Justice
Gemma Solimene, Clinical Associate Professor of Law, Fordham Law School
Ian Weinstein, Professor of Law, Fordham Law School
CLE credit available for this session.