Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic (EJC) client Iris Seabolt has been fully exonerated more than two decades after she was wrongfully convicted of felony murder in Elkhart, Indiana.

Special Prosecutor Nelson Chipman, the elected prosecutor of Marshall County, moved to dismiss the case against Seabolt, and, on September 2, 2026, Elkhart Superior Court Judge Christopher Spataro granted the motion to dismiss, bringing to an end a case that began more than 25 years ago. Judge Spataro previously vacated Seabolt's conviction in April 2026 after finding that constitutional violations, including the State's failure to disclose critical exculpatory evidence, undermined her conviction.

In 2004, Seabolt was convicted of felony murder in connection with the August 2000 killing of A.J. Williams in Elkhart. After the State presented its case at trial, Seabolt entered a guilty plea and was later sentenced to 45 years in prison. She attempted to withdraw her plea at sentencing, stating that her guilty plea was coerced and maintaining her innocence, but the request was denied.

Seabolt was released on parole in May 2022 after serving nearly 19 years in prison. At 12:01 a.m. on May 5, 2022, EJC students and attorneys greeted Seabolt as she walked free from Madison Correctional Facility.

Although she had regained her freedom from prison, her murder conviction remained in place for nearly four more years as the EJC continued to litigate her claims of innocence. While this litigation continued, EJC students assisted Seabolt with her reentry and reintegration into society.

“All of my success is due to the help and the friendships that have come out of this horrible situation,” said Seabolt.

EJC students and attorneys helped Seabolt secure housing, transportation, and other resources as she adjusted to life outside prison.

“They helped me find resources that I wouldn't have known how to find because I had been away so long,” she said.

Seabolt also recalled the moment she learned that the EJC would take her case after years of trying to find someone who would listen to her claims of innocence.

“Of course I cried because I spent so many years just trying to get somebody to listen,” she said.

The EJC filed Seabolt's petition for post-conviction relief in June 2021. The petition presented newly discovered evidence, including recantations from key witnesses and evidence of gross police and prosecutorial misconduct in the investigation and prosecution of her case.

In April 2026, Judge Spataro granted Seabolt's petition, vacated her conviction, and ordered a new trial. The court found that the State withheld material exculpatory and impeachment evidence, including evidence concerning misconduct by former Elkhart Police Department Detective Stephen Rezutko, who played a significant role in the investigation and development of witness testimony against Seabolt.

According to court pleadings submitted by the EJC, there was no forensic evidence linking Seabolt to the crime, and the State's case relied heavily on jailhouse informants. Evidence uncovered during post-conviction proceedings showed that Rezutko fabricated witness statements, including by sharing details of the crime with informants to shape their statements and testimony. The State also failed to disclose a video-recorded interrogation of Seabolt's co-defendant threatening to have him “strap[ped]” to a “gurney” and executed if he did not cooperate with the prosecution, a video which Rezutko had previously testified did not exist. Finally, the State failed to disclose internal affairs records documenting that Rezutko had paid his informants in homicide cases for sexual acts.

In his order vacating Seabolt's conviction, Judge Spataro wrote, "The State's blatant violation of Seabolt's rights under the Due Process Clause voids her conviction and, therefore, voids her plea."

For Professor Jimmy Gurulé, founder and director of the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic, Seabolt's exoneration underscores several significant issues surrounding her case and other wrongful convictions in Elkhart County.

First, the dismissal fully vindicates Seabolt after more than two decades of maintaining her innocence and nearly 19 years of wrongful incarceration.

“Dozens of law students worked on Iris Seabolt’s case over several years. These students used their legal knowledge and training to correct the miscarriage of justice Iris suffered. These students should be commended for their hard work,” Gurulé stated.

Among those students was Lenora Popken ’20 J.D., now a staff attorney with the EJC, who began working on Seabolt's case during her first year at Notre Dame Law School.

“After nearly 20 years of wrongful imprisonment, the world finally knows what we have always known—that Iris is innocent,” Popken said. “Fighting alongside her since my first year of law school has been the privilege of a lifetime. Iris’s unwavering strength throughout this decades-long legal battle is nothing short of extraordinary. Today is about long-overdue justice for her, and I am deeply honored to stand with her as both her attorney and her friend.”

Second, beyond Seabolt's case, Gurulé is calling for an independent investigation of every post-conviction case involving Rezutko, with a special prosecutor appointed to conduct the investigation, in light of the malfeasance uncovered in Seabolt's case and evidence of misconduct in other wrongful conviction cases in Elkhart County.

Rezutko has been involved in at least four proven wrongful convictions in Elkhart. Internal affairs investigations also documented misconduct during his tenure with the Elkhart Police Department. In Seabolt's case, Judge Spataro found that she had been deprived of evidence that could have been used to challenge both the State's case and Rezutko's credibility.

Finally, Seabolt's case adds to a troubling history of wrongful convictions in Elkhart County. According to the National Registry of Exonerations, Seabolt’s exoneration marks the eighth exoneration in Elkhart County since 1989. There are now more proven wrongful convictions in Elkhart County than any other county in Indiana, including Marion County.

“Elkhart County holds the record of being the exoneration capital of Indiana,” said Gurulé.

Seabolt's exoneration marks the EJC's fifth exoneration, after the exonerations of Reginald "Reggie" Dillard in February 2026, Kara Beaty in April 2025, Anthony Bedolla in August 2024, and Andy Royer in July 2021.

Gurulé praised the EJC team that investigated and litigated Seabolt’s case, which included staff attorney and term teaching professor Kevin Murphy '14 J.D., staff attorney Lenora Popken '20 J.D., executive assistant Anne Peterson ‘92, ‘02 J.D., adjunct professor Elliot Slosar, and at least 11 EJC students since 2021. Exoneration Project investigator Patti Fayed also worked on Seabolt’s case.

“I am so proud of the army of Notre Dame Law School students who fought for justice for Iris over the past several years,” Murphy said. “Their work was in the best tradition of Notre Dame lawyers.”

For Seabolt, her exoneration brings not only the clearing of her name, but gratitude for the people who stood beside her throughout the process.

“I am thankful to God for finally clearing my name and for using the people that He used to do it, because now, I have a whole other family,” Seabolt said.

Since its founding, the EJC has remained committed to criminal justice reform, litigating wrongful conviction cases, and educating the public about miscarriages of justice.

Learn more about the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic at exoneration.nd.edu.

Reflections from Exoneration Justice Clinic Students

Rachel Schneider ‘23 J.D.

"Being there at midnight at a Southern Indiana prison to see Iris released from custody is a memory I will cherish forever. Iris is the most selfless, kind, hilarious, and most deserving woman I’ve met. While the courts cannot give her back the decades Elkhart stole from her, I am so happy that this day has come and I could not be prouder to have had a small role in her case. I carry my memories of Iris and the injustices she’s faced with me every day."

Riley Realing ‘23 J.D.

"Working on Iris's case was one of the most meaningful experiences of my law school career. I will never forget driving down to the Kentucky border the day she was released to pick her up at exactly 12:01 a.m. It was so special to be there and welcome her home."

Iris Seabolt's Current Student Team: Third-year law students Jake Mequet, Anna Capps, and Thatcher Maconga

"It has been a privilege to assist with Iris's representation and to work alongside the EJC attorneys, staff, and students whose dedication and resolve made this result possible. Working on Iris's case has been one of the most fulfilling parts of our law school experience. We are grateful to have played even a small part in the effort to bring Iris the justice she deserves."

“Randy is an outstanding teacher, scholar and administrator whose commitment to academic integrity and student development will serve the University well in this role,” Father Dowd said. “I am grateful to Randy for accepting this appointment and delighted that he will have the opportunity to work alongside Tricia in this period of transition. Tricia’s service in this role over the past 17 years has been exemplary. She has led the Faculty Board with her characteristic wisdom, integrity and dedication, and has also been extraordinarily influential on a national level at a time of dramatic change in college athletics, earning the deep respect both of her colleagues at Notre Dame and her peers at other institutions.”

Pete Bevacqua, vice president and James E. Rohr Director of Athletics, offered similar praise.

“We look forward to working with Randy as we pursue our mission to provide the best student-athlete experience in the country,” Bevacqua said. “Randy’s expertise and leadership make him a valued partner to athletics and a worthy successor to Tricia, who worked tirelessly and consistently to help Notre Dame lead in the college athletics space.”

“Randy is the perfect fit for this role,” Bellia said. “At this time of rapid change in intercollegiate athletics, Randy will ensure that our faculty has a voice in critical decisions and will uphold the University’s uncompromising commitment to the academic, athletic and personal growth of our student-athletes. I look forward to working with him in the months to come.”

A member of the Law School faculty since 2011, Kozel teaches and researches in fields including constitutional law, trademark law and contract law. He spent nine years serving as associate dean of the Law School and directs the Program on Constitutional Structure. He served on the Faculty Board on Athletics from 2019 to 2025, including as chair of its academic integrity subcommittee.

Kozel received his undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his J.D. from Harvard Law School. Before arriving at Notre Dame, he clerked at a federal court of appeals and at the U.S. Supreme Court, worked as a litigator in a law firm, and served as special counsel to the general counsel at General Electric Co.

“I’m honored to serve in this role and grateful to Father Dowd for his trust in me,” Kozel said. “I look forward to working with our outstanding faculty, coaches, athletics staff and University partners to ensure, as Pete Bevacqua recently described it, ‘the holistic success of our students in the classroom, on the field and beyond.’”

He added, “I’m fortunate to benefit from the guidance of Tricia Bellia, whose service as chair has been truly exceptional.”

The Faculty Board on Athletics serves as the principal advisory group to Notre Dame’s president on educational issues related to athletics. The board is composed of 15 members: seven elected from the University’s teaching and research faculty; four appointed by the president (three from the teaching and research faculty and one from the student body); and four ex officio members — the vice president for student affairs, the director of athletics, the director of academic services for student-athletes, and a representative from the president’s office.

The board ensures that the University’s athletics program operates in consonance with Notre Dame’s educational mission, gathers faculty input on critical decisions about Notre Dame’s athletics program, nurtures Notre Dame’s commitment to academic integrity within the athletics program, and promotes student-athletes’ welfare and educational success. Among its activities, the board monitors data on the admission of student-athletes and their academic performance, progress toward degrees and graduation rates. It also assesses the effectiveness of institutional support for student-athletes.

