No longer active as of fall 2021, the Peter Gruber Rule of Law Clinic is a clinic at Yale Law School that works to uphold America’s human rights and rule of law commitments. Established in 2016, the Clinic has worked on four core issue-areas: national security, antidiscrimination, climate change, and democracy protection. Over four years, the Clinic has provided a vehicle for students to use their legal knowledge to protect bedrock principles of American government.
Through its projects, the Clinic has generated a significant body of work on a variety of topics pertaining to the rule of law. This page has been established to provide ready access to some of the Clinic’s work-product, which includes briefs, memos, and reports. Many of these materials have been assembled on behalf of—and with input from—former government officials. We hope this page will serve as a resource for others committed to protecting the rule of law.
FORMAL LEGAL MATERIALS
TRAVEL BAN
- Washington v. Trump, Case No. 17-35105, 9th Cir., Feb. 6, 2017 [Declaration]
- Aziz v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-00116-LMB-TCB, E.D. Va., Feb. 8, 2017 [Declaration]
- Darweesh v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-00480-CBA, E.D.N.Y., Feb. 16, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- ACRL v. Trump, Case No. 2:17-cv-10310-VAR-SDD, E.D. Mich., May 19, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Washington v. Trump, Case No. 2:17-cv-00141-JLR, W.D. Wash., Oct. 11, 2017 [Declaration]
- Hawaii v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-00050-DKW-KSC, D. Haw., Oct. 15, 2017 [Declaration]
- IRAP v. Trump, Case No. 8:17-cv-00361-TDC, D. Md., Mar. 13, 2017 (IRAP) [Amicus Brief]
- IRAP v. Trump, Case No. 17-1351, 4th Cir., Apr. 13, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Pars Equality Center v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-00255-TSC, D.D.C., Mar. 27, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- IRAP v. Trump, Case No. 17-1351, 4th Cir., Apr. 13, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Hawaii v. Trump, Case No. 17-15589, 9th Cir., Apr. 20, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Trump v. Hawaii, Case Nos. 16-1436, 16A1191, U.S. Supreme Court, June 12, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Trump v. Hawaii, Case No. 16-1540 (16A1191), U.S. Supreme Court, July 18, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Hawaii v. Trump, Case No. 17-16426, 9th Cir., Aug. 3, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Trump v. Hawaii, Case Nos. 16-1436, 16-1540, U.S. Supreme Court, Sept. 18, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Trump v. Hawaii, Case No. 17-965, U.S. Supreme Court, Mar. 30, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
- IRAP v. Trump, Case No. 19-1990, 4th Cir., Nov. 29, 2019 [Corrected Amicus Brief]
- Arab American Civil Rights League v. Trump, Case No. 19-2375, July 31, 2020 [Amicus Brief]
FOREIGN EMOLUMENTS
- Blumenthal v. Trump, Case No. 17-cv-1154 (EGS), D.D.C., Nov. 2, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- District of Columbia v. Trump, Case No. 8:17-cv-01596-PJM, D. Md., Nov. 28, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Blumenthal v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-01154-EGS, D.D.C., Mar. 6, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
- In re Donald J. Trump, Case No. 18-2486, 4th Cir., Feb. 13, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- Blumenthal v. Trump, Case No. 19-5237, D.C. Cir., Oct. 29, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
TRANSGENDER SERVICEMEMBER BAN
