Larry Lessig
Born 1961 · Age 64
American legal scholar, political activist, founder of Creative Commons and Equal Citizens, Roy L. Furman Professor of Law at Harvard; focus on copyright, internet law, and institutional corruption reform.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Rapid City, South Dakota
Lester Lawrence "Larry" Lessig III born to Lester Lawrence "Jack" Lessig II and Patricia West Lessig.
Graduated University of Pennsylvania (BA & BS)
Completed a double degree: B.A. in economics and B.S. in management from the University of Pennsylvania.
Received M.A. in Philosophy from Trinity College, Cambridge
Studied philosophy at Trinity College, Cambridge; earned an M.A.; credited with a major shift in his values and career direction.
Graduated Yale Law School (J.D.)
Completed J.D. at Yale after transferring from University of Chicago Law School for his second and third years.
Clerk for Judge Richard Posner (7th Circuit) — start
Began law clerkship for Judge Richard Posner (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit).
Clerk for Judge Richard Posner — end
Completed clerkship with Judge Posner (1989–1990).
Clerk for Justice Antonin Scalia (Supreme Court) — start
Began one-year clerkship for Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court (1990–1991).
Co-director, Center for the Study of Constitutionalism in Eastern Europe (approx.)
As co-director, helped the newly independent Republic of Georgia draft a constitution (work took place in the early 1990s while at Chicago).
Clerkship with Justice Scalia — end / Began academic career
Finished clerkship (1990–1991) and joined University of Chicago Law School faculty as professor (1991).
Professor at University of Chicago Law School — start
Joined the University of Chicago Law School faculty; taught there from 1991 to 1997.
Joined Harvard Law School faculty (1997–2000)
Moved to Harvard Law School; held positions including a one-year Berkman chair affiliated with Berkman Center for Internet & Society.
Special master appointment — United States v. Microsoft
Appointed special master by Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson in the antitrust case United States v. Microsoft (appointment later vacated by D.C. Circuit).
Published 'Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace'
Authored Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace, framing the 'Code is law' dictum and influencing internet law discourse.
Filed challenge in Eldred v. Ashcroft — start
Led challenge to the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act representing plaintiffs (case ran from 1999 into early 2000s).
Joined Stanford Law School / Founded Stanford Center for Internet and Society
Left Harvard to join Stanford Law School and established the Stanford Center for Internet and Society (CIS).
Co-founded Creative Commons
Founded Creative Commons, a nonprofit to expand legal sharing and reuse of creative works; became a founding board member.
Published 'The Future of Ideas'
Released The Future of Ideas, furthering arguments about openness, innovation, and intellectual-property limitations.
Received Free Software Foundation Award for Advancement of Free Software
Awarded by the FSF for contributions to free software and digital freedom.
Named to Scientific American 50
Included in Scientific American's list (Scientific American 50) for influence on interpretations of copyright and online innovation.
Supreme Court decision in Eldred v. Ashcroft — defeat
Supreme Court upheld the copyright-term extension; Lessig publicly acknowledged disappointment in March 2003.
Published 'Free Culture'
Released Free Culture, articulating the 'free culture' concept and criticizing copyright expansions.
Elected to Free Software Foundation board of directors
Elected to the FSF board (March 28, 2004), formalizing a leadership role in the free-software movement.
Published 'Code: Version 2.0' (update)
Released an updated version of Code to address evolving perspectives on regulation by software (code).
Elected to American Academy of Arts & Sciences
Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in recognition of scholarship and impact.
Succeeded in New Jersey Supreme Court case limiting nonprofits' immunity (advocacy outcome)
In August 2006 Lessig succeeded in persuading NJ Supreme Court to restrict immunity protecting nonprofits that failed to prevent sexual abuse.
Elected to American Philosophical Society
Elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society (2007).
TED Talk: 'Laws that choke creativity'
Presented at TED in November 2007 on how law can stifle creativity and the need for reform.
Published 'Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy'
Authored Remix, advocating remix culture and proposing Creative Commons-style remedies to restrictive copyright.
Launched Change Congress project (web initiative)
Announced Change Congress, a web-based project to hold representatives accountable and reduce money's influence in politics; later evolved into Rootstrikers.
Returned to Harvard as Director of Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics
In July 2009 Lessig rejoined Harvard as professor and director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics (served 2009–2015).
Published 'Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress—and a Plan to Stop It'
Released Republic, Lost, framing his campaign-finance / institutional corruption critiques and solutions.
Rootstrikers joined Get Money Out / United Republic umbrella
Announced Rootstrikers' alliance with Dylan Ratigan's Get Money Out campaign under United Republic (Nov 2011).
