Zionism: An Indigenous People’s Fight for its Ancient Homeland
Judge Altman led us on a journey from 1208 BC (when the Merneptah Stele, the first extra-biblical mention of the People of Israel, was composed) to Israel's current war with Hamas. Along the way, Judge Altman showed that Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel, that Jews have lived in (and often ruled) the land of Israel for thousands of years, and that the State of Israel is a legitimate sovereign over the lands it now governs. Judge Altman also addressed--and refuted--claims that Israel is an apartheid state, that Gaza was in any way occupied by Israel on October 7, and that Jews have obstructed the establishment of a Palestinian state. Finally, Judge Altman explained that Israel's military response to the horrific terror attacks of October 7 was (and remains) proportional under international law.
Featuring:

Hon. Roy K. Altman, U.S District Court for the Southern District of Florida

Perspectives on the Role of the Nation’s Chief Legal Officer
A Conversation with Three U.S. Attorneys General

Featuring:

Hon. John Ashcroft, Former U.S Attorney General (2001-2005)
Hon. William P. Barr, Former U.S Attorney General (1991-1993 and 2019-2020)
Hon. Jeff Sessions, Former U.S Attorney General (2017-2018)
Moderator: Beth Williams, Board Member, U.S. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board; former Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy

Lawmakers and courts have been reforming Florida’s tort and insurance laws for decades. From expansion of insurance bad faith and contraction of comparative fault in the 1990’s, to restrictions on medical malpractice suits in the 2000’s, to changes in tort and insurance litigation in the 2020’s, the legal landscape shifted dramatically. This panel will examine the latest reforms in the context of recent history, and it will debate where Florida policy should go from here.
Featuring:

Kansas R. Gooden, Shareholder & Practice Group Leader, Boyd & Jenerette, PA
Fred Karlinsky, Shareholder and Global Co-chair, Greenberg Traurig
William Large, President, Florida Justice Reform Institute
Hon. Paul Renner, Speaker, Florida House of Representatives
Prof. Jay Tidmarsh, Judge James J. Clynes, Jr. Professor of Law, University of Notre Dame Law School
Moderator: Pat Kilbane, Partner, General Counsel & Wealth Advisor, Ullmann Wealth Partners, President of Jacksonville Lawyers Chapter

The panel will discuss how these decisions are transforming the admissions process in higher education and the impact on the legal profession. Included in the discussion will be the response from academia, the permissible limits of the use of race in admissions after these decisions, and what impact this is expected to have on corporate America and the legal profession.
Featuring:

Prof. Tracey Maclin, Raymond & Miriam Ehrlich Chair in US Constitutional Law , University of Florida Levin College of Law
Cameron Norris, Partner, Consovoy McCarthy PLLC
Devon Westhill, President and General Counsel, Center for Equal Opportunity
Moderator: Hon. Meredith Sasso, Justice, Florida Supreme Court

The state and federal bench has transformed in recent years, with more textualist/originalist judges appointed or elected. These changes are influencing how advocates should prepare to make winning arguments. A panel of jurists and leading litigators will offer their best advice to young advocates in making successful oral arguments and incorporating originalism and textualism into their briefs. They will offer their perspectives on how litigation tactics might change, if at all, at the appellate or trial court levels. They will also discuss why litigators play such a key role in encouraging textualist and originalist decisions.
Featuring:

Whitney Hermandorfer, Director of Strategic Litigation Unit and Assistant Solicitor General, Office of the Tennessee Attorney General
Hon. Bobby Long, Judge, 1st District Court of Appeal, Florida
Hon. Jay Mitchell, Associate Justice, Alabama Supreme Court
Ed Wenger, Partner, Holtzman Vogel Baran Torchinsky & Josefiak PLLC
Moderator: Hon. Kathryn Kimball Mizelle, U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida

The citizen-initiative process allows the People of Florida to propose amendments to the state constitution, subject to Supreme Court review. But what is the appropriate scope of judicial review of such ballot initiatives? Does the single-subject rule enable outcome-driven judicial decision-making? This panel will discuss these questions and others in the context of the Adult Personal Use of Marijuana and the Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion initiatives.
Featuring:

Daniel Bell, Chief Deputy Solicitor General, Office of Florida Attorney General
Anastasia Boden, Director, Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies, Cato Institute
Hon. Alan Lawson, Shareholder, Lawson Huck Gonzalez PLLC
Prof. Jonathan Marshfield, Associate Professor of Law, University of Florida Levin College of Law
Moderator: Hon. Anne-Leigh Gaylord Moe, Judge, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit of Florida

