1. Life and Career
Lawrence Lessig's career has spanned prominent legal clerkships, influential academic positions, and significant roles in the development of digital rights and political reform movements.
1.1. Early Life and Education
Lessig was born on June 3, 1961, in Rapid City, South Dakota. His father was Lester Lawrence "Jack" Lessig II (1929-2020), an engineer, and his mother was Patricia "Pat" West Lessig (1930-2019), a real estate agent. He has two older step-siblings, Robert (who died in 2019) and Kitty, and a younger biological sister, Leslie. He grew up in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Lessig pursued a diverse academic path, graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1983 with a double Bachelor of Arts (BA) in economics and a Bachelor of Science (BS) in management. He then studied philosophy at Trinity College, Cambridge, receiving a Master of Arts (MA) in 1986. His time at Cambridge, which was initially intended as a year abroad, profoundly influenced his values and career trajectory, shifting his previously conservative or libertarian political views towards a more liberal stance. During this period, he also traveled in the Eastern Bloc, developing a lifelong interest in Eastern European law and politics. Lessig returned to the United States to attend law school, completing his first year at the University of Chicago Law School before transferring to Yale Law School, from which he graduated with a JD degree in 1989.
1.2. Law Clerkship and Early Academic Career
After graduating from law school, Lessig served as a law clerk for two highly influential conservative judges. From 1989 to 1990, he clerked for Judge Richard Posner of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Subsequently, from 1990 to 1991, he clerked for Justice Antonin Scalia of the Supreme Court of the United States. Both judges selected him for his intellectual brilliance, despite his differing ideology, effectively making him a "token liberal" on their respective staffs. Posner later described Lessig as "the most distinguished law professor of his generation."
Lessig began his academic teaching career at the University of Chicago Law School, where he was a professor from 1991 to 1997. During this time, as co-director of its Center for the Study of Constitutionalism in Eastern Europe, he contributed to assisting the newly independent Republic of Georgia in drafting its constitution. From 1997 to 2000, he taught at Harvard Law School, holding the position of Berkman Professor of Law for a year, affiliated with the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society.
1.3. Academic Career and Professorship
Following his tenure at Harvard, Lessig joined Stanford Law School, where he established the Stanford Center for Internet and Society. In July 2009, he returned to Harvard University as a professor and director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics. In 2013, Lessig was appointed as the Roy L. Furman Professor of Law and Leadership at Harvard, delivering his chair lecture titled "Aaron's Laws: Law and Justice in a Digital Age."
2. Key Ideas and Activities
Lessig's intellectual contributions and activism have significantly shaped discussions across various fields, from digital rights to political ethics.
2.1. "Code is Law" and Cyberlaw
Lessig is renowned for his influential concept, "Code is Law." In computer science, "code" typically refers to the text of a computer program, while in law, "code" can refer to statutory law. In his 1999 book, Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace, Lessig explored how computer code can function as an instrument of social control, similar to traditional law. He argued that the architecture of cyberspace, defined by its underlying code, profoundly shapes behavior and freedom online. He later updated his work to reflect evolving views, releasing Code: Version 2.0 in December 2006.
2.2. Remix Culture and Free Culture Movement
Since the early 2000s, Lessig has been a prominent advocate for remix culture, which he distinguishes from piracy. In his 2008 book, Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy, he presents remixing as a desirable cultural practice intrinsic to technology and the Internet. He views remix culture as an amalgamation of practice, creativity, "read/write" culture, and the hybrid economy. His 2004 book, Free Culture, was released under a Creative Commons license.
Lessig argues that the conflict arises when remix culture clashes with stringent U.S. copyright law, comparing this situation to the failure of Prohibition, noting its ineffectiveness and tendency to normalize criminal behavior. As a remedy, he proposes more lenient licensing models, such as Creative Commons licenses, to maintain the "rule of law" while fostering creativity. He is a well-known critic of copyright term extensions.
Lessig has been a foundational figure in the free culture movement. On March 28, 2004, he was elected to the board of directors of the Free Software Foundation (FSF). He was also a former board member of Public Knowledge and the Software Freedom Law Center, and served on the board of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. In March 2006, Lessig joined the board of advisors of the Digital Universe project. He also supports free and open-source software and open spectrum. In a foreword to the Freesouls book project, Lessig emphasized the role of digital technologies in empowering amateur creators, leading to a new kind of creativity. He also gave a talk on the ethics of the Free Culture Movement at the 2006 Wikimania conference and delivered his lecture On Free, and the Differences between Culture and Code at the 23rd Chaos Communication Congress (23C3) in December 2006. In 2009, he stated that laws should be changed because 70 percent of young people obtain digital information from illegal sources.
