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Prof. Tani L’07 leads Law School’s Legal History Consortium through historic times

February 16, 2021

The Legal History Consortium, jointly sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School and the Penn’s Graduate History Department, was formed to promote interdisciplinary research, scholarship, and education in law and history. The Consortium exemplifies the Law School’s commitment to an interdisciplinary approach to legal education and its firm belief that the next generation of lawyers will be those who are not just superbly trained in law, but also have a deeper understanding of related fields that complement and enhance their expertise.

Karen M. Tani L’07 recently returned to the Law School as the Seaman Family University Professor and has taken on the role of coordinating the Consortium. Tani is the first graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s JD/PhD program in American Legal History. Her research and scholarship focus on social welfare law, administrative agencies, the role of rights in the modern American State, and the history of disability law in the late 20th century. Tani holds a joint appointment in Penn’s History Department.

Other Law School faculty members working together in the Consortium, who specialize in American History and are committed to training graduate students in the best tradition of interdisciplinary work, include:

The Consortium sponsors a speaker series, a joint degree program in law and history, and conferences. Because conferences and similar events are on hold at the moment because of COVID-19 precautions, the Consortium is currently focused on its virtual series.

“The Legal History Consortium continues to convene the Legal History Workshop,” said Tani, “spotlighting cutting-edge research and hosting leading scholars in the field.”

This Spring’s workshop guests are Franita Tolson, University of Southern California Gould School of Law; Stephen Kantrowitz, University of Wisconsin, Madison; Catherine Evans, University of Toronto; Kate Masur, Northwestern University; and Sarah Milov, University of Virginia.

Read more about the Legal History Consortium, its scholarship and research, and offerings.