3L Dana Shearer has been selected to receive the inaugural John Goerner L’23 Memorial Scholarship. Goerner passed away in 2021 after a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer while studying for his J.D. degree in the College’s JDinteractive (JDi) program. To honor his legacy, members of the JDi class of 2023 dedicated their fundraising efforts to establish the John Goerner Scholarship with the intent of supporting JDi students facing demonstrated adversity who nevertheless persevere in their study of law at Syracuse.
At the College of Law, Shearer is a member of the Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Honor Society’s Virtual Advocacy Division, the First Generation Law Students Association, and the Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity.
“Following law school, I plan to pursue criminal law. My passion and knack for oral argument have led me to the courtroom as an advocate. I was initially interested in wrongful conviction exoneration but have chosen to pursue the path of prosecution— a mission to do it right rather than make it right. I am still living in the mountains of North Carolina but have felt the tug to explore new possibilities recently. My ties to Asheville dissipate as my stepdaughter, who was by my side through the toughest of times, heads to Duke University this fall on a full scholarship. I am so proud of where she and I have landed in the face of seemingly insurmountable adversity. Thank you for helping me along my journey in the pursuit of law. And thank you to John for being an inspiration to us all in the pursuit of kindness and generosity,” says Shearer.
Cora True-Frost L’01, the Bond Schoeneck and King Professor of Law at Syracuse University College of Law has been honored with the title of Laura J. and L. Douglas Meredith Professor for Teaching Excellence. This prestigious award recognizes True-Frost’s exceptional contributions as both a teacher and a scholar within the university community.
The Meredith Professorship is among the highest teaching accolades at Syracuse University, bestowed annually upon two tenured faculty members. Those who receive this honor are expected to actively engage with the Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence (CTLE) to enhance the teaching and learning environment across campus and stimulate discussions on teaching excellence.
True-Frost specializes in constitutional law, European and international disability law , and public international law. Her recent research focuses on the right to travel, accessibility and reasonable accommodation law within the Council of Europe, as well as conflicts between interpretations of international human rights and regional human rights law. True-Frost co-edited and authored “The First Global Prosecutor: Promise and Constraints” with Martha Minow and Alex Whiting. Her published works cover a range of topics, including international disability law and human rights, ICC prosecution, terrorism and human rights law, and the UN Security Council.
During the 2021-2022 academic year, she was an Erasmus Fellow at Bialystok University School of Law and during the 2022-2023 academic year, she was a Fulbright Research Scholar at the PluriCourts Centre in the Faculty of Law at the University of Oslo, Norway. Her scholarship is enriched by her experience parenting a child with severe disabilities and her international legal practice. She has defended individuals accused of crimes against humanity and war crimes, worked in the post-conflict settings of East Timor and Sierra Leone, and, at UN headquarters,ledthe Nongovernmental Organization Working Group on Women, Peace, and Security, in its advocacy to the UN Security Council.
True-Frost also serves as the faculty director of Impunity Watch News, the Journal of Global Rights and Organizations, and the Journal of International Law and Commerce. She has taught at Harvard Law School, the Academy of European Law in Florence, Italy, and Mackenzie School of Law, in Sao Paolo, Brazil.
As a newly appointed Meredith Professor, True-Frost will receive a supplementary salary award and additional funding for professional development each year of her appointment. Meredith Professors are lifelong members of the Meredith Symposium, providing a permanent platform for the discussion of teaching and learning. True-Frost’s Meredith project will focus on cultivating students’ sense of belonging in classrooms and involvement through universal design for learning.
Syracuse, New York – 04/9/24 – Syracuse University College of Law is pleased to announce the 2024 Kurt Wimmer IAPP Westin Scholar Award honoree as 3L Michael Roy Ortizo. With the growing need for well-qualified privacy and data protection professionals, the annual Westin Scholar Awards were created by the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) to support students who are identified as future leaders in the field of privacy and data protection.
As a participating Westin Scholar Award school, the College of Law’s 2024 Kurt Wimmer IAPP Westin Scholar Award Committee (Amber Lawyer L’17, Deputy Chair, Bond, Schoeneck & King Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Practice, Professor Lauryn Gouldin, Professor Shubha Ghosh, Professor Keli Perrin L’05, Professor Daniel Traficonte, and Assistant Dean Lily Yan Hughes) selected Ortizo to receive this year’s award in recognition of his passion and path that he has already forged for himself in privacy law.
