Professor Belknap is an historian-turned-lawyer. After earning his
Bachelor of Arts, he studied American Legal History at the University of
Wisconsin. While teaching history at the University of Texas, he earned
his Juris Doctor at its law school. Before joining the California
Western faculty in 1986, Belknap also taught history at the University
of Georgia and law at the University of Houston and Seton Hall
University, where he was the Richard J. Hughes Distinguished Visiting
Professor.
Belknap is an adjunct professor of history at the University of
California, San Diego, and taught public law in New Zealand as part of
California Western's exchange program with Victoria University. His
particular interest is the history of civil rights and civil liberties
in 20th century America, an area in which he has written
extensively. This includes teaching a seminar commemorating the 50th
anniversary of Brown v. Board of Education, as well as writing an article on the topic. In addition to his regular law school courses, Belknap teaches the special Summer Enrichment Program for newly admitted students.