It is with much excitement that I address our Gould Trojan Family in this issue of USC Law Magazine. As you know, just a few months ago, I had the honor of being appointed Dean of this storied law school, which I firmly believe is home to the most extraordinary community anywhere. USC Gould is distinguished not only for its scholarly excellence, but also for its impact in our world. This magazine is filled with stories that illustrate our meaningful and life-changing work.
Notably, numerous Gould-led projects are on the cutting edge of research and practice. For example, our faculty co-developed the Mental Health GPS, a first-of-its-kind, data-driven, peer-run service that helps callers find the care they need and fills gaps in the U.S. mental health system. They are also working to expand efforts to help the city’s youngest witnesses — and assist the courts at the same time — with a soon-to-launch Mobile Child Interviewing Lab. Further, our faculty spearheaded efforts for a property tax reform ordinance, which was passed by the Detroit City Council in November; and they led the launch of a new open access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the growing movement of empirical legal studies — among a range of other faculty spotlights.
“USC Gould is distinguished not only for its scholarly excellence, but also for its impact in our world. This magazine is filled with stories that illustrate our meaningful and life-changing work.”
This issue also highlights the outstanding achievements of Gould’s Class of 2024. In the USC Law Family section, you’ll find snapshots of our two commencement ceremonies, which included keynote addresses from Justice Goodwin Liu of the California Supreme Court and esteemed alumna Elizabeth Atlee (JD 1993), SVP and Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer of CBRE. We’re also pleased to feature personal stories about our accomplished grads as well as the inaugural graduating class of the new undergraduate program.
In addition, I invite you to read about the many inspiring stories of our alumni in this issue — from their continued support of need-based scholarships for law students, to their path-breaking careers as educational leaders, to their dedicated mentorship of LLM students through the USC China Career Ambassador Program.
This magazine features a special section on Clinical Perspectives, which touts the incredible community impact of students done as part of Gould’s clinics. Among the stories in this section, an Immigration Clinic student helped win a sensitive asylum case for a woman from Ethiopia, and then received the prestigious Immigrant Justice Corps fellowship; students in the International Human Rights Clinic partnered with the Clooney Foundation for Justice TrialWatch Initiative to publish a report assessing human rights proceedings in Kyrgyzstan; and a student in the Small Business Clinic helped an immigrant-owned small business prepare for its future by providing a solid legal foundation.
In closing, I want to thank all of you for helping build USC Gould into such a remarkable community. I wish you and your loved ones a wonderful rest of the summer.
Dean Franita Tolson Dean and Carl Mason Franklin Chair in Law
CENTER FOR DISPUTE RESOLUTION ALUMNI JOIN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA MEDIATION ASSOCIATION BOARD
Three alumni from USC Gould School of Law’s Center for Dispute Resolution have joined the board of directors for the Southern California Mediation Association (SCMA). In December, Ashley Rosenthal (MDR 2021) was inducted as 2024 president, while Zhongliang (Michael) Gai (MDR 2023) and Crystal Williams (MDR 2020) joined the SCMA board of directors as members.
As one of the nation’s longest-standing offerings in negotiation, mediation and dispute resolution, the Center for Dispute Resolution at USC Gould offers students thorough preparation to negotiate many types of settlements both inside and outside of the courtroom while gaining skills relevant to any area of legal or business practice.
2023 LSL PRE-LAW CONFERENCE
USC Gould School of Law and Latino Students in Law, an undergraduate student group, held the 2023 LSL Pre-Law Conference on Nov. 12, 2023. California Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero served as keynote speaker, and panelists included current law students, faculty, practicing attorneys and USC Gould’s Director of Admissions John Hoyt.
Ashley Rosenthal Zhongliang (Michael) Gai
Crystal Williams
USC GOULD RECOGNIZES 2024 CLERKSHIP CLASS AT RECEPTION
USC Gould School of Law recently honored second- and third-year law students and alumni who have received judicial clerkships at the Honorable Howard B. Turrentine Fund Judicial Clerkship Reception. Held in February at the California Club, the event featured keynote remarks by the Hon. Philip S. Gutierrez, chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, and the Hon. Maria A. Audero, magistrate judge, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
THE 2024 USC GOULD CLERKSHIP CLASS INCLUDES:
JORDAN AL-RAWI ’24
The Honorable Kim McLane Wardlaw, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
MORGAN BROCK-SMITH ’21
The Honorable Daniel Calabretta, United States District Court for the Eastern District of California
JENI GRIFFIN ’24
The Honorable Michael Mosman, United States District Court for the District of Oregon
PRIYA JUPUDI ’22
The Honorable Marina Garcia Marmolejo, United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas
MICHELLE KIM ’23
The Honorable Jinsook Ohta, United States District Court for the Southern District of California
GRAHAM SMITH ’24
The Honorable Annemarie Axon, United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama
DANIEL WILLEY ’23
The Honorable Jay Bybee, United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
SOPHIA HARRISON ’25
The Honorable R. Gary Klausner, United States District Court for the Central District of California
MAURA REINBRECHT ’22
The Honorable Diane Gujarati, United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
NOAH KIM ’25
The Honorable Kea Riggs, United States District Court for the District of New Mexico
HALF CENTURY TROJANS HALL OF FAME
USC Gould School of Law Board of Councilors Member Richard Chernick (JD 1970) received the USC Alumni Association’s Half Century Trojans Hall of Fame Award during the 2023 Alumni and Reunion Weekend festivities in November. Chernick is vice president and managing director of JAMS’ arbitration practice and has served as a lecturer in law at USC Gould. USC’s Half Century Trojans are a community of USC alumni who earned a bachelor’s degree at least 50 years ago. The Hall of Fame honors the Half Century Trojans who exemplify the ideals of the Trojan Family and have had a significant impact in their field.
CORRECTION: The Adam Freeman Scott Memorial Grant amount was mislabeled in the previous issue. The grant is $9,000.
Richard Chernick and Dean Franita Tolson at the 2023 Alumni and Reunion Weekend festivities in November
MAKING MEANINGFUL CONNECTIONS
Dozens of alumni came back to campus for the time-honored tradition of the USC Gould School of Law Alumni Mentor Lunch, where 1Ls, 2L transfers and visiting law students connect with members of the Trojan Family, hear about their experiences, and enjoy a valuable networking opportunity.
3L TALLIN MOYER WINS WLALA SCHOLARSHIP
USC Gould School of Law student Tallin Moyer was selected by the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles (WLALA) as the 2023 recipient of the Hon. Ruth Bader Ginsburg scholarship.
“This scholarship inspires me to continue the legacy of Ruth Bader Ginsburg by advocating for gender equity and empowering marginalized communities through the legal system,” says 3L Moyer, a policy extern at the Planned Parenthood Federation of America.
“Upon graduation, I plan to continue my commitment to fighting gender inequality by working in litigation or public policy at a nonprofit. Through the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles and its connections, I have the opportunity to network with professionals, advocates, and policymakers who are actively engaged in gender equality advocacy.”
The annual award from the WLALA Foundation recognizes law students who have demonstrated a commitment to issues affecting women, children, minorities, and historically marginalized groups, and who plan to follow in the footsteps of Justice Ginsburg as champions of social justice, equality and inclusion.
2024 NEIMAN-SIEROTY LECTURE
The 2024 Allen Neiman & Alan Sieroty Lecture featured keynote speaker Kristen Clarke, Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Justice. Her talk, titled, “Race, Power and Criminal Justice: Today’s Fight for Equal Justice Under Law,” was held April 11 at USC Gould School of Law.
The lecture series was established by a gift from Allen Neiman and Alan Sieroty, USC Gould Class of 1956 classmates and law partners. The pair shared a commitment to civil rights and the series provides an opportunity for students to interact with civil rights experts.
Tallin Moyer
Kristen Clarke and Dean Franita Tolson
GOULD STUDENTS, FACULTY, STAFF HONORED AT 2024 LAW AWARDS
Each year, the USC Gould School of Law academic programs and the Student Bar Association bestow distinguished awards to students, faculty and staff for their exceptional abilities both in and out of the classroom. Congratulations to all of the 2024 honorees.
2024 WILLIAM A. RUTTER DISTINGUISHED TEACHING AWARD
▪ Erin Miller, Associate Professor of Law and Philosophy
EDWARD & ELEANOR SHATTUCK AWARDS
Contributions to the law school and potential to be outstanding members of the bar
▪ Maramawit Abera
▪ Emma Brunel
▪ Lucas Crosby
▪ Madeleine Hoye
▪ Soleil Montemurro
▪ Jenny Robinson
DEAN DOROTHY NELSON COMMEMORATIVE PRIZE
For improvement of the administration of justice
▪ Hyeisoo Kim
C. DAVID MOLINA FIRST GENERATION PROFESSIONALS PROGRAM: STUDENT OF THE YEAR
For mentorship of fellow first-generation students and promoting the program’s goals
▪ Reema Moussa
MASON C. BROWN AWARD
Commitment to public interest law and talent for trial work
▪ Enzo Bak-Boychuk
MILLER-JOHNSON EQUAL JUSTICE PRIZE
Commitment to the cause of civil and social justice
▪ Mia Grindon
INCLUSION AND BELONGING AWARD
For proactively advancing policies, practices, and efforts that promote a more equitable and inclusive learning community at USC Gould School of Law
▪ Patricia Licea Guerrero
CLASS OF 2024 GRADUATE & INTERNATIONAL PROGRAM AWARDS
Nominated by G&IP peers for their support of, and positive impact on, the student community
▪ Saud bin Ali Almwaisheer
▪ Jenny Januszewski
2023-2024 STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION AWARDS
SBA FACULTY MEMBER OF THE YEAR
▪ Scott Altman, Virginia S. and Fred H. Bice Professor of Law
SBA ADJUNCT PROFESSOR OF THE YEAR
▪ Emio Zizza, Lecturer in Law
SBA STAFF MEMBER OF THE YEAR
▪ Dave Dinh, Assistant Director, Project Management
GOULD QUOTABLES
CLARE PASTORE
[The decision] will not lead to any reduction in homelessness, and will certainly result in more litigation.”
on the SCOTUS decision in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, The Conversation, June 28, 2024
[Some in the antitrust community] are of the view that certain elements of antitrust law over almost half a century have gone in the wrong direction.”
JONATHAN
BARNETT on the antitrust policy debate in Washington, Variety, April 24, 2024
We’re entering into new territory.”
GREG
KEATING on potential liability issues with driverless vehicles, Los Angeles Times, March 12, 2024
USC-INDIA INNOVATION SUMMIT 2024
In January, USC President Carol Folt traveled to Mumbai, India, for a global summit focusing on innovation and collaboration between USC and India. USC Gould School of Law alumna Niyati Shah (LLM 2022), second from left, spoke on a panel about early career success in a rapidly changing India. The panel included an array of USC graduates from several industries who discussed key elements of their career paths. Shah is an entertainment attorney working with Prime Videos and Amazon Studios as a consultant in their India Originals business, after earning her master of laws with a specialization in media and entertainment law at Gould.
in the Early Career Success
were,
Participants
Panel
from left, Ajai Thandi, Niyati Shah, Namratha Sunil and USC President Carol Folt. Below, Ajai Thandi and Niyita Shah listen during the panel.
JUDGE REENA RAGGI VISITS
CAMPUS FOR 2023 JUSTICE
LESTER W. ROTH LECTURE SERIES
USC Gould School of Law’s 2023 Justice Lester W. Roth Lecture featured the Hon. Reena Raggi, who visited the law school as part of the Jurist-in-Residence Program in November. Raggi, who is a judge in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, gave a lecture titled, “Juries, Liberty, and the Administration of Justice,” during the two-day visit, which included a tour of campus, meetings with students, faculty and administrators, and the opportunity to sit in on a law class.
“I am so impressed by the students here at USC Gould and I am so delighted to have been invited to participate in the Jurist-inResidence Program.”
—JUDGE REENA RAGGI
Launched in 2018, the Jurist-in-Residence Program brings judges from around the country to USC Gould to create an intensive learning experience that extends beyond the classroom. Visiting judges have one-on-one discussions with faculty and students, and sit in on classes throughout their time on campus.
The Roth Lecture Series was established in 1979 in honor of Justice Lester W. Roth, a 1916 graduate of USC Law and presiding justice of the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, from 1964 until his retirement in 1992.
“I am so impressed by the students here at USC Gould and I am so delighted to have been invited to participate in the Jurist-in-Residence Program,” Raggi said. “I hope that I’ve given the students a positive view of the work that we do on the court as they get ready to enter the legal profession.”
—Melissa Masatani
OMAR NOURELDIN APPOINTED TO ROLE IN CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION OF JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Omar Noureldin (JD 2014) was appointed senior counsel to the Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. As a presidential appointee on the leadership team of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division, Noureldin provides counsel to Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Kristen Clarke in leading the team’s broad federal civil rights enforcement efforts.
“This opportunity … is a heartfelt mission to uphold and advance the civil and constitutional rights of all Americans,” Noureldin wrote of his appointment. “From teaching constitutional law and fighting for civil rights in courtrooms to organizing communities and advancing the legal profession’s diversity, my path has been eclectic and enriching. And now, I’m stepping into a division that former AG Eric Holder called the Justice Department’s ‘crown jewel.’”
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‘Honored to Lead’
Election law expert Franita Tolson brings a deep knowledge of constitutional law and voting rights to her role as USC Gould Dean
By Chinyere Cindy Amobi
Interim Dean and Professor Franita Tolson has been named the dean and Carl Mason Franklin Chair in Law of the USC Gould School of Law. Tolson is a nationally recognized thought leader and dialogue shaper in election law, voting rights, constitutional law and legal history with research and insights appearing in leading law reviews and major media publications across the country.
outstanding, collaborative scholarly community, which I believe is unmatched by any other.”
She becomes the first Black dean and second female dean in the history of USC Gould, which is home to one of the most academically excellent and diverse student bodies of any law school in the nation.
“We are pleased to have Franita Tolson as the next dean of the USC Gould School of Law,” USC President Carol
“ I’m honored to lead and serve this outstanding, collaborative scholarly community, which I believe is unmatched by any other.”
