Kahn, Robert
Robert Kahn
Associate Professor
1000 LaSalle Ave.
Minneapolis, MN 55403-2015
Office Location: MSL 315
Ph.D., Johns Hopkins
J.D., New York University Law School
B.A., Columbia University
Robert Kahn was born in Brookline, Massachusetts. After graduating from Columbia University with a B.A in history, he went to N.Y.U. Law School where he was a Notes and Comment Editor for the Review of Law and Social Change and a member of the Order of the Coif. He clerked for Magistrate-Judge Leonard Bernikow of the Southern District of New York and worked as a staff attorney at Harlem Legal Services. Prior to coming to the School of Law, Kahn taught legal writing for six years at Brooklyn Law School.
Kahn also holds a Ph.D. political science from Johns Hopkins University. His scholarship has focused on the use of legal sanctions against Holocaust deniers in Western Europe and North America. His book, Holocaust Denial and the Law: A Comparative Study, was published in 2004 by Palgrave-MacMillan. Kahn has also published articles on the cross-buring cases (RAV v. St. Paul and Virginia v. Black), and the constitutionality of restrictions on the Muslim headscarf in the United States and Germany. More recently, Kahn has turned his attention to the Danish Cartoon controversy and how it has triggered a new European debate over the boundary between freedom of speech and hate speech.
Kahn lives with his wife Jacqueline and his two children Jimmy, age 7, and Jenny, age 5, in St. Paul. Despite living in New York City for over a quarter of a century, Kahn remains a die-hard fan of the Boston Red Sox.
Courses Taught
| Number | Title | Credits | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 620 | Lawyering Skills I | 3 | ||
| Description of course 620 : | This course will introduce students to the fundamentals of legal problem solving through legal analysis, legal research and legal writing methods. Students will learn methods of legal analysis, including fact analysis and rule-based reasoning, using common law and statutory sources. Students will learn legal research in primary and secondary sources, in both traditional and electronic formats, emphasizing efficient research strategies. Finally, students will learn to structure, write and edit a formal memorandum of law. Instruction in lawyering skills will be integrated to focus on the problem-solving process and to help students begin to develop independent professional judgment. | |||
| 625 | Lawyering Skills II | 2 | ||
| Description of course 625 : | This course will refine students' legal problem-solving skills using legal analysis, legal research, and legal writing strategies and will introduce students to additional lawyering skills. Students will advance from objective to persuasive legal writing projects set in an advocacy context and will draft typical litigation documents, such as plead- ings, pre-trial motions, and trial briefs. Students will consider various dynamics of the lawyer/client relationship, conduct a client interview, and prepare a client opinion letter. Finally, the course will explore alternative methods of dispute resolution. | |||
| 763 | Islam & Civil Liberties | 2 | ||
| Description of course 763 : | Students take an in-depth, comparative look at two cutting- edge subjects: (i) the European debate over whether to ban the headscarf and other forms of Islamic clothing and (ii) the controversy over the publication of the Danish cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed. Each student writes short reaction papers and then has a choice of either (i) a 7500- word paper, which will satisfy the upper-level writing requirement, or (ii) a shorter 4-6 page paper and a take- home final exam. (2 credits. Offered alternate years. ULWR.) | |||
| 950 | Supervised Resrch & Writing | .5 | ||
| Description of course 950 : | Under the supervision of a faculty member, a student may receive up to two hours of course credit for researching and writing a substantial paper on a topic of the student's own choosing. The student must receive the instructor's per- mission to enroll in this course and must meet periodically with the instructor for discussion, review and evaluation. Each faculty member may supervise the research of no more than five students each semester. | |||
Areas of Academic Expertise
Lawyering Skills
European Hate Speech Laws
Muslims and the Law
Holocaust Denial Laws
From the article "Grand Ideas: Faculty members describe the best ideas from their scholarship" St. Thomas Lawyer Magazine Fall 2011
My scholarship explores how historical experiences, legal institutions and cultural traditions help determine the type of speech acts a society bans. My main focus has been hate speech laws in Europe. For example, I observed that Holocaust-denial bans were more likely to emerge in countries with direct experience with Nazi rule. Especially in Germany, such laws were defended as a precaution against totalitarianism. More recent work has focused on the integration of Muslims in Europe, an issue in which I have found a similar argument. Burqa bans and the publication of the Danish cartoons have been justified as necessary steps to avoid appeasing “radical Islam,” which replaced Hitler and Stalin as Europe’s new totalitarian threat. Interestingly, however, the response to this “new totalitarianism” has been to call for more speech and an end to Europe’s hate speech laws.
Upcoming: I am studying the trial of Geert Wilders, a politician charged with violating Dutch hate speech laws for anti-Muslim comments.
Contributions and mentions in the media
DW (Germany) - "Germany Moves to Silence Holocaust Deniers Across Europe" View Publication
Books
Robert A. Kahn, Holocaust Denial and the Law: A Comparative Study (Palgrave Macmillan 2004).
Robert A. Kahn, Holocaust Denial and the Law: A Comparative Study (Palgrave Macmillan 2004).