The board’s activities closely match the responsibilities of the NCAA faculty athletics representative, who also is expected to advise the president, to help shape University policies affecting student-athletes and to work with other University leaders to address matters of mutual concern regarding the academic opportunities, challenges and performance of student-athletes. The faculty athletics representative also functions as a principal link between the institution and the NCAA and the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Originally published by Erin Blasko at news.nd.edu on August 27, 2026.

Garnett, who serves on the steering committee for this initiative, joined a diverse group of experts at the consultation, including two United Nations Special Rapporteurs: Farida Saheed, Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, and Alexandra Xanthaki, Special Rapporteur on Cultural Rights. The gathering marked the first in a series of international consultations designed to gather feedback on proposed Guiding Principles on Educational Pluralism before they are finalized.

The proposed principles seek to articulate a shared framework for how governments can support and regulate a diversity of educational options while at the same time guaranteeing all children the right to education.

“By educational pluralism, we mean that the government funds schools and it regulates schools and it operates schools, but it doesn't just exclusively fund the schools that it operates,” Garnett said. “The Principles embrace the plural delivery and public funding of a variety of types of schools, including religious schools and other private schools.”

The questions at the center of the project are increasingly relevant in the United States, Garnett noted, as parental choice programs expand across the country. But they carry particular significance internationally, where private and faith-based schools often play a central role in educating children.

“In many parts of the world, especially in the global South, faith-based schools have long been the primary provider of education ” she said. “If we take away the funding, these schools, which excel the critical task of educating the poorest children, may close. If they do, kids who need education the most will lose a lifeline.”

The consultation in Geneva brought together experts from a range of disciplines and perspectives, including United Nations personnel and scholars working in education and human rights from around the globe. Their varied expertise and regional experiences informed discussions surrounding the proposed principles.

Among the broader questions shaping the conversation are how governments should allocate public educational resources, the extent to which private and faith-based schools should be required to follow the same curriculum and practices as government-operated schools, and how educational systems can preserve meaningful diversity and distinctiveness while ensuring quality and accountability.

For Garnett, one of the most important aspects of the effort is recognizing that educational institutions can serve students because they have distinct missions, including religious missions.

“One reason faith-based schools may be so good at educating disadvantaged children because of their religious identity. They understand that the children entrusted to their care are children of God, and that they therefore have the responsiblity–the duty–of ensuring that the children reach their full potential,” she said. “If we force these schools to conform to the same rules that govern public schools, then it takes away the distinctiveness that animates their purpose.” Garnett remarked, “I want to ensure that faith-based schools have the freedom to be fully themselves,” she said. “And I don't want these schools to go away because the kids are going to lose their opportunity to learn.”

The international dimension of the project also underscores the varying circumstances in which religious and other non-governmental schools operate. While private schools in the United States typically enjoy substantial autonomy and religious liberty, Garnett said that schools in other parts of the world can face more restrictions.

“Making the case for pluralism is very important because some faith-based institutions operate under legal circumstances where their freedom is dramatically constrained,” she said.

Garnett's involvement in the initiative builds on her scholarship and work in education law and policy. She became connected to the project through her international work on Catholic schools and religious liberty as well as collaborations with scholars and education leaders around the world.

Her commitment to the work is informed by the Catholic understanding of the dignity of the human person and preferential option for the poor. Her work on the Guiding Principles, and commitment to educational pluralism more broadly, is motivated by her desire that families, particularly those with limited resources, have meaningful educational opportunities and access to the schools that will serve them best.

In the months ahead, regional consultations on the Guiding Principles will continue across the globe, after which the steering committee and its partners will incorporate feedback and further refine them.

For Garnett, the project represents an opportunity to contribute to a global conversation about how educational systems can better serve children and families while recognizing the important role that diverse communities and institutions play in education.

Notre Dame J.S.D. Candidates Present at the World Congress of Constitutional Law

This summer, Notre Dame Law J.S.D. candidates Felipe Lyon Errázuriz, Ángel Muñoz-Carpintero, and Valentina Salazar presented their work at the 2026 World Congress of Constitutional Law (WCCL) hosted by Externado University in Bogotá, Colombia. The WCCL brings together more than 2,000 academics, legal professionals, and government officials from around the world interested in discussing and analyzing issues related to the theory, philosophy, practical problems, and contemporary challenges of constitutional law and human rights. This event takes place every four years and is partly promoted by the International Association of Constitutional Law (IACL).

Valentina Salazar presented her doctoral research in three different panels related to comparative law and new technologies. First, she shared her paper “From Ally to Enemy in a Click” on the use of artificial intelligence for judicial decision making at the international level in the panel “Rule of law, science, and technology.” She then participated in one of the Max Planck Institute for Public International Law workshops on “Regional comparative law,” showing how her project on a "Theory of Precedent for the Inter-American Court of Human Rights" could contribute to a better understanding of the Americas as a legal community. Finally, she presented her paper on the use of the role of the Colombian Constitutional Court in strengthening judicial reasoning in the panel “Contributions of Latin American constitutionalism to comparative law.”

“Attending and presenting my work at the WCCL was an exceptional opportunity to challenge my assumption with the questions and comments of experienced academics from all around the world," said Salazar. "It was also an amazing space for meaningful connections that I believe will lead to future projects related to international tribunals, new technologies, and human rights. I am grateful for the support that I received from the Klau Institute for Civil and Human Rights that allowed me to take part in this important event.”

Ángel Muñoz-Carpintero presented his work-in-progress paper titled “The Theseus Ship: The New Rule of Law in Nicaragua.” The paper explores the 2025 sweeping constitutional reforms of the Nicaraguan Constitution under the lens of the constitutional dismemberment framework, identifying the intersections of the rule of law, militarism, and constitutional dismemberment that the 2025 constitutional reforms in Nicaragua reveal. The paper was presented at the workshop "Constitution-Making and Constitutional Reform: Amendment, Dismemberment, and Replacement."

“After attending and presenting at the WCCL, I came back to Notre Dame with renewed energy to continue my research agenda, inspired by the amazing scholarship that is being produced world-wide in evermore important matters of constitutional and international law," said Muñoz-Carpintero. "I am grateful for the support that I received from the Kellogg Institute for International Studies, which allowed me to go to Bogotá and present my work.”

Felipe Lyon Errázuriz presented a draft of his dissertation’s second chapter in the workshop “Human Duties: An Important Constitutional Issue?”. He proposed to revive the idea of duties to the community, an understudied concept in constitutionalism that could help illuminate current questions about the responsibility of big techs in the free speech environment. Lyon Errázuriz was also one of the 100 conference participants selected for the “Mini Public on Democracy as a Human Right,” an unprecedented deliberative exercise whose results are expected to be published in the following months. He was appointed to the panel that discussed potential risks of enshrining democracy as a right and institutional ways of preventing them.

“Presenting in such a specialized panel allowed me to dig deep into some of the toughest questions of my project and to discuss specific methodological improvements with some of the best comparative constitutional scholars in the world," said Lyon Errázuriz. "Also, it was satisfactory to see how my J.S.D. peers also thrived in their presentations. I thank both the Kellogg and Klau Institutes for supporting my participation, which will enrich my future academic work.”

Notre Dame J.S.D. Candidates Present at ICONS

From June 29 to July 1, 2026, the University College Dublin’s Sutherland School of Law held the International Society of Public Law (ICON-S) annual conference: “Reimagining Public Law for a Fractured World—Technology, Identity & Truth.” Every year, this conference brings together some of the most prestigious academic work in the areas of constitutional, international, and public law. Notre Dame Law doctoral candidates Juan Carlos Gazmuri and Felipe Lyon Errázuriz participated in this year’s edition with great success.

Both Lyon Errázuriz and Gazmuri shared a workshop on the lessons and questions left by the two failed constitution-making processes that their home country, Chile, underwent between 2019 and 2023. The panel—chaired by former expert commissioner for the 2023 process and constitutional law professor, Catalina Salem from the Universidad del Desarrollo, Chile—featured works in progress by four early-career Chilean scholars and generated great interest. Gazmuri presented a paper analyzing the influence of constituent power theory on both constitution-making processes, whereas Lyon Errázuriz’s piece showed the impact that the mandatory nature of the 2022 and 2023 ratification referendums might have had on their respective constitutional drafts, their electoral rejection, and their aftermath.

Additionally, they presented parts of their doctoral theses in specialized workshops. Gazmuri presented his work on “Political parties, digitalization, and democratic backsliding,” providing evidence that the decline and desinstitutionalization of political parties are highly predictive of a country’s likelihood of experiencing democratic backsliding. From there, he discussed potential tools that constitutional and electoral design can use to address these challenges. His panel featured constitutional scholars from Greece, Brazil, and Belgium. Lyon Errázuriz presented his piece “Responsibility of Tech Companies on the Free Speech Environment: A Fundamental Duties Perspective,” in which he proposes a framework based on constitutional duties to establish big tech’s liability regarding defamation and other harmful alterations of the truth happening in their platforms.

Lyon Errázuriz said, “It was a privilege to represent Notre Dame Law School and share my work in this prestigious conference. ICON-S allows you to engage with early-career and top-notch consolidated scholars in a unique way, which leaves me with great energy to continue my research. I’m grateful for all the support from Notre Dame Law School and the Kellogg Institute, for allowing me to participate on such a stage not only with my doctoral project, but also with a contribution to the Chilean academic debate.”

Gazmuri added, "Notre Dame Law School and the Kellogg Institute for International Studies have given me a unique opportunity to engage with constitutional scholars from around the world, for which I am deeply grateful. These conferences provide us with a valuable opportunity to learn from colleagues and to enrich our research.”

Across both conferences, the Notre Dame J.S.D. candidates presented their research alongside and engaged with scholars representing universities and institutions across Colombia, Chile, Italy, Spain, Greece, Brazil, Belgium, Hong Kong, the United States, and other countries and regions.

Visiting Faculty

Frederick Mostert joins the Law School as a visiting professor of law for Fall 2026 and previously served as a visiting professor in Fall 2025. He is a professor of practice for the Notre Dame London Law Programme. He is also a professor of practice at the Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College London, and a research fellow at the Oxford Intellectual Property Research Centre.

Mostert has advised global organizations, including the World Intellectual Property Organization and the European Union Intellectual Property Office. Frederick was inducted into the Intellectual Property Hall of Fame in 2015, which honors those who have helped to establish intellectual property as one of the key business assets of the 21st century. His pro bono work has included assisting President Nelson Mandela, the Shaolin Monks, and First Nations communities in Canada. He earned a LL.M. from Columbia Law School and a LL.D. from the University of Johannesburg.

