Penn Law News

Gloria Steinem, Catharine MacKinnon To Participate in Human Trafficking Symposium

2009-11-05T14:25:13Z

The University of Pennsylvania Law Review will hold a symposium on Trafficking in Sex and Labor: Domestic and International Responses on Nov. 13 and 14.

Human trafficking – already a major international concern – is expected to increase as the global economic crisis boosts demand for cheap labor and growing poverty makes people more vulnerable. At the same time, limited funding frustrates efforts at prevention, prosecution and remediation. Trafficking has been under active debate in Congress and is likely to receive renewed focus under the Obama administration.

The Penn Law Review symposium will provide a forum for scholars and practitioners to share and debate a range of viewpoints on how best to combat human trafficking. “Everyone agrees that trafficking is a major human rights problem,” observed Meena Sharma, the Law Review’s managing editor. “The question of what we can do about it is more complicated and controversial.”

The Law Review intends the symposium as an academic and practical event. “Due to the nature of the issue, our audience is especially broad,” said Sharma. “It includes law students, practitioners, and scholars, as well as grassroots organizations that work in trafficking and think tanks that debate the issue.”

Feminist and anti-trafficking activist Gloria Steinem will kick off the symposium with opening remarks and participation in a panel discussion. Renowned legal scholar Catharine MacKinnon, who specializes in gender equality issues under international and constitutional law, will deliver the keynote address.

Penn Law Professor Tobias Barrington Wolff proposed the topic of human trafficking to the Law Review articles editors, whose responsibilities include spearheading the symposium. The topic resonated with the Law Review. “The problem of human trafficking is so timely, and it touches on a broad array of legal issues and academic disciplines – everything from sociology and anthropology to economics,” said Sharma. “Plus, trafficking is an issue where academic theory and on-the-ground practice really intersect.”

The Penn Law Review traditionally sponsors one symposium each academic year and publishes articles from that symposium in the corresponding volume’s final issue. Recent topics have included intellectual property reform (2008-2009), the Class Action Fairness Act (2007-2008), and global warming (2006-2007). This year, in addition to hosting the on-campus symposium Trafficking in Sex and Labor: Domestic and International Responses, the Law Review will sponsor and publish articles from an off-site spring symposium examining financial regulations in the wake of the global financial crisis.

Penn Law Student Andrew Bingham Releases Debut Album

2009-11-03T20:25:05Z

Andrew Bingham L’10 dabbled in music for years until, midway through his first year at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, something clicked. “It wasn’t until law school that I was driven to make music as a creative outlet,” he says. Music soon became Bingham’s antidote to the pressures of law school. After intense days of class and legal writing, Bingham “would go home with a craving to play guitar and write music.” He often felt most creative when the pressures of law school were most severe. “Several of the songs I’m most pleased with came during finals week,” he observes. “That was kind of scary.”

Now in his third year at Penn Law, Bingham has just released his debut album, A Hoarder Wants to Give – produced by a Grammy-Award winner and featuring 13 original songs that range from rock to blues to alternative country. He held his CD release party at the Tin Angel in Philadelphia in September – with several Penn Law classmates in the audience – and is scheduled to play three other Philadelphia venues on Nov. 14, 18 and 19.

As a guitarist in high school and college, Bingham had played in a few jazz and rock bands, but says he didn’t take his music very seriously. He also wrote songs, but lacked an outlet for them because he didn’t think he had the right singing voice.

Eventually – with a little inspiration from Bob Dylan – Bingham decided to take a chance at singing the songs he wrote. “Dylan doesn’t have a conventionally good voice, but you want to listen to him,” Bingham explains. “It’s pretty amazing, really. I realized that if you have a good story and can intrigue people with your songs, people will listen to you.”

Sitting in a meeting during his 1L summer internship at New York Legal Assistance Group, listening to a colleague discuss resources available for indigent clients who need help beyond traditional legal assistance – such as those with hoarding disorder – a line entered Bingham’s head: “It’s so hard to keep this place clean with my stacks of magazines.” That lyric would inspire the song that would become the title track of Bingham’s debut album.

