Biography

A frequent commentator and expert on white-collar crime and criminal law and procedure, Robert Weisberg serves as director of the Stanford Criminal Justice Center. Using his experience as a former English professor, he is one of the nation’s leading scholars on the intersection of law and literature, and coauthor of the highly praised book Literary Criticisms of Law. He has served as a consulting attorney for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the California Appellate Project, working on death penalty litigation in the state and federal courts.

In addition to his work at the law school, Professor Weisberg serves as special assistant to the provost for faculty recruitment and retention. Before joining the Stanford Law School faculty in 1981, he was a tenured English professor at Skidmore College. He also served as a law clerk to Justice Potter Stewart of the Supreme Court of the United States and Judge J. Skelly Wright of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Key Works

• Robert Weisberg. With John Kaplan and Guyora Binder, Criminal Law: Cases and Materials, 5th ed., New York: Aspen, 2004.
• Robert Weisberg, Norms and Criminal Law, and the Norms of Criminal Law Scholarship, 93 The Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology 467-592 (Winter & Spring 2003).
• Robert Weisberg, Values, Violence, and the Second Amendment: American Character, Constitutionalism, and Crime, 39 Houston Law Review 1-51 (April 2002).
• Robert Weisberg and Guyora Binder, Literary Criticisms of Law, Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2000. 544 pages.
• Robert Weisberg, Commercial Morality, the Merchant Character, and the History of the Voidable Preference, 39 Stanford Law Review 1 (1986).
• Robert Weisberg, Deregulating Death, 1983 Supreme Court Review 305 (1983).

In the News

• Suspect In Slaying Of Deputy Alleges Yolo Courthouse Collusion
  Sacramento Bee, June 28, 2008
• Q&A: D.C. Gun Ban Overturned; What's Next?
  National Public Radio, June 26, 2008
• Sex Trade Monitors a Key Figure’s Woes
  The New York Times, June 17, 2008
• Preparation Is Key To Avoiding ‘Worst-Case Outcome,’ Chertoff Says
  Stanford Report, April 16, 2008
• Law May Allow Police To Search Smartphones Without Warrant
  Washington Internet Daily, February 19, 2008

Courses & Programs

Courses

• Criminal Law
• Criminal Procedure: Adjudication
• Criminal Procedure: Investigation

Programs

• Stanford Criminal Justice Center (SCJC), Director

Publications & Cases

Recent Publications View All

• David W. Mills and Robert Weisberg, "Corrupting the Harm Requirement in White Collar Crime, 60 Stanford Law Review 1371 (2008).
• Robert Weisberg, A Guest Post by Robert Weisberg on the Relationship Between "Activism" and "Federalism" (Convictions: Slate's Blog on Legal Issues), Slate.com, May 19, 2008.
• Robert Weisberg, Losing the Lopezes, The Stanford Daily, April 3, 2008, pg. 4.
• Robert Weisberg. A Quiet Bombshell in the Legal World, Los Angeles Times, September 24, 2006, Editorial Pages Desk; Part M; Pg. 3.
• Joan Petersilia and Robert Weisberg. Slammer Time - Why Rush To Build More Prisons When Other Options Cost Less?, Sacramento Bee, July 23, 2006, Forum section, page E2.
• Joan Petersilia and Robert Weisberg. Parole in California: It’s a Crime, Los Angeles Times, April 23, 2006, p. M2.
• Robert Weisberg. Privacy and Transparency, Continued: Privacy Concerns, The New Republic Online, April 19, 2006.
• Robert Weisberg. Causation Inflation: Did Zacarias Moussaoui Really “Cause” 9/11?, Slate, March 14, 2006. (with Dahlia Lithwick)
• Robert Weisberg, First Causes and the Dynamics of Criminal Justice, 119 Harvard Law Review Forum 131 (2006).
• Robert Weisberg, Introduction: A New Empirical and Cultural Look at the Second Amendment (Symposium: Gun Control: Old Problems, new Paradigms), 17 Stanford Law & Policy Review 563 (2006).

Affiliations & Honors

Professional Affiliations

• Affiliated Faculty, Program in Modern Thought and Literature

Honors and Awards

• Recipient, John Bingham Hurlbut Award for Excellence in Teaching, Stanford, 1985, 2005