Paul Brest
- Professor of Law, Emeritus
- Director of the Law and Policy Lab
- Room N240, Neukom Building
Biography
Paul Brest is Former Dean and Professor Emeritus (active), at Stanford Law School, a lecturer at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, a faculty co-director of the Stanford Center on Philanthropy and Civil Society, and co-director of the Stanford Law and Policy Lab. He was president of the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation from 2000-2012.
He is co-author of Money Well Spent: A Strategic Guide to Smart Philanthropy (2008), Problem Solving, Decision Making, and Professional Judgment (2010),and articles on constitutional law, philanthropy, and impact investing. His current courses include Problem Solving for Public Policy and Social Change, Measuring and Improving Social Impact, and Advanced Topics in Philanthropy and Impact Investing. He also is the instructor in an online course, Essentials of Nonprofit Strategy, offered by Philanthropy University.
Professor Brest is a fellow in the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, and holds honorary degrees from Northwestern University School of Law and Swarthmore College. Before joining the Stanford Law School faculty in 1969, he clerked for Judge Bailey Aldrich of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and Justice John M. Harlan of the U.S. Supreme Court, and did civil rights litigation with the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund in Mississippi.
Education
- BA Swarthmore College 1962
- LLB Harvard Law School 1965
Courses
- Externship, Special Circumstances
- Impact Investing
- Issues in Philanthropy
- Philanthropy and Civil Society
- Policy Practicum: Designing a Social Impact Bond for Santa Clara County Mental Health
- Policy Practicum: Impact Investing In Developing Countries: Legal Institutions and Work-Arounds
- Policy Practicum: Investments in Investor-Backed Pay For Success (Social Impact Bond) Programs
- Problem Solving and Decision Making for Public Policy and Social Change
Affiliations & Honors
- Member, 2005 Board of Trustees, Security Council Report
- Member, 2003 Board of Trustees, California Institute of Technology
- Member, 2003 Board of Directors, Ithaka Harbours
- Honorary LLD, Northeastern University School of Law, 1980; Swarthmore College, 1991
- Fellow, American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Policy Practicum: Obesity in Santa Clara County
Among Santa Clara County adults, overweight and obesity increased from 52% in 2000 to 55% in 2009. Seventeen percent (17%) of fifth, seventh, and ninth graders in Santa Clara County are overweight and an additional 16% are obese – a striking statistic for middle school-aged children. This course will develop obesity initiatives for Santa Clara County. Law, medical, and public policy students will work with representatives from the County Board of Supervisors to identify strategies for reducing child and adult obesity that the County can implement.
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