Academic Faculty
Full Time Teaching Faculty
Samuel L. Bray
Professor of LawBiography
Samuel Bray is a legal scholar who teaches remedies, civil procedure, and constitutional law. He joined the University of Chicago faculty in 2025 after serving on the law faculty at UCLA and at Notre Dame.
Bray has written widely on injunctions, declaratory judgments, and the equitable powers of courts. He is the coauthor of two legal textbooks: Ames, Chafee, and Re on Remedies (with Emily Sherwin); and The Constitution of the United States (with Michael Paulsen, Michael McConnell, and Will Baude). Bray is an elected member of the American Law Institute, an adviser on the Restatement (Third) of Torts: Remedies, and a McDonald Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University. He has testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the House Judiciary Committee, and the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States.
Bray graduated from the University of Chicago Law School in 2005 and clerked for then-Judge Michael W. McConnell on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
Education
The University of Chicago Law School
J.D., with honors, 2005
Book Review Editor, University of Chicago Law Review
Bob Jones University
B.A., summa cum laude, 2002
Experience
The University of Chicago Law School
Professor of Law, 2025-present
Notre Dame Law School
John N. Matthews Professor of Law, 2022-2025
Professor of Law, 2018-2022
UCLA School of Law
Professor of Law, 2016-2018
Assistant Professor of Law, 2011-2016
Stanford Law School
Executive Director, Constitutional Law Center, 2010-2011
Columbia Law School
Associate-in-Law, 2008–2009
Mayer Brown
Litigation Associate, Washington, DC, 2006-2008
Judge Michael W. McConnell
Law Clerk, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, 2005-2006
Publications
Books (Author)
- Ames, Chafee, and Re on Remedies: Cases and Materials (4th ed.) (Foundation Press, 2024) (with Emily Sherwin).
- Ames, Chafee, and Re on Remedies: Cases and Materials (3rd ed.) (Foundation Press, 2020) (with Emily Sherwin).
- Ames, Chafee, and Re on Remedies: Cases and Materials (2nd ed.) (Foundation Press, 2018) (with Emily Sherwin).
- The Constitution of the United States (3rd ed.) (Foundation Press, 2017) (with Michael S. Paulsen, Steven Calabresi, Michael W. McConnell & William Baude).cu
- The Constitution of the United States (2nd ed.) (Foundation Press, 2013) (with Michael S. Paulsen & Steven Calabresi & Michael W. McConnell ).
- The Constitution of the United States (1st ed.) (Foundation Press, 2010) (with Michael S. Paulsen & Steven Calabresi & Michael W. McConnell ).
Books (Editor)
- The 1662 Book of Common Prayer: International Edition. (IVP Academic, 2021) (edited with D.N. Keane).
Journal Articles
- "Preliminary Injunctions on a Blank Slate," 101 Notre Dame Law Review __ (2026) (forthcoming). ssrn
- "The Purpose of the Preliminary Injunction," __ Vanderbilt Law Review __ (2025) (forthcoming). ssrn
- "Equity’s Role in Defining Property Rights," 13 Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Journal 77 (2024). ssrn
- "Proper Parties, Proper Relief," 137 Harvard Law Review 153 (2023) (with William Baude). www
- "Getting Into Equity," 97 Notre Dame Law Review 1763 (2022).
- "Equity, Law, and the Seventh Amendment," 100 Texas Law Review 467 (2022). www
- "Debs and Federal Equity Jurisdiction," 98 Notre Dame Law Review 699 (2022) (with Aditya Bamzai).
- "The Mischief Rule," 109 Georgetown Law Journal 967 (2021). www
- "A Parsimonious Equity?: Discussion of Equity: Conscience Goes to Market," 21 Jerusalem Review of Legal Studies 1 (2020). www
- "Against Fiduciary Constitutionalism," 106 Virginia Law Review 1479 (2020) (with Paul B. Miller).
- "The Parable of the Forms," 93 St. John's Law Review 623 (2019).
- "One for All: Are Nationwide Injunctions Legal?," 102 Judicature 70 (2018) (with Amanda Frost). www
- "Foreword: The Future of Qualified Immunity," 93 Notre Dame Law Review 1793 (2018).
