The latest from UCLA Law.
Welcome to Our Exceptional New Class!
The 2020-21 school year started on Aug. 24, and though our classes are happening remotely, we are delighted to welcome an exceptionally talented and diverse group of students to our community. Joining us are 311 J.D. students whose median LSAT score (169) and GPA (3.79) are both the highest ever at UCLA Law. Forty-eight percent of our J.D. students identify as students of color, and at least 15% identify as first-generation students who are the first in their families to have earned a college degree. The incoming LL.M. class includes 45 talented lawyers, and we are thrilled to welcome 41 professionals to our inaugural class of students pursuing a Master of Legal Studies (M.L.S.) degree. Read much more about these incredible new members of the UCLA Law community.
Inspiring DACA Advocate Gorjian ’20
Wins UC President’s Award
UCLA Law graduate Dellara Gorjian ’20 received the UC President’s Award for Outstanding Student Leadership for her DACA advocacy, including participation in Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the University of California, the landmark lawsuit that the UC won at the U.S. Supreme Court in June. The award was announced by President Janet Napolitano at the July 30 UC Regents meeting.
O’Neill Appointed to
Police Reform Advisory Committee
Kerry O’Neill, UCLA Law’s director of judicial clerkships, was appointed to the Los Angeles Police Commission Advisory Committee on Building Trust and Equity on July 30. Launched after widespread protests over police violence, racial discrimination and law-enforcement accountability, the committee will consult with community groups and review proposals for police reform, accountability and more.
Join Us on Sept. 11: Dean Mnookin Speaks With Manhattan DA Cyrus Vance Jr.
Watch at Noon on Sept. 11 as UCLA Law Dean Jennifer Mnookin hosts a Dean's Dialogue with Manhattan District Attorney Vance — whose office has been at the center of matters involving Harvey Weinstein, President Trump and much more — about the evolving nature of prosecutions and criminal justice. Sign up here to take part in this incredible opportunity at the forefront of the national legal conversation.
Reunion 2020: Register Today
Don’t miss out on UCLA Law’s 2020 reunion celebration, featuring several nights of online events, distinguished speakers, entertainment and remote mingling — culminating in the Virtual Reuinion on Oct. 3 at 7 p.m. If your class year ends in a “0” or “5,” please go to our Reunion 2020 website to register and start your stroll down memory lane.
Alumni on the Move
Renowned social justice advocate Stewart Kwoh ’74 is named interim dean of Cal State Los Angeles’ College of Ethnic Studies. Aaron Greeno ’07 joins Dune Real Estate Partners as the investment firm’s West Coast head. Effie Turnbull Sanders ’98, a longtime leader in underserved communities, is named vice president of civic engagement and economic partnerships at the University of Southern California. Mary-Christine “M.C.” Sungaila ’91 joins Buchalter’s Orange County office to chair the firm’s appellate practice. Cindy Villanueva ’10, of counsel in the Phoenix office of Dickinson Wright, is selected for the 2020-21 class of the State Bar of Arizona’s Bar Leadership Institute. Ryan White ’07 moves from the cybercrimes unit at the U.S. Attorney’s office in Los Angeles to Halpern May Ybarra Gelberg, where he will head the cybersecurity and data practice group. Learn more about UCLA Law alumni and submit your own Class Notes.
Support Our Students as an Alumni Mentor
As we continue to enhance our connections across generations during this period of remote learning, UCLA Law's Alumni Mentorship Program is seeking volunteers. To learn more about how you can support students as they get acclimated to law school and prepare for successful career searches, please visit the program's sign-up page or contact Kate Eklund in the Office of Career Services.
Crenshaw on 'Confronting the White Pathologies That Shape Racist Policing'
In a probing column in The New Republic, Distinguished Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw, the Promise Institute Chair in Human Rights, examines 2020's "once-in-a-generation uprising against police brutalization of Black people." Citing UCLA Law Professor Cheryl Harris' landmark 1993 Harvard Law Review article, "Whiteness as Property," Crenshaw writes: "Today’s policing is a remarkably sturdy and long-lived adaptation to [a] racist social order, and still conforms to its fundamental directive — to protect racialized American property. This mandate always transcends liberal America’s cries for reform."
UCLA Law Community Unites
to Help Tenants Facing Eviction
Current UCLA Law students and attorneys can provide invaluable assistance to possibly thousands of tenants who face evictions starting on September 1. To join in the law school's massive pro bono initiative, go to the Eviction Defense Emergency Volunteer Effort page to sign up and learn more about how you can help right now.
Watch Our Summer Series on Policing, LGBTQ Rights, DACA, 19th Amendment
Catch up on UCLA Law’s illuminating summer webinar series, “From the Front Lines,” featuring UCLA Law faculty members and other preeminent national experts discussing the major issues and events of the moment. Now streaming: panels on LGBTQ rights after the Bostock decision, what’s next for DACA after the UC’s win at the Supreme Court, racial inequality and policing, and the 100th anniversary of 19th Amendment.
Giving to UCLA Law: Learn How the
CARES Act Expands Your Options
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the CARES Act), which includes several charitable tax provisions. Consider these and other giving options as you plan your philanthropic giving in support of UCLA Law. Read more about the benefits of charitable and planned giving here.
Kal Raustiala writes in Foreign Affairs about Hollywood's self-censorship due to fears of authoritarian regimes; Asli Bâli on ending America's endless wars in Just Security; Jennifer Mnookin in Bloomberg Law on the ABA's responsibility to support law students and young lawyers, and in The Washington Post on affirmative action and the UCLA Law Fellows program; Ken Ziffren's Entertainment Symposium keynote conversation with CAA co-chairman Bryan Lourd is featured in Deadline, Variety and TheWrap; Sean Hecht talks to Bloomberg Law about how the Trump administration's definitions of terms like "habitat" and "areas" may not protect endangered species; David Nimmer on copyright and Goldman Sachs' new font in The New York Times; Steve Bank in the Aspen Institute's Project Play on youth soccer amid COVID-19; Sharon Dolovich talks to The Washington Post about prisons' lack of transparency in the coronavirus data they provide; Eugene Volokh writes in Newsweek that Kamala Harris is eligible to be Vice President because she was born in the United States; Charles Corbett in LegalPlanet on the fight for clean air in Imperial County; Jonathan Zasloff welcomes the end of Obama's fair housing rule in Planetizen; Adam Winkler appears on The Diane Rehm Show about the New York lawsuit accusing the NRA of fraud; Laura E. Gómez talks to The Oprah Magazine about differences between Latino and Hispanic; plus much more.
Keep up with everything happening at UCLA Law!