Published 'One Way Forward' (Kindle Single)
Published One Way Forward as a Kindle Single, continuing his institutional-reform advocacy.
Appointed Roy L. Furman Professor of Law and Leadership at Harvard
Named Roy L. Furman Professor; gave chair lecture titled 'Aaron's Laws: Law and Justice in a Digital Age.'
Awarded honorary doctorate (Lund University, Sweden)
Received an honorary doctorate from the Faculty of Social Sciences at Lund University (2013).
Filed suit against Liberation Music (DMCA takedown)
Filed suit after Liberation issued a takedown for use of 'Lisztomania' in one of his lectures (complaint Aug 22, 2013).
Honorary doctorate (Université catholique de Louvain)
Awarded an honorary doctorate by the Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain) in 2014.
New Hampshire Rebellion — 185-mile march (Jan 11–24, 2014)
Led a 185-mile walk in New Hampshire to raise awareness about systemic corruption and promote reform.
Received Webby Lifetime Achievement Award
Awarded the 2014 Webby Lifetime Achievement award for co-founding Creative Commons and defending net neutrality and related movements.
Launched Mayday PAC (crowd-funded super PAC)
In May 2014 Lessig launched Mayday PAC (with Mark McKinnon) to elect candidates committed to campaign-finance reform.
Killswitch film world premiere and award
Killswitch (featuring Lessig) premiered at the Woodstock Film Festival in Oct 2014 and won Best Editing.
Launched presidential exploratory committee
Announced on Aug 11, 2015 that he had launched an exploratory committee for a possible 2016 Democratic presidential bid, seeking $1M by Labor Day.
Announced formal 2016 presidential campaign
Declared candidacy for the Democratic nomination on Sept 6, 2015, aiming to make campaign finance reform the centerpiece of his run.
Abandoned plan to automatically resign if Citizen Equality Act passed
In October 2015 Lessig dropped his controversial pledge to resign the presidency if his Citizen Equality Act passed, adopting a full platform instead.
Suspended 2016 presidential campaign
Ended his presidential bid on Nov 2, 2015, citing Democratic Party rule changes that prevented debate participation.
Established The Electors Trust with Laurence Tribe
Formed The Electors Trust under EqualCitizens.US to provide counsel and secure communications for Electoral College members considering conscience votes after 2016 election.
Launched Equal Votes movement (Electoral College reform)
Announced effort 'Equal Votes' to challenge winner-take-all allocation of Electoral College votes and to promote proportional/equal representation reforms.
Published 'America, Compromised'
Published America, Compromised focusing on institutional corruption and democracy reform.
Published 'Fidelity & Constraint' and 'They Don't Represent Us'
Released two books in 2019: Fidelity & Constraint (Oxford) and They Don't Represent Us (public-facing on reclaiming democracy).
Filed defamation lawsuit against The New York Times — filed and later withdrew
Filed a defamation suit in Jan 2020 over a NYT article/headline related to Epstein comments; later NYT changed headline and Lessig reported he withdrew the suit (events span 2019–2020).
Medium post defending a stance on accepting tainted donations
Wrote a Medium post about the ethics of universities accepting tainted donations (context: MIT Media Lab/Jeffrey Epstein controversy), leading to a New York Times profile and subsequent dispute.
Featured in documentary 'The Swamp' and other media appearances
Appeared in multiple documentaries and films during/after 2014 including The Internet's Own Boy (2014), Killswitch (2014/15), Meeting Snowden (2017), The Swamp (2020), etc.
Reported family bereavements (parents)
Father Lester L. 'Jack' Lessig II died in 2020; mother Patricia West Lessig died in 2019 (reported in sources).
Admitted to Massachusetts Bar
Harvard page notes bar admissions including Massachusetts (listed 2023).
Co-authored letter supporting CA SB 1047 AI safety bill (Aug 2024)
In August 2024 Lessig co-authored a letter with AI researchers in favor of California bill SB 1047, advocating mandatory risk assessments for powerful models.
Continued public scholarship and publications (ongoing)
Active in scholarship and public writing; Harvard lists publications including forthcoming 2025 works and recent arXiv collaboration (2025).
Serves on boards and advisory roles (Creative Commons, AXA Research Fund, MapLight, Represent, etc.)
Longstanding governance and advisory roles: Emeritus board member of Creative Commons, board of AXA Research Fund Scientific Board, MAPLight, Represent, advisory boards for Sunlight Foundation, Democracy Café.
Approximate net worth estimate (public figure)
Estimated net worth based on academic salary, book royalties, speaking fees, and long-term activism; rough estimate provided for timeline context.
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