Faculty in the News
2025
Professor Jeffrey Bellin
February 28 - In an AP story, Professor Jeffrey Bellin comments on the request for a search warrant in the deaths of actor Gene Hackman, his wife, Betsy Arakawa, and their dog, in their Santa Fe, New Mexico, home. "Oscar-winner Gene Hackman, wife Betsy Arakawa and their dog were dead for some time, warrant shows." Read the story.
Professor Kami Chavis
January 13 - Professor Kami Chavis weighs in on concerns about President-elect Trump's choice of attorney general in ALM law.com's "'Not the President's Personal Lawyer': Lawyers Share Concerns Over How AG Pick Bondi’s Loyalism to Trump May Impact DOJ." Read the story. (Requires registration.)
Professor Evan J. Criddle
February 28 - Professor Evan Criddle was a featured guest on National Public Radio's "With Good Reason." In conversation with host Sarah McConnell, Professor Criddle had a wide-ranging conversation (starting at 28:11) touching on public emergencies, including COVID-19, irregular migration, international human rights, and student debt relief. Listen to the conversation.
February 4 - On Wednesday, January 29, Professor Evan Criddle was the featured speaker for an international webinar supported by the American Society of International Law (ASIL) and hosted by faculty at North South University, Bangladesh’s leading law school. Read the story. Watch the webinar.
Professor Neal Devins
April 10 - A Law360 Pulse article, “'Showboating' Or Accessible? Circ. Dissents Up For Debate,” takes a deep dive into recent research by Professors Neal Devins and Allison Orr Larsen, whose paper, “The Judicial Voice on the Courts of Appeals,” articulates a change in the audience for the circuit court judicial voice, and a worry that this change can have destabilizing effects on judicial legitimacy. Read the article.
March 8 – In “Trump-Appointed Judges More Likely to Pen 'Dissentals' Than Colleagues, Study Finds,” The National Law Journal examines a new article, "The Judicial Voice on the Courts of Appeals," forthcoming from Professors Neal Devins and Allison Orr Larsen in the Iowa Law Review. Read the story.
March 28 - Profssor Neal Devins is quoted in a Miami Herald story, "Florida attorney general says he won’t defend post-Parkland gun law. Does he have to?" Read the story.
March 21 - An article in Forbes by Alden Abbott, "Firing Independent Agency Leaders – Good Law, Sound Policy," discusses a paper cowritten by Professor Neal Devins ("The Independant Agency Myth," Cornell Law Journal, 2023). Read more.
February 12 - In a Roll Call news item, "Trump firing lawsuits could lead to more presidential power," Professor Neal Devins comments on legal showdowns over President Donald Trump’s removals at independent agencies and federal workplaces. Read the story.
Professor Adam M. Gershowitz
April 14 - Professor Adam Gershowitz is quoted in “Bootleggers, Cops, and Cars: How Driving Became a Privacy Trap,” a Bloomberg Law story about police using license plate readers and warrantlessly extracting cell phone data from smart cars. Read more.
January 13 - In an op-ed, "Police didn’t need a warrant to search the exploding Tesla Cybertruck’s computer — can they search your Tesla data too?" published in The Hill, Professor Adam Gershowitz examines Tesla computer searches and the Cybertruck explosion outside of Trump Hotel earlier this month. Read the op-ed.
January 6 - In a NewsNation Vargas Reports piece, “Are cars spying on us? Tesla data helped Vegas investigation,” Professor Adam Gershowitz comments (starting at 3:23) on the “double-edged sword” of information that runs from phone to vehicle and the amount of data car companies are collecting on drivers. Watch the video.
January 4 - Professor Adam Gershowitz is quoted in a Washington Post story about the amount of possibly sensitive data captured by today’s vehicles. Read the story.
Professor Iria Giuffrida
April 7 - In a Bloomberg Law story, "AI-Powered Legal Tech Is a High-Stakes Buy. Here’s How to Vet It," Professor Iria Giuffrida comments on how studies into the legal AI market can be limited in their quantitative insight. Read the story.
