Dr. Bernard Harcourt

Biography

Bernard E. Harcourt is the Corliss Lamont Professor of Law and Civil Liberties at Columbia Law School. He is a distinguished critical theorist and legal advocate, whose scholarship focuses on political and social theory, political economy, as well as punishment practices and critical philosophy. Harcourt is the founding director of the Initiative for the Society at the Columbia Center for Contemporary Critical Thought, where he addresses current social problems through practical engagements and litigation for public policy transformation. He has authored and edited over a dozen books, including recent works such as "Cooperation: Political, Economic, Social Theory" (2023) and "Critique & Praxis: Critical Philosophy, Illusions, Values, Action" (2020). Harcourt's legal career began representing individuals on Alabama's death row with the Equal Justice Initiative, and he continues to provide pro bono legal representation to those sentenced to death or life imprisonment without parole. He has served on human rights missions in South Africa and Guatemala, and actively challenged the Trump administration’s policies on immigration. Harcourt has taught at the University of Chicago and has held visiting positions at Harvard University and New York University. He has also served as a law clerk for Judge Charles S. Haight Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

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