Cardozo School of Law
55 Fifth Avenue, NY, NY 10003-4391
Phone: 212-790-0269
Fax: 212-790-0205
Email: ed@edstein.com
Teaching Experience
- Cardozo School of Law Professor, 2005 - present; Associate Professor, 2000-2005; Co-Director, Family Law, Policy, & Bioethics Program, 2003-present
- Yale University Visiting Assistant Professor, 1996-97
- Mount Holyoke College Visiting Assistant Professor, 1995-96
- New York University Law School Adjunct Professor, 1994
- New York University Assistant Professor, 1992-95
- Williams College Visiting Instructor, 1991-92
Legal Experience
- Counsel for Respondent Element K, In re Claim of Newland , No. 93396 (N.Y. App. Div., 3d Dep't 2003) (wrote appellate brief and administrative appeal board brief on remand)
- Law Clerk for Judge Dolores Sloviter, Third Circuit Court of Appeals, 2001-2002
- Summer Associate, Davis, Polk, and Wardwell, 1999
Education
- Yale Law School J.D., 2000
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology Ph.D., philosophy, 1992
- Williams College B.A., philosophy, 1987, highest honors
Bar Admissions
- New York; Third Circuit Court of Appeals
Books
- The Mismeasure of Desire: The Science, Theory and Ethics of Sexual Orientation (Oxford University Press, 1999).
- Without Good Reason: The Rationality Debate in Philosophy and Cognitive Science (Oxford University Press, 1996).
- Forms of Desire: Sexual Orientation and the Social Constructionist Controversy (Routledge, 1992) (edited and wrote introductory and concluding chapters).
Chapters in Books
- The Ethical, Legal, Social and Political Implications of Scientific Research on Sexual Orientation in Handbook of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Health (Ilan Meyer and Mary Northridge, eds.) (forthcoming 2005)
- The Gay Gene in Encyclopaedia of Sociology (George Ritzer, ed.) (forthcoming 2005)
- Law, Sexual Orientation and Gender , in Handbook of Jurisprudence and Philosophy of Law 990 (Jules Coleman & Scott Shapiro, eds., Oxford University Press, 2002)
- Sexual Orientation: Biological Influences , in International Encyclopedia of Social & Behavioral Sciences 13,995 (N. J. Smelser & Paul Bates, eds., Pergamon, 2002)
- Evolution and Ethics , in The Encyclopedia of Cognitive Science 284 (Frank Keil & Robert Wilson, eds., MIT Press, 1999)
- Queer Clones , in Clones and Clones: Facts and Fantasies about Human Cloning 95 (Martha Nussbaum & Cass Sunstein, eds., Norton, 1998) with William Eskridge
- Essentialism and Constructionism about Sexual Orientation , in Philosophy of Biology 427 (Michael Ruse & David Hull, eds., Oxford Univ. Press, 1998). Reprinted in Philosophy and Sex 383 (R. Baker, et al. eds., Prometheus, 3rd ed. 1998)
- Scientific Research on Sexual Orientation , in The Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics 101 (Ruth Chadwick ed., Academic Press, vol. 4, 1997), with Udo Schüklenk & Jacinta Kerin
- Evolutionary Epistemology , in A Companion to Epistemology 122 (Jonathan Dancy & Ernest Sosa, eds., Blackwell, 1993)
- Getting Closer to the Truth: Realism and the Metaphysical and Epistemological Ramifications of Evolutionary Epistemology , in Evolution, Cognition & Realism 119 (Nicholas Rescher, ed., Univ. Press of Amer., 1990)
Articles (selected)
- Wide Reflective Equilbrium as an Answer to an Objection to Moral Heuristics [comment on Cass Sunstein, Moral Heuristics ], Behavioral and Brain Sciences (forthcoming 2005)
- Past and Present Proposed Amendments to the United States Constitution Regarding Marriage , 82 Washington University Law Quarterly. Electronic version in Issues in Legal Scholarship (August 2004).
