March 2022
UDC Law is No. 5 for Clinical Training!
UDC Law is No. 5 for clinical training in the 2023 U.S. News & World Report graduate school rankings! Our clinical program provides comprehensive legal training to our day and evening students.

All UDC Law students are required to participate in legal clinics where they work on ongoing cases with clients under the supervision of an attorney-professor. Students attending the day program must participate in a minimum of two clinics while evening students engage in an intensive clinic designed to accommodate their schedules.

One vital purpose of the UDC Law Clinical Program is to provide legal services to citizens of the District of Columbia who could not otherwise afford representation.
  
“I am tremendously proud of the terrific work being done by our clinics to address the justice gap in the country,” Dean Renée McDonald Hutchins said. “Our students graduate as better lawyers and unmet legal needs in the District and beyond are addressed through the incredible hard work and high-quality representation being provided by our clinical faculty and student attorneys.” 

Congratulations to our entire Clinical Program faculty and staff from the 2020-2021 school year!

Community Development Law Clinic
Jerome Hughes, Director and Assistant Professor of Law

General Practice Clinic
Tianna Gibbs, Co-Director and Associate Professor of Law
Andrew Budzinski, Co-Director and Assistant Professor of Law
LaShanda Taylor Adams, Professor of Law, Director Family Defense Section

Immigration and Human Rights Clinic
Lindsay M. Harris, Director and Professor of Law

Youth Justice Clinic
Mae C. Quinn, Director and Professor of Law

Legislation and Civil Rights Clinic
Marcy Karin, Director and Jack and Lovell Olender Professor of Law

Tax Clinic
Jacqueline Lainez Flanagan, Director and Associate Professor of Law

Whistleblower Protection Clinic
Tom Devine, Director (Clinic) & Legal Director (Government Accountability Project)

Lindsay M. Harris, Associate Dean, Clinical and Experiential Programs
Heather Molina, Managing Attorney (former)
Miguel Aguero, Staff Assistant, Clinical Support
Tamara McGuire, Staff Assistant, Clinical Support


50 for 50 pledge update!
ALUMNI NEWS
Three 2021 alumnae start nonprofit to increase access for students pursuing careers in law
Tonée Earle ’21Pejumae Guscott ’21 and Nancy Thach ’21 have founded The Social Justice Movement, Ltd. (SJM), a nonprofit aimed at bridging the gap between minority persons and professional spaces (e.g., legal field, medical field, elected office, home ownership). 

Maria Suarez ’19 creates book scholarship to assist Latinx students
Maria Suarez ’19 has created a book scholarship to support Latinx students in pursuit of their dreams and legal education.

SCHOOL NEWS
Students in the Immigration and Human Rights Clinic (IHRC) worked to obtain asylum for a voting rights activist from Nigeria. This case prompted the Clinic to develop a resource to assist asylees in understanding their rights. 

UDC Law Moot Court teams keep the awards coming!



Nija Bastfield, left, and Darby Hickey
First, Nija Bastfield 3L and Darby Hickey 3L won the 2022 D.C. Cup Moot Court Competition hosted by the D.C. Bar. Just two weeks later, Sarah Blazucki 3LE, Keria Hicks 2L, and Tatyana Safronova 3LE won the award for third best brief in the National Moot Court Competition in Child Welfare and Adoption Law.

Read D.C. Bar Writer in Residence and UDC Law 4L Akeem Earle's feature in Washington Lawyer
Akeem Earle 4L, D.C. Bar Writer in Residence, wrote "Black prosecutors: Changing the system from within" for the March/April 2022 issue of Washington Lawyer.

Earle is the second UDC Law student to hold the position; Tonée Earle (Jones) was the first last year.

Remembering Edgar Cahn; D.C. Council declares March 24, 2022, "Edgar Cahn Day in D.C.
The Council of the District of Columbia has declared March 24, 2022, Edgar Cahn Day in D.C., which would have been Dr. Cahn's 87th birthday.
UDC Law turns 50; celebrate our golden anniversary all through 2022
2022 marks 50 years of UDC Law. We’re celebrating all year with special events, programming and other opportunities to celebrate the pioneering legacy of UDC Law. Through these efforts, we’re rededicating ourselves to our mission of diversifying the legal profession and serving the residents of the District of Columbia.

Join us throughout the year as we commemorate key moments from our 50-year history and invite our extended community to share in our efforts to achieve our mission. We will highlight our integral role in the early days of clinical legal education and how our clinical program remains an innovative and powerful tool for serving D.C. residents who could not otherwise afford legal services. We’ll hear from some of the transformative voices that have shaped our history and those that will shape our future. We’ll honor figures with whom our story could not have been told, and we’ll tell the stories that will shape our next 50 years.

We invite you to celebrate alongside us by sharing your UDC Law memories on social media using #UDCLaw50.
UDC Law in the Media
Who: Prof. John Brittain
When: March 7
Why: Sheff v. O'Neill; school desegregation

Who: Dean Renee Hutchins
When: March 23
Why: SCOTUS hearings



Who: Prof. Shelley Broderick
When: March 3
Why: D.C. Department of Corrections


Who: Prof. Masai McDougall
When: March 29
Why: Police reform

Who: Prof. David Wolitz
When: March 10
Why: BLM; police convictions

Who: Prof. David Wolitz
What: ABC7
When: March 4
Why: SCOTUS hearings

Who: Susan Fortney '77
When: March 10
Why: SCOTUS hearings



Who: Renee Mims '18
When: March/April
Why: Gender bias in the law
Interested in volunteering with UDC Law?
 Check out these upcoming opportunities to help UDC Law.
  • Ceremonies to mark the conclusion of our graduates’ time in law school will begin with the David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony on Friday, May 13th at 2:00 pm, and will conclude with the conferral of degrees by President Mason at the University Commencement on Saturday, May 14th at 10:00 am. Alumni volunteers are needed to assist with the Hooding Ceremony which will be held in the Theater of the Arts. 
  • Admitted Student Day Dinner Reception, Wednesday, June 8, 2022, 6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. (up to 10 alumni). This event will be in-person. Alumni volunteers will participate in a meet and greet and will be among the first to give admitted students a warm Firebird welcome. 

If you are interested in volunteering for any of these opportunities, please email lawalumni@udc.edu.

The University of the District of Columbia requires wearing masks indoors at all facilities and strongly encourages social distancing. All attendees are required to provide proof of vaccination and negative COVID-19 test results before entering the event.
MEMORIALS
COMING UP AT UDC LAW
April 9
UDC Law SBA
Save the Date!
June 17, 2022
Cheers to You: Juneteenth Kickoff Celebration and Donor Appreciation Reception
UDC Law
UDC LAW HOODIES NOW AVAILABLE
If you, your organization or your company are hiring, we are happy to share with our alumni network. Please email lawalumni@udc.edu.
SUPPORT UDC LAW
Support our top-ranked clinical program today!
 
Take the 50 for 50 pledge by giving $50 or more to support UDC Law's Clinical Program and pledging 50 minutes of service to the District.
 
How to take the Pledge:
1. Make a gift at supportudclaw.com
2. Tell us you're taking the pledge by using #UDCLaw50 on Instagram or Facebook. The first 50 people to take the pledge will receive UDC gear!
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Washington, DC 20008
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