Daniel Slate, visiting assistant professor of law, researches and writes on law and technology, emergency powers, and constitutional history. His technology law scholarship is informed by previous experience in the software industry, where he worked in product management, business development, and privacy and civil liberties roles. In the past year, his article Infringed has been cited in federal judicial opinions and at oral argument before the United States Supreme Court in Wolford v. Lopez.

Slate is a faculty affiliate of the AI Trust and Reliability Lab and the Human-Centered Responsible AI Lab at Notre Dame’s Data, AI, and Computing Initiative. He earned his B.A. in philosophy, with honors and distinction, J.D., and Ph.D. in political science from Stanford University and also studied in yeshivot in Israel.

Andrew Torrance joins Notre Dame Law School as a visiting professor of law. He is the Paul E. Wilson Distinguished Professor of Law and Associate Dean of Graduate and International Law at the University of Kansas School of Law, as well as a visiting scholar in Behavioral and Policy Sciences at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Torrance teaches and writes in patent law, intellectual property, innovation, food and drug regulation, biotechnology and biodiversity law, and the empirical, experimental, and big-data study of legal systems. His recent scholarship increasingly focuses on the law and governance of artificial intelligence, including the legal treatment of training data, regulation of autonomous systems, and the role advanced AI could play within legal and social systems.

Torrance founded the Biolaw conference and co-founded PatCon, an annual patent scholarship conference. From 2019 to 2021, he led intellectual property at the Eli and Edythe Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and he has delivered approximately 400 scholarly presentations and guest lectures in more than a dozen countries. He was elected to the American Law Institute in 2022 and previously served as a policy advisor on the Technology, Media, and Telecommunications Committee of then-presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2008. Torrance earned his B.S. from Queen’s University in Canada, his J.D. from Harvard Law School, and his Ph.D. in biology from Harvard University.

Dennis J. Wieboldt III joins Notre Dame Law School as a visiting assistant professor of law and serves as the Robert E. Rodes, Jr. Fellow in Law and Religion, a fellowship supported by the Law School’s Program on Church, State & Society. He is also completing his Ph.D. in history at the University of Notre Dame. Wieboldt writes in the areas of constitutional law and legal history, with a particular focus on the First Amendment’s Religion Clauses, and has authored more than 30 academic articles, book reviews, and other essays.

Wieboldt came to Notre Dame in 2023 as the first student to concurrently pursue a J.D./Ph.D. in history. He earned his J.D. magna cum laude from Notre Dame Law School in 2026, receiving the Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Program of Law, Ethics & Public Policy, as well as the A. Harold Weber Writing Award and the Patricia O’Hara Scholarship and Leadership Award. He previously earned his B.A. summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa and his M.A. in history from Boston College. Wieboldt also serves as the Leep Family Rector of Graham Family Hall at Notre Dame and is a non-resident research fellow of the Georgetown Center for the Constitution.

“Our new faculty bring extraordinary breadth to Notre Dame Law School, with expertise spanning business law and entrepreneurship, legal philosophy, federal courts, and legal writing, while sharing a deep commitment to excellence in scholarship and teaching,” said G. Marcus Cole, the Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law. “I am excited for the contributions they will make to our intellectual community, the students they will teach, and our mission to educate lawyers and leaders who will become forces for good.”

New Faculty Members

Ahson Azmat has joined the Law School as an associate professor of law. He specializes in business law and private law theory, with specific interests in securities and antitrust litigation, corporate disclosure, and fiduciary duties. Azmat has practiced as a commercial litigator in New York after clerking for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, with extensive stand-up trial, discovery, and appellate experience. At Notre Dame, he will be teaching Contracts, Business Associations, and other courses. Azmat’s scholarship has been published in the Harvard Law Review, Oxford University Press, and the Journal of Tort Law. His current research interests include corporate fraud, causation, and analytic jurisprudence.

Azmat earned an A.B. from Princeton University, a J.D. from Harvard Law School, and a Ph.D. from Harvard University. He has also served as a non-resident Research Fellow at Georgetown University.

Anne Choike has joined the faculty as a clinical professor of law and founding director of the Notre Dame Entrepreneurship Law and Policy Clinic. She has founded, directed, and taught in transactional law clinics at multiple law schools, supervising student attorneys in advising clients ranging from mission-driven startups and nonprofits to small businesses. Choike’s current scholarship interests include clinical pedagogy; the intersection of corporate and securities law with local government law; and feminist legal theory and methods.

Among her other prior faculty appointments, Choike previously visited the Law School in 2025, where she co-taught the Community Development Clinic with Professor Jim Kelly. Prior to her career in academia, she practiced as an associate at Jenner & Block and Stroock & Stroock & Lavan in New York City, where she represented Fortune 50 companies, financial institutions, and private equity-backed companies in capital markets and strategic transactions. She also serves as Of Counsel at Peak Legal, a Warsaw-based law firm specializing in complex technology projects.

She earned a B.A. from Cornell University, a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School, and a M.U.P. from the University of Michigan.

“I am thrilled to return to Notre Dame Law School and contribute to the impressive recent growth of the clinical law program, and offer more transactional law opportunities for the school’s students. Serving entrepreneurs—locally, nationally, and internationally—whose legal needs are unmet, and preparing the next generation of lawyers to do so, is at the heart of my teaching, research, and service," said Choike. "I believe deeply that business law can be a means of advancing human flourishing: that ventures are inherently human, deals are inherently relational, and lawyers can help entrepreneurs build businesses that reflect their values and contribute to their communities. Notre Dame Law School’s distinctive commitment to educating a different kind of lawyer makes it an unparalleled place to bring together rigorous business-law training and an authentic orientation toward service.”

Will Kamin has joined the full-time faculty as an associate professor of law after serving as a visiting associate professor of law at the Law School during the 2025-2026 academic year. He teaches and writes in the areas of habeas corpus, federal courts, civil procedure, and legal history. His scholarship on habeas corpus has been published or is forthcoming in the Stanford Law Review, the University of Pennsylvania Law Review, and the University of California, Davis Law Review. Before entering academia, Kamin clerked for Judge Richard J. Sullivan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and Judge Diarmuid F. O’Scannlain of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

He earned a B.A. from Amherst College and his J.D. from Yale Law School.

“Teaching (and writing) at Notre Dame Law School has long been a dream for me, and I feel profoundly blessed to be joining the regular faculty here. As a visitor at Notre Dame last year, I was consistently blown away by both the brilliance and the kindness of my colleagues and students alike. I was especially excited to see how many students are now coming to NDLS with an interest in pursuing vocations in legal academia, and I relish the opportunity to help such students find their voices as young scholars," said Kamin.

Margaret Martin has joined the Law School faculty as a professor of law after serving as a visiting associate professor of law at Notre Dame Law School during the 2025-2026 academic year. She previously served as an associate professor at the Faculty of Law at the University of Western Ontario, where she researched and taught legal philosophy, international criminal law, criminal theory, Canadian constitutional law, and the history of political thought. She is on the board of the Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence, Jurisprudence, and the American Journal of Jurisprudence. Martin has also held fellowships at the University of Toronto and Corpus Christi College at the University of Cambridge and was a visiting professor at the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais in Brazil in 2024.

She is the author of Judging Positivism (Hart Publishing, 2014) which is a contribution to the modern debate about legal positivism.

She earned a B.A. in Philosophy and English Literature and a M.A. in Philosophy, both from McMaster University. She has a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, Faculty of Law, and a Master of Studies of Law from the University of Toronto, Faculty of Law.

"Notre Dame is a very special place. The faculty and the students I have met here are exceptional in every way. It is exciting to join a community that is committed to academic excellence and to the pursuit of the common good," said Martin.

Sarah Pojanowski has joined the faculty as an assistant teaching professor. She previously taught Legal Writing at the Law School in an adjunct capacity. She began her legal career at Heller Ehrman LLP, where she practiced general litigation, antitrust, and trade regulation law, and later continued her antitrust practice at Paul Hastings LLP. She then served for 16 years as general counsel of Selected Independent Funeral Homes. Her teaching and research interests include clear written communication, small business law, death care law, and consumer protection law.

She earned her undergraduate degree from Concord College and her J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Micah Quigley has joined the faculty as an associate professor of law. He teaches or writes about remedies, habeas corpus, federal courts, and jurisprudence. His scholarship has appeared in the University of Pennsylvania Law Review and the George Mason Law Review, among others. He is also a non-resident research fellow at the Georgetown Center for the Constitution. Before joining the Law School faculty, he was a non-resident fellow at the Stanford Constitutional Law Center and practiced law in Washington, D.C. Quigley clerked for Judge Andrew Oldham on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, Judge Neomi Rao on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and Justice Neil Gorsuch on the U.S. Supreme Court.

He studied political science and philosophy at Grove City College, and earned his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School.

Notre Dame Law Professor Jimmy Gurulé, founder and director of the Notre Dame Exoneration Justice Clinic (EJC), conducted two four-hour training sessions on August 13-14 at Mexico's Directorate-General for Consular Protection and Strategic Planning, a division of the country's Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). Katie Takeuchi, staff attorney at the EJC, joined Gurulé in Mexico City to facilitate the sessions. The training covered major causes of wrongful conviction, procedures for evaluating cases for the Program for the Defense of Mexican Nationals (PDM), and an overview of the American criminal justice system. Fifteen members of Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs participated in the first day of training.

In fall 2023, Mexico's Ministry of Foreign Affairs awarded the EJC a $3 million grant to administer the PDM, a program that provides legal assistance to Mexican nationals facing criminal charges or wrongful convictions in the United States. The program is essential to ensuring that Mexican nationals in the United States receive fair and effective legal representation in a political climate that is hostile to immigrants. The PDM is supported by the Directorate-General for Consular Protection and Strategic Planning, which oversees consular protection and legal assistance for Mexican nationals abroad.

In addition to the training sessions, Gurulé and Takeuchi met with Cristina Planter Riebeling, Undersecretary for North America at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Vanessa Calva Ruiz, Director General of Consular Protection and Strategic Planning.

“The PDM has attracted a high level of interest and attention within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,” said Gurulé.

Planter Riebeling expressed strong support for the PDM and asked how her office could further support the program and help ensure its continued success. Gurulé said Planter Riebeling described the PDM as one of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' top priority programs.

Following the meeting, Planter Riebeling wrote, “The meeting provided an opportunity to highlight the important results achieved through the program and discuss next steps.” She also expressed appreciation for the “excellent collaboration” that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has developed with Gurulé and his team.

“I'm in regular communication with Director General Vanessa Calva Ruiz and her staff on the cases that we're accepting for legal representation, giving them updates on the progress that we're making,” said Gurulé.