- "Remedies, Meet Economics; Economics, Meet Remedies," 38 Oxford Journal of Legal Studies 71 (2018). www
- "Multiple Chancellors: Reforming the National Injunction," 131 Harvard Law Review 417 (2017). www
- ""Necessary AND Proper" and "Cruel AND Unusual": Hendiadys in the Constitution," 102 Virginia Law Review 687 (2016). www
- "On Doctrines that Do Many Things," 18 Green Bag 2d 141 (2015). ssrn
- "Announcing Remedies," 97 Cornell Law Review 753 (2012).
- "Preventive Adjudication," 77 University of Chicago Law Review 1275 (2010). www
- "Power Rules," 110 Columbia Law Review 1172 (2010).
- "Rooker Feldman (1923–2006)," 9 Green Bag 2d 317 (2006).
- "Not Proven: Introducing a Third Verdict," 72 University of Chicago Law Review 1299 (2005). www
Book Sections
- "Of Canon Law and Kings: The Legal Thought of James Ussher (1581–1656)," in Christianity and the Making of Irish Law: Violence, Virtue, and Reason, David McIlroy ed. (Routledge, forthcoming) (with D.N. Keane). ssrn
- "When Catholicism Was Part of the Common Law: The Influence of the Catholic Intellectual Tradition on the Common Law," in Faith in Law, Law in Faith: Reflecting and Building On the Work of John Witte, Jr., Rafael Domingo, Gary S. Hauk & Timothy P. Jackson eds. (Brill, 2024). www
- "Equity Will Not . . .," in Interstitial Private Law, Samuel Bray, John C. Goldberg, Paul B. Miller & Henry E. Smith eds. (Oxford University Press, 2024). www
- "Christianity and Equity," in Oxford Handbook of Christianity and Law, John Witte & Rafael Domingo eds. (Oxford University Press, 2023) (with Paul B. Miller). www
- "Remedies," in Oxford Handbook of New Private Law, Andrew Gold, John C. Goldberg, Daniel Kelly, Emily Sherwin & Henry E. Smith eds. (2021). www
- "Form and Substance in the Fusion of Law and Equity," in Philosophical Foundations of the Law of Equity, Dennis Klimchuck, Irit Samet & Henry E. Smith eds. (Oxford University Press, 2020). www
- "Equity: Notes on the American Reception," in Equity and Law: Fusion and Fission, John C. Goldberg, Henry E. Smith & P.G. Turner eds. (Cambridge University Press, 2019). www
- "Fiduciary Remedies," in Oxford Handbook of Fiduciary Law, Evan Criddle, Paul B. Miller & Robert H. Sitkoff eds. (Cambridge University Press, 2019). www
- "Punitive Damages Against Trustees?," in Research Handbook on Fiduciary Law, D. Gordon Smith & Andrew Gold eds. (2018). www
Other Publications
- "The Supreme Court is Watching Out for the Courts, Not for Trump," New York Times, June 28, 2025.
- "A Declaratory Judgment Against the President?," Yale Journal on Regulation: Notice & Comment, March 14, 2025. www
- "The Concept of the Common Law," University of Chicago Law Review Online, 2025. ssrn
- "The Truth of The Truth of Erasure," Yale Journal on Regulation: Notice & Comment, November 7, 2024. www
- "An Evaluation of Religious Exemptions from COVID-19 Vaccine Requirements," Yale Journal on Regulation: Notice & Comment, December 6, 2021 (with Nathan S. Chapman). www
- "A Response to The Lost History of the “Universal” Injunction," Yale Journal on Regulation: Notice & Comment, October 6, 2019.
- "A Little Bit of Laches Goes a Long Way: Notes on Petrella v. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.," Vanderbilt Law Review En Banc, 2014. www
Presentations
Selected Presentations
- Equity and Change: North American Workshop on Private Law Theory XI, University of California–Berkeley Law School, January 2025 (chapter in planned book). Judicial Administration / Judicial Process Roundtable, Duke Law School, December 2024 (sketch of planned book).
