June 2026 | Year in Review
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The Center serves as a vibrant intellectual hub where students, alumni, faculty and the broader legal community engage with the judiciary in meaningful and varied ways.
We are deeply grateful to our alumni community for their continued support, and to the judges and clerks who generously contributed their time and insights through our events and initiatives.
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Engaging the Judiciary through Our Events
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We invite you to read on about the judges who engaged with our community.
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In March, the CJEC hosted its inaugural forum - The American Experiment at 250: Judicial Independence & the Rule of Law.
The one-day forum featured four panels: (1) Supreme Court Cases that Redefined American Life & Law, (2) The Rule of Law in American Democracy, (3) Preserving the Republic: From Federalist 51 to the Present; and (4) Looking Ahead: The American Experiment Going Forward.
We were honored to be joined by an extraordinary group of external speakers, including current and former members of the federal judiciary: Hon. Denny Chin (2d Cir.), Hon. Donald (6th Cir. (ret.)), Hon. Claire Eagan (N.D.Okla.), Hon. J. Michael Luttig (4th Cir. (ret.)), Hon. Loretta Preska (S.D.N.Y.), Hon. Reena Raggi (2d Cir.), Hon. Shira Scheindlin (S.D.N.Y. (ret.)), Hon. Patty Shwartz (3d Cir.), former Acting U.S. Attorney General Peter Keisler, and the heads of the Berkeley Judicial Institute (Hon. Jeremy Fogel (ret.)) and Duke Bolch Judicial Institute (Hon. Kimberly Mueller (ret.)).
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| D.C. Cir. Chief Judge Sri Srinivasan Shares Advice: “Do Good, Be Good, and Expect Goodness”
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In March, the CJEC welcomed Chief Judge Srinivasan as its 2026 Distinguished Jurist in Residence.
His fireside chat with Dean Joseph Landau served as both the closing event of the CJEC’s inaugural forum—The American Experiment at 250: Judicial Independence and the Rule of Law—and the capstone of his two-day visit as the CJEC’s Distinguished Jurist in Residence.
Srinivasan’s talk underscored the importance of lawyers working together, even if someone’s viewpoint is contrary to one’s own. He touted the importance of “actual, genuine good faith listening”—hearing the other person’s point of view, even if it might convince you to change yours, instead of jumping in to explain why the other person is wrong. “Genuine listening,” he said, “is when you actively want to know what someone said because you might be persuaded.”
(Visit our FLASH page for our lecture archive).
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First to the Bench: Associate Justice Fabiana Pierre-Louis Shares Her Journey to the Bench: “No Matter What Work You Do, Work Hard”
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Associate Justice Fabiana Pierre-Louis, the daughter of Haitian immigrants and first-generation college graduate as well as the first Black woman to serve on the New Jersey Supreme Court, told the Fordham Law community that she attributes her success to a combination of relentless work ethic and seizing opportunities—even when they seemed daunting.
“The most important piece of information that I tell law students is to take advantage of the opportunities that come your way,” said Pierre-Louis. “There’s always a million reasons not to … but take advantage of these opportunities.”
In late October, Pierre-Louis visited Fordham Law as the Center for Judicial Events and Clerkships’ 2026 First to the Bench Jurist and spoke with the Law School community at a fireside chat moderated by Suzanne M. Endrizzi ’96, CJEC assistant dean.
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View from Chambers: The Role of the Judiciary in Business Disputes in New York and Texas
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New York Supreme Court Commercial Division and Appellate Division
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From the use of AI in the courtroom to determining measures for trade secret protection, the Commercial and Appellate Divisions of the New York Supreme Court face a variety of nuanced cases each day—some that even change the shape of the law.
Presented in November by the CJEC and the Corporate Law Center (CLC), the View from Chambers event featured Justices Barbara Kapnick and Saliann Scarpulla, of the Appellate Division First Department, along with Justices Anar Rathod Patel and Jennifer Schecter, of the Commercial Division New York County. Presiding Justice Dianne Renwick of the First Department and Justice Andrea Masley ‘91 of the Commercial Division were also on hand to lend insight to the discussion.
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| The CJEC and the CLC provided the Fordham Law community with the rare opportunity to hear firsthand about the newly established Texas Business Court.
Established on September 1, 2024, the Texas Business Court handles complex commercial disputes over $5 million dollars, including corporate governance, shareholder litigation, contract disputes, and intellectual property cases. The Court is composed of 11 geographical divisions, five of which are currently operational.
This View from Chambers event featured a discussion with Judges Melissa Andrews, Grant Dorfman, and Bill Whitehill from the Texas Business Court, joined by Justice April Farris of the Fifteenth Court of Appeals.
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In November 2025, the CJEC and CLC once again partnered with the Commercial Division Advisory Council (CDAC) to host the Eileen Bransten Institute on Complex Commercial Litigation at Fordham Law. The Institute presented by the CDAC provides educational panels for Commercial Division and Appellate Division judges on issues related to commercial litigation. Dean Joseph Landau welcomed the attending judges to Fordham Law School. During the Institute, Professors Courtney Cox and Chinmayi Sharma participated on panels in the areas of Trade Secrets and AI.
In 2023, the Institute was named in honor of Judge Eileen Bransten ’79, a justice on the Commercial Division of the New York Supreme Court who helped shape the Commercial Division during her decades-long career. A moving tribute was held at Fordham Law at the conclusion of the Institute that year (Read about the Tribute).
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In the Service of Others: Fostering a Clerkships Oriented Culture.
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We encourage our students and alumni to consider clerking. We provide unparalleled support. We foster an inclusive and vibrant clerk alumni community.
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CJEC Peer Clerkship Council Expands Programming and Initiatives to Strengthen the Clerkships-Oriented Culture
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The Peer Clerkship Council initiative was launched in 2020 in recognition of the importance of peer engagement to fostering a clerkships-oriented culture at the law school. It has become a mainstay infusing the Center with a dynamic set of student-led initiatives. It has also been a wonderful opportunity to watch our students grow professionally and give back as mentors.
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Fordham Law Alumni Serving in the Courts around the Country.
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During the 2026-2027 term we are pleased to have more than 85 of our alumni clerking on federal and state courts across the country.
Our clerks will assist in the work of chambers on federal appellate courts in the 2d and 10th Circuits, federal trial level courts in Alabama, Florida, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico and South Carolina as well as state courts in Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New York and Vermont.
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Center Leadership and Affiliated Faculty
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| Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law
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| Clinical Associate Professor of Law
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| Clinical Professor of Law
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Looking Ahead we are excited for the coming academic year and are actively planning our events.
Among our events, we look forward to welcoming Hon. Madeline Singas '91 (New York Court of Appeals) to campus as our First to the Bench jurist in October.
We look forward to engaging with you in the coming year. Enjoy your summer!
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