Public Interest Week is a highlight of the Law School’s annual programming.
Launched in 2008, Public Interest Week brings together the Law School community, as well as members of the broader local, national, and international service-minded community, for a week full of programs centered on a timely theme. Throughout the week there are lunchtime and evening events hosted by student pro bono projects, student groups, and various institutional partners.
Each year, the Law School is honored to host an Honorary Fellow who joins us during Public Interest Week. The Honorary Fellow meets with students and alumni, presents their work to our faculty, engages with the administration, and leads a keynote discussion for the broader Penn Carey Law community.
Recent Honorary Fellows have included:
- Damon Hewitt - President and Executive Director, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law
- Ben Jealous - President, People for the American Way, former President and CEO, NAACP
- Sherrilyn Ifill - President and Executive Counsel, NAACP Legal Defense Fund
- Benjamin Crump - Attorney for the families of George Floyd and Trayvon Martin
- Reed Brody - Former Counsel, Human Rights Watch
- Marcia Greenberger - Founder and Co-President, National Women’s Law Center
The week ends with the Annual Public Interest Student & Alumni Dinner. This dinner and reception bring together the Penn Carey Law community to connect across generations, reflect on the importance of service within the legal profession, and celebrate the incredible public interest contributions of our students and alumni. This year’s dinner program will honor the incredible legacy of Robert “Bob” Toll L’66.
Public Interest Week 2022
November 14-18
Amidst the USA’s ever-changing and unpredictable legal, political, and social landscape, it is imperative that attorneys employ creative, diverse approaches to move the needle of justice forward. With previous norms and precedents no longer dictating present outcomes, lawyers are learning to utilize new tools and to leverage old ones differently. Through grassroots organizing, movement lawyering, cross-sector collaboration, and a renewed focus on states and local communities, lawyers and other advocates are working tirelessly to construct effective toolkits for these uncertain times.
RSVP for Public Interest Week Events
Monday, November 14, 2022
The Criminalization of Reproductive Decision-Making
12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
Gittis 213, Kushner Classroom
Organized by: If/When/How, Prison Legal Education Project, and Criminal Records Expungement Project
This program has been approved for 1.0 Substantive CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit can make a payment via cash or check made payable to The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania on the day of the event in the amount of $10.00. In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, evaluation forms must be completed.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning.
Student meetings with Honorary Fellow Deuel Ross
Students will have the opportunity to meet with the Honorary Fellow in small group settings. Registration link coming soon.
1:30 to 2:30 p.m.
Please note that this event is open to law students only.
Honorary Fellow Dinner Address
4:45 to 6:00 p.m.
Levy Conference Center
Tuesday, November 15, 2022
Unstable Ground: The Changing Political Landscape of Pardons and Expungements in Pennsylvania
12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
Gittis 2
Organized by: Pardon Project and Criminal Records Expungement Project
This program has been approved for 1.0 Substantive CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit can make a payment via cash or check made payable to The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania on the day of the event in the amount of $10.00. In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, evaluation forms must be completed.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning.
What Looks Good on Paper: Newly Emerging Legal Approaches to Cannabis and the Racialized Barriers to Meaningful Change
5:30 to 7:00 p.m. - Silverman 147
Organized by: Miguel Willis, Future of the Profession Initiative
This program has been approved for 1.5 Ethics CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit can make a payment via cash or check made payable to The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania on the day of the event in the amount of $15.00. In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, evaluation forms must be completed.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning.
Wednesday, November 16, 2022
Beyond Legal Needs: The Evolving Framework of Client-Centered Advocacy
12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
Gittis 213, Kushner Classroom
Organized by: Youth Advocacy Project
This program has been approved for 1.0 Ethics CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit can make a payment via cash or check made payable to The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania on the day of the event in the amount of $10.00. In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, evaluation forms must be completed.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning.
Practical Experiences with Movement Lawyering
6:00 to 7:00 p.m. - Silverman 240A
Organized by: Law Students for a Democratic Society and the National Lawyers Guild
This program has been approved for 1.0 Substantive CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit can make a payment via cash or check made payable to The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania on the day of the event in the amount of $10.00. In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, evaluation forms must be completed.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning
Thursday, November 17, 2022
They’re Pushing Us Out: Affordability and the Philadelphia Housing Crisis
12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
Gittis 213, Kushner Classroom
Organized by: Penn Housing Rights Project, BLSA, LALSA, LAMBDA, Housing 4 All (Weitzman School of Design)
This program has been approved for 1.0 Ethics CLE credits for Pennsylvania lawyers. CLE credit may be available in other jurisdictions as well. Attendees seeking CLE credit can make a payment via cash or check made payable to The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania on the day of the event in the amount of $10.00. In order to receive the appropriate amount of credit, evaluation forms must be completed.
Penn Carey Law Alumni receive CLE credits free through The W.P. Carey Foundation’s generous commitment to Lifelong Learning.
Friday, November 18, 2022
Landing Your Dream 1L Public Sector Job
12:00 to 1:15 p.m.
Gittis 213, Kushner Classroom
Organized by: Office of Career Strategy and TPIC
Career Chats with Public Interest Alumni
3:30 to 5:15 p.m.
Connect with Penn Carey Law Alumni to network and receive guidance about starting and navigating your public interest career. Stay tuned for the alumni list and sign-up instructions!
Please note that this event is open to law students only.
Public Interest Student & Alumni Reception & Dinner Honoring Robert “Bob” Toll, L’ 66
5:30 p.m. Reception
6:30 p.m. Dinner
Levy Conference Center
A wonderful culmination of Public Interest Week, this dinner and reception bring together the Penn Carey Law community to connect across generations, reflect on the importance of service within the legal profession, and celebrate the incredible public interest contributions of our students and alumni.
This year’s program will honor the remarkable legacy of Robert “Bob” Toll, L’66, whose abiding commitment to public interest lawyering and unprecedented generosity created access to public interest careers by building a more robust scholarship community, bolstering loan forgiveness, broadening pro bono programs, and increasing summer fellowships. Through their visionary philanthropy, Bob and his wife, Jane GSE’66, have helped to grow the Toll Public Interest Center (TPIC) into the bustling hub for public service that it is today.
