Early Career Scholars Medal
Early Career Scholars Medal
Every other year, The American Law Institute awards the Early Career Scholars Medal to one or two outstanding early-career law professors whose work is relevant to public policy and has the potential to influence improvements in the law. The purpose of the award is to encourage practical scholarly work and to publicize the work of the honorees by sponsoring conferences on issues related to their work. Honorees are also asked to speak at an Annual Meeting. A list of the recipients can be found below. Please note that the law schools listed are those at which the recipient was affiliated at the time of the award presentation.
2023 Recipients
Leah Litman, University of Michigan Law School
Professor Litman teaches and writes on constitutional law, federal courts, and federal sentencing. Her research examines unidentified and implicit values that structure the legal system, the federal courts, and the legal profession.
Early Career Scholar Recipient Leah M. Litman of the University of Michigan Law School presented at the 2024 ALI Annual Meeting on the topic of remedial essentialization.
Crystal S. Yang, Harvard Law School
Professor Yang's teaching and research interests center around empirical law and economics, particularly in the areas of criminal justice and consumer bankruptcy.
Professor Yang will present at a future Annual Meeting.
2021 Recipients
Ashley S. Deeks, University of Virginia School of Law
Professor Deeks' primary research and teaching interests are in the areas of international law, national security, intelligence and the laws of war.
Early Career Scholar Recipient Ashley S. Deeks (UVA Law) gave a presentation at the 2023 ALI Annual Meeting on “The Double Black Box: National Security, AI and Democratic Accountability.”
Francis X. Shen, University of Minnesota Law School
Professor Shen's scholarship focuses on empirical and interdisciplinary research at the intersection of law and the brain sciences. His additional research areas of focus are criminal law and crime policy, and education law and policy.
Early Career Scholar Recipient Francis X. Shen (Harvard Law and Harvard Med) gave a presentation at the 2023 ALI Annual Meeting on “How Neuroscience Will Change the Law.”
2019 Recipients
Michelle Wilde Anderson, Stanford Law School
Professor Anderson is a scholar of state and local government law, and regional governance. Her work combines legal analysis, empirical research, and a deep understanding of institutions and communities to shed light on phenomena such as geographically-concentrated poverty and municipal fiscal distress.
The Tuesday morning session of the 2019 Annual Meeting began with the presentation of the 2019 Early Career Scholars Medal to Co-Recipient Michelle Wilde Anderson (Stanford Law), presented by ALI Early Career Scholars Medal Committee Chair Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar (Supreme Court of California). Anderson then spoke to ALI membership on the difficulties faced in uniting and aiding economically challenged and legally stunted areas of the country. A transcript of the speech is available here.
David Pozen, Columbia Law School
Professor Pozen teaches and writes about constitutional law and information law, among other topics. Much of his constitutional scholarship identifies situations in which public law practices are not working as desired and tries to help legal actors understand them better and respond in more candid and constructive ways.
Early Career Scholar Recipient David Pozen (Columbia Law School) gave a presentation at the 2022 ALI Annual Meeting on the topic of constitutional polarization. Introductory remarks are provided by ALI Director Richard L. Revesz. The paper on this topic is available for download here.
2017 Recipients
Colleen V. Chien, Santa Clara University School of Law
Professor Chien's scholarship focuses on domestic and international patent law and policy issues, and she has already played an important role in helping to formulate public policy on intellectual property and innovation, privacy, open government, and civil liberties.
The Tuesday morning session of the 2018 ALI Annual Meeting began with remarks from 2017 Early Career Scholars Medal Co-Recipient Colleen V. Chien (Santa Clara Law). Special Committee Chair Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar (Supreme Court of California) introduced Chien, who spoke about her scholarship on domestic and international patent law and policy issues, as well as her work on clemency. A transcript of the speech is available here.
Daniel Schwarcz, University of Minnesota Law School
Professor Schwarcz's research focuses on insurance law and regulation, spanning issues such as solvency regulation, consumer protection, employer-sponsored health insurance, and insurance coverage litigation.
The Wednesday morning session of the 2017 Annual Meeting included the presentation of the Early Career Scholars Medal to Co-Recipient Daniel Schwarcz (Minnesota Law), with introductory remarks from Committee Chair Mariano-Florentino Cuéllar (Supreme Court of California) and ALI President Roberta Cooper Ramo (Modrall Sperling). The presentation of the Medal was followed by Schwarcz’ presentation on “Modernizing Consumer Protection Regulation in Insurance,” discussing the evolution of insurance regulation. A transcript of the speech is available here.
2015 Recipients
Elizabeth Chamblee Burch, University of Georgia School of Law
Professor Burch's research focuses on class actions and large-scale, non-class aggregation, often drawing from fields beyond law including social psychology, behavioral law, and economics.
The Monday afternoon session of the 2015 Annual Meeting included the presentation of the Early Career Scholars Medal (previously known as the Young Scholars Medal) to Co-Recipients Elizabeth Chamblee Burch (UGA Law) and Michael N. Simkovic (Seton Hall Law), with introductory remarks from Committee Chair Goodwin Liu (Supreme Court of California) and ALI President Roberta Cooper Ramo (Modrall Sperling). The presentation of the Medal was followed by a presentation by Burch on her research on class actions and large-scale, non-class aggregation. A transcript of the speech is available here.
Michael Simkovic, Seton Hall Law School
Professor Simkovic's research focuses on the intersection between law and finance, with a particular emphasis on credit markets, financial regulation, and taxation.
The Wednesday morning session of the 2016 Annual Meeting included remarks from ALI Early Career Scholars Medal (previously known as the Young Scholars Medal) Co-Recipient Michael N. Simkovic (Seton Hall Law). Special Committee Chair Goodwin Liu (Supreme Court of California) introduced Simkovic, who spoke on the topic of “What Can We Learn From Credit Markets.” A transcript of the speech is available here.
2013 Recipients
Adam J. Levitin, Georgetown Law Center
Professor Levitin was recognized for his work on financial regulation and the recent crisis in mortgage foreclosures.
Levitin presented at the 2013 Annual Meeting on the topic of debt collection.
Amy B. Monahan, University of Minnesota Law School
Professor Monahan was recognized for scholarship that centers on the intersection of health care reform and public-sector pensions.
Monahan presented at the 2014 Annual Meeting on “The Law and Politics of Public Pensions.”
2011 Recipients
Oren Bar-Gill, New York University School of Law
Professor Bar-Gill's medal recognizes his insights into consumer psychology, which are the basis for his proposal of specific legal solutions to match specific problems in the markets for cell phones, subprime mortgages, and credit cards.
Bar-Gill presented at the 2011 Annual Meeting on “Consumer Psychology and Consumer Protection – Credit Cards, Mortgages and Beyond.”
Jeanne C. Fromer, New York University School of Law
Professor Fromer was honored for her work exploring the claiming systems of patent and copyright law, as well as forum shopping in patent litigation.
Fromer presented at the 2012 Annual Meeting on the Intellectual Property Clause.