2.3. Internet Freedom and Net Neutrality
Lessig has consistently supported net neutrality, advocating for an open and accessible internet. In 2006, he testified before the U.S. Senate, urging Congress to ratify Michael Powell's four Internet freedoms and to add a restriction on access-tiering. He argued against charging different amounts to content providers, emphasizing that the Internet, with its neutral end-to-end design, is an invaluable platform for innovation. He posited that the economic benefits of innovation would be jeopardized if large corporations could purchase faster service to the detriment of newer companies with less capital. However, Lessig has supported the idea of allowing Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to offer consumers different tiers of service at varying prices, clarifying that his position has always been consistent on this aspect.
Lessig remains skeptical of excessive government intervention but believes some regulation is necessary, describing himself as a "constitutionalist." He has also commended the John McCain campaign for addressing fair use rights in a letter to YouTube, where it challenged YouTube for allowing overreaching copyright claims that led to the removal of campaign videos. He has repeatedly argued that privatization, as seen with British Telecommunications in the 1980s in the UK, is not the optimal way to foster Internet growth. He states that when governments recede, other interests will fill the void, and therefore, there must be a governing body to uphold values of liberty, emphasizing the importance of self-governance.
2.4. Software Patents and Open Source Advocacy
Lessig views software patents as a growing threat to free software, open source software, and innovation. At his free culture keynote speech at the O'Reilly Open Source Convention in 2002, he dedicated a significant portion of his address to this concern. He advocates for open standards as a means to foster innovation and prevent monopolistic control over technology.
2.5. Political Corruption and Election Reform Activism
In 2007, influenced by a transformative conversation with young internet prodigy Aaron Swartz, Lessig announced a shift in his primary focus from copyright and related matters to combating political corruption. He utilized his personal wiki, Lessig Wiki, to encourage public documentation of corruption cases. He has been a vocal critic of the "revolving-door" phenomenon, where legislators and staffers leave public office to become lobbyists, often after becoming beholden to special interests. In February 2008, Lessig explored a candidacy for Congress in California's 12th congressional district but ultimately decided not to run.
2.5.1. Campaign Finance Reform and the Citizen Equality Act
Lessig has been deeply involved in efforts to reform the U.S. political system, particularly concerning the influence of money in politics. In May 2014, he launched Mayday PAC, a crowd-funded political action committee aimed at electing candidates to Congress who would support campaign finance reform. He is also a co-founder of Rootstrikers, which evolved from his earlier initiative Fix Congress First!. Rootstrikers later joined forces with Dylan Ratigan's Get Money Out campaign under the United Republic organization, and subsequently came under the aegis of Demand Progress. He serves on the boards of organizations such as MapLight, Represent.Us, Democracy Café, and the Sunlight Foundation.
His core proposal for systemic change is the Citizen Equality Act, which combines comprehensive campaign finance reform with measures to curb gerrymandering and ensure voting access. This act aims to reduce the impact of special interests and promote political equality by establishing the one person, one vote principle and allowing legislatures to limit political contributions from non-citizens, including corporations, anonymous organizations, and foreign nationals. He also supports public campaign financing.
2.5.2. Constitutional Convention Advocacy (Article V)
In 2010, Lessig began actively organizing and advocating for a national convention under Article V of the U.S. Constitution to address systemic political issues. He co-founded Fix Congress First!, which later evolved into Rootstrikers. He expressed disappointment with the Obama administration's performance, criticizing it as a "betrayal" for adopting the "Clinton playbook."
Lessig has called for state governments to initiate an Article V convention, supporting organizations like Wolf-PAC that aim to achieve this. He proposes that such a convention be composed of a "random proportional selection of citizens," asserting that "politics is a rare sport where the amateur is better than the professional." He promoted this idea at a conference co-chaired with the Tea Party Patriots in September 2011, in his October 2011 book Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress-and a Plan to Stop It, and at the Occupy Wall Street protest in Washington, D.C. He believes his book offers a manifesto for the Occupy Wall Street protestors, by focusing on the core problem of corruption in both political parties and their elections.
