Joshua Claybourn

Claybourn is an attorney with the law firm of Jackson Kelly, where he represents governmental entities, public officials, businesses, and corporations.{{cite news|last1=Hall|first1=Shannon|title=Chandler appoints new attorney|url=http://www.courierpress.com/news/local/warrick/chandler-appoints-new-attorney-2884cd6d-1d30-5d5a-e053-0100007fb8df-364257441.html|access-date=July 27, 2016|publisher=Courier & Press|date=January 5, 2016|archive-date=January 8, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160108044348/http://www.courierpress.com/news/local/warrick/chandler-appoints-new-attorney-2884cd6d-1d30-5d5a-e053-0100007fb8df-364257441.html|url-status=live}} His legal work often focuses on constitutional law, separation of powers, intellectual property, and the limits of executive authority.

In 2018, citing Article 1, Section 2 of the United States Constitution, Claybourn appeared before the Indiana Election Commission and successfully challenged a 23-year-old person's legal right to appear on the ballot as a candidate for Congress in Indiana's 8th congressional district.{{cite news|last1=Langhorne|first1=Thomas|title=Bucshon supporter challenges 23-year-old woman's right to run for 8th District|url=http://www.courierpress.com/news/politics/elections/national/bucshon-supporter-challenges-23-year-old-womans-right-to-run-for-8th-district-2bfe3bec-d5d4-3ee4-e05-369340551.html|access-date=July 27, 2016|publisher=Courier & Press|date=February 18, 2016|archive-date=March 23, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160323173144/http://www.courierpress.com/news/politics/elections/national/bucshon-supporter-challenges-23-year-old-womans-right-to-run-for-8th-district-2bfe3bec-d5d4-3ee4-e05-369340551.html|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last1=Osowski|first1=Zach|title=Tied commission vote will keep Young on U.S. Senate ballot|url=http://www.courierpress.com/news/politics/national/tied-commission-vote-will-keep-young-on-us-senate-ballot--for-now-2c20b7a4-9d09-2dbd-e053-0100007fa2-369476442.html|access-date=July 27, 2016|publisher=Courier & Press|date=February 19, 2016|archive-date=May 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160504133743/http://www.courierpress.com/news/politics/national/tied-commission-vote-will-keep-young-on-us-senate-ballot--for-now-2c20b7a4-9d09-2dbd-e053-0100007fa2-369476442.html|url-status=live}}

In 2020, he co-authored an article in the Indiana Law Review with Abby DeMare advocating for greater legislative checks on executive emergency powers.{{cite journal |author1=Joshua Claybourn |author2=Abby DeMare |title=Hoosier Emergency Powers: Restoring Checks and Balances |journal=Indiana Law Review |date=14 January 2022 |volume=54 |issue=2 |pages=341–364 |doi=10.18060/26023 |url=https://journals.iupui.edu/index.php/inlawrev/article/view/26023/24144 |access-date=24 August 2022 |doi-access=free |archive-date=February 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220227075756/https://journals.iupui.edu/index.php/inlawrev/article/view/26023/24144 |url-status=live }} Claybourn also served as co-counsel in a civil suit against the State of Indiana and Governor Eric Holcomb, alleging that certain executive orders issued during the COVID-19 pandemic exceeded the governor’s constitutional authority. The case was ultimately dismissed as moot after Governor Holcomb rescinded the challenged orders, and the Indiana Court of Appeals later affirmed the dismissal.{{cite web |last1=Shelley |first1=Jonathan |title=Mask Lawsuit Filed by Bluffton BBQ Owners Dismissed |url=https://www.insideindianabusiness.com/articles/mask-lawsuit-filed-by-bluffton-bbq-owners-dismissed |website=Inside Indiana Business |publisher=IBJ Media |date=26 October 2021 |access-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215174309/https://www.insideindianabusiness.com/articles/mask-lawsuit-filed-by-bluffton-bbq-owners-dismissed |url-status=live }}{{cite web |last1=Carden |first1=Dan |title=Indiana Supreme Court won't hear challenge to governor's COVID-19 business restrictions |url=https://www.nwitimes.com/business/healthcare/indiana-supreme-court-wont-hear-challenge-to-governors-covid-19-business-restrictions/article_aa77dd63-a5cc-5401-af7f-ce52773af029.html |website=NWI |publisher=The Times |date=7 December 2022 |access-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215174307/https://www.nwitimes.com/business/healthcare/indiana-supreme-court-wont-hear-challenge-to-governors-covid-19-business-restrictions/article_aa77dd63-a5cc-5401-af7f-ce52773af029.html |url-status=live }}{{cite web |title=Judge dismisses Yergy's lawsuit against county, state officials |url=https://www.wane.com/news/local-news/judge-dismisses-yergys-lawsuit-against-county-state-officials/ |website=WANE |date=26 October 2021 |access-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-date=February 15, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230215174307/https://www.wane.com/news/local-news/judge-dismisses-yergys-lawsuit-against-county-state-officials/ |url-status=live }}

