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this point. Amici invested considerable time, ener- needed to ratify the ERA, is precisely what gives
gy, professional skills, or funds in the campaigns to plaintiffs standing here.”
ratify the Equal Rights Amendment. The archivist, >> Winston & Strawn: Chicago managing part-
by refusing to publish the Twenty-Eighth Amend- ner Linda Coberly, chair of the ERA Coalition’s
ment, has single-handedly destroyed the value of Legal Task Force, teamed up with partner Christo-
amici’s labor and the campaign work of other resi- pher Man and associates Linda Greene, Courtney
dents of plaintiff states. Prospectively, the archivist’s Block and Johanna Rae Hudgens for a brief on be-
failure to perform his statutorily mandated minis- half of more than 50 groups supporting the ERA.
terial duty effectively destroys the voice of citizens Those groups include the ERA Coalition, the League
in the democratic process. If he is allowed to pick of Women Voters of the United States and the Na-
and choose which amendments to publish, as he tional Organization for Women.
has done with the Twenty-Eighth Amendment, he What the brief says: “The ERA remains as criti-
eliminates the decision-making authority Article V cal today as it was in 1923—when it was first
assigns to the state legislatures and, consequently, introduced—and in 1972, when a bipartisan su-
renders nugatory the voices of the people who elect permajority in Congress passed it and sent it to the
legislators.” States. And in the years since then, the already pow-
erful public consensus in favor of the ERA has only
>> New York Attorney General Letitia James: continued to grow. The slow progress of the fight for
James’ office led an amicus brief filed on behalf of equality demonstrates that civil rights movements
New York and 17 other states, as well as the Dem- do not happen in a moment in time; they span gen-
ocratic governor of Kansas and mayor of D.C., in erations. The fundamental nature of constitutional
support of the publication of the ERA. equality makes it all the more important to respect
What the brief says: “By refusing to perform the plain language of Article V, which sets out a pro-
his ministerial duty to certify the ERA as a valid cess for amending our Constitution that imposes no
amendment, the archivist undermines the states’ time limits.”
role in the constitutional amendment process. ¦

Amici states have a strong interest in vindicating Jacqueline Thomsen, based in Washington, is a re-
that role and maintaining the effectiveness of their porter covering D.C. federal courts and the legal
ratifications. Indeed, that strong interest, combined side of politics. Contact her at jathomsen@alm.
with the fact that plaintiffs cast the last three votes com and follow her on Twitter @jacq_thomsen.

Online or In Person? Law Schools Diverge
in Fall Semester Plans

By Karen Sloan
Law schools are beginning to unveil more con- on campus varies widely. Many schools have told
crete plans for the fall semester, and they aren’t students that they are prioritizing in-person classes
all following the same playbook. for first-year students, with most or all upper-class
The majority of law schools that have shared their offerings delivered online. Still others have said they
tentative fall plans are pushing forward with a hy- plan to hold some smaller, upper-level seminars and
brid model that offers a mix of online and in-person clinics on campus, but all classes with more than
classes—but the percentage of classes to be offered
¦ Continued on PAGE 22

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