We are proud to welcome a new cohort of outstanding students to the UC Irvine Law community this fall! The Law School welcomes new J.D., LL.M. and Graduate Tax Program classes, totaling 213 new students, from 14 states and 13 countries.

Learn more about our students | View orientation photos

Clinic News: Prof. Paul Hoffman Part of Legal Team Honored with Public Justice's Trial Lawyer of the Year Award

Prof. Paul Hoffman, director of the Civil Rights Litigation Clinic, was part of the team that won Public Justice's Trial Lawyer of the Year Award for its work on John Doe I v. Exxon Mobil Corp., a case the team litigated for 22 years. The ruling held Exxon Mobil Corp. accountable for atrocities its contractors committed in an Indonesian village. Two UC Irvine Law clinic students helped Prof. Hoffman with a mock trial and with legal research near the end of the case.

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Center News: UC Irvine Law's New Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality Carries on Its Namesake’s Fight Against Discrimination, Social Injustice

In a UC Irvine feature, Prof. Robert S. Chang, the founder and director of the Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality, discusses the renowned center's move to UC Irvine Law and its exciting upcoming initiatives. The center recently filed its first amicus brief from its new home in a case about Florida's strict-liability felony-murder law.

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Faculty News: Fatherland, Play Co-Produced by Prof. Carrie Menkel-Meadow, Wins Seven StageSceneLA Awards

Fatherland, a play for which Prof. Carrie Menkel-Meadow and Dr. Robert G. Meadow are producers, has won seven 2023-24 StageSceneLA awards. The production, which opens in New York City in September, performed several sold-out shows during its run at the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles. Based on a real case, the play is about a son who turned in his father to law enforcement for his involvement in the Jan. 6 scaling of the U.S. Capitol.

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Clinic News: Civil Rights Litigation Clinic Scores Legal Victory as Panel Reverses, Remands Trial Court Decision

The 4th District Court of Appeal, Division 3 panel unanimously reversed and remanded a ruling by the Orange County Superior Court, finding that the trial court abused its discretion when it failed to stay the civil case of the clinic's unhoused, indigent client pending the outcome of her criminal case for the same conduct. Supervised by clinic director Paul Hoffman and lecturer Melanie Partow, UC Irvine Law clinic students began working on the case in 2022. Students Jim Henshaw and Sarah Salame argued before the panel.

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Student News: UC Irvine Law Hosts Visiting Students from Seoul National University and Korea University School of Law

The Law School was thrilled to welcome students from Seoul National University's Graduate School of Public Administration and Korea University School of Law to campus over summer as part of two innovative partnership initiatives. Hosted by the Korea Law Center, in both programs the students attended lectures, educational and cultural field trips, and networking events.

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Alumni News: Christina Zabat-Fran '12 Featured in Irvine Standard

In the profile, Christina, who serves as general counsel at Lanvin Group, shares "how UC Irvine's law school cultivated her entrepreneurial spirit and how she cold-called a fashion powerhouse to land her role as its corporate counsel."

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Meet the Law School Videos: Profiling our Community!

Introducing our new video series, "Meet the Law School," that highlights the stellar UC Irvine Law community. In each episode, you'll get to know individuals who contribute to the Law School's excellence, from our esteemed faculty and dedicated staff, to our ambitious students and successful alumni.

Watch the video series

Board of Visitors: Michael G. Ermer Featured in OC Lawyer Magazine

The profile, which dubs Michael "a modern day Atticus Finch," highlights UC Irvine Law's acclaimed Michael G. Ermer Pro Bono Program, which was renamed in 2023 to honor Michael's longtime commitment to public service and generous support of UC Irvine Law's pro bono program.

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Faculty News: Ari Waldman Featured in Law & Society Association Member Spotlight

With support from a Law & Society Association Programming Grant, Prof. Waldman is organizing a workshop series aimed at creating a unified framework for studying the intersection of law, technology, and society. The member spotlight delves into his vision for fostering collaboration among scholars, addressing the “pacing problem” between law and technology, and his commitment to leveraging socio-legal research for real-world impact.

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Clinic News: International Justice Clinic Advocates for a Journalist's Rights in Japan with UN Submission

In a letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression, the International Justice Clinic asserted that Japan’s continued rejection of independent journalist Yasuda Junpei’s passport application — following his return after three years in captivity in Syria — violates his right to movement and freedom of expression.

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Student News: 2L Victor Bao Featured in Inland Counties Legal Services' Summer Law Clerk Spotlight Series

Victor was one of ten members of Inland Counties Legal Services' 2024 Summer Law Clerk Program cohort. During the vigorous ten-week program, Victor learned about public interest litigation and legal aid, including client intake, interviews, research and discovery, document preparation, and so much more.

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Faculty Roundup: The Latest Highlights From UC Irvine Law's Faculty

UC Irvine Law faculty are top scholars, educators and active leaders in a vast array of fields. Read the latest about UCI Law's faculty, including recent scholarship, conferences and influential leadership across the world.

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Alumni News: UC Irvine School of Law Alumni Reconnect Across the U.S. for Summer Socials

Cheers to an amazing summer! Big thanks to all of our alumni who came out to this year's Summer Socials hosted by the UC Irvine Law Alumni Association and UC Irvine Anteaters in Law. Scheduled in nine cities over summer, from coast to coast, we came, we laughed, we reconnected – and kept that Anteater spirit alive.

Special shout out to our incredible city hosts: Katherine Basile '80 B.A. and B.S., Joe Boniwell '13, Shirley Diaz '18, Roman Ibragimov '15 B.S., Connor Jordan '22 Tax, Matt Lapin '96 B.A., Mark Leonard '93 B.A., Vladimir L’Ouverture ’20 Tax, Adriana Nunez '14, Melissa Patterson '03 B.S., Chris Valentino '18, and Jordin Wilcher ’21.