Ortizo has externed with the data privacy division of Trillium Health since Fall 2023. He also has two pending publications related to privacy with the Journal of Science and Technology Law and the College of Law’s Innovation Law Center. Ortizo will work at Crowe, LLP as part of their data privacy team in New York City after graduation and is also planning to take exams for the IAPP certifications. “Thank you to the Kurt Wimmer IAPP Westin Award Committee,” said Ortizo. “It is an honor to be selected, and I look forward to obtaining the IAPP certifications and contributing to the field of privacy.”
Michael will be awarded the following:
A $1,000 cash award
2 years of membership with the IAPP
3 complimentary exams for IAPP certifications (CIPP, CIPM, CIPT)
Unlimited access to online training for recipient’s selected IAPP certification exams
“The industry of privacy is fast growing and constantly evolving. We’ve created this award as a way to put the privacy profession at the forefront of students’ minds as they explore potential career opportunities,” said J. Trevor Hughes, IAPP President and CEO. “Congratulations Michael. We look forward to seeing the good work you will bring to the field of privacy”.
About the Westin Scholar Award and Kurt Wimmer
The Westin Scholar Awards pay homage to the late Dr. Alan Westin, a foundational voice in the field of privacy and data protection. Throughout his life, Dr. Westin researched and wrote about privacy, data protection, digital identity and the future of how societies will deal with issues at the intersection of law and technology. He is the namesake for the IAPP Westin Research Center and Fellowship Program, which was founded in 2013 and serves as a pathway for future leaders in the community. More information on the Award can be found at Westin Scholar Award.
Proud Syracuse Law alumnus Kurt Wimmer was an international leader in privacy, cybersecurity, technology, and media law, whose career at Covington & Burling spanned more than three decades, including as co-chair of the firm’s global data privacy and cybersecurity practice in Washington, D.C.
As a privacy and technology lawyer, Wimmer worked closely with clients including Facebook, Microsoft, Samsung and other multinational organizations, in addition to non-traditional clients such as the National Football League and National Hockey League.
Carly Cross L’24 US District Court, Western District of New York in Buffalo, NY
Carly Cross L’24 is a first-generation college and law student. During her undergraduate career, she completed an internship with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of New York (WDNY), where her passion for learning about the law came to fruition.
She later enrolled in Syracuse Law in 2021, soon undertaking more internship experiences as she planned her future career. Cross has since interned with the New York State Office of the Attorney General and Goldman Sachs Ayco Personal Financial Management. This semester, she elected to complete an externship with the United States District Court for the Western District of New York, working as a Judicial Law Clerk Extern for the Hon. Lawrence J. Vilardo in Buffalo, NY. Taking advantage of the Orange Flex program, she is spending her final semester living and working in Buffalo while completing her classes online through the JDinteractive program.
“I love that I get to be in court every day. Whenever Judge Vilardo is on the bench, I am present to observe the proceedings…I will be walking away from this externship knowing that I have aided in the drafting, writing, and editing of various federal judicial orders.”
Carly Cross L’24
The Externship Opportunity Fund made this unpaid externship and year away from Syracuse a possibility for Cross. She explains that she knew going into her 3L year she would be working for free, but “it was a risk I was willing to take because I knew that the opportunity waiting for me at the WDNY was going to change the trajectory of my career and life.”
Through working at her externship, Cross has solidified her conviction that she is heading in the right direction for her career and has developed a heightened enthusiasm for public interest and governmental service.
“I love that I get to be in court every day,” she explains. “Whenever Judge Vilardo is on the bench, I am present to observe the proceedings. I have found that I can learn just as much by attending a status conference as I can learn from attending a trial. I get to observe bright and brilliant attorneys in practice every day, which is helpful because I am someone who learns by the examples set in front of me. I also love that I get to improve my legal research and writing skills. A lot of my time is spent preparing screening orders for pro se litigant complaints filed in our District. I will be walking away from this externship knowing that I have aided in the drafting, writing, and editing of various federal judicial orders.”
Despite not being on campus, Cross is still involved with her classmates and community back in Syracuse. She serves as a Notes & Comment Editor for the Journal of International Law and Commerce, assisting 2L members with their notes they are preparing in hope of publication, and works as a Research Assistant in the Appellate Advocacy Skills course. She also served as the Student Representative for the Law School Faculty Curriculum Committee for the 2022-2023 school year, is the Treasurer of the Criminal Law Society, and is an Appellate Division Member of the Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Honor Society.