During their visit to Mexico City, Gurulé and Takeuchi also met with Maria Mercedes Salmon, director of Notre Dame Mexico, and Dr. Imer Flores, research professor of law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) Faculty of Law, to discuss their support for the PDM.

Gurulé and Takeuchi met with Salmon to discuss the future of the PDM and Notre Dame Law School's growing presence in Mexico. “The PDM is one of the crown jewels of Notre Dame's presence in Mexico City,” Gurulé said.

Their meeting with Flores focused on ways to further strengthen the relationship between Notre Dame Law School and the UNAM Faculty of Law, particularly through the EJC's summer internship program. This summer, two UNAM students participated in the program on Notre Dame's campus.

“Overall, I thought it was a very productive visit,” said Gurulé. “In our short two-and-a-half-year relationship with the Directorate-General for Consular Protection and Strategic Planning, we've had a really substantial caseload. The PDM is really functioning. It's being fully implemented and operating on all cylinders.”

As we usher in the new academic year at Notre Dame Law School, International and Graduate Programs (IGP) is pleased to announce the new cohort of Global Visitors for the Fall 2026 semester. Every year, we host scholars and jurists from around the world, including faculty from our esteemed Notre Dame London Law Programme, academics from partner schools, as well as special guests and colleagues of our own Notre Dame Law faculty.

Under Dean G. Marcus Cole’s leadership, the Law School has cultivated a dynamic global partnership program. At the time of publication, we have 13 partnerships with institutions across three continents, including 12 law schools and one high court. This Fall, we will welcome six scholars from five of our partner schools located in Brazil, Germany, Ireland, and Kenya. We are lucky to enjoy ever-deepening ties with our long-term partners, just as we continue to strengthen new relationships.

Our honored guests this Fall include a distinguished international arbitrator, an expert in family studies and ethics, a consultant for top global organizations like the World Bank, and several other accomplished scholars across a diverse array of disciplines including privacy law, constitutional studies, financial regulation, and digital platform governance.

We at IGP are so excited to welcome this cohort to our community and to help foster new connections and experiences through our Fall slate of global programming opportunities. A few of these incoming scholars will deliver courses on their areas of expertise, allowing students to enrich their schedules with studies in African Human Rights Law, Comparative Constitutional Law, and International Commercial Arbitration. In addition, this cohort will deliver workshop presentations, chair panel discussions, and provide mentorship to our doctoral students.

As current events so frequently remind us, we live in an era defined by border-spanning crises and conflicts, and often the best solutions to these problems emerge from strong and active global partnerships. Whether reckoning with the legal implications of and responses to AI, exploring the foundations of law and governance amidst democratic backsliding, or examining the relationship between Catholicism and human rights on the African continent, the Law School is committed to advancing global perspectives through the Notre Dame Global Lawyering Initiative—not only to better prepare the lawyers of tomorrow, but also to help address today's calls for peace, justice, and stability.

Global Distinguished Visiting Professors of Law

• Stefan Kröll (Professor for International Dispute Resolution, Bucerius Law School): Professor Dr. Kröll will teach a 1-credit course on International Commercial Arbitration, drawing on his years of expertise in the field as both a scholar and as an arbitrator for cases involving various global institutions including the International Chamber of Commerce, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law, and the Vienna International Arbitral Centre, among others. October 5 – October 28, 2026.

• Jane Wathuta (Dean of Law School and Director of the Institute for Family Studies & Ethics, Strathmore University): Dr. Wathuta’s current research project is "The African Woman in Her Strength: The Evolution of Women in the Legal Profession and Policymaking in Kenya." The project combines doctrinal legal research, historical analysis, and policy review in order to trace the increasing number of women practicing the legal profession in Kenya and seeks to explain the forces and patterns driving that increase. October 26 – November 5, 2026.

Global Visiting Professor of Law

• Stephan Wernicke (Professor of Law, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin): Professor Dr. Wernicke will present on his research project, “EU Inc. — A New European Corporate Legal Form,” as a guest in Notre Dame Law School’s Law and Economics Seminar. During his visit, he will also conduct research for a monograph on “European Law and European Normative Thinking.” September 14 – September 24, 2026.

Global Visiting Associate Professors of Law

• Paul Yowell (Associate Professor of Law, Oriel College at Oxford): Professor Yowell will teach a 1-credit course on “Comparative Constitutional Law.” In addition to his professorship at Oxford, he is also a Global Associate Professor of Law with the Notre Dame London Law Programme. September 7 – 23, 2026.

• Clara Martins Pereira (Associate Professor of Financial Law, Durham University): Professor Martins Pereira will present her article, “Artificial Intelligence and the future of financial stability: regulatory and supervisory gaps in the UK framework,” at Notre Dame Law School's Faculty Colloquium. She is also a Global Associate Professor of Law with the Notre Dame London Law Programme. September 7 – September 18, 2026.

• Róisín Costello (Deputy Director of the Trinity Centre for Constitutional Law and Assistant Professor of EU and International Law, Trinity College Dublin): Dr. Costello will present research from her monograph project, “Transatlantic dialogues: the development of privacy in the common law world 1600 - 1850,” as part of the IGP Forum series of workshops. In addition, she will participate in a panel discussion for the American Conference for Irish Studies - Midwest and South Regional Conference; as well as deliver a talk on Indigenous language rights and policy issues, co-sponsored by the Irish Language Initiatives. September 21 – October 1, 2026.

• Ivar Hartmann (Associate Professor of Law, Insper São Paulo): Professor Hartmann will deliver a research presentation as part of the IGP Forum series. Drawing from his expertise in the field of digital platform governance, Professor Hartmann’s research provides novel quantitative data about the Meta Oversight Board and interrogates the merits of the popular analogy that Meta is the “Supreme Court for online speech.” October 5 – October 12, 2026.

• Enrico Andreoli (Associate Professor, University of Verona): Professor Andreoli will develop his ongoing monograph project which investigates the role of unwritten constitutional law across five jurisdictions: the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. November 9 – November 19, 2026.

Global Visiting Fellow in Law

• Allan Mukuki (Doctoral Fellow and Director of Global Partnerships, Strathmore Law School): While at Notre Dame Law School, Professor Mukuki will teach a 1-credit course on “African Human Rights Law.” In addition, he will present a research paper as part of the IGP Forum series. His paper, “Protection-Sensitive Mobility and Responsibility-Sharing in the East African Community: Towards a Regional Model for Refugee Management,” examines the legal and institutional possibilities for developing common refugee management mechanisms within the East African Community. November 3 – 19, 2026.

This year the sixth annual Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit featured over 20 speakers in 6 panel discussions on topics such as the religious foundations of the American Revolution, religious freedom and the making of free societies, and localism, state political experimentation, and religious freedom. Over 100 leading defenders of religious liberty gathered in Chicago, Illinois for the summit.

Dean G. Marcus Cole, the Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law, introduced the theme in his opening remarks.

“The theme of this year’s summit is ‘We Hold These Truths…’ As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of our nation – the first nation in the history of the world to be founded upon the core principle of religious freedom – it is appropriate that we do so here in Chicago, a city in which virtually every faith in the world is represented,” said Dean Cole.

“The purpose of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit is to explore issues, ideas, and strategies toward the protection and promotion of religious liberty, here in the United States and around the world.”

The panel discussions were grounded in the broader context of the nation’s 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and reflected on the enduring principles of human dignity, freedom of conscience, and the God-given right of every person to live according to their beliefs.

In the first panel, “The Laws of Nature and of Nature's God: Natural Law and Rights,” Professor Melissa Moschella, a professor of philosophy at the University of Notre Dame, spoke on the sacred importance of religious liberty in our nation.

“If in line with the natural law tradition and the view of religion dominant in our nation's founding, we can understand religion as something objectively and distinctively valuable for human beings, not only as one among many goods that contribute to human fulfillment, but as a good that plays an architectonic that is a governing and structuring role in the good life. Then justice, and by extension law, requires giving it its special treatment in accordance with its special role in good life.”

In a keynote address, Dr. Jacqueline Rivers, the executive director of the Seymour Institute for Black Church and Policy Studies, spoke about the importance of engaging the Black Church in the defense of religious freedom.

"For African Americans, the relationship to religious freedom is quite complicated. As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and as we reflect on these truths that we hold to be self-evident, we need to recognize that for African Americans, for Black people, for enslaved Africans at the time of the founding, they were actually denied religious freedom.” said Rivers.

"We call on all the fighters for religious freedom to engage a powerful ally—the Black Church—by standing with us in the challenges we face."

Additional panels were held on the second day of the summit including, “The Religious Foundations of the American Revolution” with Mr. Mintae Cha, a third-year law student at Notre Dame Law School, Professor Daniel Slate (Notre Dame Law School), and Professor John Witte (Emory University School of Law). The session was chaired by Professor Nicole Garnett (Notre Dame Law School).

The third panel of the day featured a discussion on "Religious Freedom and the Making of Free Societies." Attendees heard from Professor Daniel Philpott (University of Notre Dame), Professor Allen Hertzke (University of Oklahoma), and Ms. Samah Norquist (Religious Freedom and Foreign Policy Expert). The session was chaired by Professor Rick Garnett (Notre Dame Law School).

The summit’s final day of academic programming featured a discussion on the “Localism, State Political Experimentation, and Religious Freedom” with insights from Professor Chris Lund (Wayne State University Law School), Professor Phillip Muñoz (University of Notre Dame), and Professor Mark Storslee (University of North Carolina School of Law). The session was chaired by Professor John Meiser (Notre Dame Law School).

“State religion isn't like zoning or tax policies. Experimentation sometimes teaches us something, but basic rights are not things we should experiment with. If religion is a fundamental right, if it's a universal right, then it should be enjoyed universally,” shared panelist Chris Lund.

"The heart of [the Declaration] was not simply protecting freedom in the abstract but indeed protecting the right of a people to independently govern themselves. It was a reaction against not just a political system that suppressed freedom but that violated the very idea that a community governs itself – and to resist a distant authority from outside," said Meiser.

Rabbi Meir Soloveichik of Congregation Shearith Israel delivered a keynote address on the final day of the summit. Rabbi Soloveichik serves as the rabbi of Congregation Shearith Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in the United States, and as the director of the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University.

“America looked to the Jewish story as an indication of divine blessing and therefore as a source of inspiration for the sort of country America was called to be. The Jews were to be welcomed in America, Washington decided, not only because of the idea, but also because of the way in which the Jewish story inspired America itself,” said Soloveichik. "America's unity was never meant to come from sameness, but from a shared commitment to enduring principles."

