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John Fabian Witt

ジョン・ファビアン・ウィット

John Fabian Witt

Profile

Gender
Male
Nationality
United States
Languages
English

Career

Occupations
Legal scholar, Professor
Affiliations
Yale Law School, Columbia University (former)

Education

Yale University
Yale College
Degree: BA
Country: United States
Yale University
Yale Law School
Degree: JD
Country: United States
Yale University
Graduate School
Degree: PhD
Country: United States
PhD awarded by Yale University

Awards

Bancroft Prize
2013
Work: Lincoln's Code: The Laws of War in American History
Organization: Columbia University Libraries
Result: 受賞
John Addison Porter Prize
2001
Work: The Accidental Republic: Amputee Workingmen, Destitute Widows, and the Remaking of American Law, 1866-1922
Organization: Yale University
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Lincoln's Code: The Laws of War in American History

2012 Legal history / American history

Examines the history of the laws of war in American history, analyzing the application of law and military action including during the Lincoln administration.

laws of warlegal historyAmerican Civil Warstate power

American Contagions: Epidemics and the Law from Smallpox to COVID-19

2020 Legal history / history of public health

Through the history of responses to epidemics, it considers the relationship between public health law, state authority, and individual rights.

epidemicspublic healthlaw and rightspolicy history

Bibliography

  • Lincoln's Code: The Laws of War in American History
  • American Contagions: Epidemics and the Law from Smallpox to COVID-19
  • The Accidental Republic: Amputee Workingmen, Destitute Widows, and the Remaking of American Law, 1866-1922

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Scholarly, meticulous legal-historical proseAnalytical style grounded in primary sources
Recurring Motifs
intersection of war and lawtension between state power and individual rightspublic health and law

Legacy

A legal historian known for work on American legal history, laws of war, and public health law. Gained interdisciplinary recognition for Lincoln's Code and has contributed to teaching and public debate.

Trivia

  • Won the Bancroft Prize in 2013 for Lincoln's Code.
  • Received the John Addison Porter Prize in 2001.
  • Taught at Columbia University before returning to Yale.
  • Named head of Davenport College at Yale in April 2017.