Erwin Chemerinsky

Dean and the Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law, Berkeley Law

Erwin Chemerinsky is Dean and the Jesse H. Choper Distinguished Professor of Law at Berkeley Law. Over his academic career, his courses have focused on constitutional law, First Amendment law, federal Courts, criminal procedure and appellate litigation. He also has frequently argued appellate cases, including several in the U. S. Supreme Court. Chemerinsky sits on the ACS Board of Academic Advisors.

Prior to joining Berkeley Law, Chemerinsky was the founding dean and Distinguished Professor of Law, and Raymond Pryke Professor of First Amendment Law, at the University of California Irvine School of Law, with a joint appointment in Political Science. Prior to that, he was the Alston and Bird Professor of Law and Political Science at Duke University. Earlier in his career, he was a professor at the University of Southern California Law School, working as the Sydney M. Irmas Professor of Public Interest Law, Legal Ethics, and Political Science. He has previously taught at the DePaul College of Law and UCLA Law School.

Chemerinsky has authored 10 books, including “The Case Against the Supreme Court,” and “Closing the Courthouse Doors: How Your Constitutional Rights Became Unenforceable.” He co-authored “Free Speech on Campus.” He has also published more than 200 law review articles. He has a weekly column in the Sacramento Bee, and regular columns in the ABA Journal and the Daily Journal. He frequently authors op-eds in national newspapers.

Chemerinsky was named a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2016. The National Jurist magazine named him the most influential person in legal education in the United States in 2017.

Chemerinsky received his J.D. from Harvard cum laude and his B.S. from Northwestern University with highest distinction.