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Meet the Spring 2014 Fellows: Mark Wolf

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Introducing our Spring 2014 Fellows

Mark L. Wolf was appointed to the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts in 1985, served as its Chief Judge from 2006 through 2012, and is now a Senior Judge. He has previously served as a member of the Judicial Conference of the United States and Chair of the Committee of District Judges on the Judicial Conference, and on the Judicial Conference Committees on Criminal Law, the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, and Codes of Conduct.

 

Why did you apply to be a Fellow at Harvard University's Institute of Politics? 

I grew and benefited greatly from my participation in the Yale Political Union as an undergraduate and in the IOP while in Law School. I have long had an active interest in encouraging students to learn the sense of joy and fulfillment that can be derived from public service.

This has led me to found three programs which provide about 300 Fellowships a year, two of which are for Boston public school students and the third of which is for healthcare professional students. I also enjoy teaching, in the United States and internationally.

I applied to be an IOP Fellow because I am now in a position to offer students the sort of insights and opportunities that were so important to me. I have also regularly found that idealistic young people refresh my own idealism, which is often challenged by the dispiriting cases I confront in my primary occupation as a United States District Judge.

what can students and participants expect to learn about during your study groups?

My discussion group will focus on "Courts, Judges, and Politics." Courts have a profound influence on the political system, as when they take issues such as abortion or same-sex marriage, out of the democratic process, and on the democratic process itself, as in the case Bush v. Gore and Citizens United. Whether such decisions represent unjustified judicial activism or judges discharging their duty to enforce the Bill of Rights to protect minorities will be on theme of the study group.

We will also discuss the federal prosecution of public corruption and the interdependence of the courts and the media, including in the case of James "Whitey" Bulger in which I presided for many years. Guest speakers will include my former law clerk, who successfully argued the Defense of Marriage Act case in the Supreme Court, and people sentenced and imprisoned in the US and Turkey, who will contrast the integrity of the judicial systems in both countries.

Students can expect to learn about these subjects and also meet speakers who have made their passion for service fulfilling professions as lawyers and in other ways. Hopefully, the students will be inspired to emulate their examples.

Beginning Thursday February 27, Mark Wolf's study group " Courts, Judges and Politics" will be held on Thursdays at 4:00 p.m. in the Faculty Dining Room on the first floor of the Institute of Politics.

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