Notre Dame Law School’s Private Law Workshop Engages Students with Cutting-Edge Legal Scholarship

This spring, Notre Dame Law School hosted the Private Law Workshop, led by Professor Sadie Blanchard. The seminar introduced students to emerging scholarship at the forefront of private law through direct engagement with leading legal scholars.

Building on students’ foundational understanding of contracts, torts, and property, the workshop invited participants to explore deeper theoretical and contemporary questions shaping private law. Through a combination of preparatory readings and in-depth discussions of works in progress, students engaged critically with new ideas before participating in colloquia with guest scholars, offering a unique opportunity to engage with ongoing legal scholarship.

This year’s distinguished guest speakers and their lecture topics included:

Samuel Estreicher, the Dwight D. Opperman Professor of Public Law at the New York University School of Law, and Aneil Kovvali, an associate professor at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, presented their paper, Union and Corporate Political Activism: The Problem of Dissent. The paper examines how union and corporate political activism can compel dissenting workers and shareholders to support positions they oppose.

Deborah Widiss, a professor and the John F. “Jack” Kimberling Chair at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law, presented her paper, The Sexual Harassment Silo, which examines legal reforms addressing sexual harassment.

Matthew Bodie, the Robins Kaplan Professor at the University of Minnesota Law School, presented his paper, Rights and Remedies for Worker Data.

Rachel Arnow-Richman, the inaugural Gerald A. Rosenthal Chair in Labor & Employment Law at the University of Florida Levin College of Law, presented her paper, Defusing Disclaimers, which tackles the ubiquitous problem of employer-drafted “disclaimers.”

Cynthia Estlund, the Crystal Eastman Professor of Law at the New York University School of Law, presented her paper, Neo-Republican Theory and the Law of Work.

Noah Zatz, a professor of law and labor studies at the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law, presented his paper, Retaliation Law as Disruption Rights.

Stewart Schwab, the Jonathan and Ruby Zhu Professor of Law and former Allan R. Tessler Dean at Cornell Law School, presented his paper, Employment Law from a Law and Economics Perspective.

The Private Law Workshop is known for fostering a dynamic environment where students engage directly with influential scholars and evolving legal ideas. By bridging foundational doctrine with cutting-edge research, the course equips students to think critically about the future of private law. The Private Law Workshop is offered annually at Notre Dame Law School.