Clint Bolick
Encyclopedia
Clint Bolick is an American attorney and the director of the Goldwater Institute
's Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation in Phoenix, Arizona
.
A legal pioneer in a number of areas, Bolick is perhaps best known for his leadership in defending state-based school choice programs. He has argued and won significant cases in both state and federal courts, winning school choice victories in the Supreme Courts of Wisconsin
, Ohio, and Arizona
, as well as in Zelman v. Simmons-Harris
before the Supreme Court of the United States
.
in 1979 and received his J.D.
from the University of California, Davis
in 1982.
, a national non-profit educational policy group advocating school choice programs across the United States
. Bolick is a co-founder and former vice president of the libertarian
public interest law firm Institute for Justice
. He is research fellow at Stanford University
's Hoover Institution
.
While working for the Landmark Legal Foundation
, Bolick led the defense for the first Wisconsin
school voucher program.
Bolick often cites the interests of low-income schoolchildren in inadequate urban public schools as a focus of his school choice
advocacy.
Bolick was an assistant at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
when current Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas
was EEOC chairman.
Bolick successfully argued Granholm v. Heald
, the 2005 U.S. Supreme Court case striking down regulatory barriers to direct interstate shipment of wine to consumers.
In 2006, Bolick was the recipient of a Bradley Prize, an honor bestowed annually on public intellectuals and academics by the Lynne and Harry Bradley Foundation for excellence in the Foundation's stated mission of "strengthening American democratic capitalism."
Bolick also served as Of Counsel
to the Rose Law Group in Scottsdale, Arizona
Bolick currently serves as the director of the Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation at the Goldwater Institute. The Goldwater Institute's Center for Constitutional Litigation is the first of its kind and a new avenue for free-market organizations to advance freedom in the states. Bolick helped draft model legislation known as the Health Care Freedom Act that seeks to preserve the right of individuals to pay for health care directly instead of being compelled to enroll in a government-sponsored insurance plan. Arizona and Oklahoma voters approved a version of the Health Care Freedom Act in their respective November 2010 general elections. Also in November 2010, voters in Arizona, South Carolina, South Dakota and Utah adopted a Bolick-drafted measure called Save Our Secret Ballot
, which guarantees workers the right to a secret-ballot vote in union-organizing elections.
. His most recent nonfiction book is David’s Hammer: The Case for an Activist Judiciary (Cato Institute
, April 2007).
Bolick published his first novel, Nicki’s Girl, in 2007.
Goldwater Institute
The Goldwater Institute is a Phoenix, Arizona-based conservative public policy research organization established in 1988. The president is Darcy A. Olsen. The Goldwater Institute advances public policies with emphasis on lower taxes, limited government spending, school choice, and a reduction in...
's Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation in Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
.
A legal pioneer in a number of areas, Bolick is perhaps best known for his leadership in defending state-based school choice programs. He has argued and won significant cases in both state and federal courts, winning school choice victories in the Supreme Courts of Wisconsin
Wisconsin Supreme Court
The Wisconsin Supreme Court is the highest appellate court in the state of Wisconsin. The Supreme Court has jurisdiction over original actions, appeals from lower courts, and regulation or administration of the practice of law in Wisconsin.-Location:...
, Ohio, and Arizona
Arizona Supreme Court
The Arizona Supreme Court is the state supreme court of the U.S. state of Arizona. It consists of a Chief Justice, a Vice Chief Justice, and three associate justices. Each justice is appointed by the governor of Arizona from a list recommended by a bipartisan commission. Justices stand for...
, as well as in Zelman v. Simmons-Harris
Zelman v. Simmons-Harris
Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, , was a case decided by the United States Supreme Court which tested the allowance of school vouchers in relation to the establishment clause of the First Amendment....
before the Supreme Court of the United States
Supreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
.
Education
Bolick was graduated from Drew UniversityDrew University
Drew University is a private university located in Madison, New Jersey.Originally established as the Drew Theological Seminary in 1867, the university later expanded to include an undergraduate liberal arts college in 1928 and commenced a program of graduate studies in 1955...
in 1979 and received his J.D.
Juris Doctor
Juris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
from the University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
The University of California, Davis is a public teaching and research university established in 1905 and located in Davis, California, USA. Spanning over , the campus is the largest within the University of California system and third largest by enrollment...
in 1982.
Career
Bolick previously served as the president and general counsel of the Alliance for School ChoiceAlliance for School Choice
The Alliance for School Choice is the largest organization in the United States promoting school choice programs. The Alliance for School choice supports the creation and expansion of school voucher, corporate tax credit, and other school choice programs...
, a national non-profit educational policy group advocating school choice programs across the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Bolick is a co-founder and former vice president of the libertarian
Libertarianism
Libertarianism, in the strictest sense, is the political philosophy that holds individual liberty as the basic moral principle of society. In the broadest sense, it is any political philosophy which approximates this view...
public interest law firm Institute for Justice
Institute for Justice
The Institute for Justice is a 501 non-profit libertarian public interest law firm in the United States. Its mission is to provide pro bono legal advice and representation, litigating strategically to pursue its goal of a rule of law under which individuals can control their destinies as free and...
