The Villanova Law Review 2026 Norman J. Shachoy Symposium, 02/20

“Emerging Issues in Constitutional Checks and Balances Under Trump’s Second Term”

Friday, February 20
9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.

Laurence E. Hirsch ’71 Classroom (Room 101)
John F. Scarpa Hall

This year’s Villanova Law Review Norman J. Shachoy Symposium features a series of discussions on constitutional checks and balances, focusing on how the modern executive branch shapes those checks. Each panel will examine the interaction between executive actors and a branch of government and will also address the following topical questions: whether the president's duty of faithfully executing laws requires spending funds the legislature appropriates; whether the judicial branch has the constitutional authority to stop executive action via nationwide injunctions; and whether the president should have the authority to appoint and remove other executive actors at will.

The Pennsylvania Continuing Legal Education Board has approved this symposium for 4.5 substantive CLE credits. Please note registration for this event is required.

The annual Villanova Law Review Symposium is named for Norman J. Shachoy '58 COE, '61 CWSL, who served as editor-in-chief for volume six of the Villanova Law Review. The naming was made possible through his generous support, along with that of his son N. James Shachoy '86 CWSL.

AGENDA

9:00–9:15 a.m.: Welcome 

9:15–10:45 a.m.: The Executive & Legislative Branches: The Take Care Clause and Presidential Impoundment Authority

• Andrew Kent, Joseph M. McLaughlin Chair and Professor of Law, Fordham University School of Law
• Zachary S. Price, Professor of Law, The University of California College of Law, San Francisco
• Bijal Shah, Provost Faculty Fellow and Professor of Law, Boston College Law School
• David Super, Carmack Waterhouse Professor of Law and Economics, Georgetown University Law Center

10:45–11:00 a.m.: Break

11:00 a.m.–12:30 p.m.: The Executive & Judicial Branches: Judicial Enforcement Power in the Age of Trump v. CASA, Inc.

• Rachel Bayefsky, Associate Professor of Law, University of Virginia School of Law
• Suzette Malveaux, Roger D. Groot Professor of Law, Washington and Lee University School of Law
• Michael T. Morley, Sheila M. McDevitt Professor of Law and Faculty Director of the Election Law Center, Florida State University College of Law
• Alan Trammell, Professor of Law, Washington and Lee University School of Law

12:30–1:30 p.m.: Lunch

 1:30–3:00 p.m.: The President & Executive Actors: Humphrey’s Executor and Alternative Methods of Appointment/Removal  

• Christine Chabot, Associate Professor of Law, Marquette University Law School
• Andrea Katz, Associate Professor of Law, Washington University School of Law in St. Louis
• Jed Handselsman Shugerman, Joseph Lipsitt Scholar, Harry Elwood Warren Scholar and Professor of Law, Boston University School of Law
• Christopher J. Walker, Professor of Law, University of Michigan Law School