During his 2L year, Bingham completed the “Hoarder” song and wrote the 12 others on the album. He began recording the songs himself, but quickly realized that building a high-quality home studio would be cost-prohibitive. So Bingham researched recording studios in California’s Bay Area, where he planned to spend the summer.

Around this time, Bingham was shopping for an Afro-Peruvian drum, and mentioned his album aspirations to a drum dealer in Boston. As luck would have it, the dealer knew of a Grammy-Award winning producer in the Philadelphia area who he thought would match Bingham’s recording style. At the dealer’s suggestion, Bingham contacted the producer, Phil Nicolo. “It was serendipitous,” says Bingham, noting that Nicolo had recently recorded a song for Bingham’s unknowing mentor, Bob Dylan.

At the end of Bingham’s 2L year, Nicolo recorded a demo of Bingham singing and playing acoustic guitar. Nicolo liked Bingham’s sound and, having a soft side for the local Philadelphia music scene, agreed to produce Bingham for a fraction of his usual rate. Nicolo connected Bingham with a team of professional musicians to back his tracks and Bingham soon recorded his first album. He describes the experience as “the most fun I’ve ever had.”

Less than three weeks after recording the album, Bingham was in Palo Alto, Calif., working as a summer associate at Jones Day. While there, he received an assignment that would ease the transition from recording studio to law firm – helping a music producer develop a business plan related to her digital marketing efforts. “It was a great opportunity for me to see the crossroads of law and business and music,” he says. Currently a member of Penn Law’s Entrepreneurship Clinic, Bingham has another opportunity to work at this interdisciplinary crossroads – this time guiding a sole-proprietor in the music business through contract issues.

Bingham hopes to build a career around his passion for music, perhaps in the “gray area” where music meets business and law. “Recording the album helped me realize that following my passion for music is more important than the security of going to a big firm and having my career path laid out,” he explains. Bingham says he is “100 percent realistic” about the challenges of pursuing a non-traditional legal career. Nevertheless, he finds it “liberating” to embrace a degree of uncertainty. “Coming from the law, we tend to be inherently risk-averse. It was eye-opening to realize that the people I worked with on the album were extremely successful, but only because they had been willing to take risks to pursue their passion.”

Penn Law Alumnus Wins Writing Competition

2009-10-29T15:15:26Z

Michael O’Connor, a 2009 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, is the winner of the Alliance Defense Fund’s William Pew Religious Freedom Scholarship Competition for 2008-2009.

O’Connor will receive a $2,500 award for his entry, Legitimate Defense of Civil Rights or Raw Congressional Power Grab? The Constitutionality of the Freedom of Choice Act.

O’Connor argues in his paper that the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) – legislation that proponents say would codify Roe v. Wade but which O’Connor believes would reach further – is a questionable exercise of Congress’ power under the Commerce Clause and an improper exercise of Congress’ power under Section Five of the Fourteenth Amendment.

“Issues surrounding FOCA spoke to my interests in states’ rights and the Constitution,” O’Connor explains. “Plus, I could really sink my teeth into the issues because they are so undecided.”

O’Connor became interested in FOCA as a result of taking Professor Kermit Roosevelt’s Constitutional Law course – which he describes as “one of the most enlightening classes I’ve ever had” – and serving as articles editor for the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law. O’Connor also credits Professor Stephen Burbank, for whom he served as a research assistant throughout his time at Penn Law, for inspiring his “curiosity about complicated issues and cases with lots of moving parts.”

As a student, O’Connor served as vice president of Penn Law’s Federalist Society chapter and helped prepare Penn Law’s successful bid to host the Federalist Society’s National Student Symposium for 2010. O’Connor points out that Penn Law also hosted a national symposium for the American Constitution Society for Law and Policy (ACS) in the previous year.

“The Federalist Society and ACS are opposing groups on issues related to Constitutional law. The fact that Penn Law hosted their symposia in consecutive years really demonstrates the school’s openness to dialogue across the ideological spectrum,” he says.

