Lawyer. Writer. Speaker.

Influencing law and public policy to promote human dignity and flourishing.

Josh Craddock is an affiliated scholar with the James Wilson Institute on Natural Rights and the American Founding.

He graduated magna cum laude from the Harvard Law School, where he served as editor-in-chief of the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy. He later clerked for the Honorable Chief Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Prior to law school, Josh managed advocacy teams for non-profit organizations at the United Nations and participated in negotiations for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Josh’s writing has appeared in the Washington Post, Newsweek, National Review, First Things, Public Discourse, The Stream, and Providence Magazine. His academic writing has been published in various law reviews and research journals. He has spoken on hundreds of public platforms, including for many civic and charitable organizations.

  • Josh is one of Harvard Law School’s finest, a gifted writer who bids fair to become a leading public intellectual.

    — Mary Ann Glendon
    Learned Hand Professor of Law Emerita, Harvard University

  • Josh Craddock represents the best of America's future as one who understands the role of religious principles at the point where law and public policy intersect.

    — Dr. Anthony B. Bradley
    Distinguished Research Fellow, The Acton Institute

  • Josh Craddock is fearlessly demonstrating the leadership and developing the thought America desperately needs to recover a purposeful politics ordered to the common good.

    — Matt Peterson
    Editor-in-Chief, Blaze Media

  • Josh Craddock is one of the most important legal scholars of his generation. His morally substantive originalism gives me hope for the most vulnerable among us.

    — C.C. Pecknold
    Professor of Systematic Theology, Catholic University of America

Josh is a fifth-generation native Coloradan who lives and works in the
Denver area.

Josh is a frequent speaker for the Federalist Society, Intercollegiate Studies Institute, and other civic organizations. Contact Josh for speaking engagements and more.

Recent Commentary

Commentary
Our Pro-Life Constitution
Our Pro-Life Constitution

The originalist case for unborn personhood, published in the January 2024 print edition of National Review

Debate: Equal Protection & Section 5
Debate: Equal Protection & Section 5

Catholic Law's Federalist Society presents Resolved: A Debate Between Josh Craddock and William Hodes.

Do Abortion Bans Violate The Separation Of Church & State?
Do Abortion Bans Violate The Separation Of Church & State?

Josh Craddock debunks the common pro-abortion argument that laws that ban abortion are a violation of the separation of church and state.

FedSoc Blog: Yes, Congress Has Constitutional Authority to Protect Unborn Children
FedSoc Blog: Yes, Congress Has Constitutional Authority to Protect Unborn Children

Prof. Robert George and Josh Craddock write that national pro-life legislation would be an appropriate remedy for state deprivation of the equal-protection rights to which unborn children are constitutionally entitled.

Abortion is Unconstitutional
Abortion is Unconstitutional

The pro-life movement must direct its steps according to the existing guarantee in our Constitution that secures equal protection for all.

Live Action: Equal Protection & New Strategies for Protecting Life
Live Action: Equal Protection & New Strategies for Protecting Life

All human beings have inherent human rights. Yet the U.S. government refuses to protect the basic right to life of an entire segment of our population - preborn children. Josh Craddock sits down with Lila Rose to discuss how pro-life advocates can influence law and public policy to promote human dignity and flourishing.

WSJ Letter: A National Abortion Ban Is Constitutional
WSJ Letter: A National Abortion Ban Is Constitutional

Prof. Robert George and Josh Craddock write to the Wall Street Journal to argue that the 14th Amendment extended “the equal protection of the laws” to “any person,” including the unborn.

The King’s College: How Should Christians Reflect on Recent SCOTUS Decisions?
The King’s College: How Should Christians Reflect on Recent SCOTUS Decisions?

On Wednesday, September 14, The King's College hosted a special faculty and alumni panel, "How Should Christians Reflect on Recent SCOTUS Decisions." The panel discussed this past Supreme Court term and addressed cases such as Carson v. Makin, Dobbs v. Jackson, and Kennedy v. Bremerton.

Newsweek Opinion: The Next Pro-Life Goal Is Constitutional Personhood
Newsweek Opinion: The Next Pro-Life Goal Is Constitutional Personhood

Josh Hammer and Josh Craddock argue that Dobbs is not the end of the pro-life struggle and that each level and branch of government should act to ensure constitutional personhood for unborn children.

Moment of Truth: Dobbs for Dummies
Moment of Truth: Dobbs for Dummies

In today's episode of "Moment of Truth," Saurabh and Nick sit down with Josh Craddock, lawyer and Affiliated Scholar at the James Wilson Institute, to discuss the history of abortion law in the United States, the legal arguments from the majority opinion, concurrences, and dissent in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women's Health Organization, the future of the pro-life movement, and the implications of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.