Dr. Neel Sukhatme

Biography

Neel U. Sukhatme is the 19th dean of the University of Michigan Law School, appointed starting July 1, 2025. He is a former Associate Dean of Research and Academic Programs at Georgetown University Law Center and has held the position of Anne Fleming Research Professor of Law. Sukhatme was awarded the Andrew Carnegie Fellowship in 2021 and has also served as the Thomas Alva Edison Visiting Scholar at the Patent Trademark Office. He received his PhD in Economics from Princeton University in 2014, where he was awarded the Towbes Prize for Outstanding Teaching, and a JD, cum laude, from Harvard Law School, where he served as Notes Editor of the Harvard Law Review. Sukhatme has clerked for Hon. Vaughn R. Walker at the District Court for the Northern District of California and Hon. Ann Claire Williams at the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He previously worked at Latham & Watkins LLP and earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Engineering with highest honors and a minor in Mathematics from the University of Illinois. Furthermore, he co-founded Spindrop, an AI music technology startup, and Free Vote, a non-partisan organization aimed at restoring voting rights to individuals with past felony convictions. His research interests include empirical topics related to crime, AI law, and innovation in patent law.

Research Interests