John Eastman speaks at WashU Law on Wednesday (Eran Fann | Photo Editor)

John Eastman, a prominent attorney in the effort to overturn former President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, defended his actions and criticized alleged “lawfare” and “barfare” against him and other conservatives in an event at WashU Law on Wednesday. 

Eastman was invited to speak by the WashU chapter of the Federalist Society, a conservative legal organization. Chapter president and 3L student James Barkley declined to provide any comment. 

Eastman, a former law professor and dean at Chapman University, attained political prominence in 2020 as a part of President Donald Trump’s legal team that litigated the results of the presidential election. In public and in court documents, Eastman alleged that voting irregularities and illegal activity by state officials manipulated the results of the 2020 election. Multiple investigations at the federal and state level examining the 2020 election have since confirmed Biden’s victory. On Jan. 6, 2020, Eastman spoke at a rally in Washington, D.C. before a mob stormed the U.S. Capitol building. 

Speaking to 81 students in a law school classroom, Eastman disputed the characterization that he was an election denier.

“One would think that the press would have gotten tired of this false claim,” Eastman said. “But the farther we go in and the [more] we look at those things that occurred, the conspiracy theories at the time turned out to be true.” 

Eastman was disbarred by the California Supreme Court in April 2026. The court found he had committed serious ethics violations by advancing false claims about the 2020 election. 

Eastman discussed alleged lawfare, the weaponization of legal processes against political rivals, in the United States. He said disbarments like his were meant to discourage lawyers from working for conservative causes. He also argued lower court judges were biased against the Trump administration and defended his own actions in 2020.

Eastman emphasized to the law students in the room that urgent change was needed in the justice system.

“We’ve got judges putting not [a] thumb, but a whole fist on the side of the scales of equal justice,” Eastman said. “And I hope that as your generation comes online, you will help find a way to put this genie back in the bottle before we throw this great system of ours out with the bathwater altogether.”

Daniel Plants, a 1L law student, attended the event and questioned Eastman about his disbarment. Though he expressed doubt about Eastman’s credibility, he said he should be allowed to speak on campus.

“I don’t think WashU should restrict student groups’ ability to invite whoever they want,” Plants said. “I don’t think the University should specifically be hosting that sort of person, but that’s not the case in this instance where there was a student group that invited him.”

Eastman was charged in two separate cases in Arizona and Georgia, but both were dismissed. In an interview with Student Life after the event, Eastman was asked what his future might look like and if he might go back to work for Trump. 

“I get people asking me to be in, but I said until the criminal prosecutions in Georgia and Arizona were done, I’ve got my hands full dealing with those things,” Eastman said. “Those are now gone, so we’ll see what happens.”

Kedra Tolson, associate vice chancellor for university communications, wrote in a statement to Student Life that the University was not involved in inviting Eastman. 

“John Eastman was invited by the Federalist Society student chapter at WashU Law, not by WashU or WashU Law. Recognized student organizations regularly invite speakers to campus representing a range of perspectives and viewpoints,” she wrote.

Editor’s note: This article was updated on September 3rd at 9:36 a.m. to reflect that 81 people attended John Eastman’s talk.