Alan Dershowitz, Harvard University professor of law emeritus, will visit Elon University's Greensboro campus and deliver remarks at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 14, in the Elon Law Library. Dershowitz is the first guest of the Elon School of Law's 2018-2019 Distinguished Leadership Lecture Series.
The Distinguished Leadership Lecture Series is presented by The Joseph M. Bryan Foundation. This year, Dershowitz will give a lecture entitled “Global Perspectives on Justice and Civil Liberties.”
“We have the speaker series because it’s important to bring in some of the leading voices in the American legal profession," said Eric Townsend, director of communications at Elon University School of Law. "It’s an opportunity for students, faculty and more importantly for the public, who have interest in hearing the ideas that various leaders as they share with us their views on current events, the legal profession and the roles the lawyers play in helping to strengthen communities."
After graduating Yale Law School, Dershowitz joined the faculty at Harvard at age 25, making him the youngest faculty member in the school’s history. After 50 years of teaching more than 10,000 students he gained emeritus status.
Throughout his career, Dershowitz has argued hundreds of appeals in courts throughout the nation. He is currently actively working on both transnational and domestic criminal and civil liberty cases. Half of his practice is solely devoted to pro bono cases.
Dershowitz is popular legal commentator— recently criticizing the ongoing special counsel investigation of the Trump administration. With more than 1,000 articles, Dershowitz’s writing has appeared in publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe, as well as Harvard and Yale's law journals.
Prior to his lecture at Elon Law, Dershowitz will be participating in smaller events leading up to the talk.
“He’ll be here for the second half of the day on Wednesday where he will be meeting with the leadership, advocacy, business and teaching fellows," Townsend said. "Then, he’ll be taking part in a pre-event reception before making his remarks at 6:30 p.m.”
The lecture will be streamed on main campus in the LaRose Digital Theatre for those who are unable to visit Greensboro.
“I hope that we can create conversation about the issues of the day," said Steve Friedland, senior scholar and professor of law at Elon Law. "People these days have a difficult time talking with each other about things and I think Professor Dershowitz goes right at them, and he tries to create and tries to confront issues of the day. He certainly has his opinions but it’s not about the answers, it’s not about the destination, it’s about the journey. Talking with each other matters.”
Tickets distributed in September will be honored at this program. Anyone still interested in going can call Elon University’s Center for the Arts Box Office at (336) 278-5610, as a limited number of additional tickets are left. Tickets are $15 or free with an Elon ID.