Wes E. Henricksen

Wes Henricksen is an Associate Professor at Barry University School of Law. Professor Henricksen’s research centers on legal responses to the intentional dissemination of false and misleading claims by politicians, the media, and corporations. This scholarly focus intersects with numerous doctrinal areas, including the First Amendment, torts, public health, and environmental law. He has published scholarly articles and book chapters on this and other topics, and he has won awards for his scholarship and teaching. 

In 2018, Professor Henricksen was competitively selected to present his article, Scientific Knowledge Fraud, at the Stanford-Penn-Northwestern Junior Faculty Forum for Law and STEM at Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. He was one of nine law professors selected from universities around the world to present. Presenting scholars were chosen on a blind basis after submitting research papers. Professor Henricksen has presented his scholarship, as well, at other law schools, workshops, and conferences. 

Professor Henricksen is the author of two books. His most recent book is In Fraud We Trust: How Leaders in Politics, Business, and Media Profit from Lies, forthcoming from University Press of Kansas. This book argues that political and corporate leaders defraud the public legally, with destructive consequences for individuals and society. Although there are civil and criminal prohibitions against fraud and deceit, those laws often apply primarily to schemes aimed at individual victims, whereas schemes aimed at the public are ignored. His other book, Making Law Review: A Guide to the Write-On Competition, was published by Carolina Academic Press. It is now in its second edition. 

Professor Henricksen teaches, or has taught, Constitutional Law, First Amendment, Torts, and Securities Regulation, among other courses. Barry Law students voted him Professor of the Year for 2017-2018, 2018-2019, and 2021-2022. 

Prior to joining the Barry Law faculty, Professor Henricksen clerked for the Hon. Bruce J. McGiverin at the U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, and spent a decade in private practice in Miami and San Diego. He graduated number one in his major and with summa cum laude honors at Washington State University, and received his J.D. from the University of Washington, where he served as the Executive Notes & Comments Editor on the Washington Law Review. Professor Henricksen has worked, lived, or studied in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, and Peru, and he is fluent in Spanish. He is admitted to the state bars of California, the District of Columbia, and Florida.  

Professor Henricksen’s most recent publications and working papers can be found on the Social Science Research Network.