F.B. Wickwire Memorial Lecture: Criticizing Trump Administration Lawyers
This year’s F.B. Wickwire Memorial Lecture in Professional Responsibility and Legal Ethics will be given by W. Bradley Wendel, Edwin H. Woodruff Professor of Law at Cornell Law School.
About the Topic:
Lawyers generally believe in something called the Principle of Nonaccountability, which shields them from criticism for representing unpopular clients. Lawyers also have a stock of explanations or excuses they can offer for choosing to represent such clients: for example, the principle that everybody deserves as lawyer, or the importance of providing a vigorous defense to a criminal accused. But waving off criticism in this peremptory way prematurely ends a conversation that would be beneficial in a democracy that values relationships of accountability between professions and the political community.
In his recent book, Canceling Lawyers, Wendel argued against the Principle of Nonaccountability, saying that the point is not that lawyers are wrongdoers as a matter of identification with their clients, but that lawyers do owe an account that justifies the representation. Importantly, this account must acknowledge that lawyers remain moral agents when acting within their professional role.
Using examples from the second Trump administration, Wendel will discuss what moral accountability would look like for government lawyers involved in implementing these policies.
Time
Starts:
Ends:
Location
Weldon Law Building, Room W104
6061 University Ave.
Cost
Free public event.