DEAN FRANITA TOLSON
“I feel inspired and excited for this opportunity,” Tolson said. “Our law school is a tapestry of talent, and I look forward to working together with the entire Gould Trojan Family to carry on its legacy of innovation and achievement. I’m honored to lead and serve this
Folt said. “She is respected and beloved by Gould, and I cannot imagine a better person to lead the school into its next phase of excellence.”
Tolson has served as the interim dean at USC Gould, where she held the George T. and Harriet E. Pfleger
Lead’
Chair in Law, since 2023. Before that, she was the law school’s vice dean for faculty and academic affairs from 2019 to 2022.
“During her tenure as interim dean, she promoted a culture of openness, understanding and respect,” Folt said. “She has a strong student-centered, inclusive focus and a deep appreciation for all areas of the law school, and is nationally recognized for her scholarship in election law, constitutional law and voting rights and access. We know she will continue to lead the school to even greater heights.”
Before coming to USC in 2017, Tolson was the Betty T. Ferguson Professor of Voting Rights at Florida State University, eventually becoming just the second Black woman to be promoted to associate professor with tenure at the law school in 2014.
NEW USC GOULD DEAN: CULTIVATING A CULTURE OF INCLUSIVITY
As vice dean of USC Gould, Tolson displayed critical leadership in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, aiding the law school’s efforts to ensure
the community’s health and safety while sustaining its educational and research mission. Tolson also co-chaired the academic affairs subcommittee that developed the law school’s “Race, Racism and the Law” course, a first-of-its-kind required course among top law schools nationwide. She helped launch USC Gould’s new visiting assistant professor program, which aims to create a pipeline for new law faculty, including those from underrepresented backgrounds.
Tolson’s commitment to equality and accessibility is reflected in her research interests: She is considered to be one of the most recognizable and prominent scholars in election law and is frequently invited to write and speak about topics that will prove especially relevant as the country enters a new election cycle, including the Voting Rights Act of 1965, the 14th and 15th amendments, gerrymandering and other constitutional issues.
Tolson said she gravitated toward election law and voting rights because of the paradox of exclusivity that lies at the center of American democracy.
Dean Franita Tolson
“There’s always been this ambition for America to be a model for the world in terms of our type of government and levels of participation, while many in this country actively work to exclude the most vulnerable from participating in that system,” she said. “I think this paradox keeps me interested — how can I help facilitate the best of us while pushing back against the worst of us?”
This question takes Tolson’s research as far back as the Reconstruction era of the late 1800s, when formerly enslaved African Americans gained citizenship and partial voting rights. She uses this period, which was followed by violent backlash and widespread disenfranchisement, as a framework for thinking through the legal and political implications of modern-day voting restrictions.
“I write about this because our politics will never be inclusive until we have hard conversations about the different pathologies that undermine our conception of who we are as a democracy,” she said.
EARLY NOTES OF INSPIRATION FOR NEW USC GOULD DEAN
Tolson first became interested in a career in law as an undergraduate at Truman State University in Kirksville, Mo., where she earned a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degree in history in 2001. After debating between going to law school and getting a doctorate in history, Tolson chose the University of Chicago Law School, where she took classes in constitutional law taught by thenProfessor Barack Obama. “He managed to find this balance between making information accessible, while still communicating the complexities of doctrine,” she recalled.
Tolson said the experience would later inform her own teaching style, where she tries to help students understand that many issues they will encounter in law practice will fall in a gray area that defies easy explanation.
Post-graduation and prior to her career in academia, Tolson clerked for three years for Judge Rubén Castillo of the Northern District of Illinois
Top: Dean Tolson delivers welcome remarks at the Fall Orientation program.
Right: Tolson addresses the Class of 2024 at USC Gould’s commencement on May 10
Bottom: Tolson celebrates with Gould’s winning team at the 2024 Supreme Court basketball game against UCLA Law School (Photo courtesy of Daniel Tran).
and Judge Ann Claire Williams of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. She then pivoted to teaching law, serving as a visiting assistant professor at the Northwestern University School of Law.
AN IMPORTANT CAREER SHIFT
When USC Gould’s former dean — Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
Andrew T. Guzman — first approached Tolson about serving as the law school’s interim dean, it was a moment for soul searching. “It was really important to me, in undertaking this position, to make sure that I could still be positioned to do the work that I view as my broader purpose — this notion of helping people be full participants in our democracy,” she said. After a year in the interim post, Tolson is fully convinced that the position of dean of the law school aligns with her core identity as an election law scholar.
“One of the special things about USC, and the law school in particular, is the focus on the collective,” Tolson said. “We graduate people who then come back and participate in the law school in a number of ways. They teach students; they provide key financial support for our programs and scholarships; they sit on panels and provide mentorship; and they help students find jobs. All of this happens because we are a place that emphasizes the collective over the individual. Do
you realize what would happen if we could transmit that positivity out into the world? In my view, it’s just another way of reinforcing democracy.”
HELPING STUDENTS STAY COMPETITIVE IN A CHANGING WORLD
As she looks ahead to her new role, Tolson said one of her main priorities will be to help USC Gould students stay competitive in a crowded job market. Tolson believes the key to student success is a customizable education that helps them broaden their skill sets, while also meeting the demands of evolving and emergent industries. She cites collaborations and joint degree programs with other units on campus as examples of how USC Gould is preparing its graduates to confront challenging legal issues in a changing world.
“Our partnerships with other units reflect the fact that law doesn’t stand alone — historically, we’ve been a terrific vehicle for interdisciplinary education, from the breadth of research done by our faculty to the joint degree programs we offer with other units,” Tolson said. “Now, we are trying to build even more partnerships because we understand that law touches on everything, and we’re at a top-tier research university that makes it possible to offer a unique educational experience that distinguishes us from every other law school in the country.”
Top left: Dean Tolson on summer vacation recently with her children (from left) Bri, Izzy and Alex.
Top right: Tolson welcomes new students in Gould’s Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies program at the Undergraduate Welcome Event last fall.
Bottom left: Invited to deliver expert testimony on election law, Tolson shakes hands with the late Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee at a hearing for the U.S. House Committee on the Judiciary in 2019.
Bottom right: Since joining the USC Gould faculty in 2017, Tolson has served as vice dean for faculty and academic affairs and then interim dean of the law school.
‘MENTAL HE
New peer-based service helps callers navigate America’s complex mental health
By Nina Raffio
The Mental Health GPS, a data-driven and peerrun service, co-developed by USC Gould Professor Elyn Saks, helps callers find the care they need and averts crisis.
The gaps in the U.S. mental health system are too numerous to count, but perhaps the most harrowing one is at the front door, at entry. Who do you call? Where
exactly do you turn when a loved one goes off-track? How do you find an unbiased, knowledgeable guide to appropriate support?
In collaboration with USC researchers, a North Carolinabased nonprofit developed and operated a first-of-its-kind service, a data-backed care navigation platform, called The Mental Health GPS. A new study, published on Oct. 18 in the
Elyn Saks
ALTH GPS ’
New England Journal of Medicine Catalyst: Innovations in Care Delivery, shares insights from the program’s first year of operation as a pilot.
The GPS program is staffed by trained peer support specialists who relate to callers through their own lived experiences with mental health struggles, and draw on a robust database of services to connect people to suitable support.
“No one understands a condition as well as someone who has suffered it her or himself,” said co-author Elyn Saks, who directs the Saks Institute for Mental Health Law, Policy, and Ethics at USC and serves as a founding member on the board of INclude — the Mental Health Initiative, the nonprofit that operates the Mental Health GPS. “Peer work reduces stigma because everyone in this space suffers the same thing, and no one has to feel lesser or less able. It facilitates access to care because people can talk about what has helped them and how the person can find such help themselves,” said Saks, who is also the Orrin B. Evans Distinguished Professor of Law, Psychology, and Psychiatry and the Behavioral Sciences at the USC Gould School of Law.
RUN BY PEERS AND BACKED BY DATA
The United States is in a mental health crisis. Millions of Americans are living with mental illness, but many struggle to access the care they need. In a given year, 20% of adults experience a mental health condition, 17% of young people (ages 6-17) have experienced a major depressive episode, and 5% of Americans have lived with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depression. In 2020, suicide accounted for nearly 46,000 deaths in the U.S.
Despite the high prevalence of mental health conditions in the U.S., many people do not have access to the care they need due to a wide range of factors, including lack of insurance, stigma and geographic barriers. Delays in finding appropriate care can last years while conditions worsen.
The Mental Health GPS model begins as a traditional peerrun “warmline” that provides basic support to callers who want to talk or learn about available resources. Peer counselors listen to their stories and collect basic intake data before providing callers with options for care based on their individual needs, insurance and location. The service is free and confidential. Callers are encouraged to call back if they need more suggestions or have questions about the resources that have been recommended.
“The Mental Health GPS is designed to provide continuous support as people move through the mental health care system,” said Judith E. Klein, executive director of INclude — the Mental Health Initiative and co-author of the paper. “This continuity of care is essential for people with mental health issues, as it can help them to stay on track to navigate the maze that is our mental health care system.”
In its one-year pilot, the Mental Health GPS service received 2,384 calls and texts, almost all generated by Google searches on smartphones.
In addition to providing support and resources, peer counselors also help maintain a continually updated database of services that includes peer support groups, psychiatric clinics and more. They also maintain a de-identified register of information from callers that includes their reasons for calling, their insurance status, and their demographic information including age, race/ethnicity, and location which is used to identify appropriate options for care. The Mental Health GPS also tracks when callers successfully connect with recommended services.
Themes of caller concerns included work/personal (41.6%), depression (11.7%), and general anxiety (7.2%).
“Think of the GPS as like having a good friend who knows a ton about behavioral health and has all the available resources at their fingertips,” said co-author Benedict Carey, a senior advisor on the project and former science writer for The New York Times who recently wrote an opinion piece related to the study. “That’s the first person anyone would call. By analyzing data from the calls, the platform adjusts to users’ needs, rather than the other way around — gaining insights on interventions, prevention, and cost reduction along the way.”
Meeting Their Needs
Professor Thomas Lyon leads USC Child Interviewing Lab to go mobile, continuing his work to assist the youngest witnesses
By Matthew Kredell
For nearly a decade, the USC Child Interviewing Lab has helped children of Los Angeles tell their truths. To assist the courts, the Lab has interviewed hundreds of children who shared their stories of alleged abuse — reducing the need for children to testify about traumatic experiences and facilitating an expedient assessment of their cases.
Lyon started his legal career as an attorney with the Los Angeles County Dependency Court, which oversees removal of children from their parents as a result of abuse or neglect. Recognizing the need to better understand how to communicate with children, he obtained a PhD in developmental psychology, and came to USC Gould in 1995.
“ Los Angeles County is so big... Going mobile is going to be a real asset to the community and expand the types of interviews we’re able to do.” JORDAN SARGENT
This year, the lab is going mobile, allowing it to broaden its reach and assist more children in sharing their experiences of abuse or witnessing violence in a timely manner.
The lab is directed by USC Gould School of Law Professor Thomas Lyon, who has devoted his career to identifying the most productive means of questioning children about difficult topics.
“We’re at the point that we’ve done a lot of interviews, we have the experience, we’ve published articles on what works and doesn’t work, but there are cases that are falling through the cracks,” Lyon says. “Cases where they can’t wait a week to schedule an interview because they have made an arrest and have to either arraign the individual within three days or let them go. The mobile lab allows us to take this on the road, respond to emergencies and go out to where kids are.”
He started training attorneys and other professionals how to interview children, and in 2005, he created the Ten Step Investigative Interview, which is now taught state-wide to all new forensic interviewers.
“Everyone knows that they should avoid asking children suggestive questions, but what we’ve learned is that the most open-ended questions not only reduce errors, but increase children’s productivity,” Lyon says. “The technique is to get the child talking first. Before asking any questions about abuse, we practice asking open-ended questions with the child, and teach the child to give narrative responses about their personal experiences, with a beginning, a middle, and an end. This prepares them to provide complete reports about their abuse.”
For the past decade, the USC Child Interviewing Lab has been interviewing children about sexual abuse at the Los Angeles Dependency Courthouse, recording
and transcribing the interviews for the courts, then anonymizing the interviews for training and research.
The Lab has now retrofitted a truck with state-ofthe-art audio and visual technology. Interviews will be conducted in a sound-proof room. Law enforcement, social services, and district attorneys can observe the interview from an adjacent room inside the truck, or they can watch a live feed at their offices. And the quick response times will reduce the possibility that children will be subjected to pressure to change their story, he says.
Jordan Sargent will be the lead forensic interviewer for the Mobile Child Interviewing Lab. She started working for Lyon conducting research interviews for studies in 2016 while she was a senior at USC. She went on to get a Master of Social Work while working for the lab.
“Because Los Angeles County is so big, child advocacy services can get overwhelmed by the amount of allegations made,” Sargent says. “There are so many kids making these disclosures or witnessing crimes that it’s hard to service them all and get interviews done in a timely manner. Going mobile is going to be a real asset to the community and expand the types of interviews we’re able to do.”
At USC Gould, law students can take Lyon’s child interviewing practicum and learn to interview children using the Ten Step procedure. During the 14-week course, they receive more intensive training than many professional interviewers, Lyon notes. They also participate in the lab’s biweekly webinar reviewing
interviewer performance with hundreds of participating practitioners in the U.S. and other countries.
Law students can then take their child-interviewing skills into careers in juvenile dependency and delinquency court, criminal court, family court, immigration law and pro bono work.
Before she entered law school, 2L Gabrielle Silberman was an elementary school teacher and worked as a social worker with Homeboy Industries, a gang rehabilitation and re-entry program for East L.A. youth.
After spending the spring semester in Lyon’s Child Interviewing Practicum, she will put the lessons to use this summer by talking with children in the foster care system while working at Children’s Law Center of California.
“Being in the Child Interviewing Practicum has been a reminder to be intentional with my language,” Silberman says. “My natural questioning style was who, what, when, where, why, how. The practicum teaches you to ask very open-ended questions that I think, whether I’m working with young people or adults, whether I’m doing criminal defense work or working for a nonprofit, will help me avoid influencing the response and make sure that I am an effective advocate.”
