The Rule of Law

The University of St. Thomas Journal of Law and Public Policy

Fall 2025 Symposium: The Rule of Law

Date: Friday, November 21, 2025
Time: 8:30 AM – 3:30 PM (Breakfast and registration begin at 8:00am; Panel 1 begins at 8:45am)
Location: University of St. Thomas School of Law, Minneapolis | Hybrid format (in-person and Zoom)

CLE Credits: An application will be submitted to the Minnesota State Board of Continuing Legal Education for 5.25 CLE Credits.

The University of St. Thomas Journal of Law and Public Policy invites you to attend its Fall 2025 Symposium: The Rule of Law on Friday, November 21, 2025. This full-day hybrid program will convene distinguished scholars, historians, and policy experts from across the nation and around the world to examine one of the most enduring and contested principles of democratic governance.

St. Thomas Journal of Law and Public Policy presents The Rule of Law which will focus on one of the most enduring and contested principles of democratic governance in both domestic and international contexts. The symposium will feature a keynote address and panel discussions exploring the evolving role of the rule of law in both domestic and international contexts. Topics will include executive authority, constitutional interpretation, authoritarianism, international order, and the use of legal processes as instruments of political or economic power. 

Schedule of Events

8:30 – 8:45 a.m.

• Opening Remarks

8:45 – 10:15  a.m.

• Panel 1: Testing the Rule of Law: Technology, History, and the Boundaries of Legal Legitimacy

10:15 – 10:30 a.m.

• Break 

10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

• Panel 2: Rule of Law Under Pressure: Corruption, Sovereignty, and Global Accountability"

12:00 – 1:00 p.m.

• Lunch Break 

1:00 – 1:45 p.m.

• Keynote Address: Law and the Human Condition: Shakespeare’s Lessons on Justice and Moral Order

1:45 – 3:15 p.m.

• Panel 3: Constitutional Strain: Safeguarding the Rule of Law in American Governance

3:15 p.m.

• Closing Remarks