- Introducing Lawrence v. Texas : Some Background and a Glimpse of the Future , 10 Cardozo Women's Law Journal 263 (2004)
- Initial Thoughts on the Admissibility of Expert Testimony about Scientific Research on Eyewitness Identification , 2 Law, Probability and Risk 295 (2004)
- Queers Anonymous: Lesbians, Gay Men, Free Speech, and Cyberspace , 38 Harvard Civil Rights-Civil Liberties Law Review 159 (2003)
- Précis of The Mismeasure of Desire: The Science, Theory and Ethics of Sexual Orientation , 21 Law and Philosophy 305 (2002)
- Reply to Martha Nussbaum and Ian Hacking , 21 Law and Philosophy 349 (2002)
- Evaluating the Sex Discrimination Argument for Lesbian and Gay Rights , 49 UCLA Law Review 471 (2001) Reprinted in 1 The Dukeminier Awards: Best Sexual Orientation Law Review Articles of 2001, 1-48 (2003)
- Choosing the Sexual Orientation of Children , 12 Bioethics 11 (1998). Reprinted Same-Sex Cultures and Sexualities: An Anthropological Reader, 177 (Jennifer Robertson, ed. 2005).
- The Ethics of Genetic Research on Sexual Orientation , 27 Hastings Center Report 6 (July-August 1997), with Udo Schüklenk, William Byne & Jacinta Kerin Reprinted in Introduction to Women's Studies: Gender in a Transnational World 48 (I. Grewal & C. Kaplan, eds., McGraw-Hill, 2001) Reprinted in Ethical Issues in Modern Medicine 522 (J. D. Arras & Bonnie Steinbock, eds., 5th ed., Mayfield, 1998)
- Ethical Implications of Medical and Biological Research on the Causes of Sexual Orientation , 5 Health Care Analysis 136 (1997), with William Byne
- The Relevance of Scientific Research about Sexual Orientation to Lesbian and Gay Rights , 27 Journal of Homosexuality 269 (1994) Reprinted in Sexuality, Gender and the Law 219 (William Eskridge & Nan Hunter, eds., Foundation Press, 1997) Reprinted in Same Sex: Debating the Ethics, Science and Culture of Homosexuality 135 (John Corvino, ed., Rowman & Littlefield, 1997)
- Can We Be Justified in Believing That Humans Are Rational? , 62 Philosophy and Phenomenological Research 545 (1997)
- Rationality and Reflective Equilibrium , 99 Synthese 137 (1994)
- Cordoning Competence: A Reply to Cohen , 99 Synthese 177 (1994)
- Why Sexuality Matters to Philosophy , 25 Metaphilosophy 233 (1994)
- The Relevance of Sexuality to Philosophy , 67 Proceedings of the American Philosophical Associaton 81 (1994), with Morris Kaplan
- Evidence for Queer Genes , 1 GLQ: The Journal of Gay and Lesbian Studies 93 (1993)
- God, the Demon & the Status of Theodicies , 27 American Philosophical Quarterly 163 (1990)
- Where Guesses Come From: Evolutionary Epistemology and the Anomaly of Guided Variation , 4 Biology and Philosophy 33 (1989), with Peter Lipton
Works in Progress
- The Story of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, in Family Law Stories (Carol Sanger, ed.) (in progress) (forthcoming 2005)
- The Second Life of the Uniform Marriage Evasion Act (in progress)
Reviews (selected)
- Review of Henry Minton, Departing from Deviance: A History of Homosexual Rights and Emancipatory Science in America , 7 Sexualities 250 (2004)
- Science and the Nuremberg Code: A Question of Ethics and Harm [Review of Robert Spitzer, Can Some Gay Men and Lesbians Change Their Sexual Orientations ], 32 Archives of Sexual Behavior 455 (2003), with Milton Wainberg, et al.
- Review of Allen Buchanan, et al., From Choice to Chance: Genetics and Justice , 111 Philosophical Review 130 (2002).