Since graduating in May, O’Connor has taken (and passed) the Pennsylvania bar exam and volunteered for Penn Law’s Supreme Court Clinic. He starts at White & Case in Washington D.C. this month, where he plans to practice international litigation.

Professor Yoo Speaks on Technology Policy

2009-10-28T17:52:05Z

Penn Law Professor Christopher Yoo, co-director of the Center for Technology, Innovation and Competition, is speaking at two events in Washington, DC, on technology policy.

On Wednesday, Oct. 28, he is speaking at a briefing for Capitol Hill staff on “Net Neutrality: Understanding the FCC's Proposed Rule Making,” sponsored by the Congressional Internet Caucus. See: http://www.netcaucus.org/.

On Thursday, Oct. 29, he is speaking at the technology policy forum on “New Media, New Networks: The Evolution of Content on the Internet” co-sponsored by Arts+Labs and GW’s Institute for Politics, Democracy & The Internet. See: http://www.ipdi.org/Calendar/EventSingle.aspx?EventID=25406

Penn Law Awards Cohen Public Interest Fellowship

2009-10-20T14:47:01Z

The University of Pennsylvania Law School has awarded its Cohen Public Interest Fellowship for 2009-2010 to Victoria Messina L’05. The fellowship will support Messina’s work at Penn’s Toll Public Interest Center, where she will develop and supervise student-run pro bono projects.

“As our Cohen Fellow, Tory will help ensure that students don’t just do pro bono work, but also step back to reflect on their experiences,” explains Arlene Rivera Finkelstein, assistant dean and executive director of public interest at Penn Law. “We want to make sure that students embrace the educational value of their pro bono experience.”

Penn Law requires students to complete at least 70 hours of pro bono work to graduate as one way of instilling an ethic of professional responsibility and providing students with hands-on opportunities for professional development. Finkelstein compares leading a pro bono project to running a “mini non-profit,” because students must learn to budget, plan strategically and train and supervise staff – all while focusing on what’s best for their clients. “Being a student leader imparts a valuable skill-set, no matter what the individual’s career trajectory,” she says.

Most pro bono hours are spent working in placements arranged by the Law School. But a proliferation of student-led pro bono projects – there are now 16 – resulted in the need for a practicing attorney to mentor the student-leaders and guide the projects. The projects range from environmental law to international human rights, and from broad-based policy development to direct representation of indigent clients.

“I’m excited to help students have meaningful pro bono experiences,” says Messina. “This is one of the best ways to foster a lifelong commitment to public service work."

Messina’s background demonstrates that students can integrate public service into whatever career paths they choose. After graduating from Penn Law, Messina worked as an associate at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, where she augmented her private practice with significant pro bono asylum and anti-death penalty advocacy. She subsequently shifted to full-time public interest work as a program coordinator at Pro Bono Net, a non-profit organization that applies technology to increase access to justice for underserved populations.

“Tory’s fluency in the languages and cultures of both private-practice pro bono and public interest law is vital to her role as a Cohen Fellow,” says Finkelstein, noting that Messina will mentor students who plan public interest careers as well as those interested in private practice or non-traditional legal careers. “Tory’s approach to working with students – to offer guidance through expertise, rather than a heavy hand – creates the delicate balance of support and autonomy that our students need to grow professionally.”

Messina says she was hooked on public service during her first year at Penn, when she worked in the school’s Immigration Clinic (now the Immigrant Rights Project), representing an Iraqi refugee who had been placed in deportation proceedings based on an alleged criminal act.

“My client had escaped Saddam Hussein’s regime, only to be imprisoned in the U.S.,” explains Messina. “When we took his case, he literally had nowhere else to turn. Our client was eventually freed and back on the road to citizenship. The experience was both humbling and inspiring.”

Messina also knew from her work before law school – teaching English as a Second Language to adults in the U.S. and teaching in the French public schools – that she found it highly rewarding to develop personal connections and help empower other people. “There’s no greater feeling than helping people achieve their goals,” she says.

As a Cohen Fellow, Messina will have the opportunity to empower a new set of clients – law students. She says she’s been impressed so far by the students, who she describes as “active, thoughtful, and deeply reflective on their pro bono experience.”

