OPIA Blog

If you missed the 2007 Public Service Orientation, you can now watch a video of the entire event online. This program, held on September 19, presented an introduction to the range of public interest opportunities available to students at HLS. Featured speakers included HLS graduate and a member of Equal Justice Initiative Bryan Stevenson and our own Assistant Dean for Public Service Alexa Shabecoff. The video can be found here. Note that you must have Real Player in order to open this file.

A recent article in The New York Times describes the escalating debate over whether juveniles accused of violent crimes ought to be given life in prison with no possibility of parole. In a UN vote last December, the US was the only country out of 186 to vote against abolishing the practice. The issue pits the American criminal justice system against the European model which puts an emphasis on rehabilitation. Only as recently as 2005 has the US ended the practice of capital punishment for underage offenders, thanks to the Supreme Court ruling in Roper v. Simmons. Prosecutors and victim’s rights groups claim that some crimes are so heinous that even those as young as 14 ought to be imprisoned for life, citing the possibility of recidivism. However, others such as Bryan Stevenson of Equal Justice Initiative, which represents many such young clients, feel differently. Stevenson argues that “there is always hope for a child” and that while immediate release of convicted criminals is not on the agenda a formal review of the process is vital. To read more, please click here .

A recent article by the New York Law Journal profiles Robert D. McCreanor, a young HLS graduate who found a passion for public interest early in his legal career. Having recently moved to New York, he was approached by the immigrant residents of his building for help with a landlord hardly living up to his lease. Since then, he has founded the Tenant Advocacy Project with the backing of St. John’s University, as a one-man operation designed to represent recent immigrants being preyed on by their landlords. While enduring many challenges along the way, including potential bankruptcy, he now plans to leave a private career at the firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton and Garrison once the project becomes an official law clinic of St. John’s. To read more, please click here.

The College Cost Reduction and Access Act, originally intended to cut down on the costs of college and university loans, also provides incentives to enter public service careers. The law’s Public Service Loan Forgiveness program offers debt forgiveness for federal student loans for those individuals entering a range of post-graduate career fields. Careers that qualify include those in public health, law enforcement and public-interest law. Those without federal loans can still qualify for the program by consolidating their debt through the government’s Direct Loan program. For more information, please click here.

A recent New York Times article points to how the growing number of vacancies at the head of many federal agencies is quickly becoming the norm. The number of interim and acting heads tapped to fill these posts has increased as the end of President Bush’s second term nears. The President has claimed that Senate Democrats are stalling key nominees while acting secretaries and undersecretaries are capable and talented individuals. However, many posts, including the Attorney General’s, appear as if they will remain without permanent appointees until the end of the President’s term. Legal scholars find the vacancy rate striking compared to the President’s predecessors’ and that by keeping acting heads in power, the Senate’s right of confirmation and review is effectively being circumvented. To read more from this article, please click here.

The American Society of Law, Medicine and Ethics is proud to co-sponsor the First Annual Health Law Student Conference. This year’s theme will be “Taking the Health Law Career Path: Student Conference and Job Fair.” Alongside the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, the ASLME presents this conference as a networking and “outreach program” for those students interested in health law. This is a great chance to talk to potential employers and learn about non-traditional fields for health lawyers. The conference will be held on October 19, 2007 at the University of Pittsburgh. For more information, please click here.

Raja Kirshnamoorthi has been appointed deputy treasurer for policy and programs for the state of Illinois. His new job entails overseeing the pension investment policy, Bright Start college savings program, unclaimed property division, venture capital fund, linked deposit loan programs for agricultural and business development, and the Treasurer’s home ownership program. Raja was previously working at the law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where he specialized in “representing public and private entities in matters ranging from contract and securities work to white collar criminal matters.” He explains his decision to go into government work as repayment for the state assistance given to his family when they were recent immigrants. In his words, “my family owes a debt of gratitude and I intend to repay it any way I can.” Read more about this story here.