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Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies

The Federalist Society logo, depicting the silhouette of James Madison's bust
The Federalist Society logo, depicting the silhouette of James Madison's bust
Type legal
Purpose/focus To promote the principles that the state exists to preserve freedom, that the separation of governmental powers is central to our Constitution, and that it is emphatically the province and duty of the judiciary to say what the law is, not what it should be. A silhouette is a view of some object or scene consisting of the outline and a featureless interior with the silhouette usually being black James Madison Jr (March 16 1751 – June 28 1836 was an American Politician, the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817 and one of the Founding [1]
Location Washington, DC
President Eugene B. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D Meyer[2]
Website http://www.fed-soc.org/

The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, most frequently called simply the Federalist Society, began at Yale Law School, Harvard Law School, and the University of Chicago Law School in 1982 as a student organization that challenged what its members perceived as the orthodox American liberal ideology found in most law schools. A website (alternatively web site or Web site, a back-construction from the Proper noun World Wide Web) is a collection of Web pages Yale Law School, or YLS, is the Law school of Yale University in New Haven Connecticut. Harvard Law School (also known as Harvard Law or HLS) is one of the professional Graduate schools of Harvard University. The University of Chicago Law School, having recently celebrated its centennial in the 2002-2003 school year has established itself as a high profile part of the University of Year 1982 ( MCMLXXXII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar) Liberalism in the United States is a broad political and philosophical mindset favoring individual Liberty, and opposing restrictions on liberty whether they come from The Society "is founded on the principles that the state exists to preserve freedom, that the separation of governmental powers is central to our Constitution, and that it is emphatically the province and duty of the judiciary to say what the law is, not what it should be. Political freedom is the absence of interference with the sovereignty of an individual by the use of coercion or aggression In Law, the judiciary or judicial system is the system of Courts which administer Justice in the name of the sovereign or State "[1]

The Society currently has chapters at approximately 180 United States law schools, including all of the top 20 as ranked by U.S. News & World Report. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the In Higher education, college and university rankings are listings of Universities and Liberal arts colleges in an order determined by any combination of The Society also boasts a membership of over 20,000 practicing attorneys (organized as "alumni chapters" within the Society's "Lawyers Division") in sixty cities. [3] The Federalist Society also serves as a parent organization for conservatives and libertarians who are interested in the current state of the legal order. Conservatism is a term used to describe political philosophies that favour Tradition, where tradition refers to various religious cultural or nationally defined Libertarianism is a term used by a broad spectrum of political philosophies which prioritize individual Liberty and seek to minimize or even abolish the Its headquarters are in Washington, D.C.

Contents

Background

The Society’s name is a reference to the Federalist Papers. Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 articles advocating the ratification of the United States Constitution. These were published as a series of articles intended to explain the new Constitution to the residents of New York state and persuade them to ratify it. A constitution is a system for government often Codified as a written document that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Ratification is the act of giving official sanction or approval to a formal document such as a treaty or constitution A compilation of the Papers, called The Federalist, was published in 1788. The articles were secretly written under the pseudonym "Publius" by James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, and John Jay. James Madison Jr (March 16 1751 – June 28 1836 was an American Politician, the fourth President of the United States (1809–1817 and one of the Founding John Jay (December 12 1745 – May 17 1829 was an American Politician, Statesman, revolutionary, Diplomat, a Supreme Court Hamilton wrote 51 of the Federalist papers, Jay five, and Madison 29.

The Society also looks to Federalist Paper Number 78 for an articulation of the virtue of judicial restraint, as written by Alexander Hamilton: "It can be of no weight to say that the courts, on the pretense of a repugnancy, may substitute their own pleasure to the constitutional intentions of the legislature. The Federalist Papers are a series of 85 articles advocating the ratification of the United States Constitution. Judicial restraint is a theory of Judicial interpretation that encourages Judges to limit the exercise of their own power . . . The courts must declare the sense of the law; and if they should be disposed to exercise WILL instead of JUDGMENT, the consequence would equally be the substitution of their pleasure to that of the legislative body. "

Due to the strong influence of Madison on the Society’s philosophy, the Federalist Society considers Madison to be its patriarch—hence the use of Madison’s silhouette in the Society’s official logo. Madison is generally credited as the father of the Constitution and became the fourth President of the United States. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by

Funding

The Federalist Society is funded by member dues and by grants.

Aims and membership

In working to promote the ideology set forth in its "Statement of Principles", the Society has created a network of intellectuals that extends to all levels of the legal community. An ideology is a set of beliefs aims and Ideas especially in politics An intellectual (from the adjective meaning "involving thought and reason" is a person who tries to use his or her Intelligence and analytical thinking, The Student Division has more than 5,000 law students as members and, through the national office's network of legal experts, the Society provides speakers for differing viewpoints at law school events. The activities of the Student Division are complemented by the activities of the Lawyers Division, which comprises more than 20,000 legal professionals, and the Faculty Division, which includes many in the academic legal community.

