FedSoc Events The Federalist Society
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The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies is a group of conservatives and libertarians interested in the current state of the legal order. It is founded on the principles that the state exists to preserve freedom, that the separation of governmental powers is central to our Constitution, and that it is emphatically the province and duty of the judiciary to say what the law is, not what it should be. This podcast feed contains audio files of Federalist Society panel discussions, debates, addresses, and other events related to law and public policy. Additional audio and video can be found at https://fedsoc.org/commentary.
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Luncheon & Remarks
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 -
Banquet Dinner
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 -
Panel IV: Florida’s Tort and Insurance Reform: Past, Present, and Future
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 -
Panel III: Race in Admissions: How SFFA v. Harvard and SFFA v. UNC are Changing Higher Education and the Legal Profession
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 -
Young Lawyers Special Session: Making Winning Arguments
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 -
Panel II: Amending the Florida Constitution: Ballot Initiatives and Judicial Review
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
Customer Reviews
Fantastic .....JW
Auto is uneven at best, some speakers are impossible to hear, please improve.
You need to spend some time discussing
How Fed Soc will respond when the Women’s Health Protection Act passes in early 2025 and the GOP finds itself generationally incapable of regaining a majority to change that. Will it just be a sad little ACA redux afterwards? Interested in hearing your thoughts.
Great stuff
Highly recommended