The Bolch Judicial Institute provides an array of unique educational opportunities for judges, academics, lawyers, and students, including certificate programs, conferences and symposia, workshops, and opportunities for judges to work in residence at Duke Law School.
Listed below are current conferences and programs. For information on these and past conferences, please contact us at bolchjudicialinstitute@law.duke.edu.
Current Programs
Defending the Judiciary
The Bolch Judicial Institute is leading a national effort to mobilize the legal profession to defend judges and the judiciary from a growing wave of unjust and unsubstantiated attacks that threaten judicial independence and diminish public faith in our judicial system.
Mass Tort MDL Certificate Program
This multiday course provides a unique opportunity to gain practical insight, network with key players, and develop the skills and knowledge needed to prepare for leadership roles in multidistrict litigation.
The Trauma-Informed Court
The Bolch Judicial Institute, in partnership with Chief Justice Paul Newby (N.C. Supreme Court) and the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, is developing an educational program for judges and other court administrators on the effects of juvenile trauma. The project receives support from the Weiner Family Foundation, and was the recipient of a 2022-23 Bass Connections grant.
Distinguished Judge in Residence
The Bolch Judicial Institute’s Distinguished Judge in Residence brings outstanding jurists to visit Duke Law School to spend time with faculty and students and to pursue scholarly interests. These visits also offer the Duke Law community the rare opportunity to spend time with and learn from a distinguished judge.
The Francis McGovern Symposium on Civil Litigation
This annual symposium, held in honor of the late Duke Law Professor Francis McGovern, brings together judges, practitioners, and academics to discuss and advance topics related to Professor McGovern’s pioneering work in civil litigation, including multidistrict litigation, mass harms, mediation, legal strategy, settlement, special masters, and class actions.
Raphael Lemkin Rule of Law Guardians
The Raphael Lemkin Rule of Law Guardian program honors remarkable individuals who have made significant contributions to guard and protect the rule of law around the world. As part of this series, live recorded events and personal interviews with the honorees remind us all of the power of an individual to make a difference.
Judicial Administration Roundtable
This academic conference, led by Duke Law Professor Marin Levy, brings together top scholars to share works-in-progress on important questions of court design, procedure, and judicial decision-making. This program is by invitation only.
Coming Soon
Law and Technology for Judges
In partnership with the Federal Judicial Center, the Bolch Judicial Institute offers a three-day survey course geared toward helping federal judges understand and anticipate the ways in which cutting-edge technologies are currently affecting — and likely to affect — the legal world.