We are seeking philanthropic support for this important program. For information on how you can support the Mobile Child Interviewing Lab, please contact Margaret Kean, Assistant Dean for Development at mkean@law.usc.edu, (213) 821-6342, or give online at gould.usc.edu/alumni/giving/.
Mobile Child Interviewing Lab
Trailblazers in Empirical Law
An intrepid pair of USC Gould constitutional scholars are generating deep insights into patterns of jurisprudence
By Diane Krieger
You could say Lee Epstein and Rebecca Brown are the odd couple of constitutional scholarship.
While Brown’s natural milieu is the reading room, Epstein feels at home on the server farm. Together, the USC Gould School of Law professors make a formidable research team.
“We complement each other,” says Epstein, a political scientist well-versed in quantitative methodology and Distinguished Visiting Professor at USC Gould. “Rebecca is the constitutional law scholar. She can absorb a hundred cases and see how to make sense of the doctrine. I teach constitutional law: I love it. But what I bring to the table is more the ability to spot the signal in the noise.”
Epstein, who is also the Ethan A.H. Shepley
Distinguished University Professor at Washington University in St. Louis (WashU), is considered one of the world’s leading experts in empirical legal research, having co-authored or co-edited hundreds of scholarly articles and 19 books in the field. Her background in data analysis is rooted in formal training at Emory University, where she earned her PhD in political science.
Brown, the Rader Family Trustee Chair in Law at USC Gould, brings a theorist’s critical eye to the team. A former law clerk to U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, she has published widely in law reviews, focusing on interpreting the Constitution in light of its own principles to protect democracy, liberty and equality. Brown joined USC Gould in 2008, after 20 years as a law professor at Vanderbilt University.
The division of labor goes something like this: “Together we identify problems and questions that come out of the cases,” Brown says, “and Lee figures out how to put our ideas to the test.”
Brown has seen a shift in her own perspectives. Whereas she once explored constitutional law “as a freestanding discipline with its own internal logic,” she now steps back to view the cases also as human artifacts that can reveal overarching patterns beyond the doctrine. “Lee is fierce in following where the data lead,” she says.
Both professors relish the give-and-take of their collaboration.
“When there’s a convergence between the quantitative side and the more thorough, rigorous examination of the opinions that the judges write, that’s the best!” Epstein says. “And if they don’t line up, then you have to figure out why. What explains the mismatch?”
The bedrock that undergirds this cross-disciplinary research is the Supreme Court Database (SCDB). Created in the 1970s by Harold J. Spaeth, a political scientist then at WashU, the searchable system breaks down each case decided by the Supreme Court from 1791 to the present day across 247 variables.
“Who the parties were, what the lower court did, what the Supreme Court did and how each justice voted, the issue-areas raised, the constitutional, statutory or administrative provisions — it’s all there,” Epstein says.
SHARING RESULTS
Epstein first got involved with the SCDB as a professor at WashU in the early 1990s. She spearheaded major overhauls for decades with support from a large National Science Foundation grant and now keeps content current with new decisions.
Helping to update the SCDB are Pennsylvania State University political scientist Michael Nelson and The New York Times Supreme Court correspondent Adam Liptak.
At the close of each SCOTUS term, Epstein and various co-authors prepare a special report for The New York Times outlining key takeaways backed by the numbers. The trends Epstein unearths sometimes inform Liptak’s reporting on the Court.
Their collaboration has borne other fruit. During the Spring 2023 semester, Liptak co-taught a USC Gould intensive course with Epstein, “The Modern U.S. Supreme Court.”
His reporting has drawn attention to Epstein’s and Brown’s paper in Presidential Studies Quarterly, “Is the U.S. Supreme Court a Reliable Backstop for An Overreaching US President? Maybe, but Is An Overreaching (Partisan) Court Worse?,” which caused a stir by upsetting conventional wisdom about the Roberts Court.
“A fundamentally conservative court, with a six-justice majority of Republican appointees that includes three named by Mr. Trump himself, has not been particularly receptive to his arguments,” Liptak wrote in a December 23 article for The Times, citing Epstein’s and Brown’s findings. Indeed, their study exposed the Roberts Court as the most “anti‐president” since Franklin Roosevelt occupied the Oval Office, using cases through the end of 2022, and covering the presidencies of George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and a year of Joe Biden.
“Should we take this to mean that the Court will be there to protect democracy if an overreaching president tries to trample constitutional limits? Not necessarily,” the researchers noted in their 2023 study, because the data pointed to a partisan or loyalty bias that might come into play in the event that a future encroaching president was of the same party as the majority of justices or had been the appointing president for the swing justices. Those
biases may well be at play in the more recent cases involving Donald Trump since he left office. — and that is a question for another study, according to the researchers.
The year before, Liptak drew on the USC Gould team’s data-driven research to report on the rise of an “imperial court” allocating to itself much of the power to oversee and control the two other branches of government.
NEW DATA
Recently, Epstein and Brown have developed a dataset on gunrights litigation in the federal courts. According to Epstein, it’s likely the most comprehensive collection of data ever amassed on Second Amendment decisions.
Brown and Epstein are already using it for papers probing the effects of the Bruen decision.
In the 2022 ruling (New York State Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen), the Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional a New York gun safety law requiring a license to carry concealed weapons in public places. The decision triggered an explosion of gun rights litigation in federal courts, according to Epstein.
“There are some very interesting patterns in the data,” she says, hinting at some of their preliminary findings: “I can tell you that outcomes are more favorable toward the Second Amendment, and that there’s a widening gap between Democratic and Republican judges. Essentially, Bruen has expanded discretion among individual judges.”
Having pioneered the application of big data to constitutional analysis, Epstein is pleased to see her approach catching fire.
“SCDB has served as a model for databases all over the world,” she says. “There are ones for the Norwegian Supreme Court and the Israeli Supreme Court. There are databases for the International Courts, the European Union Court, and many others.”
Left: Rebecca Brown
Right: Lee Epstein
AN EXTRA HAND
Students’ financial burden eased through support from Need-Based Scholarship Fund
By Melissa Masatani
Every year, a new class of accomplished and talented students begin their journey toward earning a Juris Doctorate. For some, however, the price tag is an obstacle — so the USC Gould School of Law stepped up, offering need-based scholarships to ensure that students have access to a top-tier education. Funded primarily by donations from USC Gould alumni, these grants give hard-working students an extra hand throughout their law school careers.
“It’s really important for people who are deserving of a place at the law school but can’t afford to go, to have
the support they need,” says William Hicks (JD 1994), a member/co-chair of the Life Sciences Practice at Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C. “For students who are independent, or who can’t rely on their parents for financial support, it can be crippling to incur the load of student debt that is so common nowadays. So it was just intuitive to me to support the Need-Based Scholarship Fund.”
Hicks is one of many USC Gould alumni who have donated annually to support the recently established fund, which disburses the grants to qualified students based on demonstrated financial need. With both an endowed
“ I attended USC Gould only because I was the grateful recipient of a full scholarship. USC was absolutely my first choice, but it was financially unworkable without financial assistance. I will never forget the shock and elation when I received word of the scholarship, it was truly a dream come true.” —FRED TOCZEK (JD 1989)
“ For students who are independent, or who can’t rely on their parents for financial support, it can be crippling to incur the load of student debt that is so common nowadays. So it was just intuitive to me to support the Need-Based Scholarship Fund.” —WILLIAM HICKS (JD 1994)
scholarship fund, which is a perpetual scholarship that was started by an anonymous gift from a faculty member and two alumnae, and a current use fund, which distributes all funds completely to USC Gould students, donors have multiple opportunities to contribute to students in need.
In a letter thanking scholarship fund donors, a member of the JD class of 2025 cites the effect this scholarship had on their career path. “The impact of this scholarship has been immeasurable and has been instrumental in making my dream of attending law school at USC Gould a reality, and I am forever grateful,” the student wrote.
Fred Toczek (JD 1989), a partner at Felker Toczek Suddleson Abramson McGinnis Ryan LLP, is another alumnus whose donations to the Need-Based Scholarship Fund have come from a desire to ensure that future students have access to achieve their career goals regardless of their financial situation.
“I attended USC Gould only because I was the grateful recipient of a full scholarship,” Toczek says. “USC was absolutely my first choice, but it was financially unworkable without financial assistance. I will never forget the shock and elation when I received word of the scholarship, it was truly a dream come true.”
Hicks agrees that financial assistance can be the deciding factor for many students deciding to go to law school.
“Even if someone can get financial aid, the student still may opt not to attend law school because the
cost is so burdensome,” Hicks says. “This fund makes it a more real opportunity for students to choose USC Gould.”
A 1L who received a need-based scholarship talked about how moving across the country to attend USC Gould seemed daunting, but the grant alleviated the financial stress of attending law school.
“I am a first-generation law student, and pursuing a career in a field where I lack any real connections felt very intimidating at first,” the student wrote in a letter thanking donors. “But, receiving the USC Gould Need-Based Scholarship makes me feel like I have a support network behind me and gives me confidence that I can succeed in law school.”
It’s this impact that encourages Toczek to support the Need-Based Scholarship Fund.
“There are so many important ways each of us can participate in personally and positively impacting the future generation of lawyers,” Toczek says. “Donating ensures that others — no matter their financial wherewithal — are given an opportunity to attend law school at USC and is an essential way we can all contribute to shaping a caring and giving community.”
For information on supporting USC Gould law students by giving toward current use need-based scholarship funding or by adding to the need-based scholarship endowment, please contact the USC Gould Development Office at (213) 821-3560 or give online at gould.law/student-scholarships-aid.
■ Guaranteed for all 3 years for qualified J.D. students.
WHY
■ Reduces reliance on student loans, lowering anticipated debt upon graduation, a major factor in accepting law school admission.
■ Many J.D. applicants also carry undergraduate debt.
■ Supports equitable access to Gould’s excellent legal education in the heart of Los Angeles.
HOW
■ Philanthropic support allows us to offer Need-Based Scholarships to all qualified J.D. students for the 2024-2025 academic year.
“ The impact of this scholarship has been immeasurable and has been instrumental in makin g my dream of attending law school at USC Gould a reality, and I am forever grateful.”
Please consider supporting a student through a generous gift to the USC Gould Need-Based Scholarship Fund or to the USC Gould Need-Based Scholarship Pooled Endowment. Call (213) 821-3560 or give online at gould.law/student-scholarships-aid.
ANONYMOUS STUDENT J.D. CANDIDATE, 2025
A NEW APPROACH
New journal launched by USC Gould faculty aims for “sweet spot” in empirical legal studies
By Leslie Ridgeway
A new open access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the growing movement of empirical legal studies — the use of quantitative data and other information gathering methods to understand the law — has just launched. It is a joint initiative of two USC Gould School of Law professors, Lee Epstein and Dan Klerman, with Christoph Engel, Director of the Max Planck Institute for Research on Collective Goods, and Eyal Zamir, Augusto Levi Professor of Commercial Law at Hebrew University.
The first issue of the Journal of Law and Empirical Analysis was released by Sage Publishing in May, featuring 10 articles written by scholars from across the globe. The journal’s diverse editorial board underscores its international focus and interdisciplinary approach.
Empirical legal studies as a scholarly pursuit has existed for decades, but the Journal of Law and Empirical Analysis stakes a unique corner in the field as the first completely open access journal of its kind.
“Being available online allows us to publish continuously,” says Klerman, Edward G. Lewis Chair in Law and History at USC Gould who was conducting research at Hebrew University as a Fulbright Senior Scholar. “The first issue launches as a package of 10 articles, but after that, articles will be published as soon as they’re ready. Our editors have committed to relatively quick peer reviews to maximize the impact of the research.”
With the interdisciplinary, global nature of empirical legal studies, Epstein and Klerman strove for an international perspective among many relevant fields of scholarship.
“The authors include law professors, political scientists, economists and psychologists,” says Epstein, Distinguished Visiting Professor at USC whose research uses empirical methods to study judicial behavior. “Most journals are based in the U.S. with a smattering of international influence, and we are reaching out all over the world for contributions and readership — trying to hit a sweet spot in empirical legal studies.”
Included in the first issue are a statistical analysis of racial discrimination in police stops and an exploration on whether partisanship on three-judge panels affects how the law develops.
Though both Epstein and Klerman have either served as journal editors or served on editorial boards, neither had developed a journal from the ground up and found the experience enlightening.
“There are so many decisions to make,” says says Epstein, who is now Ethan A.H. Shepley Distinguished University Professor at Washington University in St. Louis. “After we obtained a publisher and started receiving articles, there were still many issues coming up all the time.”
“It’s been an adventure,” says Klerman. “But we all get along well, and everyone brings something different to the table. We are thrilled to finally launch the first issue, and we are very proud to be publishing impactful research by leaders in the field.”
CONTINUING LEGAL ED
LEARNING FROM LEADERS
USC Gould School of Law’s Continuing Legal Education offers professionals the opportunity to learn from and network with leading experts in their industry through annual programs in entertainment, estate planning, business, tax and intellectual property.
USC Intellectual Property Institute
Leaders in intellectual property law discussed major landmark cases, changing technology including AI and other developments at the 2024 Intellectual Property Institute, hosted by USC Gould School of Law in March. The two-day continuing legal education conference was held March 18-19 at the Fairmont Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica as well as online for remote attendees. Featured speakers included keynote presenter Jackie Hayes, EVP, Legal — Studios & Networks at Warner Bros. Discovery, and dozens of academics, IP lawyers, judges and other professionals.
USC Real Estate Law and Business Forum
The USC Gould School of Law 2024 Real Estate Law and Business Forum drew hundreds of real estate professionals to hear from Suzanne Nora Johnson, Chair of the USC Board of Trustees and Chair of Board of Directors at Intuit, Inc., as well as other industry experts, to explore real estate trends and changes due to recent legislation. Presented in partnership with the USC Lusk Center for Real Estate for the first time, the one-day continuing legal
education event took place February 29 at the Jonathan Club in Downtown Los Angeles as well as online. The Forum is co-chaired by Susan Booth, Partner at Holland & Knight LLP, and Glenn Sonnenberg (BA 1977, JD 1980), Executive Chairman at LaSalle Debt Investors.
