Passion and Promise
From their dazzling achievements to their unwavering commitment, UC Berkeley Law students inspire at every turn.

Every Step of the Way
Expanded access, vital experience, and robust financial support turn public service dreams into reality.

Forefront
Leadership in Research, Service & Education
Fueling the law school pipeline • Faculty enrich Berkeley’s pro bono culture • Democracy under the microscope • Closing the corporate gender gap • New hire brings fresh perspective • A breakthrough to track methane emissions

Fast Forward
Powerful Student Action Figures

Study Hall
Faculty Honors & Scholarship

Advancement
Updates from Development & Alumni Relations

Class Notes
All in the Alumni Family

I have spent a great deal of time thinking about how as a law school we can respond to events that are occurring in Washington that are clearly in violation of the law: firing agency heads, inspectors general, and civil service employees in violation of federal statutes; closing agencies created by federal statutes; refusing to spend money appropriated by federal law; threatening to revoke visas for those who express particular views; and planning to move United States prisoners and detainees to El Salvador.

Part of our response is to hold a series of programs, in conjunction with our new Edley Center on Law & Democracy, to educate our students and our community. One of those events took place a week after the November election as to what the Trump administration will mean for the law, with six professors speaking to a packed lecture hall.

Years in the making, the Preparing for Law School project held a recent launch event at UC Berkeley Law with dozens of prospective law students from underrepresented backgrounds in attendance. Admissions leaders from three area law schools explained the application process, current law students shared tips on how to navigate the environment, and the night ended with a networking mixer.

While 50% of UC Berkeley Law’s first-year class identify as students of color, a 2024 national survey conducted by the American Bar Association showed that 78% of practicing attorneys are white. This new initiative aims to help change that.

Many feel called to do even more, and lend their field expertise, research chops, and analytical skills to unpaid legal work. From writing amicus curiae briefs to overseeing student projects and organizations to courtroom work, these professors are helping extend the school’s influence far beyond its walls — and legal academia.

“Our faculty’s engagement in pro bono work tells our students that their law degree comes with a responsibility to provide access to our legal system,” Pro Bono Program Director Deborah Schlosberg says. “This model of commitment to service is powerful and an integral component of our pro bono culture.”

Launched in August, the Christopher Edley Jr. Center on Law & Democracy aims to probe underlying causes and train students to effectively safeguard our political system. It’s named after Edley, UC Berkeley Law’s dean from 2004 to 2013, who served in major White House positions under two administrations and worked extensively to improve government and democracy.

The center’s debut program leading up to the election — a five-part speaker series on American democracy and its intersection with the press and social media, elections and the courts, presidential power, and judicial power — drew packed crowds.

When she became executive director of the Berkeley Center for Law and Business (BCLB) in January 2023, Patel set out to confront that by creating the Women in Business Law Emerging Leaders Program.

“I wanted to intercept this gap early in the law school experience and show women students that they belong in the business world just as much as anyone else — and they can shape it,” Patel says.

“This is an opportunity to build on the work that I’ve been doing over the last decade,” says Ball, who ran a similar clinic at UC Law San Francisco. “Now, I can really take that to a deeper level by being at a law school that not only financially supports the clinic work but also provides opportunity for collaboration across the university.”

UC Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky says he’s delighted by Ball’s arrival.

In August 2024, NASA partner Carbon Mapper launched the satellite Tanager-1 to detect and quantify methane emissions with unprecedented accuracy. In tandem with MethaneSAT, launched by the Environmental Defense Fund, the satellites will provide real-time data on moderate to large emission leaks, addressing a major gap in methane monitoring and reporting.

CLEE Project Climate Director Ken Alex pitched the satellite idea when he was a senior policy adviser for then-California Gov. Jerry Brown, catalyzed collaboration between key stakeholders, and helped secure philanthropic funding to bring San Francisco-based satellite company Planet Labs on board.

She immediately got involved with two of the school’s Student-Initiated Legal Services Projects, the Post-Conviction Advocacy Project (PCAP) and the Name and Gender Change Workshop (NGCW). After her 1L year, she spent 10 weeks in Akin Gump’s Los Angeles office as the firm’s Pro Bono Scholar and worked on various pro bono matters. She will join Akin after graduation (likely as a litigator) and intends to make pro bono work a pillar of her practice there, providing litigation support and direct services to local nonprofits.