Justice Amy Coney Barrett to deliver Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government lecture
Amy Coney Barrett, associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, will speak at the University of Notre Dame at 4 p.m. Sept. 12 in the Leighton Concert Hall of the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center.
Barrett will engage in a moderated conversation with Vincent Phillip Muñoz, director of Notre Dame’s Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government, on themes related to her soon-to-be-published book, “Listening to the Law.” Barrett will also answer questions submitted by the audience. The event is sponsored by the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government and will serve as the center’s 2025 Jeanie Poole O’Shaughnessy Memorial Lecture. It will also serve as the University’s Constitution Day event.
About Barrett’s campus visit, Muñoz said, “There may be no better way to teach students about the American Constitution than to have them engage directly with a sitting Supreme Court justice. And introducing Notre Dame students to leading Catholic public figures such as Justice Barrett is an important aspect of what we do at the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government. We are honored to host and are looking forward to hearing about her experiences on the court.”
In addition to her public lecture, Barrett will participate in a seminar with the center’s undergraduate Tocqueville Fellows. The seminar will allow students to ask the justice questions and engage with her in a small-group setting.
Lilian Jochmann, a senior student in the Tocqueville Fellowship Program, said, “Tocqueville Fellows receive the unique opportunity to directly interact with and receive mentorship from the center’s guests. Each speaker visit is a chance for us to soak in the wisdom of some of our nation’s most learned scholars and politicians, and to be inspired by their stories and career paths.
“Justice Barrett, a deep and thoughtful jurist, has demonstrated a consistent deference and loyalty to the original understanding of the Constitution. Her commitment to civility and virtue through disagreement, rulings that transcend the simple silos of left/right ideology, and emphasis on the proper role of the judiciary are an inspiration for students like me who aspire to do good through law. I’m incredibly grateful to the center for the opportunity to learn from Justice Barrett in what promises to be one of the most formative experiences of my time at Notre Dame.”
A limited number of tickets will be available to Notre Dame students, faculty and staff with a valid Notre Dame ID at the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center beginning at 2 p.m. Sept. 12. The talk will be livestreamed on the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government’s YouTube channel.
Barrett was appointed a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 2017. President Donald J. Trump nominated her as an associate justice of the Supreme Court, and she took her seat on Oct. 27, 2020. On Sept. 9, 2025, her book, “Listening to the Law: Reflections on the Court and Constitution,” will be published by Sentinel.
Barrett was born in New Orleans on Jan. 28, 1972. She married Jesse M. Barrett in 1999, and they have seven children. She received a B.A. from Rhodes College in 1994 and a J.D. from Notre Dame Law School in 1997. She served as a law clerk for Judge Laurence H. Silberman of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit from 1997 to 1998, and for Justice Antonin Scalia of the Supreme Court of the United States during the 1998 term. After two years in private law practice in Washington, D.C., she became a law professor, joining the faculty of Notre Dame Law School in 2002.
Launched in 2021, the Center for Citizenship and Constitutional Government seeks to cultivate thoughtful and educated citizens by supporting scholarship and education concerning the ideas and institutions of constitutional government.
Contact: Tracy DeStazio, associate director of media relations, 574-631-9958 or tdestazi@nd.edu
Latest ND NewsWire
- University of Notre Dame and FIA team up to reduce online abuse in sportsThe University of Notre Dame has announced a research collaboration with the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile to lead an initiative addressing the rising threat of online abuse in sports. As the governing body for world motor sport and the federation for mobility…
- Notre Dame Research, Under Armour reach historic partnership to pursue innovations in materials, data analytics and human performanceOver the next decade, both organizations will co-invest in research initiatives that span multiple colleges and disciplines, and allow Notre Dame’s faculty, staff and student researchers to work alongside Under Armour personnel to identify research questions and design solutions for impact on campus and beyond.
- Internationally recognized physician Tom Catena to visit Notre DamePhysician, humanitarian and medical missionary Dr. Tom Catena will visit the University of Notre Dame on Nov. 12 (Wednesday) to deliver the 2025 Rev. Bernie Clark, C.S.C., Lecture at 5 p.m. in the Eck Visitors Center Auditorium. Catena’s lecture, titled “Hope and Healing,” is also part of the 2025-26 Notre Dame Forum, which is organized around the theme “Cultivating Hope.”
- On the eve of COP30 in Brazil, Notre Dame convenes faculty in São PauloSince its founding, the University of Notre Dame has sought to address the world’s most pressing challenges through scholarship, partnership and service. Responding to the growing urgency of environmental change requires precisely this kind of collaboration, bringing together universities, researchers and communities to create solutions that are just, sustainable and grounded in shared responsibility for our planet. This November, COP30 will convene in Belem, Brazil. Capitalizing on Notre Dame’s presence in São Paulo, Notre Dame Global and Notre Dame São Paulo will host a conference together with Notre Dame Research and the Notre Dame Deloitte Center for Ethical Leadership (NDDCEL), the week before the international climate summit.
- Catholic Peacebuilding Network releases new report on global mining, using Catholic social teaching lensNotre Dame's Catholic Peacebuilding Network released a new report, Catholic Approaches to Mining: A Framework for Reflection, Planning, and Action, a nearly 50-page report identifying the problems associated with mining — social, economic and environmental among them — and analyzing these issues through Catholic social teaching to provide a path forward for mining-affected communities.
- Karen Deak named executive director of Notre Dame’s IDEA CenterKaren Imgrund Deak has been selected as executive director of the IDEA Center at the University of Notre Dame, where she has served in the interim role since September of 2024. She will lead the unit and oversee the roll out of its recent strategic reorganization. Deak brings to the role knowledge of developing partnerships at the IDEA Center, across the University, and beyond.
