Richard Seamon

Professor Seamon joined the University of Idaho in 2004, having previously taught at the University of South Carolina School of Law and Washington and Lee Law School. He currently teaches Administrative Law and Constitutional Law, and serves as Interim Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs.  In the past, he has taught courses on civil procedure, criminal procedure, federal courts, and U.S. Supreme Court practice. He also served as the associate dean for administration and students from 2006–2009. 

Before he became a law professor, Professor Seamon practiced law for ten years. In 1986, he clerked for Kenneth W. Starr on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.  From 1987–1990, he worked as an associate at the Washington, D.C. law firm Covington & Burling.  From 1990–1996, he served in the U.S. Department of Justice as an assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States. While at the Justice Department, Professor Seamon presented oral argument before the U.S. Supreme Court in fifteen cases.  He became a law professor in 1996.

Professor Seamon has written or co-authored four books, the most recent of which are: The Supreme Court Sourcebook (Wolters Kluwer 2013) (co-authored with A. Siegel, J. Thai, and K. Watts); Administrative Law: A Context and Practice Casebook (Carolina Academic Press 2013); and Administrative Law: Examples and Explanations (Wolters Kluwer 4th ed., 2012) (co-authored with W. Funk). Professor Seamon has also written many law review articles on constitutional law and other public law subjects. 

Professor Seamon received his J.D. from Duke Law School and holds a B.A. and an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University. He graduated from law school as a member of Order of the Coif and from college as a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He is also an elected member of the American Law Institute.

Books

Administrative Law: A Context and Practice Casebook (2nd ed. forthcoming 2019).

American Conflicts Law: Cases and Materials (7th ed. forthcoming late fall 2019) (co-authored with Robert Felix, Jesse Cross & Ralph Whitten).

Administrative Law: Examples and Explanations (6th ed. forthcoming winter 2019-20) (co-authored with William Funk).

Law Review Articles

Patagonia v. Trump, __ Tenn. L. Rev. (forthcoming 2019).

Dismantling Monuments, 70 Fla. L. Rev. 553 (2018).

Supreme Court Supremacy in a Time of Turmoil: James v. City of Boise, 50 Loy. L.A. L. Rev. 175 (2017).

Articles cited in U.S. Supreme petitions and briefs

An Erie Obstacle to State Tort Reform, 43 Idaho L. Rev. 37 (2006), cited in Brief for Petitioner at 36, Dutra Group v. Batterton, (No. 18-266) (filed Jan. 22, 2019), 2019 WL 354580.

An Erie Obstacle to State Tort Reform, 43 Idaho L. Rev. 37 (2006), cited in Brief for Coastal Marine Fund as Amicus Curiae Supporting Petitioner at 5, American Triumph LLC v. Tabingo, 138 S.Ct. 648 (2018) (No. 17-449), 2017 WL 5433134.

An Erie Obstacle to State Tort Reform, 43 Idaho L. Rev. 37 (2006), cited in Petition for a Writ of Certiorari at 27, American Triumph LLC v. Tabingo 138 S.Ct. 648 (2018) (No. 17-449), 2017 WL 4280575.

The Asymmetry of State Sovereign Immunity, 76 Wash. L. Rev. 1067 (2001), cited in Brief for Takings and Federal Courts Scholars as Amici Curiae Supporting Respondents, Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania, No. 17-647 (U.S. filed Aug. 6, 2018), 2018 WL 3769956.

The Asymmetry of State Sovereign Immunity, 76 Wash. L. Rev. 1067 (2001), citied in Brief for the American Farm Bureau Federation.

National Cattlemen's Beef Association, and CATL Fund as Amici Curiae Supporting Petitioner, Knick v. Township of Scott, Pennsylvania, No. 17-647  (U.S. filed June 1, 2018), 2018 WL 2716791.

Article cited in lower-court decision

Causation and the Discretionary Function Exception to the Federal Tort Claims Act, 30 U.C. Davis L. Rev. 691 (1997), cited in Hajdusek v. United States, 895 F.3d 146, 151 (1st Cir. 2018).

Briefs written for U.S. Supreme Court case

Petition for Writ of Certiorari, Eason Land Co. v. Zinke, 138 S.Ct. 738 (2018) (No. 17-533), 2017 WL 4548212.

Reply Brief for the Petitioners, Eason Land Co. v. Zinke, 138 S.Ct. 738 (2018) (No. 17-533), 2017 WL 6606867.