Zionism: An Indigenous People’s Fight for its Ancient Homeland Judge Altman led us on a journey from 1208 BC (when the Merneptah Stele, the first extra-biblical mention of the People of Israel, was composed) to Israel's current war with Hamas. Along the way, Judge Altman showed that Jews are indigenous to the land of Israel, that Jews have lived in (and often ruled) the land of Israel for thousands of years, and that the State of Israel is a legitimate sovereign over the lands it now governs. Judge Altman also addressed--and refuted--claims that Israel is an apartheid state, that Gaza was in a ..read more

Perspectives on the Role of the Nation’s Chief Legal Officer A Conversation with Three U.S. Attorneys General Featuring: Hon. John Ashcroft, Former U.S Attorney General (2001-2005) Hon. William P. Barr, Former U.S Attorney General (1991-1993 and 2019-2020) Hon. Jeff Sessions, Former U.S Attorney General (2017-2018) Moderator: Beth Williams, Board Member, U.S. Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board; former Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy ..read more

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

The panel will discuss how these decisions are transforming the admissions process in higher education and the impact on the legal profession. Included in the discussion will be the response from academia, the permissible limits of the use of race in admissions after these decisions, and what impact this is expected to have on corporate America and the legal profession. Featuring: Prof. Tracey Maclin, Raymond & Miriam Ehrlich Chair in US Constitutional Law , University of Florida Levin College of Law Cameron Norris, Partner, Consovoy McCarthy PLLC Devon Westhill, President and General Cou ..read more

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

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

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

Traditionally, education has been seen as instilling the common shared civic values that Americans have held for since the nation’s founding. As the educational establishment has become increasingly more progressive, many states have begun to offer alternatives to traditional public-school education, particularly in the wake of the Covid pandemic when many schools were shut down. This has included laws that allow for educational savings accounts, charter schools, and home-schooling. However, these proposals have met fierce opposition from the educational establishment, legislatures, and educat ..read more

From the 1960s onward, election lawyers on the political left focused on securing and expanding voting access. Lawyers on the political right focused on ensuring the integrity and accuracy of the voting process. Now, most academic literature suggests that there's fairly little disenfranchisement and fairly little voter fraud. Despite this evidence, the voting process has become increasingly controversial in recent years, with increasing attacks on election integrity and voting access. This rhetoric has all led to decreased voter trust in the process. Headed into another presidential election y ..read more

All levels of the judiciary have faced increased attacks on their independence in recent years. Even trial court judges have faced increased scrutiny, particularly those in single-judge districts and those who have granted nationwide injunctions. “Reform” proposals such as adding justices, term limits, ethics codes, abolishing blue slips, and limiting the Court’s jurisdiction have been proposed by critics to limit the power of the courts. However, these proposals are nothing new: in decades past, when the ideological balance of the Court was different, similar proposals were floated by those w ..read more