Sherry Colb | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1966-05-03)3 May 1966 |
| Died | 25 August 2022(2022-08-25) (aged 56) |
| Occupation | Legal scholar |
| Spouse | Michael C. Dorf |
Sherry F. Colb (3 May 1966 – 25 August 2022) was an American legal scholar who served as the inaugural C.S. Wong Professor of Law atCornell Law School from 2019 until her death in 2022.[1] She was best known for her scholarship ongender equality andanimal rights.[2]
Colb was born on May 3, 1966, inNew York City. Her parents, Clara and Ben-Zion Colb, were bothHolocaust survivors. After graduating fromRamaz High School, she received abachelor's degree inpsychology fromColumbia University; she wasvaledictorian of the graduating class at both institutions. She then enrolled atHarvard Law School, where she graduatedmagna cum laude. While studying for her law degree, she also attended theUniversity of Southern California because her husband,Michael C. Dorf, was working inLos Angeles,California at the time.[1]
After graduating from law school, Colb worked as alaw clerk, first for JudgeWilfred Feinberg of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and later forSupreme Court JusticeHarry Blackmun. In 1993, she joined the faculty ofRutgers Law School, initially as an assistant professor; she later gained tenure and became the JudgeFrederick Lacey Scholar there. In 2008, she left Rutgers to join the faculty of Cornell, where she served as theCharles Evans Hughes Scholar before being named the inaugural C.S. Wong Professor of Law in 2019.[1]
In 2016, Colb attended a panel to debate animal rights and law hosted by theAssociation of American Law Schools by the Section on Animal Law in New York City.[3] Colb co-authoredBeating Hearts: Abortion and Animal Rights with Michael C. Dorf in 2016.[4] Colb advocated for ethicalveganism, commenting that there are no good reasons to kill animals for food as people can easily meet all of their nutritional needs on a plant-based diet. Colb argued that sentient fetuses have the right not the be harmed or killed but there is no moral concern to abort pre-sentient fetuses.[4] Colb stated that pre-sentient fetuses lacking consciousness are "somethings, not someones". They cannot be harmed because prior to sentience, there is no someone to be harmed.[4]
Jens Ohlin commented that Colb "trained a generation of lawyers to think ethically and critically about important issues... She consistently spoke out against injustice wherever it might be found, whether against human beings or nonhuman animals".[5]
Colb became a vegan in 2006.[1] She had breast cancer surgery in 2006 and for a different cancer in 2019 which returned in metastatic form in 2021.[6] On August 25, 2022, Colb died at her home inIthaca, New York, at the age of 56. She was survived by her husband, Michael C. Dorf, as well as by their two daughters, Meena Colbdorf and Amelia Colbdorf.[1]
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