Sherif Girgis

Sherif Girgis is an associate professor of law at the University of Notre Dame with expertise in criminal law, constitutional law, constitutional theory, the intersection of law and religion, and philosophy of law. Girgis teaches courses in criminal law, jurisprudence, and constitutional law. He has served as a professor at Notre Dame since 2021.

Girgis previously practiced appellate and complex civil litigation at Jones Day in Washington D.C. He also clerked for Justice Samuel Alito of the United States Supreme Court as well as Judge Thomas Griffith of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Education
Girgis graduated with a bachelor's in philosophy from Princeton University Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude in 2008. He received his master's degree in philosophy from the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar in 2010. In 2016, he earned his juris doctorate at Yale University where he served as an editor of the Yale Law Journal. He is currently completing a Ph.D. in philosophy at Princeton.

Notable publications
Girgis' work has appeared in American Journal of Jurisprudence, the New York University Law Review, the Colombia Law Review, the Virginia Law Review, the University of Pennsylvania Law Review, and the Cambridge Companion to Philosophy of Law.

In 2010, Girgis co-authored and published the article "What is Marriage?" in the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy with Ryan T. Anderson and Robert P. George. The article was later published under the name What Is Marriage? Man and Woman: A Defense by Encounter Books. In the article, they argue that the word "marriage" definitionally must involve the capacity of men and women to procreate. Thus, as they argue, the concept of same-sex marriage is philosophically unsubstantiated. Justice Samuel Alito referenced the book in his dissenting opinion in United States v. Windsor.

In 2017, Girgis co-wrote the book Debating Religious Liberty and Discrimination with Ryan T. Anderson and John Corvino. The book received positive reviews for its constructive, rigorous, and back-and-forth discussion on religious freedom and anti-discrimination law.