Steven T. Collis

Steven T. Collis researches and teaches religion law, productive discourse, and other First Amendment topics. He is the founding faculty director of the Bech-Loughlin First Amendment Center and its Law & Religion Clinic. Before joining Texas, he was a research fellow inthe Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School and an equity partner at Holland & Hart LLP. 

His scholarship has been cited by justices of the Supreme Court and has appeared in the Michigan Law Review, the Nebraska Law Review, and the University of Denver Law Review Online. He is also a sought-after speaker for academic and public audiences across the United States, including foreign diplomats from Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and South America on behalf of the U.S. State Department. Earlier in his career, he chaired Holland & Hart LLP’s nationwide religious institutions and First Amendment practice group, practiced before multiple federal appellate courts and many state courts, and clerked for Chief Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He has also served as chair of the Law and Religion Section of the Association of American Law Schools and of the JRCLS International Religious Freedom Committee. 

Education 

JD, University of Michigan Law School
MFA in creative writing, Virginia Commonwealth University
BA, Brigham Young University 

Publications 

Deep Conviction
The Immortals
Praying with the Enemy
Habits of a Peacemaker 

He is a sought-after speaker to academic and lay audiences across the United States, including foreign diplomats from countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and South America on behalf of the United States State Department. He has been interviewed by and quoted in various news and media outlets, including The Deseret News, Bloomberg, NBC, the Associated Press, The Washington Times, Law360, NPR, The Washington Post, The Salt Lake Tribune, PBS, The Denver Business Journal, Law Week Colorado, CBN News, and numerous podcasts and television shows.

Steven has served as the chair of the Law and Religion Section of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) and of the JRCLS International Religious Freedom Committee.

Earlier in his career, he was an equity partner at Holland & Hart LLP, where he chaired the firm’s nationwide religious institutions and First Amendment practice group and was a member of the firm’s complex civil litigation and employment practice groups. He has appeared before or practiced in multiple federal appellate courts, many state courts, and the United States Supreme Court. He also clerked for Chief Judge Timothy M. Tymkovich of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.

Steven graduated magna cum laude from the University of Michigan Law School, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif and served as an editor on The Michigan Law Review and The Michigan Journal of Race and Law. He also holds an M.F.A. in creative writing from Virginia Commonwealth University, where he served as the associate editor of the literary journal Blackbird. He completed his undergraduate studies, with university honors, at Brigham Young University.