The American Society for Legal History Will Have an In-Person Meeting, With Strict Conditions

Alas, the American Association of Law Schools will be virtual only.

The American Society of Legal History announced that it will hold its annual meeting in New Orleans. The conditions for the New Orleans conference are strict. Attendees must be vaccinated, or provide a negative COVID test. Moreover, the organizers requested that only vaccinated staff interact with with attendees. And masks for everyone.

Proof of vaccination
Registrants will be asked to provide proof of vaccination when they pick up their badges and other registration materials. Because many colleges and universities are allowing exemptions for medical or religious reasons, the Society will allow attendees who do not show proof of vaccination status to present proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken no more than three days before their arrival at the conference. Any participant with such a test but without proof of vaccination will need to wear a mask at all times.

Masking
The policy for wearing masks will conform to CDC guidelines in place at the time of the conference. It is possible, and even likely, that we will be requiring all attendees to wear masks at all events. Current CDC guidance is for masks to be worn by everyone attending indoor events in areas of high transmission. At present, Orleans Parish is rated by the CDC as an area of high transmission. We will continue to monitor CDC data for New Orleans Parish and keep members informed (through messages like this one and posts on our website) with regular updates about the masking policy.

Hotel and university vaccination and masking policies
The hotel (InterContinental New Orleans) is currently reporting that 70% of its staff have been vaccinated. We have requested that only vaccinated staff interact with our conference attendees, and the hotel has indicated that it will seek to comply with our request. Hotel management also informs us that all hotel staff will be required to wear masks. Tulane University (where the plenary lecture will be held) currently has a masking requirement in place for all events on campus. Tulane also requires vaccinations for faculty and staff.

Alas, the American Association of Law Schools annual meeting will be virtual again.