King Hall Blog

Here's a bit of fun trivia: I noticed the Oct.

On Oct. 15, the Unity Bar Dinner was held virtually to celebrate the diversity of the bar in Sacramento. I was pleased to attend along with Senior Assistant Dean Brett Burns and students Desiree Grace '21, Annie Seong '22, Katie Weeks '22, Matthew Santos '22, Natalie Truong '22, Kendra Rivas '21, Sara Hashem '23, and Mariam Sossouadouno '23.

California Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis opened the evening with a lively video welcome.

The 2020 election is just around the bend. On the ballot are the U.S. presidency, state and local legislative seats and offices, and, in California, many propositions.

On Oct. 15, a group of UC Davis law professors talked about some of the issues before a virtual audience of more than 100 faculty, staff, students, alumni, and community members. Here was the lineup, with subjects covered ranging from criminal, immigration, and health law to voter suppression in the upcoming election.

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending (virtually) the swearing-in of Sacramento Superior Court Judge Kara Ueda '00. Judge Ueda is a dedicated alum, having served as president of the UC Davis School of Law Alumni Board. She also has taught King Hall students for many years.

It was a wonderful UC Davis School of Law event. Besides seeing Judge Ueda formally become a judge, Judge Larry Brown '89 introduced Judge Ueda. Judge Shama Mesiwala '98, Scott Lay '00, Iris Yang '82, Stacey Sheston '96, Judge Stacy Boulware Eurie '95 and Kathryn Doi '85 were also in attendance.

Last Wednesday, the King Hall Intellectual Property Law Association hosted its first virtual mixer. Close to 50 students, practitioners, and alums from leading firms and companies got together to discuss intellectual property careers and working with technology clients. The students had the opportunity to interact directly with leading IP and technology attorneys through the use of breakout rooms.

The intellectual life at UC Davis School of Law is going strong. Last week, the Aoki Center for Race and Nation Studies hosted Hugo Morales via Zoom. He talked on "The Essential & The Unprotected: Safeguarding Latino Workers During the COVID-19 Crisis"

Morales is the co-founder and director of Radio Bilingüe, one of the first community-based, bilingual public radio stations in the United States.

Last week, faculty, students, and staff shared remembrances of late Supreme Court Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. She was a trailblazer, social change agent, great jurist, decent human being, and cultural icon. It was wonderful to hear the King Hall community talk about Justice Ginsburg and lament our collective loss.

As part of Constitution Week, I had the privilege of talking about immigration and the U.S. Constitution at Reedley College, a community college in the San Joaquin Valley that is well over 50 percent Latinx.  I was pleased that Reedley has a webpage for DREAMers.

The undergraduates are moving into the dorms at UC Davis. I had the honor of welcoming new undergrads and their families to Wall Hall in the Tercero Complex. Bright new buildings and happy faces! The energy was palpable, with upbeat “oldies” (1980s) music in the background. It brought back great memories. Welcome to UC Davis!!

I was happy to join Professors Ashutosh Bhagwat and Brian Soucek as well as our alum, the Chief Justice of California, Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye '84, and many others across the state last week to celebrate Constitution Day with a good read.

Watch the video of the event.

Last week, the California Environmental Law & Policy Center had the pleasure of hosting San Francisco City Attorney Dennis Herrera to discuss “Impact Litigation to Protect the Environment, Public Health & Civil Rights: The View From the San Francisco City Attorney’s Office.”

Intellectual life is alive and well at UC Davis School of Law. The other day, I visited not one, but two invigorating virtual events over the lunch hour. 

I was surprised to find UC Davis' resident turkeys at the doors of King Hall!

The Schwartz/Levi Inn of Court held its first meeting of the school year. The Inn, a group of lawyers, judges, law professors, and law students who meet monthly to discuss legal issues, long has had a close relationship with UC Davis School of Law.

I was able to participate in several virtual events over the weekend. 

On Saturday morning, I participated in the University of California Chicanx Latinx Alumni Association (CLAA) Summit. It included a great group of speakers to share their vision for the University of California and the impact on the Latinx community. 

We received a welcome from the co-chairs of the CLAA, Lupe Gallegos-Diaz and  Neptaly Taty Aguilera (a UC Davis alum).