Paul E . McGreal, BA, JD, LLM

James L. Koley '54 Professor of Constitutional Law

Professor

photo placeholder for McGreal, Paul E

Contact

PaulMcGreal@creighton.edu
School of Law
Faculty - Law
Graduate School

Paul E . McGreal, BA, JD, LLM

James L. Koley '54 Professor of Constitutional Law

Professor

Professor McGreal's SSRN Author Page

Professor McGreal was appointed the James L. Koley ’54 Professor of Constitutional Law in July 2025, and has been a Professor of Law since 2015. His teaching, research, and speaking span two fields: constitutional law—particularly religious liberty and the economic analysis of law and religion—and the design and effectiveness of corporate compliance and ethics programs.

In constitutional law, Professor McGreal has published widely on First Amendment doctrine and theory, with recent articles including Reforming the Ministerial Exception in the Villanova Law Review (2024), True Threats and the Neuroscience of Fear in Case Western Reserve Law Review (forthcoming 2025) and Resolving the Ministerial Exception's Economic Paradox in the Florida State University Law Review (forthcoming 2026). One of his current research projects applies economic analysis to claims of clergy malpractice, and another examines the relevance of historical analogies from religious persecution in Reformation Era Europe to current litigation over Ten Commandments displays in public schools.

He is co-author of the leading constitutional law student guide Questions & Answers: Constitutional Law (4th ed., Carolina Academic Press 2023), and the coursebook Skills & Values: The First Amendment (3rd ed., LexisNexis 2021).

On the compliance side, Professor McGreal has written, taught, and spoken on the subject since 1997. During that time, he was a frequent speaker at the Practising Law Institute’s annual Compliance and Ethics Workshop. For over fiften years, he wrote the annual Corporate Compliance Survey for the ABA publication The Business Lawyer, and he published the article Caremark in the Arc of Compliance History in the Temple Law Review. He founded and served as Director of the Corporate Compliance Center at South Texas College of Law (2003–06), where he taught the first course on corporate compliance and ethics programs at a US law school. He is also a founding faculty member of the Texas A&M Mays Executive MBA Program, where he has taught modules on corporate compliance and ethics since 1999.

Professor McGreal’s administrative leadership includes terms as Dean of Creighton University School of Law (2015–17) and Dean of the University of Dayton School of Law (2011–15). He was previously Director of Faculty Development and Interim Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at Southern Illinois University School of Law.

Professor McGreal was a full-time faculty member at South Texas College of Law Houston from 1996 to 2006, and at SIU School of Law from 2006 to 2011. He has also been a visiting professor at George Mason University (spring 2022) and SMU (spring 1996).

Professor McGreal received his LL.M. from Yale Law School (1994) after clerking for the Hon. Warren W. Matthews of the Alaska Supreme Court, and graduated magna cum laude from SMU Dedman School of Law (J.D. 1992), where he served as Editor-in-Chief of the SMU Law Review/Southwestern Law Journal. He holds a B.A. in Economics, cum laude, from Williams College (1989).
 

Research Focus

One of my current works-in-progress discusses how the Reformation-era practice of \"auslauf\" (or \"going out\") can inform the interpretation of the Religion Clauses of the First Amendment. In mixed religious communities, auslauf typically was an informal practice of religious toleration where dissenters from the legally established religion traveled outside the city to worship, and the local authorities would look the
other way. My article argues that practices like auslauf were \"toleration by displacement,\" where the majority faith claims public space and effectively forces dissenters to exit that space to preserve their religious conscience. I argue that the Supreme Court should recognize such practices as one of the hallmarks of a prohibited religious establishment under the First Amendment. An example of such a practice is the recitation of sectarian religious prayers in public schools and at government functions.

Another work-in-progress applies economic analysis to the legal claim of clergy malpractice.

Department

Law

Position

Professor

Book, Chapter/Section

  • SCOTUS 2024: major decisions and developments of the US Supreme Court
    McGreal Paul E., NRA v. Vullo [Book Chapter] 2025
  • First Amendment Law Handbook
    McGreal Paul, Reforming the ministerial exception [Book Chapter] 2025
  • Corporate Compliance Practice Guide: The Next Generation of Compliance
    McGreal Paul E., Cutting edge issues in corporate compliance [Book Chapter] 2009
  • Courting the Yankees: Legal essays on the Bronx Bombers
    McGreal Paul E., The Pine Tar Incident [Book Chapter] 2003

Books

  • McGreal Paul, Rhodes Charles, Questions & answers 2023
  • Rhodes Charles W, McGreal Paul E, Skills & values 2022
  • McGreal Paul E, Eads Linda S, Rhodes Charles W, Questions & answers 2017
  • McGreal Paul E, Eads Linda S, Questions & answers 2007
  • McGreal Paul E., Eads Linda, Questions & answers 2003
  • McGreal Paul E, , 3 + 2 = 5 1992

General

  • Uchimiya Diane, Kelly Michael, McGreal Paul, ICE's relocation of Minnesota detainees echo Korematsu mistakes 2026
  • McGreal Paul, How Law Schools can champion compliance careers 2026
  • McGreal Paul, Businesses may have case against city over streetcar 2025
  • McGreal Paul, So you want to be a compliance professional? Advice for Law Students 2025
  • McGreal Paul, First US law school course in compliance 2025
  • McGreal Paul, Judicial power should not be a license to harass 2025
  • McGreal Paul E., Newsletter (American Bar Association Ad Hoc Committee on Corporate Compliance) 2009
  • McGreal Paul E., Book review 2009
  • McGreal Paul E, Staying out of jail 2004
  • McGreal Paul E., Constitutional illiteracy 1997

