1. W&L’s Mudd Center Announces Next Leadership Lab

W&L's Mudd Center Announces Next Leadership Lab Judge Michael Luttig '76, P'14 and Lewis Powell III '74, P'18, P'20 will lead a discussion on power and accountability on Nov. 13.

By Emily Innes Stanley
November 6, 2025

The Washington and Lee University Roger Mudd Center for Ethics presents the next installment of the Leadership Lab, a series that seeks to generate and support thoughtful discussion about ethical leadership across professions within a globalized world.

The Honorable Judge Michael Luttig '76, P'14 and Lewis Powell III '74, P'18, P'20 will lead a discussion titled "Power and Accountability in Today's Political Landscape" at 5:10 p.m. on Nov. 13 in Stackhouse Theater in Elrod Commons.

The event is free and open to the public. The program will also be streamed online at https://go.wlu.edu/livestream, and a recording will be available afterward.

Luttig and Powell, both prominent legal thinkers and practitioners, will explore the complex relationship between political power, legal institutions and accountability within the United States' system of governance. Guided by student questions received in advance, the discussion will consider the ethics of leadership in contemporary politics and how we, as citizens and future leaders, can help strengthen accountability in public life.

Luttig served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 1991 to 2006, appointed by President George H.W. Bush. Before joining the bench, he held several prominent legal roles, including Assistant Counsel to President Ronald Reagan (1981-1982), law clerk to then-Judge Antonin Scalia on the D.C. Circuit (1982-1983), and law clerk and Special Assistant to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger (1982-1985), and has held several positions within the U.S. Department of Justice. After leaving the judiciary, Luttig worked as Boeing's Executive Vice President and General Counsel from 2006 to 2020, and later as its Counselor and Senior Advisor to the CEO and board. From 2021 to 2025, he served as Counselor and Special Advisor to the Coca-Cola Company and its board. In recent years, Luttig has authored numerous articles and provided interviews to major news outlets about the recent challenges to American democracy and the rule of law.

Powell is an accomplished trial lawyer who was recognized as a "Master of the Courtroom" by the National Law Journal in 2018. His litigation practice has spanned intellectual property, commercial, fraud, antitrust, nuclear regulatory, environmental, toxic tort matters and telecommunications issues. He has tried and appealed cases in state and federal courts and before regulatory agencies in more than 15 states and the District of Columbia. Most recently, he served as lead counsel in two related federal jury trials; in the first, a high-stakes antitrust and breach of contract case, the jury found entirely for his client and awarded substantial damages, and in the second, a different jury rejected nearly all of the adversary's 67 trade-secret claims. Powell also regularly lectures on federal trial practice.

Luttig and Powell both attended Washington and Lee University and the University of Virginia School of Law. Luttig co-chaired the American Bar Association's bipartisan Task Force for American Democracy from 2023-2025, of which Powell is one of 30 members.

The Mudd Center's Leadership Lab series brings to W&L distinguished speakers from various disciplinary and professional backgrounds to shape a community discussion about ethical leadership. The series launched in May 2025 with a talk by Kenneth Ruscio '76, W&L president emeritus.