Scott Skinner-Thompson elected to American Law Institute
Skinner-Thompson joins several other current and retired Colorado Law faculty members elected to ALI, including:
- S. James Anaya
- Kristen A. Carpenter
- Ted James Fiflis
- Dean Lolita Buckner Inniss
- Mark J. Loewenstein
- Christopher B. Mueller
- Dar铆a Roithmayr
- Wadie Edward Said
- Andrew Schwartz
- Marianne Wesson
鈥淚鈥檓 truly honored by this recognition and excited to join so many colleagues that I respect on ALI, including many of my colleagues at Colorado Law School who are already members,鈥 Skinner-Thompson said.
Colorado Law Professor Scott Skinner-Thompson has been elected to the American Law Institute, one of the nation鈥檚 most prestigious legal organizations.
Skinner-Thompson, who also serves as associate dean for academic affairs, is among a distinguished group of 38 legal scholars and practitioners selected to join the organization in October 2026.
His election recognizes his influential scholarship, professional accomplishments and contributions to advancing civil rights and constitutional law.
鈥淧rofessor Skinner-Thompson has made tremendous contributions to the legal academy via his scholarship, teaching and service. It is gratifying to see his outstanding work recognized by election to the American Law Institute,鈥 said Dean Lolita Buckner Inniss. 鈥淗is perspectives and expertise will be valuable assets as ALI works to enhance and clarify the law.鈥
Founded in 1923, ALI is an independent organization dedicated to modernizing and improving the law. Its members include judges, attorneys and legal scholars whose expertise helps shape American law.
The organization produces Restatements of the Law, Model Codes and Principles of Law that influence courts, legislatures and legal education nationwide.
鈥淚鈥檓 truly excited to join to help further the ALI鈥檚 mission, particularly as it relates to civil rights,鈥 Skinner-Thompson said. 鈥淢ore specifically, the ALI is currently drafting a Restatement of Constitutional Torts on the use of Section 1983 to enforce constitutional civil rights, and I hope to help with that important project.鈥
Skinner-Thompson joined Colorado Law in 2017. His research and teaching focus on constitutional law, civil rights and privacy law, particularly LGBTQ+ rights and gender-related legal issues. He is also an affiliate faculty member in 麻豆免费版下载Boulder鈥檚 Queer & Trans Studies Program and a senior fellow with the Silicon Flatirons Privacy Initiative.
Skinner-Thompson is the author of Privacy at the Margins, published in 2021, which explores how privacy can serve as a tool of resistance to surveillance and discrimination, particularly for historically marginalized communities.
His scholarship has appeared in leading legal journals, including the Georgetown Law Journal, Michigan Law Review and Northwestern University Law Review. His article 鈥淚dentity by Committee鈥 received a 2024 Dukeminier Award recognizing outstanding scholarship on LGBTQ+ legal issues.
Skinner-Thompson has also earned numerous honors for his scholarship, teaching and service. At Colorado Law, he received the Jules Milstein Scholarship Award and Clifford Calhoun Public Service Award in 2023, the Gordon J. Gamm Justice Award in 2020 and the student-selected Excellence in Teaching Award in 2025.
Before joining Colorado Law, Skinner-Thompson served as an acting assistant professor of lawyering at New York University School of Law.
He earned his J.D. and LL.M. from Duke University School of Law and his bachelor鈥檚 degree from Whitman College. He previously clerked for the Hon. Dolores K. Sloviter on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and the Hon. Robert N. Chatigny of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut.
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