The Cohen Public Interest Fellowship is made possible by a gift from David and Rhonda Cohen, who attended Penn Law together in the late 1970s. David is Executive Vice President of Comcast Corporation. Rhonda was formerly a partner at Ballard Spahr Andrews & Ingersoll.

The Supreme Court Became the Classroom for Penn Law Students

2009-10-13T17:25:21Z

Eight students and their professor were at the Supreme Court Oct. 13, seeing their work in action in a case before the nation’s highest court.

As part of Penn Law School’s new Supreme Court Clinic, the students and Professor Stephanos Bibas helped shape the arguments for a case that tests the limits of the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of effective assistance of counsel for non-citizen criminal defendants. The Supreme Court Clinic integrates clinic work with an academic seminar on how the Court works.

“It is extremely rare to have this opportunity so early in a career,” said student Matt Cushing.

The case, Padilla v. Kentucky, involves Jose Padilla, a legal permanent U.S. resident who lived in the U.S. for 40 years. His attorney told him that although he wasn’t a citizen, he would not be deported if he pleaded guilty to a drug charge. The attorney was wrong.

The students, working with the Supreme Court practice at a Washington law firm, Paul Hastings, researched state laws to see whether there are different laws concerning the ethical obligations of attorneys advising clients on the consequences of a guilty plea on their immigration status.

“They have to take a mass of trial transcripts and exhibits and synthesize it into a compelling statement of facts,” Bibas said. “I'm learning from teaching them, and they're learning by strategizing, researching, writing and rewriting.”

“It is quite exciting to know our work in Padilla, and other cases for the clinic, will play a role in shaping the law in this country,” student Rachel Fendell said.

The students arrived at the Supreme Court at 7 a.m. and waited in line for three hours to get in, but say it was worth the wait to see the magnificence of the courtroom and to see and hear the justices interact with attorney Stephen Kinnaird, a Penn Law lecturer from Paul Hastings, the firm representing Padilla.

“The hardest part was identifying whose voice it was when they were speaking, since I'd never heard the justices’ voices before,” said student Priya Narasimhan.

“It's been a godsend to have Penn Law students assisting in the case. They're engaged and committed and bring intellectual horse power to bear," Kinnaird said.

The opportunity to work on the case and to attend the oral arguments is an invaluable experience.

“It gives a different view and weight to what we're doing academically,” said student Dane Reinstedt. Added Bibas: “They can see how lawyers do things and hear justices thinking out loud. They see some very good lawyers, some not so good lawyers, and that's how they learn.”

Bibas, seated at the counsel’s table with Kinnaird, was back at the Supreme Court for the first time since he clerked for Justice Anthony Kennedy. “I never thought I'd be sitting at the table and seeing my old boss in a different perspective and trying to persuade him,” Bibas said.

Penn Law Student Receives Gay Leadership Scholarship

2009-10-01T21:27:02Z

Christopher Howland, a third-year student at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, was among five gay men awarded a $4,000 scholarship during a reception sponsored by Bread & Roses Community Fund on Oct. 1.

Bread & Roses’ Jonathan Lax Scholarship Fund was established in 1994 by the late entrepreneur, Jonathan Lax. The purpose of the fund is to encourage gay men—especially community leaders—to obtain higher education.

Howland received his B.A. in English from Hendrix College and a master of arts in English from the University of Arkansas. During his second year at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, he served as co-chair of Lambda Law, an LGBT organization. During Howland's tenure, Lambda was a highly visible presence at the University, including holding a forum on the issue of gay marriage. He also actively serves on the board of directors of Gay and Lesbian Lawyers of Philadelphia as a student representative.

Over the past 15 years, the Jonathan Lax Scholarship Fund has distributed over $600,000 to help make it possible for 129 scholars to attend college or a post-secondary program.

September 28 Is International Right To Know Day: Penn Law Faculty Study Transparency In Government

2009-09-25T18:20:55Z

The seventh annual International Right to Know Day will be commemorated worldwide and celebrated with an awards ceremony in Bulgaria on Sept. 28.

