2018 AALS Conference: Day Three
Day three of the 2018 AALS annual meeting began with a bang. Professor Aaron Tang (above) was honored with the AALS Scholarly Paper award. His paper, which rose to the top in a rigorous competition, analyzed the role of political power in judicial review. After he was honored, Professor Tang, in an animated and insightful fashion, summarized the award-winning analysis. Many of his colleagues, including Professors Tom Joo, Irene Joe, Donna Shestowsky, and Jasmine Harris, were in attendance. Hurrah Professor Tang!
Next, I had the honor of attending a special program on the “Changing Face of the American Family.” We had two UC Davis professors on this panel. Courtney Joslin (pictured above, podium) talked about changing notions of the family and marriage. Rose Villazor talked about how the removal of immigrants was tearing apart families and separating immigrants from U.S. citizens. The panel was rich and our King Hall colleagues really contributed immensely.
At lunch, we had another King Hall moment at the Minority Groups Section annual lunch. I staked out a table for a UC Davis contingent including Peter Lee, Aaron Tang, Irene Joe, and Jasmine Harris (as well as some friends). Pictured below are Irene Joe, Dorothy Brown (winner of the Clyde Ferguson award), and Jasmine Harris, socializing at the lunch.
After lunch, I watched the beginning of a panel moderated by Jasmine Harris on disability and family law issues. Professor Harris (pictured below with fellow panelist Alexander Bono-Saenz) offered a succinct overview of the future of Disability Law and its intersection with family law.
After the afternoon presentations, I attended the second AALS Representative Assembly for the installation of the new officers. I ran into former King Hall professor Vik Amar as well as a friend from UC Hastings, Leo Romero, and Loyola Chicago, Juan Perea. As I was heading to an evening program, I ran into Afra Afsharipour, who was honored by the Business Association Section for being a wonderful mentor to many business scholars.
UC Davis was a cosponsor of the AALS Minority Groups Section reception at the conference this year. King Hall's own Rose Villazor, past-Chair of the Section, was in attendance (pictured below, left) with Suzanne Kim of Rutgers.
The day was capped by a special showing of the documentary “ Gideon’s Army,” which looks at a group of public defenders in the South taking on challenging cases in the quest for justice. A former public defender herself, Professor Irene Joe offered insights on the life of a public defender and discussed how a number of UC Davis students have pursued careers as public defenders.