- The Purpose of the Preliminary Injunction: Harvard University Law Faculty Workshop, February 2025. University of Pennsylvania Law Faculty Workshop, February 2025. Duke Law Faculty Workshop, January 2025. University of Virginia Law Faculty Workshop, December 2024. University of Michigan Law Faculty Workshop, November 2024. Northwestern University Law Faculty Workshop, November 2024. University of Chicago Law School Work-in-Progress (WIP), October 2024. University of North Carolina Law Faculty Workshop, September 2024.
- Preliminary Injunction Realism: Festschrift Symposium for Douglas Laycock, University of Texas School of Law, September 2024.
- James Ussher (1581–1656): Great Christian Irish Jurists, Kylemore Abbey, Ireland, May 2024 (presentation with D. N. Keane).
- Christianity and Equity: Moral Theology Colloquium, Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame, February 2024.
- Equity’s Role in Defining Property Rights: Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference, William & Mary Law School, October 2023.
- All Is Not Well with the Preliminary Injunction: University of Alabama Law Faculty Workshop, February 2024. Michigan Public Law Workshop, January 2024. Duke Law School Public Law Workshop, September 2023. University of Virginia Law Faculty Workshop, April 2023. DePaul Law Faculty Workshop, March 2023.
- Getting into Equity: Notre Dame Law Review Symposium: “The Nature of the Federal Equity Power,” Notre Dame Law School (with Paul B. Miller), February 2022. Judicial Administration Roundtable, Duke Law School, December 2021.
- The Mischief Rule: Harvard Law Faculty Workshop, September 2019. University of Richmond Law Faculty Workshop, April 2019.
- Remedies in Private Law: “The Landscape of Private Law,” Harvard Law School [conference for Oxford Handbook of the New Private Law], March 2019.
- “Equity Will Not …”: Interstitial Private Law Workshop, University of Notre Dame, Rome Global Gateway [conference for Interstitial Private Law], November 2022. Judicial Administration Roundtable, Duke Law School, December 2019. Harvard Private Law Workshop, November 2019. Notre Dame Remedies Roundtable, University of Notre Dame, Chicago Global Gateway, June 2019.
- Equity, Law, and the Seventh Amendment: Washington University in St. Louis Law Faculty Workshop, March 2021. Penn State Law Faculty Workshop, March 2021. William & Mary Law Faculty Workshop, March 2019. Yale Law Faculty Workshop, February 2019. Emory Law Faculty Workshop, September 2018. “Equity and Commercial Law,” St. Hugh’s College, Oxford, May 2018. Harvard Public Law Workshop, April 2019. Duke Law Faculty Workshop, February 2018. St. John’s University Law Faculty Workshop, February 2018.
- Equity: Notes on the American Reception: University of Arizona Law Faculty Workshop, October 2017. “Philosophical Foundations of Equity,” King’s College, London, June 2017.
- Multiple Chancellors: Reforming the National Injunction: Board of Directors, Donald D. Harrington Fellows Program, University of Texas at Austin, February 2017. Notre Dame Law Faculty Workshop, February 2017. University of Texas Law Faculty Workshop, November 2016.
- Form and Substance in the Fusion of Law and Equity: “Equity and Law: Fusion and Fission,” St. Catharine’s College, University of Cambridge, August 2016. UCLA Law Faculty Workshop, May 2016.
- Remedies and Economics: Towards a Fruitful Dialogue: Remedies Discussion Forum, Paris, France, June 2015.
- “Necessary AND Proper” and “Cruel AND Unusual”: Hendiadys in the Constitution: Berkeley Law Faculty Workshop, October 2015. Notre Dame Law Faculty Workshop, October 2015. Not Ready for Prime Time Workshop, UCLA School of Law, May 2015.
- The System of Equitable Remedies: Society for Institutional and Organizational Economics, Paris, France, June 2016. Remedies Discussion Group, Southeastern Association of Law Schools, July 2015. Pepperdine Law Faculty Workshop, November 2014. University of Pennsylvania Law Faculty Workshop, November 2014. Columbia Legal Theory Workshop, September 2014.
