Harvard Law School celebrates the Class of 2024

On Thursday, May 23, Harvard Law School conferred 804 Juris Doctor, Master of Laws, and Doctor of Juridical Science degrees on the Class of 2024. The festivities kicked off on Wednesday, May 22, as graduates celebrated Class Day, at which several faculty, staff, and students were honored for their achievements and contributions.

Deb Haaland, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior, delivered remarks as this year’s Class Day speaker, urging graduates to “seize your newfound power, your influence, your hearts, and your expertise and put it to good use.”

During Class Day, Christine Desan, the Leo Gottlieb Professor of Law, was recognized with the Albert M. Sacks-Paul A. Freund Award for Teaching Excellence, an honor bestowed each year on a faculty member for teaching ability, attentiveness to student concerns, and general contributions to student life at the law school.

Pam Bennett, event operations coordinator with the Office of Event Scheduling and Support, was selected winner of the Suzanne L. Richardson Staff Appreciation Award, which is given each year to a staff member who demonstrates commitment to the student experience and concern for students’ lives and work.

Commencement Day opened with university-wide morning exercises in Tercentenary Theatre, featuring remarks from Harvard’s commencement speaker, Nobel Prize-winning journalist Maria A. Ressa. In spite of an afternoon delay and relocation indoors due to inclement weather, graduates received their Harvard Law School degrees in the afternoon from Interim Dean John C.P. Goldberg, who urged them in his remarks to “work together to achieve a more peaceful, more prosperous, and more just world.”