Derek Ho ’92, David Pozen ’98, and Dave Friedman P’21’25 on the Supreme Court

Decisions of the Supreme Court can be indicators of our nation’s values, culture, and changing demographics. They can illuminate, or even move, our country’s compass. In an increasingly polarized and politicized climate, the reliability of this venerable institution is ever more important. And in the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, discussion of the Supreme Court and its future is even more part of the daily headlines. That’s why we’re grateful that, on October 6, Roxbury Latin trustee Derek Ho ’92, alumnus David Pozen ’98, and parent Dave Friedman P’21’25 joined us to deliver a triad presentation on our nation’s highest court.

All three men spent part of their careers clerking for U.S. Supreme Court justices—Mr. Ho for Justice David Souter; and Mr. Friedman and Mr. Pozen both for Justice John Paul Stevens. Clerking for a Supreme Court Justice is one of the most coveted, most influential roles in the law profession, and affords a unique perspective. Both Mr. Ho and Mr. Friedman also clerked for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Michael Boudin; both graduated from Harvard College and Harvard Law. Mr. Pozen clerked for Judge Merrick Garland on the U.S. Court of Appeals and graduated from Yale University and Yale Law.

Today, Mr. Ho is a partner with the firm Kellogg Hansen in Washington D.C., specializing in appellate and complex commercial litigation, focusing on class actions and multidistrict litigation proceedings, antitrust law, and the False Claims Act. Mr. Ho represented clients in three of the U.S. Supreme Court’s most significant recent class action decisions, prevailing in all three. He is also a member of RL’s Board of Trustees.

Mr. Friedman is Senior Vice President for Legal and Government Affairs for the Red Sox and senior counsel for Fenway Sports Group. He handles a variety of legal matters, including regulatory compliance issues and oversight of litigation. He assists with the club’s interactions with Major League Baseball and other Major League teams. Mr. Friedman handles legal and business matters for the Red Sox Foundation and works on government affairs matters in conjunction with the club’s Fenway Affairs department.

Mr. Pozen is Vice Dean for Intellectual Life and the Charles Keller Beekman Professor of Law at Columbia Law School. There he teaches and writes about constitutional law, information law, and nonprofit law, among other topics. In 2019, the American Law Institute named Mr. Pozen the recipient of its Early Career Scholars Medal. Mr. Pozen’s work includes dozens of articles, essays, and book chapters, and his scholarship has been discussed in outlets including The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Washington Post, and NPR.

View the entirety of the Hall presentation.