UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Paul Clement, the 43rd solicitor general of the United States, will visit Penn State Law on Nov. 9 for a conversation about the 2017-18 Supreme Court term—a term during which Clement himself argued six cases before the court.
Moderated by Associate Dean of Clinics and Experiential Learning Michael Foreman, the conversation will focus on the major cases from the high court’s last term, plus a look at the 2018-19 term as well as discussion about Clement’s approach to his appellate practice.
The event will begin at 1:30 p.m. in the Sutliff Auditorium of the Lewis Katz Building on Penn State’s University Park campus. A reception will follow. This event is free and open to the public; however, advance registration is required.
Clement is a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Clement served as the 43rd solicitor general of the United States from June 2005 until June 2008. Before his confirmation as solicitor general, he served as acting solicitor general for nearly a year and as principal deputy solicitor general for over three years.
He has argued over 90 cases before the United States Supreme Court, including McConnell v. FEC, Tennessee v. Lane, Rumsfeld v. Padilla, Credit Suisse v. Billing, United States v. Booker, MGM v. Grokster, ABC v. Aereo, and Hobby Lobby v. Burwell. He has argued before the Supreme Court 30 times in just the last five terms. Clement has argued more Supreme Court cases since 2000 than any lawyer in or out of government. He has also argued many important cases in the lower courts, including Walker v. Cheney, United States v. Moussaoui, and NFL v. Brady.
Clement’s practice focuses on appellate matters, constitutional litigation, and strategic counseling. He represents a broad array of clients in the Supreme Court and in federal and state appellate courts. He has undertaken substantial pro bono engagements in the Supreme Court, such as twice successfully representing the defendant in Bond v. United States and successfully representing the Omaha Tribe in Nebraska v. Parker, the guardian ad litem in Adoptive Couple v. Baby Girl, and the defendant in Sekhar v. United States.
Clement is a native of Cedarburg, Wisconsin, and a graduate of its public schools. He received degrees from Georgetown University, Cambridge University, and Harvard Law School, where he was the Supreme Court editor of the Harvard Law Review.
Following law school, Clement clerked for Judge Laurence H. Silberman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and for Associate Justice Antonin Scalia of the U.S. Supreme Court. After his clerkships, he went on to serve as chief counsel of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on the Constitution, Federalism and Property Rights.
Clement is a distinguished lecturer in law at the Georgetown University Law Center, where he has taught in various capacities since 1998, and a distinguished lecturer in government at Georgetown University. He also serves as a senior fellow of the Law Center’s Supreme Court Institute.