The Forum 2024-25

The Forum, sponsored by Latham & Watkins, presents discussions on current events, legal and public policy issues, and intellectual ideas. The programs feature experts from within and outside the Law School, and time is generally allowed for questions from the audience.

Fall 2024 Schedule

 

Supreme Court (P)review

Wednesday, September 18, 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

Each year, this program highlights major rulings from the Supreme Court’s recently concluded term as well as potentially significant cases on tap for the upcoming term. There is no shortage of material. Among the headline-making opinions handed down over the summer were decisions related to presidential immunity, the administrative state, access to medication abortion and emergency abortion care, guns, and restrictions on the homeless. Already teed up for October Term 2024 are cases concerning parental rights and gender-affirming care, the First Step Act, gun regulation, and the Americans with Disabilities Act. And then there’s the emergency or “shadow” docket, which continues to be active, drawing criticism and scrutiny. The Court itself as an institution has also been the subject of extraordinary attention, including calls for it to be reformed. At this Forum, panelists with a range of experience and perspectives will tackle these topics, and we’ll leave time for questions from the audience.

Panelists

  • Kelsi Corkran, Supreme Court Director, Institute for Constitutional Advocacy and Protection, Georgetown University Law Center
  • Ann Marimow, Supreme Court Correspondent, Washington Post
  • Roman Martinez, Partner, Latham & Watkins

Moderator

  • Melissa Murray Frederick I. and Grace Stokes Professor of Law, NYU Law; Co-host, Strict Scrutiny podcast

Watch the full video

 

The Administrative State in Turmoil

Wednesday, October 9, 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

At this Forum, the current general counsel of the US Department of Health and Human Services will join a leading attorney in private practice (and former top federal regulatory official) to discuss the implications of recent US Supreme Court rulings that promise to refashion the administrative state. While the decision to overturn Chevron has attracted the most attention, it was just one of several cases that cabined the role of federal agencies and opened the door to new avenues for challenging government regulation. The ultimate effect of these rulings is ambiguous. They may impose meaningful obstacles on government administrators, or agencies may have anticipated and planned around the Court’s rulings. They may create opportunities for businesses to challenge unfavorable regulations, but at the same time, encourage attacks on long-standing rules upon which businesses predictably rely. Two NYU Law faculty members who are experts in administrative law will moderate this discussion, which will explore the on-the-ground consequences of these momentous decisions.

Participants

  • Samuel R. Bagenstos, General Counsel, US Department of Health and Human Services
  • Boris Bershteyn, Partner, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom; former acting Administrator of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs

Co-Moderators

Watch the full video

 

The Housing Affordability Crisis

Wednesday, October 16, 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

The housing affordability crisis that has long dominated policy debates in New York City and other high-cost areas across the country is now a major issue in the presidential election. At this Forum, experts will explore what the federal government’s role in making housing more affordable could and should be. Panelists will discuss what policy choices are best made at the federal rather than state or local level (which also implicates what obligations states have to control their local governments’ land use decisions). They will also assess current proposals for federal interventions, along with other ideas that probably should be on the agenda. Participants in this program will offer a range of views about the legal, financial, and implementation risks and opportunities the proposed policies pose, as well as the effects they might have on the allocation of power between the federal and state governments and on the political process.

Panelists

  • Louise Carroll, Partner and Co-Chair of the Affordable Housing and Community Development Practice, Katten Muchin Rosenman
  • Andrew Fine, Chief of Staff and Policy Director, Open New York
  • Lucy Joffe, Associate Commissioner for Housing Policy, New York City Department of Housing Preservation & Development
  • Donald H. Layton, Senior Visiting Fellow from Practice, Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, NYU

Moderator

  • Vicki Been ’83, Judge Edward Weinfeld Professor of Law, NYU Law; Faculty Director, Furman Center for Real Estate and Urban Policy, NYU

Watch the full video

 

Trump, Round Two: What to Expect

Wednesday, November 13, 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

What can we expect from a second Trump presidency? A panel of NYU Law faculty members will assess this question on multiple fronts, including civil liberties, the justice system, national security and foreign policy, and democracy. What will the Trump administration likely try to do in each of these areas, and what meaningful ways exist to check its power? As usual with Forums, we will leave time for questions from the audience.

