Around Syracuse Law

College of Law Honors Student Rohan Bhattacharjee with the IAPP Annual Westin Scholar Award

Rohan Bhattacharjee

Syracuse, NY – 04/4/23 – Syracuse University College of Law is pleased to announce the 2023 IAPP Westin Scholar Award honoree as 2L Rohan Bhattacharjee.  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 to support students who are identified as future leaders in the field of privacy and data protection.

As a participating Westin Scholar Award school, Syracuse University College of Law’s 2023 Kurt Wimmer IAPP Westin Scholar Award Committee (Prof. Lauryn Gouldin, Prof. Keli Perrin, Assistant Dean Sophie Dagenais, Assistant Dean Lily Hughes, and Amber Lawyer L’17, Deputy Chair, Bond, Schoeneck & King Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Practice) have selected second-year law student Rohan Bhattacharjee to receive this year’s award in recognition of his passion and path that he has already forged for himself for a career in privacy law.  

“The industry of privacy is fast growing and constantly evolving. We’ve created this award to put the privacy profession at the forefront of student’s minds as they explore potential career opportunities,” said J. Trevor Hughes, IAPP President and CEO. “Congratulations Rohan. We look forward to seeing the good work you will bring to the field of privacy.”

Rohan 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

Bhattacharjee is currently a Privacy Law Extern at Trillium Health, a Research Associate in the College of Law’s Innovation Law Center, helping clients with technology commercialization research, and a candidate to receive a Masters in Public Administration from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs.  He is planning to take the IAPP CIPM, CIPP/U.S, and CIPP/E certifications.  “Thank you to the Kurt Wimmer IAPP Westin Award Committee,” said Bhattacharjee.  “It is an honor to be selected, and I look forward to obtaining the IAPP certifications and contributing 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.

Student Profile: 3L Cecily Capo

A third-year law student draws on her STEM training to help entrepreneurs bring ideas to market.

Some people spend years deciding what to do with their lives. Cecily Capo L’23, a third-year student in Syracuse University’s College of Law, knew in an instant.

It was the spring of 2021, and, like most college students at the time, Capo was making the most of remote learning. Truth be told, she felt listless, disconnected from her law studies.

Salvation came in the form of a virtual open house for Syracuse’s Innovation Law Center (ILC), an experiential learning program for students interested in technology commercialization. One of the presenters was a silver-tongued attorney named Jack Rudnick L’73, the face of the 30-year-old center for more than a decade.

Read the full article here.

Class of ’23 Cecily Capo pictured at Dineen Hall in the Innovation Law Center.

3Ls Kevin Casserino and Angelica Judge Win the 45th Annual Lionel O. Grossman Trial Competition

3Ls Kevin Casserino and Angelica Judge prevailed over 2Ls Daniel Bonsangue and Gavin Gretsky in the 45th Annual Lionel O. Grossman Trial Competition. Casserino was selected as the Best Advocate.

Final round judges were the Hon. Glenn T. Suddaby L’85 (Chief U.S. District Court Judge, Northern District of New York), the Hon. Bernadette Romano Clark L’89 (Oneida County Supreme Court Judge), the Hon. Jeffrey Leibo L’03 (Administrative Law Judge for New York State), and Julie A. North L’89 (retired, partner, Cravath.)

2L Tracy Acquan was elected the Editor-in-Chief of the Syracuse Journal of Global Rights and Organizations and Impunity News (JGRO) for the 2023-2024 academic year

Acquan is the first African American and first African American Woman to hold this title.

The JGRO is a biennial academic journal run by Syracuse University College of Law students and serves as a platform for cutting-edge legal scholarship and research in the area of human rights.  

Professor Cora True-Frost L’01 is the faculty advisor to JGRO.

2L Jennifer Arinze Elected first African American and African American Woman Editor-in-Chief of the Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce

2L Jennifer Arinze was elected the Editor-in-Chief of the Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce (JILC) for the 2023-2024 academic year. Arinze is the first African American and first African American Woman to hold this title.

First published in October of 1972, the Syracuse Journal of International Law and Commerce is one of the oldest student-edited international law reviews in the United States. In the forward to its inaugural issue, the Journal was described as an “organ of expression for students with an interest in international legal and commercial studies,” with the primary purpose of training students in the skills of legal writing and research. 

Professor Cora True-Frost L’01 is the faculty advisor to JILC.

