The ChangeMaker Magazine - December 2022

The ChangeMaker is available to you, our supporters, because you help make change happen in our communities, the legal profession and the lives of our ChangeLawyers scholars, fellows, alumni and extended family.

The ChangeMaker will come exclusively to ChangeLawyers

supporters quarterly: every March, June, September and December and feature key updates, articles, news and information about the work and stories of California ChangeLawyers.

We hope you enjoy this edition of “The ChangeMaker”.

CALIFORNIA CHANGELAWYERS STAFF (LEFT TO RIGHT): CARLOS AGUILAR, JASJIT SINGH, CHRIS PUNONGBAYAN, STACI L. YOUNG.

LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Welcome to the latest issue of the ChangeMaker! This is one of my favorite times of the year because we enter the season of gratitude, celebration and togetherness. And while there are still many challenges that we face, it is important to pause and reflect on what is good in our lives.

This is also important because human beings have a built-in negativity bias. That means we are predisposed to noticing what’s bad. Our professional training as lawyers makes this even more pronounced because we are ensconced in conflict and we are always preparing for the worstcase scenario. Noticing what’s good is a powerful antidote that can undo the long-term effects of this type of thinking.

At ChangeLawyers, I am grateful for our 1300+ alumni who are making change in their law schools and communities every day. I am grateful for our small but mighty team of four staff who make ChangeLawyers’ work possible. I am grateful for our board of directors who are tireless volunteers overseeing our strategy and governance. And I am grateful for all of you, our donors and supporters, who believe in our mission of building a better justice system for all Californians. These are things that are good and these are the things that I am focusing on as we look onward to 2023.

Chris Punongbayan

CHRIS PUNONGBAYAN EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

THANK YOU, JEANNE!

We want to send a sincere thank you and farewell to outgoing Board President, Jeanne Fugate. Jeanne served on the Board from 2015-2022, culminating in being chair of the board for 2021 and 2022. Thank you for your years of support and service.

WELCOME, RASHA!

We also welcome Rasha Gerges Shields into the position of Board President for the 2023-2024 term. Thank you Rasha for your leadership; we look forward for the years to come!

ALUMNI VOICES: MEET JESSICA VALADEZ

Jessica Valadez was a 2020-2022 California ChangeLawyers and Equal Justice Works Fellow and attorney on the Collaborative Responses to Commercial Sexual Exploitation Initiative at the National Center for Youth Law. Her work at NCYL was centered around supporting Tribal communities, child welfare agencies, service providers, and advocates in preventing, identifying, and addressing the commercial sexual exploitation of Native American youth in California.

Prior to beginning her fellowship, Jessica clerked for two judges in the Unified Family Court at San Francisco Superior Court. Jessica earned her J.D. from UC Hastings College of the Law, where she was

also a ChangeLawyers law student scholar in 2016, and her B.A. from Loyola Marymount University, where she majored in Political Science and French Language and Literature.

She is a first-generation Salvadoran American and the first in her family to graduate from college and attain

a professional degree. She is now a Deputy Public Defender with Los Angeles County.

WATCH JESSICA'S STORY!

1L SCHOLAR, JACQUELINE DIAZ MADRIGAL WITH HER SCHOLARSHIP AWARD.

OUR FIRST PUBLIC EVENT IN 3 YEARS!

On October 19th, ChangeLawyers hosted The 2022 NextGen Awards at La Plaza de Cultura y Artes in bustling downtown Los Angeles. There were over 150 guests present for the outdoor reception, complete with delicious coastal cuisine, fun photo booths and networking.

We were able to welcome 32 1L scholars, bestowing scholarships of $7,500+ each, into the ChangeLawyers

community with their sponsors, families and friends present.

We took a moment to remember board member, Anjan Choudhury, who dedicated his life’s work to making change happen in the legal field. Anjan was posthumously awarded the Leadership Award, which was accepted by his sister, Tanya Choudhury, and announced the Anjan Choudhury Memorial Scholarship Fund, made possible

by generous donations and the MTO Foundation. With this, we also awarded the first of its kind 2L scholarship to previous 1L scholarship recipient and MTO Fellow, Cheyenne Rogers (on cover page).

We awarded current and former fellow, Jessica Valadez and Princess Manasseh, respectively,

with the NextGen Award for their tireless work in advocacy for their clients. And Princess moderated a passionate panel discussion featuring ChangeMaker Awardees Professor Jody Armour and Saul Gonzalez.

