Annette Gordon-Reed
Carl M. Loeb University Professor and Charles Warren Professor of American Legal History
Annette Gordon-Reed is the Carl M. Loeb University Professor at Harvard, holding appointments at both the Law School and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. She won the Pulitzer Prize for History and the National Book Award for The Hemingses of Monticello, which reshaped understanding of the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. She has also received the National Humanities Medal and a MacArthur Fellowship. She was the first African American editor of the Harvard Law Review.
Teaching Style
Professor Gordon-Reed brings the perspective of a Pulitzer Prize-winning historian to her law teaching. Her classes weave together legal doctrine with rich historical narrative, and she uses a discussion-based approach supplemented by targeted cold calls. She expects students to engage deeply with primary sources and to think about how historical context shapes legal institutions. Her teaching emphasizes the ways race has been embedded in American legal structures from the beginning.
Cold Call Tips
- 1Engage deeply with the historical primary sources assigned -- Gordon-Reed values careful reading of original documents
- 2Be prepared to discuss how the history of slavery and race shaped foundational legal doctrines in property and constitutional law
- 3Understand the historiographical debates surrounding the topics covered, not just one narrative
- 4Think about how historical understanding should inform contemporary legal interpretation
Areas of Expertise
Education
- B.A., Dartmouth College (History, with high distinction)
- J.D., Harvard Law School
Notable Publications
- The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family (Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award)
- Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: An American Controversy
- On Juneteenth
Research Interests
More Professors at Harvard Law School
Constitutional Law, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, Supreme Court Advocacy
Constitutional Law, Law and Religion, International and Comparative Law, First Amendment
Administrative Law, Constitutional Law, Behavioral Law and Economics, Regulatory Policy
Environmental Law, Administrative Law, Energy Law and Policy, Climate Change Law
Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure, Mass Incarceration
Administrative Law, Constitutional Law, Legislation, National Security Law