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4 PH O T O S B Y NA NCY M A RT IN
1. From left, 2014 Honoree Howard Charney MBA ’73, J.D. ’77, joined 2015 Honoree Paul ‘Chip’ Lion J.D. ’82, and Dean Lisa Kloppenberg at this year's celebration. 2. The Honorable Socrates P. Manoukian, recipient of the 2015 Santa Clara Law Owens Award, enjoyed the video tribute. 3. Professor Cynthia A. Mertens, recipient of the 2015 Edwin J. Owens Lawyer of the Year Award, was joined by her husband, Jim Rowan (left), and SCU President Michael Engh, S.J. 4. Roy Stanley J.D. ’06 (left) and Carl Frasier (right), law library specialist, congratulate Kevin J. Albanese B.S. ’96, J.D. ’06, for receiving the 2015 Young Alumni Rising Star Award.
PROFESSOR CYNTHIA A. MERTENS
KEVIN J. ALBANESE B.S. ’96, J.D. ’08
EDWIN J. OWENS LAWYER OF THE YEAR AWARD
YOUNG ALUMNI RISING STAR AWARD
A passion for the law and uncompromising interest in the well-being of the underserved has motivated Santa Clara Law Professor Cynthia Mertens throughout her career. A Bay Area native, she graduated from Stanford University before earning her J.D. from U.C. Hastings Law School in the 1970s. There she overcame the prevailing gender gap to excel, and after graduation accepted a position with California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) in Santa Maria, where she made her first court appearance the day after she was admitted to the Bar. While at CRLA, she was asked to join the Santa Clara Law faculty, and she has been a mainstay for four decades. She has served as associate dean for academic affairs; twice been the executive director of the Katharine & George Alexander Law Center; and has taken more than 100 law students on immersion trips to El Salvador to study human rights and social justice issues. She and her husband, Jim Rowan, regularly provide a home for students and visiting faculty. Santa Clara Law is proud of her legacy of properly preparing our next generation of lawyers, and sparking the confluence of legal, moral, and practical applications of the law. She and Jim have three children and have served as “second parents” to countless law students.
Kevin Albanese is president and CEO of Joseph J. Albanese, Inc., a large commercial concrete and general engineering contractor. He earned his J.D., magna cum laude, through Santa Clara Law’s part-time program, and did so as a husband, and father to two children under the age of 3, all while serving as Joseph J. Albanese’s COO. Following law school, he took on various industry associations and community efforts. He is a past president of both United Contractors and CFMA Silicon Valley. He currently serves as a trustee for the Operating Engineers Local 3 Trust Funds and an advisor to Lincoln Glen Little League. Appointed by Governor Jerry Brown in 2013, he serves as a board member of the Contractors State License Board. Recognized for his leadership and contributions to industry and the community, he was named to the list of top “40 Under 40” by the Silicon Valley Business Journal and the top “20 Under 40” by the Engineering News Record. He maintains a small law office where he practices employment, construction, and personal injury law. He is grateful for the support of his wife, Julie, two sons, Connor and Aiden, and the team at Joseph J. Albanese, Inc.
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