Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria
Donates a Record $15 Million to UCLA Law

With the largest-ever contribution that a Native American tribe has made to a law school and one of the biggest in history from a tribe to a university, a $15 million donation from the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria will advance the study and practice of Indian law and policy at UCLA Law, which – thanks to the leadership of Professors Carole Goldberg and Angela Riley (pictured) – has long been regarded as among the top schools in the field. The gift will create the Graton Scholars program at the Native Nations Law and Policy Center and endow full-tuition scholarships that will cover all three years of law school for the best and brightest Native students and others interested in pursuing careers as tribal advocates. In announcing the gift, UCLA Law Dean Jennifer Mnookin said, “Our faculty, staff and students will have far greater opportunities to collaborate in promoting tribal sovereignty, cultural resource protection, Native American child welfare and economic development in Indian country — work whose impact will last for generations.”

In Memoriam: Professor David Binder, Clinical Legal Education Trailblazer

UCLA Law lost a giant on Sept. 15 when David Binder, a 50-year member of the faculty who co-founded and was the driving force behind UCLA Law’s trailblazing experiential education program, died after a long illness at age 86. Colleagues remembered Binder as someone who thought deeply about the theoretical, conceptual and practical ways in which students are best taught to become skilled lawyers – and who fought hard to put his progressive visions into practice. “David was the most logical thinker I’ve ever known,” says Professor Emeritus Paul Bergman, who helped grow the program. “We had a sense of creating a form of education that never existed in law schools.” Binder’s family plans to hold a celebration of his life once the pandemic has passed, and in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Alzheimer’s Association of California. UCLA Law also plans to host a tribute and will announce details as they become available.

Mnookin Reappointed as UCLA Law Dean

Jennifer L. Mnookin, who has served as the dean of UCLA Law since 2015, has been reappointed to a five-year term, UCLA Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Emily A. Carter announced on Sept. 24, commending her "energetic and visionary leadership, her strong problem-solving skills, and her highly effective and successful management."

Reunion Is Here! Sign Up for
Deans Conversation, Trivia, Much More

UCLA Law’s Virtual Reunion 2020 launches a series of events on Wednesday, Sept. 30, and there’s still time to register before Saturday, Oct. 3, when classes convene after a probing conversation between Dean Mnookin and four former UCLA Law deans, about the past, present and future of the school, the legal profession and higher education.

Whither the Court: Join in Our
Annual Supreme Court Review

All alumni and friends are invited to Whither the Court: The Allan C. Lebow Annual Supreme Court Review, a webinar presentation that on Thursday, Oct. 1, will examine the big cases and themes from the Court’s most recent term and offer a look ahead. Joan Biskupic, CNN’s legal analyst who has covered the Court for more than a quarter century, joins in conversation with UCLA Law Professors Jennifer Chacón, Angela Riley and Adam Winkler, and Visiting Professor Lawrence Sager, the Law and Philosophy Program’s distinguished scholar in residence. MCLE credit is available.

Samuels Confirmed to EEOC Seat

Williams Institute Executive Director Jocelyn Samuels was confirmed on Sept. 23 to a seat on the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which enforces laws barring workplace discrimination. The Senate voted 54-42 to approve her nomination. “I am humbled and honored to serve, and hope to be able to advance the rights of vulnerable communities in this new role,” Samuels says. “It has been a true privilege to work at the Williams Institute over the last three-plus years, and I remain committed to doing all I can to support its vital mission.” A search for a new executive director will begin soon.

Alumni on the Move

A. County Superior Court Judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr. ’88 is confirmed to a seat on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, filling a vacancy that fellow alum Audrey B. Collins ’77 left open when she retired in 2014 to join the California Court of Appeal. Sheppard Mullin partner Samantha Grant ’98 becomes the first woman of color to serve as chair of the ABA Section of Labor and Employment Law. L.A. County Superior Court Judge Songhai Armstead ’03 will head the county’s extensive “care first, jails last” Alternatives to Incarceration Initiative. Civil rights advocates John W. Harris ’75 and Herbert Hayden found the Harris & Hayden Law Firm, focusing on police brutality, excessive force and employment discrimination. California Gov. Gavin Newsom appoints Lee S. Arian ’88 to serve as a judge on the L.A. County Superior Court and Francisco Silva ’00 to serve on the California Health Facilities and Financing Authority. Ashley Hoffman ’15 joins the California Chamber of Commerce as a labor and employment policy advocate. Richard Hasen ’91, a law professor at UC Irvine, is named a CNN election law analyst. Ben Carney ’17 joins the San Diego office of labor and employment firm Fisher Phillips as an associate. Andrea Campbell ’09, a member of Boston’s city council, announces that she’s running for mayor of the Massachusetts metropolis in 2021. Learn more about UCLA Law alumni and submit your own Class Notes.