“The warmth that Jews experienced in the nascent nation that was the United States can only be fully understood if we understand the way in which many founders and America in general saw the story of biblical Israel as a source of inspiration.”

Drawing on the ideas of the late Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Rabbi Soloveichik argued that American society, from the Pilgrim Fathers onward, was based on the concept of covenant as set out in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible, particularly in Exodus and Deuteronomy. He then quoted Rabbi Sacks, describing the United States as "that rare phenomenon: a covenant society. Covenant societies represent conscious new beginnings. They are founded on an idea, dedicated to a proposition."

"The rights we enjoy as Americans are fragile. They must be cherished, protected, and taught from generation to generation, because what may appear ordinary to us is actually extraordinary," said Soloveichik.

During lunch on Wednesday, participants enjoyed a screening of the trailer for the film “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story,”a feature-length documentary. The film tells the true story of Blessed Stanley Rother, an American priest from Oklahoma who was martyred after returning to Guatemala during the country's civil war, refusing to abandon the Indigenous people he served.

The trailer screening was followed by remarks from Michael Scaperlanda, chancellor for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. The documentary is heavily rooted in the work of Scaperlanda and his wife, María Ruiz Scaperlanda, who has spent decades championing Blessed Stanley Rother's legacy. Her book, “The Shepherd Who Didn't Run: Blessed Stanley Rother, Martyr from Oklahoma,” serves as a foundational text on his life.

Additional panels were held during the day, including “Religious Freedom and Abundance” offering insights from Professor Angela Carmella (University of Seton Hall Law School), Professor John Infranca (Suffolk University), and Mr. Jim Towey (Aging with Dignity). The session was chaired by Fr. Patrick Reidy, C.S.C. (Notre Dame Law School).

Lastly, “Religious Freedom and the Catholic Mission in a Secular Age” featured insights into religious freedom from a Catholic perspective. Panelists included Sr. Marie Morgan (Franciscan Alliance Inc.), Sr. Petra Nielsen (Franciscan Alliance Inc.), Fr. Jordi Pujol (Pontifical University of Santa Croce), Bishop Robert McClory (Diocese of Gary), and was chaired by Msgr. John Paul Kimes (Notre Dame Law School).

The Summit’s culminating event was the Religious Liberty Gala and Awards Dinner held on Wednesday, July 8.

During the dinner, the 2026 Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty was presented to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a nonprofit public interest law firm based in Washington, D.C. with a mission to protect the free expression of all faiths.

Mark Rienzi, president and CEO, accepted the award on behalf of the Becket Fund.

"An award to the Becket Fund should be an award to the team at Becket,” said Rienzi. This is an ensemble effort. This is not any one person. The Becket Fund, from the start, has been a collection of highly talented people who decided to jump in and do a big thing together, and it really is a privilege and a blessing to be part of the team at Becket."

"Religious liberty helps real people, and it helps real people live out their faith... Religious liberty protects good things, and it makes those good things happen... It's a great joy and privilege for us to get to work on that."

The 2026 Religious Liberty Scholarship Award was presented to John Witte of Emory University School of Law. A leading specialist in legal history, human rights, religious freedom, marriage and family law, and law and religion, Witte has published over 300 articles, 18 journal symposia, and 45 books.

“Faith is the foundation of freedom, and religious freedom is the cornerstone of human rights. And orderly freedom, in turn, is the essential condition for the flourishing of both families and of faith in humanity. I am profoundly grateful for the 45 years of work that the good Lord has given me to do in this field,” said Witte.

The Summit also included cultural experiences for attendees, including a tour of the Field Museum, a natural history museum located in downtown Chicago, and a dinner cruise on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan. These opportunities provided a chance for continued dialogue among participants.

"The purpose of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit is to serve as a forum to exchange ideas and discuss issues and to develop strategies to advance the fight for religious freedom in the United States and around the world,” said Dean Cole. “The summit and the conversations that we're having are central to our mission, both our Catholic mission as a law school, but also our mission and our vocation with regard to religious liberty.”

More stories and news about the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit:

• ND Law will hold sixth annual Religious Liberty Summit in Chicago

• 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: Dean G. Marcus Cole’s opening remarks

• 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: Day 1 Recap

• 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: Day 2 Recap

• 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: Day 3 Recap

• 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit: Gala and Awards Dinner Recap

• 2026 Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty: Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

Formerly known as the ASLH/Notre Dame Graduate Legal History Colloquium, the forum provides early career legal scholars and practitioners with feedback on works-in-progress—an important step in fine-tuning research to a point where it can be submitted for publication. This year, the Colloquium has been restyled to ensure that law, master’s, and doctoral students, as well as faculty members in visiting or other term-limited positions (e.g., postdocs) are eligible to present their work.

The Colloquium was established in 2024 with the support of the American Society for Legal History. It was organized at that time by Dennis Wieboldt, who graduated from Notre Dame Law School in 2026. Over the last two years, the Colloquium has enabled more than 40 students from across the country to present their research. Articles workshopped at the Colloquium have already begun (or will soon appear) in leading journals, including the Yale Law Journal, University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law, and Fordham Law Review Online.

Although the Colloquium has been restyled, its format will remain the same. Each presenter will be paired with a designated respondent, who is typically a senior scholar in the field. Previous respondents have included faculty from Notre Dame Law School, Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, the University of Chicago Law School, and the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. All works-in-progress will continue to be pre-circulated to prospective attendees to facilitate a robust discussion.

Now that Wieboldt has concluded his studies at Notre Dame Law School, the Colloquium will be co-convened by 3L Mintae Cha and history Ph.D. student Sophie Rizzieri. Cha, who formerly earned his Ph.D. from Princeton University, received the American Society for Legal History’s 2024 William Nelson Cromwell Dissertation Prize. The Prize is awarded annually to the best dissertation in any area of American legal history by the Society. Rizzieri’s research focuses on early American intellectual, social, and legal history.

During the 2026-2027 academic year, meetings of the Colloquium will be held at the Notre Dame Law School campus in Chicago on September 26, October 17, February 6, and March 6. An additional meeting will be held at the Law School’s South Bend campus on January 16.

Those interested in presenting at and/or attending meeting(s) of the Colloquium should indicate their interest here.

The sixth annual Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit culminated on Wednesday, July 8 with its Religious Liberty Gala and Awards Dinner at Offshore Rooftop in Chicago.

OPENING REMARKS

Dean G. Marcus Cole

Dean G. Marcus Cole delivered the opening remarks for the 2026 Religious Liberty Summit Gala and Awards Dinner.

"The purpose of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit is to serve as a forum to exchange ideas and discuss issues and to develop strategies to advance the fight for religious freedom in the United States and around the world. The summit and the conversations that we're having are central to our mission, both our Catholic mission as a law school, but also our mission and our vocation with regard to religious liberty.”

“Our mission for the Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic is to promote human flourishing by serving as a source of advocacy, counsel, scholarship, training, fellowship, and hope in defense of the fundamental human right to freedom of religion or belief for all people."

"As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, it's important to celebrate those who work tirelessly to preserve the principles expressed in it."

Dean G. Marcus Cole, Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law

2026 RELIGIOUS LIBERTY SCHOLARSHIP AWARD

Professor John Witte

The Law School honored Professor John Witte, the Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Law, McDonald Distinguished Professor, and the CSLR Faculty Director at Emory University School of Law, with the 2026 Religious Liberty Scholarship Award. The award was presented by Professor Rick Garnett (Notre Dame Law School).

“John Witte has been a generous and diligent supporter of the work of countless other scholars and an enthusiastic convener of rich and rewarding conversations. Indeed, it sometimes seems that the entire law and religion field runs on his energy and his relentless Dutch Calvinist work ethic.”

Professor Rick Garnett, Notre Dame Law School

The Religious Liberty Scholarship Award is given annually to a legal scholar in recognition of their accomplishments in the field of law and religion and for contributions to the understanding of protecting the freedom of religion or belief through law. A leading specialist in legal history, human rights, religious freedom, marriage and family law, and law and religion, Witte has published over 300 articles, 18 journal symposia, and 45 books.

“Faith is the foundation of freedom, and religious freedom is the cornerstone of human rights. And orderly freedom, in turn, is the essential condition for the flourishing of both families and of faith in humanity. I am profoundly grateful for the 45 years of work that the good Lord has given me to do in this field.”

“As scholars, we inherit a vast tradition of learning that we cherish and we steward, that we teach and translate, that we might amend and emend, that we might even reform and transform. But then we hand the work on to the next generation to take the lead. And gathered in this room are many leaders of that next generation of religious freedom scholars.”

Professor John Witte, Emory University School of Law

NOTRE DAME PRIZE FOR RELIGIOUS LIBERTY

Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

The Law School presented the 2026 Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a nonprofit public interest law firm based in Washington, D.C., with a mission to protect the free expression of all faiths. The award was presented by Dean G. Marcus Cole (Notre Dame Law School).

"Now, when we envisioned the Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty, we always imagined that it would go to one person. But when we think about the Becket Fund, it is an entire team of lawyers, led by Mark Rienzi, who have made a difference in our world, who have made our lives better. And for that reason, we thought it only appropriate to give the award to the Becket Fund as an entity."

Dean G. Marcus Cole, Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law

The Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty is awarded once each year in recognition of achievement in preserving religious liberty. The Becket Fund has an unparalleled record at the U.S. Supreme Court. In the last 15 years, Becket has won 13 Supreme Court cases. Six of those victories were unanimous. Almost half of all Supreme Court victories for religious freedom over the last decade were Becket cases. Mark Rienzi, president and CEO, accepted the award.

"An award to the Becket Fund should be an award to the team at Becket. This is an ensemble effort. This is not any one person. The Becket Fund, from the start, has been a collection of highly talented people who decided to jump in and do a big thing together, and it really is a privilege and a blessing to be part of the team at Becket."

"Religious liberty helps real people, and it helps real people live out their faith... Religious liberty protects good things, and it makes those good things happen... It's a great joy and privilege for us to get to work on that."

"Religious liberty is important in its own right... It's important for what it contributes to self-evident truths... and to this conception of the human person as someone created by God, who's got rights, who is equal, who has equal dignity. That is a conception of the human person that is very much supported by religion and religious liberty."

“Thank you to Notre Dame, to the Religious Liberty Initiative, and to Dean Cole for giving all of us this tremendous honor. Marcus, you and your team at Notre Dame... you're doing such incredible work in this field and such great work to train up the next generation of people... It's wonderful to see, and it's wonderful to be on the same team as well."