Jody David Armour is the Roy P. Crocker Professor of Law at the University of Southern California. A widely-published scholar and

popular lecturer, he studies the intersection of race, law, morality, psychology, politics, ordinary language philosophy, and the performing arts.

Saul Gonzalez is co-host of “The California Report” from KQED. Previously he was a reporter for KCRW and host of There Goes the Neighborhood: Los Angeles. Saul

has reported on such issues as California's sexual predator policies, high speed rail, the debate over right to die laws, and the struggles of LA's street vendors.

The event brought together ChangeLawyers, the legal community as well boastful family and friends. We enjoyed seeing all the conversations happening

ARMOUR, SAUL GONZALES, CHRIS PUNONGBAYAN

INTRODUCING THE 2022 1L SCHOLARS

MARIAN AVILA BREACH

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Keesal Young & Logan

NICOLE BENALCAZAR

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Daniel S Goodman Memorial Scholarship Fund

JOSHUEL CALDERON

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by The Morrison & Foerster Foundation

EDWIN CHIKUKWA

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW Apple scholar, sponsored by WilmerHale

GISELL DEL CARMEN

SOUTHWESTERN LAW SCHOOL sponsored by California Lawyers Foundation

JACQUELINE DIAZ MADRIGAL

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Munger Tolles Olson

CLAUDIA

DIAZ MARTINEZ

UC IRVINE SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by The Anjan Choudhury Memorial Scholarship Fund

EBELECHUKWU ESEKA

YALE LAW SCHOOL

Roche-Genetech scholar, sponsored by WilmerHale

BRIONNE FRAZIER

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by PG&E

JANNET GOMEZ

STANFORD LAW SCHOOL sponsored by California Lawyers Foundation

CELESTE GOMEZ

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Downey Brand

KATE IM

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by LimNexus

HELIYA IZADPANAH

UCLA

SILVIA EMAD LABIB KIROLLOS SOUTHWESTERN LAW sponsored by Wilmerhale

LAW

SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Kirkland & Ellis

SIMON LUU

UC HASTINGS COLLEGE OF THE

sponsored by Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Foundation

SYLVIA LYDON

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Cox, Castle & Nicholson

JADE MAGAÑA

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW

Apple scholar, sponsored by WilmerHale

JAQUELINE MEJÍACUÉLLAR

UC HASTINGS COLLEGE OF THE LAW sponsored by Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Foundation

FREE PIERRE

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Manatt, Phelps & Phillips

EMILY VICTORIA QUACH

LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL, LOS ANGELES

Intel scholar, sponsored by WilmerHale

KAREN NORELY RAMIREZ TORRES

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW Intel scholar, sponsored by WilmerHale

MARIAM RIZK

THOMAS

JEFFERSON SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Klinedinst

SARAH ROYER THOMAS JEFFERSON SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Fenwick & West

ALYZE SALAN

LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL, LOS ANGELES

Roche-Genetech scholar, sponsored by WilmerHale

KAD SMITH

UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by California Lawyers Foundation

DELPHERT (DEL) CLAYTON SMITH III

USC GOULD SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by California Lawyers Foundation

ALEXIS TATUM

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by Reed Smith, in memory of Deborah Broyles

ALONDRA G. ULLOA

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW

UPS scholar, sponsored by Morrison & Foerster LLP

ROGER VALENCIA RICARDEZ

UCLA SCHOOL OF LAW "Change Can't Wait" scholar, sponsored by Stupski Foundation/ ChangeLawyers

ELI VASQUEZ

UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO SCHOOL OF LAW sponsored by The Morrison & Foerster Foundation

VICTORIA VENZOR

LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL LOS ANGELES, sponsored by Pillsbury

DOMINICK WILLIAMS

UC BERKELEY SCHOOL OF LAW

Uber scholar, sponsored by Morrison & Foerster LLP

FRED BROWN

IN MEMORIUM, (1948-2022)

We would like to take an opportunity to recognize the life and memory of Fred Brown (1948 – 2022). Fred Brown previously served as President of ChangeLawyers, when we were known under our prior name as the California Bar Foundation. Fred was inspired to work with students and aspiring lawyers to overcome obstacles; focusing on advancing diversity efforts for the bar.

As an educator, he taught trial skills, was a regular lecturer, and published numerous articles on various areas of litigation. He was a mentor to many younger lawyers with whom he worked.