- The Supreme Court and the New Equity [or, The Chancellor Rides Again]: American Association of Law Schools, Section on Federal Courts Breakfast, January 2016. The Seventh Annual Junior Scholars Federal Courts Workshop, University of Georgia School of Law, October 2014. UCLA Law Faculty Workshop, October 2013. Southern California Junior Scholars Workshop, September 2013. University of San Diego Law Faculty Workshop, September 2013.
- The Myth of the Mild Declaratory Judgment: Constitutional Theory, History, and Law Colloquium, University of Illinois, October 2013. Florida State University Law Faculty Workshop, February 2013.
- Announcing Remedies: Stanford Law Faculty Workshop, October 2010. Bay Area Junior Faculty Workshop, July 2010.
- Preventive Adjudication: Association for Law, Property, and Society, Georgetown University, March 2010.
- Power Rules: Law and Society Association, Denver, Colorado, May 2009. Jurisprudence Discussion Group, University College, University of Oxford, May 2009.
Other (Selected)
- Panelist, “Judicial Power and Checks on the Executive,” Symposium on 100 Days of the Trump Administration, Stanford Law School, May 2025.
- Distinguished Commentator, 2025 National Conference of Constitutional Law Scholars, University of Arizona, March 2025 (commentator on Deborah Pearlstein, “The Impact of Movement ‘Originalism’ on American Legal Polarization”; Victoria Nourse, “American Legal Revolution”; Daniel Deacon, “Statutory Liquidation”; and Jonathan Macey, Ketan Ramakrishnan, & Brian Richardson, “Against General Law Constitutionalism”).
- Commentary on Judith Hahn, “Glocal Laws: Global Catholicism, Canon Law, and the Local Churches,” Center for the Study of Law and Religion, Emory University, March 2025.
- Commentary on Brittney Lane Kubisch, “Finding Jurisdiction in Due Process,” Georgetown Center for the Constitution, Georgetown Law School, February 2025.
- Commentary on Benjamin Pontz, “Grounding Pennsylvania’s King’s Bench Jurisdiction,” American Society for Legal History/Notre Dame Graduate Legal History Colloquium, Notre Dame Law School, November 2024.
- “Rule by One Judge: The Question of Universal Injunctions,” Harvard Law School Rappaport Forum (with Guy-Uriel Charles and Mila Sohoni), February 2024.
- “Judicial Remedies in Administrative Law,” Panel, American Bar Association Section of Administrative Law and Regulatory Practice’s Annual Administrative Law Conference, November 2023.
- “Nationwide Injunctions—Should They Stay or Should They Go?,” Fifth Circuit Judicial Conference, Breakout Session (with Gregg Costa and Amanda Frost) (twice), May 2023.
- “Endgame Scenarios for the National Injunction,” Boyden Gray Center for the Administrative State, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University, November 2022.
- “The Influence of the Catholic Intellectual Tradition on the Common Law,” Project on Constitutional Originalism and the Catholic Intellectual Tradition, Catholic University of America, November 2022.
- Commentary on Riley T. Keenan, “Judge-Made Equity,” Equity Workshop, University of Toronto, September 2022.
- “Nationwide Injunctions,” Tenth Circuit Bench and Bar Conference, General Session (with Judge Holly Teeter, Gregg Costa, and Michael Morley), September 2022.
- Panel, “An Update on the Ongoing Debate over Nationwide Injunctions, Especially with a Change in Presidential Administration,” Symposium on the Economics and Law of Civil Remedies: Developments in Damages and Nationwide Injunctions, Law & Economics Center, Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University, February 2021.
- “Law and Language (Religous and Otherwise),” Legal Humanities Seminar, Collegium Institute, University of Pennsylvania, October 2020.
- “The History of Nationwide Injunctions,” Program in Public Law, Duke Law School (with Mila Sohoni), January 2020.
- “The Future of National Injunctions,” Regulation and the Rule of Law Workshop, The Hoover Institution in Washington, D.C., June 2019.
- “Multiple Chancellors: Reforming the National Injunction,” Regulation and the Rule of Law Workshop, The Hoover Institution, March 2019.
