UCI Law Welcomes Extraordinary New Students
We are proud to welcome a new cohort of outstanding students to the UCI Law community this fall! The Law School welcomes new J.D., LL.M. and Graduate Tax Program classes, totaling 211 new students, from 34 states and 22 countries.
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This will be our first 10-year alumni reunion for the Law School! We have some exciting events lined up including a coffee meetup, reunion dinner at UCI, barbecue at William R. Mason Regional Park, and a baseball game at Angel Stadium open to faculty, staff, students, family and friends!


This joint gift from O’Melveny lawyers, and Gary and Melanie Singer, provides additional support strengthening UCI Law’s dedication to recruiting diverse students from all backgrounds to Orange County, and to further the Law School’s mission of training the future leaders of the legal profession. See news story in Law360


Orange County Coalition for Diversity in Law recognized Desirae Hutchison, UCI Law ’14, Estuardo R. Ponciano, Executive Director of Community Programs at UCI Law, and Reza Torkzadeh, UCI Law Dean’s Circle Chair and Founder of TorkLaw.


Support from Klein & Wilson will engage new attorney volunteers as coaches, including members of the prestigious American College of Trial Lawyers; reward competition winners with a scholarship and enable selected students to participate in national competitions.


UCI Law rising third-year CJC clinical students Hanna Bayer, Elleasse Taylor, Kenneth Armstrong and alum Emily Yu ’22 interviewed the clients and their families, reviewed prison records, created a release plan and wrote the federal court motion requesting compassionate release of identical twin brothers, Derrell and Terrell Gaulden.


The project will monitor and advocate for action to address Afghanistan’s grave and deteriorating human rights situation. Hashmat Nadirpor — lawyer and rule of law expert from Afghanistan — will lead the project under the direction of Clinical Professor of Law and IJC Clinic Director David Kaye.

Q&A with Irina Trasovan
UCI Law '12 & LAA President
Deputy Attorney General, Civil Rights Enforcement Section
California Department of Justice
Irina Trasovan '12 (left) pictured with UCI Law grad Francisco Balderrama, '13 (right)
Q: How did UCI Law prepare you for your legal practice? 
The focus on experiential learning at UCI Law was invaluable to my preparation for my work as a Deputy Attorney General with the California Department of Justice. Interviewing real clients through the 1L interview program, learning from experienced practitioners in negotiation, civil rights, and trial advocacy courses, and representing clients through the 3L clinical program provided me critical legal skills essential to my practice today.  

Q: What do you like best about your work? 
I really enjoy working on cases involving cutting-edge civil rights issues. Working with fellow UCI Law grad, Francisco Balderrama, '13 is a pretty good perk too.

Q: What was the best part about being a student at UCI Law? 
The best part about being a student at UCI Law was getting to actively participate in the building the school – developing programs, starting organizations, and making lasting traditions.

Q: How do you stay involved with the UCI Law community? 
I have been a part of the Law Alumni Association since graduation and I participate in various mentorship programs.
Prof. Swethaa Ballakrishnen was highlighted by UCI News for securing the largest NSF grant ever from the Law School. READ

Prof. Mehrsa Baradaran was quoted in Marketplace on how people of color and low-income people are likely to be "unbanked or underbanked." READ

Prof. Joshua Blank co-authored an opinion piece with Leigh Osofsky on "Redesigning Automated Legal Guidance" in The Regulatory Review. READ

Prof. Dan Burk was quoted in Bloomberg Law on trade secrets misappropriation involving the genetic material of a living organism. READ

Prof. Victor Fleischer comments in the The Wall Street Journal on the carried interest loophole. READ

Prof. Michele Goodwin will be honored by Black Women Lawyers of Los Angeles, Inc. on September 10. READ

Prof. Dalié Jiménez, Director/co-founder of the Student Loan Law Initiative, coauthored an opinion piece with co-founder Jonathon Glater in The Los Angeles Times on President Biden's student debt cancellation. READ

Prof. David Kaye quoted in Financial Times on UN finding that says China committed human rights violations in XinJian. READ

Prof. Jack Lerner spoke with The Recording Academy about the importance of passing the RAP (Restoring Artistic Protection) Act. READ

Prof. Ji Li comments in South China Morning Post on U.S. Senate bill that would ban Chinese investment in U.S. agribusiness. READ
Prof. Carrie Menkel-Meadow talks about negotiation ethics, international dispute resolution and online mediation on mediate.com podcast. LISTEN

Prof. Rachel Moran discusses affirmative action in higher education admissions with Fox News. READ

Dean Austen Parrish featured in UCI News story, "The Doppelganger Dean - Austen Parrish brings a distinctive backstory to UCI Law." READ

Prof. Gregory Shaffer talks with CTIL Magazine about his book "Emerging Powers and the World Trading System: The Past and Future of International Economic Law." READ

Prof. Bob Solomon, co-chair of the Center for the Study of Cannabis, talks to CoinDesk about how its tax burden is the top issue facing the cannabis industry. READ

Prof. Ji Seon Song co-authored an opinion piece in CNN with Aziza Ahmed outlining the intersection of health privacy and the 4th Amendment in a post-Roe world. READ

Prof. Ann Southworth was quoted in New Yorker article, "Justice Alito's Crusade Against a Secular America Isn't Over." READ

Prof. Jane Stoever testified before the California Senate Committee on Public Safety. READ

Prof. Henry Weinstein spoke at Association of Business Trial Lawyers event "Voting Rights & Wrongs" with Rick Hasen and Laura Brill. READ
Connor Jordan '22, UCI Law Grad Tax graduate, accepted a position as Judicial Law Clerk at the U.S. Tax Court with Judge Maurice B. Foley.

Brittany Ngo ’17, previously at White & Case, was hired as Lead Counsel, Competition Compliance at Meta.

Mimi Ahn '14 became a Partner at Kahana Feld.

Desirae Hutchison '14, Judge at Worker's Compensation Appeals Board, honored as one of the Top 10 Young Diverse Lawyers of OC by Orange County Coalition for Diversity in Law.

Brooke Weitzman '14, Directing Attorney at Elder Law and Disability Rights, honored by Orange County Asian American Bar Association.

September 22 » Guest Speaker Series | Panel - Civility Matters
  • Featuring panelists Justice William Bedsworth, Judge Nancy Zeltzer, and Orange County attorney Jeff Braun (Details)

September 26 » Current Issues in Tax Law & Policy Colloquium
  • Professor Alex Raskolnikov, Columbia University, Should Only the Richest Pay More? (Details) 

September 28 » Reimagining the Latinx Experience in America
  • Professor Geraldo Cadava discusses his book with public policy adviser Cecilia Muñoz, who served in the White House under President Obama (Details)

September 29 » Join our amazing faculty panel for a preview of the next Supreme Court term (Details)

September 30 » Socio-Legal Studies Book Talk
  • Jennifer Petersen presents book "How Machines Came to Speak: Media Technologies and Freedom of Speech" (Details)

October 1 » UCI Law Reunion | Classes 2012 and 2017 (Details)
  • Coffee & CLE at UCI Law
  • Family & Faculty Picnic at William R. Mason Regional Park
  • Alumni Reunion Dinner at UCI

October 2 » UCI Law Reunion | Classes 2012 and 2017 (Details)
  • Watch the Los Angeles Angels play against the Texas Rangers at the Angel Stadium with UCI Law alumni, students, staff and faculty. Family and friends are welcome!
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