By Bob Needham
Michigan Law
Professor Spencer Smith was initially drawn to the law as a way to make positive change in the world.
He has put that drive into practice at the US Department of Justice and as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. As he joins the Michigan Law faculty, the desire to spur change continues to motivate him into the world of academia.
While Smith has written on a number of topics, from taxation to torts, his recent focus, both in practice and in research, has been antitrust law. “I’m interested in what works,” he said. “How can the law create real competition and economic opportunity, free from monopoly power?”
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The reach and impact of antitrust law
Born and raised by schoolteacher parents in Holland, Michigan, Smith got his bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics from U-M, then a master’s and doctorate in economics from Oxford University, where he studied as a Marshall Scholar. He earned a JD from Harvard Law School.
“Even as I was doing graduate work in economics, it became clear that law was essential to work on some of the problems that I cared about most,” he said. “Law is, among other things, a powerful means to shape private conduct for the public good.”
Smith has worked for the Justice Department twice, most recently as counsel to Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Jonathan Kanter, who is known as a strong enforcer of the antitrust laws.
“A lot has changed in our economy and our society, and antitrust law needs to keep up,” Smith said. “The antitrust statutes might be sufficiently flexible to address new forms of anticompetitive conduct. But for the law to develop, advocates and enforcers have to be creative, and they must be determined to bring hard cases.”
Smith previously served as a law clerk to Justice Sotomayor during the Supreme Court’s 2022–2023 term, when the Court confronted challenges to the Voting Rights Act, affirmative action in university admissions, and LGBTQ rights.
“Justice Sotomayor is an amazing mentor and role model,” Smith said. “She is brilliant, strategic, full of integrity, and tireless in her pursuit of justice. With her example in mind, I left the clerkship energized and recommitted to an approach to law that focuses on how legal rules and institutions affect people’s everyday lives.”
—————
A coming home to academia
Smith was drawn to academia for two main reasons: the example of his parents, who were both public school teachers; and the chance to make a difference in the world through research and advocacy.
The opportunity to pursue teaching at Michigan Law, where he is now an assistant professor of law, was particularly appealing to him. “I was born and raised in Michigan and attended this university for college. The chance now to join this top-flight law school is something I’m deeply grateful for. I anticipate learning a lot from my remarkable colleagues and students.”
On a personal level, it was at U-M that Smith met his future husband, who joined the faculty of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts last year—not long after Justice Sotomayor married them.
“It is very special for us to be back where it all began,” Smith said.
Smith will teach antitrust law in the winter term, and he encourages students of all backgrounds and interests to study the subject. “Antitrust has a reputation for being a difficult course, and maybe that’s deserved,” he said. “But it’s not just a technical exercise in economics. Antitrust has it all: civil and criminal litigation, fascinating history, crossover politics, statutory interpretation, administrative law and regulatory policy, even some constitutional questions. There’s something for everyone.”
Michigan Law
Professor Spencer Smith was initially drawn to the law as a way to make positive change in the world.
He has put that drive into practice at the US Department of Justice and as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor. As he joins the Michigan Law faculty, the desire to spur change continues to motivate him into the world of academia.
While Smith has written on a number of topics, from taxation to torts, his recent focus, both in practice and in research, has been antitrust law. “I’m interested in what works,” he said. “How can the law create real competition and economic opportunity, free from monopoly power?”
—————
The reach and impact of antitrust law
Born and raised by schoolteacher parents in Holland, Michigan, Smith got his bachelor’s degree in economics and mathematics from U-M, then a master’s and doctorate in economics from Oxford University, where he studied as a Marshall Scholar. He earned a JD from Harvard Law School.
“Even as I was doing graduate work in economics, it became clear that law was essential to work on some of the problems that I cared about most,” he said. “Law is, among other things, a powerful means to shape private conduct for the public good.”
Smith has worked for the Justice Department twice, most recently as counsel to Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust Jonathan Kanter, who is known as a strong enforcer of the antitrust laws.
“A lot has changed in our economy and our society, and antitrust law needs to keep up,” Smith said. “The antitrust statutes might be sufficiently flexible to address new forms of anticompetitive conduct. But for the law to develop, advocates and enforcers have to be creative, and they must be determined to bring hard cases.”
Smith previously served as a law clerk to Justice Sotomayor during the Supreme Court’s 2022–2023 term, when the Court confronted challenges to the Voting Rights Act, affirmative action in university admissions, and LGBTQ rights.
“Justice Sotomayor is an amazing mentor and role model,” Smith said. “She is brilliant, strategic, full of integrity, and tireless in her pursuit of justice. With her example in mind, I left the clerkship energized and recommitted to an approach to law that focuses on how legal rules and institutions affect people’s everyday lives.”
—————
A coming home to academia
Smith was drawn to academia for two main reasons: the example of his parents, who were both public school teachers; and the chance to make a difference in the world through research and advocacy.
The opportunity to pursue teaching at Michigan Law, where he is now an assistant professor of law, was particularly appealing to him. “I was born and raised in Michigan and attended this university for college. The chance now to join this top-flight law school is something I’m deeply grateful for. I anticipate learning a lot from my remarkable colleagues and students.”
On a personal level, it was at U-M that Smith met his future husband, who joined the faculty of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts last year—not long after Justice Sotomayor married them.
“It is very special for us to be back where it all began,” Smith said.
Smith will teach antitrust law in the winter term, and he encourages students of all backgrounds and interests to study the subject. “Antitrust has a reputation for being a difficult course, and maybe that’s deserved,” he said. “But it’s not just a technical exercise in economics. Antitrust has it all: civil and criminal litigation, fascinating history, crossover politics, statutory interpretation, administrative law and regulatory policy, even some constitutional questions. There’s something for everyone.”