The Society seeks to debate constitutional issues and public policy questions, and this commitment extends to inviting speakers who do not agree with the society's principles. Past invitees include Justice Stephen Breyer and law professor Alan Dershowitz, as trenchant opponents of the Federalist Society's goals as could be imagined. Stephen Gerald Breyer (born August 15 1938 is an American Attorney and Jurist. Alan Morton Dershowitz (born September 1, 1938) is an American Lawyer, Jurist, and political commentator. UCLA law professor Eugene Volokh explains this openness to dissenting voices by saying that "we think that a fair debate between us and our liberal adversaries will win more converts for our positions than for the other side’s. Eugene Volokh (born Yevgeniy Volokh, Евгений Волох February 29, 1968) is an American legal commentator and law professor at the "[4] In the words of Dan Lowenstein, a Democrat and political appointee of former California governor Jerry Brown, "The Federalist Society is one of the few student organizations putting on public events that contribute to the intellectual life of the law school. Daniel Hays Lowenstein is a professor of law at UCLA Law School and an expert in Election law. Edmund Gerald "Jerry" Brown Jr (born April 7, 1938) is the current Attorney General and former governor of the State of "[4] The Federalist Society's guide to forming and running a chapter of the society claims that the organization "creates an informal network of people with shared views which can provide assistance in job placement. "[5]

Federalist Society members helped to encourage President Bush’s decision to terminate the American Bar Association’s nearly half-century-old monopoly on rating judicial nominees' qualifications for office. Since the Eisenhower administration, the American Bar Association has provided the service to presidents of both parties and the nation by vetting the qualifications of those under consideration for lifetime appointment to the federal judiciary. The process has been accused by some (including the Federalist Society) of having a liberal bias. Liberalism in the United States is a broad political and philosophical mindset favoring individual Liberty, and opposing restrictions on liberty whether they come from [6][7][8] For example, while former Supreme Court clerks nominated to the Court of Appeals by Democrats had an average rating of slightly below "well qualified," similar Republican nominees were rated on average as only "qualified/well qualified. " In addition the ABA gave Ronald Reagan's judicial nominees Richard Posner and Frank H. Easterbrook its lowest possible ratings of "qualified/not qualified". Richard Allen Posner (born January 11 1939 in New York City) is currently a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago Frank Hoover Easterbrook (born 1948 is Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. [9] Judges Posner and Easterbrook have gone on to become the two most highly-cited judges in the federal appellate judiciary. [10]

Like other private organizations, including the NAACP and the National Rifle Association, the Federalist Society does not publish a membership list or otherwise disclose the identity of its members, preferring instead to let members publicly identify themselves with the Society if they so choose. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, usually abbreviated as NAACP, is one of the oldest and most influential Civil rights organizations The National Rifle Association, or NRA, is a non-profit ( 501(c(4) group dedicated to the protection of the Second Amendment of the

See also

External links

References

Books

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b About Us. The Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. The Federalist Society. Retrieved on 2008-03-09. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 590 - Bahram Chobin is crowned as king Barham VI of Persia.
  2. ^ Board of Directors. About Us. Federalist Society. Retrieved on 2008-04-09. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 193 - Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum (in the Balkans)
  3. ^ Our Background. The Federalist Society. Retrieved on 2007-08-25. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the
  4. ^ a b Volokh, Eugene (June 3, 2001). Our Flaw? We’re Just Not Liberals. Washington Post. Retrieved on 2007-08-25. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the
  5. ^ Right Wing Organizations. People For The American Way (May 2006). Retrieved on 2007-08-25. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the
  6. ^ Batkins, Sam (2004-08-12). "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Events 1099 - First Crusade: Battle of Ascalon - Crusaders under the command of Godfrey of Bouillon defeat Fatimid ABA Retains Little Objectivity in Nomination Process. Center for Individual Freedom. Retrieved on 2006-08-20. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine
  7. ^ Lindgren, James. "Yes, the ABA Rankings Are Biased", Wall Street Journal, 2001-08-06. Year 2001 ( MMI) was a Common year starting on Monday according to the Gregorian calendar. Events 1538 - Bogotá, Colombia, is founded by Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada. Retrieved on 2006-08-21. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1192 - Minamoto Yoritomo becomes Seii Tai Shōgun and the De facto ruler of Japan.  
  8. ^ ABA Ratings of Judicial Nominees. ABA Watch. Federalist Society (1996-07). Retrieved on 2006-08-20. Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 636 - Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control of Syria and Palestine
  9. ^ Lott, Jr. , John R. (January 25, 2006). Pulling Rank. New York Times. Retrieved on 2007-08-25. Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1248 - The Dutch city of Ommen receives city rights and fortification rights from Otto III the
  10. ^ Choi, Stephen; Gulati, Mitu (2003). Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. "Who Would Win a Tournament of Judges (Draft)". Boalt Working Papers in Public Law (19): 96. University of California. The University of California ( UC) is a Public university system in the state of California.  
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