Cross is optimistic and excited about her post-graduate career. “Spending my third year of law school in the format of an externship has been truly invaluable for me,” she says. “I have been able to focus on fine-tuning my legal writing skills while learning how to write for an audience I have never written for. I also think this externship will give me a great edge when beginning my post-law grad career, as my knowledge and understanding of the federal court system is becoming vast (though I will never stop learning).”
She believes that taking advantage of externship opportunities as a law student will never hurt you. They will teach what you like and what you don’t like, and they may help you discover new passions you would have otherwise never thought of pursuing.
Expressing enduring gratitude for the mentors and influences in her life, particularly during challenging times, she extends her heartfelt thanks to those who have supported her and encouraged her to pursue her goals. Because of that support, “I was able to keep trudging along,” she says. “And eventually, the trudging with my head down turned into walking steadily with my head held high.”
Syracuse University College of Law was recognized in the Spring 2024 edition of preLaw Magazine in their Best Law Schools for Practical Training. Based on preLaw’s methodology, the College of Law received a B+ rating.
The rankings consider clinics, pro bono, externships, simulation courses, moot court, and other practical training such as legal communication and research courses.
The College of Law offers six legal clinics (with a seventh, the Housing Clinic, starting in Fall 2024) and many opportunities to participate in intracollegiate and intercollegiate moot court competitions through the Advocacy Honor Society. Students can further specialize in advocacy through our joint J.D./LL.M. in Advocacy and Litigation which provides a focused advanced degree option for those interested in a career in litigation or advocacy.
The Office of Career Services collaborates with local attorneys who perform public interest work to provide pro bono opportunities to students and to serve the community and works with students to secure externships around the country tailored to their individual career goals. Likewise, students have many experiential learning opportunities to choose from that provide practical training for careers in law.
In the Spring 2024 preLaw Magazine, Syracuse University College of Law’s JDinteractive Program was recognized as one of the best online J.D. programs.
The magazine also spoke with Associate Dean for Online Education Shannon Gardner, who highlighted JDinteractive’s unique in-person residencies.
In each residency, students will engage with classmates through a condensed in-person class complemented by social and networking events. The collaborative nature of the residency programming encourages teamwork and enhances the learning experience and growth toward your career. Plus, Orange alumni who are leaders in their fields are lecturers and hosts at locations worldwide.
Students went to JetBlue headquarters in New York City during a Residency in August 2023 to discuss asset finance.
“For example, Holland & Knight partner and alumnus Richard Furey taught an asset financing course in New York City last August,” Gardner said. “Our dean has expertise in international taxation and hosts a course every other year in Geneva, Switzerland, on international tax law.”
As the legal profession continues to evolve, JDinteractive remains at the forefront, preparing students to excel in their careers with a comprehensive and innovative approach to legal education.
Dana Krinsky L’25 The Brooklyn Nets, Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment (BSE) Global, Brooklyn, New York
Born and raised in northern New Jersey, Dana Krinsky L’25 practically grew up in New York City. While her parents relocated their family to Georgia and she later attended Georgia Southern University, she always planned on moving back north later in life.
In college, Krinsky’s passion for the sports industry ignited as she earned a dual degree in Sports Marketing and Sales. The allure of a career in sports led her to a role at a promotional merchandising and marketing company, where she swiftly ascended the ranks, ultimately managing the sponsorship business for the Truist Bank partnership with major league teams such as the Atlanta Falcons, Braves, and Atlanta United.
“The legal team at BSE really encourages a hands-on approach to gaining practical experience. The mentorship provided by Jeff and his team is invaluable.”
Dana Krinsky L’25
Krinsky worked for four years before choosing to enroll in law school to pursue a career working in-house for a major league team. She opted to attend Syracuse Law to earn her license in the state where she planned to later practice law, and because of its Sports and Entertainment Law concentration.
Aligning with her passion for sports, Krinsky is on the Executive Board of the Entertainment & Sports Law Society and a member of the Sports Arbitration & Negotiation Team within the Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Honor Society (AHS). She competed at Tulane’s International Baseball Arbitration Competition, New York Law School’s Soccer Negotiation Competition, and Syracuse’s Sports Law Negotiation Competition, where she reached the semi-finals to qualify for early membership to the Alternative Dispute Resolution division of AHS. Next year, she will serve on the AHS Executive Board as the Director for the Entertainment & Sports Law Division and Competition. Currently an Associate Editor for Syracuse Law’s Journal of International Law and Commerce, Krinsky will take the position of Lead Articles Editor for next year’s Executive Board.
