Professor Phil Lee

Professor Philip Lee
(202) 274-7343
philip.lee@udc.edu

Philip Lee
Professor of Law

B.A., Duke University 1996 (magna cum laude); J.D., Harvard Law School 2000; Ed.M., Harvard Graduate School of Education 2012; Ed.D., Harvard Graduate School of Education 2013.

Philip Lee is a professor of law at UDC David A. Clarke School of Law. He teaches Property I and II, Constitutional Law I, Torts II, Education Law, and Race and the Law. Professor Lee has won the “Outstanding Faculty Award” for teaching. He has served as faculty advisor to the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, American Constitution Society, National Association Against Police Brutality, Academic Collaboration for Excellence, and Black Law Students Association’s Moot Court Competition Team. He has also been a Visiting Lecturer on Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, teaching on education law topics.

Prior to starting his law teaching career, Professor Lee earned his doctorate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where he was a Harvard University Presidential Scholar and a student convocation speaker. While a doctoral student, he was counsel of record for an amicus curiae brief in support of the respondents in Fisher v. University of Texas, a case before the U.S. Supreme Court that posed a challenge to race-conscious admissions in higher education. In addition, Professor Lee taught a course at Harvard titled Race, Law, and Educational Access.

Before starting his doctoral studies, he was the Assistant Director of Admissions at Harvard Law School, where he was a member of the admissions committee and led the office’s diversity outreach initiatives for four years. He also served as an adjunct faculty member at New England Law | Boston, teaching appellate advocacy to second year law students in the fall semesters for two years. Prior to his teaching and administrative work at Harvard and New England Law, he was a trial attorney for five years—working first as an Assistant Corporation Counsel in the Commercial and Real Estate Litigation Division at the New York City Law Department and later as an associate at a white-collar criminal defense boutique in Manhattan.

Professor Lee is a magna cum laude Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Duke University in psychology and sociology, with a minor in religion, and holds a J.D. from Harvard Law School, where he interned at Harvard Defenders, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boston, and the Criminal Justice Institute. He is admitted to practice law in the state of New York and the commonwealth of Massachusetts, federal courts in New York and Massachusetts, and before the Supreme Court of the United States.

Professor Lee’s research and writing centers on academic freedom, diversity and educational access, school law (K-12), higher education history and law, and property law and race.

Articles | Books and Book Chapters | Legal Briefs | Other Publications | Presentations | Media Quotes and Citations | Social Media

Articles

Books and Book Chapters

Legal Briefs

  • Amicus Curiae Brief in support of Respondents in Fisher v. Univ. of Texas (11-345) on behalf of Harvard Graduate School of Education Students for Diversity (an official student organization), Counsel of Record before the Supreme Court of the United States (filed on August 9, 2012).