Lessig also initiated the New Hampshire Rebellion, a series of walks aimed at raising awareness about political corruption. The first event in 2014 involved a 185 mile march from Dixville Notch, New Hampshire to Nashua. The walk was dedicated to continuing the work of New Hampshire native Doris "Granny D" Haddock and honoring deceased activist Aaron Swartz. The location was chosen due to its significant role in the quadrennial "New Hampshire primaries," the traditional first primary of the presidential election. In 2015, the walk expanded to include other locations in New Hampshire, including a 16 mile march from Hampton to New Castle on the New Hampshire Seacoast. Lessig deliberately chose the term "systemic corruption" over "campaign finance reform," stating that "Saying we need campaign finance reform is like referring to an alcoholic as someone who has a liquid intake problem."
2.6. Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ethics and Regulation
Lessig has recently engaged with the ethical challenges and regulatory needs surrounding artificial intelligence. He has advocated for a "right to warn" for former OpenAI employees, which would protect their ability to inform the public about the catastrophic risks of AI, and has offered pro bono legal defense for such whistleblowers.
In August 2024, Lessig co-authored a letter with leading AI researchers Yoshua Bengio, Geoffrey Hinton, and Stuart J. Russell in support of California's SB 1047. This proposed bill would require companies developing powerful AI models to conduct risk assessments before their release. The letter argued that the bill represents a crucial first step toward mitigating severe AI risks and is "the bare minimum for effective regulation of this technology." Lessig stated that Gavin Newsom, the Governor of California, would have the opportunity to "cement California as a national first-mover in regulating AI."
3. Major Achievements and Contributions
Lessig's career is marked by several significant achievements and contributions that have had a lasting impact on digital culture, legal scholarship, and political reform.
3.1. Founding Creative Commons
In 2001, Lessig founded Creative Commons, a non-profit organization dedicated to expanding the range of creative works available for others to legally build upon and share. Creative Commons provides a suite of standardized copyright licenses that allow creators to specify the terms under which their work can be used, shared, and remixed. This initiative has been instrumental in fostering a more open cultural ecosystem, promoting the democratization of creativity and cultural access by offering a flexible alternative to traditional "all rights reserved" copyright.
3.2. Founding Equal Citizens
Lessig is also the co-founder of Equal Citizens, an organization established to promote reforms aimed at restoring citizen equality and addressing systemic corruption in government. In December 2016, Lessig and Laurence Tribe established The Electors Trust under the aegis of EqualCitizens.US. This initiative provided pro bono legal counsel and a secure communications platform for the 538 members of the United States Electoral College who were considering a vote of conscience during the 2016 United States presidential election.
3.3. Major Legal Cases and Public Advocacy
Lessig has been involved in several landmark legal cases and public advocacy efforts that have shaped discourse on copyright, free speech, and democratic reform.
3.3.1. Eldred v. Ashcroft
From 1999 to 2002, Lessig led a high-profile challenge to the Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act. Working with the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society, he represented the plaintiff, Eric Eldred, in the case of Eldred v. Ashcroft before the Supreme Court. The plaintiff was supported by a group of publishers who frequently published works in the public domain and numerous amici, including the Free Software Foundation, the American Association of Law Libraries, the Bureau of National Affairs, and the College Art Association. Despite his efforts to convince Chief Justice William Rehnquist to back a "market-based" approach to intellectual property regulation, Lessig expressed severe disappointment with his Supreme Court defeat in March 2003.
3.3.2. Chiafalo v. Washington
Lessig served as counsel for electors in the Supreme Court case Chiafalo v. Washington. This case addressed whether states could legally enforce laws requiring Electoral College electors to vote in line with their state's popular vote, particularly concerning so-called "faithless electors." The court ultimately decided that states could indeed force electors to follow the popular vote for their state, impacting the principle of voter representation and electoral fairness.
3.3.3. Other Notable Legal Engagements
Lessig has been involved in various other significant legal challenges and has submitted numerous amicus briefs that have influenced public discourse on technology law and civil liberties. These include:
- Golan v. Gonzales (representing multiple plaintiffs).
- Kahle v. Gonzales (which was dismissed).
- United States v. Microsoft: Lessig was appointed as a special master by Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson in 1997. Although this appointment was later vacated by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on the grounds that the powers granted exceeded the scope of the federal statute for special masters, Judge Jackson subsequently solicited an amicus brief from Lessig. Lessig noted that his appointment was due to his expertise in cyberspace law.
