The James Wilson Institute hosted its first ever Solicitors General Seminar June 2-3. As far as JWI is aware, this Seminar was the first conference ever to be held designed specifically for state Solicitors General to discuss how a framework informed by the Natural Law would inform and strengthen the arguments of these offices. The Seminar gathered 6 sitting state Solicitors General, 3 former Solicitors General, 3 sitting Deputy Solicitors General, and 2 former Deputies. The attendees represented or hailed from 12 states from every corner of the nation.

SGs are often on the forefront of the most pressing legal issues of the day. Even though these lawyers work in different states, analogous cases related to similar issues often surface in their respective courts. JWI hoped that the conference would help the SGs to learn from the strategies and experience of their peers in other states — especially those strategies that rely on the principles of natural justice JWI defends — and to incorporate a “Natural Law-lens” into their offices’ arguments.

The Institute is deeply grateful to James Wilson Fellowship alumni Alan Hurst (Former Solicitor General of Idaho) and Eric Wessan (Solicitor General of Iowa) for their indispensable help organizing the Seminar. As Executive Director Garrett Snedeker expressed in his remarks to open the Seminar, “Alan and Eric worked tirelessly over and above their jobs to select topics for discussion and to encourage their peers among the SGs to attend.”

The SGs and Deputy SGs convened for a series of four seminars led by conference participants alongside JWI’s own Co-Directors Hadley Arkes and Gerry Bradley, as well as Snedeker. The Seminar concluded with a walking tour of Old Town Alexandria led by JWI Managing Director Michael Maibach and a celebratory closing dinner.

Several of the Seminar guests have reached out to share how much they enjoyed the conference. “Thank you for letting me join such a superb, practical, engaging, and well-run event. Hope to see you soon,” one attendee wrote. Another shared that, amidst the challenges of a career in public law, “it’s my colleagues and friends in other states and groups like James Wilson Institute that make the adversity worthwhile.”

The Institute couldn’t be more grateful for the enthusiasm that these Solicitors General brought to the Seminar. We hope that this conference will mark the beginning of a lasting tradition at the James Wilson Institute for years to come.