The Yale Law School Center for Private Law promotes teaching and research in contract, property, and tort, as well as other fields adjacent to traditional private law, such as consumer law, corporate finance, bankruptcy, arbitration, and intellectual property. The Seminar in Private Law, the Private Law Clinic, and the center’s other programming together form a hub of activity for students, faculty, and the broader legal community interested in private law theory and practice.
The Center is directed by Daniel Markovits1, Guido Calabresi Professor of Law, together with Abby Lemert2, Yale’s Fellow in Private Law, and Anthony Sampson3, the Clinical Fellow in Private Law.
The Seminar in Private Law, which meets each spring term, brings speakers from academia and practice to the Law School to present papers organized around a common theme that crosses disciplinary and doctrinal boundaries. Students may enroll in the seminar for credit, but all sessions are open to the broader law school community and generally attract large audiences.
The Private Law Clinic has remained one of the law school’s most popular clinical offerings since its launch in 2022. The clinic offers students the chance to deeply engage with legal theory and scholarship while also providing a rare window into the opaque world of private plaintiff-side practice. Through our partnerships with leading law firms and our diverse docket spanning many substantive areas, the clinic has become the go-to destination for students who want to learn how to use private law to effect positive change.
In addition, the center sponsors speakers and mentors-in-residence to provide students with examples of career paths in private law. A series of informal student lunches provides students with further information and advice on how best to prepare for careers in private law. The center convenes additional events—lectures, roundtables, panels, and symposia—to provide further opportunities for addressing prominent and pressing issues that concern private law, as these arise.
Contact Us
For questions about the Center, write to us at private.law@yale.edu.