. He is research fellow at Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
's Hoover Institution
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace is a public policy think tank and library founded in 1919 by then future U.S. president, Herbert Hoover, an early alumnus of Stanford....
.
While working for the Landmark Legal Foundation
Landmark Legal Foundation
The Landmark Legal Foundation is non-profit 5013 conservative legal advocacy group, with a $1 million annual budget. The President is Mark Levin. Through litigation and direct interfacing with government agencies, it advances a platform of limited government...
, Bolick led the defense for the first Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
school voucher program.
Bolick often cites the interests of low-income schoolchildren in inadequate urban public schools as a focus of his school choice
School choice
School choice is a term used to describe a wide array of programs aimed at giving families the opportunity to choose the school their children will attend. As a matter of form, school choice does not give preference to one form of schooling or another, rather manifests itself whenever a student...
advocacy.
Bolick was an assistant at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is an independent federal law enforcement agency that enforces laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, perceived intelligence,...
when current Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas
Clarence Thomas is an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. Succeeding Thurgood Marshall, Thomas is the second African American to serve on the Court....
was EEOC chairman.
Bolick successfully argued Granholm v. Heald
Granholm v. Heald
Granholm v. Heald, 544 U.S. 460 , was a court case decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in a 5-4 decision that ruled that laws in New York and Michigan that permitted in-state wineries to ship wine directly to consumers, but prohibited out-of-state wineries from doing the same, were...
, the 2005 U.S. Supreme Court case striking down regulatory barriers to direct interstate shipment of wine to consumers.
In 2006, Bolick was the recipient of a Bradley Prize, an honor bestowed annually on public intellectuals and academics by the Lynne and Harry Bradley Foundation for excellence in the Foundation's stated mission of "strengthening American democratic capitalism."
Bolick also served as Of Counsel
Of counsel
Of counsel is often the title of an attorney who is employed by a law firm or an organization, but is not an associate or a partner. Some firms use titles like "counsel," "special counsel," and "senior counsel" for the same concept...
to the Rose Law Group in Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale, Arizona
Scottsdale is a city in the eastern part of Maricopa County, Arizona, United States, adjacent to Phoenix. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, as of 2010 the population of the city was 217,385...
Bolick currently serves as the director of the Scharf-Norton Center for Constitutional Litigation at the Goldwater Institute. The Goldwater Institute's Center for Constitutional Litigation is the first of its kind and a new avenue for free-market organizations to advance freedom in the states. Bolick helped draft model legislation known as the Health Care Freedom Act that seeks to preserve the right of individuals to pay for health care directly instead of being compelled to enroll in a government-sponsored insurance plan. Arizona and Oklahoma voters approved a version of the Health Care Freedom Act in their respective November 2010 general elections. Also in November 2010, voters in Arizona, South Carolina, South Dakota and Utah adopted a Bolick-drafted measure called Save Our Secret Ballot
Save Our Secret Ballot
The Save Our Secret Ballot, Inc. is a 501 conservative advocacy organization created to promote states to pass constitutional amendments that would ban card check legislation. Former U.S...
, which guarantees workers the right to a secret-ballot vote in union-organizing elections.
Awards
The recipient of many honors, Bolick was named one of three Lawyers of the Year in 2003 by American Lawyer. His most recent book, "David’s Hammer", was chosen for the June 2007 Lysander Spooner Award for Advancing the Literature of Liberty. In 2008 he received the Champion of Law and Liberty award from the Legal Times, which honored him for upholding the legal profession's core values and fighting to expand liberties and protect civil rights.Writings
Bolick is the author of Voucher Wars: Waging the Legal Battle Over School Choice, and The Affirmative Action Fraud: Can We Restore the American Civil Rights Vision?, both published by the Cato InstituteCato Institute
The Cato Institute is a libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, who remains president and CEO, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the conglomerate Koch Industries, Inc., the largest privately held...
. His most recent nonfiction book is David’s Hammer: The Case for an Activist Judiciary (Cato Institute
Cato Institute
The Cato Institute is a libertarian think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1977 by Edward H. Crane, who remains president and CEO, and Charles Koch, chairman of the board and chief executive officer of the conglomerate Koch Industries, Inc., the largest privately held...
, April 2007).
Bolick published his first novel, Nicki’s Girl, in 2007.
External links
- Podcast featuring Bolick Bolick discusses judicial activism on EconTalkEconTalkEconTalk is a weekly podcast hosted by professor Russell Roberts at George Mason University. Roberts interviews guests—often professional economists—on topics in economics....
. - Horizon Video Bolick debates the school-choice issue with ASU law professor Paul Bender.
- Goldwater Institute Center for Constitutional Litigation