On Thursday, September 26th, the Center for the Constitution and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition (CIT) hosted a conversation with Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh of the United States Supreme Court. The event, moderated by CIT Director J. Joel Alicea, and attended by faculty, students, and alumni of Catholic Law, marks the beginning of another ambitious year of CIT programming, and its first year as a permanent Center at Catholic Law.
Dean Steven C. Payne opened the evening by acknowledging the remarkable impact CIT has had since its launch as a “proof-of-concept project” in 2022.
“We are very happy to recognize that the concept has been proven.”
Dean Payne elaborated on the role CIT has played in the tremendous growth of Catholic Law School over the past few years—funding new faculty, producing renowned scholarship, attracting top prospective students, bringing prestigious scholars and jurors to campus, elevating the profile of Catholic Law in the city, educating future and current lawyers through their Ex-Corde and Aquinas fellowships, and more.
The conversation between Justice Kavanaugh and Prof. Alicea began with a personal acknowledgement by Prof. Alicea:
“It’s especially meaningful for me to host Justice Kavanaugh for this event, because he’s my former teacher. He taught me a class on Separation of Powers at Harvard Law School. I remember vividly the first day of class when
he took out his battered copy of the Constitution—”
Justice Kavanaugh reached into his suit pocket and produced the same, worn book from their interaction years ago at Harvard Law. He waved it briefly to the audience, which responded with laughter, before Prof. Alicea pointed out with a smile: “[T]his was not planned.”
“I don’t travel without it!” Justice Kavanaugh remarked.
The spirited conversation continued from there, with Prof. Alicea’s inquiries covering everything from the jurisprudence of recent Court decisions like Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and United States v. Rahimi, to the relationship between originalism and tradition, the recent strides made by Court decisions upholding religious liberty, and what the Catholic intellectual tradition can contribute to legal education, among others.
The event, the first since CIT’s expansion as a permanent center, and the third to feature a Supreme Court Justice since their 2022 launch, can be viewed here.