The annual promotion of open, transparent government and individuals’ right of access to information grew out of a meeting of freedom of information advocates who gathered in Sofia, Bulgaria, on Sept. 28, 2002.

Three members of the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania Law School have focused much of their recent scholarship on this issue:

In a just-published paper in the journal Governance and in a recent op-ed in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Cary Coglianeseargues that President Obama’s rhetoric on transparency has raised unrealistic expectations.

“As the chairman of an independent presidential transition task force that issued more than 25 recommendations to improve governmental transparency last summer, I share Americans' ideals of open government,” he writes. “But too much fishbowl-style transparency can dampen internal deliberations and official self-criticism…. Good government actually requires certain limits on transparency.”

Coglianese, a political scientist, is a deputy dean for academic affairs and the Edward B. Shils Professor at Penn Law, and he is director of Penn’s Program on Regulation

In papers published by the law reviews at the University of Pennsylvania and Lewis and Clark, Seth Kreimerpoints out that “the body of the Constitution provides no right to public information. What the Constitutional text omits, the last generation has embedded as a part of modern constitutional practice in the Freedom of Information Act.” Kreimer analyzes and applauds FOIA’s effectiveness at checking the functions of other institutions, even when “the tripartite constitutional structure which is said to guard against executive usurpation remained largely quiescent.”

Kreimer is the Kenneth W. Gemmill Professor at Penn Law and is chair of the Legal Committee in the Philadelphia Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.

In an Election Law Journal review of the book Full Disclosure: The Perils and Promise of Transparency, Michael A. Fitts points to the important role that transparency – or its absence – plays in the failure of regulatory systems to avoid crises such as the current economic recession. “Blunt instruments such as the Freedom of Information Act allow private actors to force certain types of disclosure, but do not pretend to prioritize the types of information or organize its dissemination,” Fitts writes. “Mere availability of information does not mean consumers will use it effectively.”

Fitts is dean and the Bernard G. Segal Professor at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Professor Wolff joins Civil Rights Attorney To Discuss Same-Sex Marriage

2009-09-21T13:40:16Z

While more states move to legalize same-sex marriage, California has instead eliminated this right with the passage of Proposition 8. Penn Law Professor Tobias Barrington Wolff and civil rights attorney Eva Jefferson Paterson discuss the uncertain future of marriage equality in California during a program at UCLA's Hammer Museum. (Watch video. Run time 1:49.) Wolff served as co-chair of President Obama's LGBT advisory committee during the 2008 presidential campaign. He writes and teaches civil procedure and constitutional law. Paterson is the president and founder of the Equal Justice Society and former executive director at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights.

Sidebar Cafe Opens

2009-09-15T14:39:29Z

Penn Law staff members (from left, below) Silvana Burgese (back to camera), Nathan Hicks and Nancy Porcellini – co-winners of a contest to name the Law School’s new café -- cut the ribbon to open The Sidebar as proprietor Cassandra Somerville applauds (at right). Dean Michael A. Fitts (in bottom photo) makes the first purchase at The Sidebar: a coffee with lots of cream and sugar.

Center on Professionalism Helps Students Develop Skills

2009-09-15T13:25:36Z

Now more than ever, prospective employers want to know that our students are engaged, energetic, enthusiastic and efficient – and have the professional skills necessary to hit the ground running. This fall, we are launching new programming through our Center on Professionalism that will help students develop their skills in five key areas: communication; lawyering skills; organization and management dynamics; self-development; and strategic planning and problem solving.

As part of this effort, all first-year students will work in their cohorts to learn the skills of legal research and writing and to understand more deeply and develop professional skills. Each cohort works with faculty and staff liaisons with whom they will meet as a group, and we are launching a special intranet site that will allow students to track their own professional-skills development throughout their Law School careers.

On Monday, Sept. 21, we held a Professionalism Day for 1Ls that included an alumni networking lunch, meetings with the cohorts and their liaisons and a discussion of how students can embrace their legal education in ways that build upon their professional skills.