In 2025, Claybourn helped organize and co-author a high-profile amici curiae brief filed in V.O.S. Selections, Inc. v. Trump, a federal lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's tariff and import tax program. The brief brought together a rare coalition of leading constitutional scholars, former judges, and senior public officials from across the political spectrum.{{cite web |last1=Somin |first1=Ilya |title=Bipartisan Group of Prominent Legal Scholars and Former Government Officials Files Amicus Brief Supporting Our Case Challenging Trump's "Liberation Day" Tariffs |url=https://reason.com/volokh/2025/04/23/bipartisan-group-of-prominent-legal-scholars-and-former-government-officials-files-amicus-brief-supporting-our-case-challenging-trumps-liberation-day-tariffs/ |website=The Volokh Conspiracy |publisher=Reason |access-date=26 April 2025}} Signatories included Steven Calabresi, co-founder of the Federalist Society; constitutional scholars Michael McConnell and Richard Epstein; former Attorney General Michael Mukasey; former U.S. Senators George Allen, John Danforth, and Chuck Hagel; and prominent legal academics Harold Koh, Alan Sykes, and Gerard Magliocca. The brief emphasized that the endurance of the American Republic depends not only on democratic elections but also on the faithful preservation of the Constitution’s structural limitations on executive power.{{cite web |title=V.O.S. Selections, Inc. v. Donald J. Trump Brief — Document #29 |url=https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69888953/29/1/vos-selections-inc-v-donald-j-trump/ |website=Court Listener |access-date=26 April 2025}} Claybourn elaborated on these concerns in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, emphasizing the importance of maintaining the Constitution's structural limitations on executive authority.{{cite news |last1=Claybourn |first1=Joshua |title=Why We’re Joining the Legal Fight Over Trump’s Tariffs |url=https://www.wsj.com/opinion/trumps-tariffs-erode-the-constitutional-order-law-policy-trade-d985581b |access-date=28 April 2025 |agency=Wall Street Journal |date=27 April 2025}}

Claybourn is considered one of the foremost living scholars of President Lincoln’s youth in Indiana. He appeared as an expert in the six-part CNN documentary Lincoln: Divided We Stand.{{cite news |last1=Webb |first1=Jon |title=Evansville attorney Josh Claybourn will appear in CNN series about Abraham Lincoln |url=https://www.courierpress.com/story/news/local/2021/01/25/evansville-attorney-josh-claybourn-cnn-series-abraham-lincoln/6662693002/ |access-date=10 January 2022 |publisher=Courier & Press |date=January 25, 2021 |archive-date=January 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220111093517/https://www.courierpress.com/story/news/local/2021/01/25/evansville-attorney-josh-claybourn-cnn-series-abraham-lincoln/6662693002/ |url-status=live }} Claybourn is editor of Abraham Lincoln's Wilderness Years, a compilation of significant scholarship from J. Edward Murr covering Lincoln's youth.{{cite book |author1=J. Edward Murr |editor1-last=Claybourn |editor1-first=Joshua |title=Abraham Lincoln's Wilderness Years: Collected Works of J. Edward Murr |date=January 2023 |publisher=Indiana University Press |location=Bloomington, Ind. |isbn=9780253062703 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s4t0EAAAQBAJ |access-date=24 August 2022 |archive-date=September 22, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240922104942/https://books.google.com/books?id=s4t0EAAAQBAJ |url-status=live }} He is co-editor (with William Bartelt) of Abe’s Youth: Shaping the Future President, providing source material from the Indiana Lincoln Inquiry.{{cite book |editor1-last=Bartelt |editor1-first=William |editor2-last=Claybourn |editor2-first=Joshua |title=Abe's Youth: Shaping the Future President |date=October 2019 |publisher=Indiana University Press |location=Bloomington, Ind. |isbn=9780253043924 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QsuvDwAAQBAJ |access-date=24 August 2022 |archive-date=October 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231013022340/https://books.google.com/books?id=QsuvDwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}{{cite journal |last1=Erekson |first1=Keith |title=Abe's Youth: Shaping the Future President |journal=Indiana Magazine of History |date=June 2020 |volume=116 |issue=2 |page=153 |url=https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/imh/article/view/34579/37812 |access-date=24 August 2022 |archive-date=August 10, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220810162323/https://scholarworks.iu.edu/journals/index.php/imh/article/view/34579/37812 |url-status=live }} Claybourn also served as a research assistant to Professor Gerard Magliocca during his work on Andrew Jackson and the Constitution: The Rise and Fall of Generational Regimes.{{cite book |last1=Magliocca |first1=Gerard |title=Andrew Jackson and the Constitution: The Rise and Fall of Generational Regimes |date=October 27, 2008 |publisher=University Press of Kansas |location=Lawrence, KS |isbn=9780700615094 |pages=186 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WrmRAAAAMAAJ |access-date=24 August 2022 |archive-date=October 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231013022340/https://books.google.com/books?id=WrmRAAAAMAAJ |url-status=live }}