- Stone v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-02459-MJG, D. Md., Oct. 30, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Doe v. Trump, Case No. 17-5267, D.C. Cir., Dec. 15, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Stone v. Trump, Case No. No. 17-2398, 4th Cir., Dec. 18, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Karnoski v. Trump, Case No. 2:17-cv-01297-MJP, W.D. Wa., Jan. 26, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
- Karnoski v. Trump, Case No. 18-35347, 9th Cir., July 3, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
- Doe v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-01597-CKK, D.D.C., Aug. 27, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
- Doe v. Trump, Case No. 18-5257, D.C. Cir., Oct. 29, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
RUSSIAN ACTIVE MEASURES
- Cockrum v. Trump, Case No. 1:17-cv-01370, D.D.C., Dec. 8, 2017 [Amicus Brief]
- Cockrum v. Trump, Case No. 3:18-cv-484-HEH, E.D. Va., Nov. 18, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
SOUTHERN BORDER
- Declaration of National Emergency, Joint Declaration of Former United States Government Officials,165 Cong. Rec. S1405 (Feb. 25, 2019)
- California v. Trump, Case No. 4:19-cv-00872-HSG, N.D. Cal., May 13, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- Innovation Law Lab v. McAleenan, Case No. 19-15716, 9th Cir., June 26, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- Sierra Club v. Trump, Case Nos. 19-16102, 19-16300, 19-16299, 19-16336, 9th Cir., Aug. 22, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- California v. Trump, Case No. 4:19-cv-00872-HSGN.D. Cal., Oct. 21, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- Washington v. Trump, Case No. 2:19-cv-01502-BJR, W.D. Wash, Oct. 25, 2019 [Brief in Support of Plaintiff’s Summary Judgment Motion]
- East Bay Sanctuary Covenant v. Barr, Case Nos. 19-16487, 9-16773, 9th Cir., Oct. 15, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- Sierra Club v. Trump, Case Nos. 19-17501, 19-17502, 20-15044, 9th Cir., Feb 20, 2020 [Amicus Brief].
- El Paso County v. Trump, Case No. 19-51144, 5th Cir., Apr. 3, 2020 [Amicus Brief]
- East Bay Sanctuary Covenant v. Trump, Case No. 318-cv-06810-JST, N.D. Cal., Dec. 4, 2018 [Joint Declaration of Former National Security Officials]
DACA
CLIMATE CHANGE
- Oakland v. BP p.l.c., Case No. 18-16663, 9th Cir., Mar. 20, 2019 [Amicus Brief]
- Mayor and City Council of Baltimore v. B.P., Case No. 24-C-18-004219, Circuit Court for Baltimore City, Apr. 7, 2020 [Amicus Brief]
- United States v. California, Case No. 2:19-cv-02142-WBS-EFB, E.D. Cal., Feb. 18, 2020 [Amicus Brief]
- State of Rhode Island v. Shell Oil Prods. Co., Case No. 19-1818, 1st Cir., Dec. 23, 2019 [Corrected Amicus Brief]
- City of New York v. BP p.l.c., Case No. 18-2188, 2d Cir. Nov. 15, 2018 [Amicus Brief]
CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS
HUMAN RIGHTS
CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE
COMPLAINTS AND FORMAL REQUESTS
Transparency FOIA Requests
- ROLC FOIA Request Form for Documents (April 22, 2020)
- ROLC FOIA Request Form for Numbers (April 22, 2020)
- Press Release: ROLC Files FOIA Requests Seeking Troop Numbers in Afghanistan, Iraq & Syria (April 22, 2020)
INFORMAL PUBLIC DOCUMENTS
- YLS ROLC, The Twenty-Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution: A Reader’s Guide
- YLS ROLC & Center for Constitutional Rights, Window Dressing the Muslim Ban: Reports of Waivers and Mass Denials from Yemeni-American Families Stuck in Limbo (June 2018)
- Russ Feingold & Chuck Hagel, Presidential Impeachment Trial: What A Senator Should Know (December 5, 2019)
- Harold H. Koh, Rosa Hayes, Annie Himes, Dana Khabbaz, Michael Loughlin & Mark Stevens, Executive Privilege Cannot Block Bolton’s Testimony, Just Security (January 27, 2020)
- Harold H. Koh, Rosa Hayes, Dana Khabbaz, Michael Loughlin, Nicole Ng, Ayoub Ouederni & Brandon Willmore, Is the Pardon Power Unlimited?, Just Security (July 11, 2020)
- Protecting Voters from Intimidation, CLC Advancing Democracy Through Law