State courts and constitutions are increasingly in the spotlight as significant sources of rights. In areas ranging from abortion to education to property rights, many state constitutions offer protections that are distinct from and often more expansive than those found in the U.S. Constitution.

Join the Brennan Center for Justice, State Court Report, and the Northwestern University Law Review for a two-day symposium at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law exploring the future of state constitutional rights, including the substantive rights protected by state constitutions, state constitutional amendments, and emerging issues in areas such as LGBTQ+ rights and voting rights.

Produced in partnership with State Court Report and Northwestern University Law Review

Illinois CLE credit for this event is pending. If approved, credit will be offered to in-person participants.

Thursday, November 6, 2025
Check-in and breakfast available8:15 AM - 9:00 AM  
A conversation with Chief Judge Jeffrey S. Sutton, Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit9:00 AM - 10:00 AM

Moderated by Daniel B. Rodriguez, Harold Washington Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

 
Welcome and introduction10:15 AM - 10:30 AM
  • Zachary Clopton, Interim Dean, Daniel Hale Williams Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
  • May Hiatt, Editor-in-Chief, Northwestern University Law Review
  • Michael Waldman, President and CEO, Brennan Center for Justice
 
Voting Rights and Democracy in State Courts10:30 AM - 12:00 PM

Moderator: Sean Morales-Doyle, Director, Voting Rights and Elections Program, Brennan Center for Justice

​​​​​​Panelists:

  • Michael Kang, Class of 1940 Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
  • Hon. Allison Riggs, Associate Justice, North Carolina Supreme Court
  • Miriam Seifter, Richard E. Johnson Bascom Professor of Law, University of Wisconsin Law School
     
 
Lunch served12:00 PM - 1:15 PM  
The Diversity of Rights in State Constitutions1:15 PM - 2:45 PM

Moderator: Alicia Bannon, Director, Judiciary Program, Brennan Center for Justice

Panelists:

  • Ting Ting Cheng, Director of the ERA Project at Columbia Law School’s Center for Gender and Sexuality Law
  • Martha Davis, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Northeastern University School of Law
  • Andrew Hammond, Professor of Law and Harry T. Ice Faculty Fellow, Maurer School of Law
  • Hon. Melissa A. Long, Associate Justice, Rhode Island Supreme Court
  • Anthony Sanders, Director of the Center for Judicial Engagement, Institute for Justice
 
Break and coffee available2:45 PM - 3:15 PM  
Breakout Sessions3:15 PM - 4:30 PM

Breakout sessions are only for in-person attendees.

Breakout Session: Criminal Sentencing and Protections for Incarcerated People

  • Megan Byrne, Staff Attorney, ACLU Capital Punishment Project
  • Lalita Moskovitz, Senior Prisoners' Rights Attorney, ACLU New Mexico
  • Rosemary Nidiry, Senior Counsel, Justice Program, Brennan Center for Justice
  • David Shapiro, Executive Director, MacArthur Justice Center

Breakout Session: Reproductive Rights

  • Sue Frietsche, Executive Director and Director of Litigation, Women’s Law Project
  • Diana Kasdan, Legal and Policy Director for the Center on Reproductive Health, Law, and Policy, UCLA School of Law
  • Karen Thompson, Legal Director, Pregnancy Justice
  • Deborah Tuerkheimer, Class of 1967 James B. Haddad Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

Breakout Session: Economic Rights & Economic Justice

  • Lucien Ferguson, Assistant Professor, Chicago-Kent College of Law
  • Wendy Fields, Principal, Fields Growth Strategies; Former Chief of Staff, SEIU
  • Brian Highsmith, Assistant Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law
  • Andrew H. Ward, Senior Attorney, Institute for Justice

Breakout Session: Addressing Hurdles to Vindicating State Constitutional Rights

  • Michelle Garcia, Deputy Director, New Mexico Legal Aid
  • Marie Miller, Attorney, Institute for Justice
  • Samira Nazem, Interim Managing Director, National Center for State Courts
  • Matthew Segal, Co-Director of State Supreme Court Initiative, American Civil Liberties Union 
  • Kasia Wolfkot, Senior Counsel, Brennan Center for Justice
     
 
Friday, November 7, 2025
Breakfast available9:30 AM - 10:00 AM  
Federalism and Interstate Conflicts10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

Moderator: Zachary Clopton, Interim Dean, Daniel Hale Williams Professor, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

Panelists:

  • Bridget Fahey, Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law School
  • Roderick M. Hills, Jr., William T. Comfort III Professor of Law, NYU School of Law 
  • Adam Sopko, Associate Professor of Law, University of Colorado Law School
  • Julia Spiegel, Founder and CEO, GovAct
     
 
LGBTQ Rights & State Constitutions11:45 AM - 1:00 PM

Moderator: Kara Ingelhart, Clinical Assistant Professor of Law, Director of the LGBTQ+ Rights Clinic, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