As a lawyer, he practiced as an associate then partner at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe and as a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He served as Partner-in-Charge of the San Francisco office of Gibson Dunn from 2005-2011.

We send our sincerest condolences to his family, friends and anyone that was changed by his work.

THANK YOU FRED.

AB 2632 ADVOCACY

In line with our mission and values, California ChangeLawyers joined other philanthropic organizations across the state, and submitted a letter in support of AB 2632, also known as the California Mandela Act on Solitary Confinement.

AB 2632 would have provided a clear definition of what constituted solitary confinement across California prisons, jails, and detention centers, while also setting limits on how it could be used. AB 2632 would have ended the use of solitary confinement for certain populations, including those with disabilities, pregnant women, youth, elderly, and other special

populations; and prevented the deprivation of human contact or continuous in-cell lockdowns for longer than 15-day periods.

One additional piece of special importance is that AB 2632 would have been the first piece of legislation on solitary confinement to specifically cover immigrants in the state's detention facilities.

AB 2632 was groundbreaking in many ways.

The bill cleared the California legislature and despite strong bipartisan support - AB 2632 was ultimately vetoed by Governor Newsom.

SCOTUS EVENTS

The 2023 SCOTUS presents the conservative legal movement with plenty of opportunities, including the ending of affirmative action, rolling back LGBTQ+ rights, and overturning election results — among other potentially explosive decisions. The overturning of Roe v. Wade was just the beginning. In 2022, a newly radical Supreme Court shocked our country by undoing decades of precedent.

California already ended affirmative action 30 years ago, and the results have been devastating. Black, Latinx, and Native comprise a smaller percentage of law and medical schools than in the 1990s.

Recently, ChangeLawyers partnered with ACS Bay Area and Equal Justice Society to host a series of events focused on the Supreme Court, the judiciary, and the culture

that surrounds it. On November 15, we hosted the first event about the possible end of affirmative action and what this means for students of color. On December 13, we discussed the conservative legal movement’s strategy to slowly but surely unravel our rights. You can watch both events here.

Our panelists discussed Students for Fair Admissions (SFFA) v. Harvard, and offer potential solutions to ensure higher education is

accessible to BIPOC students and went deeper to discuss the most alarming cases of 2023, and offer solutions to counter the radical conservative legal movement.

Panelists included: Sarah Zearfoss, Michigan Law; Lisa Holder, Equal Justice Society; Sally Chen, Chinese for Affirmative Action; Erwin Chemerinsky, Berkeley Law; Samuel Spital, NAACP Legal Defense Fund.

1L SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

Anjan Choudhury Memorial Scholarship Fund

California Lawyers Foundation

Cox, Castle & Nicholson

Downey Brand

Fenwick & West Keesal Young & Logan Kirkland & Ellis Klinedinst LimNexus

Manatt

Morrison & Foerster Foundation

Morrison & Foerster LLP

Munger, Tolles & Olson PG&E Pillsbury Reed Smith Stupski Foundation WilmerHale

Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati Foundation

3L SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM

Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California

Asian American Bar Association Law Foundation

Asian Pacific Bar Association of Silicon Valley Bay Area Lawyers for Individual Freedom

Black Women Lawyers of Los Angeles

CABL Judicial Council/Founders Fund

California Association of Black Lawyers

California Indian Law Association

Charles Houston Bar Association

Consumer Attorneys of California

Daniel Goodman Memorial Scholarship

Earl B Gilliam Bar Foundation

East Bay La Raza Lawyers Scholarship Fund

Filipino Bar Association of Northern California

Iranian American Bar Association of NC

Latina Lawyers Bar Association

Philippine American Bar Association San Francisco La Raza Lawyers Association

Tom Homann LGBT Law Association

FELLOWSHIPS

ABA Retirement Funds

LEGAL EMPOWERMENT FUND

Akonadi Foundation

Anonymous Family Foundation

Bigglesworth Family Foundation Stupski Foundation

Van Loben Sels/Rembe Rock Foundation

William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

EVENT SPONSORS

ABA Retirement Funds

AccessLex

CalBar Connect Colantuono, Highsmith & Whatley, PC

The Walt Disney Company

Heritage Bank of Commerce

Johnston, Kinney & Zulaica LLP

JonesDay

Kazan MacLain Partners Foundation

Pearl & Thomas Lough

Pez Cantina

San Francisco Giants

Southern California Edison