A federal judge from Lawrence will be among U.S. and British legal dignitaries who will speak at a conference this week in Virginia.

Chief Judge Deanell Tacha of the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals will speak at the Rule of Law Conference, which is today through Saturday at the University of Richmond School of Law.

The conference will bring together prominent British and American jurists, legal scholars and practitioners to address issues of the rule of law applying to religious freedom, due process, free speech, international dispute resolution and cultural differences.

The conference is part of a national effort to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the founding of the first permanent English settlement in Jamestown, Va.

Tacha will speak today as part of a panel on “Global Issues and the Rule of Law.”