16th Annual Color of Justice Program Brings Together Students and Professionals

BY SENIOR JUDGE ORLINDA NARANJO, 419TH DISTRICT COURT (RET.) AND RACHEL LUNA, LUNA LAW PLLC

The 16th annual Color of Justice Program was held on April 12, 2023, at The University of Texas School of Law. The event was sponsored by the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ), the Travis County Women Lawyers’ Association (TCWLA), and the UT School of Law’s William Wayne Justice Center for Public Law. The event was attended by students from Travis High School and the Bertha Means Sadler Young Women’s Leadership Academy.

The event featured two panel discussions whose speakers shared their personal experiences and backgrounds, and discussed the importance of lawyers and judges in our society.

The first panel at the event was moderated by Rachel Luna of Luna Law PLLC and featured Chris Mugica, partner at Jackson Walker LLP; Elissa Henry of Elissa Henry Law Firm; Assistant City Attorney Angela Rodriguez; and Daniela Peinado of Graves, Dougherty, Hearon & Moody.

The second panel was moderated by Hon. Orlinda Naranjo, former judge of the 419th District Court, and featured Hon. Gisela Triana of the Third Court of Appeals, Hon. Maria Cantú Hexsel of the 53rd Civil District Court, Hon. Selena Alvarenga of the 460th Criminal District Court, and Hon. Raul Gonzalez, Precinct 4 justice of the peace.

The NAWJ Access to Justice Scholarship was awarded to Emani Brown, a second-year law student at UT, for her “demonstrated and passionate commitment to public-interest law.” Brown then addressed the audience, sharing her personal struggles of her father being imprisoned, being raised by a single mom, being biracial, and financial struggles.

In 2022, Brown was named one of the William Wayne Justice Center’s Public Service Scholars. She serves on the Justice Center’s Student Advisory Board and is also involved in UT’s Chicano/Hispanic Law Students Association, the Thurgood Marshall Legal Society, and the Texas Hispanic Journal of Law and Policy.

Brown has previously participated in pro bono projects, such as Pro Bono in January and the Mithoff Pro Bono Program’s Parole Project. Pro Bono in January, or “PBinJ,” involves a group of law students from UT traveling to the Texas-Mexico border to participate in law-related volunteer projects. The Parole Project assists women incarcerated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice in their efforts to obtain parole.

Brown spent the summer of 2022 working with Texas RioGrande Legal Aid in Austin and is the 2022-23 Scott Ozmun Fellow of the Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas.

Thank you to TCWLA; Graves, Dougherty, Hearon & Moody; Jackson Walker LLP, Elissa Henry

Law Firm; and Luna Law PLLC for sponsoring the program’s luncheon. Thank you also to the judges, attorneys, and law students who spoke with the younger students to hopefully inspire the next generation of legal professionals! AL

Hons. Triana, Cantú Hexsel, Alvarenga, Gonzalez, and Naranjo join some of the students and teachers for a photo in the Eidman Courtroom.

Emani Brown, UT School of Law Class of 2024, is this year’s recipient of the NAWJ’s $1,000 Access to Justice Scholarship.