Mark Rienzi, president and CEO, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

Read the other daily recaps from the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit:

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

MORNING KEYNOTE

Rabbi Meir Soloveichik

Wednesday morning of the Notre Dame Law School Religious Liberty Summit began with a keynote address from Rabbi Meir Soloveichik of Yeshiva University. Rabbi Soloveichik serves as the rabbi of Congregation Shearith Israel, the oldest Jewish congregation in the United States, and as the director of the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University.

“America looked to the Jewish story as an indication of divine blessing and therefore as a source of inspiration for the sort of country America was called to be. The Jews were to be welcomed in America, Washington decided, not only because of the idea, but also because of the way in which the Jewish story inspired America itself.”

"America's unity was never meant to come from sameness, but from a shared commitment to enduring principles."

“The warmth that Jews experienced in the nascent nation that was the United States can only be fully understood if we understand the way in which many founders and America in general saw the story of biblical Israel as a source of inspiration.”

Drawing on the ideas of the late Chief Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, Rabbi Soloveichik argued that American society, from the Pilgrim Fathers onward, was based on the concept of covenant as set out in the Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible, particularly in Exodus and Deuteronomy. He then quoted Rabbi Sacks, describing the United States as "that rare phenomenon: a covenant society. Covenant societies represent conscious new beginnings. They are founded on an idea, dedicated to a proposition."

"The rights we enjoy as Americans are fragile. They must be cherished, protected, and taught from generation to generation, because what may appear ordinary to us is actually extraordinary."

Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, Congregation Shearith Israel

PANEL DISCUSSION

Localism, State Political Experimentation, and Religious Freedom

The first panel discussion on Day 2 of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit was on “Localism, State Political Experimentation, and Religious Freedom" with Professor Christopher Lund (Wayne State University Law School), Professor Phillip Muñoz (University of Notre Dame), and Professor Mark Storslee (University of North Carolina School of Law). The session was chaired by Professor John Meiser (Notre Dame Law School).

“State religion isn't like zoning or tax policies. Experimentation sometimes teaches us something, but basic rights are not things we should experiment with. If religion is a fundamental right, if it's a universal right, then it should be enjoyed universally.”

Professor Christopher Lund, Wayne State University Law School

“Government cannot tell us how, when, why to pray. Government has no authority or jurisdiction over our religious worship, so religious worship cannot be commanded by the state or punished by the state, and I think the founders universally agreed about that, and that was the core essence of the right of religious liberty.”

"You can't be self-governing if your people are not self-governing."

Professor Phillip Muñoz, University of Notre Dame

"The government can't require people to perform their religious duties with coercion."

"None of the provisions of the First Amendment originally applied against the states, those were all meant to be limitations on the federal government."

Professor Mark Storslee, University of North Carolina School of Law

"We heard much yesterday and this morning about the origins and inspirations of our Declaration of Independence and about the particular liberties that the Founders sought to secure and protect. The heart of [the Declaration] was not simply protecting freedom in the abstract but indeed protecting the right of a people to independently govern themselves. It was a reaction against not just a political system that suppressed freedom but that violated the very idea that a community governs itself – and to resist a distant authority from outside."

Professor John Meiser, Notre Dame Law School

AMERICAN MARTYR: THE STANLEY ROTHER STORY DOCUMENTARY TRAILER

Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit participants enjoyed a screening of the trailer for the feature-length documentary “American Martyr: The Stanley Rother Story.” The film tells the true story of Blessed Stanley Rother, an American priest from Oklahoma who was martyred after returning to Guatemala during the country's civil war, refusing to abandon the Indigenous people he served.

The trailer screening was followed by remarks from Michael Scaperlanda, chancellor for the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. The documentary is heavily rooted in the work of Scaperlanda and his wife, María Ruiz Scaperlanda, who has spent decades championing Blessed Stanley Rother's legacy. Her book, “The Shepherd Who Didn't Run: Blessed Stanley Rother, Martyr from Oklahoma,” serves as a foundational text on his life.

The documentary will be shown in theaters nationwide on August 25 and 26 in English and on August 27 in Spanish.

PANEL DISCUSSION

Religious Freedom and Abundance

At the second set of panel discussions on Day 2 of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit panelists explored the theme “Religious Freedom and Abundance.” Panelists were Professor Angela Carmella (University of Seton Hall Law School), Professor John Infranca (Suffolk University), and Mr. Jim Towey (Aging with Dignity). The session was chaired by Fr. Patrick Reidy, C.S.C. (Notre Dame Law School).

"Catholic social thought gives us moral principles and moral language rooted in biblical and natural traditions... and to share that critique and that teaching in society is considered in Catholic thought an aspect of religious freedom."

"All private property is encumbered by a debt owed to society to ensure the use of property not only for the owner, but for the common good of all."

Professor Angela Carmella, University of Seton Hall Law School

“Integral human development…emphasizes the development of the whole person, rejecting the idea that prioritizing material and economic growth alone is sufficient, and it also seeks the development of all people, broadening the beneficiaries of abundance.”

Professor John Infranca, Suffolk University

“I had the privilege of working alongside Mother Teresa on and off over 12 years, seeing her regularly — a grace I didn’t deserve…. She was abundance itself. She was a channel of grace.”

“Her message was abundance: the abundant love of God that says we are made in His image and likeness.”

Mr. Jim Towey, Aging with Dignity

"We're going to spend a little time thinking about how property rights enable or inhibit religious practice and how they interact with this conversation about religious freedom, because faith communities gather for more than worship. Their religious mission reaches outside the sanctuary."

"These ministries, often on church-owned property, flow from the same religious belief given ritual expression in worship. Faith communities discern how to use their property based on what their theological and moral convictions require."

Fr. Patrick Reidy, C.S.C., Notre Dame Law School

PANEL DISCUSSION

Religious Freedom and the Catholic Mission in a Secular Age

The final panel of the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit focused on “Religious Freedom and the Catholic Mission in a Secular Age" with Sr. Marie Morgan (Franciscan Alliance Inc.), Sr. Petra Nielsen (Franciscan Alliance Inc.), Fr. Jordi Pujol (Pontifical University of Santa Croce), and Bishop Robert McClory (Diocese of Gary). The session was chaired by Msgr. John Paul Kimes (Notre Dame Law School).

"The Holy Spirit works with tension in the middle. I've held on to that all my life. Sometimes, when you try to keep a healthy balance—with pressures pushing from one side and pressures pushing from the other—having the strength to maintain that balance, whether it's in education or health care, and having the strength to speak up are always important."

Sr. Marie Morgan, Franciscan Alliance Inc.

"When we talk about religious liberty and standing for the truth in a culture that's telling us to stand down and back away, it's not just about our religious beliefs or our ability to create a health care system that reflects those beliefs. It's also about the people we serve."

Sr. Petra Nielsen, Franciscan Alliance Inc.

"The challenge to religious freedom today is not only legal. It is also embedded in the communications architecture of our digital world."

Fr. Jordi Pujol, Pontifical University of Santa Croce

"The Church must remain attentive to the challenges facing religious liberty while also recognizing new opportunities to strengthen it."

Bishop Robert McClory, Diocese of Gary

Msgr. John Paul Kimes, Notre Dame Law School, moderated a lively and fruitful discussion, posing thoughtful questions that encouraged the panelists to reflect on how religious liberty shapes their ministries and the challenges they encounter in fields ranging from education to health care.

Read the other daily recaps from the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit:

Day 1

Day 2

OPENING REMARKS

Dean G. Marcus Cole

On Tuesday morning, Dean G. Marcus Cole delivered the opening remarks at the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit.

“The theme of this year’s summit is “We Hold These Truths…” As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of our nation – the first nation in the history of the world to be founded upon the core principle of religious freedom – it is appropriate that we do so here in Chicago, a city in which virtually every faith in the world is represented.”

“Notre Dame has become a safe harbor for people of all faiths because it emits a beacon of hope – and an assurance that faith matters.”

“The purpose of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit is to explore issues, ideas, and strategies toward the protection and promotion of religious liberty, here in the United States and around the world.”

Dean G. Marcus Cole, Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law, Founder of the Religious Liberty Summit

Read his full remarks here.

PANEL DISCUSSION

"The Laws of Nature and of Nature's God": Natural Law and Rights

At our first set of panel discussions at the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit, speakers explored the theme “The Laws of Nature and of Nature's God: Natural Law and Rights.” Panelists included Professor Kurt Lash (University of Richmond School of Law), Professor Christopher Tollefsen (University of South Carolina), and Professor Melissa Moschella (University of Notre Dame), with Professor Sherif Girgis (Notre Dame Law School) serving as chair.

“The Declaration found its way into our Constitution and our political culture, because the people agreed that these words did, in fact, give voice to who they were as a people. It was because we held those truths to be self-evident that the laws of nature and nature's God entitled our existence as an independent nation in 1776 and demanded our blood and treasure as a matter of duty in the years to follow. Presumably that duty remains today, and I find that to be a sobering thought for 250 years later.”

Professor Kurt Lash, University of Richmond School of Law

"Restrictions, impediments, and burdens on religious practice are violations of the absolute core of the right to religious liberty when they're intended to suppress religious belief, worship, or action as such."

Professor Christopher Tollefsen, University of South Carolina

“If in line with the natural law tradition and the view of religion dominant in our nation's founding, we can understand religion as something objectively and distinctively valuable for human beings, not only as one among many goods that contribute to human fulfillment, but as a good that plays an architectonic that is a governing and structuring role in the good life. Then justice, and by extension law, requires giving it its special treatment in accordance with its special role in good life.”

Professor Melissa Moschella, University of Notre Dame

Professor Sherif Girgis, Notre Dame Law School, posed thoughtful questions that invited the panelists to consider whether belief in God is logically connected to belief in absolute rights and whether references to God in the Declaration of Independence were merely rhetorical or foundational to the framers' understanding of government.

PANEL DISCUSSION

The Religious Foundations of the American Revolution

Our second panel discussion of the day at the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit was on “The Religious Foundations of the American Revolution” with Mr. Mintae Cha, a third-year law student at Notre Dame Law School, Professor Daniel Slate (Notre Dame Law School), and Professor John Witte (Emory University School of Law). The session was chaired by Professor Nicole Garnett (Notre Dame Law School).

"With the American Revolution, a lot of people dropped their ethnic identity, which opened up new religious choices for them."

Mr. Mintae Cha, Notre Dame Law School

"Political Hebraism was not the only influence on the American founding, but it is an important part of the story that has too often been forgotten."

