This symposium issue of the Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics is devoted to the convening of the national public health law conference, Practical Approaches to Critical Challenges, on October 10-12, 2012, in Atlanta, Georgia. The conference was co-sponsored by the Network for Public Health Law and the American Society of Law, Medicine & Ethics (ASLME) with generous support provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, de Beaumont Foundation, California Endowment, and Healthcare Georgia Foundation.

With the support of those organizations and the dedicated efforts of the individuals mentioned below, the conference focused on building effective interactions between attorneys and public health practitioners in order to:

• • examine practical legal approaches to address priority public health issues;

• • learn about helpful public health law resources and evidence-based research;

• • discuss public health legal questions and answers; and

• • build partnerships to accomplish public health objectives and foster innovation.