Student Spotlights

Read more about what compelled Jonathan Nomamiukor ’13 to take a break from law school, his work with Harvard Law School's International Human Rights Clinic on the issue of fully autonomous weapons, and the mentorship he received from Clinical Instructor Bonnie Docherty.

As a deaf-blind student with very limited sight and hearing, Haben Girma '13 learned that you must be a self-advocate and come up with creative solutions to the problems you face. If that fails, she says, then the law can be a strong ally.

In recognition of their commitment to public interest and social justice work, Harvard Law School alums Stephanie Davidson ’13 and Laurel Firestone ’04 were named this year’s recipients of the Gary Bellow Public Service Award.

Sixteen public service visionaries and social entrepreneurs from Harvard Law School have been selected as the inaugural recipients of grants from the Public Service Venture Fund, a unique program which will award up to $1 million each year to help graduating Harvard Law students and recent graduates obtain their ideal jobs in public service—even if those jobs don’t yet exist. At the same time that it announced the recipients of the new Public Service Venture Fund, the Law School also announced the winners of three other fellowships for public service/public interest post-graduate work: the Skirnick Fellowships, the Kaufman fellowships, and the One Day's Work Fellowships.

When Harvard Law School graduate Cortlan Wickliff '13 donned his cap and gown, regalia his mother had to remind him to order, the Texas native was one of the youngest African-Americans ever to graduate from Harvard Law School.

Harvard Law School graduation festivities began on Class Day, Wednesday, May 29, and continued through Commencement Day on Thursday, May 30.

A number of Harvard Law students received special awards during the 2013 Class Day exercises on May 29. The honored students were recognized for their outstanding leadership, citizenship, compassion and dedication to their studies and the profession.

Lena Silver ’13 is the winner of this year’s Andrew L. Kaufman Pro Bono Service Award, performing the highest number of pro bono service hours in the Class of 2013. During Silver’s time at Harvard Law School, she provided 2,270 hours of free legal services.

On May 14, several members of the Harvard Law School community came together aboard the U.S.S. Constitution as three Harvard Law School students swore oaths to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States" as part of their commission as officers in the United States Navy Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) Corps.

Graduating HLS students help build a new court mediation program to meet demand for protection from harassment.

The Law School’s Class Day program was held on Wednesday, May 29, on Holmes Field, in front of Langdell Library. This year’s Class Day speaker, author and legal analyst Jeffrey Toobin reflected on his time at the law school. Professor Benjamin I. Sachs, who was selected by the class of 2012 to receive the Sacks-Freund Teaching Award, delivered remarks at the ceremony, as did Isabel Lima, Office Manager at WilmerHale Legal Services, who was the recipient of the Suzanne L. Richardson Staff Appreciation Award. Several students were recognized for their outstanding leadership, citizenship, compassion and dedication to their studies and the profession.

Last month, as an historic trial continued in Guatemala against a former dictator charged with the genocide of indigenous Mayans, Lauren Herman ’13—a student in the Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic (HIRC) —stood in court in Boston as a judge announced he was granting asylum to her Mayan client, who, with his family, had suffered persecution for decades before he came to the U.S. in 2009.

Each year, students at Harvard Law School receive a number of impressive fellowships and scholarships to work in the public sector and on research projects in foreign countries.

For the second year in a row, a team of Harvard Law School students won the North American regional moot court competition on WTO law at the ELSA Moot Court Competition (EMC²). The second annual competition was held in San Jose, Costa Rica and was organized in cooperation with the Costa Rican Society of International Law.

Following its second victory, the Harvard Immigration Project’s (HIP) Bond Hearing Project continues its new campaign to provide free legal representation to detained immigrants seeking release from immigration custody.

Harvard Law School student Haben Girma ’13 was recently named a White House Champion of Change for her advocacy on behalf of deafblind individuals and her efforts in promoting educational excellence for African Americans.

On March 8-9, the Harvard Food Law Society hosted “Forum on Food Labeling: Putting the Label on the Table,” a conference that brought together a host of authorities on food law and policy to explore the legal and policy aspects of food labeling and its effects on consumer knowledge, choice, and behavior.

At the annual international party hosted by the Harvard Law School LL.M class of 2013, students, faculty, staff and family members filled the Harkness Commons in the Caspersen Student Center for a chance to immerse themselves in the cultures of their graduate student classmates, who hail from more than 70 countries.

The Harvard Law Review has elected Gillian Grossman ’14 as its 127th president. Grossman succeeds Conor Tochilin ’13.