James Wilson Institute on Natural Rights and the American Founding

In a new exclusive for Anchoring Truths, scholar Nils A. Haug speaks to how "even those Founders not fully committed to Judeo-Christian tenets acknowledged the seminal importance of canonical Jewish principles." Read it now: https://lnkd.in/ek9baPQf

We welcomed our 2025 James Wilson Winter Fellows on Saturday! They will spend the rest of the week delving into the first principles of moral and legal judgment in historic Old Town Alexandria.

We are thrilled to announce our Winter 2025 James Wilson Fellowship Faculty! Co-Directors Hadley Arkes and Gerry Bradley will be joined by Dr. Ryan Anderson, Prof. David Forte, Prof. Justin Dyer, and our Deputy Director Garrett Snedeker.

Join JWI in welcoming Nate Wertjes as part of our Winter 2025 Fellowship Class! Nate is a 2L at Notre Dame Law School. During his 1L summer, he was a judicial intern for the Honorable John K. Bush of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit and a part-time research assistant for Professor Nicole Garnett. During his 2L summer he will serve as a summer associate at Holtzman Vogel in Washington, D.C. After graduation, he will clerk for the Honorable Lawrence VanDyke of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, and then return to clerk for the Honorable John K. Bush. He is currently a staff editor for the Notre Dame Law School Law Review and a member of the Federalist Society. Prior to law school he worked for the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty and was a John Jay Institute Fellow. He graduated with honors from John Brown University with a degree in Theology. In his free time, Nate enjoys hiking and cooking with his wonderful wife Gloria. https://lnkd.in/e6dtjnpD

Join JWI in welcoming Lieutenant Jacob R. Weaver as part of our Winter 2025 Fellowship Class! LT Weaver is a judge advocate in the United States Navy. He currently serves as trial counsel at Region Legal Service Office Southwest, where he is responsible for liaising with law enforcement, investigating criminal activity, and prosecuting federal crimes. Prior to this role, LT Weaver functioned as the deputy staff judge advocate for Naval Base Coronado. He clerked for the Honorable Edith H. Jones of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and the Honorable Charles R. Eskridge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas. LT Weaver holds a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School and a B.A. in history from Hillsdale College. https://lnkd.in/e6dtjnpD

Join JWI in welcoming Grant Strobl as part of our Winter 2025 Fellowship Class! Grant is an Assistant Solicitor General in the Office of the Nebraska Attorney General, Michael T. Hilgers. In that capacity, he represents the state in matters involving constitutional and administrative law questions. He also authors legal opinions and advises state agencies. Previously, he clerked for Judge Edith H. Jones on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit and Judge David J. Porter on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. Grant earned a Juris Doctor degree, with honors, from the University of Chicago Law School. For over a decade, Grant has been an activist for common-sense, conservative ideas. While a student at the University of Michigan, Grant led several initiatives. Most notably, he led an initiative in 2016 opposing the University’s gender pronoun mandate by choosing “His Majesty” as his identity, which prompted thousands of his peers to choose similarly absurd identities in protest. From 2017 to 2023, Grant served as the National Chairman of Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), a project of Young America’s Foundation. He continues to serve on YAF’s board of governors. https://lnkd.in/e6dtjnpD

Join JWI in welcoming Tyler Shannon as part of our Winter 2025 Fellowship Class! Tyler is a law clerk for Judge John Bush of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. He previously clerked for Judge Paul Matey of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and Judge Patrick Wyrick of the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma. Tyler attended George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School and received his bachelor’s degree from Liberty University. He has written on religious liberty and the Sixth Amendment. https://lnkd.in/e6dtjnpD

Join JWI in welcoming Adie Schlenker as part of our Winter 2025 Fellowship Class! Adie is currently a student at South Texas College of Law Houston and will graduate in May 2025. She currently serves as research assistant to Professor Josh Blackman and is president of the STCL Student Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society. She also is a member of the South Texas College of Law moot court team and the South Texas College of Law Review. Adie previously interned at First Liberty Institute and for the Honorable Matthew J. Kacsmaryk of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas. Adie is also an alumna of the Blackstone Fellowship class of 2024. In August 2025, Adie will clerk for the Honorable Reed C. O’Connor of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, and in August 2027, she will clerk for the Honorable James C. Ho of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Between clerkships, she will be a Gregory S. Coleman Fellow in the Solicitor General's division of the Office of the Attorney General of Texas. Adie received her bachelor’s degree in Government with a minor in Philosophy of Law from the University of Texas at Austin in May 2022. From 2021 through 2023, she served as personal assistant to political commentator, filmmaker, and author Dinesh D’Souza. In the future, she plans to remain in public interest and defend religious freedom. https://lnkd.in/e6dtjnpD

Change the legal culture by supporting the next generation of young lawyers such as Ethan. Donate today: https://lnkd.in/eic6T8mV All donations are MATCHED through 12/31 toward our goal of $75,000!

Change the legal culture by supporting the next generation of young lawyers such as Ellie. Donate today: https://lnkd.in/eic6T8mV All donations are MATCHED through 12/31 toward our goal of $75,000!