Panelists

  • Deborah Archer, Margaret B. Hoppin Professor of Clinical Law, NYU Law; President, American Civil Liberties Union
  • Ryan Goodman, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Professor of Law, NYU Law; Founding Co-editor-in-chief, Just Security
  • Vanita Gupta ’01, Scholar in Residence, NYU Law; Associate Attorney General of the United States, 2021–24

Moderator

  • Samuel Issacharoff, Bonnie and Richard Reiss Professor of Constitutional Law, NYU Law; Author, Fragile Democracies

Watch the full video

 

Spring 2025 Schedule

 

All the President’s Men: The Realpolitik of Running the Government

Wednesday, January 29, 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

The president may be the head of the government. But the president’s right to shape its workforce is not absolute. The Constitution’s advice and consent clause involves the Senate in the appointment of senior officials, and more than two million civilian workers are employed under civil service laws that protect their hiring and firing from political interference. Donald Trump has railed against this “Deep State,” which he believes undermined his policies during his first term. Returning to office now, he has threatened to skirt congressional oversight and vowed to dismantle government bureaucracy. At this Forum, panelists with extensive expertise on the role of the Senate and government staffing will discuss how effective these legal checks have been on presidential power and how they may come into play with the incoming administration.

Panelists

  • Sarah Binder, Professor of Political Science, The George Washington University
  • Bob Kerrey, US Senator from Nebraska, 1989–2001
  • Christina Kinane, Assistant Professor of Political Science, Yale University
  • Gregg Nunziata, Executive Director, Society for the Rule of Law; General Counsel, Office of US Senator Marco Rubio, 2013–2016; Chief Nominations Counsel, Senate Judiciary Committee, 2005–2008

Moderator

Watch the full video

 

State AGs on Justice, Law, and Policy in the Trump Era

Wednesday, February 5, 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

Acting individually and collectively, state attorneys general have long played a critical role in shaping law and policy and pursuing justice. How do states’ top law enforcers think about their roles as a new federal administration gets underway? What are their chief concerns? How do state AGs think about their relationship with the federal government? What issues can state AGs tackle across partisan lines—where is there room for bipartisan state AG coalitions? On a practical level for law students, what should they consider in contemplating a career in a state AG office? For this Forum, we’ve convened a panel of state attorneys general to discuss these and other issues, and to take audience questions. Former United States Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta ’01 will lead the conversation.

Panelists

Moderator

  • Vanita Gupta ’01, Distinguished Scholar in Residence, NYU Law; Associate Attorney General of the US, 2021–2024

Watch the full video

 

The Department of Justice Then and Now

Wednesday, March 5, 1:10 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

Presidents have long pursued policy prerogatives through the Department of Justice, but traditionally there’s been a clear dividing line between those and DOJ enforcement decisions. At this Forum, experts who have served in senior positions in the White House and DOJ will assess the degree to which that has now changed. Among the topics they’ll discuss: What is the origin of and reason for DOJ’s measure of independence? How has this worked as a practical matter given the department’s mix of political and career employees, and how is the current administration observing those lines? What lessons should we draw from the case against Mayor Eric Adams? And what can other institutional actors, including judges and legislators, do in response to the unfolding developments?

Co-hosted by the Reiss Center on Law and Security, NYU Law

Panelists

  • Vanita Gupta ’01, Distinguished Scholar in Residence, NYU Law; Associate Attorney General of the US, 2021-24
  • Lisa Monaco, Distinguished Scholar in Residence, Reiss Center on Law and Security, NYU Law; Deputy Attorney General of the US, 2021-25
  • Breon Peace ’96, US Attorney, Eastern District of New York, 2021-25

Moderator

  • Trevor Morrison, Dean Emeritus, Eric M. and Laurie B. Roth Professor of Law, and Faculty Co-Director, Reiss Center on Law and Security, NYU Law; Associate White House Counsel, 2009

Watch the full video

 

Regulating Social Media: Is it Lawful, Feasible, and Desirable?

