Justin Butterfield is the Litigation Center Director for The Heritage Foundation. Prior to joining The Heritage Foundation in 2026, Justin co-founded Butterfield & Patterson, PLLC, a boutique litigation firm in Dallas, Texas. He also previously served as Senior Advisor for HIPAA and Senior Advisor for Conscience and Religious Freedom in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and he did public interest religious liberty litigation for many years at First Liberty Institute.

Justin has represented clients in state and federal courts throughout the United States, including cheerleaders who were disciplined for putting Bible verses on a banner, an Orthodox Jewish synagogue that was banned from meeting by a homeowners' association, religious organizations forced to provide insurance coverage for abortifacients, and judges disciplined for praying or for refusing to officiate same-sex marriages.

He has also written for or appeared in numerous news and academic publications, from the Washington Times and Fox News to the Texas Review of Law and Politics. Justin's scholarly publications have ranged from a textbook chapter on the law of religion in public schools to articles on judicial selection mechanisms and the parsonage exemption.

He received his law degree from Harvard Law School. Prior to that, he received a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas at El Paso (where he is originally from), graduating summa cum laude and University Banner Bearer (the highest honor UTEP bestows upon a student during Commencement).