Ely is the Milton R. Underwood Professor of Law and Professor of History at Vanderbilt University. Professor Ely teaches and writes principally in the fields of legal history and property law. He received his B.A. degree with honors from Princeton University, his LL.B. degree from Harvard Law School, and his Ph.D. degree from the University of Virginia. In addition to writing numerous articles, and his works for West, he is the author of several books, including The Guardian of Every Other Right: A Constitutional History of Property Rights (2d ed. 1998), and The Chief Justiceship of Melville W. Fuller, 1888-1910 (1995).