Richard Myers

Biography

Professor Richard Myers is a member of the faculty at Ave Maria School of Law, where he teaches and writes in the areas of constitutional law, antitrust law, bioethics, religious liberty, and natural law. He is widely recognized for his scholarship addressing constitutional interpretation, Catholic social thought, freedom of conscience, family law, and the relationship between law and religion.

Professor Myers earned his Juris Doctor, summa cum laude, from Notre Dame Law School in 1980, graduating first in his class. He received his Bachelor of Arts, summa cum laude, from Kenyon College in 1977 and is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate.

Following law school, Professor Myers served as a judicial clerk to Judge John F. Kilkenny of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He subsequently practiced law with Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue in Washington, D.C., concentrating on antitrust law and appellate litigation.

Professor Myers later transitioned into legal education, teaching at both Case Western Reserve University School of Law and the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law before helping establish Ave Maria School of Law as a member of its founding faculty. He has also taught as a visiting professor at Notre Dame Law School.

His scholarship has appeared in numerous academic journals and law reviews, including publications at Catholic University, Case Western Reserve University, Notre Dame, Washington and Lee, BYU, Elon, and Ave Maria. His academic work has focused extensively on constitutional law, religious liberty, substantive due process, conscience rights, family law, bioethics, physician-assisted suicide, and the philosophical foundations of law.

Professor Myers is also a noted editor and contributor in the fields of Catholic social thought and natural law theory. He served as co-editor of St. Thomas Aquinas and the Natural Law Tradition: Contemporary Perspectives (2004) and co-editor of the Encyclopedia of Catholic Social Thought, Social Science, and Social Policy (2007, 2012).

In addition to his scholarship, Professor Myers has been an active speaker and lecturer at universities, conferences, and symposia nationwide. He previously served as President of University Faculty for Life from 2004 to 2011 and currently serves as its Vice-President. He is also the Executive Secretary of the Society of Catholic Social Scientists.

Education

• J.D., Notre Dame Law School, 1980, summa cum laude
• B.A., Kenyon College, 1977, summa cum laude

Professional Experience

Professor Richard Myers began his legal career as a judicial clerk to Judge John F. Kilkenny of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He subsequently practiced law with Jones, Day, Reavis & Pogue in Washington, D.C., where his work focused on antitrust law and appellate litigation.

Professor Myers later entered academia, teaching at both Case Western Reserve University School of Law and the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law before helping establish Ave Maria School of Law as a member of its founding faculty. He has also taught as a visiting professor at Notre Dame Law School.

Honors & Professional Affiliations

• Pope Pius XI Award, Society of Catholic Social Scientists (2010)
• Phi Beta Kappa, Kenyon College
• President, University Faculty for Life (2004–2011)
• Vice-President, University Faculty for Life
• Executive Secretary, Society of Catholic Social Scientists
• Visiting Professor, Notre Dame Law School

Research Interests

Courses Taught

• Constitutional Law
• Antitrust Law
• Bioethics
• Religious Liberty
• Natural Law

Publications

• Books
• Co-Editor, Encyclopedia of Catholic Social Thought, Social Science, and Social Policy (Michael L. Coulter, Stephen M. Krason, Richard S. Myers & Joseph A. Varacalli eds., 2007, 2012).
• Co-Editor, St. Thomas Aquinas and the Natural Law Tradition: Contemporary Perspectives (John Goyette, Mark Latkovic & Richard Myers eds., 2004).
• Articles
• “The Virtue of Judicial Humility,” 13 Ave Maria Law Review 207 (2015).
• “Re-Reading Roe v. Wade,” 71 Washington & Lee Law Review 1025 (2014).
• “The Implications of Justice Kennedy’s Opinion in United States v. Windsor,” 6 Elon Law Review 323 (2014).
• “Same-Sex Marriage, Education, and Parental Rights,” 2011 BYU Education & Law Journal 303.
• “The Right to Conscience and the First Amendment,” 9 Ave Maria Law Review 123 (2010).
• “Pope John Paul II, Freedom, and Constitutional Law,” 6 Ave Maria Law Review 61 (2007).
• “The Public Policy Doctrine and Interjurisdictional Recognition of Civil Unions and Domestic Partnerships,” 3 Ave Maria Law Review 531 (2005).
• “A Critique of John Noonan’s Approach to Development of Doctrine,” 1 St. Thomas Law Journal 285 (2003).
• “Physician-Assisted Suicide: A Current Legal Perspective,” 1 National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly 345 (2001).
• “The Supreme Court and the Privatization of Religion,” 41 Catholic University Law Review 19 (1991).