Professor Allison Orr Larsen
April 10 - A Law360 Pulse article, “'Showboating' Or Accessible? Circ. Dissents Up For Debate,” takes a deep dive into recent research by Professors Neal Devins and Allison Orr Larsen, whose paper, “The Judicial Voice on the Courts of Appeals,” articulates a change in the audience for the circuit court judicial voice, and a worry that this change can have destabilizing effects on judicial legitimacy. Read the article.
March 8 – In “Trump-Appointed Judges More Likely to Pen 'Dissentals' Than Colleagues, Study Finds,” The National Law Journal examines a new article, "The Judicial Voice on the Courts of Appeals," forthcoming from Professors Neal Devins and Allison Orr Larsen in the Iowa Law Review. Read the story.
March 4 - Season two of Senator Sheldon Whitehouse’s “Making the Case" kicks off with the episode, “With Amici Like These.” During the podcast, Professor Allison Orr Larsen and University of Massachusetts Amherst Professor Paul Collins examine how amicus briefs are used to influence judicial decisions. Listen to the podcast.
January 11 - Professor Allison Orr Larsen's latest paper, "History’s Identity Crisis," was labeled “download of the week” by the University of Virginia Law School's Larry Solum in his Legal Theory Blog. Read the blog post.
Professor Daniel Shin
April 4 - Daniel Shin ’19, a cyber security researcher at the Center for Legal & Court Technology at William & Mary Law School, was quoted in AP, New York Times, and Economic Times stories about a pro se individual who attempted to play an AI-generated video of a human avatar reading his statement to the court. Read the AP story. Read the New York Times story. Read the Economic Times story.
Dean A. Benjamin Spencer
January 30 - In a Bloomberg Law op-ed, "Allowing KPMG to Embrace Nonlawyer Ownership Is Long Overdue," Dean and Trustee Professor A. Benjamin Spencer says that embracing nonlawyer ownership has the promise of expanding access to legal services by allowing more entrants into the market. Read the op-ed.
Professor Emeritus Timothy J. Sullivan
March 18 - President Emeritus of William & Mary and former Dean of William & Mary Law School Timothy J. Sullivan commented in a Virginia Gazette/Daily Press article by Wilford Kale that the invocation of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 by President Trump requires a declaration of war before it can be implemented. The article: "A former W&M president says Trump exceeds his authority by ordering 18th century law." Read the article.
Professor Timothy Zick
March 26 - In a New York Times story, "Columbia University Locked Its Campus and Unleashed a Contentious Debate," Anna Kodé quotes Professor Timothy Zick about privatizing or restricting access to formerly public spaces. Read the story.
March 24 - In Ella Lee's "Trump’s executive power flex leaves some legal challengers adrift," published in The Hill, Professor Timothy Zick says that litigating under uncertainty is “extremely challenging.” Read the story.
March 19 - On NPR's All Things Considered, Professor Timothy Zick is quoted about recent Executive Orders targeting law firms. Read the transcript or listen.
March 18 - In his second installment of "Executive Watch," a new bi-monthly feature in "First Amendment News with Ronald Collins," Professor Timothy Zick discusses President Trump’s use of the civil lawsuit against the press, pollsters, and others as a political weapon. Read the second installment.
February 26 - Professor Timothy Zick gave an interview to German Public Radio about the protests beginning to take place in response to the Trump Administration's federal funding and employment policies. His soundbites are in English, but the report, "Trump baut Staat radikal um – Warum bleiben die großen Proteste aus?," is in German. Listen to the interview.
February 12 - In his inaugural installment of "Executive Watch," a new bi-monthly feature in "First Amendment News with Ronald Collins," Professor Timothy Zick provides an introduction to the Trump administration and the First Amendment and lays the groundwork for future installments in the series. Read the opening installment.
January 9 - Professor Timothy Zick discussed the law of public protest and recent campus unrest on The Academic Freedom Podcast. Listen to the podcast.