Schwartz/Levi Inn of Court Meeting

This week, the Schwartz/Levi Inn of Court helds its monthly meeting. Inn President Justice Shama Mesiwala '98 began the evening by introducing UC Davis Law student and Law Student Association President, Brenda Quintanilla '24. Brenda read her beautiful and poignant spoken work poem "Corn Stalks" about the death of a young farmworker in the fields.

The discussion topic for the program was university admissions after the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard. Professor Aaron Tang discussed the constitutional law implications of the decision. UC Davis Chief Campus Counsel Michael Sweeney discussed the admissions developments and trends at UC Davis. I talked about UC Davis Law’s response to the end of race-conscious affirmative action in 1996 with Proposition 209; it allowed me to talk about our amazing diverse and excellent student body.

The program was presented by the Cruz Reynoso pupilage group. Before the program, the Inn recognized the late Professor Cruz Reynoso, who had been a member of the Inn. Cruz’s son Len ReidReynoso '01 was in attendance. Judge Emily Vasquez presented the Emily Vasquez Award for a lifetime of community service to Governor Gavin Newsom’s Judicial Appointments Secretary Luis Céspedes who also is a member of the Inn. In accepting the award, Céspedes talked about the wonderful work of Judge Vasquez and how he met her as a first-year student at UC Berkeley School of Law.