Ann Southworth

Ann Southworth is a Professor of Law at the University of California, Irvine (UCI) School of Law, where she co-directs the Center for Empirical Research on the Legal Profession and holds a joint appointment in Criminology, Law & Society. Her scholarship focuses on the legal profession, legal ethics, conservative legal movements, cause lawyers, and transnational legal mobilization.

Her recent work, including the 2024 publication The Legal Profession: Ethics in Contemporary Practice (3rd ed.) and the 2023 book Big Money Unleashed: The Campaign to Deregulate Election Spending, examines the intersection of law, politics, and campaign finance. She has also authored empirical studies on civil rights lawyers, conservative advocacy organizations, and the role of the Roberts Court in campaign finance litigation.

Notable awards include the CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title (2024) for *Big Money Unleashed* and a Visiting Research Fellowship at the Institute for Advanced Legal Studies, University of London (2024). Southworth has held leadership roles in the AALS Section on Empirical Study of Legal Education and the Legal Profession (2022–2024) and frequently presents at national and international forums, including lectures at Yale, University of Amsterdam, and University of Leeds (2024–2025).