- MPAA v. 2600: Lessig submitted an amicus brief alongside Yochai Benkler in support of 2600.
- McCutcheon v. FEC: He submitted an amicus brief in support of the FEC.
In August 2013, Lessig filed a lawsuit against Liberation Music PTY Ltd. after the company issued a takedown notice for one of Lessig's lectures on YouTube, which had used the song "Lisztomania" by the band Phoenix, whom Liberation Music represents. Lessig sought damages under section 512(f) of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which holds parties liable for misrepresentations of infringement or removal of material. Represented by the Electronic Frontier Foundation and Jones Day, the case concluded in February 2014 with a settlement. Liberation Music admitted wrongdoing in issuing the takedown notice, issued an apology, and paid a confidential sum in compensation, marking a win for fair use.
4. Political Activities
Lessig's political activities have centered on advocating for fundamental reforms to the American democratic system, particularly through his presidential campaign and efforts to reform the Electoral College.
4.1. 2016 U.S. Presidential Campaign
In August 2015, Lessig announced that he was exploring a potential candidacy for president of the United States. He pledged to officially enter the race if his exploratory committee could raise 1.00 M USD by Labor Day. Upon reaching this financial benchmark, Lessig formally announced his entry into the 2016 U.S. presidential election as a candidate for the Democratic Party's nomination on September 6, 2015.
Lessig framed his candidacy as a referendum on campaign finance reform and electoral reform legislation. His platform was primarily focused on a single issue: the Citizen Equality Act, a comprehensive proposal designed to couple campaign finance reform with other laws aimed at curbing gerrymandering and ensuring voting access. Initially, Lessig stated that if elected, he would serve a full term as president with the passage of his proposed reforms as his legislative priority, and then resign, turning the presidency over to his vice president to serve out the remainder of the term as a typical American president. However, in October 2015, he abandoned this automatic resignation plan and adopted a broader policy platform for the presidency, though the Citizen Equality Act remained his primary legislative objective. He made a single campaign stop in Iowa, at Dordt College in Sioux Center, in late October. Lessig ended his campaign on November 2, 2015, citing rule changes by the Democratic Party that prevented him from appearing in televised debates.
4.2. Electoral College Reform Movement
In 2017, Lessig launched the "Equal Votes" movement, an initiative aimed at challenging the winner-take-all Electoral College vote allocation in various states. This effort advocates for a system that more accurately reflects the national popular vote and enhances political equality. Lessig also served as counsel for electors in the Supreme Court case Chiafalo v. Washington, where the court ruled that states could compel electors to adhere to the popular vote of their state.
In 2023, Lessig wrote an editorial in Slate suggesting that the Electoral College should be the body responsible for determining whether Donald Trump engaged in insurrection under the U.S. Constitution. He argued that it would be preferable for the college, specifically convened to select a president, to decide such a matter, rather than sitting politicians or state officials.
5. Personal Life
Lessig's personal life has, at times, intersected with his public advocacy, particularly concerning issues of accountability and media ethics.
5.1. Sexual Abuse Experience
In May 2005, Lessig publicly disclosed that he had experienced sexual abuse as an adolescent by the director at the American Boychoir School, which he had attended. He had previously reached a confidential settlement with the school. Lessig revealed his experiences while representing another student victim, John Hardwicke, in court. In August 2006, he successfully argued before the New Jersey Supreme Court to significantly restrict the scope of immunity that had previously protected non-profit organizations from legal liability when they failed to prevent sexual abuse.
Lessig is married to Bettina Neuefeind, a German-born colleague from Harvard University. They married in 1999 and have three children: Willem, Coffy, and Tess.
5.2. Defamation Lawsuit Against The New York Times
In 2019, during the criminal investigation of Jeffrey Epstein, it was revealed that the MIT Media Lab, under its former director Joichi Ito, had accepted secret donations from Epstein after his criminal conviction. Following this discovery, Ito resigned. Lessig, after making supportive comments to Ito, published a Medium post in September 2019 to clarify his position. In his post, Lessig acknowledged that universities should generally not accept donations from convicted criminals like Epstein, especially if their wealth was unrelated to their criminal activities. However, he controversially argued that if such donations were to be accepted, it was ethically preferable to do so secretly rather than publicly, to avoid implicitly legitimizing the criminal or "reputation laundering" for the institution.
