Karl Shoemaker

Karl Shoemaker is the Robert F. and Sylvia T. Wagner Professor of History and Law at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His research focuses on pre-modern European legal traditions, with special emphasis on criminal law, legal institutions, and the intersection of law and social control. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, a J.D. from Cumberland School of Law, and a B.A. from Liberty University.

His major works include Sanctuary and Crime in the Middle Ages, 400-1500 (2011), which won the John Nicholas Brown Book Prize, and Who Deserves to Die? (2011). Current research explores the legal portrayal of the devil in pre-modern Europe. He teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in history, legal studies, and sociology, and has served on leadership boards of organizations like the American Society for Legal History.

Publications span medieval legal concepts, comparative law, and the cultural history of medieval justice. His work bridges historical analysis with modern legal scholarship, emphasizing interdisciplinary approaches. Advises graduate students in medieval law and history, and contributes to academic initiatives in legal education through roles like membership in the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on Undergraduate Education.