Robert Yablon
Associate Professor
Education
J.D., Yale Law School
M.Phil., University of Oxford
B.S., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Biography
Robert Yablon is an Associate Professor of Law and Faculty Co-Director of the State Democracy Research Initiative. His research interests include political and election law, constitutional law, federal and state courts, and statutory interpretation. He teaches Civil Procedure, Federal Jurisdiction, and the Law of Democracy.
Professor Yablon's recent publications have appeared in the NYU Law Review, Northwestern University Law Review, Minnesota Law Review, and Iowa Law Review. In 2018, UW Law students honored Professor Yablon with the Classroom Teacher of the Year Award, and in 2019 he received a University Distinguished Teaching Award.
Professor Yablon received his bachelor's degree in economics and political science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and his master's degree in social policy from the University of Oxford, where he was a Rhodes Scholar. He then earned his J.D. at Yale Law School, where he was an Articles Editor of the Yale Law Journal.
Following law school, Professor Yablon served as a law clerk for Judge William Fletcher of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and for U.S. Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Sonia Sotomayor. He also worked in private practice at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP in San Francisco and Washington, D.C. He has been the principal author of dozens of appellate and trial-level briefs, and has argued in a number of state and federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court.
Scholarship & Publications
SSRN
Law Repository
Activities
Rob Yablon wrote a piece for Election Law Blog on June 29, 2023, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Moore v. Harper to draw attention to how the Purcell principle might shape what comes next. "Bottom line: Moore seems to give litigants an opening to argue in federal court that a state court has overreached, but as the doctrine now stands, Purcell will limit federal court interventions as an election nears."
Rob Yablon posted a new paper to SSRN,“Gerrylaundering.” Read the abstract and download the article.
Miriam Seifter and Rob Yablon were panelists for "Meritorious RBG: The Legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg On and Off the Bench" at the 19th Annual Meeting of the Eastern District of Wisconsin Bar Association in May.
In October, Robert Yablon participated on a Real Town Hall panel on the electoral process, which was organized by the Wisconsin Alumni Association. The panel was recorded for online viewing.
Robert Yablon's essay, "Political Advertising, Digital Platforms, and the Democratic Deficiencies of Self-Regulation," was published in a special election law compendium of Minnesota Law Review Headnotes.
The 2019 Wisconsin Law Review Symposium, which was chaired by former UW Law Professor Andrew Coan, featured a number of UW Law faculty, including Anuj Desai, Howie Erlanger, Neil Komesar, John Ohnesorge, Asifa Quraishi-Landes, David Schwartz, Miriam Seifter and Rob Yablon. The symposium, titled "Rationing the Constitution: How Judicial Capacity Shapes Supreme Decision-Making,” was held Oct. 24 and 25.
Rob Yablon wrote an issue brief for the American Constitution Society (with John H. Thompson, the director of the U.S. Census Bureau during the Obama Administration), "Preparing for the 2020 Census: Considerations for State Attorneys General." In conjunction with the release of the brief, the two were interviewed for an ACS podcast on the topic.
Rob Yablon's article, "Campaigns, Inc.," has been accepted for publication later this year in Minnesota Law Review.
Rob Yablon participated on the panel, "Partisan Gerrymandering and the U.S. Constitution," which examined Gill v. Whitford, a gerrymandering case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court. The program was sponsored by the Madison Institute in September.
Robert Yablon's article, "Voting and Spending and the Right to Participate," was recently recommended on Jotwell: The Journal of Things We Like Lots. In her review of the article, Jessica Bulman-Pozen writes, "Judges and scholars alike will benefit from Yablon’s careful doctrinal analysis and his ambitious yet grounded argument for a fundamental right to participate in the electoral process."
News & Media
Tuesday, Sep 19, 2023Yablon, Clinger Doubt Impeachment Threat Will Fly
Madison.comTuesday, Sep 5, 2023Rob Yablon Discusses Impeachment and Recusal
Milwaukee Journal SentinelMonday, Aug 28, 2023Could the GOP protect their gerrymandered maps by impeaching Protasiewicz? Rob Yablon comments.
The Badger ProjectFriday, Jun 30, 2023Ruling Leaves Door Open for Congressional Map Challenges; Rob Yablon Comments
Milwaukee Journal SentinelMonday, Apr 17, 2023Rob Yablon: Reviews of Current Maps Find WI Has One of the Nation's Most Extreme Gerrymanders
CBS58Monday, Apr 10, 2023Yablon, McBride, Kasieta Named 2022 UW Law Teachers of the Year
Tuesday, Apr 4, 2023Rob Yablon on Why the Wisconsin Supreme Court Election Matters
BBC NewsWednesday, Mar 22, 2023Rob Yablon on What the Supreme Court Race Could Mean for the State's Republican-Drawn Redistricting Maps
Wisconsin Public RadioFriday, Feb 10, 2023Rob Yablon Comments on Wisconsin Supreme Court Race
The Racquet PressTuesday, Feb 7, 2023Judicial Conduct Complaints Begin in WI Supreme Court Race; Rob Yablon Comments
WUWM 89.7 FMTuesday, Dec 6, 2022Can the State Be Redistricted Again? Rob Yablon Comments
Urban MilwaukeeTuesday, Oct 5, 2021State Democracy Research Initiative launches, aims to foster better understanding of state governments
Thursday, May 9, 2019Miriam Seifter and Robert Yablon honored with Vilas professorships and awards
Tuesday, Mar 26, 2019Distinguished Teaching Award winner Rob Yablon sets law students up for success
Thursday, Jan 24, 2019Robert Yablon wins UW-Madison's Distinguished Teaching Award
Recently Taught Courses
