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Daniel D. Polsby

  • Dean and Professor Emeritus of Law
  • JD, University of Minnesota Law School
  • BA, Oakland University

Professional Information

Contact Information

  • Phone: 703-993-8087
  • Office: Room 433R, Hazel Hall, Arlington
  • Address
    Antonin Scalia Law School
    George Mason University
    3301 Fairfax Dr.
    Arlington, VA 22201

Biographical Sketch

Dean and Professor Emeritus of Law Daniel D. Polsby joined the faculty of the law school in 1999 after serving 23 years on the Northwestern University law faculty, most recently (since 1990) as the Kirkland & Ellis Professor of Law. He has held visiting appointments in the law schools of the University of Southern California, the University of Michigan, and Cornell University. He was appointed acting dean of the George Mason School of Law in 2004, named dean in 2005, served until he stepped down in June 2015, and retired from the faculty in 2020.

Dean Polsby has published dozens of articles on such diverse subjects as voting rights, family law, employment rights, and spectrum utilization. He is the author of the award-winning article, "The False Promise of Gun Control," the cover essay of the March 1994 Atlantic Monthly. The article is one of the most widely anthologized essays of recent years.

Dean Polsby received his BA from Oakland University (1964) and earned his JD magna cum laude from the University of Minnesota (1971). His interests include Criminal Law, Family Law, Constitutional Law, and other subjects.