Geoffrey R. Stone: 50 Years of Teaching | University of Chicago Law School

Geoffrey Stone Marks a Half Century of Teaching

When Geoffrey R. Stone, ’71, started his senior year at the University of Pennsylvania in 1967, he had no idea what he would do next. It was the height of the Vietnam War and like many of his male classmates, he thought about attending graduate school.

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Stone mills with groups of people in front the Law School building.

Geoffrey Stone at the Law School’s Convocation celebration, 1985.

Stone, at a lectern in a hallway with portraits on the wall and people in the background look on.

Geoffrey Stone at the Law School Dean’s Lunch, 1990.

Stone, in a suit, looks into the camera with rows of books behind him.

Geoffrey Stone in 1987, the year he became dean of the Law School.

Stone, in a polo and jacket, sits at his desk with campus views behind him.

Geoffrey Stone in his early years at the Law School, circa 1973.

Four people huddle in front of a blackboard in a classroom.

Geoffrey Stone returned to teach at the Law School only two years after graduating.

Nine men in suit jackets stand in front of the Law School building, holding a banner that says, "1978-79"

Geoffrey Stone (second from right) with fellow Law School faculty.

Stone, in a polo, smiles in his office in front of rows of issues of the Supreme Court Review.

During his time as provost, Stone coedited eight volumes of the Supreme Court Review, the leading journal of constitutional law read by academics, judges, and practitioners the world over since 1991.

Stone, in a shirt and tie, motions with his hands at the front of a classroom with a blackboard behind him.

Geoffrey Stone designed the Law School’s iconic seminar on constitutional decision-making, which eventually became a model for similar programs at other law schools.

Geoffrey Stone with the late Ronald Coase, Nobel Prize winning law professor, at a Law School event, circa 1990.

Four students are seated looking at Stone, also seated in the semi-circle.

Geoffrey Stone chatting with students in his office, circa 2000.

Stone stands in the front of a classroom with students filling the seats in front of him.

Geoffrey Stone presenting a Chicago Best Ideas lecture in 2017.

Geoffrey Stone delivering a “NASA talk” in 2013.

Stone, in a suit and tie, sits next to Bader Ginsburg, in a dress, who smiles at him.

Geoffrey Stone with the late US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the D’Angelo Law Library Dedication in 1987.

Stone, in a suit and tie, accepts a framed award from Mkiva, in a suit and tie, on a stage with a banner behind them.

The late Abner Mikva, ’51, presents Geoffrey Stone with the National Association for Public Service Award, circa 2000.

Stone, in suit, and Kennedy, in dress and sweater, smile at the camera.

Geoffrey Stone with Ethel Kennedy, who presented him with the Robert F. Kennedy National Book Award in 2005 for Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime from the Sedition Act of 1798 to the War on Terror.

Stone, in a suit, sits at his desk with a casebook in front of him.

Geoffrey Stone in his office, circa 2000.

Five men in suits stand next to each other

Geoffrey Stone (center) with former deans of the Law School (left to right): Norval Morris, Edward H. Levi, Gerhard Casper, and Phil C. Neal, circa 1990.

Stone, with shoulder length hair, smiles at the camera.

During his years as a student, Geoffrey Stone served as editor in chief of the Law Review.

Five men and one women huddle around a round table.

Geoffrey Stone (second to right) at a faculty meeting circa 1980. During that decade, Stone chaired nearly every major committee at the Law School, from the Faculty Appointments Committee to the Admissions Committee.

Stone in suit stares at the camera with campus buildings behind him.

Geoffrey Stone was tapped to serve as University Provost in 1994, during his seventh year as dean of the Law School.

Geoffrey Stone Over the Years

Archival photos of Professor Stone during his time at the Law School.

In Conversation

‘We Have a Duty and an Obligation to Make a Difference’

In conversation with Stone at a 2022 Ulysses and Marguerite Schwartz Memorial Lecture, US Rep. Liz Cheney, ’96, talked about politics, democracy, and the role of individuals.

read about Cheney’s visit

Saying No to the President

In conversation with Stone at a 2017 Ulysses and Marguerite Schwartz Memorial Lecture, Sally Yates discussed standing up to President Trump—and why she thinks the rule of law is under siege.

read about Yates’ visit