Chapters
Robert A. Kahn, Holocaust Denial and Hate Speech, in Genocide Denials and the Law 77 (Ludovic Hennebel & Thomas Hochmann eds., Oxford U. Press 2011).
Robert A. Kahn, Holocaust Denial and Hate Speech, in Genocide Denials and the Law 77 (Ludovic Hennebel & Thomas Hochmann eds., Oxford U. Press 2011).
Robert A. Kahn, Strange Bedfellows? Western Deniers and the Arab World, in Not Your Father’s Anti-Semitism: Hatred of Jews in the Twenty-First Century 183 (Michael Berenbaum ed., Paragon House 2008).
Robert A. Kahn, Strange Bedfellows? Western Deniers and the Arab World, in Not Your Father’s Anti-Semitism: Hatred of Jews in the Twenty-First Century 183 (Michael Berenbaum ed., Paragon House 2008).
Robert A. Kahn, Did the Burning Cross Speak? Virginia v. Black and the Debate Between Justices O’Connor and Thomas over the History of Cross Burning, in 39 Studies in Law, Politics, and Society 75 (Austin Sarat ed., Emerald Group Publ'g Ltd. 2006).
Robert A. Kahn, Did the Burning Cross Speak? Virginia v. Black and the Debate Between Justices O’Connor and Thomas over the History of Cross Burning, in 39 Studies in Law, Politics, and Society 75 (Austin Sarat ed., Emerald Group Publ'g Ltd. 2006).
Robert A. Kahn, Imagining Legal Fairness: A Comparative Perspective, in New Approaches to Comparative Politics: Insights from Political Theory 125 (Jennifer S. Holmes ed., Lexington Books 2003).
Robert A. Kahn, Imagining Legal Fairness: A Comparative Perspective, in New Approaches to Comparative Politics: Insights from Political Theory 125 (Jennifer S. Holmes ed., Lexington Books 2003).
Articles
Robert A. Kahn, Are Muslims the New Catholics? Europe's Headscarf Laws in Comparative Historical Perspective, 21 Duke J. Comp. & Int’l L. 567 (2011).
View Publication
Robert A. Kahn, Are Muslims the New Catholics? Europe's Headscarf Laws in Comparative Historical Perspective, 21 Duke J. Comp. & Int’l L. 567 (2011).
Robert A. Kahn, A Margin of Appreciation for Muslims? Viewing the Defamation of Religions Debate through Otto-Preminger-Institut v. Austria, 5 Charleston L. Rev. 401 (2011).
View Publication
Robert A. Kahn, A Margin of Appreciation for Muslims? Viewing the Defamation of Religions Debate through Otto-Preminger-Institut v. Austria, 5 Charleston L. Rev. 401 (2011).
Robert A. Kahn, Flemming Rose, the Danish Cartoon Controversy, and the New European Freedom of Speech, 40 Cal. W. Int’l L.J. 253 (2010).
View Publication
Robert A. Kahn, Flemming Rose, the Danish Cartoon Controversy, and the New European Freedom of Speech, 40 Cal. W. Int’l L.J. 253 (2010).
Robert A. Kahn, Islam Symposium: An Introduction, 7 U. St. Thomas L.J. vii (2010).
Robert A. Kahn, Islam Symposium: An Introduction, 7 U. St. Thomas L.J. vii (2010).
Robert A. Kahn, The Danish Cartoon Controversy and the Rhetoric of Libertarian Regret, 16 U. Miami Int'l & Comp. L. Rev. 151 (2009).
Robert A. Kahn, The Danish Cartoon Controversy and the Rhetoric of Libertarian Regret, 16 U. Miami Int'l & Comp. L. Rev. 151 (2009).
Robert A. Kahn, The Danish Cartoon Controversy and the Exclusivist Turn in European Civic Nationalism, 8 Stud. Ethnicity & Nationalism 524 (2008).
Robert A. Kahn, The Danish Cartoon Controversy and the Exclusivist Turn in European Civic Nationalism, 8 Stud. Ethnicity & Nationalism 524 (2008).
Robert A. Kahn, The Headscarf as Threat: A Comparison of German and U.S. Legal Discourses, 40 Vand. J. Transnat’l L. 417 (2007).
Robert A. Kahn, The Headscarf as Threat: A Comparison of German and U.S. Legal Discourses, 40 Vand. J. Transnat’l L. 417 (2007).
Robert A. Kahn, Cross-Burning, Holocaust Denial, and the Development of Hate Speech Law in the United States and Germany, 83 U. Det. Mercy L. Rev. 163 (2006).
Robert A. Kahn, Cross-Burning, Holocaust Denial, and the Development of Hate Speech Law in the United States and Germany, 83 U. Det. Mercy L. Rev. 163 (2006).
Robert A. Kahn, Rebuttal Versus Unmasking: Legal Strategy in R. v. Zundel, 34 Patterns of Prejudice 3 (2000).
Robert A. Kahn, Rebuttal Versus Unmasking: Legal Strategy in R. v. Zundel, 34 Patterns of Prejudice 3 (2000).