Robert L. Gang ’39, L’42, U.S. Army World War II and Korean War veteran and long-time Syracuse-area lawyer, has passed away at age 104

Statement from Dean Craig M. Boise

The entire College of Law community sends our deepest condolences to Bob’s wife Holly and his family and friends. Personally, I feel very lucky to have met and gotten to know Bob.  His dedication to the legal profession, to country and to service, his palpable commitment to family and community, and his smile were infectious.  I am grateful to Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic Director Beth Kubala for making sure that Bob stayed connected to his alma mater, and that we had a chance to learn from him.

Bob served from 1942 to 1951 as a U.S. Army infantry officer. After serving his country, Gang came back to Syracuse and practiced real estate law as a partner at the firm, Smith, Dolan, Gieselman, and Gang, and later at MacKenzie Hughes. Gang also served as Syracuse’s Assistant City Corporation Counsel. In all, he practiced law for 50 years, and continued doing pro bono work well into his 80s.

Bob is survived by his second wife, Holly, eight children, and 15 grandchildren. His sons-in-law, Ed Moses L’68 and Michael P. Williams L’95, and grandson Matt Moses L’97 all received their law degrees from Syracuse Law. 

Learn more about Bob Gang’s life in this article. Read his obituary here.

September 25, 2021 / Syracuse University Law School Alumni Weekend event titled “Serving Veterans at the College of Law and in the Community,” held at the Grand Hall, National Veterans Resource Center at Syracuse University. In addition, the oldest living Law School alum and veteran Robert Gang – shown here speaking to guests – was recognized in front of current faculty, alumni, students, and honored guests. Photo by Mike Roy

Gary Loope Wins the 13th Annual Hancock Estabrook LLP 1L Oral Advocacy Competition

Gary Loope prevailed over Gabriella Amaturo in the final round of the 13th Annual Hancock Estabrook LLP 1L Oral Advocacy Competition. The competition was judged by the Hon. Thérèse Wiley Dancks L’91 United States Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of New York; Lee S. Michaels L’67, adjunct professor at the College of Law and senior firm member of Michaels Bersani Kalabanak; Timothy Murphy L’89, managing partner of Hancock Estabrook, and Christopher J. Baiamonte L’19, associate attorney at the Wladis Law Firm.

This year, 42 first-year students participated in the Hancock Estabrook 1L Oral Advocacy Competition.

Gary Loope with Judge Dancks
Judge Dancks with Gabriella Amaturo
Christopher Baiamonte, Lee Michaels, Gabriella Amaturo, Gary Loope, Judge Dancks, Timothy Murphy

3Ls Maureen Blennerhassett and Matthew Mayers Named the 2023 Feinman Fellows

3Ls Maureen Blennerhassett and Matthew Mayers have been named Feinman Fellows as Spring 2023 externs. Established by Matin Feinman L’86, the Feinman Fellows receive a financial gift to help defray expenses associated with taking on their spring externship, in recognition of their commitment and dedication to public service. Feinman is the Director of Juvenile Justice Training, The Legal Aid Society of New York City.

Blennerhassett’s Spring 2023 externship is with the Federal Public Defender for the Western District of Texas, Capital Habeas Unit (CHU).  CHU is a federal office tasked with representing indigent men and women on Texas’ death row in late-stage appeals of their death sentences, filing federal habeas corpus petitions and applications for clemency.

Mayer’s Spring 2023 externship is with Legal Services of Central New York (LSCNY).  LSCNY is a legal aid organization whose mission is to promote equity and justice through law and policy, and advocates for juveniles whose rights have been violated in the context of incarceration.

Maureen Blennerhassett
Matthew Mayers

Tracy Costanzo L’25 and Amanda Hepinger L’24 Won the ABA Section of Taxation 2022-2023 Law Student Tax Challenge

Tracy Costanzo L’25 and Amanda Hepinger L’24 Won the ABA Section of Taxation 2022-2023 Law Student Tax Challenge, held in person at the Section of Taxation’s 2023 Midyear Tax Meeting. Both are students in the College’s JDinteractive online J.D. program.

Costanzo and Hepinger were one of six semi-finalist teams invited to the national competition. Overall, 62 Teams from approximately 48 law schools entered the Challenge.

An alternative to traditional moot court competitions, the Law Student Tax Challenge (LSTC) is organized by the Section’s Young Lawyers Form. The LSTC asks two-person teams of students to solve a complex business problem that might arise in everyday tax practice. Teams are initially evaluated on two criteria: a memorandum to a senior partner and a letter to a client explaining the result. Based on the written work product, six teams from the J.D. Division and four teams from the LL.M. Division receive a free trip to the Section’s Midyear Meeting, where each team presents its submission before a panel of judges consisting of the country’s top tax practitioners and government officials, including tax court judges. The competition is a great way for law students to showcase their knowledge in a real-world setting and gain valuable exposure to the tax law community.