A Letter to the UC Davis School of Law Community

April 4, 2025

As members of the UC Davis School of Law faculty, we are writing in our individual capacities to express our concern about current threats to the rule of law and how these threats may negatively affect the study of law, the practice of law in a democratic legal system, and the ability of individuals to access justice. We share this concern with colleagues and law school deans around the country.

Each of us brings different perspectives on what the law is and should be. Diverse viewpoints are a credit to our school and to the value of our engagement. Nonetheless, we are jointly resolute in our view that our legal system, including our elected officials and other government actors, must abide by the rule of law.

Actions that can threaten the rule of law and the fair administration of justice include when the government:

• Punishes or threatens lawyers, law firms, or law school legal clinics based on their lawful and ethical representation of clients disfavored by the government;

• Punishes or threatens to punish people for lawful speech on matters of public concern; or,

• Ignores or tries to evade court orders and appropriate judicial oversight.

Lawyers have special obligations to protect and uphold the rule of law, which includes ensuring the fair and impartial administration of law, providing due process, and respecting the right to peaceful expression. 

We strongly condemn efforts to undermine these basic legal norms. And we applaud the efforts of those in the legal profession to resist efforts to threaten the fair administration of justice and to defend the rule of law.

We know many of our students share our concerns and may have more specific fears about themselves, their friends and families, their colleagues, and their careers. We want to express that we are committed to our roles in teaching and upholding the precepts of a fair and impartial legal system, and to supporting and defending the rule of law.