Other Publications

Presentations

  • The Role of Courts in Federal Education Policy, presented to a group of master’s and doctoral students from Teachers College of Columbia University as part of the Federal Policy Institute’s class (virtual) (January 4, 2021).
  • The Social Construction of Race, presented at Mosaic IP Law and Policy Roundtable Conference (virtual) (October 30, 2020).
  • Discrimination and the Law, presented at a panel discussion for the 26th Annual National Asian Pacific American Conference on Law and Policy, Cambridge, MA (February 1, 2020).
  • A Critical Race Theory Analysis of Educational Inequality in America, presented at a Race, Equity, and Leadership in Schools training at the Harvard Graduate School of Education in Cambridge, MA (May 14, 2019).
  • Higher Education at its Best, presented as a closing keynote speech to the New England Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers in Newport, RI (November 9, 2018).
  • The Legal Framework of Race-Conscious Admissions, presented on a panel titled, Perspectives on Selective Admissions, at the Harvard Mahindra Humanities Center in Cambridge, MA (October 25, 2018).
  • The Betrayal of Brown v. Board of Education (1954), presented as a keynote speech to a group of public school superintendents from across the US as part of the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Urban Superintendents Program Convening in Washington, DC (February 2, 2018).
  • The Role of Courts in Federal Education Policy, presented to a group of master’s and doctoral students from Teachers College of Columbia University as part of the Federal Policy Institute’s class in Washington, DC (January 9, 2018).
  • A Critical Race Analysis of Educational Inequality, presented at a professional development training for educators at Brookline Public Schools in Brookline, MA (November 10, 2017).
  • The Vicious Legacy of White Supremacy as an Institutional, Not Individualized Issue, presented at a conference titled, Racial Justice Reform After Obama: Reconsidering Goals and Means, at the University of Virginia School of Law in Charlottesville, VA (June 6, 2017).
  • A Critical Race Theory Analysis of Educational Inequality in America, presented at a Race, Equity, and Leadership in Schools training at the Harvard Graduate School of Education in Cambridge, MA (March 23, 2017).
  • Soft Power, Hard Knockout: The Asian American Punch, presented at a keynote panel discussion for the 23rd Annual National Asian Pacific American Conference on Law and Public Policy at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, MA (February 4, 2017).
  • Japanese American Internment: Past or Prologue?, presented for an event sponsored by the UDC Asian Pacific American Law Students Association in Washington, DC (Jan. 25, 2017).
  • Blackacre’s Heirs: Forced Partition Sales and African American Land Dispossession, presented to law faculty at UDC School of Law, in Washington, DC (January 18, 2017).
  • The Role of Courts in Federal Education Policy, presented to a group of master’s and doctoral students from Teachers College of Columbia University as part of the Federal Policy Institute’s class in Washington, DC (January 10, 2017).
  • The Lessons of Dixon v. Alabama (5th Cir. 1961), presented at a panel discussion as part of a symposium titled, From Protest Movements of the 1960s to #Blacklivesmatter, sponsored by the UDC Law Review in Washington, DC (April 7, 2016).
  • Taught Mock Class on Ozawa v. U.S. (1922) at the National Diversity Pre-Law Conference in Washington, DC (April 1, 2016).
  • Keynote Speaker at A Conversation on Race, Racism, and Equity sponsored by Hartford Public Schools in Hartford, CT (March 19, 2016).
  • Teaching Race in the Classroom, presented to UDC LLM students in Washington, DC (February 4, 2016).
  • The Role of Courts in Education, presented to a group of master’s and doctoral students from Teachers College of Columbia University as part of the Federal Policy Institute’s class in Washington, DC (January 12, 2016).
  • Academic Freedom at American Universities, presented to UDC law students at a presentation sponsored by the American Constitution Society in Washington, DC (November 19, 2015).
  • Academic Freedom in a New Age and A Contract Theory of Academic Freedom, presented at two panel presentations at the American Association of University Professors’ annual conference on the state of higher education in Washington, DC (June 12, 2015).
  • Higher Education as a Public Trust, presented during Higher Education Law Roundtable at University of Houston Law Center in Houston, TX (May 18, 2015).
  • On Institutional Racism, presented at an event titled, Confronting Institutionalized Racism: Real Steps to End Police Brutality and Fix Our Criminal Justice System, organized by the National Association Against Police Brutality in Washington, DC (April 22, 2015).
  • Why Diversity Matters, presented at a panel presentation at the National Diversity Pre-Law Conference in Washington, DC (April 10, 2015).
  • The Case of Dixon v. Alabama, a video presentation through The Voice, a video web series created by Teachers College Record at Columbia University (March 20, 2015).
  • The Socio-Legal Construction of Race in America, presented to UDC college students in Washington, DC (February 27, 2015).
  • Law School or Justice School? Connecting the Dots between Harvard Law School and Ferguson, presented during a panel discussion at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, MA (February 13, 2015).
  • Race and Social Movements at Harvard Law School: A Retrospective, presented at a panel discussion at Harvard Law School, in Cambridge, MA (February 12, 2015).
  • Identity Property: Protecting the New IP in a Race-Relevant World, presented during a panel on property law for Mid-Atlantic People of Color (MAPOC) Conference at West Virginia College of Law in Morgantown, West Virginia (January 31, 2015).
  • Identity Property: Protecting the New IP in a Race-Relevant World, presented to law faculty at UDC School of Law, in Washington, DC (October 1, 2014).
  • Revisiting Whiteness as Property, presented during a junior faculty works-in-progress workshop at Marquette Law School in Milwaukee, WI (September 12, 2014).
  • Revisiting Whiteness as Property, presented during a panel on property law and theory at the Southeast Association of Law School’s New Scholars Workshop at Amelia Island, FL (August 2, 2014).
  • An Introduction to Critical Race Theory, presented during an event hosted by hosted by the UDC School of Law’s Asian Pacific American Law Student Association, National Lawyers Guild, Black Men’s Law Society and Latin Law Student Association in Washington, DC (March 18, 2014).
  • Harvard Graduate School of Education Convocation Speech, presented at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA (May 30, 2013).
  • Asian Americans and Affirmative Action, co-presented during Asian American Awareness Month at Harvard Medical School in Boston, MA (May 14, 2013).
  • The Implications of Fisher v. University of Texas for Higher Education Admissions, co-presented at Harvard Graduate School of Education Diversity Dialogue in Cambridge, MA (March 28, 2013).
  • Law as a Lever for Educational Reform, presented to Ed.L.D. students at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA (October 17 and 24, 2012).
  • The Legal Framework for Diversity in Higher Education Admissions, presented to Ed.L.D. students at Harvard Innovation Lab in Boston, MA (April 19, 2012).
  • Diversity in Higher Education Admissions, co-presented at Harvard Graduate School of Education Diversity Dialogue in Cambridge, MA (March 30, 2012).
  • Law and the Modern University from the Gilded Age to the Rights Revolution, presented on panel at History of Education Society’s Annual Conference in Chicago, IL (November 4, 2011).
  • Critical Race Theory and the Legal Construction of Whiteness, presented to Ed.L.D. students at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA (November 16, 2011).
  • Civil Rights, Equity, and Excellence in Pre-K-16 Education, presented at two Harvard Ed.L.D. proseminar classes at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA (October 5 and 12, 2011).
  • The Courts, Equal Protection, and Schools, presented at Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Teacher Education Program in Cambridge, MA (June 16, 2011).
  • Seeing Class in the Classroom: Socioeconomic Status and Education, co-presented at Harvard Graduate School of Education Diversity Dialogue in Cambridge, MA (March 30, 2011).
  • Race and Culture in Schooling, co-presented at roundtable discussion at the Harvard Graduate School of Education Student Research Conference in Cambridge, MA (March 26, 2010).
  • Revisiting the History of Discrimination against Asian Americans, presented at the 16th Annual Harvard Asian Pacific American Conference on Law and Public Policy at Harvard Law School in Cambridge, MA (February 27, 2010).
  • How Can We Frame the Topic of Race to Encourage Discussion and Learning in the K-20 Classroom and Beyond?, co-presented at the Harvard Graduate School of Education Alumni of Color Conference in Cambridge, MA (February 27, 2010).

