Janet Steverson

Biography

Professor Steverson was an associate at Steptoe & Johnson in Washington, D.C., doing general litigation. She worked particularly on cases of commercial transactions involving tort and contract allegations, employment discrimination, government contracts, and insurance coverage disputes. Steverson was a member of the Harvard Law School Board of Student Advisors teaching first-year students moot court, legal writing, and research. An area of special interest to her is children’s rights. She has published on the issues of interspousal tort immunity, children and the law, contracts, drug-addicted mothers, and consumer warranties. She is admitted to the New York, District of Columbia, and Oregon bar associations. In 2009 Professor Steverson was named Douglas K. Newell Professor of Teaching Excellence in recognition of her commitment to teaching excellence, dedication to each student’s success, and the promise to enrich the academic experience with pragmatism, rigor, and humor. Professor Steverson served as the institutional Dean of Diversity and Inclusion for Lewis & Clark College from 2016 through 2019.

Specialty Areas and Course Descriptions

• Contracts
• Commercial Law/Sales
• Children’s Rights 
• Family Law

Academic Credentials

• BA magna cum laude State University of New York College at Brockport
• JD Harvard University Law School

Bibliography

Works Published As Part of a Collection

• The Path Forward from Shelby County v. Holder, 17 BERKELEY J. AFR.-AM. L. & POL’Y 331 (part of a symposium on the Voting Rights Act) (2015).
• Then and Now: Reviving the Promise of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 63 UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS LAW REVIEW 227 (2015) (co-authored with Aaron Munter).
• The Unfulfilled Promise of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 18 LEWIS AND CLARK LAW REVIEW 155 (2014).
• Legislating for the Provision of Comprehensive Substance Abuse Treatment Programs for Pregnant and Mothering Women, 16 DUKE JOURNAL OF GENDER LAW AND POLICY 315 (2009) (co-authored with Traci Rieckmann).
• Prenatal Drug Exposure: The Impetus for Overreaction by the Legal Community or a Serious Problem Needing a Serious Solution?, 28 CHILD LEGAL RIGHTS JOURNAL 41 (2008).
• Child Custody and Adoption; and History of Bible Reading in Schools before and after Abington School District v. Schempp; and Explanation of Lambert v. Wicklund, 520 U.S. 292 (1997); and Explanation of Vernonia School District v. Acton, 515 U.S. 646 (1995); and Explanation of Thornburgh v. American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, 476 U.S. 747 (1986); and Explanation of Akron v. Akron Center for Reproductive Health, 462 U.S. 416 (1983) in ENCYCLOPEDIA ON AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES (Taylor and Francis) (2006).
• I Mean What I Say, I Think: The Danger to Small Businesses of Entering into Legally Enforceable Agreements that May Not Reflect Their Intentions, 7 JOURNAL OF SMALL & EMERGING BUSINESS LAW 283 (2003).
• Children and the Constitution, Editor, volumes 1-3 (Taylor and Francis) (2002).
• Interspousal Tort Claims in a Divorce Action, 31 WILLAMETTE LAW REVIEW 757 (1995).
• Stopping Fetal Abuse With No-Pregnancy and Drug Treatment Probation Conditions, 34 SANTA CLARA LAW REVIEW 295 (1994).