Law and democracy
As a public interest lawyer, my expertise includes strategic democracy litigation, the U.S. Constitution, campaign finance, voting rights, and environmental law.I'm Chief Counsel at American Oversight, where our team of dedicated lawyers fights for truth, accountability, and democracy by enforcing the public's right to government records. Obviously, this is my personal web page only. For official American Oversight information, or if you want to contact me about something American Oversight-related, please visit American Oversight.
Previously, I served for a decade as the Legal Director at Free Speech For People, and before that at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Some highlights from the past few years are below; see my LinkedIn page for more."Ron Fein, you are literally on the front lines of saving our democracy" - MSNBC (Jason Johnson)
"His knowledge of case law seemed encyclopedic" - The New Yorker (Sue Halpern)
"Communist...scumbag lawyer" - Marjorie Taylor Greene
In the news
The 'Chilling' Trump Plan That Could Pave The Way For Authoritarianism - Huffington Post, June 11, 2024
How much does it cost DeSantis to travel from one place to another? Florida won't tell you - USA Today, May 20, 2024
Removing Trump - MSNBC (appearance on All in with Chris Hayes, guest host Jason Johnson), Dec. 27, 2023
A High-Risk Legal Effort to Keep Trump Off the Ballot - New Yorker, Nov. 9, 2023
Minnesota trial to remove Trump from 2024 election ballot begins - NBC News, Nov. 2, 2023
Appellate argument in constitutional challenge to candidacy of Donald Trump (courtroom video) - Nov. 2, 2023
Effort to disqualify Trump from WH gains traction - MSNBC (appearance on Deadline: White House with Nicolle Wallace), Aug. 31, 2023
14th Amendment, Section 3: A new legal battle against Trump takes shape - ABC News, Aug. 25, 2023
This issue could knock Trump off ballots nationwide. Get ready for it to dominate primary season - L.A. Times, Aug. 18, 2023
1870s racism echoes through Trump and Colorado cases - Colorado Newsline, Aug. 3, 2023
Trump team prepares to fight efforts to block him from ballots over Jan. 6 - Washington Post, Apr. 18, 2023
Limits on super PACs stump top Massachusetts court - Courthouse News Service, Feb. 6, 2023
A Long-Shot Push to Bar Trump in 2024 as an “Insurrectionist” - N.Y. Times, Sept. 7, 2022
Opening argument in constitutional challenge to candidacy of Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (courtroom video) - C-SPAN, Apr. 22, 2022
What Marjorie Taylor Greene will be asked when she testifies under oath - MSNBC (appearance on All In with Chris Hayes, guest host Ayman Mohyeldin), Apr. 20, 2022
Ron Fein: Madison Cawthorn is Disqualified for Future Public Office - CNN (appearance on New Day with Brianna Keilar), Feb. 10, 2022
New legal case may threaten Rep. Cawthorn’s reelection bid - CNN (appearance on Erin Burnett Out Front), Jan. 27, 2022
Cawthorn Challenge Raises the Question: Who is an “Insurrectionist”? - N.Y. Times, Jan. 25, 2022
How Jan. 6 Gave the 14th Amendment New Life - N.Y. Times, Jan. 19, 2022
The Case for Barring Madison Cawthorn from the Ballot - CNN (appearance on CNN Newsroom with Victor Blackwell & Alisyn Camerota), Jan. 14, 2022
Op-eds
Merrick Garland Has Abandoned Prosecuting Trump’s Pre-2020 Crimes - JURIST, Jan. 6, 2023 (with John Bonifaz & Ben Clements)
Voting Rights Under Threat - BillMoyers.com, Mar. 18, 2021 (with John Bonifaz & Ben Clements)
Impeachment or not, the Justice Department must investigate Trump - L.A. Times, Jan. 13, 2021 (with Sarah Chayes & Ben Clements)
Impeach Trump again—and bar him from future office - Boston Globe, Jan. 5, 2021 (with John Bonifaz & Ben Clements)
The public has a right to hear Stormy Daniels, Mr. President - Wash. Post, Mar. 23, 2018 (with Laurence Tribe)
Equifax deserves the corporate death penalty - WIRED, Oct. 20, 2017
Donald Trump Abused Pardon Power When He Freed Joe Arpaio - TIME, Oct. 3, 2017 (with John Dean)
Books and book chapters
Fixing the Supreme Court’s Mistake: The Case for the Twenty-Eighth Amendment - in Democracy by the People: Reforming Campaign Finance in America (Eugene Mazo & Timothy Kuhner, eds., Cambridge Univ. Press 2019)
The Constitution Demands It: The Case for the Impeachment of Donald Trump (with John Bonifaz & Ben Clements) (Melville House Publishing 2018)