The Dirty Dozen: Are They the Worst Supreme Court Cases in the Modern Era?

Policy Forum

July 31, 2008 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM EDT

Auditorium/Wintergarden

Featuring co-author William Mellor, President and General Counsel, Institute for Justice; Ilya Shapiro, Senior Fellow in Constitutional Studies at the Cato Institute and Editor-in-Chief, Cato Supreme Court Review; David Barron, Professor of Law, Harvard University; Doug Kendall, Founder and President, Constitutional Accountability Center. Moderated by Amanda Frost, Assistant Professor of Law, American University.

Released to great acclaim in May 2008, The Dirty Dozen: How Twelve Supreme Court Cases Radically Expanded Government and Eroded Freedom analyzes 12 U.S. Supreme Court decisions that, according to coauthors Robert Levy of the Cato Institute and William Mellor of the Institute for Justice, changed the course of American history away from constitutional government. In addition, The Dirty Dozen provides insights into the proper role of the Court and calls for judicial engagement to remedy these harmful decisions. The book has rapidly become the catalyst for an energetic, wide-reaching debate about the Supreme Court, generating an extensive range of opinions among legal professionals, concerned non-lawyers, and Court followers about the 12 cases, their impact, and the role of the Court. The Cato Institute and the American Constitution Society are pleased to provide a public platform for this important debate. Leading practitioners and academics from different perspectives will discuss the cases and the authors’ legal analyses. Please join us for what promises to be a dynamic event made even more significant by the historic Court decisions that have been handed down since the book’s publication only 2 months ago.