Wednesday, March 19, 1:10 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

This will be a pivotal year for technology regulation in the United States and around the world. The European Union is already regulating social media platforms based on perceived harms they cause. In the US, regulatory proposals at the federal level will likely include renewed efforts to repeal or reform Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Meanwhile, states such as Florida and Texas have tried to restrict content moderation by major platforms. At this Forum, experts will debate the following: Is it lawful, feasible, and desirable for government actors to regulate social media platforms to reduce harmful effects on US democracy and society?

This program is co-hosted by Just Security and the Center for Business and Human Rights, NYU Stern

Debaters

  • Daphne Keller, Director, Program on Platform Regulation, Cyber Policy Center, Stanford Law School
  • Michael H. Posner, Jerome Kohlberg Professor of Ethics and Finance, NYU Stern

Moderators

  • Tess Bridgeman ’10, Co-Editor-in-Chief, Just Security, NYU Law
  • Ryan Goodman, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz Professor of Law and Founding Co-Editor-in-Chief, Just Security, NYU Law

Watch the full video

 

The DOGE Era: Impoundment, Data Privacy, and the Administrative State

Wednesday, April 9, 1:10 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

The advent of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in the new administration has dramatically shifted how the administrative state operates along a number of dimensions. Agencies are being directed to close, curtail operations, or lay off large portions of their workforce irrespective of their level of Congressional appropriations. Taxpayer and other personally identifiable data that was previously available to only limited numbers of civil servants in tightly controlled environments is now being more widely viewed by political appointees, with further expansions of data sharing being considered. In part, DOGE advocates say these actions are justified by problems like fraudulent payments, antiquated and costly information technology, poor service, and mounting budget deficits. What is the likely impact on these concerns? What are the risks? What is the status and likely outcome of litigation? How may the federal budget process change over time in response? What should be the agenda for government reform and rebuilding in the years ahead? At this Forum, experts who have served in the Biden and Obama administrations will discuss these and other issues.

  • Wally Adeyemo, Carnegie Distinguished Fellow, Institute of Global Politics, Columbia University; Deputy Secretary, US Department of Treasury, 2021–2025
  • Shalanda Young, Distinguished Scholar in Residence, NYU Law; Director, Office of Management and Budget, 2022–2025

Moderators

  • Lily Batchelder, Robert C. Kopple Family Professor of Taxation, NYU Law; Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy, US Department of Treasury, 2021–2024
  • David Kamin '09, Charles L. Denison Professor of Law, NYU Law; Deputy Director and Deputy Assistant to the President, National Economic Council, 2021–2022

 

Why Inspectors General Matter

Wednesday, April 16, 1:10 1:10–2:25 p.m.

Vanderbilt Hall, Greenberg Lounge

In what media reports called a “Friday night massacre,” President Donald Trump fired more than a dozen inspectors general (IGs) on January 24. This thrust many questions into the limelight: Who are inspectors general, and what do they do? What degree of independence do they have under the various statutes that, since 1978, have established them in dozens of agencies with a mandate to detect and prevent waste, fraud, and abuse in government—and how might that independence be curtailed by the current Supreme Court? While Trump is not the first president to institute a mass purge of IGs, how should his move be viewed in the context of other actions he has taken, including removal of others in positions to check executive authority—such as the top legal officers in the military—and the creation of the Department of Government Efficiency? Are there any reforms that Congress should enact to protect the ability of IGs to function as agency watchdogs? At this Forum, three former IGs, including two just ousted by Trump and one who has published a recent book about IGs, will consider these and other questions.

Moderator