Institute on Entertainment Law and Business
The 2023 Institute on Entertainment Law and Business took place at USC on Saturday, Oct. 14, exploring the latest industry trends and fundamental changes to business structures in the wake of rapidly developing technology and unrest in the form of major labor strikes. Co-hosted by USC Gould School of Law and the Beverly Hills Bar Association, the one-day continuing legal education event titled “Hollywood Remodel: Blueprints for an Evolving Industry,” featured a keynote presentation from Amb. Charles H. Rivkin, chairman and CEO of the Motion Picture Association.
Learn more about USC Gould’s Continuing Legal Education offerings at gould.usc.edu/cle.
Jackie Hayes and Sean Monroe speak during a panel at the 2024 Intellectual Property Institute.
From left, Susan Booth, Dean Franita Tolson, Suzanne Nora Johnson and Glenn A. Sonnenberg gather during the 2024 Real Estate Law and Business Forum.
Panelists discuss “Legal Perspectives on Compensation in the Streaming Industry” during the 2023 Institute on Entertainment Law and Business.
UCATION SPOTLIGHT
By Kaitlyn McQuown
SOLVING THE PUZZLE
The Tax Institute examines strategies shaped by COVID, inflation, AI
The Tax Institute brought together hundreds of tax professionals at its 2024 conference January 22-24. The continuing legal education institute, titled “Tax Strategies for a Puzzling Environment,” explored the latest industry trends and highlighted changes due to recent legislation and administration changes.
Hosted by USC Gould School of Law, the three-day conference brought together more than 400 tax lawyers, accountants and other professionals who either attended online or in person at the Sheraton Grand Hotel in downtown Los Angeles, a new venue for the institute.
Each year, the Tax Institute features a keynote lecture in honor of the late Edward Kleinbard, USC Gould professor, tax expert and regular speaker at the institute.
Former Commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service Chuck Rettig delivered the 2024 Edward Kleinbard Keynote, discussing the role the IRS played during and following the COVID-19 pandemic and the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.
“Talking about the stimulus payments, the economic impact payments, and doing all of that during COVID is a real tribute to the employees of the Internal Revenue Service,” he said.
The second day of the institute opened with an overview of recent developments in partnership and real estate guidance led by Eric B. Sloan and James Jennings of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
Keynote Speaker Ivan Roussev, Senior Manager & AI Leader at EY’s Tax Technology and Transformation Practice, discussed the practical applications of artificial intelligence and provided a framework for success specifically tailored to the tax and legal professions.
“General tools are built for general purposes. But you are not generalists; you’re specialists, right?” Roussev said. “The ultimate landing space will be things that are ultra prioritized to you, situational. If you’re having to deal with a jury, think about AI that can scour information on the Internet about every single one of the jurors and try to give you an idea of how they may react to different arguments that you may make, how you may appear.”
The final day of the institute centered on recent changes in estate tax law, tips for how to best serve clients and predictions for future developments.
In his luncheon keynote, titled “Section 501(c)(4) Social Welfare Organizations: An Alternative to Private Foundations and Donor Advised Funds,” David S. Miller, Partner at Proskauer, outlined the benefits and drawbacks of social welfare organizations as compared to private foundations and donor advised funds, and an analysis of the future of 501(c)(4)s.
“501(c)(4) is really the alternative to private foundations,” said Miller. “The trade-off is, of course, that the donor doesn’t get a charitable deduction.” However, Miller explained that “extremely high income, high wealth people” can’t use the charitable deduction, because of their very little income tax. “So that loss of the charitable deduction for the extremely wealthy isn’t a loss at all. And the benefits of a 501(c)(4) is there are no deficits.”
After the luncheon keynote presentations each day, attendees proceeded to session tracks of their choosing, covering corporate tax, partnerships and real estate tax planning, individual tax planning, and ethics, compliance and enforcement.
Concurrent evening workshops allowed attendees to explore specific facets of tax law in greater detail. Panels of experts discussed emerging trends in the entertainment industry, considerations regarding attorney competency and potential impairment, the impact of the BBA, discussions on bias and stereotypes, and insights into the Secure Act.
Established in 1948, the Tax Institute has remained a cornerstone event in the industry, offering both the in-person and virtual experience for all attendees.
Karen G. Sowell, center, laughs as David Rievman, left, and Robert H. Liquerman, right, look on during a panel at the 2024 Tax Institute.
Tackling Systemic Inequality
Professor Bernadette Atuahene and her students fight for property tax justice
By Julie Riggott
Before she became a professor at USC Gould School of Law, Bernadette Atuahene published groundbreaking research in the Southern California Law Review (Vol. 91, No. 2 , 2018) exposing racialized property tax inequity in Detroit.
An acclaimed property law scholar, Atuahene discovered that, between 2009 and 2015, the City of Detroit overtaxed 53-83% of its residential properties in violation of the Michigan State Constitution, which says no property can be assessed at more than 50% of its market value. Even worse, Wayne County has foreclosed on one in three Detroit properties for failure to pay these inflated taxes, displacing over 100,000 residents since 2009. In a study titled Taxed Out, Atuahene and her co-author Christopher Berry found that if the city had correctly assessed those taxes, the county would not have foreclosed on 25% of the lowest-valued homes between 2011 and 2015.
for appeals, design arguments and present arguments at the Detroit Board of Review hearings every March.
This year alone, PTAP appealed illegally inflated taxes for more than 550 homeowners — a record — and prevented 13,000 tax foreclosures. ILO also secured tax exemptions for low-income residents, advocated for the expansion of housing assistance that resulted in $4.4 million in federal relief, and laid the groundwork for a program that compensates low-income residents who lost their homes.
Because she was a community organizer in South Los Angeles before she went to law school, Atuahene was compelled to take action. “I could not have access to reams of empirical evidence showing illegally inflated property taxes were routine and do nothing,” says Atuahene.
So, in 2017, Atuahene founded the nonprofit Institute for Law and Organizing (ILO), which works at the intersection of law, research and community organizing to protect homeownership for Black people.
ILO’s first campaign, the Coalition for Property Tax Justice, involves USC Gould students through the Public Interest Housing Practicum. With 15 grassroots organizations, the Coalition was launched to stop unconstitutional property tax assessments, stop property tax foreclosures and win compensation for impacted homeowners.
One Coalition initiative, the Property Tax Appeals Project (PTAP), was designed by students about six years ago and is almost entirely student run. Law students at USC Gould and elsewhere put together appeal letters, collect evidence
In addition to working with PTAP, students also assist with research, legal writing, lawsuits, community organizing and drafting laws.
“The structural change needed to ensure the end of illegally inflated property taxes came when the Detroit City Council passed a property tax reform ordinance in November 2023, authored by law students,” Atuahene says. “This first-of-its kind measure places the burden of correctly assessing properties on the City rather than the homeowners.”
Now, ILO is scaling its model, because Black and Latino homeowners nationwide pay a 10-13% higher property tax rate. USC Gould students are already involved with programs in Chicago and Milwaukee. Carus Newman, a 2L involved in the practicum, says: “The PI Housing Practicum challenged me to learn a lot about property tax injustice and to apply the skills I learned in the first year of law school to make a real difference. The practicum showed me how to organize in order to create change and gave me the confidence to tackle systemic issues of inequality.”
Above: Bernadette Atuahene
Right: Members of the Coalition for Property Tax Justice gather in Detroit.
Building Relationships
Professor
Jean Reisz
selected to serve as lawyer representative on Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference
Reisz
By Leslie Ridgeway
Clinical Associate Professor Jean Lantz Reisz (JD 2005), co-director of the USC Immigration Clinic, has been selected as a Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference lawyer representative — the only law professor in the Central District of California.
“I’m excited,” says Reisz, who said she was encouraged to apply by the Hon. Jean Rosenbluth, a federal magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court
attorneys and identifying issues that slow down the workings of the court. Both federal district and Ninth Circuit judges choose the lawyer representatives; Reisz was pleased to be chosen with her first application.
Reisz also signed up to serve on two committees, including a committee that organizes a civics contest for high school students. She also looks forward to bringing federal and Ninth Circuit judges into the classroom to speak to and meet with students.
“ I’m excited. It’s a great opportunity to make closer connections with Ninth Circuit appellate and federal judges. After my orientation, two federal judges asked if I have students who are interested in clerkships. It’s great for USC.” —JEAN REISZ
for the Central District of California, and a former professor at the USC Gould School of Law. “It’s a great opportunity to make closer connections with Ninth Circuit appellate and federal judges. After my orientation, two federal judges asked if I have students who are interested in clerkships. It’s great for USC.”
The three-year appointment gives Reisz an opportunity to help the court function more efficiently by facilitating relationships with Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and federal district court judges and
Developing relationships with fellow lawyer representatives who come from all sectors of law, including intellectual property litigation, nonprofit work, and the Federal Public Defender and U.S. Attorney’s offices, also has the potential to benefit her students, Reisz says.
“A fellow panel member told me to let him know if I have any students needing summer employment,” she says. “[The role] gives Gould visibility in federal district court in a new way.”
Jean
SCholarship Research
A selection of recent scholarly work and honors of USC Gould faculty
SELECT RECENT PUBLICATIONS
SCOTT ALTMAN
“A Right to Adopt and Parental Licensing” Arizona Law Review (2023)
BERNADETTE ATUAHENE (with Janice Nadler)
“Stategraft vs. Corruption: A Survey Experiment” Wisconsin Law Review (2024)
JONATHAN BARNETT
“Illusions of Dominance: Revisiting the Market Power Assumption in Platform Ecosystems” Antitrust Law Journal, ABA (Forthcoming)
JORDAN BARRY (with Will Fried and John William Hatfield)
“Et Tu, Agent? Commission-Based Steering in Residential Real Estate” Iowa Law Review (Forthcoming)
REBECCA L. BROWN and LEE EPSTEIN (with Michael J. Nelson)
“In Electoral Disputes, State Justices Are Less Reliable GOP Allies than the U.S. Supreme Court — That’s the ‘Problem’ the Independent State Legislature Claim Hopes to Solve”
The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science (2024)
ALEXANDER M. CAPRON and SOFIA GRUSKIN (with Laura Ferguson, Michelle E. Anderson, Krishni Satchi, Charles D. Kaplan and Peter Redfield)
“The ubiquity of ‘self-care’ in health: Why specificity matters” Global Public Health (2024)
JONATHAN H. CHOI
“Measuring Clarity in Legal Text”
University of Chicago Law Review (2024)
JESSICA CLARKE
“Scrutinizing Sex”
University of Chicago Law Review (Forthcoming)
AYA GRUBER
“A Tale of Two Me Toos” University of Illinois Law Review (2023)
UNIVERSITY HONORS
ALEXANDER CAPRON received the Faculty Lifetime Achievement Award at the USC Academic Honors Convocation in April, in recognition of his eminent career and notable contributions to the university, the profession and the community.
SOFIA GRUSKIN, Professor of Preventive Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine and Professor of Law at USC Gould, has been appointed by the university to a Distinguished Professorship, one of USC’s highest honors.
NOMI STOLZENBERG received the 2024 USC Associates Award for Creativity in Research and Scholarship, which is bestowed upon faculty for distinguished intellectual achievements.
FELIPE JIMÉNEZ
“On Legal Expertise”
American Journal of Jurisprudence (Forthcoming)
THOMAS D. LYON (with Owen W. Friend and Agnieszka M. Nogalska)
“The Utility of Direct Questions About Actions with the Hands in Child Forensic Interviews
Psychology, Public Policy, & Law (Forthcoming)
ERIN MILLER
“The Private Abridgment of Free Speech” William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal (2024)
JEESOO NAM
“Addiction, A Sorites Problem” Journal of Ethics & Social Philosophy (Forthcoming)
ELYN SAKS (with Kenneth B. Wells, Lily Zhang and Robert M. Bilder)
“Impact of Opera on Resilience and Thriving in Serious Mental Illness: Pilot Evaluation of The Center Cannot Hold Part 2 and Resilience Workshop” Community Mental Health Journal (2024)
MICHAEL SIMKOVIC (with Mark J. Roe)
“Bankruptcy’s Turn to Market Value” University of Chicago Law Review (Forthcoming)
DAN SIMON
“Towards a General Framework of Biased Reasoning” Perspectives on Psychological Science (2023)
D. DANIEL SOKOL (with Sean Sullivan)
“The Decline of Coordinated Effects in Merger Analysis and How to Save It” Florida Law Review (2024)
ADAM ZIMMERMAN
“Ghostwriting Federalism” Yale Law Journal (2024)
To view the full list of articles, awards and presentations, visit: gould.usc.edu/faculty/scholarship/
FACULTY CHAIR APPOINTMENTS & PROMOTIONS
▪ BERNADETTE ATUAHENE appointed the Frances R. and John J. Duggan Professor of Law.
▪ JESSICA CLARKE appointed the Robert C. and Nanette T. Packard Professor of Law.
▪ AYA GRUBER appointed the Harold Medill Heimbaugh Professor of Law.
▪ ADAM ZIMMERMAN appointed the Robert Kingsley Professor of Law.
▪ ERIN MILLER promoted to the rank of Associate Professor of Law (effective July 1).
▪ JEESOO NAM promoted to the rank of Associate Professor of Law (effective July 1).
▪ JEF PEARLMAN promoted to the rank of Clinical Professor of Law.
▪ DEEPIKA SHARMA promoted to the rank of Clinical Associate Professor of Law.
5G AND BEYOND: INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND COMPETITION POLICY IN THE INTERNET OF THINGS
USC Gould School of Law Professor Jonathan Barnett has co-edited — and contributed to — a new book that combines the insights of leaders in patent and competition policy to help build a foundation for innovation policy as 5G communications technology continues to transform industries across the globe.
The book, 5G and Beyond: Intellectual Property and Competition Policy in the Internet of Things (Cambridge University Press, 2023), co-edited by Professor Sean O’Connor of George Mason University, combines the expertise of legal and economic researchers, industry experts in patent licensing, and prominent former policymakers, including two directors of the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, a former commissioner of the Federal Trade Commission, and a former commissioner of the International Trade Commission.
