Jeffrey L. Fisher

- Professor of Law
- Co-Director, Supreme Court Litigation Clinic
- Room N124, Neukom Building
Expertise
- Civil Liberties
- Constitutional Law
- Criminal Law
- Federal Courts & Federal Jurisdiction
- Media & Press Law
- Separation of Powers
- Supreme Court
Biography
A leading authority on constitutional law, federal courts, and Supreme Court practice, Jeff Fisher’s work at the law school centers on handling cases in the U.S. Supreme Court. He has argued 50 cases in the Court, on issues ranging from criminal procedure to maritime law to civil and human rights.
Professor Fisher’s successes include the landmark cases of Crawford v. Washington and Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts, in which he persuaded the Court to adopt a new approach to the Constitution’s Confrontation Clause; Riley v. California, in which the Court for the first time applied the Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable searches to digital information on smartphones; and Ramos v. Louisiana, which established that the constitutional right to a jury trial requires a unanimous verdict to convict. He has handled other pathmarking cases involving the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, the Sixth Amendment right to an impartial jury free from racial bias, and the Eighth Amendment protection against cruel and unusual punishment. Professor Fisher was also co-counsel for the plaintiffs in Obergefell v. Hodges, in which the Court held that the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees same-sex couples a right to marry.
In addition to his teaching and practice concerning the Supreme Court, Professor Fisher has published numerous articles on various constitutional issues, and he currently is writing a treatise on the Confrontation Clause. He also serves as special counsel to the Supreme Court and Appellate Practice group of O’Melveny & Myers. Before joining the Stanford faculty, he clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens and Judge Stephen Reinhardt of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
Education
- A.B. Duke University 1992
- J.D. University of Michigan Law School 1997
Related Organizations
Courses
Affiliations & Honors
- Co-Chair, Amicus Committee of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Co-Chair, Oral Arguments Committee of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Fellow, American Academy of Appellate Lawyers
- Daily Journal, California Lawyer of the Year, 2021
- Law 360, MVP Award (appellate law), 2020
- Recipient, National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, Robert C. Heeney Memorial Award (organization's highest honor), 2008
- Honoree, The National Law Journal, "The 100 Most Influential Lawyers in America", 2006
- Recipient, Washington Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers William O. Douglas Award (organization’s highest honor), 2005
- Honoree, National Law Journal's "40 Under 40", 2005
- Recipient, Order of the Coif, University of Michigan Law School
Faculty on Point: Prof. Jeffrey Fisher on Digital Privacy and the Riley Decision
News
What the Supreme Court Got Right in the TikTok Decision
Tech Policy Press
Jeffrey Fisher, counsel for a group of TikTok creators and a law professor at Stanford University, had challenged the government’s latter determination during oral arguments. In his opening statement, he claimed that “under the First Amendment, mere ideas do not constitute a national security threat.”
Read More : What the Supreme Court Got Right in the TikTok Decision