Panelists:

  • Akilah Deernose, Executive Director, ACLU of Montana 
  • Whit Washington, Senior Attorney for the Nonbinary & Transgender Rights Project, Lambda Legal 
  • Evan Wolfson, Founder and President, Freedom to Marry
  • Quinn Yeargain, 1855 Professor of the Law of Democracy and Associate Professor of Law, Michigan State University College of Law
 
Lunch served1:00 PM - 2:00 PM  
State Constitutional Amendments and State Conventions2:00 PM - 3:30 PM

Moderator: Wilfred Codrington, Walter Floersheimer Professor of Constitutional Law, Co-Director of Floersheimer Center for Constitutional Democracy, Cardozo Law School

Panelists:

  • Derek Clinger, Senior Staff Attorney, State Democracy Research Initiative
  • Marcus Gadson, Assistant Professor of Law, University of North Carolina School of Law
  • Hon. Caitlin J. Halligan, Associate Judge, New York Court of Appeals
  • Hon. Elizabeth M. Welch, Associate Justice, Michigan Supreme Court
 
Closing and reception3:30 PM - 4:30 PM  

 

  • Alicia Bannon, Director of Judiciary Program, Brennan Center for Justice
  • Megan Byrne, Staff Attorney, ACLU Capital Punishment Project
  • Ting Ting Cheng, Director of the ERA Project at the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Center, NYU School of Law 
  • Derek Clinger, Senior Staff Attorney, State Democracy Research Initiative
  • Zachary Clopton, Interim Dean, Daniel Hale Williams Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
  • Wilfred Codrington, Walter Floersheimer Professor of Constitutional Law, Co-Director of Floersheimer Center for Constitutional Democracy, Cardozo Law School
  • Martha Davis, University Distinguished Professor of Law, Northeastern University School of Law
  • Akilah Deernose, Executive Director, ACLU of Montana
  • Bridget Fahey, Professor of Law, University of Chicago Law School
  • Lucien Ferguson, Assistant Professor, Chicago-Kent College of Law
  • Sue Frietsche, Executive Director and Director of Litigation, Women’s Law Project
  • Marcus Gadson, Associate Professor of Law, University of North Carolina School of Law
  • Michelle Garcia, Deputy Director, New Mexico Legal Aid
  • Hon. Caitlin J. Halligan, Associate Judge, New York Court of Appeals
  • Andrew Hammond, Professor of Law, Harry T. Ice Faculty Fellow, Indiana University Maurer School of Law
  • Brian Highsmith, Assistant Professor of Law, UCLA School of Law
  • Roderick M. Hills Jr., William T. Comfort III Professor of Law, NYU School of Law
  • Kara Ingelhart, Clinical Assistant Professor of Law, Director of the LGBTQ+ Rights Clinic, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
  • Michael Kang, Class of 1940 Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
  • Diana Kasdan, Legal and Policy Director for the Center on Reproductive Health, Law, and Policy, UCLA School of Law
  • Hon. Melissa A. Long, Associate Justice, Rhode Island Supreme Court
  • Marie Miller, Attorney, Institute for Justice
  • Sean Morales-Doyle, Director of Voting Rights and Elections Program, Brennan Center for Justice
  • Lalita Moskovitz, Staff Attorney, ACLU New Mexico
  • Samira Nazem, Interim Managing Director, National Center for State Courts 
  • Rosemary Nidiry, Senior Counsel, Justice Program, Brennan Center for Justice
  • Hon. Allison Riggs, Associate Justice, North Carolina Supreme Court
  • Daniel B. Rodriguez, Harold Washington Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law 
  • Anthony Sanders, Director of the Center for Judicial Engagement, Institute for Justice
  • Matthew Segal, Codirector of State Supreme Court Initiative, American Civil Liberties Union
  • Miriam Seifter, Richard E. Johnson Bascom Professor of Law, University of Wisconsin Law School
  • David Shapiro, Executive Director, MacArthur Justice Center
  • Adam Sopko, Associate Professor of Law, University of Colorado Law School
  • Julia Spiegel, Founder and CEO, GovAct
  • Hon. Jeffrey S. Sutton, Chief Judge, Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
  • Karen Thompson, Legal Director of Pregnancy Justice
  • Deborah Tuerkheimer, Class of 1967 James B. Haddad Professor of Law, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
  • Andrew H. Ward, Senior Attorney, Institute for Justice
  • Whit Washington, Senior Attorney for the Nonbinary and Transgender Rights Project, Lambda Legal
  • Hon. Elizabeth M. Welch, Associate Justice, Michigan Supreme Court
  • Kathrina Szymborski Wolfkot, Senior Counsel, Brennan Center for Justice
  • Evan Wolfson, Founder and President, Freedom to Marry
  • Quinn Yeargain, 1855 Professor of the Law of Democracy, Associate Professor of Law, Michigan State University College of Law