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In Memoriam: Frederick Schauer (1946-2024)

Brian Leiter

I was shocked to learn from David Law on Facebook that Professor Schauer has died (yesterday according to his Virginia colleague Larry Solum).   He started his academic career at West Virginia University, moved to the College of William & Mary, then to the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (where I was fortunate to have him), then to Harvard's Kennedy School and finally to the University of Virginia School of Law.  He was a prolific and wide-ranging scholar, one of the most-cited in the United States, but also well-known and influential internationally.  He first made a name for himself with his philosophically-minded work on free speech (his 1982 Free Speech:  A Philosophical Enquiry is still the best introduction to the subject), but then branched out widely into legal and jurisprudential topics, include rules, precedent, legal reasoning, stereotypes, American legal realism, constitutional law and theory, and a variety of topics in evidence law. 

At Michigan, I took a course with him on "American Legal Realism and Critical Legal Studies" in the fall of 1985, which proved to be a rather decisive event in my own intellectual trajectory.  Fred also kindly supervised as an independent study my "second dissertation" on legal indeterminacy and legal realism, and provided invaluable support on the law teaching market.  Fred was a friend and supporter for many years thereafter, for which I was very grateful.

Part of the shock is that Fred never seemed old.  Condolences to his wife, the psychologist Barbara Spellman.  I will add links to memorial notices as they appear.  I'll also open comments for remembrances from those knew Professor Schauer or for those who wish to comment on the significance of his work.

(Please submit your comment only once, it may take awhile to appear.)

UPDATE:  The Virginia memorial notice.

ANOTHER:  Professor Christoph Bezemek, Professor of Public Law & Political Theory at the University of Graz, kindly shared a copy of the laudation he delivered on the occasion of Professor Schauer receiving an honorary degree from the Vienna University of Economics and Business:  Download Bezemek laudatio Schauer

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9 responses to “In Memoriam: Frederick Schauer (1946-2024)”

  1. Scott J. Tepper

    Fred was my classmate at Harvard Law. He was a reason why my daughter went to UVa Law and then clerked for Judge Robert Scak on the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Fred was a wonderful man and a tremendous teacher of the law. He will be greatly missed.

    Reply
  2. Matt Lister

    This is sad and surprising. I didn’t know Schauer very well, but met him a few times at events at Penn and he was always charming, friendly, and great to talk to. I’d emailed him a few times about his work on John Austin, and benefited greatly from that. I’m not sure his work on Austin is exactly right, but I think giving more weigh to the fact that law is paradigmatically coercive does help blunt some of Hart’s criticisms. I hope that work will get attention even though he’s gone.

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  3. Adam Charles Sloane

    Fred was one of my favorite teachers at Michigan Law (along with Brian Simpson, Tom Green, Richard Friedman, Terry Sandalow, and Joe Vining–an eclectic group perhaps, but each of them a mensch). Fred was a terrific teacher. His enthusiasm was contagious, and he was just a wonderful person. As I recall, all his students referred to him–at least when he wasn’t around–simply as “Fred.” I remember the excitement I experienced in reading Playing by the Rules in manuscript. I was so honored that he let me–a mere third year (as I recall) read AND COMMENT on that fine work. He brought a wonderful energy to all encounters, and I am very sad to learn that he is gone. I send my condolences to his family.

    Reply
  4. Thomas E. Baker

    Everyone will agree that his scholarship was original, brilliant, and provocative. But I was always struck by his affability: he was kind and possessed of an endearing humility.

    Reply
  5. Abner S Greene

    I took that course at Michigan with you, Brian. That’s how I got to know Fred, and his mentorship and academic genius have been a core influence on my academic life. His free speech work has helped center my First Amendment class. His legal theory/constitutional theory work was so cogent, and served as a base for some of my less-rule-favorable critiques, in the Notre Dame festschift and in my challenges to some of his ideas about following the Court’s precedent, in the third and fourth chapters of my book Against Obligation. After Fred’s The Force of Law came out, he was a featured guest at my seminar at Fordham. He was a lovely brilliant guy and I will miss him but, as they say and especially here, he will live on through his work. peace, Abner

    Reply
  6. Oren Gross

    Fred was my SJD supervisor at Harvard Law between 1992-97 and I could not have asked for a better mentor and friend. True, he was a giant in his field. But, and more importantly, he was a mensch.
    He will be sorely missed. May his memory be a blessing, Oren

    Reply
  7. Eric Orts

    Thanks for this post, Brian, and for opening it for comments.
    Like you and others posting here, I took Fred Schauer’s American Legal Realism and Critical Legal Studies course. It provided a wonderful window into some contemporary legal scholarship at the time. I also had the good fortune to have been assigned to Fred for Constitutional Law as a first year in the experimental “new section.” I later took the First Amendment with him too.
    His Thinking Like a Lawyer (2009) has been perhaps the most influential book for my teaching. Another favorite among many is his classic “Slippery Slopes” in the Harvard Law Review (1985).
    Fred was always very kind and supportive, even though my course into academia was in corporate and environmental law rather than constitutional law or legal theory. And I will always remember his immense energy in teaching.
    Perhaps that’s why the news takes me by surprise too: Fred Schauer’s enthusiasm and personal dynamism seemed endless.
    I’m very sad that we’ve lost him.

    Reply
  8. Fernanda Valiati

    Schauer’s brilliant teachings regarding free speech were a great inspiration to my master’s dissertation. The particular way in which he analysed hypotheses and theories without identifying or attaching to them was one of a kind. Very thankful for all his work and legacy. I send my condolences to the family from Brazil.

    Reply
  9. Rob Fischman

    I entered Schauer’s Michigan Law class a First Amendment absolutist. I left a Schauer-ist! He taught to a full house in a medium-sized (for Michigan–large by my standards) classroom. But he created an intimate atmosphere that helped us all work through the materials and our own world-views on speech. I count him as one of the professors who inspired me to become a law teacher. I still recommend his “Thinking Like a Lawyer” book to new law students and my non-JD students. Somehow he perfected the trick of merging his personality with the legal issues he taught to create a highly engaging classroom and authorial persona.

    Reply

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