Wisconsin Assembly leaders Barca, Vos to speak at Marquette Law conference on campaign finance regulation

MILWAUKEE – Wisconsin State Assembly leaders Robin Vos and Peter Barca will be among the guest speakers at a Marquette University Law School half-day conference titled, “Campaign Finance Regulation in Wisconsin: The Law as It Was, Is, Should Be, and Will Be,” on Friday, Feb. 27, at 8:15 a.m. in Eckstein Hall, 1215 W. Michigan St.

Vos, a Republican who represents the 63^rd district, serves as speaker of the assembly. Vos has said that he will lead efforts to revise Wisconsin’s campaign finance laws in this legislative session. Barca, a Democrat who represents the 64^th district, serves as minority leader. Barca has said he intends to be involved in any efforts to revise Wisconsin’s campaign finance laws.

The conversation between Barca and Vos, the third and final session of the conference, will be moderated by Mike Gousha, the Law School’s distinguished fellow in law and public policy.

The first session of the morning, titled “Wisconsin’s campaign finance laws in light of recent court decisions,” is a joint presentation by Richard M. Esenberg, president of the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty, and Matthew W. O’Neill, a shareholder at Fox, O’Neill & Shannon in Milwaukee.

The second session, titled “How should campaign finance be regulated?,” is a debate between Alan B. Morrison, the Lerner Family Associate Dean for Public Interest and Public Service Law at George Washington University Law School, and Bradley A. Smith, the 2013-15 Judge John T. Copenhaver, Jr. Visiting Endowed Chair of Law at the West Virginia University College of Law. Morrison was the cofounder, with Ralph Nader, of the Public Citizen Litigation Group and has argued 20 cases in the U.S. Supreme Court. Smith was a commissioner on the Federal Elections Commission from 2000 to 2005, with his term including service as the FEC’s chairman.

The event is cosponsored by the Law School together with the Milwaukee Lawyers Chapter of the Federalist Society and the Milwaukee Lawyer Chapter of the American Constitution Society. It is complimentary and open to the public, but advance registration is required.

The conference is the latest in a series of events supporting Marquette Law School’s commitment to serve as a modern-day public square for the city of Milwaukee, the state of Wisconsin and beyond.

Through the Marquette Law School Poll, Gousha’s “On the Issues” series of conversations with newsmakers, debates featuring candidates in significant political races, public lectures by leading scholars and topical conferences — all open to the community — the Law School serves as a venue for serious civil discourse about law and public policy matters.

NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. It has not been verified for its accuracy or completeness.