Michael J. Klarman (born 1959) is an American legal historian and scholar of constitutional law. Currently, Klarman is the Kirkland & Ellis Professor at Harvard Law School. Formerly, he was James Monroe Distinguished Professor of Law, Professor of History, and Elizabeth D. and Richard A. Merrill Research Professor at the University of Virginia School of Law.
Early life and education Klarman grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, in a Jewish family. His father, Herbert E. Klarman, was a public health economist. He is the brother of investor Seth Klarman."Herbert Klarman, 82, professor, health economist", Baltimore Sun, June 19, 1999.
Klarman holds a J.D. from Stanford Law School, a D.Phil. from Oxford University (where he was a Marshall Scholar) and an M.A. and B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania. His dissertation was titled "The Osborne Judgment: A Legal/Historical Analysis". After his graduation from law school, he clerked for then-Judge Ruth Bader Ginsburg when she was on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit."Michael Klarman to join HLS faculty," Harvard Law School press release, January 24, 2008.
Scholarship
Klarman specializes in the constitutional history of race. He contends that the Supreme Court of the United States has historically been hostile to the rights of minorities and has not consistently enforced constitutional protections for them. Klarman argues that civil rights protections arise out of social mores from which the court takes its cue.
Klarman has also defended political process theory as a method of constitutional interpretation.Klarman, Michael J. (May 1991). "The Puzzling Resistance to Political Process Theory". Virginia Law Review. 77 (4): 747–832. doi:10.2307/1073297. JSTOR 1073297.
Awards 2005 Bancroft Prize
Works Preview. Discussion between Klarman and Michael W. McConnell regarding Brown v. Board of Education
Response to McConnell: Response to Klarman:
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References
External links
"Interview with Michael J. Klarman, Winner of the 2005 Bancroft Prize", History News Network, 4-18-05 "Book Excerpt: Unfinished Business", Virginia Law Review, February 18, 2008