AWARDS & NOTES
HEIDI RUMMEL has been appointed by Governor Newsom to the California Committee on Revision of the Penal Code. RUMMEL and her team at the PostConviction Justice Project have also been awarded a RIGHT grant (Rehabilitative Investment Grants for Healing and Transformation) from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation in support of rehabilitative and restorative justice programming.
JONATHAN CHOI ranked as the ninth most-downloaded legal scholar worldwide on SSRN in 2023, amassing more than 29,000 downloads. In addition, CHOI is co-principal investigator on an interdisciplinary project (with USC Computer Science) titled “Detecting Bias in the Law,” which earned a recent USC Keston Exploratory Research Award.
CLARE PASTORE received the 2024 Wage Justice Center’s Founders Award, in honor of her commitment to the mission of the organization and service to the community.
MARCELA PRIETO’s book, The Morality of the Laws of War: War, Law, and Murder (Oxford University Press), has been selected for the American Society of International Law’s 2024 Lieber Prize, which recognizes an outstanding book in the field of law and armed conflict.
BERNADETTE ATUAHENE received the Law and Society Association’s 2024 Best Article Prize for her paper, “A Theory of Stategraft” (NYU Law Review, 2023). ATUAHENE also convened leading scholars and experts from across the globe for the Dignity Taking & Dignity Restoration Conference, celebrating the 10th anniversary of her influential book on South Africa’s Land Restitution Program.
D. DANIEL SOKOL received the Concurrences 2024 Antitrust Writing Award (General Antitrust category) for his co-authored paper, “Towards A Technological Overhaul of American Antitrust,” which was published in the journal Antitrust.
“The book is designed to provide an empirically and economically informed foundation for policymakers in the U.S., E.U., and other jurisdictions in designing competition and intellectual property policies that promote growth and innovation as we transition to the wireless-enabled Internet of Things that will encompass a broad range of industries from communications to automotive and more,” says Barnett, director of the Media, Entertainment and Technology Law program at USC Gould. “Toward this end, the book prioritizes evidence-based policy solutions grounded in the decades-long historical record of global licensing markets in wireless technologies.”
CAMILLE GEAR RICH (“Beyond Box Checking: Using Anti-racist Imagination to Retool Tomorrow’s Admissions Processes”) and NICKEY WOODS (“Law School and Athletics: An Innovative Pipeline Program”) have been named Book Series Collaborators for the Penn State Dickinson Law School Antiracist Development Institute.
AMBER KENNEDY MADOLE won the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) Spectrum Article of the Year Award for her paper, “Law Librarians for Inclusive Legal Citation.”
ROBIN CRAIG contributed to the law professors’ amicus brief, which was accepted by the U.S. Supreme Court, in Texas v. New Mexico & Colorado, in which the states seek the Court’s approval to their settlement of the Rio Grande Compact conflict.
DEAN FRANITA TOLSON (below) was honored with the 2023 Excellence in Academia Award from the Black Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles.
Jonathan Barnett
Beyond Academia
Professor Gregory Keating’s latest book wins 2024 Civil Justice Scholarship Award, recognizing its impact in U.S. justice system
By Matthew Kredell
Gregory Keating never liked the characterization of civil tort attorneys as ambulance chasers.
In his book Reasonableness and Risk: Right and Responsibility in the Law of Torts (Oxford University Press), the USC Gould School of Law professor writes about how tort law is not fundamentally about sticking it to rich corporations. At its core, the law of torts is about protecting ordinary people against harm.
Personal injury lawyers, sometimes disparaged as opportunists who profit from innocent corporate mistakes, serve an important role in the civil justice system. Although Keating meant his book to counter the economic view of tort law in academia, it resonated with civil attorneys in the field.
Keating’s book won the National Civil Justice Institute’s 2024 Civil Justice Scholarship Award in February.
“Winning this award shows you’ve reached an important audience among lawyers and are not just writing for an academic audience,” Keating says. “In academic communities, this is a significant book. When you write a book that argues against the economic idea that tort law is a system for pricing injuries to life and limb, you don’t
expect to get a large audience. Finding out I connected with practicing lawyers is the real value of this award.”
The Civil Justice Scholarship Award is given annually to one scholarly book that supports the American civil justice system. Keating, who joined the USC Gould School of Law faculty in 1991 and is the William T. Dalessi Professor of Law and Philosophy, attended the award reception in Austin, Texas.
In contrast to criminal wrongs punishable by the state, torts are civil wrongs for which those harmed may seek remedy. Modern tort law centers around accidental harm, such as auto accidents, airplane crashes, oil spills, and the health crisis caused by tobacco and opioid addiction.
“It seems like a mistake to think of life and limb just as things that can be bought and sold in the market, which is really the underlying idea of the economic view of tort law,” Keating says. “When death, devastating injury, and other forms of serious harm are at stake, fundamental interests of persons are implicated. Long-dead scholars of the common law had it right when they compared tort to constitutional law. Constitutional law protects people from harm at the hands of the State. Tort law protects us from harm at each other’s hands.”
In the book, Keating seeks to rediscover the vital role of tort law, which he argues is essential to articulate and enforce people’s obligations to respect each other’s physical and psychological integrity, property, privacy, freedom of action and reputation.
“People need safety to have happy and successful lives,” Keating says. “They need to be protected from harm, and people who commit harm should be responsible for cleaning it up.”
In February, Reasonableness and Risk was the subject of a symposium held at USC and jointly sponsored by the USC Center for Law and Philosophy Book Symposium and Hebrew University in Jerusalem. Keating presented the book internationally as an annual endowed lecturer at Western Law in Ontario, Canada, last September, at a workshop at the University of Oxford last November, and in March at a conference devoted to the book at the University of Girona in Spain.
Gregory Keating, right, was presented the 2024 Civil Justice Scholarship Award by Gale Pearson, center, along with Suzette M. Malveaux, left.
ALUMNI SPOTLIGHTS From the Gould Alumni Newsletter
Stepping up to an ‘awesome responsibility’
USC Gould alumna Brietta Clark (JD 1999) made history when she was named the 19th dean of Loyola Marymount University (LMU) Loyola Law School (LLS). She became the first woman and the first Black dean of LLS in its 103-year history.
“It does feel like an awesome responsibility to know I’m the first Black person in this position, the first woman in this position, because I am aware of the powerful effect this can have for groups that have been underrepresented in the legal profession and in academia. Seeing others who look like you, and who have come from similar backgrounds, achieve this level of success can help inspire underrepresented students to believe in their own leadership potential and to resist the idea that there is some limit to what they can achieve,” says Clark.
At USC Gould, Clark found encouragement from professors who saw her potential in legal education.
“They were the ones who talked to me about the opportunity to go into academia,” she says.
— Julie Riggott
Read the full story at gould.law/brietta-clark
Human rights by other means
In 2022, Betsy Popken (JD 2010), was named executive director of the Human Rights Center at UC Berkeley School of Law.
That’s quite a coup for a young white-collar attorney working in the San Francisco offices of Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLC.
But Popken, 39, has carved an unusual career path combining Big Law practice and international human rights work.
Since graduating from USC Gould, Popken has been a key player in highstakes peace negotiations in Geneva. Through continuous involvement with the Public International Law & Policy Group (PILPG), she has contributed to ceasefire talks and political process efforts for Yemen, Syria, Darfur and Libya. She has trained negotiators in Istanbul, Doha, Riyadh and Beirut in constitution drafting, electoral processes, transitional justice. She had advised Ukraine’s Parliament, served on the World Economic Forum’s steering committee for the responsible use of technology, and was a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations.
All of which made Popken the ideal candidate to lead Berkeley’s Human Rights Center.
— Diane Krieger
Read the full story at gould.law/betsy-popken
The Real Deal
Commercial real estate and social justice action don’t ordinarily fit in the same bucket, but Andrés Cantero Jr. (JD 2016) has managed to blend his passion for both.
The 33-year-old real estate attorney with Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, together with life partner Sam Prater, launched Los Angeles Room & Board. The pioneering nonprofit serves 200 college-aged students wrestling with housing insecurity.
“And we’re barely scratching the surface,” Cantero says. “There’s so much need.” Studies show one in five California community college students experience homelessness.
Founded in 2019, LARNB is a studentfocused nonprofit in Los Angeles, with more than $30 million in funding from the State of California, plus millions more in grants from about 30 private philanthropies, working in partnership with the Los Angeles Community College District.
LARNB operates three housing complexes — in East Hollywood, Boyle Heights and Westwood.
Supported through continuous enrollment in post-secondary education, residents receive one-on-one case management that takes into account each student’s unique situation and develops a personalized plan.
— Diane Krieger
Read the full story at gould.law/andres-cantero
Brietta Clark
Betsy Popken
Andrés Cantero Jr.
A CELEBRATION TO REMEMBER
USC Gould School of Law celebrated the Class of 2024 on May 10, conferring hundreds of degrees on graduates from the JD and master’s programs, while the first four graduates from the Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies program earned their diplomas.
During the JD and Undergraduate commencement ceremony, California Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu gave the keynote address, and Elizabeth Atlee (JD 1993), senior vice president and chief ethics and compliance officer of CBRE and USC Gould Board of Councilors member, delivered the keynote address for the Graduate & International Programs ceremony. Student speakers were Student Bar Association President Soleil Montemurro, 3L Class President Madeleine Hoye, Master of Laws grad Alice Yiyi Ma, and undergraduate representative Allea Nojadera.
Cheers To The
Law degree in hand, grad heads to Washington, D.C. for Honors Program
By Melissa Masatani
Audrey Koontz
In 2023, Audrey Koontz spent the summer in Washington, D.C. as an intern in the Occupational Safety and Health Division of the U.S. Department of Labor. One year later, she heads back to the nation’s capital as a member of USC Gould School of Law’s Class of 2024 and with a position as an Honors Attorney for the Department of Labor.
What are your plans after graduation?
I am so excited to return to Washington, D.C., and the Department of Labor! The Honors Program offers so many unique learning opportunities, and the museums and embassies host interesting events throughout the year. I look forward to being a part of it.
What will you remember most fondly from your time at Gould?
I will always remember how, when we were going through our first few weeks of cold-calls as 1Ls, my classmates went out of their way to
give kudos to the students who were called on. That sense of community has remained with me ever since. At the same time, participating in Gould’s externship program and the Workers’ Rights Clinic helped me explore my areas of interest while actively giving back to my community — they were the highlight of my educational experience.
Is there anything else you want people to know about you?
I am incredibly thankful to my parents and sister for always supporting me on my educational journey, and to my aunt and uncle for making L.A. my home away from home.
Graduates
Entrepreneur takes career to new heights with master’s degree
By Melissa Masatani
As an entrepreneur in the entertainment and fashion industries, Leslie W. Tsang has been charting her path across Hong Kong. Now, with a Master of Studies in Law and a certificate in Entertainment Law and Industry through USC Gould School of Law’s online program, she is poised for new heights as a member of the Class of 2024.
What are your plans after graduation?
I am a founder of Fineapple Asia, an artiste management company in Hong Kong. With the knowledge I have gained, after graduation, I will continue to grow my company, and explore future contribution in global entertainment companies in bridging Asia and Hollywood markets.
How is your degree going to help your career/future plans?
My Master of Studies in Law degree and Entertainment Law and Industry certificate provided immense knowledge and expertise in entertainment law. This deep understanding can enhance my career prospects as a specialist in the field, especially since I might be among the very few in Hong Kong with a background in entertainment law and the knowledge of how the Hollywood entertainment industry works. Attending a well-respected school like USC Gould School of Law can enhance professional credibility, and I believe my degree can open up doors to more opportunities on a global level together with networking opportunities, which can be valuable to my career and future plans.
Is there anything else you want people to know about you?
Other than being an artist manager, and now an MSL graduate, I also hold certification in graphic design from Parsons School of Design and am a designer for Movers & Cashmere, a cashmere fashion label that I founded in 2016. Perfect harmony in my left and right brain!
Leslie W. Tsang
Four undergraduates receive first bachelor’s degree from USC Gould School of Law
By Becca Speier
In the fall of 2022 , the launch of the Bachelor of Science in Legal Studies marked a significant milestone for the USC Gould School of Law. Now, almost two years later, the program has conferred its first four undergraduate degrees.
The degree program incorporates perspectives from multiple disciplines including psychology, sociology, history, philosophy and economics. It also covers a range of subject areas including private law, public law and international law. The goal of this program is to educate students on how law shapes modern culture and affects society, and how these forces, in turn, shape law.
“ We are proud to take part in providing them with a unique undergraduate legal education and to see them thrive as they move on to become our first alumni” —MADDY ZAMANY
This innovative program prepares students for industries that intersect with the law without having to be a practicing attorney. It enables students to be leaders in any industry they join. There are no industries that are not affected by the law, and being able to have a sense of how the law operates and its objectives gives students an invaluable framework.
Professor Robert Rasmussen, the faculty director of undergraduate education at USC Gould, reflected on the journey of the first students to complete this program.
“These students have learned an appreciation for how law works in our society — how law shapes society and how society shapes law,” Rasmussen said. “By earning the Legal Studies degree, these students have built the foundation to be leaders in our society. Some will go on
to law school; others will go on to careers in business, government and the public interest. I expect great things from them in the future.”
The Undergraduate ceremony took place May 10 with the JD ceremony at the USC University Village Great Lawn.
Maddy Zamany, director of the program, echoed Rasmussen’s comments. She emphasized the honor this commencement is, not only for the undergraduate’s academic endeavors, but as a stepping stone to the future.
“It’s a time of celebration — an honor to be part of these students’ successful academic journeys,” Zamany said. “We are proud to take part in providing them with a unique undergraduate legal education and to see them thrive as they move on to become our first alumni.”
From left, Zahra Chaudhary, Madison Kumai and Yu (George) Yang, and Allea Nojadera, front, received the first four undergraduate degrees from USC Gould School of Law on May 10
HALE MOOT COURT
2024 Hale Moot Court Honors competition exhibits talent of Gould students
By Heidi Ried-Gonzaga
The final round of the Hale Moot Court Honors Program took place on March 1 with champion
2L Joseph Colarian winning the oral arguments. For 75 years, the Hale Moot Court Honors Competition has been held at USC Gould, in which JD students prepare for a year to compete. The competitors write appellate briefs during the fall semester and then compete in a series of oral rounds during the spring semester.