It has been said that American-style split sovereignty provides the people a “double security” for their liberties. And a distinct security too: where the Framers’ primary restraint on the avarice of the United States was the enumeration of its powers, each state is omnipotent and yet typically bound by a thicker conception of the proper ends of government. But these separate sovereigns interact in unique and sometimes puzzling ways that leave the state of the vertical separation of powers in flux. And given that “split[ting] the atom of sovereignty,” as Justice Kennedy characterized it in US Term Limits v. Thornton, is a uniquely American contribution, is it really necessary to secure the people’s liberty?
Featuring

Prof. Maureen Brady, Louis D. Brandeis Professor of Law and Deputy Dean, Harvard Law School
Hon. Sarah K. Campbell, Justice, Tennessee Supreme Court
Hon. James E. Tierney, Lecturer on Law, Harvard Law School and former Attorney General, Maine
Prof. Ernest A. Young, Alston & Bird Distinguished Professor of Law, Duke University School of Law
Moderator: Hon. Stephanos Bibas, Judge, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

Traditionally, education has been seen as instilling the common shared civic values that Americans have held for since the nation’s founding. As the educational establishment has become increasingly more progressive, many states have begun to offer alternatives to traditional public-school education, particularly in the wake of the Covid pandemic when many schools were shut down. This has included laws that allow for educational savings accounts, charter schools, and home-schooling. However, these proposals have met fierce opposition from the educational establishment, legislatures, and education unions. At the heart of this opposition is access to funding and the degree to which parents have the right to make educational decisions for their children. Will education choice laws restore balance to American education? How does this battle affect the trust in America’s educational system? Are there proposals that all sides agree upon that can restore a sense of shared civic values? How do these battles affect local school board races and what does that mean for representative government? Panelists will answer these questions as well as address some of the key educational questions affecting the Western States.
Featuring:

Hon. Clint Bolick Moderator, Justice, Arizona Supreme Court
Cara Fitzpatrick, Story Editor, Chalkbeat National
Tim Keller, Executive Director, The Institute for Justice Arizona Chapter
Erin Valdez, Policy Director, Next Generation Texas

From the 1960s onward, election lawyers on the political left focused on securing and expanding voting access. Lawyers on the political right focused on ensuring the integrity and accuracy of the voting process. Now, most academic literature suggests that there's fairly little disenfranchisement and fairly little voter fraud. Despite this evidence, the voting process has become increasingly controversial in recent years, with increasing attacks on election integrity and voting access. This rhetoric has all led to decreased voter trust in the process. Headed into another presidential election year, panelists will consider whether recent developments in mail-in voting, voter ID, and voter harvesting laws, among other issues, merit the decreased trust voters have in the process and how election lawyers should respond.
Featuring:

Audrey Perry Martin, Partner, Gober Group
Hon. Michael T. Liburdi Moderator, Judge, United States District Court, District of Arizona
Stephen I. Richer, County Recorder, Maricopa County
Bradley Schrager, Attorney, Bravo Schrager LLP

All levels of the judiciary have faced increased attacks on their independence in recent years. Even trial court judges have faced increased scrutiny, particularly those in single-judge districts and those who have granted nationwide injunctions. “Reform” proposals such as adding justices, term limits, ethics codes, abolishing blue slips, and limiting the Court’s jurisdiction have been proposed by critics to limit the power of the courts. However, these proposals are nothing new: in decades past, when the ideological balance of the Court was different, similar proposals were floated by those who sought to limit the role and influence of the courts. What’s changed? What is the role of the organized bar, if any, in defending judicial independence? How, if at all, has the increased politicization of the judicial confirmation process affected judicial independence? What does all of this mean for trust in the judiciary? And are there changes that should be considered that are both constitutional and would receive bipartisan support? Should conservatives be more aggressive in defending attacks against the judiciary? Panelists will discuss these and other questions in considering judicial independence and the people’s trust in the judiciary.
Featuring:

Hon. Carlos T. Bea Moderator, Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Benjamin M. Flowers, Partner, Ashbrook Byrne Kresge LLC; Former Solicitor General, State of Ohio
Prof. Michael D. Ramsey, Hugh and Hazel Darling Foundation, Professor of Law; Director, International & Comparative Law Programs, University of San Diego School of Law
Prof. Eugene Volokh, Gary T. Schwartz Distinguished Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law
Debra Wong Yang, Partner, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP

Join the DC Young Lawyers Chapter and the George Mason Student Chapter for an evening conversation and reception.
Featuring:

Prof. Jennifer Mascott, Assistant Professor of Law and Co-Executive Director, C. Boyden Gray Center for the Study of the Administrative State, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University
Thomas McCarthy, Partner, Consovoy McCarthy PLLC; Adjunct Professor, George Mason University Scalia Law
Prof. Todd Zywicki, George Mason University Foundation Professor of Law, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University

Doors open at 6 with the program to begin promptly at 6:30. A reception will follow.
This event is free to attend.