- “Nationwide Injunctions,” Appellate Judges Education Institute (ABA Judicial Division), November 2018.
- “Are Nationwide Injunctions Constitutional?,” Lawyers for Civil Justice Membership Meeting, May 2018.
- “Federal Court Remedies Against the Executive,” AALS Federal Courts and Remedies Sections, January 2018.
- “A Parsimonious Equity?,” Book Symposium on Irit Samet, Equity: Conscience Goes to Market, University of Toronto, Faculty of Law, September 2018.
- “‘Introducing’ Constitutional Law—and the Casebooks We Use to Do That,” Panel, “Civic Education in a Time of Upheaval,” University of Texas School of Law, February 2018.
- “Merismus in the Constitution,” Public Law Luncheon, Department of Government, University of Texas, April 2017.
- Commentary on Dan Burk, “Punitive Patent Liability: A Comparative Examination,” “PatDam2: The Conference on Patent Damages,” University of Texas School of Law, February 2017.
- “Wisdom and Equity,” Panel, “Wisdom, Law, and Lawyers,” Pepperdine University School of Law, February 2015.
- “Law’s Victims, Law’s Beneficiaries,” Ethics Club Lecture Series, The Martin Marty Center: The Institute for Advanced Religious Study at the University of Chicago, April 2005.
Fellowships, Awards, and Other Appointments
- 2024 Legal Theory Annual Reviewer Award.
- Visiting Professor of Law, the University of Chicago Law School, 2024 Autumn Quarter.
- Notre Dame 2024 All-Faculty Team.
- McDonald Senior Distinguished Fellow, Center for the Study of Law and Religion, Emory University, 2024–present.
- Elected Member, American Law Institute, 2022–present.
- McDonald Distinguished Fellow, Center for the Study of Law and Religion, Emory University, 2019–2023.
- Joseph Story Award, The Federalist Society, 2019.
- Fellow, Notre Dame Program on Private Law, 2018–2025.
- Visiting Professor, Notre Dame Law School, 2017–2018.
- Harrington Faculty Fellowship, University of Texas at Austin, 2016–2017.
- AALS Federal Courts Section prize for best article by an untenured professor (for The Supreme Court and the New Equity), 2015.
- UCLA Faculty Career Development Award, 2014–2015.
- Lawrence E. Irell Scholar, Haifa University, May 2013.
University Service
- Appeal Review Committee, University of Notre Dame, 2023, 2024–2025.
- Provost’s Advisory Committee, University of Notre Dame, 2022–2024.
- Appointments Committee, Notre Dame Law School, 2020–2024; Vice Chair, 2021–2024.
- Promotions Committee, Notre Dame Law School, 2018–2020.
- Curriculum Committee, Notre Dame Law School, 2018–2019.
- Ad Hoc Library Committee, Notre Dame Law School, 2018–2019.
- External Appointments Committee, UCLA Law School, 2015-2016.
- Standards Committee, UCLA Law School, fall 2014.
- Clerkship/Student Intellectual Life and Academic Careers Committee, UCLA Law School, 2011-2012, 2013-2014.
- Colloquium Committee, UCLA Law School, 2012-2013.
- Alternate Chair, Student Conduct Committee, UCLA, 2012-2014.
- Phi Beta Kappa, UCLA Chapter Executive Council, 2012-2014.
Other Academic Service
- Award Committee, Eaton Award Honoring Excellence in Constitutional Scholarship, 2022–present.
- Project Consultant, Administrative Conference of the United States, “Nationwide Injunctions and Federal Regulatory Programs,” 2021–2024.
- Adviser, Restatement (Third) of the Law of Torts: Remedies, 2019–present.
- Award Committee, AALS Federal Courts Section prize for best article by an untenured professor, 2019–2020.
- AALS Remedies Section Executive Committee, 2016–2021; Chair, 2021.