This year’s competitors delivered their arguments before a panel of presiding judges including the Hon. Richard R. Clifton, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, the Hon. Eunice C. Lee, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and the Hon. Gabriel P. Sanchez, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
“Participating in and winning the Hale Moot Court competition has been a highlight of my time at USC so far,” said Colarian. “It was an exciting challenge to think deeply about a real question of federal law currently being litigated in the Supreme Court. These kinds of opportunities represent the best part of legal education at Gould.”
Other finalists in this year’s competition were 2Ls Athena Tsianos, Benjamin Morain and Mitch Price.
3L Graham Smith served as this year’s Executive Board Chair of the program.
“The Hale Moot Court final is the culmination of a year’s hard work from many people including the Hale Moot Court board and competitors,” said Smith. “I learned a lot about what makes a leader effective and realized when you foster a spirit of engagement and excitement around an
activity, it can be infectious. It was great to work with the talented, passionate and selfless students that we have in the Hale Moot Court program.”
This year’s competition covered two topics: whether the plain language of the federal law that prohibits bribery and gratuities by a public official requires proof of a “quid pro quo” bribe to sustain a conviction; and, second, whether the trial court correctly denied a defendant’s motion asking to be allowed to call an expert to testify about the unreliability of eyewitness identifications.
“All the students in the Hale program did an absolutely extraordinary job this year,” said Professor Rebecca Lonergan, Hale Moot Court Honors Program faculty advisor. “They were well prepared, poised, and persuasive. The appellate judges who judged both the semi-final rounds and the final round all agreed that the students who argued before them were better than 90% of the attorneys who appear in front of them during real cases.”
As a reward for all of their hard work, the Hale Moot Court program competition winners, finalists, and some participants receive monetary prizes sponsored by generous donors including BARBRI, Anthony and Susan Taylor, LexisNexis, and the E. Avery Crary award, named after the late Judge Crary. The program also was supported by Phil and Charlene Bosl.
“I thank Professor Lonergan, the Hale Moot Court Executive Board, all competitors, as well as the faculty, lawyers and judges who generously gave of their time and feedback to all of us,” said Colarian.
Back row, from left, the Hon. Eunice C. Lee, the Hon. Richard R. Clifton, and the Hon. Gabriel P. Sanchez. Front row, from left, Athena Tsianos, Joseph Colarian, Benjamin Morain and Mitch Price.
A Global Network
LLM grads mentor current students through the USC China Career Ambassador Program
By Julie Riggott
USC Gould’s Master of Laws (LLM) is only a one-year program, but that’s long enough to have a substantial impact for graduates like Nick Shu (LLM 2011).
“My time at Gould School of Law instilled in me a sense of community and a desire to give back,” says Shu, equity partner at Han Kun Law Offices in Shanghai. “As an alum, I felt a strong connection to the school and a responsibility to support its students and graduates in their professional journeys. Joining the USC China Career Ambassador Program provided me with a structured platform to contribute my expertise and experiences, allowing me to make a meaningful impact on the next generation of legal professionals.”
The USC China Career Ambassador Program is an initiative of USC China Career Services, which is dedicated to the career development of USC students interested in opportunities in China. Shu joined the program in January 2023.
A seasoned professional, Shu enjoys sharing his career journey with aspiring young professionals. He previously worked as a tax consultant at a Big Four accounting firm; practiced law at White & Case LLP, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, and other major PRC law firms in Beijing and Shanghai; and served as the director of corporate development at Pinduoduo Inc., a leading e-commerce group. He currently has three mentees in the program.
“My role primarily involves providing personalized career guidance and assisting them in refining their resumes to better align with their professional goals,” he says. “I aim to help them navigate their career paths more efficiently and avoid common pitfalls. Witnessing their growth and progress as they begin to form a solid framework for their future endeavors is immensely rewarding.”
Tony He (LLM 2012), a partner with Dentons Shanghai LLP, has been a mentor with the USC China Career Ambassador Program since 2022. During his year in the LLM program, he recognized and appreciated the strong Trojan spirit. And that became his inspiration to stay connected and give back.
“(I wish that) my humble opinion and little experience can help other Trojans,” he says.
He’s mentee, Siling Lin (LLM 2024), said: “I was very eager to chat with Attorney He about long-term goals and short-term goals. Mr. He was very patient in describing the pros and cons of each of my choices, and he used his experiences and insights to explain to me what my core competencies as a lawyer should be. I am very, very grateful to him.”
As an LLM student, Shu participated in events like Trojans in China and webinars hosted by USC China Career Services, which exposed him to a vast network and resources for alumni engagement.
“I am grateful for the opportunities provided by USC and its extensive network, which have enabled me to connect with like-minded individuals and make a positive impact,” Shu says. “I believe that fostering a culture of mentorship and collaboration is essential for the continued success of alumni and current students alike.”
Top: Nick Shu
Bottom: Tony He
COMBINING HER PASSIONS
USC
Gould alumna Aysha Pamukcu leads the charge for racial justice and health equity
By Kaitlyn McQuown
Aysha Pamukcu (JD 2011) first imagined herself becoming a writer when she was a child. She did become one, in a sense, and presently as Policy Fund Director at the San Francisco Foundation, she is one of the voices leading the charge to close the racial wealth gap and achieve health equity.
“I came to realize over time that what was really animating me was storytelling,” Pamukcu says. “It shows up now, especially as I’m trying to convince folks to make new alliances and partnerships. It’s the ability to paint a picture for people so they can see themselves in places and movements where they don’t normally show up.”
The 2011 graduate from USC Gould School of Law has dedicated her career to combining her passion for social justice and public interest law, and began her trajectory when she joined the International Human Rights Clinic (IHRC), founded by then-USC Gould Professor Hannah Garry, in its inaugural year. Since then, Pamukcu has gone on to lead philanthropic and policy-driven efforts to address the growing disparities in how well and how long people live.
At the IHRC, Pamukcu worked with judges at the war crimes tribunal in Cambodia, the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia (ECCC), and later moved to the country to continue working with the Court on site.
“It was a really sobering reminder of the power and the limitations of the law,” she said. “I became interested in how far we can push the law and how we can use it as a tool of justice, but also where it falls short and how we need to essentially supplement the law with the learnings and the skills of other disciplines.”
Upon her return from Cambodia, she worked for a civil rights nonprofit, The Greenlining Institute, at the intersection of civil rights and economic justice. As she began collaborating with different teams, it became clear that different fields were talking about similar challenges in very different ways.
“In the public health world, you have ‘the social determinants of health.’ But other groups may call that the ‘racial wealth gap.’ What we were actually talking about were the same structural issues, but we weren’t using the same language to talk about them, and we certainly weren’t using the same tools to address them.”
Though she had no formal public health experience at the time, she used this wisdom in her next role as Health Equity Lead & Senior Attorney at ChangeLab Solutions, where she developed legal and policy innovations to help eliminate unjust health disparities. The daughter of immigrants — her mother from the Philippines and her father from Turkey — she grew up in the Bay Area and saw firsthand the unequal access and distribution of resources.
Inspired by her professional and personal experience, Pamukcu collaborated with UC Davis Law Professor, Angela P. Harris, to publish The Civil Rights of Health in the UCLA Law Review, to answer what would happen if public health practitioners, civil rights lawyers, and social justice advocates worked together to share their knowledge and work towards common goals.
Pamukcu says grassroots advocates are essential in helping academics and lawyers stay grounded. “They expand our imagination for what can be possible — you can’t legislate what you can’t imagine.”
In her current role at the San Francisco Foundation, she seeks to encourage philanthropy to embrace its role as a changemaker. “On my best day, I hope to not only tell a story about the future people want to see, but how they can be a part of that and what their role is in creating that future.”
Reflecting on her time at Gould, Pamukcu acknowledges the importance of extracurricular opportunities in helping her to envision the possibilities for using a law degree in a nontraditional way. She hopes that current students, especially those from underrepresented communities, will take away that there is a place for them in law school and to seek out mentors who can illuminate paths they may never have imagined.
Aysha Pamukcu
IN MEMORIAM
MARSHALL BRUCE GROSSMAN (JD 1964), passed away on Sept. 30, 2023, following a 10-year battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 84.
A native of Omaha, Neb., Grossman moved to Los Angeles in 1943 when his father became the director of the Hollywood USO. He attended Fairfax High School and went on to UCLA and USC Gould, where he graduated Order of the Coif.
After graduation from law school, he joined the law firm of Weber, Schwartz and Alschuler, where he won one of the first consumer class action lawsuits in the country against the Playboy Club. Grossman stayed with the firm for more than 40 years. In 2013 he joined Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe LLP, and retired in January 2020.
A nationally recognized trial lawyer, Grossman’s clients included Apple, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Estee Lauder, and the University of Southern California as well as celebrities including Steven Spielberg, J.K. Rowling and Clint Eastwood. He served as a member of the California Coastal Commission and the California Commission on Judicial Performance. Grossman was involved in several community organizations, chaired the Concerned Lawyers for Soviet Jewry and co-chaired the annual Chabad Telethon for several years.
He is survived by Marlene, his wife of 61 years, children Rodger and Leslie, and grandchildren Sofia, Goldie and Max.
MICHAEL KERR (JD 1996), 53, of Naperville, Ill., passed away unexpectedly on Dec. 13, 2023.
A native of Joliet, Ill., Kerr graduated from Joliet Catholic High School and Stanford University before receiving his law degree from USC Gould.
A longtime lawyer and lobbyist, Kerr specialized in banking law. He loved arguing politics, drinking scotch and telling tales with his family and friends. He is survived by his wife DeAnn; his sons Anthony and Aidan; his daughter, Andrea (Drea); and his mother, Kathy Kerr.
After graduating from North Hollywood High School in 1950, Windham enlisted in the Army and served in Japan during the Korean War. He returned home and enrolled at UCLA, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1955. Four years later, he graduated from USC Law School, where he received the Law Alumni Award and Order of the Coif.
Windham practiced law in Los Angeles and later relocated to Montana in 1992, where he worked in private practice and as chief and associate justice of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribal Appellate Court. He eventually retired in Portland, Ore.
Windham leaves behind his wife, Jeanne; son, Mark; and many family and friends.
HARRY HATHAWAY (JD 1962), passed away on Oct. 5, 2023, following a long illness. He was 86.
Born in Pasadena, Hathaway attended South Pasadena High School and the University of California, Berkeley, where he played football and was a member of the U.S. Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. He went on to earn his law degree from USC. While in law school, Hathaway met Betty “Betsy” Falkenburg of San Marino, Calif. The two were married in 1962.
He passed the bar in 1963 and entered the U.S. Army as a commissioned officer, later rising to the rank of captain in 1964 and then aide-de-camp to the commanding general of the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps.
Hathaway earned a reputation as a talented business and corporate transactional lawyer and eventually became the managing partner at the LA. office of Hill, Farrer & Burrill LLP. He became a partner with Norton Rose Fulbright LLP, managing the L.A. office for many years. He retired from the firm in 2016.
During his career, Hathaway held volunteer leadership positions in many professional organizations. He joined the Young Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association and later became a member of its board of directors. He was a member of the ABA House of Delegates, ABA Journal Board of Editors, and the ABA’s Finance Committee and Board of Governors. He served as president of the American Bar Endowment, the ABA Retirement Fund, and the Chancery Club of Los Angeles. Hathaway eventually became president of the ABA and the Los Angeles County Bar Association, which was the largest local voluntary bar association in the nation at the time.
Hathaway served on the board of trustees and executive committee for the UC Berkeley Foundation, and he was a member of the Berkeley Fellows Honorary Society.
He leaves behind his wife Betsy, sons Mark and David, daughters-in-law Tami and Wendy, and grandchildren Cate, Grace, Benett, and Audrey.
CLINICAL PERSPECTIVES 2024
The USC International Human Rights Clinic traveled to Kyrgyzstan in December 2023 to complete a report as part of the Clooney Foundation for Justice’s TrialWatch Initiative.
ASYLUM ACHIEVED
Immigration Clinic law student Jaya Loharuka wins a sensitive case for an Ethiopian woman seeking asylum in the U.S.
By Diane Krieger
Third-year law student Jaya Loharuka calls her work in USC Gould School of Law’s Immigration Clinic “the best and most fulfilling part of my experience at Gould.”
In a life-changing case, Loharuka was able to win asylum for a woman from Ethiopia.
Testifying that she had been tortured and sexually assaulted in her homeland because her father was a political dissident, the Ethiopian woman was facing deportation from the U.S. Loharuka had her back.
Loharuka, who graduated in May, appeared on the record before an immigration judge and conducted the hearing in December 2023 that would determine the 34-year-old’s fate.
Over the course of the four-hour asylum hearing, Loharuka answered all questions from the judge, conducted the client’s direct examination, and delivered the closing argument. She was supervised by clinical co-director and USC Gould Professor Niels Frenzen, an attorney specializing in immigration and refugee law.
In a bench ruling, the judge ended up granting the woman asylum — despite questioning the veracity of some of the woman’s claims.
Representing the Ethiopian woman in court was the kind of golden opportunity provided to second- and thirdyear law students who are accepted into the Immigration Clinic, which provides high-quality pro-bono legal representation to clients.
TWO-YEAR FELLOWSHIP
Loharuka, the daughter of two physicians who immigrated from India and the first in her family to go into law, will continue enjoying the fruits of working at the Immigration Clinic.
As a recipient of the prestigious Immigrant Justice Corps fellowship, she will work full time at the clinic for two years after she earns her law degree.
“I really wanted to be able to stay at the clinic,” Loharuka says. “It’s a unique opportunity.”
And although many of Loharuka’s fellow graduating law students will be stepping into jobs that will pay triple her salary, she wouldn’t have it any other way.
“This type of legal victory — assuring this woman, for the first time in six years, is not going to be deported somewhere where she will face certain harm, torture or death‚ makes the whole thing worth it for me,” Loharuka says.
HIGH-IMPACT CASES
Loharuka got interested in law when she was an undergraduate at UCLA, where she majored in American Literature with a minor in Civic Engagement, a new program that focuses on how public policies affect local communities.