Robert A. Kahn, Informal Censorship of Holocaust Revisionism in the United States and Germany, 9 Geo. Mason U. C.R. L.J. 125 (1998).
Robert A. Kahn, Informal Censorship of Holocaust Revisionism in the United States and Germany, 9 Geo. Mason U. C.R. L.J. 125 (1998).
Robert A. Kahn, Who Takes the Blame? Scapegoating, Legal Responsibility and the Prosecution of Holocaust Revisionists in the Federal Republic of Germany and Canada, 16 Glendale L. Rev. 17 (1998).
Robert A. Kahn, Who Takes the Blame? Scapegoating, Legal Responsibility and the Prosecution of Holocaust Revisionists in the Federal Republic of Germany and Canada, 16 Glendale L. Rev. 17 (1998).
Short Pieces
Robert A. Kahn, Why Europeans Criminalize Holocaust Denial, The N.Y. Jewish Week, March 3, 2006, at 30.
Robert A. Kahn, Why Europeans Criminalize Holocaust Denial, The N.Y. Jewish Week, March 3, 2006, at 30.
Robert A. Kahn, The Dilemmas of Prosecuting Holocaust Deniers: A Comparative Perspective, 22 Focus on Law Stud. 2 (2005).
Robert A. Kahn, The Dilemmas of Prosecuting Holocaust Deniers: A Comparative Perspective, 22 Focus on Law Stud. 2 (2005).
Encyclopedia Entries
Robert A. Kahn, Beauharnais v. Illinois, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 53 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Beauharnais v. Illinois, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 53 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 109 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 109 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Clear and Present Danger Test, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 138 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Clear and Present Danger Test, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 138 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Hate Speech, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 349 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Hate Speech, in 1 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 349 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Military and the Constitution, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 468 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Military and the Constitution, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 468 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Parades, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 535 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Parades, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 535 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Pennsylvania v. Nelson, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 546 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Pennsylvania v. Nelson, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 546 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, R.A.V. v. St. Paul, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 593 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, R.A.V. v. St. Paul, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 593 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Schenck v. United States, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 645 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Schenck v. United States, in 2 Encyclopedia of the United States Constitution 645 (David A. Schultz ed., Facts on File 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Anti-Mask Laws, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 104 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Anti-Mask Laws, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 104 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Cross Burning, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 363 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Cross Burning, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 363 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, De Scandalis Magnatum, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 386 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, De Scandalis Magnatum, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 386 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Holocaust Denial, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 577 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Holocaust Denial, in 1 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 577 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Islam, in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 612 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Islam, in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 612 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese v. Milivojevich (1976), in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 983 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Serbian Eastern Orthodox Diocese v. Milivojevich (1976), in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 983 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, United States v. Ballard (1944), in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 1093 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, United States v. Ballard (1944), in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 1093 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Virginia v. Black (2003), in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 1135 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Virginia v. Black (2003), in 2 Encyclopedia of the First Amendment 1135 (John R. Vile, David L. Hudson & David A. Schultz eds., CQ Press 2009).
Robert A. Kahn, Adversarial vs. Inquisitorial Legal Systems, in 1 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 13 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Adversarial vs. Inquisitorial Legal Systems, in 1 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 13 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Civil Law System, in 1 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 182 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Civil Law System, in 1 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 182 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Conscientious Objectors, in 1 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 216 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Conscientious Objectors, in 1 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 216 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Gravity-of-the-Evil Test, in 2 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 425 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Gravity-of-the-Evil Test, in 2 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 425 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Seditious Libel, in 3 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 857 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Seditious Libel, in 3 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 857 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Stromberg v. California, in 3 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 908 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Stromberg v. California, in 3 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 908 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Torture, in 3 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 948 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Robert A. Kahn, Torture, in 3 Encyclopedia of Civil Liberties in America 948 (David Schultz & John R. Vile eds., Sharpe Reference 2005).
Faculty & Staff
- Deans
- Faculty
- Bateson, Ann
- Berg, Thomas
- Blanchard, Lindsey
- Bowser, Rene
- Carpenter, Benjamin
- Collett, Teresa
- Delahunty, Robert
- Gordon, Mitchell
- Griffith, Daniel
- Hamilton, Neil
- Hernandez-Crespo, Mariana
- Holloran, Thomas
- Johnson, Lyman
- Joyce, Thomas
- Kaal, Wulf
- Kahn, Robert
- Levy-Pounds, Nekima
- Nichols, Joel
- Organ, Jerry
- Orr, Laura
- Oseid, Julie
- Osler, Mark
- Paulsen, Michael
- Reid, Charles
- Schiltz, Elizabeth
- Shea, Hank
- Sisk, Gregory
- Stabile, Susan
- Taylor, Scott
- Tyner, Artika
- Vischer, Robert
- Whitt, Reginald
- Wiebe, Virgil
- Wright, Jennifer
- Adjunct Faculty
- Staff by Department
- Faculty in the News
- Scholarship by Faculty