U.S. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito will deliver the Opperman Lecture in the Knapp Center at 3 p.m. this afternoon.
Alito began his legal career as a law clerk for the Honorary Leonard I. Garth of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 3rd Circuit.
Today, Alito serves as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He was nominated by President George W. Bush and was sworn in on Jan. 31, 2006.
The lecture series is named after Dwight D. Opperman, who graduated from the Drake Law School in 1951. In 1988, he endowed and established the Dwight D. Opperman Lecture in Constitutional Law.
According to Lisa Lacher, the director of media relations and public relations at Drake, this lecture is meant to “recognize the importance of constitutional law to the nation and to enhance its emphasis at Drake Law School.”
“This lecture has become one of the most prestigious constitutional law events in the country,” Lacher said.
The Opperman Lecture functions as a national venue for discussing and analyzing constitutional law. This year marks the 12th Opperman Lecture to take place at Drake, the first given in 1988 by Justice Harry A. Blackmun. The lectures typically take place every two years; however, they have taken place in consecutive years.
Distinguished Professor of Law David Walker emphasized the importance of the Opperman Lecture and the significance of Justice Alito being at Drake.
“It’s interesting and valuable to listen to them address a subject in a lecture, follow their reasoning and hear their point of view,” he said. “It’s something not that many people, faculty or students get the opportunity to do.”
Photo: Courtesy of Drake University News
