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Constitution Day

In recognition of Constitution Day on September 17, the College issued a public statement in conjunction with an Op-Ed that was published across the USA Today/Gannett Network. Both the statement and Op-Ed underscored that, above all, the Constitution is grounded in the importance of the Rule of Law.

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Public Statement

On September 24, the College issued a statement denouncing President Trump’s demand that Attorney General Pam Bondi prosecute his political opponents. Such demands violate the core principle that prosecutorial decisions must be grounded in evidence, not political pressure. Read the full statement here.

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President Deane on Bloomberg Law Podcast

“The history has always been that prosecutorial authority should be focused on cases that should be brought and not focused on people who should be prosecuted.”

On the latest episode of the Bloomberg Law podcast, President Deane discusses President Trump’s demands for the Department of Justice to prosecute his political opponents — and what they mean for the rule of law in America.

Listen here starting at 23:23.

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More ACTL in the Media

President Deane was interviewed for a recent Law.Com piece discussing the recent Comey indictment:

“The President’s effort to dictate whom the Department of Justice prosecutes represents a blatant attack on the bedrock principle that prosecutors must make decisions based on evidence, not political pressure or partisan considerations,” the ACTL said.

In an interview, ACTL President Richard “Rick” Deane Jr. said the College urged “respect for the process."

“Mr. Comey is presumed to be innocent until shown otherwise,” said Deane, who is also of counsel at Jones Day.

Read the full article here.

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President-Elect John Day also appeared in a recent LA Times article, in which he further discussed recent actions by the Department of Justice:

“John Day, president-elect of the American College of Trial Lawyers, said his organization has not taken a position on Trump’s memo, but had grave concerns about the process by which Comey was indicted — namely, after Trump called for such legal action publicly.

“That, quite frankly, is very disturbing and concerning to us,” Day said. “This is not the way the legal system was designed to work, and it’s not the way it has worked for 250 years, and we are just very concerned that this happened at all,” Day said. “We’re praying that it is an outlier, as opposed to a predictor of what’s to come.”

Read the full article here.

In the Spotlight

Chris Twyman

Georgia Fellow Chris Twyman has been selected as the new Georgia State Bar President.  

Heritage Committee

DID YOU KNOW Past President Barnabas Sears (1970-1971) served as special prosecutor in the indictment of Cook County State’s Attorney Edward Hanrahan, one of his assistants, and twelve Chicago police officers, charging them with conspiring to obstruct justice in the case of two Black Panther members killed in a predawn police raid? Barney Sears faced enormous political pressure and personal attacks for investigating and indicting the case, but he told his friends that if he did not accept the appointment as special prosecutor, he “might as well retire from the practice of law.” Sears urged lawyers to accept cases involving just, but unpopular causes. In the words of Aristotle, “The law is reason, free from passion.”

Furthering the Mission

State and Province Committees

Alberta: Deborah Hatch, Chair, Alberta Province Committee, and Perry Mack, Vice-Chair, spoke on a panel at the Regional Meeting held in Big Sky on August 22, 2025 to address the Canadian perspective on recent issues surrounding Rule of Law and Judicial Independence and the vital role of the College.

Pennsylvania: Join the Pennsylvania Fellows for a joint presentation with the Historical Society of Historic Trials in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The presentation will discuss the groundbreaking criminal and civil trials involving rampant corruption and violence in the Roofers Union Local 30 in the 1980s and the successful rehabilitation of the union. The event will be held on October 29, 2025, from 5:30 – 8 pm, in the Ceremonial Courtroom in the U.S. Court House in Philadelphia and includes 1.5 CLE. It will be followed by a cocktail hour in the lobby. Click here to register.



Utah: The Fellows will be hosting a Boot Camp Trial Training Program on October 24. Please see flyer for more details.

Mark Your Calendars

View all upcoming events at www.actl.com/events

President's Travel Log