News
September 13, 2013
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Berkeley Law Students Triumph in National Writing Competition
Margaret Dreschel ’15 and John Chamberlain ’15 take first and second place in the Adam A. Milani Disability Law Writing Competition.
September 09, 2013
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Berkeley Law Program Helps UC’s Undocumented Students
Led by Allison Davenport ’04 of the International Human Rights Law Clinic, the Legal Services Program is a beacon of hope for many on campus.
September 04, 2013
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Kate Jastram ’87 Takes Reins at Berkeley Law’s Miller Institute
The new faculty director wants to expand student opportunities to enter international law and offer a platform for high-impact research and teaching.
Read more news on the Newsroom page.
The Pro Bono Scoop
More than 130 Berkeley Law first-year students attended a recent lawyering skills orientation conducted by the Student-Initiated Legal Services Projects. The 20 public-service projects recruit supervising attorneys and partner with non-profits, law firms, and government agencies. The half-day event offered programs on legal ethics, interviewing clients, and cultural competence; a panel on balancing academics and pro bono work; and a stirring keynote address by Tirien Steinbach ’99, executive director of the East Bay Community Law Center.
IELE PROGRAM CONCLUDES RECORD SESSION >>
Berkeley Law’s International Executive Legal Education (IELE) program recently held a closing presentation ceremony for its 2013 Certificate in American Law program. The five-month program had a record enrollment of more than 300 students in eight legal training areas. UC Berkeley Engineering Professor Ron Gronsky, special faculty liaison to the Chancellor for International Relations, delivered the keynote address. Lawyers and law students from 19 countries participated in the IELE program, including those from leading institutions in China, Poland, Germany, Korea, Switzerland, Mexico, Brazil, and Vietnam. (9/9/13)
MILES ADDED TO ACADEMIC SUPPORT TEAM >>
Suzanne Miles is Berkeley Law’s new Assistant Director of Academic Support. The Academic Support Program provides curricular advising, skills training, and other assistance for first-year students. A 2005 graduate of Stanford Law School, Miles clerked for Judge Susan Graber on the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Portland, Oregon. Before that she was an Assistant U.S. Attorney, working as a civil appellate coordinator in Portland and as a criminal and appellate specialist in San Francisco. Miles has experience teaching high school and college students, as well as training new attorneys. (9/3/13)
BREYER ’66 JOINS U.S. SENTENCING COMMISSION >>
The Senate unanimously confirmed the nominations of Charles Breyer ’66 and two other new members of the U.S. Sentencing Commission, which establishes sentencing policies and practices for federal courts. It consists of seven voting members, at least three of whom must be federal judges. Breyer has been a federal judge in California since 1998. He was a private-practice lawyer from 1974 to 1997, save for a brief stint as San Francisco’s Chief Assistant District Attorney in 1979. Breyer also worked as an assistant special prosecutor on the Watergate Special Prosecution Force and as a San Francisco assistant district attorney from 1967 to 1973. (8/9/13)
Video: Christina Swarns of the NAACP
Christina Swarns is the director of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund's Criminal Justice Project. She spoke on "Post-Racial America: The View from Death Row" at a recent Henderson Center Rutch Chance Lecture. Watch here »
More:
- Multimedia Page: Our multimedia page collects all the great Berkeley Law video, audio recordings, and podcasts into one place.
September 16: Jorde Symposium: Professor Cass Sunstein
September 17: Professor Devon Carbado on "Acting White?: Rethinking Race in Post-Racial America"
September 27-29: Reunion Weekend 2013
Calendar »
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Urban water systems are in decline. But Berkeley LawÁ€™s Michael Kiparsky says that technology is only part of the solution. A new article he co-authored says engineers must first understand the cultural, economic, and political mechanisms that both hinder and enable innovation.
China has created 95 environmental courts since 2007, but prosecutors are suing low-level rule-breakers far more than major polluters, a new study by faculty member Rachel Stern shows. Stern found that most offenses stem from poverty, mistake, or bad luckÁ€”and that most defendants lack education and legal representation.
Professor Paul Schwartz proposes a way to bridge the gap between U.S. and E.U. privacy laws. In Reconciling Personal Information, Schwartz and his co-author argue for a tiered approach to Á€œpersonally identifiable informationÁ€« thatÁ€™s consistent with the principles of both regimes.
- Barry Krisberg criticizes CA's lack of accountability for taxpayer funds. (Sacramento Bee)
- Expert Stanley Lubman says China is escalating efforts to stamp out citizen rights. (Wall Street Journal)
- Prof. Jonathan Simon says itÁ€™s time for a protest movement & direct action campaign to force real change in CA's prisons. (San Francisco Bay View)
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