"As we continue the effort to recover the full view of the sources that shaped our Constitution, Political Hebraism deserves to be part of that conversation."

Professor Daniel Slate, Notre Dame Law School

“One important source of the American Revolution and founding that is often forgotten today is the Netherlands, which had an outsized religious and political influence on the founders.”

“Going Dutch meant engaging with and eagerly embracing Dutch revolutionary and constitutional ideas. But it also meant that the American founders ultimately paved their own way.”

Professor John Witte, Emory University School of Law

Professor Nicole Garnett, Notre Dame Law School, grounded the session in the broader context of the nation’s 250th anniversary and presented the panel as an opportunity to hear from both emerging and preeminent scholars on this topic.

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LUNCH KEYNOTE

Dr. Jacqueline Rivers

Dr. Jacqueline Rivers, executive director of the Seymour Institute for Black Church and Policy Studies, delivered the keynote address during today's programming at the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit. Dr. Rivers is both a scholar and a leader in advancing religious freedom for all, including minority groups, and fostering religious coexistence in pluralistic societies. In her keynote address, she spoke about the importance of engaging the Black Church in the defense of religious freedom.

"For African Americans, the relationship to religious freedom is quite complicated. As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and as we reflect on these truths that we hold to be self-evident, we need to recognize that for African Americans, for Black people, for enslaved Africans at the time of the founding, they were actually denied religious freedom.”

“Those who are defending religious freedom have got to respond to God's call as expressed in the words of Isaiah: 'Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow.’ We have to demonstrate that we care about the things that matter to the Black Church if we hope to get the Black Church involved.'"

"We call on all the fighters for religious freedom to engage a powerful ally—the Black Church—by standing with us in the challenges we face."

"Religious freedom has been very important for the history and development of the Black community."

Dr. Jacqueline Rivers, executive director of the Seymour Institute for Black Church and Policy Studies

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PANEL DISCUSSION

Religious Freedom and the Making of Free Societies

The final panel discussion of the day at the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit was "Religious Freedom and the Making of Free Societies" with Professor Daniel Philpott (University of Notre Dame), Professor Allen Hertzke (University of Oklahoma), and Ms. Samah Norquist (Religious Freedom and Foreign Policy Expert). The session was chaired by Professor Rick Garnett (Notre Dame Law School).

"The two great factors that shape the political role of religious communities are their independence from government and a political theology that favors religious freedom."

Professor Daniel Philpott, University of Notre Dame

“For the good of freedom and Christianity, we must reclaim the pluralist foundations of democracy, reaffirming that our constitutional heritage does not privilege any faith but welcomes all.”

Professor Allen Hertzke, University of Oklahoma

“It is no coincidence that the First Amendment begins by protecting religious liberty, reflecting the conviction that our rights are inherent, not granted by government, but endowed by our Creator. It becomes the North Star for all other freedoms.”

Ms. Samah Norquist, Religious Freedom and Foreign Policy Expert

“He [James Madison] saw early on, like many others, that it was important to put religious freedom at the heart of the American constitutional experiment."

Professor Rick Garnett, Notre Dame Law School

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DINNER CRUISE

Chicago River and Lake Michigan Dinner Cruise

Attendees at the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit concluded the day’s programming with a dinner cruise on the Chicago River and Lake Michigan aboard the First Lady.

Read the other daily recaps from the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit:

Day 1

Day 3

The theme of this year’s summit is “We Hold These Truths...” As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of our nation – the first nation in the history of the world to be founded upon the core principle of religious freedom – it is appropriate that we do so here in Chicago, a city in which virtually every faith in the world is represented. It is also a city with a deep connection to the University of Notre Dame. Yes, we have a small campus here just a few blocks away, on Michigan Avenue, across the street from the world-famous Art Institute of Chicago.

But our connection to Chicago is much deeper. Although we were founded in 1842 as a distinctly French University with a French name by a group of French priests, Notre Dame’s continued existence is owed to its evolution into one of the only places in this country where the newly arrived working-class Irish immigrants of Chicago could achieve higher education for their children. And there is one reason why these French priests welcomed the children of Irish immigrants: it was their faith. My faith. They were Catholics, just like me.

Today, we can look back on the influence of the University of Notre Dame on generations of – not just Irish immigrants – but people from all backgrounds and beliefs. African Americans, like me and my wife Angie. Polish immigrants. Italian immigrants. Then later, Latin Americans, Asian Americans, Orthodox Jews, Muslims, and Protestants of every denomination. Notre Dame has become a safe harbor for people of all faiths because it emits a beacon of hope – and an assurance that faith matters. The influence of Notre Dame was made possible by the freedom that this country provides us to express our faith through service.

For the “Notre Dames” of the world to serve the world, religious freedom must flourish. And for religious freedom to flourish, and for humans to flourish as a result, we must re-capture the true meaning of religious liberty. We must reclaim it from those who would use it for political purposes. We must champion religious liberty for all people, of all faiths, and especially for those of no faith at all.

In many ways, it is the people of no faith for whom religious liberty matters most, and who are most threatened by its absence. Let’s not forget that there are thirteen countries around the world where atheism is a crime punishable by death, and there are dozens more where blasphemy laws impose the same penalty.

The fight for religious liberty should not be reduced to “culture wars.” It is too important for that. Yes, religious freedom will have cultural implications, there is no denying that. But we will not be able to advance the cause of religious freedom by simply showing that people of faith have rights in our society that should be respected by our culture.

Instead, we must persuade our fellow citizens that religious freedom is for more than just the protection of people of faith. It is perhaps most important for the protection of people of no faith at all. Unless we make that case, the right to religious freedom will be a numbers game. And yet, think about it – for us to win that numbers game, our neighbors must be free to choose God.

We cannot win souls at the point of a sword.

The purpose of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit is to explore issues, ideas, and strategies toward the protection and promotion of religious liberty, here in the United States and around the world. As the leading Catholic research university in the world, the University of Notre Dame, and Notre Dame Law School, is proud to host you, and to facilitate these discussions.

It is our mission to work towards a world where everyone is free to worship God, each in his or her own way. It is just as important that every person be free to live their lives according to their beliefs, as a living sacrifice and testimony to the greater glory of God.

Welcome to Chicago. We are just 90 miles from our main campus in Northern Indiana, but when we are – in our religious diversity – gathered in fellowship, and in search of God, we are even closer to heaven.

It is my prayer that you will find this Summit a fruitful and uplifting experience.

Thank you.

CULTURAL EXPERIENCE

Field Museum

On Monday morning, participants of the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit visited the Field Museum, a natural history museum located in downtown Chicago. Since opening in 1894, the museum has grown its collection to nearly 40 million artifacts and specimens in botany, geology, zoology, and anthropology. Today, the Field Museum advances scientific discovery by researching the objects in its collections, documenting previously unknown species, and conserving ecosystems both locally and around the world.

WELCOME RECEPTION HIGHLIGHTS

On Monday evening, the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit welcomed the world’s leading defenders of religious freedom with a reception at RAISED Rooftop Bar overlooking downtown Chicago. Centered on the theme, “We Hold These Truths,” this year’s Summit commemorates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence and explores its enduring significance for religious liberty in the United States and around the world. Throughout the week, leading scholars, advocates, and faith leaders will examine the future of religious freedom through keynote addresses, panel discussions, and conversations.

Read the other daily recaps from the 2026 Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit:

Day 2

Day 3

Richard Garnett

Professor Richard W. Garnett is a nationally recognized scholar of constitutional law whose work focuses on religious liberty and church–state relations. He, along with several other scholars, filed an amicus brief in Landor v. Louisiana Department of Corrections on behalf of the plaintiff. The Notre Dame Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic filed a separate amicus brief for the plaintiff in this case. He was interviewed by several outlets about the case.

• ABC News: Supreme Court denies Rastafarian's lawsuit after he was forcibly shaved bald behind bars
• Bloomberg Law Podcast: Bloomberg Law: Rastafarian Can't Sue Over Violation of Religious Rights
• Gray Media: SCOTUS blocks lawsuit over forced head-shaving in prison
• Los Angeles Times: Inmates may not sue prison officials who violate their religious rights, Supreme Court rules

Derek Muller

Professor Derek Muller, a leading scholar and expert in election law, analyzed what this term's Supreme Court rulings mean for presidential authority and offered insight into the Court's decisions on mail-in voting and redistricting. See all of his interviews and quotes below.  

• ABC News: Despite losses for Trump, Supreme Court enhanced presidential power: ANALYSIS
• Associated Press: Trump's fixation on voting has had mixed results. He still has ways to affect November's elections
• The Center Square: Analysts: Civil rights defined Supreme Court term
• NBC News: Supreme Court faces new criticism for redistricting decisions so close to the 2026 elections
• NPR: Supreme Court's Alabama redistricting decision could encourage more chaos, experts warn
• Reuters: US Supreme Court's uneven approach to election-map rulings boosts Republicans
• Roll Call: SCOTUS term marked by shifts to the right, some checks on Trump

Haley Proctor

Associate Professor Haley Proctor, a constitutional law scholar who also writes on Second Amendment issues, was interviewed about the court's decisions in Slaughter v. Trump and United States v. Hemani. See all of her interviews below.

• Bloomberg: Trump’s Firing Power Ripples Through US Agencies After Court Win
• CBS Evening News: What to know about the Supreme Court rulings on presidential firings
• Fox News: Gorsuch suggests Supreme Court's Trump ruling is opening move against administrative state
• The Hill (subscription required): Supreme Court’s narrow gun decision kindles divisions, more questions
• USA Today: Supreme Court justice wants to scrap 'failed' Second Amendment test

Ashley Sanchez

Associate Clinical Professor Ashley Sanchez is the director of Notre Dame Law School's Immigration Clinic. She provided insight into the Supreme Court's ruling allowing the Trump Administration to remove temporary protective status for certain immigrant groups. Read her interviews below.

• Reuters: On immigration, Supreme Court accedes to Trump's restrictive agenda
• USA Today: Supreme Court allows Trump to end deportation protections for immigrants

Through panel discussions and keynote speeches, the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit stimulates conversations between religious leaders, scholars, and advocates about the future of religious liberty.

“Religious liberty is a fundamental human right, and its protection remains a matter of global importance,” said G. Marcus Cole, the Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law at Notre Dame Law School. “As we commemorate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, our theme invites us to reflect on the enduring principles of human dignity, freedom of conscience, and the God-given right of every person to live according to their beliefs. By fostering thoughtful dialogue and engaging diverse perspectives, we can help promote religious flourishing and strengthen the protection of this essential freedom for people around the world.”