Penn Law Honors Six Graduates with Alumni Achievement Awards

2009-09-14T15:50:03Z

Six University of Pennsylvania Law School graduates – including a justice on the Delaware Supreme Court, one of the country’s preeminent trial attorneys and a leading investor – are being honored for their career achievements, pro bono work, service to the legal profession and service to the Law School.

They are:

Robert S. Blank L’65, a senior partner with the investment partnership Whitcom Partners.
Randy J. Holland L’72, a justice on the Delaware Supreme Court.
David Richman L’69, a partner with Pepper Hamilton.
Richard Sprague L’53, a dominant presence in Philadelphia courts for decades.
Leba Tolpin L’06, an attorney representing at-risk youth in Delaware.
Stella Ming Tsai L’88, a partner with Archer & Greiner.

“These honorees have made – and continue to make – enduring contributions to the law, to the welfare of their clients and to the future of the law school that was a springboard to their success,” said Penn Law Dean Michael A. Fitts. “Each of them epitomizes the importance of being dedicated to something larger than one’s self, to helping create opportunities for others.”

The awards will be presented during an Oct. 7 ceremony and reception celebration at Penn Law.

The James Wilson Award, honoring service to the legal profession and named for the signer of the Declaration of Independence who was the first lecturer in law at Penn, will be awarded to Delaware Supreme Court Justice Randy J. Holland. Holland was the youngest person to serve on the Delaware Supreme Court when he was named to the bench in 1986. Prior to joining the court, where he is now serving a second 12-year term, Holland was a partner at Morris, Nichols, Arsht & Tunnell. Holland, former national president of the American Inns of Court Foundation, has been an active leader in the areas of ethics and professional responsibility. He chaired a national advisory committee to the American Judicature Society’s Center for Judicial Ethics and the American Bar Association’s National Joint Committee on Lawyer Regulation. He has served on the ABA Presidential Commission on Fair and Impartial Courts, the Appellate Judges Conference’s Executive Committee, the Standing Committee on Client Protection and the Judicial Division’s Ethics and Professionalism Committee. U.S. Chief Justices Rehnquist and Roberts appointed Holland as the State Judge Member of the Federal Judicial Conference Advisory Committee on Appellate Rules. Holland is author or editor of several books: Middle Temple Lawyers and the American Revolution; The Delaware Constitution: A Reference Guide; Delaware Supreme Court: Golden Anniversary; The Delaware Constitution of 1897 – The First One Hundred Years; and Appellate Practice and Procedure.

The Distinguished Service Award honoring service to Penn Law will be awarded to Robert S. Blank, senior partner of Whitcom Partners and co-chair and co-CEO of its affiliate, Whitney Communications Co. The firms make investments in public and non-public companies and have operated large-market FM radio stations and network-affiliated television stations, cable television systems, trade magazines, newspapers and other publications. Blank began his law career as an assistant U.S. attorney in Washington, DC, and later worked in mergers and acquisitions at Goldman, Sachs. He joined Whitcom in 1971. Blank is a director of Toll Brothers Inc., a member of Penn’s Board of Trustees, a member of the Penn Medicine Board, an overseer of both The Wharton School and Penn Law, and he serves on the board of managers of The Wistar Institute.

The Alumni Award of Merit, recognizing professional achievement and service to the Law School, will be presented to Richard A. Spragueand Stella Ming Tsai.

Sprague is principal with the firm of Sprague & Sprague, where he has represented a variety of high-profile figures, including basketball star Allen Iverson and radio personality Howard Eskin. In 2000, Sprague was listed in Philadelphia magazine’s Power 100 as the 25th most powerful person in Philadelphia. He has served as special prosecutor for the Allegheny County District Attorney since 1999 and as special prosecutor for the Philadelphia County District Attorney since 2000. Sprague was chief counsel and director of the House of Representatives Select Committee on Assassinations, investigating the murders of President John F. Kennedy and the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Sprague’s 50-year career has also included leading roles in a test of the insanity defense and in prosecuting United Mine Workers president Tony Boyle for the murder of Joseph “Jock” Yablonski.

