Dr. Thomas Green

Biography

Thomas Green is the John Phillip Dawson Collegiate Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Michigan Law School. He has a distinguished career that includes teaching medieval English history and American constitutional history at Bard College and the University of Michigan. His primary research interest lies in the historical context of criminal law, focusing on the interactions between state history, societal structures, local communities, and individuals. Green emphasizes the cultural foundations of law and the legal institutions evolving through political, social, and intellectual movements, particularly in the context of criminal trials and jury systems. He is the author of significant works including 'Verdict According to Conscience: Perspectives on the English Criminal Trial Jury, 1200-1800' (1985) and 'Freedom and Criminal Responsibility in American Legal Thought' (2014). Over his career, he has also served as an editor for 'Studies in Legal History' for 25 years, representing the American Society for Legal History, where he was president from 1999 to 2001. Currently, Green is engaged in a project exploring the historical relationship between ideas about juries and concepts of criminal responsibility in the English and American legal traditions.

Research Interests