- Review of Stephen O. Murray and Will Roscoe, eds., Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature , 30 Archives of Sexual Behavior 445 (2001)
- Review of Roger Brown, Against My Better Judgment: An Intimate Memoir of an Eminent Gay Psychologist , 29 Archives of Sexual Behavior 291 (2000)
- Review of Simon LeVay, Queer Science: The Use and Abuse of Research on Homosexuality , 35 Journal of Homosexuality 107 (1997)
- Review of Andrew Sullivan, Virtually Normal: An Argument about Homosexuality , 3 Constellations: An International Journal of Critical & Democratic Theory 261 (1996), with Morris Kaplan
- Reasoning Why? [Review of Michael Ruse, Homosexuality: A Philosophical Inquiry ], 60 American Scholar 315 (1991) with Paul Bloom
Invited Lectures (selected)
- Scientific Research on Sexual Orientation, Union College, May 12, 2005
- Federalism and Federal Marriage Amendments, Same Sex Marriage Conference, Yale Law School, March 7, 2005
- Past and Present Proposed Amendments to the United States Constitution Regarding Marriage , Hofstra Law School, Oct. 28, 2004
- Same-Sex Marriages and Civil Unions: The Changing Legal Landscape , New York State Judicial Institute, Sept. 13, 2004
- Same-Sex Marriages and the Ramifications Under New York Law , Nanette Dembitz Lecture, New York County Lawyers Association, June 26, 2004
- The 21st Century Family , New York Chapter of Hadassah Attorneys' Council, Mar. 3, 2004
- The Legal Situation of Lesbians and Gay Men in the U.S. , Haverford College, Oct. 30, 2003
- Roundtable Discussion on Lawrence v. Texas, Federalist Society and the American Constitution Society, Cardozo School of Law, Oct. 29, 2003
- Bad Law?: The Case of Lawrence v. Texas, Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies, City University of New York, Graduate Center, Oct.16, 2003
- Lawrence v. Texas and the Future of Lesbian and Gay Rights in the United States , Hartwick College, May 15, 2003
- Queers Anonymous: Lesbians, Gay Men, Free Speech, and Cyberspace , UCLA Law School, Nov. 15, 2002
- Sex, Sexual Orientation, and the Law in the 21st Century , Vassar College, Mar. 25, 2002
- The Sex-Discrimination Argument for Lesbian and Gay Rights , Harvard Law School; University of Chicago Law School; Arizona State Univ. Law School (2000-2001)
- Choosing the Sex and the Sexual Orientation of Children , New York University, Society for Philosophy & Public Affairs, Oct. 20, 2000
- Symposium on the Ethical, Legal, and Social Issues of Human Genome Research , Dartmouth College, Ethics Institute, June 27, 2000
- Panel on The Mismeasure of Desire , New School for Social Research, Mar. 30, 2000
- Panel, Scientific Theories of Sexual Orientation , CUNY, Mar. 23, 2000
- The "Born that Way" Argument for Gay Rights , Univ. of Chicago Law School, Nov. 22, 1999
- The Science, Theory & Ethics of Sexual Orientation , SUNY-Purchase; University of Calif.-Santa Cruz; UCLA; Northwestern University; Boston Public Library (1999-2000)
- Natural Human Kinds in Theory and Practice , University of Vermont, Sept. 25, 1998
- Evolutionary Constraints on Human Rationality , Wellesley College, Mar. 2, 1998
- Rationality Naturalized , Smith College, Feb. 20, 1998
- Human Rationality and Naturalized Epistemology , University of Connecticut, Oct. 24, 1996
- Scientific Research on Sexual Orientation and Its Ethical Implications , Wellesley College, Mar. 4, 1996; Yale Univ., Feb. 15, 1996
- How to Choose a Sexual Orientation , Smith College, Nov. 12, 1996; Williams College, Apr. 4, 1995; American Philosophical Association Conference, Boston, Dec. 30, 1994
- The Categories, the Science, and the Moral Status of Sexual Orientations , American Philosophical Association Conference, San Francisco, Mar. 25, 1993
- Rationality and Reflective Equilibrium , Cambridge Univ., England, Apr. 23, 1992; Society for Philosophy & Psychology, San Francisco State University, June 11, 1991
- Beyond Essentialism , Utrecht Univ., The Netherlands, Apr. 3, 1992; Columbia University, Nov. 7, 1991; University of Michigan, Oct. 5, 1991
- 'Natural' and 'Unnatural' Kinds , Cornell University, Feb. 22, 1991
- Nativism, Natural Selection, and Meta-ethics , Vassar College, Jan. 25, 1991; Williams College, Jan. 15, 1991
Talks at Conferences and Symposium (selected)
- “Constitutional Amendments Regarding Marriage,” International Lesbian and Gay Law Conference, Toronto, CA, June 28, 2005
- "The Relationship Between Queer Law and Queer Theory," Queer Matters Conference, Kings College, London, England, May 29, 2004
- "Proposed Amendments to the United States Constitution Concerning Marriage," Law, Culture and Humanities Conference, University of Conn. Law School, Mar. 12, 2004