Media Quotes and Citations

  • Ben Lewis & Kidus Mezgebu, Episode 1: Why Do We Divide and How Divided Are We?, Bridges or Walls, Apple Podcast, Jan. 2, 2021.
  • Chris Villani, Barrett Puts Affirmative Action in Play as Harvard Case Looms, Law360, Oct. 6, 2020.
  • Vimal Patel, The New “In Loco Parentis,” Chron. of Higher Ed., Feb. 18, 2019.
  • Misako Hida, Fueling the Flames of a Dilemma: The Truth Behind the [Racial] Division Crisis in the U.S., Weekly Toyo Keizai, Sep. 2, 2017 (Japanese print publication).
  • Michael Feldstein, Muy Loco Parentis: How “Freakouts” Over Student Privacy Hamper Innovation, Chron. of Higher Ed., Feb. 2, 2016.
  • Hank Reichman, Repercussions of the Salaita Case, Academe Blog, July 5, 2015.
  • Tatiana Schlossberg, Night of Drug Overdoses Jolts Liberal Traditions on Wesleyan Campus, N.Y. Times, March 16, 2015.

Social Media

Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/author/philip_lee
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Philip-Lee-287589631264989/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/profphillee
SSRN: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/cf_dev/AbsByAuth.cfm?per_id=1737655
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ProfPhilLee

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