Before joining USC Gould, she completed an internship at the Compton Courthouse, where she assisted people in divorce, child custody, and eviction cases who couldn’t afford to hire an attorney and had to represent themselves.
“I’ve learned a lot of valuable lessons at the USC Immigration Clinic about how to properly communicate with clients and manage their expectations during difficult times,” Loharuka says of her time at USC Gould. “These people face a system completely rigged against them, so it’s important for me to be in a position of continually advocating for them.”
Jaya Loharuka
A SECOND-CHANCE SENTENCE
Post-Conviction Justice Project 3L student and legal fellow help client earn freedom through new California law
By Melissa Masatani
For most people, New Year’s Day simply marks the beginning of a new calendar year. But this year, January 1 meant something very different for Tony Huynh, as a law came into effect in California that led him to USC Gould School of Law’s Post-Conviction Justice Project (PCJP) and to newfound freedom.
“AB 600 gives judges discretion to resentence incarcerated people, such that the ‘interests of justice’ may be served by reducing inequitable, disparate sentences,” says Danielle Wilkins (JD 2022), PCJP’s clinical legal fellow. “Judge Daniel J. Lowenthal received a letter from Tony (Huynh) on January 2nd, the day after the law went into effect. Mr. Huynh’s rehabilitation and accomplishments impressed the court, so he scheduled the case for a hearing and contacted PCJP.”
Led by Co-Directors Heidi Rummel and Michael Parente (JD 2012), PCJP is a clinical program at USC Gould that trains law students to advocate for their clients at parole hearings, post-conviction habeas and resentencing petitions, and parole readiness workshops in prisons. Wilkins has spent the past two years working with the clinic as a
fellow, expanding PCJP’s in-prison workshop offerings and supporting students representing clients.
For Huynh’s case, PCJP had two weeks to present mitigation evidence and witnesses at a resentencing hearing, so Wilkins teamed up with 3L Shelby Enman, one of PCJP’s advanced students.
“I am interested in post-conviction work and so this case was really incredible to work on,” Enman says. “The client was amazing to work with and it was fascinating to learn the nuts and bolts of judge-initiated resentencings.”
Enman, who will be working in the Los Angeles Public Defender’s office post-graduation, says her experience working with Huynh’s resentencing and her two years with PCJP has been influential in her aim to pursue public interest work.
“The criminal justice legal system moves so slowly and it’s a long process working with parole clients,” she says. “But it was only a few weeks between when we started working on the resentencing hearing and when we met the client as he walked out of the prison gates. It was life-changing for him and exciting for me to see the court and the District Attorney’s Office recognize his hard work to rehabilitate.”
Although the new law grants judges broad discretion to consider resentencing, Wilkins says challenges remain for those who are waiting for an opportunity to present their case to a court.
“By doing this work, PCJP is filling a need for indigent representation that exists right now in L.A. County and beyond,” Wilkins says. “It is affirming when new opportunities to advocate for justice arise. Our ability to take advantage of them, and help achieve freedom for our clients, is a credit to Professor Heidi Rummel, who prepares and supports student lawyers to take on the challenge.”
From left, Danielle Wilkins, Post-Conviction Justice Project former client Tony Huynh and 3L PCJP student Shelby Enman pose for a photo at the clinic’s annual Freedom and Tacos Party.
REPORT CARD
International Human Rights Clinic partners with the Clooney Foundation for Justice TrialWatch Initiative to assess human rights proceedings in Kyrgyzstan
By Melissa Masatani
The USC Gould School of Law International Human Rights Clinic (IHRC), in partnership with the Clooney Foundation for Justice TrialWatch Initiative, has published a report on its fair trial rights findings for a human rights defender in Kyrgyzstan. The report, which was released on April 4, is a culmination of three years of work by the clinic’s law students, who monitored trial proceedings for Kamil Ruziev, a human rights defender based in Kyrgyzstan’s Issyk-Kul region. The report gives the trial a grade of C, citing multiple due process violations that resulted from a politically motivated case against Ruziev.
“A report of this length and intensity is not insignificant, and it has been a team effort to produce a comprehensive picture of Kamil Ruziev’s forgery trial as well as the political and legal climate surrounding proceedings,” says Professor Henna Pithia, Interim Director of the International Human Rights Clinic.
Pithia, who is a visiting clinical assistant professor of law at USC Gould, traveled in December 2023 to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan with 3L Pieter Keushkerian,
2L Mariam Daoud and Steve Swerdlow, the expert reviewer for the recently released report and a human rights lawyer and an associate professor of the practice of political science and international relations at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. The group met with Ruziev as well as government officials, the United Nations, the diplomatic community, and human rights activists during their visit, giving them the opportunity to gain on-theground expertise that informed the final report.
“It was clear from the reaction of (Ruziev), his family and colleagues, that they were impressed with the clinic, its students, and their determination and focus to see through a difficult report like this,” Swerdlow says.
“A few of the reasons I find this report is so important is that it will create an important record for historical posterity of the individual violations in this case, shed light on the broader challenges human rights defenders in Central Asia face, and ultimately serve as a call to action for the Kyrgyz government to uphold human rights and make Ruziev whole.”
“A report of this length and intensity is not insignificant, and it has been a team effort to produce a comprehensive picture of Kamil Ruziev’s forgery trial as well as the political and legal climate surrounding proceedings”
PROFESSOR HENNA PITHIA
The clinic began its work on this case in 2020, having agreed to work with the TrialWatch Initiative to monitor the proceedings and issue a report. Despite the challenges of monitoring a trial in Kyrgyzstan, translating reams of documents from Russian, and learning the intricacies of legal procedure in a postSoviet context, the team of students (spanning 2020 to present) dedicated countless hours to issue their findings.
“True human rights education means being in the field and being in contact with primary sources, so it’s extraordinary that Professor Pithia was able to make this trip a reality and ensure that the students had firsthand experience meeting with high-ranking officials in addition to human rights activists when producing this report,” Swerdlow says. “I was impressed that the clinic was willing to take on a project for a country that rarely makes the headlines, and on behalf of an activist far from Kyrgyzstan’s capital who for 20 years has been doing his best to serve victims of domestic violence and torture in his far-flung region of the country.”
Keushkerian, whose interest in human rights law is rooted in his family’s experience as victims of human rights abuses, says that the trip to Bishkek “gave us a clearer understanding of what the future may hold for human rights defenders in Kyrgyzstan. I came to law school with an interest in social justice lawyering, and working on Mr. Ruziev’s case has allowed me to put into practice skills that I have honed since the first day of law school.”
Daoud noted that meeting Ruziev and seeing his steadfast dedication to confronting human rights violations despite the past few years, was a reminder of the importance of remaining steadfast in advocacy for those in need, even when those efforts take years to bear fruit.
“Despite the slow progress and the long journey toward justice, he was adamant this work holds the potential for significant and far-reaching impacts,” she says. “His persistence is a testament to the importance of human rights work, reminding us that this work truly matters and that it will ultimately make a difference in someone’s life.”
From left, Henna Pithia, Steve Swerdlow, Kamil Ruziev, Pieter Keushkerian and Mariam Daoud meet in Kyrgyzstan in December.
PREPARED TO SOAR
Law student helps immigrantowned small business ‘Saunter’ through life
By Carren Jao
Positioned as a high-end luxury brand that offers comfortable smoking slippers for hardworking women, Saunter began as a dream business for first-generation Korean American sisters Joan and Alison Kim, but like many businesses, their primary concern was finances. “My biggest concern was the cost, like how would we even start a business?” Alison Kim says.
As part of setting up the business, Joan Kim figured legal considerations would cost the young company the most, so she dedicated herself to learning about the law by going to the L.A. Law Library, a community resource, which is where she learned about Michael Chasalow and the Small Business Clinic (SBC) he founded at USC Gould School of Law.
Through the clinic, the Kims were introduced to JD student Campbell Maier, a 2L who joined the program in 2023. A former president of the Fashion and Beauty Law club, Maier was a perfect fit for the needs of a young, ambitious, immigrant-owned company like Saunter. Saunter, in turn, provided a great opportunity for Maier to learn.
“The SBC is designed to provide ‘real world’ experiences for students,” says Chasalow, a clinical professor of law and director of the Small Business Clinic. While lessons at the clinic focus on practical things like forming LLCs or drafting agreements, the other part of the equation is to work with people. “A critical part of the education involves learning to work with a range of clients that have different personalities and different levels of sophistication and then to address the needs of those clients in a way that is useful and productive.”
It is a skill that Maier learned well partly because of the way the clinic was set up. “When you think about legal work, I think when you’ve never done it before, it sounds like a lot of reading and siloed activities. But Professor Chasalow really creates an environment where we can have discussions,” Maier says.
Maier joined the clinic in the summer, in which the first two weeks were dedicated to training. After receiving an introduction on the legal needs of small businesses, each student is assigned different clients to work with and a caseload to manage. As students encounter different issues with their clients, they are encouraged to share their experiences and learnings with their cohort, as well as Chasalow, creating a learning environment with a very satisfying practical application.
Maier added that the clinic and the healthy conversations she’s had about what to do in certain cases has taught her a valuable skill in her profession: how to be comfortable learning — to voice her opinions and to listen to both the teacher and her colleagues. “Conversation is so helpful in understanding the broader picture. You become better when you work with clients, when you draft contracts, when you’re willing to put yourself out on a ledge with [Professor Chasalow]. Maybe something’s wrong, but you’ll learn why it’s wrong, and I think that’s really important,” Maier says.
The Kim sisters and Maier have worked for a year now on many aspects of Saunter, from working on its operating agreement to drafting photographer contracts. Saunter and Maier are now working on an influencer agreement, which the company is planning to use in its next phase: marketing. By providing a stable legal foundation through contracts and agreements, the company’s work with Maier and the Small Business Clinic has prepared Saunter to soar. Joan says, “We feel stable and protected.”
Above right, sisters Alison and Joan Kim are the founders of Saunter, a small business that offers luxury footwear.
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE
Mediation Clinic students gain experience with youth in new collaboration
By Heidi Ried-Gonzaga
The USC Gould Mediation Clinic has started a new collaborative project in restorative justice.
Third-year law student Teodora Cupac initiated this collaboration with Centinela Youth Services, Inc. (CYS) to expand opportunities within the clinic for law students to work with youth in the justice system.
“Restorative justice for youth seemed to be the last piece that was missing from the clinic’s mission,” Cupac says. She joined the mediation clinic as a 2L, is now in the Advanced Mediation Clinic as a 3L, and also serves as Professor Lisa Klerman’s teaching assistant.
“It has been in our vision plan for many years to develop a restorative justice program as part of our work in the Mediation Clinic,” says Klerman, clinical professor of law and director of the Mediation Clinic. “It allows us to be able to address disputes in a uniquely impactful way, to the benefit of the youth involved, those who were harmed, the USC mediators who learn valuable skills in the process, and the community at large. I am delighted to see it come to fruition.”
Soon after Cupac contacted CYS, they trained her as a Victim-Offender Restitution Services (VORS) mediator. VORS helps youth who have committed a criminal offense and the victim of their offense with the goal of providing restitution for the harm caused.
“It is about bringing humility back into the criminal justice system,” Cupac says. “This restorative process creates reflectiveness for the youth, space to forgive, and helps the community heal.”
The Mediation Clinic hopes to expand on this collaboration with CYS so that future clinic students can gain the same experience with restorative justice.
“CYS has greatly appreciated having Teodora mediate with our Restorative Justice Program,” says Richard Deleon, Centinela Youth Services Assistant Program Director. “Teodora’s passion for the work is demonstrated in how well she’s facilitated mediations as well as her commitment to her own growth as a mediator. CYS looks forward to further collaboration with USC’s Mediation Clinic and welcomes any students with the same commitment and passion as Teodora has demonstrated.”
Cupac has learned from her work with Centinela Youth Services that helping young people deal with the adversity associated with exposure to the criminal justice system has its challenges but is extremely rewarding in the end. “Both parties [youth and victim] are heard and come up with a resolution,” Cupac says. “These victims are minors and should be treated that way. The mistakes made as a youth don’t need to follow them through their whole life.”
Cupac already knew she wanted to be a litigator when she started law school, so it was natural that she joined the Mediation Clinic at Gould. As a graduating 3L this May, Cupac will work as a litigator on the business trials team at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP in New York after she takes the bar exam this summer.
“I recommend involvement in the Mediation Clinic to any law student at Gould,” Cupac says. “Professor Klerman gives us opportunities that are unmatched with the cases we get to be involved in. This experience has taught me things that will stay with me after law school.”
Teodora Cupac
By Kaitlyn McQuown
USC Gould School of Law Housing Law and Policy Clinic (HLPC) was founded in the Fall of 2022, and since then has served more than 500 individuals through direct tenant legal services, Know Your Housing Rights workshops, direct community assessments and policy advocacy. The clinic has carried out a vision to serve low-income tenants in Los Angeles, primarily south of downtown, working alongside local organizations and local legal aid attorneys, organizers and council office staff members.
Founded by USC Gould Clinical Associate Professor of Law Deepika Sharma, JD Class of 2024 students Kiara Jackson, Havyn Quigley and Lo Wong are the first cohort of students who joined the HLPC at its inception.
“It’s been especially rewarding to see Kiara, Havyn and Lo grow from being students in their first year to growing into leaders in their last year,” Sharma says. “Over the past two years, in addition to witnessing them expertly navigate the complex statutory scheme of tenant protections, I saw each of them gain confidence in expressing their views on strategy and bringing their own voice to their individual cases.”
Quigley credits the clinic with being one of the most memorable parts of her time at USC Gould.
“Having the opportunity to work closely with a professor for two years has been integral to my law school experience. I truly feel like I have a mentor and someone I can come back to talk to even when I leave Gould,” Quigley says. “All the clinic students work as a team on everything that we do, and it has fostered such special relationships. What I will remember most looking back on law school are my experiences working with tenants alongside Professor Sharma, Kiara, and Lo in this clinic!”
PAVING THE WAY
Inaugural cohort reflects on two years of Housing Law and Policy Clinic
Jackson’s interest in housing law stemmed from her experience as a founding educator for an elementary school in Compton, where she observed that students experiencing challenges in their housing were adversely impacted while at school.