- "The Admissibility of Expert Testimony about Cognitive Science Research on Eyewitness Identification," Inference, Culture, and Ordinary Thinking in Dispute Resolution, Cardozo School of Law, April 29, 2003
- " Lawrence v. Texas : The U.S. Supreme Court Reconsiders the Constitutionality of Sodomy Laws", Cardozo School of Law, Mar. 4, 2003 (organizer, moderator and commentator)
- "Queers Anonymous: Lesbians, Gay Men, Free Speech and Cyberspace," Law, Culture and Humanities Conference, University of Pennsylvania, Mar. 9, 2002
- "Evaluating the Sex-Discrimination Argument for Gay Rights," Women and the United States Constitution, Baruch College, CUNY, Feb. 9, 2001
- "Author Meets Critics: The Mismeasure of Desire ," American Philosophical Association Conference, New York, Dec. 28, 2000
- "Essentialism and Natural Human Kinds," University of California-Riverside, Mar. 27, 1999
- "Seeing Sexual Orientation Through the Lens of Gender," American Philosophical Association Conference, Dec. 29, 1998
- Sexual Orientation: Scientific, Ethical, Legal, and Theoretical Questions , Babes-Boyali University, Cluj, Romania, Oct. 17, 1997
- Choosing Sexual Orientation of Children , American Philosophical Association Conference, Seattle, Apr. 5, 1996
- Deciphering Constructionism about Homosexuality , American Philosophical Assoc. Conf.; New Orleans, Apr. 28, 1990; Conf. on Human Sexuality, Brown Univ., Sept. 23, 1989
- Getting Closer to the Truth: Realism and the Metaphysical and Epistemological Ramifications of Evolutionary Epistemology , Philosophy of Science Conf., Univ. of Pittsburgh, Dec. 18, 1988
Honors
- Dukeminier Award, Best Sexual Orientation Law Review Article, 2001, UCLA Law School
- Fund for Lesbian and Gay Studies, Yale University: Research Fellowship, 1999; Teaching Fellowship, 1996-97
- Faculty Research Fellowship, College of Arts and Science, New York University (3 years)
- University Curricular Challenge Grant, New York University, 1994-95
- Sloan Prize for Essay in Philosophy of Science, M.I.T, 1990
- Mellon Fellowship for Graduate Study in the Humanities, 1987-1991
- Henry Rutgers Conger Memorial Writing Prize, Williams College, 1987
- Arthur B. Graves Essay Prize for Philosophy, Williams College, 1987
- Phi Beta Kappa, 1987
- John W. Miller Prize in Philosophy, Williams College, 1986
Professional Activities
- Reviewer Cornell Univ. Press, Oxford Univ. Press (US & UK), Columbia Univ. Press, Univ. of Chicago Press, Routledge (US & UK), Westwood, Archives of Sexual Behavior , Reader's Guide to Gay and Lesbian Studies
- Referee for Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Legal Theory , GLQ , Sexualities , Canadian Philosophical Association, Society for Philosophy and Psychology, The Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics , Hypatia: A Journal of Feminist Philosophy , Philosophy and Phenomenological Research , Biology and Philosophy , Signs , Journal of Homosexuality , North American Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Studies Conference, CUNY Research Awards Program
- Editorial board of Journal of Homosexuality ( 1997-present)
- Advisor (applied ethics), Program Committee, Amer. Philosophical Ass'n (1998-2002)
- Member, Amer. Philosophical Ass'n, Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Issues (1998-1999)
University Service
- Co-director, Program in Family Law, Policy and Bioethics (2003-present)
- Faculty advisor, Cardozo Women's Law Journal (2003-present)
- Faculty advisor, Gay and Lesbian Law Students Association (2002-present)
- Faculty advisor, Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (2004-present)
- Appointments Committee, Cardozo School of Law (2002-2003)
- Clerkship Committee, Cardozo School of Law (2000-2001, 2002-present)
- Chair, Scientific Research on Sexual Orientation and Its Implications, Institute for Social & Policy Studies, Yale University (1996-97)
- Co-chair, NYU Humanities Research Colloquium on Gay and Lesbian Studies (1993-95)
- Member, NYU Gender Studies Committee for M.A. in Liberal Studies (1993-94)
- Member, NYU Women's Studies Advisory Board (1992-94)
- Chair, Mellon Fellowships in Humanities Conference on Teaching, Bryn Mawr College (1989)
- Ph.D dissertation committee member (NYU- 1; Yale -1)
- M.A. thesis advisor (NYU- 2) and committee member (NYU- 5)
- B.A. thesis advisor (Williams- 2, Mt. Holyoke- 1) and committee member (Williams-5, NYU- 1, Mt. Holyoke-1, Yale- 1)
Professional Memberships
- American Bar Association
- American Philosophical Association
- Association of the Bar of the City of New York
- National Lesbian and Gay Law Association
- Lesbian and Gay Law Association of Greater New York