Lawrence Cappello

Lawrence Cappello is an Associate Professor in the Department of History at the University of Alabama, directing the Legal History Concentration. He specializes in U.S. legal and constitutional history, with a focus on privacy rights and their intersection with First and Fourth Amendments. His work bridges historical scholarship with contemporary issues, addressing digital privacy, surveillance, and the evolution of privacy norms from the Gilded Age to today.

Education: PhD from The City University of New York. Courses taught include U.S. Constitutional History, the Right to Privacy, and the First Amendment. He also advises students on law school preparation and co-directs the Artificial Intelligence Teaching Enhancement Initiative (AITEI @UA).

Research interests include privacy’s societal role, 20th-century U.S. social/political history, and legal history. Current projects include a history of workplace surveillance and the Birmingham Bar Association’s Oral History Project.

Awards highlight his teaching excellence and advising: 2024 Region 4 Faculty Advisor of the Year, 2022-2025 Distinguished Teaching Fellowship, and multiple recognitions for commitment to advising and teaching.

Publications include None of Your Damn Business (2019), On Privacy (2025), and articles in The Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal, and The Economist. He is a certified information privacy professional (CIPP/US & CIPM).