Pepperdine Caruso Law Nootbaar Institute Hosts Workshop on Christian Legal Thought
On Friday, November 7, 2025, the Nootbaar Institute on Law, Religion, and Ethics at Pepperdine Caruso School of Law held an academic workshop titled “Christian Legal Thought from the Margins.” The workshop brought together legal scholars to share their current research projects from a diverse array of fields (including bankruptcy, tax, labor, criminal law, immigration, and family law) and explore how Christianity informs that work. The gathering was organized by Nootbaar Institute co-director and Caruso Law professor Jennifer Koh, University of Florida Levin College of Law professor Christopher Hampson, and Indiana University Maurer School of Law professor Alvin Velazquez.
The workshop began with introductory comments from Caruso Law associate dean for academic affairs Jason Jarvis, who emphasized Caruso Law's longstanding commitment to integrating faith and work. Fuller Theological Seminary professor Soong-Chan Rah delivered opening words of encouragement and a prayer for participants. During the lunch panel, legal scholars Angela Carmella of Seton Hall Law School, Michael Oswalt of Wayne State University Law School, and Victor Romero of Penn State Dickinson Law participated in a panel on Christianity and the legal academy, moderated by Professor Hampson.
The organizers expressed an interest in continuing to organize similar workshops in the future. “I am grateful that the Nootbaar Institute could host this initial workshop, and look forward to continuing to build a community of legal scholars who are interested in Christianity, law and justice,” said Professor Koh.