Articles

  • Creighton Lawyer
    McGreal Paul, Message from the Dean, p. 2 2016
  • Creighton Lawyer
    McGreal Paul, Message from the Dean, p. 2 2015

Publications

  • Michigan law review online
    McGreal Paul E., Ten Commandments Cases
    124, p. 69 - 83 2026
  • Creighton Legal Insights
    McGreal Paul, Ten Commandments cases and reformation-era religious persecution 2026
  • Case Western Reserve law review
    McGreal Paul E., True threats and the neuroscience of fear
    75:3, p. 899 - 927 2025
  • Villanova Law Review
    McGreal Paul, Reforming the ministerial exception
    69:1, p. 101 - 156 2024
  • SMU Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Tribute to Professor Linda Eads
    72:4, p. 553 - 554 2019
  • Religion & Education
    Russo Charles J., McGreal Paul E., Religious freedom in American Catholic higher education
    39:2, p. 116 - 132 2012
  • Southern Illinois University Law Journal
    McGreal Paul E., The making of the Supreme Court's Free Exercise Clause jurisprudence
    34:3, p. 469 - 532 2010
  • The Business Lawyer
    McGreal Paul E., Corporate compliance survey
    64:1, p. 253 - 277 2008
  • Journal of Legal Medicine
    McGreal Paul E., 2007-2008 National Health Law Moot Court Competition
    29:4, p. 395 - 409 2008
  • Arizona State Law Journal
    McGreal Paul E., Social capital in constitutional law
    40:2, p. 585 - 649 2008
  • Southern Illinois University Law Journal
    McGreal Paul E., The unpublished Free Exercise opinion in Jensen v. Quaring
    33:1, p. 1 - 22 2008
  • University of Pennsylvania Law Review PENNumbra
    McGreal Paul E., Alfini James J., First Amendment limits on the regulation of judicial campaign speech
    157, p. 76 - 99 2008
  • SMU Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Counteracting ambition
    60:4, p. 1571 - 1603 2007
  • University of Pennsylvania Law Review PENNumbra
    McGreal Paul E., In defense of complete preemption
    156, p. 147 - 156 2007
  • Corporate Counsel Review
    McGreal Paul E., Best practices in corporate compliance
    25:1, p. 29 - 74 2006
  • Corporate Counsel Review
    McGreal Paul E., Top ten things corporate counsel should know about the amended organizational sentencing guidelines
    24:1, p. 67 - 80 2005
  • William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal
    McGreal Paul E., A constitutional defense of legislative history
    13:4, p. 1267 - 1299 2005
  • Houston Lawyer
    McGreal Paul E., The amended organizational sentencing guidelines
    42:5, p. 10 - 19 2005
  • South Texas Law Review
    McGreal Paul, Foreword
    47:1, p. 1 - 2 2005
  • Corporate Counsel Review
    McGreal Paul E., Legal risk assessment after the amended sentencing guidelines
    23:2, p. 153 - 199 2004
  • University of Kansas Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Slighting context
    52:2, p. 325 - 383 2004
  • San Diego Law Reivew
    McGreal Paul E., Why repeal of the death tax means the second demise of substantive due process
    39:2, p. 551 - 561 2002
  • South Texas Law Review
    McGreal Paul, Foreword
    43:3, p. 741 - 742 2002
  • SMU Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Saving Article I from Seminole Tribe
    55:2, p. 393 - 426 2002
  • Notre Dame Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Baba DeeDee, Applying Coase to qui tam actions against the states
    77:1, p. 87 - 134 2001
  • Fordham Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., There is no such thing as textualism
    69:6, p. 2393 - 2469 2001
  • Notre Dame Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Unconstitutional politics
    76:2, p. 519 - 641 2001
  • Fordham Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Ambition's playground
    68:4, p. 1107 - 1198 2000
  • South Texas Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Impeachment as a remedy for ethics violations
    41:4, p. 1369 - 1398 2000
  • William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal
    McGreal Paul E., The role of suspicion in federal equal protection
    8:1, p. 183 - 198 1999
  • SMU Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Kyle Jeffrey D., Conflict of laws
    52:3, p. 835 - 857 1999
  • Alaska Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Alaska equal protection
    15:2, p. 209 - 280 1998
  • William & Mary Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., The flawed economics of the dormant Commerce Clause
    39:4, p. 1191 - 1287 1998
  • South Texas Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Equal protection and intersectionality
    38:4, p. 1167 - 1173 1997
  • Case Western Reserve Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Some Rice with your Chevron?
    45:3, p. 823 - 888 1995
  • SMU Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Conflict of laws
    47:4, p. 865 - 890 1994
  • Texas Bar Journal
    McGreal Paul E., Are we to be a profession?
    56:1, p. 38 - 39 1993
  • SMU Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., Conflict of laws
    46:4, p. 1123 - 1155 1993
  • Alaska Law Review
    McGreal Paul E., A tale of two courts
    9:2, p. 305 - 342 1992
  • Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy
    McGreal Paul E., Back to the future
    15:2, p. 505 - 620 1992
  • Library Trends
    Weissbord David, McGreal Paul, Moral autonomy, censorship, and the enlightened community
    39:1-2, p. 51 - 68 1990