UCLA Law Takes National Championship

The A. Barry Cappello Trial Team has won the nation’s two premier trial advocacy competitions—the National Trial Competition and the Student Trial Advocacy Competition—making UCLA Law the first school ever to sweep these honors. It was a thrilling climax to a dominant season: The team entered the year ranked No. 1 and took home 10 titles.

Meet the team and read about its dominant season.

Crenshaw Elected to
American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Distinguished Professor Kimberlé Crenshaw has been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and honored as one of the “extraordinary people who help solve the world’s most urgent challenges, create meaning through art, and contribute to the common good from every field, discipline, and profession.”

Read about her and the other UCLA faculty members elected this year.

Tribal Clinic Students Develop Toolkit for Indigenous and Human Rights

For the first time, leaders across Indian country have a toolkit to address indigenous and human rights through tribal lawmaking that implements the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Members of the Tribal Legal Development Clinic collaborated with partners from the University of Colorado Law School to take on this innovative challenge.

Hear from our students on how they did it.

Alumni on the Move

Ur Jaddou ’01 is nominated by President Biden to be Director of Citizenship and Immigration Services in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Lolita Buckner Inniss ’86 is named the next dean of the University of Colorado Law School. Maria Pia L. Bahr ’90 is appointed a state court judge in Fairbanks, Alaska. Danielle Lucido ’04 is appointed Chief Counsel for the Division of Occupational Safety and Health at the California Department of Industrial Relations. Geneva E. Thompson ’16 is appointed Assistant Secretary for Tribal Affairs at the California Natural Resources Agency. Paul Nunez ’95 is hired to oversee criminal prosecutions in the Ventura County DA’s office, making him the first Latino chief deputy district attorney in the office’s history. Halim Dhanidina ’97 retires from the California Court of Appeal and joins Umberg/Zipser. Andrei Iancu ’96 completes his term as head of the USPTO and returns to Irell & Manella. Aimee Contreras-Camua ’98 moves to Munger Tolles & Olson as partner. Alex Valenzuela ’04 joins Dordulian Law Group as an attorney. Iricel Payano ’16 joins Hoguet Newman Regal & Kenney as associate. Joseph Bini ’16 joins Norton Rose Fulbright as an associate. Niloufar Massachi ’17 joins Squire Patton Boggs as associate. David Leyva ’18 joins Kahana Feld’s Oakland, California, office as an attorney. William Craver ’20 joins Barnes & Thornburg as a staff attorney. Rasha Gerges Shields ’01 will co-chair panel to review LAPD use of Jackie Robinson Stadium. And Judge Kevin Brazile ’83 wins the Beacon of Justice award from the Friends of the LA Law Library.

Catch up with your classmates.

Meet Michael Karanicolas, Exec Director of the Institute for Technology, Law and Policy

The public policy authority has joined the UCLA Institute for Technology, Law and Policy as its inaugural executive director. With more than a decade leading efforts to better understand freedom of expression, transparency, and digital rights, Kanaicolas will work to grow the institute’s cross-disciplinary approach to the study of emerging tech and the law.

Learn more about the institute and its leadership.

UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Bachelet Addresses UCLA Law Students

Students were able to get up close and personal with a global human rights leader, thanks to the Promise Institute for Human Rights at UCLA Law. Michele Bachelet, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights and former president of Chile, presented the talk “The Human Rights Challenge” on March 31. “We heard firsthand what this work looks like at the international level, and students can use those insights to frame their own career paths,” says Promise Institute Executive Director Kate Mackintosh.

Watch ‘The Human Rights Challenge’ now.

The 2021 Law Firm Challenge Is Here

And the countdown is on! When you make a meaningful contribution to the annual Law Firm Challenge, you support students through scholarships and programs, and you provide resources to address the law school’s most pressing needs. Any gift made between July 1, 2020, and June 30, 2021, will count toward your firm’s success and participation. If you have not yet contributed, please join our commitment to access and excellence by making a gift today. If you have already made a donation, thank you!

Questions? Contact us at lfc@law.ucla.edu.

Commencement 2021: Don’t Miss
UCLA Law’s Virtual Ceremony on May 21

Join us for Commencement 2021 on Friday, May 21, at 3 p.m. PDT. The festivities will be live-streamed and every member of the law school community is invited to watch and celebrate the Class of 2021. Keep an eye on the 2021 Commencement page for details.

Join Us for These Events!

Terrific events are always happening at UCLA Law, and you’re invited. Future highlights:

• April 30—The Center for Immigration Law and Policy presents
  Day 2 of its conference, Immigration Policy in the Biden Administration,
  with special guest DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas.
• May 7—The Center for Immigration Law and Policy presents
  Day 3 of Immigration Policy in the Biden Administration,
  with special guest U.S. Senator Alex Padilla.
• June 2—The 45th Annual UCLA Entertainment Symposium kicks off
  with the first of four days of programming over four weeks.
• June 9—Celebrate two decades of the Williams Institute at the
  20th Anniversary Gala and Awards Ceremony.

Visit the UCLA Law events page for more events and information.

Adam Winkler appears on the PBS NewsHour to talk about President Biden’s gun proposals, and he discusses the constitutional impact of pro-gun sanctuary resolutions in Salon. Laura E. Gómez is featured in a CBS News documentary on affirmative action and diversity. Kal Raustiala publishes an op-ed in Slate on NFTs and copyright in digital art. Jennifer Mnookin is featured in an extensive Q&A with the Daily Journal on legal education and more. UCLA Law’s COVID-19 Behind Bars Data Project is cited in a major New York Times feature on COVID-19 infections in prisons and in another New York Times report on how ICE mishandled the pandemic in its immigration detention centers. Joanna Schwartz’s research on police qualified immunity is cited by The Wall Street Journal and Forbes, and she speaks with Amsterdam News and CNN on efforts to end the practice. Cara Horowitz talks to the Los Angeles Times about the EPA’s restoration of California’s leadership in setting car emission standards. Gary Blasi speaks to The Guardian about the court order to shelter all Skid Row residents. Patrick Goodman talks to the Los Angeles Times on the trust-law issues in the possible forced sale of the Los Angeles Chargers. Kate Mackintosh is quoted by NBC News on the push to make “ecocide” an international crime. Steve Bank appears on the ConDetrimental podcast and is quoted in Law360 on the legal impact of European soccer’s “super league.” Beth Colgan is interviewed by the Los Angeles Times about a Beverly Hills store charged with conspiracy. And Kirk Stark talks to The Orange County Register about ending Trump-era tax deduction limits. Plus, Lynn LoPucki in Bloomberg Law, Eugene Volokh in the Los Angeles Times, Ingrid Eagly in FactCheck.org, and much more.

Read more about our faculty in the media.