Seth P. Waxman v. Paul D. Clement: Harvard Law vs. Yale Law, who will win?
One of the best lawyers in the United States (Seth P. Waxman) put together one of the most well organized arguments I’ve ever seen. But his opponent’s no slouch either, and he should be considered a worthy opponent (Paul D. Clement).
I’m actually surprised that nobody sold tickets to this event. Why you might ask? Because these are two fine lawyers that come from rivalry schools, and, even better, they both served in the same position but for rival political parties. Mr. Waxman went to Yale law School, while Mr. Clement went to Harvard Law School. Mr. Waxman served for the Clinton administration, while Mr. Clement serves for the (second) Bush administration. The differences between these two are slight, and I think that they’ve met before (but don’t quote me on that).
Their oral arguments are incredible. When I read them, I almost thought the whole thing was a script.
To understand better what I mean, you might want to read the following pdf:
click here for the pdf
My favorite part is when Seth pleads “exhaustion from remedies” when answering Justice Scalia.
“MR. WAXMAN: Well, Justice Scalia, you’re asking me to discard the Indian cases, and I’ve — I’ve mentioned to you the cases that the majority of Indians in Rasul relied on, the Earl of Crewe and Mwenya. I’ve given you the two statutes. I think at this point I have to plead exhaustion from remedies.”
But it gets better than this one moment, so I do recommend that you read the oral argument.
Of course, no matter who wins, it’s going to be bragging rights for Harvard either way. Seth Waxman graduated from Harvard College before going to Yale Law School.