Support the 2024 Public Interest Auction
With great power comes great responsibility. So, don your superhero cape and help support the 2024 Public Interest Auction!

Hosted by the Public Interest Center over three days to help fund the Law School’s Summer Public Interest Fellowship Program and other public interest programs and initiatives, the Public Interest Auction will bring hundreds of students, faculty, alumni, and friends together in our online auction house (April 2-3, 2024) and in person at St. John's Law (April 4, 2024) to bid on a wonderful range of goods, services, and experiences. 

Now’s your chance to be a hero! Visit our Auction web page to donate goods, services, or experiences; make a monetary gift; and register to bid today.

Thank you!

We're Top 50 for BigLaw Jobs
Each year, Law.com ranks the top 50 law schools according to the percentage of their J.D. graduates who took associate jobs at the largest 100 firms. We got a preview of this year's report, and we're proud to share that St. John's is #41 in the 2024 Go-To Law Schools rankings! Many thanks to our alumni in BigLaw who mentor and hire our hardworking and talented students. What a team!

In Memoriam
The St. John’s Law community mourns the passing of John V. Brennan '63C, '66L, '93HON, an esteemed alumnus and consummate lawyer who animated the Vincentian mission of serving the greater good in all aspects of his life. Read more.

Last week, as hundreds of law students competed in the Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition that he helped to launch, the St. John’s Law Community learned that beloved and esteemed Professor Robert M. Zinman had passed away at the age of 92. In the days that followed, his former students and colleagues shared remembrances of a life well lived.

Celebrations
Students from the Law School’s Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA) came together with alumni in Chinatown to enjoy food, fun, and festivities at the annual APALSA Lunar New Year Dinner. As a highlight of the sold-out event, the group honored Christopher Atlee Arcitio '17.

It was a wonderful night of mixing and mingling with gorgeous Midtown Manhattan views as students from our Latin American Law Students Association (LALSA) joined alumni and friends for a LALSA Student-Alumni Mixer. Congratulations to the evening’s honoree, Shantel Castro '16, who was recognized as LALSA Alumna of the Year. And special thanks to Hon. Carmen Beauchamp Ciparick '67, '03HON for hosting the event at her firm, Greenberg Traurig.

Out in Print
Brian O’Connor '77 has made several recent appearances, including for the New York State Bar Association, the Northport Historical Society, and the World Ship Society, to talk about his book, Death by Fire and Ice: The Steamboat Lexington Calamity (Naval Institute Press). The book, which tells the story of the tragic sinking of the Lexington on Long Island Sound in 1840, was reviewed in Sea History, the magazine of the National Maritime Historical Society.

In the fall, Valerie Capers Workman '90 published her book, Quantum Progression: The Art & Science of Career Advancement in the Age of A.I. It details the methods she has used to chart, and advance along, an impressive career path that has included her leadership work as VP, People at Tesla.

In the RE Spotlight
With impactful J.D. and LL.M. courses and dynamic programming, the Mattone Institute, directed by Rob Sein ‘03, is thriving as the home to real estate law at St. John’s. Alumni are essential to the Institute’s success, and their contributions to the Law School and wider RE community are featured in the online Real Estate Alumni Spotlight Series. In the Spotlight now is Anna Lin ‘07, a principal at Roach & Lin, P.C. Read all about Anna’s work in the field.

Share Your News!
You’re out there getting things done and reaching new milestones. We want to hear all about it! We publish Class Notes and announce Births & Marriages twice a year (around 6/1 and 12/1) at stjohnslawseeinfra.com. It’s quick and easy to share your news with us. Just complete and submit our online Alumni News Submission Form. 

Publications
“Legal Academia’s White Gaze,” an article by Professor Renee Nicole Allen, will be published in the Minnesota Law Review.

Professor Philip Lee’s article, “SFFA v. Harvard: Racial Triangulation and the Invidious Myth of Colorblindness,” will appear in the Maryland Law Review.

An excerpt from professor Rosemary Salomone’s latest book, The Rise of English: Global Politics and the Power of Language (Oxford University Press), has been published in The Millions, an online literary magazine.

Field Notes
Professor John Q. Barrett moderated and spoke as part of a Historical Society of the New York Courts program on Justice Felix Frankfurter and the Idea of Judicial Self-Restraint: Then and Now in Federal and State Courts.

At the Seton Hall Law Review’s 2024 Symposium, Professor Philip Lee presented on a panel considering The Road Ahead: How to Respond to Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. Harvard. For a panel at the Georgetown Journal of Law & Modern Critical Race Perspectives’ 2024 Symposium, he discussed the History of Segregation and Inequality and the Impact of Critical Race Theory in Education.

Professor Mark Movsesian participated in a film screening and related panel discussion of the documentary Free Exercise: America’s Story of Religious Liberty hosted by Princeton University’s James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions. For the latest episode of his Legal Spirits podcast, he interviewed historian Richard Brookhiser about the new documentary, Free Exercise: America’s Story of Religious Liberty.

Professor G. Ray Warner delivered a presentation on Green Restructuring: Shaping Legal Frameworks for Sustainable Recovery and Climate Action at an insolvency and climate conference in Washington, D.C.

Having Vital Conversations
For the Law School’s 2024 Anti-Racism Day last month, students, faculty, and administrators came together to explore questions of racial justice around the theme of Access, Challenges, and Solutions. Participants engaged in morning and afternoon panel programs that addressed access to justice in diverse contexts. Many thanks to the faculty members, alumni, and practitioners who served as program moderators and panelists, and to Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Vernadette Horne for organizing this important, day-long event. You can view the full program agenda online.

Learning in the Field
Students from our in-house Securities Arbitration Clinic traveled to Washington, D.C. recently to participate in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s 2024 Investor Advocacy Clinic Summit. They discussed the Clinic’s work on behalf of underserved investors, which is guided by Professors Elissa Germaine and Christine Lazaro. 

Excelling in Competitions
Congratulations to the Frank S. Polestino Trial Advocacy Institute (PTAI) team of Krista Apostle '24, John Di Leo '24, Matthew Oster '24, and Emily Trumble '24, who bested a talented field to win the National Trials and Tribulations IV Trial Competition. Displaying their excellent trial advocacy skills at the competition, Krista earned Best Overall Advocate honors while Emily was named Outstanding Advocate. It was the second major competition victory for this talented PTAI team. They won the Gold Cup National Trial Competition last semester.

In other exciting PTAI news, the team of Agustin Bujanda '25, Jonathan Carelli '25, Lucas Immer '25, and Stephanie LaPlante '25 advanced to the finals of the Queens County District Attorney’s Office Mock Trial Competition. In individual honors, Agustin won Best Closing Argument for the preliminary rounds, and Stephanie was named Best Overall Advocate for her performance.

Let’s also congratulate the PTAI team of Maneesh Rajkumar '24, Anthony Curry '24, Times Hwang '25, and Harmonia Peet '25, whose strong trial advocacy skills took them to the semi-final round of the American Association for Justice Student Trial Advocacy Competition’s Regional Tournament.

Last, but certainly not least, here’s a big shout out to the students from the Law School’s American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) Law Review and Moot Court Honor Society who worked tirelessly to help run this year’s Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition. Presented in partnership with the ABI as one of the nation’s preeminent moot court competitions, the Duberstein Competition offers an unmatched opportunity for law students nationwide to build bankruptcy law knowledge and skills in a real-world advocacy setting.

Well done, all!

Comments, Suggestions, or Content Ideas?
Please email Lori Herz, See infra's Managing Editor and Lead Writer, at herzl@stjohns.edu.

www.stjohns.edu/law/alumni/see-infra