David Orentlicher

Director, UNLV Health Law Program
Professor, UNLV William S. Boyd School of Law
Expertise: Health Law, Constitutional Law, Presidential Power

Biography

David Orentlicher is the Cobeaga Law Firm Professor of Law and director of the UNLV Health Law Program. Nationally recognized for his expertise in health law and constitutional law, Orentlicher has testified before Congress, had his scholarship cited by the U.S. Supreme Court, and has served on many national, state, and local commissions.

Orentlicher came to UNLV Law from the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law and Indiana University School of Medicine. He is a member of the American Law Institute and a former president of the American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics. Additionally, Orentlicher previously directed the American Medical Association's Division of Medical Ethics, where he drafted the AMA’s first patient’s bill of rights and many other guidelines relied upon by courts and government agencies, and he has practiced both law and medicine.

Orentlicher has published numerous articles and essays on a wide range of topics, including health care reform, physician aid in dying, reproductive decisions, affirmative action, and presidential power. His work has appeared in leading professional journals, such as the New England Journal of Medicine and the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), as well as in the New York TimesTime MagazineUSA TodayCNN Opinion, the Chicago Tribune, and other major newspapers.

Education

  • M.D., Harvard Medical School
  • J.D., Harvard Law School

Search For Other Experts On

health & medicine, law, politics (national)

David Orentlicher In The News

N.B.C. News
In trying to hold the former president accountable under the law, the committee seems to be flouting the rule of law.
The Nevada Independent
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, abortion access emerged as a near-constant campaign focus during the battle for Nevada governor.
The Hill
After the Supreme Court’s draft opinion rejecting a right to abortion was leaked, public confidence in the Court dropped to its lowest level in the past 50 years. And with additional controversial decisions on guns and climate change, concerns about the court’s legitimacy have increased. To more and more people, the justices operate as political partisans rather than neutral arbiters.
Nevada Current
The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling overturning the 50-year precedent of Roe v. Wade and South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham’s introduction of a federal abortion ban bill both ushered in new legal concerns about the long-sensitive subject of health data privacy.

Articles Featuring David Orentlicher

Remember sculptor Claes Oldenburg who created U.N.L.V.'s iconic Flashlight sculpture this month.
Campus News | August 3, 2022

A collection of news stories highlighting university experts’ insights on and contributions to health, environment, and society.

Lake Mead
Campus News | July 11, 2022

A collection of news stories highlighting UNLV experts who made headlines locally, nationally, and around the world.

2022 U.N.L.V. Spring Commencement Ceremony for the Graduate College.  May 13, 2022 (Josh Hawkins/UNLV)
Campus News | June 2, 2022

A collection of news stories highlighting the experts and student changemakers at UNLV.

A researcher working in the lab of the Chambers-Grundy Center for Transformative Neuroscience
Campus News | October 7, 2021

A collection of news stories featuring collaboration and reflection at UNLV.