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"Adjournment Sine Die . . ."

"[Benjamin Franklin,] looking towards the Presidents Chair, at the back of which a rising sun happened to be painted, observed to a few members near him, that Painters had found it difficult to distinguish in their art a rising from a setting sun. I have said he, often and often in the course of the Session, and the vicisitudes of my hopes and fears as to its issue, looked at that behind the President without being able to tell whether it was rising or setting: But now at length I have the happiness to know that it is a rising and not a setting Sun.
The Constitution being signed . . . the Convention dissolved itself by an Adjournment sine die."

James Madison, Notes of Debates in the Federal Convention of 1787, September 17, 1787

Archives of Past Events

Spring 2009 Past Events

The Boundaries of Intellectual Property Law

A William and Mary Law Review Symposium
February 6 & 7, 2009

As the scope of intellectual property law continues to expand, courts and scholars are increasingly confronting the question of the law’s proper boundaries. Is it appropriate, for example, for content owners to use copyright law to silence unflattering speech? Are countries’ trademark laws, which have historically been geographically limited, now essentially global trademark laws given the use of marks over the Internet? Is it consistent with the goals of patent law for the U.S. government, through the Patent and Trademark Office, to define the boundaries of what is patentable based on moral or other non-innovation-related criteria? Although such questions have been the topic of debate in the past, there has not yet been an attempt to take a systemic, unifying approach to the question of boundaries in IP law. This symposium will provide the opportunity for participants to do just that, yielding new scholarship that directly addresses the question of the proper goals of IP law and whether the scope of our current system aligns with those goals.

Participants:

Margo Bagley, University of Virginia School of Law
Dan Burk, University of California at Irvine School of Law
Graeme Dinwoodie, Chicago-Kent College of Law
John Duffy, George Washington University Law School
Brett Frischmann, Loyola University Chicago School of Law
Wendy Gordon, Boston University School of Law
Mark Lemley, Stanford Law School
Jessica Litman, University of Michigan Law School
Jason Mazzone, Brooklyn Law School
Mark McKenna, Notre Dame Law School
Michael Meurer, Boston University School of Law
Pam Samuelson, Berkeley Law School
Rebecca Tushnet, Georgetown University Law Center
Jane Winn, University of Washington

Raj Singh Jolly, Sikh Legal Defense Fund

IBRL Student Division Luncheon Lecture Series
February 12, 2009

Mr. Jolly serves as Legal Director for the Sikh Legal Defense Fund (SALDEF). Prior to joining SALDEF, Mr. Jolly was Associate Counsel for a small commercial bank in Miami, Florida. During this period, he also served as a volunteer attorney for SALDEF and provided pro bono assistance to a national advocacy group for abused and neglected children.

Mr. Jolly is the author of The Application of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act to Appearance Regulations that Presumptively Prohibit Observant Sikh Lawyers from Joining the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General Corps, which was published by the Chapman Law Review (11 Chap. L. Rev. 155), and has represented SALDEF in newspapers and on television and radio programs.

Mr. Jolly is an alumnus of the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary. He is a member of The Florida Bar.

Bushrod Moot Court Finals & Presentation of The Silver Tongue Award

Presentation of The Silver Tongue Award for Outstanding Oral Advocacy to Paul Clement; co-sponsored by the IBRL Student Division and the W&M Moot Court Team
February 19, 2009

Each year, the William & Mary Moot Court Team holds a tournament-the Bushrod Tournament-for selection of their next class of members. After three rounds of scored competition to select the team, the eight highest-scoring students enter an additional single-elimination competition. The two winners of this competition have the privilege of making their arguments before a distinguished guest: the recipient of the The Silver Tongue Award. The Award is presented annually by the Student Division of the Institute of Bill of Rights Law to a practitioner known for outstanding oral advocacy.

The 2009 recipient of The Silver Tongue Award is Paul Clement, former Solicitor General under George W. Bush, and now of King & Spalding. Brandon Boxler, '11 won the final moot court argument.

Campaigning in the Courts: The Rise of Election Litigation

A Symposium Co-Sponsored by the IBRL and the Election Law Program
March 20, 2009

On March 20, 2009, the Election Law Program hosted a symposium to examine what went right and what went wrong during the 2008 election season. Speakers included two prominent election attorneys: Robert F. Bauer of Perkins Coie, and Benjamin L. Ginsberg of Patton Bogs LLP. For more information, visit the Election Law Program's News and Activities page.

Daily Life on a Presidential Campaign: W&M Law Students and Their Experiences in the 2008 Campaign

IBRL Student Division Luncheon Lecture Series
March 31, 2009

Did you ever wonder how a presidential campaign works or what it is like to work on a national campaign? A number of W&M Law students played significant roles in the 2008 presidential election, holding various positions with individual candidate's campaigns and state and national political parties.

Please join the Student Division of the IBRL and the Election Law Society for lunch to hear Liz Howard (3L), Alan Kennedy-Shaffer (3L), Brandi Zehr (3L), Aaron Larrimore (2L), and Ali McGuire(2L) discuss their experiences in this historic election.

Fall 2008 Past Events

Crash Course on the Bill of Rights #1: Introduction

September 11, 2008

This year we're trying something new. We're inviting all first-year and second-year students interested in learning more about the Bill of Rights and the Student Division of the Institute of Bill of Rights Law to a series of introductory lectures on the Bill of Rights. The presentations will be made by third-year students. Our first lecture will provide a historical sketch of the Federal Convention of 1787, the ratification debate between the Federalists and Anti-federalists, and the passage of the Amendments known as the Bill of Rights.