Claybourn edited Our American Story: The Search for a Shared National Narrative (Potomac Books, 2019), a collection of essays by theorists, historians, and politicians addressing the possibility of a shared narrative within a country divided by political polarization.{{cite book |editor1-last=Claybourn |editor1-first=Joshua |title=Our American Story: The Search for a Shared National Narrative |date=June 2019 |publisher=Potomac Books |isbn=9781640121706 |pages=228 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=w0OQDwAAQBAJ |access-date=24 August 2022 |archive-date=October 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231013022340/https://books.google.com/books?id=w0OQDwAAQBAJ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Claybourn |first1=Joshua |title=In Search of a Shared National Narrative |url=https://reason.com/volokh/2019/06/03/in-search-of-a-shared-national-narrative/ |access-date=24 August 2022 |publisher=Reason |date=3 June 2019 |archive-date=August 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220824133731/https://reason.com/volokh/2019/06/03/in-search-of-a-shared-national-narrative/ |url-status=live }} Contributors to the project include Cass Sunstein, Gordon S. Wood, John Danforth, Richard Epstein, David Blight, Markos Moulitsas, Alan Taylor, Eleanor Clift, Jim Banks, Nikolas Gvosdev, Ilya Somin, Cherie Harder, Gerard Magliocca, Jason Kuznicki, Cody Delistraty, Spencer Boyer, Ali Wyne, and James Wertsch. Kirkus Reviews wrote that the book's "responses are all over the map, provocatively so" and called it a "mixed-bag collection".{{cite web |title=Our American Story |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/joshua-claybourn/our-american-story/ |website=Kirkus Reviews |access-date=23 August 2022 |archive-date=August 10, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200810111534/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/joshua-claybourn/our-american-story/ |url-status=live }}

Claybourn, named one of the 250 most influential leaders in Indiana, often serves as a political advisor.{{cite web |title=Indiana 250 |url=https://www.indiana250.com/profiles/2022-joshua-claybourn |website=Indiana 250 |publisher=Indianapolis Business Journal |access-date=23 August 2022 |archive-date=August 25, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220825200924/https://www.indiana250.com/profiles/2022-joshua-claybourn |url-status=live }} He was cited as a "key supporter" of Congressman Larry Bucshon of {{ushr|IN|8}} and was a principal adviser to Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke's campaign and was a part of Winnecke's 2012 transition team.{{cite news|last1=Sarkissian|first1=Arek|title=Winnecke: Transition team has received 220 resumes for 37 positions|url=http://www.courierpress.com/news/local/326685301.html|access-date=July 27, 2016|publisher=Courier & Press|date=December 2, 2011}}

In 2016, Claybourn was selected as an Indiana delegate to the 2016 Republican National Convention, but a day after Donald Trump's win in the Indiana primary which made Trump the party's presumptive nominee, Claybourn resigned his position in opposition to the nominee.{{cite news |last1=Webb |first1=Jon |title=City Council attorney, GOP delegate Claybourn refuses to attend convention after Trump win |url=https://archive.courierpress.com/news/politics/elections/national/city-council-attorney-gop-delegate-claybourn-refuses-to-attend-convention-after-trump-win-320f778d-c-378203831.html |access-date=23 August 2022 |publisher=Courier & Press |date=5 May 2016 |archive-date=September 25, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160925063629/http://archive.courierpress.com/news/politics/elections/national/city-council-attorney-gop-delegate-claybourn-refuses-to-attend-convention-after-trump-win-320f778d-c-378203831.html |url-status=live }}{{cite news|last1=Cook|first1=Tony|title=Indiana GOP names delegates to Republican National Convention|url=http://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2016/04/14/indiana-gop-names-delegates-republican-national-convention/83039428/|access-date=July 27, 2016|publisher=Indianapolis Star|date=April 14, 2016|archive-date=January 15, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210115220233/https://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2016/04/14/indiana-gop-names-delegates-republican-national-convention/83039428/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last1=Peters|first1=Jeremy|title='I Can Watch It on TV': Excuses for Republicans Skipping a Donald Trump Convention|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/02/us/politics/donald-trump-republican-convention.html|access-date=July 27, 2016|work=New York Times|date=June 1, 2016|archive-date=July 16, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160716031517/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/06/02/us/politics/donald-trump-republican-convention.html|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last1=Kopan|first1=Tal|title=With Trump as nominee, delegate spots lose appeal for Republicans|url=http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/11/politics/republican-delegates-back-out-donald-trump/?iid=ob_lockedrail_topeditorial|access-date=July 27, 2016|publisher=CNN|date=May 12, 2016|archive-date=July 19, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160719045529/http://www.cnn.com/2016/05/11/politics/republican-delegates-back-out-donald-trump/?iid=ob_lockedrail_topeditorial|url-status=live}}

• Claybourn, Joshua A., ed. Abraham Lincoln's Wilderness Years: Collected Works of J. Edward Murr. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2023.
• Claybourn, Joshua A., ed. Our American Story: The Search for a Shared National Narrative. Lincoln: Potomac Books, 2019.
• Bartelt, William, and Joshua A. Claybourn, eds. Abe’s Youth: Shaping the Future President. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2019.
• Claybourn, Joshua A., ed. Born of Clay: The Story of the Claiborne · Claybourn · Clayborn Families in the United States. Evansville: Claybourn Genealogical Society, 2016.

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• [http://www.joshclaybourn.com/ Personal home page]

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