Tsai, a partner with Archer & Greiner, focuses her practice on corporate governance and governmental affairs, and she has extensive commercial litigation experience, including trial work. She has served as one of the city of Philadelphia’s top lawyers, managing the 45 attorneys of the Health and Human Services Unit. She also supervised attorneys who represented the city in civil rights and labor relations matters in state and federal courts and before local, state and federal labor boards and commissions. During her tenure at the Law Department, Ms. Tsai made substantial contributions to the system-wide implementation of court reforms designed to achieve the safety, permanency and well-being of at-risk children and youth in Philadelphia. She subsequently served as an inaugural member of Philadelphia’s Board of Ethics and helped rewrite the city’s complex and outdated zoning code to help facilitate sustainable growth. She is a former president of Penn’s Law Alumni Society.

The Young Alumni Award, honoring professional achievement of a student who graduated within the past 10 years, will be presented to Leba Tolpin. Since September 2006, Tolpin has served as a staff attorney and the Steven J. Rothschild Skadden Fellow at the Disabilities Law Program at Community Legal Aid Society Inc. in Wilmington, Delaware, where she represents at-risk youth. She also advocates within the juvenile justice facilities and the juvenile delinquency system and has represented children in Social Security and Medicaid appeals and in school disciplinary removal hearings. She recently accompanied her husband, a doctor, on a service trip to the Himalayan Mountains, establishing medical clinics in remote villages.

The inaugural Howard Lesnick Pro Bono Award, named for a longtime Penn Law professor and awarded to a graduate who has shown a sustained commitment to public service as part of a private-sector career, will be awarded to David Richman. A partner with Pepper Hamilton and a trial and appellate lawyer, Richman previously served 18 years as a court-appointed counsel to the inmates of the Philadelphia Prison System in a federal class action. He has worked as an Assistant DA for Philadelphia, following service as counsel to an ad hoc committee of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives investigating corruption in the state government. He co-founded the PA Innocence Project in 2008 and is the organization's president.

Introducing the Penn Law J.D. Class of 2012

2009-09-04T19:33:08Z

The University of Pennsylvania Law School is welcoming 255 students as part of its Class of 2012, one of the most academically accomplished, talented and diverse group of students in the Law School’s history.

More than 6,230 students applied for admission. Of the 255 who are enrolled, 48 percent are women, 36 percent are students of color and they range in age from 20 to 35. They come to Penn Law from 37 states, the District of Columbia and 101 colleges and universities.

Beyond the statistics, the Class of 2012 is filled with incredibly accomplished, talented and dedicated students. For example:

The new students are already committed to the integration of knowledge across disciplines: they hold advanced degrees in education, environmental science, literature and divinity (among others), and they plan to pursue joint degrees in law and bioethics, business administration, international studies, social work and many more fields.
They have worked for change globally and within local communities as teachers, Peace Corps volunteers and health educators.
The Class of 2012 includes artistic, clever and uncompromising voices: professional performers, college newspaper editors and a senior writer for President Obama’s transition team.
They are professional, poised and devoted to shared sacrifice and responsibility: several are commissioned officers in the Army, Navy and Marine Corp.
And they have followed unpredictable, amusing and inspiring journeys as a former NFL player, a champion baton twirler, and a member of the U.S. National Rowing Team.

New-Student Orientation Includes Public Service Project

2009-09-02T15:59:17Z

New students at the University of Pennsylvania Law School spent part of their orientation participating in a neighborhood cleanup around 46th and Market streets in University City.

Penn Law's innovative public interest program requires students to integrate pro bono service into their lives as law students. To graduate, students must provide at least 70 hours of public service support to the community, which also provides opportunities for students to challenge themselves in new areas of practice and research.

Michael Smerconish L'87 Describes His Interview with President Obama

2009-08-24T15:36:51Z

Michael Smerconish, a 1987 graduate of Penn Law School and a talk-show radio host, describes his one-on-one interview with President Obama in his Philadelphia Inquirer column.

"The president soon arrived for his first live radio interview from the White House, five or six minutes ahead of schedule," Smerconish writes. "Suddenly, I faced the task of shooting the breeze with the most powerful man in the world."