Congratulations to my 1L students on their first day of Civil Procedure! Syllabus below, for those who'd like to follow along at home: stevesachs.com/syllabi/civp...

Some professional news, as they say! Honored to be among these new members of the Board of Directors of the Federalist Society. fedsoc.org/commentary/f...

September:

Solar-powered cat recharging

Attention incoming Harvard Law students: consider signing up for my new 1L Reading Group, "Conservative Legal Thought"! Syllabus below, for those interested (or interested in following along at home): stevesachs.com/syllabi/cons...

Available for signup on Friday, my Fall 2025 reading group on Jurisprudence! Here's the syllabus, both as screenshots and link, for those interested (or just following along at home): stevesachs.com/syllabi/juri... 1/

Interesting juxtaposition: www.thetimes.com/world/middle...

Part of my Shabbos reading list (a new habit I’m trying to build). Short and recommended. Adam Kirsch, “On Settler Colonialism: Ideology, Violence, and Justice” www.amazon.com/Settler-Colo...

Here's an updated proposal for federal district-court original jurisdiction over state-diversity suits. (§ 1251(b)(3) allows for original jurisdiction in the SCt, but not in district courts.) Comments welcome!

These historians’ briefs also pose a risk for professional history, because (as advocacy) they are often unrigorous, misleading, and/or one-sided. See eg the characteristically wise Fallon quote in the NYT piece.

An anti-Israel arson attack a few minutes from my childhood home. This is what endless demonization does. www.timesofisrael.com/cars-torched...

Merits of the bill aside, I’ve long thought Congress should criminalize the use of the channels and instrumentalities of interstate commerce to deprive a state body of a quorum. www.nytimes.com/2025/08/03/u...

August:

Worth re-reading: William Tecumseh Sherman to the city council of Atlanta:

Harvard first-years: for a course on a contentious topic that won’t shield you from complexity, try my seminar this fall on “Abortion in Controversy”! stevesachs.com/syllabi/abor...

Worth reading: x.com/spencerguard...

Starting at Harvard College this fall (or know someone who is)? Want to think through hard moral and political issues? Look into my first-year seminar on "Abortion in Controversy," Tuesdays, 3-5 pm stevesachs.com/syllabi/abor...

New Paper with @williambaude.bsky.social, forthcoming in the Yale Journal of Law & the Humanities: "Yes, The Framers Were Originalists" A critical review of Jonathan Gienapp (@jgienapp.bsky.social)'s Against Constitutional Originalism. Comments welcome! papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

Rarely have I known someone so universally beloved by his colleagues, his students, and his community. May his memory be a blessing.

RIP Dick Fallon. A devastating loss professionally and personally.

Happy Fourth! youtu.be/Vmc-pEyUHTs

July:

Congrats to John Goldberg on his appointment as dean of Harvard Law School: news.harvard.edu/gazette/stor...

On the other hand, "wisdom too often never comes, and so one ought not to reject it merely because it comes late"

A guest appearance on @dividedargument.bsky.social , discussing the opinions in Fuld v. PLO!

Flag Day:

June:

Congratulations to my Conflict of Laws students on finishing their semester! Now the rest of you can try out their final exam for yourselves—including the terrifying DROP BEAR: stevesachs.com/Exam_Conflic...

Tomorrow’s front page, 77 years ago:

I'd been critical of Columbia earlier, so it's important to note that they did the right thing yesterday—not letting those who invaded & vandalized the library vanish into obscurity, but requiring ID & arresting for trespass. Next steps: 🧵 1) Prosecution 2) Academic discipline

May:

From my better half Amanda Schwoerke, in this morning’s Crimson: “Harvard’s Breaking With Birzeit Was the Right Move” on Harvard’s ending its partnership with a school where Hamas factions parade with mock weapons and win major student elections 1/

Today at 12:10:

Looking forward to this talk at Columbia Law tomorrow! Based on “GIVE PARENTS THE VOTE,” forthcoming in Notre Dame L. Rev. Come to the talk, or read below if you can’t!

“In every generation…”

April:

Looking forward to this discussion:

I suspect I won't agree with this but it's bound to be thought-provoking and worth a read!

Now out in Harvard J.L. & Pub. Pol'y: "Good and Evil in the American Founding" It's less strictly legal than most things I publish; maybe among the most hot-button; certainly the most personal and heartfelt. (And short!) I'd be honored if you read it. 1/ journals.law.harvard.edu/jlpp/wp-cont...

Now out in Harv JL & Pub Pol'y: "IS AND OUGHT IN CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: A RESPONSE TO JOEL ALICEA" Does originalism need a moral defense? Or is telling the truth enough? If originalism happens to be the law around here, judges & officials should say so. 1/ journals.law.harvard.edu/jlpp/wp-cont...

Now published in the Harvard Law Review: "The Golden Apple in the Silver Frame: A Tribute to Charles Fried" 1/ harvardlawreview.org/wp-content/u...

NOW PUBLISHED: "In Praise of Ignoring Facts," out in the Wm. & Mary Bill of Rts J! A critical review of Jack Balkin's Memory and Authority, it argues that lawyers—whether originalists or not—need a theory of when history matters and why. 1/ wm.billofrightsjournal.org/wp-content/u...

Research Roundup: Each day this workweek I'm posting links to recent papers of mine, some of which I haven't discussed on here before. Day 1: An amicus brief on the Fifth Amendment and Congress's powers over personal jurisdiction, filed in Fuld v. PLO: bsky.app/profile/step...

Happiness is a patch of sunshine

March:

Now published in the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy: "DOBBS AND THE ORIGINALISTS" This paper explains the Dobbs decision, its overturning of Roe, and its use of "history and tradition" on originalist grounds. Many thanks to the JLPP editors! journals.law.harvard.edu/jlpp/wp-cont...