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Leading Sociologist Laura Beth Nielsen to Steer ABF into Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Year
July 22, 2026
The American Bar Foundation (ABF) has named Laura Beth Nielsen as its eleventh Executive Director, succeeding Interim Executive Director and ABF Affiliated Research Professor Bryant Garth. She will assume the role September 1 and will be the first woman to lead the organization as it approaches its milestone seventy-fifth anniversary. Nielsen has been a Research… Read More
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Should Courts Shield Jurors from Emotional Evidence? Rethinking Emotion in the Courtroom
September 16, 2026
From cell phone footage and body cameras to new forms of digital media and AI technologies, courts are confronting an expanding range of emotionally evocative evidence—a trend that shows no…
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The ABF Welcomes New Fellows Officers for 2026–27
September 14, 2026
The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation (ABF) have announced new Fellows Officers for the 2026–27 fiscal year. The Fellows are an honorary society of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and…
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The ABF Welcomes Michael H. Byowitz as President of the Board of Directors
September 14, 2026
The American Bar Foundation (ABF) welcomes Michael H. Byowitz as the new president of the ABF’s Board of Directors. His two-year term began September 1, 2026, following his service as…
Featured Event
October 21, 2026
Anthropology and International Affairs, Princeton University
More information coming soon!
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
Upcoming Events
September
30
Daniela Juarez, Alisher Juzgenbayev, and Ana Vasilj
Welcome 2026-28 ABF Doctoral Fellows
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
October
7
Sociology, Northwestern University
The Epistemic Limits of the Law: How Progressive, Bottom-up Legislation Refracts Politics in the Streets of Delhi
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
October
14
Political Science, ABF and Northwestern University
More information coming soon!
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
October
21
Anthropology and International Affairs, Princeton University
More information coming soon!
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
October
28
Anthropology, American University
More information coming soon!
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
View Past Events
September
23
Political Science, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Racial Justice as Transitional Justice: Human Rights and Public Support for Police Reform in the United States
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
September
16
Sociology and Law, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Learning Interpretive Terrains: Legal Aid Workers and their Strategies to Mitigate Punishment
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)
September
9
Law, American Bar Foundation and University of Wisconsin-Madison
Arc of Scholarship Talk: Directions, Inspirations, Obstacles, and Impasses
Hybrid: Virtual/In-Person
(ABF Offices, 750 N Lake Shore Drive, 4th Floor Chicago, IL)