In addition to her commitments in law school, Krinsky worked as a Legal Extern in the Syracuse University Athletic Compliance Office last year. Realizing the value of practical experience alongside legal education, she yearned for more opportunities to immerse herself in the dynamic intersection of law and sports. She chose to apply for the externship with BSE Global in Brooklyn, New York to gain more experience, make connections in the city, and receive a full semester of credits while working simultaneously.
BSE Global is the parent company of Barclays Center, the Brooklyn Nets, the New York Liberty, NBA G League team the Long Island Nets, and NBA 2K League affiliate NetsGC. The position reports directly to Jeff Gewirtz, Executive Vice President of Business Affairs & Chief Legal Officer at BSE Global.
“Being able to work for this company,” Krinsky says, “In the city, I’ve dreamt about returning to, and for a professional sports team, is absolutely surreal. My externship began in February, and I can’t even begin to describe how much I’ve learned already.” Krinsky’s responsibilities at BSE Global include conducting legal research and drafting memoranda related to sports, media, privacy, intellectual property, contracts, real estate, mergers and acquisitions, tax, and employment matters. “The legal team at BSE really encourages a hands-on approach to gaining practical experience. The mentorship provided by Jeff and his team is invaluable.”
As she launches her legal career, Krinsky plans to work at a law firm. She believes that the in-house legal experience she is gaining through her externship will provide her with a unique understanding of how to best serve her clients when the time comes.
Noting her thanks to the alumni who donate to the Externship Opportunity Fund, she is appreciative of the opportunity to live out her dream, explaining that their “kindness in supporting Syracuse students like myself helped to lay a strong foundation at the outset of my legal career.”
(Syracuse, NY – March 27, 2024) The Tully Rinckey Foundation, the philanthropic initiative of Tully Rinckey PLLC, has selected 1L Tiffany Johnson and 3L Andrew Patterson as the inaugural recipients of the Foundation’s Military Scholarships. The scholarship rewards College of Law students who have or are serving in the military or reserves.
Johnson is a Lieutenant Commander in the U.S. Navy, the 1L Representative to the College’s Military & Veterans Law Society, and a Staff Writer for Impunity Watch News, the media branch of the College of Law’s Journal of Global Rights & Organizations.
“I am honored and grateful to accept the scholarship from Tully Rinckey. As a first-year law student balancing active military service, I am committed to excelling in my studies and representing the values of both the military and the legal profession with integrity and dedication. Thank you once again for this invaluable opportunity,” says Johnson.
Graig Cortelyou, Global Chief Operating Officer of Tully Rinckey noted that Johnson was selected due to “her plans to use her legal accomplishments to address broader social issues impacting veterans and their families. She plans to participate as a student attorney in the Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic in her second year, advocating for the military community. Her background as both a civil service employee of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and a U.S. Navy Reservist not only motivates her but also makes her suited to strengthening her commitment to the military community.”
Patterson, a former U.S. Army Captain, is a Student Attorney in the Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic, a Member of the Military and Veterans Law Society, and a current VA work-study student.
“The scholarship validates the hard work being done by myself, the staff, and other student-attorneys at the Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic. My application was honest, and I feel satisfaction that it was selected among a highly qualified field of applicants. I am especially proud to be among the first recipients of the Tully Rinckey Foundation Military scholarship and I intend to pay it forward with continued support of my fellow Veterans. My heartfelt appreciation goes out to the Tully Rinckey Foundation for their continued support of legal education in the Veteran community. Thank you,” says Patterson.
“Andrew discovered firsthand the positive outcomes that are generated when veterans understand the underlying process of accessing the benefits they have rightfully earned. Following service in Afghanistan as a Lieutenant, and as a Captain in the Army Reserve, he aims to become an accredited Veteran Service Officer and help his fellow troops work through trauma together,” says Mathew Tully, Founding Partner of Tully Rinckey.
The Tully Rinckey Foundation plans to add other New York state law schools to the scholarship program, further emphasizing their commitment to veterans.
