Addison O’Donnell, Esq.

About The Lecturer

Professor Addison O’Donnell is an Associate Teaching Professor at Syracuse University College of Law, where he teaches Civil Procedure, Professional Responsibility, and Legal Communications and Research I & II.  

O’Donnell previously taught Advanced Appellate Advocacy, Drafting: General Principles, and Legal Practice II at New York Law School, where he also served as a Senior Fellow and Writing Fellow for the Moot Court Association.  Before law teaching, he was a partner at a mid-sized firm in New York and New Jersey, where he ran the firm’s appellate department.  Prior to law, O’Donnell was a theatre producer and writer in New York.

His primary research is focused on the First Amendment (particularly the freedom of the press), legal writing, appellate advocacy, and administrative law.  He authored, “Mixed Messages: How the Free Press Has a Responsibility to We the People at the Marketplace of Ideas,” in the UC Law SF Communications and Entertainment Journal (formerly Hastings Communications and Entertainment Law Journal).  O’Donnell also co-authored a peer-reviewed piece, “The New Red Tape: Agency Value Matching in a Post-Chevron World,” in Administration & Society.  He regularly presents and writes published articles on the similarities between the art and science of legal writing and musical theatre writing.  

O’Donnell was conferred the Upper-Level Experiential/Skills Faculty Teaching Award in recognition of exceptional dedication to student learning, classroom excellence, and innovation in teaching by New York Law School in 2026.  In 2025, he was elected to the Honorary Order of the Barristers. Outside of the law, he was recognized as one of 100 promising musical theatre writers by the Broadway revival of Merrily We Roll Along as part of the Rooftop Writers’ Initiative (in partnership with the Stephen Sondheim Foundation and the American Theater Wing’s Jonathan Larson Grant).  

O’Donnell received a B.B.A. in management from Pace University, Lubin School of Business, and a J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law.  He is admitted to practice law in New York, New Jersey, the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, and the Supreme Court of the United States.  For more, visit www.addisonodonnell.com or e-mail aodonne2@syr.edu.

Education

J.D., Syracuse University College of Law

B.B.A., Management, Pace University, Lubin School of Business