Fall Welcome Message

Graphic with dark blue background and lighter lettering reading "welcome back."

 

From Dean Jessica Berg: 

Welcome, Class of 2027, transfer and LL.M. students. And welcome back, second- and third-year students.

Today marks the start of the academic year and a new chapter for me, as the incoming dean of UC Davis School of Law. I am so honored to lead a law school that stays true to its foundational principle of equal access to justice while finding new and innovative ways to pursue it.

I am excited to embark on this journey together, and especially thrilled to begin the 2024-25 academic year on such a high note for the law school.

Last week, we welcomed our newest class of future world changers with an instructive and fun Intro Week. The Class of 2027 holds just shy of 200 students. A remarkable 68% are students of color, and 26% are first-generation college graduates. Women make up 54% of the class, and 24% of 1L students identify as LGBTQ+. 

Person stands before an outdoor backdrop
Dean Berg

These students bring a median GPA of 3.68, a median LSAT score of 163, and vastly varied life experiences to Martin Luther King Jr. Hall. But now they are part of the same King Hall community, along with our Master of Laws students from around the world. Thirty-six new LL.M. students arrived this fall to join 20 continuing students. 

The semester starts with great faculty news as well. Professor Donna Shestowsky has graciously agreed to serve as senior associate dean for academic affairs. A faculty member for two decades, Dean Shestowsky is a Martin Luther King Jr. Professor of Law, inaugural director of the Lawyering Skills Education Program and beloved faculty advisor to King Hall’s winning negotiations team.

Thank you to outgoing Senior Associate Dean Afra Afsharipour for assisting in the transition, and for six years of outstanding service. Special thanks as well to Dean Kevin R. Johnson, who has made an extraordinary impact on the law school over 16+ years. We are fortunate Professors Afsharipour and Johnson will remain at UC Davis Law as part of the faculty.

The faculty finished No. 18 in the just-released “scholarly impact” rankings of the top 50 U.S. law schools. That’s a four-spot jump from 2021, the last time rankings of the nation’s most-cited legal scholars were compiled. In July, the Princeton Review recognized UC Davis Law’s faculty as the third most diverse in the nation.

Our law school’s national influence just keeps growing. You might have noticed King Hall’s prominent placement in a recent New York Times story as location of a 2010 debate that ignited Vice President Kamala Harris’ political career. Our faculty are on a roll in the national media, lending expertise to the Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, NPR and CNN on topics ranging from the presidential race to Disney’s controversial arbitration strategy to California’s – and maybe the nation’s – oldest Chinese restaurant (it’s in Woodland).

Other highlights:

  • Sarah Polcz joined UC Davis Law as an acting professor of law. Her research explores the intersection of law and psychological science. She previously served as a fellow at the Stanford Center for Law and the Biosciences. Professor Polcz will teach Contracts and Copyright this year. King Hall also welcomed Legal Research and Writing Instructor Nina Jehle, a former Napa County deputy district attorney, and welcomed back Clarisa Sudarma ’12, who previously taught part-time while working as a Solano deputy county counsel.
  • David Sandino, longtime senior staff counsel at California’s Department of Water Resources, directs the new Aoki Water Justice Clinic Small Farmer Assistance Program. For decades, UC Davis Law’s world-renowned clinical education programs have assisted the most vulnerable among us. This month, the Domestic and Sexual Violence Law Clinic marks 25 years of vital advocacy.
  • Shannon Kahn has returned to UC Davis Law to direct the externship program, which places students in governmental, judicial, public interest and corporate counsel settings for academic credit. A former Career Services associate director, Kahn most recently was deputy director of UC Berkeley School of Law’s career development office.
  • This semester’s full slate of events includes thought-provoking talks by visiting scholars and public officials presented by our vibrant, faculty-led intellectual centers. UC Davis Law Review will address “Salt Lakes in Crisis” at its Sept. 20 symposium. The annual Capital Reception (Sept. 18) gives first-year students a chance to meet alumni in a relaxed setting; California Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria ’11 is expected to attend. UC Davis Law students are lucky so many alums are in their corner. I recently met the alumni board and came away impressed by their dedication.
  • King Hall’s new in-house psychologist Eric Burns is taking appointments at counseling@law.ucdavis.edu. Resources also are available at campus’ Student Health and Counseling Services. For information on vaccine programs and other health-related recommendations, visit Campus Ready. 

I hope everyone has a great semester. I look forward to becoming better acquainted with students, staff and faculty in the coming weeks. If you see me in the hall, please be sure to say hello.

Jessica Berg,

Dean, UC Davis School of Law