News

Ceremony Celebrates Endowed Chair Appointments

April 02, 2014

Northwestern Law will hold a Faculty Chair Ceremony to recognize the appointment of three faculty members to named professorships. An appointment to an endowed chair is the highlight of an academic career, and these important positions help Northwestern Law attract and retain distinguished faculty. 

Northwestern Law Chair Ceremony
Matthew Spitzer, David Dana and Steven Calabresi

The honored faculty members include, Steven Calabresi, as the Clayton J. and Henry R. Barber Professor of Law, David Dana, as the Kirkland & Ellis Professor of Law, and Matthew Spitzer as the Howard and Elizabeth Chapman Professor of Law. Alumni, faculty, students, and staff are invited to attend the ceremony, which will take place in Lincoln Hall on Thursday, April 10 at 4:00 p.m. with a reception following.  

Calabresi joined the Northwestern faculty in 1990 and has since published more than 60 articles in law reviews. In 1982 Calabresi co-founded The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, a national organization of conservative and libertarian lawyers and law students, and he currently serves as the chair of the Society’s Board of Directors – a position he has held since 1986.

Dana is a leading scholar in the fields of environmental law, property, land use, and professional responsibility. His current scholarly work focuses on a range of topics, including environmental and health risks posed by emerging technologies, climate change adaptation, the foreclosure crisis, and attorney fees and fee alternatives.

Spitzer rejoined the Northwestern University School of Law faculty in July 2013 as the Director of the Searle Center on Law, Regulation, and Economic Growth. His publications are in administrative law, telecommunications regulation, judicial politics, and law and economics.  

The Clayton J. and Henry R. Barber Professorship was established in 2013 in honor of Clayton J. Barber, a 1904 graduate of the Law School, and Henry R. Barber, a 1933 graduate of the Law School.

In 1989, The Kirkland & Ellis Chair and Kirkland & Ellis Research Fund were established by donors including the Kirkland & Ellis Foundation in Chicago and a number of Northwestern Law alumni with ties to the firm.

The Howard and Elizabeth Chapman Professorship was established in 2013 by Howard and Elizabeth Chapman. Howard Chapman is a 1958 graduate of the Law School. The Chapman Professorship is focused in the areas of business law, trial advocacy, trust or estate law.