Fordham Law School is excited to share the Spring 2025 issue of Fordham Lawyer magazine. Our annual magazine celebrates the dynamic leaders, vibrant student body, and devoted alumni who embody Fordham Law School’s values of service, intellectual inquiry, and real-world impact. On the cover is an in-depth profile of Fordham Law Dean Joseph Landau—an acclaimed scholar, inspiring teacher, and visionary leader—who is guiding Fordham Law into its next chapter. Inside the magazine, you’ll find the inspiring story of alumni Diana Imbert-Hodges ’19 and Craig Shepherd ’19, whose nonprofit, Defying Legal Gravity, is transforming the lives of New York City high…
Author: Josh Friedland
Fordham Law School Associate Dean for Experiential Education Norrinda Brown was honored on April 27 by the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) with the 2025 M. Shanara Gilbert Award for her dedicated work in clinical practice and education. Brown oversees all clinical and experiential programs at Fordham Law as well as the Law School’s Housing and Environmental Justice Clinic. She has emerged as a renowned national and international voice for clinical legal education and issues of race and justice. “I feel really grateful to be in such a supportive community that allows for so many different perspectives and voices…
The idea of execution by firing squad may be unsettling, but the recent use of this method has reignited debate over what constitutes a “humane” execution. On March 7, the state of South Carolina executed Brad Sigmon, a convicted murderer, by firing squad—the first such execution in the U.S. since 2010—after he opted to forgo lethal injection, a method increasingly under scrutiny due to drug shortages and botched procedures. Once dismissed as “barbaric,” the firing squad’s return raises new questions about execution methods and the evolving landscape of capital punishment in the U.S. In the following conversation, Deborah Denno, Arthur…
What does it take to prevent crime? Speakers at a Fordham symposium laid out a number of efforts that address this question by supporting the mental health of people on the margins. The need for such efforts is acute: “Well over half of the people at Rikers right now are suffering from some mental health issue that could be addressed,” said one speaker, Richard Alborn, president of the Citizens Crime Commission of NYC, referring to New York City’s Rikers Island prison. Of 6,700 inmates, an estimated 1,400 have severe mental illness, and 1,500 and 1,800 suffer from opioid and alcohol…
Described as a visionary who had a knack for spotting talent and seeing the potential in others, Bill Urquhart FCRH ’69 LAW ’78 was lauded by friends and family at the unveiling of the Urquhart Learning Center at Fordham Law School. Urquhart, who was an evening law student, went on to become a partner at Quinn, Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP, helping grow a boutique law firm into a global powerhouse—now with over 1,000 lawyers, and 35 offices on four continents, during his 30-year career there. He died in 2019 at the age of 72. During his legal career, he…
Texas native Ashlyn Smith ’28E has lived in New York City for seven years working on the management side of Broadway and off-Broadway productions. After seeing how employees’ rights can be violated in the theater industry, she was inspired to go to law school with the goal of using her law degree to protect workers. What is your hometown, and where did you go to college? I am originally from Houston, Texas, but have lived in New York City for seven years. I have two undergraduate degrees—a B.S. in management and a B.A. in theater design and production from Purdue…
Students in Fordham Law’s Federal Tax Clinic successfully represented a client who was facing an IRS bill of more than $21,000 after someone used her old email address and name to run an eBay business. The taxpayer, a full-time college student in 2018, was shocked to receive an IRS Notice of Deficiency claiming she had failed to report $66,371 in income received via a PayPal account. The income stemmed from a Form 1099-K issued to her name, but the student quickly realized that the income wasn’t hers. As it turned out, it was tied to an eBay business belonging to…
Americans have lost confidence in its government, and the future of the country’s democracy is at stake. Should Americans abandon the current Constitution, or can it be revised to fix some of its structural flaws? These were some of the weighty issues discussed by Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky, who, along with other constitutional scholars, addressed themes in his book No Democracy Lasts Forever at a recent talk on the Fordham University campus at Lincoln Center. “I’m very fearful for the future of American democracy,” Chemerinsky opened. “When you look at opinion polls, they show that the American people have…
While recording artists like Taylor Swift and The Weeknd topped Spotify Wrapped, these were the most-viewed stories in the Fordham Law Newsroom, garnering more than 14,000 page views in 2024. From the announcement of Fordham Law’s new dean to the addition of new faculty members, esteemed guest speakers, and even a few Valentine’s Day alumni love stories, 2024 was another remarkable year at Fordham Law. Read on for the top 10 most-clicked stories of the year: 1. Meet Afrika Owes ’24 Graduating 3L Afrika Owes ’24, who served as president of the Black Law Students Association and director of diversity…
In a keynote speech weaving his own family history in the civil rights movement with current policy analysis, Dr. Stefan Redding Lallinger illuminated persistent inequities that plague public education systems in New York City and across the nation. Lallinger, executive director of the think tank Next100, senior fellow at the Century Foundation,and a longtime educator and school administrator, spoke at “Two Decades of NYC High School Admissions: Effects, Equity, and Experiences,” a day-long conference presented by Fordham Law’s Feerick Center for Social Justice and New York Appleseed. The event brought together educators, advocates, service providers, policy makers, legal experts, and…