This year, over 100 leading scholars, faith leaders, and advocates will gather in Chicago, Illinois. Over the three days of the summit, more than 20 speakers will participate in panel discussions on topics such as “Religious Freedom and the Making of Free Societies,” “Religious Foundations of the American Revolution,” and “Localism, State Political Experimentation, and Religious Freedom.”

The Summit will open with a Catholic Mass at St. James Chapel in Chicago. The programming will include keynote addresses from Dr. Jacqueline Rivers, a scholar and leader in advancing the cause of religious freedom for all, including minority groups, and fostering religious coexistence in pluralistic societies, and Rabbi Dr. Meir Soloveichik, whose leadership and scholarship have left a lasting impact on American religious life.

The Summit will conclude with a Wednesday evening gala and awards presentation, where the Law School will present the 2026 Notre Dame Prize for Religious Liberty to the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, a nonprofit public interest law firm based in Washington, D.C., with a mission to protect the free expression of all faiths. Becket has an unparalleled record at the U.S. Supreme Court. In the last 15 years, Becket has won 13 Supreme Court cases. Six of those victories were unanimous. Almost half of all Supreme Court victories for religious freedom over the last decade were Becket cases.

The Law School will also honor Professor John Witte with the 2026 Religious Liberty Scholarship Award. A leading specialist in legal history, human rights, religious freedom, marriage and family law, and law and religion, Witte has published over 300 articles, 18 journal symposia, and 45 books.

More information about the Notre Dame Religious Liberty Summit can be found at https://law.nd.edu/news-events/events/religious-liberty-summit/

Notre Dame Law School's Program on Ethics, Compliance & Inclusion has announced the winner of the annual Smith-Doheny Legal Ethics Writing Competition. Recent Notre Dame Law graduate Veronica Maska '26 J.D. was selected as the 2026 winner for her paper, Catholic Clerks in Capital Cases.

Professor Randy Kozel, associate dean for Faculty Development and Academic Affairs and the Fritz Duda Family Professor of Law, supervised the competition again this year. Entries were required to be original, unpublished works concerning any issue within the general category of legal ethics.

Maska's paper extends the analysis in now-Justice Amy Coney Barrett and Professor John H. Garvey's famous article, Catholic Judges in Capital Cases, by examining the ethical responsibilities of Catholic law clerks in death penalty cases. She argues that Catholic clerks can generally provide legal advice in such cases in good conscience. Barrett and Garvey conclude that Catholic trial judges should recuse themselves from death penalty cases but that Catholic appellate judges may be justified in hearing them. Maska contends that the ethical posture of law clerks at both the trial and appellate levels closely resembles that of appellate judges under Barrett and Garvey's moral framework.

Hailing from Austin, Texas, Maska is a double Domer who graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2022 with a degree in Business Analytics. During her 1L summer, she interned for Judge Andrew S. Oldham on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. She spent her 2L summer at Gibson Dunn as a summer associate.

At Notre Dame Law School, Maska was involved with the Notre Dame Law Review as a senior articles editor, the Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic, and the Notre Dame Federalist Society, and served as president of Jus Vitae.

She earned three Faculty Awards for Excellence and was a member of the Dean’s Circle for the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years. She was also a recipient of the Patricia O’Hara Scholarship and Leadership Award and the Polking Family Fellowship, a full-tuition fellowship established by Joan and the late Paul Polking, longtime members of the Notre Dame Law School Advisory Council and generous benefactors of the Law School.

Maska will clerk for Judge Amul R. Thapar on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and will then clerk for Judge Andrew S. Oldham on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Established in 1997, the Smith-Doheny Legal Ethics Writing Competition is an annual contest recognizing the best papers on legal ethics written by U.S. and Canadian law students. Maska will receive a cash prize for her winning entry.

“Susan Azyndar and Msgr. John Paul Kimes both embody Notre Dame Law School’s commitment to excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service,” said G. Marcus Cole, the Joseph A. Matson Dean and Professor of Law. “Their work has enriched our community and helped shape our students as lawyers and leaders. These well-deserved promotions recognize the leadership they provide and their significant contributions to the Law School and our mission.”

Susan Azyndar

Susan Azyndar has been promoted to Librarian at the Kresge Law Library. Azyndar joined the Notre Dame Law School faculty in 2020 as an Associate Librarian and has served in several leadership roles, including Senior Associate Director, and currently, Acting Director. In these roles, she leads the Law Library’s efforts to support teaching, scholarship, and research. She also teaches legal writing, legal research, and advanced legal research courses, and publishes and presents on legal research pedagogy and artificial intelligence.

Before joining Notre Dame Law School, she worked at the Moritz Law Library at The Ohio State University as a reference librarian. She was also an attorney for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Azyndar earned her J.D. from the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law. She has a Master of Library and Information Science (M.L.I.S.) degree from the University of Washington.

She is active in the law librarianship profession. She previously served as treasurer of the Ohio Regional Association of Law Libraries and as chair of the American Association of Law Libraries’ Copyright Committee. She currently serves as editor-in-chief of The Second Draft and as a member of the editorial board of Legal Reference Services Quarterly.

Msgr. John Paul Kimes

Msgr. John Paul Kimes has been promoted to Professor of the Practice and appointed the Mark Moritz and Family Memorial Professor of the Practice, an endowed professorship.

He teaches and writes in the fields of canon law, church governance, religious liberty, and the legal dimensions of clergy discipline and safeguarding. A priest of the Maronite Eparchy of Our Lady of Lebanon of Los Angeles, he earned degrees in theology and canon law from the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome, where he completed the J.C.O.D., the ecclesiastical equivalent of a doctorate, with highest honors. In 2025, he was ordained to the Order of Periodeut with the title of Monsignor.

Before joining Notre Dame, Msgr. Kimes served in the Discipline Section of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, where he worked on matters involving the prosecution of serious canonical offenses. He has also taught at the Pontifical Oriental Institute, the Pontifical Urbaniana University, and the University of Notre Dame’s Rome Program.

An internationally recognized scholar of canon law, Msgr. Kimes has published extensively on penal law, ecclesiastical governance, the protection of minors and vulnerable persons, Eastern Catholic Churches, and the administration of justice in the Church. He is a frequent lecturer at universities, professional conferences, and ecclesiastical institutions throughout North and South America and Europe.

He is the Raymond of Peñafort Fellow of the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture and a Fellow of the Religious Liberty Initiative.

"It is truly a dream come true," Rogers said. "I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to clerk for Justice Barrett."

For Rogers, the opportunity carries special meaning. She began law school during the same semester that Justice Barrett was nominated and confirmed to the Supreme Court. Justice Barrett, a 1997 Notre Dame Law School graduate, joined the Law School faculty in 2002 and remained a faculty member until her confirmation to the Supreme Court.

"From day one of law school, I admired Justice Barrett. Watching her walk through the confirmation process was incredibly inspiring as a first-year law student."

During her time as a law student, Rogers served as executive articles editor for the Notre Dame Law Review, competed in moot court, and was president of the Federalist Society during her third year. She was also involved with the Lindsay and Matt Moroun Religious Liberty Clinic, gaining valuable hands-on legal experience.

Following graduation, Rogers clerked for Judge Kevin Newsom of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and Judge David Stras of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. She credits both experiences with shaping her growth as a lawyer.

"I am so grateful to have worked for two top jurists during my clerkships. Both clerkships offered me the opportunity to consider important legal issues as applied to real-world cases, and taught me to think critically and communicate clearly.”

Rogers most recently practiced at Consovoy McCarthy PLLC in Washington, D.C., where she focused primarily on constitutional and election law matters. Her path to the Supreme Court clerkship emerged through the encouragement of mentors she encountered along the way.

As she prepares to begin her Supreme Court clerkship, Rogers says she looks forward to learning directly from Justice Barrett and her fellow clerks.

"Justice Barrett is a model of excellence in all facets of life. She is as incredible a jurist as she is a role model of faith and family. I am so excited to work for her and learn from her throughout the year.” Rogers said.

She is equally grateful for the formation she received at the Law School, which she says prepared her not only as an attorney, but as a person.

"I received a superb legal education from some of the top scholars in some of the most exciting areas of the law," Rogers said. "But what made Notre Dame special was how professors invested in students beyond the classroom. The guidance, advice, and encouragement I received from my professors was invaluable, and I would not be where I am today without their support.” She particularly expressed gratitude for the mentorship and support of Notre Dame faculty members throughout law school and the clerkship process, including Professors Richard Garnett, Nicole Stelle Garnett, Jeffrey Pojanowski, and John Meiser.

“All of us who were fortunate enough to work with Olivia regard that experience as a blessing,” said Professor Richard Garnett. “She was an engaged student, a generous citizen, an admirable role model, and a gifted teacher. The country and the justices are fortunate that she is contributing, as a public servant, to the work of the Court. I confidently expect great things from her in the learned profession that is the law.”

“It was truly a privilege and an honor to teach and mentor Olivia, who embodies everything that we hope for in Notre Dame lawyers - a sparkling intellect, deep faith, commitment to advancing the common good, kindness and humility,” added Professor Nicole Stelle Garnett. “We know that she will make us proud at the Supreme Court and in the years ahead.”

Rogers also credits Notre Dame with deepening her faith and fostering lifelong friendships.

“I spent many evenings walking on Notre Dame's campus, which provides so many opportunities to pause for prayer and reflection, whether at the grotto, around the lakes, or in the chapel,” she said. “Both this time and the relationships I formed with fellow students and faculty allowed my faith to flourish.”

“Olivia could have thrived at any law school in the country,” said Professor Jeffrey Pojanowski, “but we are lucky that she chose Notre Dame because it would allow her to grow both in her professional vocation and her Catholic faith. I could not be more proud of her."

Reflecting on Notre Dame Law School's mission to form a “different kind of lawyer," Rogers said the phrase has taken on even deeper meaning as she has entered legal practice.

"To me, being a different kind of lawyer means looking at the law as a vocation," she said, “and considering how best to use the gifts and opportunities you have to serve others.”

Rogers says that the opportunity to clerk for Justice Barrett is an extraordinary honor and will be a highlight of her legal career.

Over the past four Supreme Court terms, Notre Dame Law School has had five graduates clerk at the U.S. Supreme Court, including Timothy Bradley ’20 J.D., Kari Lorentson ’19 J.D., Elizabeth Totzke ’22 J.D., Michael Bradley ’14, ’17 M.T.S., ’22 J.D., and William Eisenhauer ’23 J.D.