“Our firm believes our service extends beyond the courtroom and into the communities where we work. Supporting the military, veterans, and their families is an important cause that Tully Rinckey backs in many ways, including the Military Scholarship,” says Mathew Tully. “We are honored and humbled to review the stellar applications from the College of Law students, and it was difficult to select two recipients. Tiffany and Andrew are leaders who will make an impact on the legal profession and our society.”
Among Tully Rinckey’s veteran-focused outreach programs are sponsorship of the annual Veterans in Economic Transition Conference (VETCON) in Albany, N.Y., and Turkeys for Veterans where they partner with local supermarkets throughout New York State to give free turkeys to veterans during the holiday season. The College of Law is a partner in the distribution of Turkeys for Veterans in Syracuse.
“The College of Law thanks the Tully Rinckey Foundation for their support of our military and veteran students. Tiffany and Andrew are well-deserving recipients who are actively engaged in the local veteran community and will continue to give back to veterans after law school,” says Professor Beth Kubala, executive director of the Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic.
The Syracuse University College of Law is adding a Housing Clinic to its clinical legal education offerings beginning in the Fall 2024 semester.
The Housing Clinic will operate in partnership with Legal Services of Central New York and the Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York to provide representation to low-income tenants in eviction, housing conditions, and other rental housing-related matters. Students in the clinic, working under the supervision of clinic director Professor Gary Pieples, will handle all aspects of clients’ cases, including interviewing and counseling, investigation, negotiation, pleading and motion practice, courtroom advocacy, and real estate procedure.
“The Housing Clinic will bring much-needed representation to an underserved population dealing with profound living condition issues,” says Dean Craig M. Boise. “At the same time, our students will be gaining practical legal skills essential to a legal career and a priority in the College of Law curriculum.”
“Housing cases move quickly and are tried almost immediately, providing students with multiple opportunities during the semester to see a case through to resolution—from the initial interview and filing of motions to settlement or trial, including appearing in Syracuse City Court,” says Pieples. “The Housing Clinic also provides students another opportunity to explore public interest law as a career.”
The Housing Clinic is underwritten by a grant from Legal Services of Central New York and the Legal Aid Society of Mid-New York, which received additional New York State funding under the Tenant Dignity and Safe Housing Act.
The College of Law now offers students a choice of seven legal clinics: the Bankruptcy Clinic, the Betty & Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic, the Criminal Defense Clinic, the Disability Rights Clinic, the Housing Clinic, the Sherman F. Levey ’57, L’59 Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, and the Transactional Law Clinic.
(Syracuse, NY – March 18, 2024) Syracuse University College of Law has hired constitutional and international law scholar Leigha Crout as Associate Professor of Law. Starting in Fall 2024, she will teach Constitutional Law, Torts, and other courses.
Crout is currently a Rule of Law Fellowship at the Neukom Center for the Rule of Law at Stanford Law School. She has also held academic positions at the University of Wisconsin School of Law (William H. Hastie Fellow), Columbia Law School (visiting scholar), University of Oxford’s China, Law, and Development Project (research associate), Peking University (Senior C.V. Star Lecturer at the School of Transnational Law), and the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide (research and advocacy assistant.)
Her primary research is focused on Constitutional Law, Participation & Resistance, and International Law & Transnational Legal Networks (including the Legal Profession & Transnational Networks of Resistance and Authoritarianism, Private International Law & Human Rights.)
“Professor Crout brings a deep knowledge of constitutional law and international law to our law school. She examines law and constitutions comparatively to better understand threats to democracy and the rise of authoritarianism,” says Dean Craig M. Boise. “I believe our students will find her perspectives engaging and thought-provoking as she brings a timely teaching and research focus to Syracuse Law.”
She has the article “The Consent of the Governed: Resistance as Constituent Power” forthcoming in the Washington Law Review. Crout has previously published articles in the Asian Comparative Law Journal, Asian Law Bulletin, Indiana International and Comparative Law Review, and the Notre Dame Journal of International and Comparative Law.
“The College of Law has a stellar reputation in the fields of constitutional law, international, law, and human rights law. I look forward to joining the esteemed faculty and thought-leaders in these areas and engaging with students who are passionate about these areas of law,” says Crout.
Crout received a B.S. in public policy and a B.A. in history from the University of Charleston, a J.D. from the University of Notre Dame Law School, an LL.M. in civil and international human rights law from the University of Notre Dame Law School Klau Center, and a master’s in international development from Cornell University. Crout is a Ph.D. candidate at King’s College London.