Learn more about the Summer Social Series

UC Irvine Law Achieves High Marks in New Rankings

Ranked No. 22 in the Nation for Faculty Scholarly Impact

The most cited scholars include Professors Mehrsa Baradaran, Mario Barnes, Victor Fleischer, Andrew Gold, Dalié Jiménez, Stephen Lee, Christopher Leslie, Carrie Menkel-Meadow, Anthony R. Reese, L. Song Richardson, Ari Ezra Waldman and Christopher Whytock, according to Sisk et al.'s 2024 Scholarly Impact Study and Brian Leiter's Law School Reports.

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Ranked No. 5 in the Nation for Greatest Resources for Minority Students

UC Irvine Law is No. 5 in the nation for the greatest resources for minority students, according to a new ranking by Princeton Review.

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Ranked No. 24 in the Nation for Median Annual Earnings Net of Debt Payments

UC Irvine Law is No. 24 in the nation — and No. 6 in California — for graduates’ annual earnings net of debt payments four years following law school graduation, according to a new report by Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce.

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UC Irvine Law Included Among Above the Law's 2024 Top 50 Law School Rankings

UC Irvine Law is No. 30 in Above the Law's 2024 Top 50 Law School Rankings, which lists "the law schools that put their graduates in the best position to get jobs." Notably, ATL's ranking methodology incorporates the latest ABA employment data for the class of 2023.

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Q&A with SBA President

Hope Weisman

Hope Weisman is a second-year student at UC Irvine Law and a 2021 graduate of Columbia University. She moved to California after college to pursue her lifelong love of entertainment and hopes to one day represent writers, directors, and actors. She will always cross the street to pet a dog, no matter what.

Q: Congratulations on your role as SBA President at UC Irvine Law! What are you most excited about in this role?

Thank you! I am thrilled to be able to serve the UCI Law student body this year. My friends and classmates were my sole motivation behind running — UCI Law is such a wonderful and unique community, the complete antithesis to what one might expect from a law school. I am a firm believer that everyone does their best work when they feel supported and uplifted by their community, so I am excited to plan more events to bring students of all class levels together. The more we can connect to one another outside of the classroom, the more we’re all driven to do well for ourselves and our peers. We have some exciting stuff coming down the pike!

Q: What motivated you to pursue a law degree and why did you choose UC Irvine Law?

The decision to go to law school snuck up on me. My entire life, my main passion has been entertainment, and that passion has always guided my academic and professional decisions. I studied film in college and immediately went to work at a management firm/production company after graduation, and I thought I’d end up in a writers’ room or on a television set one day. However, I witnessed both the Writers’ Guild and Screen Actors’ Guild strikes firsthand. So much of the content we love depends on lesser-known talent, and their attorneys play such a uniquely important role in them finding work and securing fair contracts. This is what drove me to pursue a law degree. UCI Law was a perfect fit: its proximity to Hollywood, clinical offerings, and extremely down-to-earth faculty and student body practically made my decision for me. Even on my most challenging days, I usually spend most of my time on campus beaming. I’ve grown so much as a writer, critical thinker, and person since I matriculated last August, and I cannot wait to see how I develop personally and professionally over my next two years here. 

Q: What has been your proudest accomplishment so far at UC Irvine Law?

Understanding the Rule Against Perpetuities. Now I just have to hold onto that understanding until July 2026. . .

Q: What advice would you give to prospective students who are thinking about going to law school?

My advice to prospective students is to remember that law school is just one part of you. Whether you are just starting undergrad and have a sneaking suspicion you may want to be a lawyer, ten years out of college and working in a completely different field, or currently pulling your hair out over the LSAT, hold onto the things that make you you. No matter where you end up, you will learn the same things — Pennoyer v. Neff is ubiquitous, for better or worse. Memorizing the central holding won’t make or break your professional career, but who you are as a person could. Embrace what you love, whether it’s running marathons, playing New York Times Games, or baking hyper-realistic cakes. Your personality can and will carry you far in your professional career, whether you take the plunge and pursue law or choose a different path.

Complete list of UCI Law in the media

Adam Brauner ’12, is now Vice President, Senior Counsel at Voya Financial.

Darren Kerstien ’13, is now Corporate Counsel at CGL LLP.

Melissa Bell ’16, has been elected to the partnership at Allen Matkins.

Sophie Paeng ’21, is now a litigation associate at Squire Patton Boggs.

***Important reminder for all alumni: University policy will soon require Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) to access your LawNet Google account. These changes will go into effect on November 4, 2024. For more information, click here. Thank you!***

Have an update you'd like to share? Let us know!

>> August 24 | Latina Lawyers Bar Association 2024 Career Summit

UC Irvine Law is proud to host the Latina Lawyers Bar Association's first-ever Career Summit in Orange County. The Career Summit will offer attendees — ranging from law students to seasoned attorneys — the opportunity to attend a series of panels that are focused on empowering Latinas at every stage in their legal career. UC Irvine Law students will have the opportunity to attend the event through the Law School's sponsorship.

(Details and Registration)

>> September 7 | Fifth Annual Anteaters in Service Day

Calling all Anteaters! Register for the Fifth Annual Anteaters in Service Day on Saturday, September 7, 2024. Anteaters in Service Day is your chance to join forces with fellow UC Irvine alumni and make a real difference in our communities. This isn’t just any day — it’s a celebration of our collective power to create a brilliant future together. No matter where you are or how connected you feel to UC Irvine, your contribution counts. All are welcome! Let’s show the world the incredible impact that comes from being part of such an innovative and vibrant Anteater community.

(Details)

All the Reunion details and registration here!

Graduate Tax Program five year anniversary celebration details here!