UC Law School Deans Issue Joint Statement Supporting Critical Race Theory

Responding to attacks on Critical Race Theory by President Trump and the Office of Management and Budget, Dean Jenninfer Mnookin joined the deans of the law schools at UC Berkeley, UC Hastings, UC Davis and UC Irvine in publishing an open letter on Sept. 11. “We are proud of the diversity within our communities, including our faculty, students, staff and alumni, while we recognize that each of our institutions have further work to do to become more deeply anti-racist,” the deans wrote. “We know that the perspectives, critiques, and engagements that CRT offers are needed more now than ever."

Horwitz Publishes Novel Studies on Opioid Regulation in Top Health Policy Journals

Professor Jill Horwitz, Vice Dean for Faculty and Intellectual Life and an expert in health law and insurance regulation, has co-authored two articles on her innovative research regarding the opioid epidemic. “Regulating Opioid Supply Through Insurance Coverage” – which concludes that Canadian regulations requiring doctors to get advance authorization for certain opioid prescriptions reduced prescription fills – appears in the September 2020 issue of Health Affairs, the premier journal on health policy and research. And “The Importance of Data Source in Prescription Drug Monitoring Program Research” – which shows how the conflicting results found in previous opioid studies can be explained by differences in underlying data – is in October 2020’s Health Services Research.

Master of Legal Studies Program
Welcomes 41 Inaugural Students

CEOs, journalists and even a UCLA Bruin football player are among the 41 students who joined the first incoming class of the Master of Legal Studies program. Opening doors to mid-career professionals who seek to master legal principles and advance their careers, the law school launched its M.L.S. program in August, the first time that UCLA Law has offered a degree program for non-lawyers. Read much more about these incredible new members of the UCLA Law community: 37% are vice presidents or chief executives of their organizations, roughly 60% have 10 or more years of professional experience, 56% are women, and nearly half come from historically underrepresented backgrounds.

Racial Justice and Work as a Prosecutor: Dean Mnookin Meets with DA Vance

UCLA Law Dean Jennifer Mnookin hosted a wide-ranging conversation with Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance Jr. on Sept. 11, sharing insights for students who are interested in careers as prosecutors or learning more about the job. As the district attorney in New York City, Vance has been at the center of major investigations involving Harvey Weinstein, the Trump Organization, terrorism, financial crimes and more. He and Mnookin talked about the impact of the #MeToo movement and the uprising following the killing of George Floyd. “People who come to [work in] my office don’t come there to exercise power,” he said, “they usually come there because they want to make a difference.”

Remembering RBG

The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Sept. 18 touched many members of the UCLA Law community who recognized her remarkable career as a pioneering lawyer and judge who championed women’s rights and was dedicated to fairness and equality. To celebrate her life, please view a special webinar remembrance that UCLA Law hosted on Sept. 24 with Ninth Circuit Judges Kim McLane Wardlaw ’79 and Paul Watford ’94 (who clerked for Ginsburg), Professor Jon Michaels, Williams Institute Executive Director Jocelyn Samuels and Dean Jennifer Mnookin. And then take a look at photographs and other reflections from Ginsburg's 2005 visit to UCLA Law (pictured), when she met with more than 300 students, faculty and friends.

In an incisive and salient article in The Nation, Cheryl Harris analyzes “What Is Critical Race Theory and Why Is Trump Afraid of It?” Laura Gómez further underscores the value of Critical Race Theory for NBC News Think. Mario Biagioli discusses “Metrics and the New Academic Misconduct” in the Los Angeles Review of Books. Ingrid Eagly is quoted in The Verge on videoconferencing in immigration courts. Sean Hecht tells the San Francisco Chronicle that as California burns, Joe Biden is missing out on a vital climate-change campaign focus. Kimberlé Crenshaw elucidates the tragedy of Breonna Taylor on Twitter (@sandylocks). Adam Winkler in The Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times on Amy Coney Barrett and gun rights. Jeffrey Dasteel talks to CNN Business about arbitration versus traditional lawsuits in business disputes. Carole Goldberg discusses Justice Ginsburg’s “mixed” record on Native issues in USA Today. Sharon Dolovich speaks in Science about how the pandemic has led authorities to shrink prison populations. Joanna Schwartz talks to Vox, NPR and CBS Sunday Morning about police qualified immunity. Plus Ann Carlson on gaps in climate regulation in E&E News; Steve Bank in the Los Angeles Times on the short-term success of soccer team LAFC; Scott Cummings in Law360 on attorneys moving from BigLaw to public interest work; Peter Reich in the Jewish Journal on RBG's meaning to a Jewish professor; and much more.