Leslie Danks Burke

Leslie Danks Burke is an adjunct Professor of Law at Cornell Law School and an adjunct full Professor in Cornell University’s School of Integrative Plant Science, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). She earned a B.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder, with dual degrees in history and international affairs, and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. Burke's career as a lawyer has included practice in tax law, international dispute resolution, and human and civil rights, experiences that cultivated her concern over political polarization and the democratic damage arising from tax and economic inequities.

In response, she pivoted to policy advocacy centered on rural economic development. Her anti-corruption efforts were featured on National Public Radio, and she offered weekly commentary for three years on an NBC affiliate serving the rural Twin Tiers region across New York and Pennsylvania. At Cornell, Burke authors multiple certificate courses for eCornell on cannabis law and policy, such as The Future of Cannabis and Legislation, Labor and Business Considerations in the Cannabis Industry, Understanding Federal Cannabis Regulation, Legal Medical Cannabis Use, Cannabis Taxation, and New York State Cannabis Regulation. Her interdisciplinary appointments and instructional focus highlight intersections between law, agriculture, and public policy, influenced by her family's corn and wheat farm in eastern Colorado. Burke also teaches First Amendment law at Cornell Law School, contributing to student scholarship in related areas.