Editorial Work
Peer Reviews and Consultations
- American Journal of Jurisprudence
- American Law and Economics Review
- Cambridge University Press
- Canadian Journal of Law and Jurisprudence
- Columbia Law Review
- Harvard Law Review
- Jurisprudence
- Legal Theory
- Notre Dame Law Review
- Oxford Journal of Legal Studies
- Oxford University Press
- Routledge
- UCLA Law Review
- University of Chicago Law Review
- Yale Law Journal
Selected Amicus Briefs
- Dewberry Group, Inc. v. Dewberry Engineers, Inc., No. 23-900, Apr. 2024 (with Paul B. Miller) [accounting for profits]
- Biden v. Nebraska, Supreme Court of the United States, Nos. 22-506 & 22-535, Jan. 11, 2023 (with William Baude) [state standing].
- Schulz v. Presbytery of Seattle, Supreme Court of the United States, No. 20-261, Oct. 2, 2020 (with Stephanie Barclay) [Religion Clauses].
- California v. Texas, Supreme Court of the United States, No. 19-840, May 13, 2020 (with Michael W. McConnell and Kevin C. Walsh) [declaratory judgment].
- Trump v. Pennsylvania, Supreme Court of the United States, No. 19-454, March 9, 2020 (with Nicholas Bagley) [national injunction].
- Liu v. Securities and Exchange Commission, Supreme Court of the United States, No. 18-1501, December 23, 2019 (with Henry E. Smith) [equitable restitution].
- Rotkiske v. Trump, Supreme Court of the United States, No. 18-328, May 20, 2019 (with David Marcus and Stephen C. Yeazell) [equitable tolling].
- Texas v. United States, U.S. Court of Appeals, Fifth Circuit, 19-10011, April 1, 2019 (with Michael W. McConnell and Kevin C. Walsh) [declaratory judgment].
- Merck & Co. v. Gilead Sciences, Inc., Supreme Court of the United States, No. 18-378, October 24, 2018 [unclean hands].
- SCA Hygiene Products Aktiebolag v. First Quality Baby Products, LLC, U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit, No. 2013-1564, March 6, 2015 (with Stephanos Bibas and John F. Duffy) [laches].
- Asahi Kasei Pharma Corporation v. Actelion Ltd., Supreme Court of California, Ct. of Appeal No. A133927, February 17, 2014 [lost profits damages].
Blog
- Divided Argument (2025-present)
- Volokh Conspiracy (2021-2025)
Congressional Testimony
- “Rule by District Judges II: Exploring Legislative Solutions to the Bipartisan Problem of Universal Injunctions,” Hearing Before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 119th Congress, April 2, 2025.
- “Case Selection and Review at the Supreme Court,” Hearing Before the Presidential Commission on the Supreme Court of the United States, June 30, 2021.
- “Rule by District Judge: The Challenges of Universal Injunctions,” Hearing Before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, 116th Congress, February 25, 2020.
- “The Role and Impact of Nationwide Injunctions by District Courts,” Hearing Before the House Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property and the Internet, 115th Congress, November 30, 2017.
Service to the Judiciary
- United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, Advisory Committee for Rules of Procedure, 2020–2023.
Events
- Festschrift symposium for Douglas Laycock, University of Texas at Austin, September 2024 (with Rick Hasen & Christopher Lund).
- Equity Workshop, King’s College London, December 2023, sponsored by the University of Notre Dame, the University of Toronto, and King’s College London (with Larissa Katz, Paul Miller, & Irit Samet).
- Interstitial Private Law Workshop, University of Notre Dame, Rome Global Gateway, November 2022, sponsored by Harvard Law School and the University of Notre Dame (with John Goldberg, Paul Miller, & Henry Smith).
- Equity Workshop, University of Toronto, September 2022, sponsored by the University of Notre Dame, the University of Toronto, and King’s College London (with Larissa Katz, Paul Miller, & Irit Samet).
- Equity Workshop, University of Toronto, September 2019, sponsored by the University of Notre Dame, the University of Toronto, and King’s College London (with Larissa Katz, Paul Miller, & Irit Samet).
- Notre Dame Remedies Roundtable, June 2019 (with Steven Yelderman).
- Notre Dame Remedies Roundtable, June 2018 (with Steven Yelderman).
Admissions
- Georgia Bar (inactive)
- District of Columbia Bar