Harvard at Town Hall: Professor Lawrence Lessig on Constitutional Fidelity & Constraint

Join us for a Town Hall talk with Harvard Law Professor Lawrence Lessig, who will share his latest work, Fidelity & Constraint: How the Supreme Court has read the American Constitution.

The immense age of our nation’s Constitution presents a fundamental challenge for interpreters. After so much time has passed, how do we read such an old document? Legal scholar Lawrence Lessig explores one of the most basic approaches to interpreting the Constitution—the process of translation. With insight from his new book Fidelity & Constraint, Lessig contends that some of the most significant shifts in constitutional doctrine are products of the evolution of the translation process over time. He describes how judges understand their translations as instances of “interpretive fidelity,” framing their judgements in the context of time. Lessig also highlights what he calls “fidelity to role,” a practice by which judges determine if old ways of interpreting the Constitution have become illegitimate because they do not match up with the judge’s perceived role. Lessig not only shows us how important the concept of translation is to constitutional interpretation, but also exposes the institutional limits on this practice. Sit in for a course on constitutional and foundational theory by one of America’s leading legal minds.

          

Date:  Monday, June 17, 2019

Time:  7:30 pm

Location:  Town Hall Seattle

Address:  1119 Eighth Avenue (enter on Eighth Avenue)

Tickets:  $5

Click here to buy tickets

            

Pick up tickets at the door. No refunds after Sunday, June 10.

Questions? Please email Carlos Obando, MBA '83.

This is a partner event, presented by Town Hall Seattle.