“When I came to law school, I was looking for a place where I could learn more about housing, because the root causes of educational inequities and opportunity gaps were so important to me,” Jackson says.
Wong notes that the work of the clinic employs an empowerment model that enables tenants to continue to advocate for themselves in the future.
“We try to help build the community by teaching them the law and providing them with tools and resources they can share with other members in their community,” Wong says.
As they prepare to transition into their legal careers, these three graduating students feel poised to carry forward the clinic’s commitment to public service. Jackson plans to return for a semester as a fellow for the clinic and subsequently go into real estate transactional law, while Wong and Quigley will join corporate firms. While they plan to follow different paths following law school, they are dedicated to prioritizing housing justice in the private sector and through pro bono work and are honored to have paved the way for the future of the clinic.
“I was inspired by the idea of an inaugural clinic where I got the chance to be a part of something brand new that promised me the opportunity to grow with it,” Wong says. “Legacy is a big word, but I believe the work we’ve completed will serve as a solid foundation for the clinic to evolve from here on.”
Kiara Jackson, Havyn Quigley and Lo Wong
ADDING THEIR VOICE
Two students in the Intellectual Property & Technology Law Clinic (IPTLC) research, write, and file amicus curiae brief in copyright case on behalf of international nonprofit organizations.
By Greg Hardesty
When USC Gould School of Law recessed for winter break in December 2023, two students in the Intellectual Property & Technology Law Clinic (IPTLC) kept working.
Their task: Finalize a 28-page amicus curiae brief, developed over the course of the semester, and file it with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
The brief was filed in Hachette Book Group v. Internet Archive on behalf of Wikimedia Foundation, Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, and Creative Commons. Its focus was protecting the ability of nonprofit organizations to make unlicensed, fair uses of copyrighted works under 17 U.S.C. § 107.
LEARNING EXPERIENCE
The legal research and writing that went into the brief was challenging, say IPTLC students Anna Higgins and Zachary Hardy, but it was also rewarding and has helped prepare them for their future careers as intellectual property attorneys.
“The brief writing process was a great experience and I look forward to applying the skills I’ve developed,” says Hardy, a third-year law student and former president of USC Gould’s Intellectual Property and Technology Law Society.
Says Higgins, a second-year law student: “It took a lot of time, but it was a fun and very interesting and great experience.”
Hardy and Higgins are two of eight students in IPTLC for the 2023-2024 academic year. The clinic, which is run by Clinical Associate Professor of Law Jef Pearlman, offers pro bono legal services to clients and provides an opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience.
“I’m proud of the team’s work on the brief and the excellent service they provided to our clients,” Pearlman says of Hardy and Higgins.
CASE ON APPEAL
The case centers on the Internet Archive’s Open Library project, which operates using controlled digital lending to digitize print copies of books — simulating a traditional library online. Because Internet Archive includes fundraising messages on its web pages, a New York district court determined that the program constituted “willful mass copyright infringement,” and was not protected by fair use. The case remains pending before the Second Circuit.
Typically, the clinic works on only one or two such amicus briefs each year, and they are among the most involved projects that the clinic students tackle.
In this case, “The lower court said, ‘Look, you’re a nonprofit and you do fundraising, and because of this, this use is commercial,’” Pearlman explains. “If the appellate court adopts that approach, that would mean all nonprofits are commercial all the time for copyright purposes, and that would be a real problem. That’s the core of the brief.”
Higgins and Hardy engaged in a lot of back-and-forth with clients, meeting directly with the Wikimedia Foundation’s inhouse counsel and communicating directly with counsel for all three clients.
“I’ve been extremely grateful to be a part of the Intellectual Property and Technology Law Clinic,” Hardy says. “I came to law school wanting to participate in the clinic, and it has been a great experience working on a broad range of matters for a wide variety of clients.”
Anna Higgins
Zachary Hardy
HONOR ROLL
Margaret Abernathy (JD 2014) was named general counsel and head of government relations at Impulse Space.
Ofunne Edoziem (JD 2008) released her young adult fantasy novel, The Herdsmen. Edoziem is a staff attorney in the Financial Services Litigation group at Reed Smith.
Joseph Egbule (JD 2012) joined FordHarrison LLP as an associate.
Ryan Appleby (JD 2013) was promoted to partner in the Litigation department of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP’s Los Angeles office.
Liz Atlee (JD 1993) was included in the Top 50 Diverse Board Candidate list by Equilar and the Nasdaq Center for Board Excellence. According to a press release, the list “is derived from nominations representing underrepresented demographic groups and candidates who do not yet serve on a public board.”
Charles G. Bakaly, IV (BA 2012, JD 2017) was named in the first “Lawdragon 500 X — The Next Generation” guide, “dedicated to those who will define where the legal profession of our country goes.”
Najeh Baharun (JD/MBA 2012) was elected as partner in the Finance department of Willkie Farr & Gallagher, LLP’s Los Angeles office.
Lindsay Barstow (JD 2013) has been elected as counsel in the Los Angeles office of Saul Ewing, LLP, where she is a member of the firm’s Real Estate division.
Tiffiny Blacknell (JD 2002) was named 2024 Barbara F. Bice Public Interest Law Foundation “Alumni of the Year.”
Marquis Cardwell (JD 2022) joined Paul Hastings LLP as an associate in the firm’s Los Angeles office.
Kimberly Carter (JD 2001) recently joined Epstein Becker & Green, P.C. as a member of the Los Angeles office. She is part of the Employment, Labor & Workforce Management practice group. In addition, Carter is chair of the Greater Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce’s Education Fund & Foundation.
Hannah Cary (JD 2014) was promoted to counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP in San Diego. She is a member of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions and Private Equity Practice and Corporate Department.
Jordan Cook (JD 2013) was promoted to counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP’s Costa Mesa office. She is a member of the firm’s Securities Litigation & Professional Liability practice and Litigation & Trial department.
Jeffery Elder (JD 2012) was promoted to chief counsel and director of legal services at the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG). Elder is a member of the USC Gould Alumni Association Los Angeles Committee.
Rose-Ellen Fairgrieve (JD 1995) received the Labor & Employment Lawyer of the Year Award for the U.S. from Lawyer Monthly.
Amber Finch (JD 2002) was named by the LA Business Journal to their “Top 100 Lawyers for Los Angeles.”
Nicole Gates (JD 2013) was promoted to vice president, Legal at Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P.
Ronald Gomez (JD 2020) was elected to the Los Angeles Mexican-American Bar Association’s board of trustees.
Steffi Hafen (JD 2010), a partner in Snell & Wilmer’s San Diego office, was included in the San Diego Business Journal’s 2023 “Top 100 Leaders in Law,” which recognizes outstanding legal professionals in the San Diego County legal community. In addition, she was selected as a finalist in the San Diego Business Journal’s “2023 Business Women of the Year Awards.”
Linda Hoos (JD 2001) has been named vice president of the Office for Equity, Equal Opportunity, and Title IX at the University of Southern California.
John Iino (JD 1987) USC trustee, past president of the USC Alumni Association Board of Governors and chair of the USC Alumni Presidents Council, served as the interim leader of the USC Alumni Association. Iino also received the 2023 Legacy of Leadership Award from the Multicultural Women Executive Leadership Foundation in November.
David Javidzad (JD 2020) and Camille Yona (BA 2015, JD 2019) announced their engagement. David proposed on campus with the USC Trojan Marching Band.
John Kreager (BA 2011, JD 2014) was elected partner in the Los Angeles office of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, where he works in the firm’s Private Funds division.
Faustina Lee (JD 2010) was elected partner in the Los Angeles office of Tucker Ellis, LLP. Lee’s practice focuses on intellectual property and Internet law.
Rebecca Lee (JD 2013) was promoted to counsel at Venable LLP’s Los Angeles office.
Richard Lockridge (JD 2015) was elected partner at McGuireWoods’ Charlotte, NC office.
Judge Margaret Mann (JD 1981) will receive the Outstanding Jurist Award for San Diego County by the County Bar Association. She will retire from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of California on April 1, 2024, following a 14-year term. Judge Mann is married to her fellow Gould alum, Michael O’Halloran (JD 1981)
William Meyers (JD 2009) was recognized in the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Leaders of Influence: Thriving in Their 40S 2023.”
Breann Swann Nu’uhiwa (JD 2004) was named counsel to Law360’s editorial advisory board for Native American Law.
Jennifer Sayles Okorn (JD 2013) was elected to partner in Gunderson Dettmer LLP’s Los Angeles office.
Juan Carlos Olivares (JD 2014) was promoted to counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP’s Los Angeles office. He is a member of the firm’s Banking Practice and Finance department.
Meghan McLean Poon (JD 2014) was named partner in the Palo Alto office of Morrison Foerster LLP, where she works in the firm’s Transactions department and the Patent Strategy + Prosecution group.
Andrew Morrell (JD 2021) joined Goldberg Segalla’s Los Angeles office as an associate in their Retail and Hospitality division.
Janani Rana (JD 2009), co-chair of the USC Gould Alumni Association of Orange County, has been elected partner at Minyard Morris LLP. In addition, she recently joined the Orange County Women Lawyers Association board of directors.
LaVonda Reed (JD 1997) was named dean of the University of Baltimore School of Law. Reed currently serves as dean of Georgia State University College of Law and will begin her new role July 1, 2024
Brandon Reilly (JD 2011) was promoted to Partner and Leader in the Privacy and Data Security Group at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP. Reilly works in the firm’s Orange County and San Diego offices.
Philip “Phil” Rudnick’s (JD 1961) article on his service in the U.S. Army, ‘Community Voices: America, thanks for my service!’ was published in The Bakersfield Californian
Michael Rumbolz (JD 1980) executive chair of the board of Everi Holdings Inc., has been named chairman of the American Gaming Association (AGA).
Justin Sanders (JD 2000) has been appointed to the Association of Business Trial Lawyers Board of Governors.
Zev Shechtman (JD 2009) joined Saul Ewing LLP as partner in the firm’s Los Angeles Bankruptcy & Restructuring practice.
Melody Shekari (JD 2014) was named executive director of the Women’s Fund of Greater Chattanooga.
Lenita Skoretz (JD 1996) was appointed as judge to the San Bernardino Superior Court by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Jessica Stephan (JD 2022) joined Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP’s Atlanta office as an associate in their Tax Controversy group.
Nathaniel Sussman (JD 2020) an associate at Munger, Tolles & Olson, authored a book chapter in Thomson Reuters’ 2024 edition of “eDiscovery for Corporate Counsel”, titled “Generative Artificial Intelligence: Opportunities, Challenges, and Considerations for Attorneys.”
Juthamas “Judy” Suwatanapongched (JD 2009) was named partner at Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP’s Los Angeles office, where she has been serving as a litigation attorney.
Ryan Walsh (JD 2013) was promoted to counsel at Latham & Watkins LLP’s office in Costa Mesa, Calif. He is a member of the firm’s Securities Litigation & Professional Liability practice and Litigation & Trial department.
Ryan Williams (JD 2001) was appointed to serve as a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge.
Dan Woods (BA 1974, JD 1977), a partner at Musick Peeler LLP, was recognized in the 2022 edition of Benchmark Litigation as a California Litigation Star and in Los Angeles Business Journal as one of the “Top 100 Lawyers of Los Angeles” for 2024
TALKS WITH DEAN TOLSON
USC Gould School of Law Dean Franita Tolson has hosted a number of events throughout the year, leading conversations with alumni of all backgrounds and specialties. These events included the 3rd Annual Ruth J. Lavine Women in Law Symposium in February and the Conversation With the Dean: “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in March.
Dean Tolson spoke with Lindsay Toczylowski (JD 2008), executive director of the Immigrant Defenders Center, about Toczylowski’s career, life and accomplishments during the annual discussion named for Lavine (LLB 1943), a pioneer in the legal practice who was an active supporter of USC Gould and its students until her passing in 2023
During the Conversation with the Dean, alumnus Dan Woods (JD 1977 ) spoke about his role in the federal court challenge to the U.S. military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, discussing his career and the work he put into the case, which eventually found that it was unconstitutional for servicemembers to be discharged based on their sexual orientation.
Top: USC Gould School of Law alumnus Dan Woods joined Dean Franita Tolson for a “Conversation With the Dean: The End of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’” held in March.
Bottom right: Dean Franita Tolson, third from left, and alumna Lindsay Toczylowski, third from right, were joined by Ruth J. Lavine’s family members, from left, Maura Covaci, Jack Dudley, Len Unger and Cathy Unger, during the 3rd Annual Ruth J. Lavine Women in Law Symposium in February.
SAVE THE DATE USC ALUMNI WEEKEND
NOVEMBER 14-16, 2024
USC UNIVERSITY PARK CAMPUS
Make plans to join USC for a full weekend of campus festivities this fall. The law school will host events for Gould graduates and a special reception for the Classes of 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019. You won’t want to miss this.
LLM IN MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT LAW
Expand key skills to gain a competitive advantage in entertainment:
▪ Negotiation and contract drafting
▪ Specialized knowledge of music, sports, and video game law
▪ Understanding of digital media, emerging technologies, and data privacy
Learn more at: gould.law/llm-in-entertainment
INNOVATION + IMPACT
USC GOULD ANNOUNCES THE LAUNCH OF NEW CUTTING-EDGE LLM PROGRAMS
Beginning Fall 2024, the USC Gould School of Law will offer two new, industry-leading Master of Laws (LLM) degrees: the LLM in Business Law and the LLM in Media and Entertainment Law. These new LLM programs are open to all applicants with a law degree (JD, LLB or equivalent).
LLM IN BUSINESS LAW
Explore a range of business law issues, including:
▪ Negotiations and transactions
▪ Latest trends and topics for startup companies and venture capital firms
▪ Core business expertise including taxation and bankruptcy
Learn more at: gould.law/llm-in-business
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WELCOME BACK CELEBRATION
Wednesday, September 25, 2024
5 p.m.
USC Alumni Park, University Park Campus
SC ALUMNI WEEKEND
Special Reunion Programming for Law School Classes of 1979, 1984, 1989, 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2019
