Professor @nicolesummers.bsky.social conducts the first empirical study of eviction settlement negotiations and demonstrates that unrepresented tenants have no meaningful influence over settlement terms.

Thrilled to see this in print! So grateful to the many colleagues and friends who provided feedback lawreview.uchicago.edu/print-archiv...

I will never understand how American elites managed to convince themselves that uncivil debate — not fascism, not impunity and not widespread indifference to facts — is the defining problem of our time. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/26/o...

Excellent reporting from the Bangor Daily News and ProPublica on the harms of eviction agreements

Another totally insane thing about all these agreements is they have a section saying, basically, here are all the extra steps the university should take to make sure Jewish students feel comfortable and safe, etc. And then...

"This neighborhood was built on certain principles, and it’s extremely important to maintain those principles and also not say them out loud where they could be used in court."

Now up on SSRN: Settlements of Adhesion in Eviction Court, forthcoming in @uchilrev.bsky.social. I very much welcome any feedback, and I'm extremely grateful to all who've given comments already! papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

An astonishing figure in this piece: Last year, the U.S. budgeted $12.8B for new affordable housing. This country is now poised to spend $45B on immigrant detention centers. That's nearly *four times* as much on cages as on homes—in the middle of a devastating housing and homelessness crisis.

Really enjoyed meeting so many fantastic scholars at the H/Y/S Junior Faculty Forum! Huge highlight was also getting to go back to the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau and see old friends and colleagues, and soak up the warm yellow house energy.

It’s a wrap on the H/Y/S Junior Faculty Forum—such an incredible & enriching experience! Thanks Rebecca Tushnet, Christine Jolls & Norman Spaulding🙏🏻 @ggkrishnamoomoo.bsky.social @shlorr.bsky.social @dandeacon.bsky.social @nicolesummers.bsky.social @johnmeixner.bsky.social @britta-redwood.bsky.social

Either the U.S. government *is* able to exert monetary and diplomatic pressure on El Salvador sufficient to produce Abrego Garcia’s release, or it isn’t. The latter would be either a bald-faced lie or a pretty stunning concession of our national impotence. The Vice President should pick one.

“The federal government is stating ‘we are not making integration a priority,’” said Brandon Weiss, a law professor at American University…

Huge congratulations to @madisoncondon.bsky.social for this extremely well-deserved award! www.ali.org/news/article...

Thanks!!

More details on the erasure of housing research at HUD.

Happy to share that my new article, Settlements of Adhesion in Eviction Court, is forthcoming in The University of Chicago Law Review. I'm very grateful to all who've provided feedback so far!

Went to my son’s preschool class this morning to talk about my job, and I started by asking the kids if anyone has a parent who’s a lawyer. Over half raised their hand. Oh D.C. 🤣

Always a joy to see something you've written in PRINT! If you'd like to give it a read it digitally it is available here: digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wlr/vol99/is... If you'd like an off-print DM me and I'll send you a physical copy. Can't think of a better holiday present for your loved one.

Beautiful office view today

Nothing better than seeing student writing in print. Congrats to my former student, Reuben Siegman, for winning the ABA Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law’s student writing competition! Read his fantastic paper here: americanbar.org/content/dam/...