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took place on Nov. 8, 2025, at Osgoode Hall Law School in downtown Toronto. This inaugural conference of the Rule of Law Global Academic Partnership — a non-partisan collaboration of over 150 law schools worldwide — convened law school deans, academics and other institutional leaders to advance the Rule of Law during these challenging times.

The program focused on four key areas of the Rule of Law Global Academic Partnership: (1) Judicial independence and separation of powers; (2) the role of lawyers and legal education; (3) universities and academic freedom; and (4) due process.

Dean Tamara F. Lawson was on the opening plenary panel of law deans from around the world to discuss the Rule of Law, current challenges, and the role of law schools. Professor Brenda Williams, who leads �鶹���� Law’s Tribal Court Clinic, was also in attendance.

Lawson cited three primary sources in defining the Rule of Law:

1. Quoting the late Bill Neukom, co-founder of the World Justice Project (WJP): “The rule of law is foundational for healthy communities of justice, opportunity and peace.”
2. Tom Bingham’s book, The Rule of Law (page 174): “The Rule of Law is one of the greatest unifying factors, perhaps the greatest, the nearest we are likely to approach to a universal secular religion. The rule of law remains an ideal, but an ideal worth striving for, in the interest of good government and peace, at home and in the world at large.”
3. �鶹���� Law scholar Professor Hugh Spitzer has defined it this way: “Rule of Law has a few key elements: the same laws apply equally to political leaders and community members; the government itself is bound by law; government powers are separated among political actors; the judicial function is independent; and basic human rights are guaranteed to all.”

Lawson’s remarks included numerous thoughts on how law schools can help address these challenges and advance the Rule of Law, including:

• Modernize law school curricula for Rule of Law
• Build resilience in our students.
• Include a Leadership Track — essential training for all lawyer-leaders of the future.
• Share our experts — open-source expertise — via shared dialogues and courses, pilot an open campus model and create free access to the public.
• Expand legal clinics and experiential learning to provide legal representation and resources to individuals experiencing retaliation / abuse of legal process and discriminatory prosecutions.
• Create a global legal tool kit to dismantle false narratives and train culturally proficient lawyers.

Lawson plans to participate at next year’s Rule of Law Global Academic Partnership conference, taking place October 2026 in Copenhagen.

In the meantime, watch for more details about �鶹���� Law’s Symposium called “Neither the Sword nor the Purse: Defending America’s Independent Judiciary and the Rule of Law.” As of now, there are a dozen federal judges participating and the program is still gaining momentum. Scheduled for April 17–18, 2026, at �鶹���� School of Law in Seattle, WA.