Lessig's essay drew criticism, and about a week later, Nellie Bowles of The New York Times interviewed him, during which he reiterated his broad stance on such donations. The Times article was published with the headline "A Harvard Professor Doubles Down: If You Take Epstein's Money, Do It in Secret." Lessig confirmed that the headline was based on a statement he had made to the Times, but he took issue with it overlooking his primary argument that MIT should not have accepted such donations in the first place. He also criticized the article's opening lines, which he felt unfairly characterized his position. He subsequently accused the Times of creating a clickbait headline designed to defame him, asserting that the article's circulation on social media had damaged his reputation.
In January 2020, Lessig filed a defamation lawsuit against the Times, including writer Bowles, business editor Ellen Pollock, and executive editor Dean Baquet. The Times stated its intention to "vigorously" defend against Lessig's claim, asserting that their publication was accurate and had been reviewed by senior editors following Lessig's initial complaints. In April 2020, The New York Times changed its original headline to: "What Are the Ethics of Taking Tainted Funds? A conversation with Lawrence Lessig about Jeffrey Epstein, M.I.T. and reputation laundering." Lessig subsequently withdrew his defamation lawsuit.
6. Awards and Honors
Lessig has received numerous awards, honorary degrees, and recognitions for his significant contributions to law, technology, digital rights, and public advocacy.
- In 2002, he received the Award for the Advancement of Free Software from the Free Software Foundation (FSF).
- Also in 2002, he was honored with the Scientific American 50 Award for his arguments against copyright interpretations that could stifle online innovation and discourse.
- In 2006, Lessig was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
- He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2007.
- In 2011, he was named to the Fastcase 50, which recognizes "the law's smartest, most courageous innovators, techies, visionaries, and leaders."
- He received honorary doctorates from the Faculty of Social Sciences at Lund University, Sweden, in 2013, and from the Université catholique de Louvain in 2014.
- In 2014, Lessig was awarded the Webby Lifetime Achievement Award for his role in co-founding Creative Commons and his steadfast defense of net neutrality and the free and open-source software movement.
7. Bibliography
Lessig is a prolific author whose works have significantly shaped discourse on digital rights, intellectual property, and democratic reform. His major published books include:
- Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace (Basic Books, 1999)
- The Future of Ideas (Vintage Books, 2001)
- Free Culture (Penguin, 2004)
- Code: Version 2.0 (Basic Books, 2006)
- Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy (Penguin, 2008)
- Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress-and a Plan to Stop It (Twelve, 2011)
- One Way Forward: The Outsider's Guide to Fixing the Republic (Kindle Single/Amazon, 2012)
- Lesterland: The Corruption of Congress and How to End It (2013, CC BY-NC)
- Republic, Lost: The Corruption of Equality and the Steps to End It (Twelve, rev. ed., 2015)
- America, Compromised (University of Chicago Press, 2018)
- Fidelity & Constraint: How the Supreme Court Has Read the American Constitution (Oxford University Press, 2019)
- They Don't Represent Us: Reclaiming Our Democracy (Dey Street/William Morrow, 2019)
- How to Steal a Presidential Election (Yale University Press, 2024)
8. Filmography
Lessig has been featured in and played significant roles in several notable documentary films, reflecting his engagement with broader cultural and political issues and activism.
- RiP!: A Remix Manifesto (2008)
- The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz (2014)
- Killswitch (2015): This film features Lessig, Aaron Swartz, Tim Wu, and Edward Snowden. Lessig frames the narrative of Swartz and Snowden, symbolizing the disruptive nature of the Internet. The film highlights the emotional bond between Lessig and Swartz, showing how Swartz challenged Lessig to engage in the political activism that led to Lessig's crusade for campaign finance reform. In February 2015, Killswitch was screened at the Capitol Visitor's Center in Washington, D.C., by Congressman Alan Grayson, on the eve of the Federal Communications Commission's decision on net neutrality. Lessig, Grayson, and Free Press CEO Craig Aaron spoke about the importance of protecting net neutrality and the free and open Internet. Critics praised the film for its human-centered story, particularly the connection between Lessig and Swartz.
- Meeting Snowden (2017): A documentary film where Lessig travels to Moscow to meet Edward Snowden.
- The Swamp (2020)
- Kim Dotcom: The Most Wanted Man Online (2021)
Additionally, Lessig himself was portrayed by actor Christopher Lloyd in season 6 of the political drama The West Wing, in the episode "The Wake Up Call." Lessig also hosts the podcast "Another Way" in conjunction with The Young Turks Network.