The Emanuel Emroch Lecture Series

This lecture series brings engaging and topical speakers to the University of Richmond School of Law for the benefit of students, faculty, and the local community thanks to the Emanuel Emroch Endowment. The endowment was created in honor of Emanuel Emroch, L'31, founder and president of the Richmond and Virginia Trial Lawyers Association and a member of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers. Today, the Emroch Endowment is supported by Emanuel Emroch's son and daughter-in-law, Walter and Karen Emroch.

Past Emroch Lecturers

  • Spring 1985: Prof. Arthur Miller, Harvard Law School - "The Media versus Privacy: A Heavyweight Bout"
  • Spring 1986: The Hon. Jack Weinstein, Chief Judge for the Eastern District of New York - "Improving Expert Testimony"
  • Spring 1987: The Hon. Griffin B. Bell - "Punitive Damages and the Tort System"
  • 1988: The Hon. Irving Younger, Judge & Professor of Law, University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Spring 1989: Alan B. Morrison, Visiting Law Professor at Harvard Law School and Adjunct Professor at New York University Law School - “Of Protective Orders, Plaintiffs, Defendants, and Public Interest Disclosure: Where Does the Balance Lie?”
  • Spring 1990: Professor Eleanor Holmes Norton, Georgetown University Law Center - “Justice and Efficiency: Recognizing the Unmet Goals of the American Dispute System”
  • Fall 1990: Sheila L. Birnbaum - “Most Recent Developments in the Law of Products Liability"
  • Spring 1992: Stanley J. Mosk, Justice, Supreme Court of California - “The Role of State Constitutions in an Era of Big Government”
  • Spring 1994: Professor Harold Hongju Koh, International law scholar and human rights advocate - “Litigating International Human Rights in U.S. Courts”
  • Spring 1995: The Hon. Peter H. Kostmayer, EPA Regional Administration - "Risk and Regulation: How Much is Too Much?"
  • Fall 1998: The Hon Susan Webber Wright - "Uncertainties in the Law of Sexual Harassment"
  • Spring 1996: Professor Christopher J. Greenwood, London School of Economics, University of London - “Bosnia"
  • Spring 1997: Professor Robert M. O’Neil, Director of the Thomas Jefferson Center for the Protection of Free Expression - “Free Speech in Cyberspace: Communications Decency and Beyond"
  • Fall 1998: Susan Webber Wright, Chief Judge, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas - “Uncertainties in the Law of Sexual Harassment"
  • Spring 2000: Michael V. Ciresi - “Tobacco Litigation: New Directions for the New Millennium”
  • Fall 2001: Thomas F. “Mack” McLarty, III - “The Changing Labor Markets of the Western Hemisphere”
  • Fall 2002: Dr. Warren M. Billings - "The Splendid Myth of the Civil Code" OR "Properties of the Elephant: The General Assembly of Virginia, 1619-1699"
  • Spring 2004: Dan Braverman and William Charles Banks - "Jose Padilla, Enemy Combatants, and the Supreme Court"
  • Spring 2005: James Comey - "Fighting Terrorism and Preserving Civil Liberties"
  • Spring 2006: Donelson Forsyth, Jeffrey T. Frederick, Paula L. Hannaford-Agor - "Reining in a Runway Jury: Insights and Tactics"
  • Spring 2007: Elaine Jones - "Social Justice and the Law
  • Fall 2007: Richard Lowry and Susan Estrich - "Society, Law, Culture, and the Election Season"
  • Fall 2008: Laura MacCleery and Reid Cox, “Hard Questions about Soft Money: Campaign Finance Reform and Fiscal Freedom in Today’s Economy”
  • Spring 2011: Panel Discussion with James McCament, Rolf Jundberg Jr., Michael Hethmon, Evan D. Wolf - "The Battle Over Immigration"
  • Spring 2012: Professor Cynthia Ho - "A Tale of Two Patent Views"
  • Fall 2013: Anna Deavere Smith - “The Art of Listening”
  • Spring 2013: Professor Charles J. Ogletree - "Rodriguez at 40: Exploring New Paths to Equal Educational Opportunity"
  • Spring 2015: The Hon. Robert A. Katzman, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit - "Judging Statutes"
  • Spring 2016: Justice Edwin Cameron - "Queer and African: Constitutional Protection for LGBTI Persons in South Africa's Constitution"
  • Spring 2017: The Hon. Robert L. Wilkins - "Long Road to Hard Truth"
  • Fall 2017: Dean Erwin Chemerinsky - "Free Speech on Campus"
  • Spring 2019: Prof. Tracey Meares - "Popular Legitimacy"
  • Fall 2020: Prof. Guy-Uriel Charles - "We the (White) People"
  • Fall 2021: Prof. Mehrsa Baradaran - "The Color of Money"
  • Spring 2022: Prof. Paul Butler - "Chokehold"
  • Spring 2023: Prof. Richard Hasen - "A Constitutional Right to Vote: Why We Need It and How to Get It"