Crash Course on the Bill of Rights #2: The First Amendment

September 17, 2008

Join us as we discuss a very complex subject: the First Amendment’s protection of speech, press, association, and religion. Lunch will be provided.

Crash Course on the Bill of Rights #3: The Second and Fourth Amendments

September 24, 2008

Josh Steward and another student will talk about the Supreme Court’s recent interpretation of the Second Amendment, and evaluate where gun rights stand today. They will also discuss the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. Lunch will be provided.

21st Annual Supreme Court Preview

September 26-27, 2008

Visit the Supreme Court Preview page.

5th Annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference

Presentation of the 2008 Brigham-Kanner Prize to Robert C. Ellickson, Yale Law School
Co-sponsored by the William & Mary Property Rights Project, and the Institute of Bill of Rights Law
October 17-18, 2008

Professor Robert C. Ellickson is the 2008 recipient of the Brigham-Kanner Prize. He is the Walter E. Meyer Professor of Property and Urban Law at Yale Law School. Prior to joining the Yale faculty in 1988, he was a member of the law faculties at the University of Southern California and Stanford University.

Professor Ellickson’s books include The Household: Informal Order Around the Hearth (Princeton University Press, 2008), Order Without Law: How Neighbors Settle Disputes (Harvard University Press, 1991, awarded the Order of the Coif Triennial Book Award), Land Use Controls (with Vicki L. Been) (Aspen Law and Business, 3d ed 2005), and Perspectives on Property Law (with Carol M. Rose and Bruce A. Ackerman)(Aspen Law and Business, 3d ed 2002).

He is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and was President of the American Law and Economics Association in 2001.

The Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference and Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize are named in recognition of Toby Prince Brigham and Gideon Kanner for their lifetime contributions to private property rights, their efforts to advance the constitutional protection of property, and their accomplishments in preserving the important role that private property plays in protecting individual and civil rights.

Participants:

Michael M. Berger, Partner, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, Los Angeles, California
Toby Prince Brigham, Founding Partner, Brigham Moore, LLP, Miami, Florida
James W. Ely, Jr., Milton R. Underwood Chair in Free Enterprise, Vanderbilt University
Lee Fennell, Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law School
Nicole Stelle Garnett, Professor of Law, University of Notre Dame Law School
Roderick M. Hills, Jr., Professor of Law, New York University Law School
Gideon Kanner, Counsel, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, Los Angeles, California; Professor of Law, Emeritus, Loyola Law School
The Honorable Maureen O’Connor, Supreme Court of Ohio
Eduardo M. Peñalver, Professor of Law, Cornell University Law School
Carol M. Rose, Lohse Chair in Water and Natural Resources, James E. Rogers College of Law, University of Arizona
Henry E. Smith, Fred A. Johnston Professor of Property and Environmental Law, Yale Law School
Stewart E. Sterk, H. Bert and Ruth Mack Professor of Real Estate Law, Cardozo Law School
The Honorable Wilford Taylor, Jr., 8th Judicial Circuit Court of Virginia

William & Mary Conference Coordinating Committee:

Eric A. Kades, Conference Chairman; Vice Dean, Professor of Law and Director of the Property Rights Project

Lynda L. Butler, Interim Dean and Chancellor Professor of Law
Joseph T. Waldo, Attorney at Law, Waldo & Lyle, Norfolk, Virginia

The Financial Rescue Plan

Distinguished Guest: U.S. Senator Bob Bennett (R-Utah)
A Lecture Co-sponsored by the Student Division of the Institute of Bill of Rights Law, and the J. Reuben Clark Law Society
October 28, 2008

Senator Bennett was the lead Republican negotiator in the Senate during the discussions on the Emergency Economic Stabilization Plan. In this lecture, he will discuss the plan's creation and passage, as well as its short-term and long-term implications.

The Implications of the 2008 Presidential Election

Luncheon Lecture Series; Guest Speaker Professor Larry Evans, College of William & Mary
November 10, 2008

Please join the Student Division of the Institute of Bill of Rights Law on Monday, November 10th during the lunch hour (12:50-1:45) to hear Professor Larry Evans talk about the implications of the 2008 presidential election. He will discuss the potential effects of the new administration on the executive branch, legislation in Congress, and the Supreme Court. In addition, he will present strategies each party may use to position themselves for successfully building a majority in the next election.

Professor Evans is the Newton Family Professor of Government at the College of William and Mary. His scholarly focus is the internal operations of the U.S. Congress, especially committees, procedures, and party leadership. Lunch will be provided.

The National War Powers Commission

Distinguished Guest: W. Taylor Reveley III, President, College of William & Mary
A Lecture Sponsored by the Student Division of the Institute of Bill of Rights Law
November 12, 2008

President Reveley served as co-director of the National War Powers Commission, a bipartisan group headed by former secretaries of state James Baker and Warren Christopher. It was brought together to try to find a practical way of getting the president and congressional leaders to consult meaningfully about war and peace decisions as they are being made, and to encourage Congress as a whole to make its views known about the end result. The commission—a group formed by the Miller Center of Public Affairs at the University of Virginia—released its finding in July.

Speech Out of Doors

Luncheon Lecture Series; Prof. Timothy Zick, William & Mary School of Law, and author of Speech Out of Doors: Preserving First Amendment Liberties in Public Places.
November 18, 2008

Please join the Student Division of the Institute of Bill of Rights Law to hear W&M Law Professor Timothy Zick, an expert on free speech and federalism. He is the author of a new book titled Speech Out of Doors: Preserving First Amendment Liberties in Public Places. Lunch will be provided.

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