UC Berkeley School of Law

09/03/2026

Who’s coming to law school, and why? Welcome back to our series meeting incoming Berkeley Law students! Our incoming class comes from all walks of life and all corners of the world, including Samuel Kippen. Samuel is from Hawai'i but spent the last few years in St. Louis as a civil rights enforcement officer. He graduated undergrad in 2011 and brought his wife and 8-year-old son to Berkeley with him. Learn more about Sam in his own words below:

Q: Why law school? Why now?
A: My parents were public servants. They raised me to understand that I have a kuleana to work for the common good. Following their example, I dedicated my career to the cause of social equity as an organizer, advocate, and public administrator. I am returning to school in my 30s to gain the legal tools I need to advance the public interest. At Berkeley Law, I will develop my expertise in anti-discrimination law in pursuit of my goal of becoming a civil rights attorney.

Q: Why Berkeley Law?
A: Berkeley Law is known for its commitment to educating public interest attorneys and it puts that commitment into action. The full-tuition scholarship I was awarded through the Public Interest Scholars Program has made accessing law school feasible for me as a student parent. I began my career in organizing in the Bay Area over a decade ago. The formative on-the-job education I received here started me on the path to law school. It is thrilling to return all these years later to take the next step on my public interest journey at UC Berkeley, the intellectual heart of Bay Area justice work.

09/01/2026

Turns out, marshmallows are way more high stakes than they look!

Students participating in the Social Enterprise Clinic recently tackled the Marshmallow Challenge — building the tallest freestanding structure out of spaghetti, tape, and string to support a single marshmallow.

The exercise highlighted key principles of effective legal practice:
• Iterative Strategy Over Static Planning: Successful legal work relies on stress testing and continuous refinement, not just theory.
• Agile Collaboration: Meeting tight client deadlines requires rapid alignment, active listening, and team-first ex*****on.
• Focus on Client Outcomes: The marshmallow represents the client’s core goal. Regardless of how sophisticated a legal strategy looks on paper, it must deliver real-world results.

Experiential learning at Berkeley Law bridges the gap between legal theory and practical advocacy.

Law

08/31/2026

Joni Hiramoto ’87 has seen a lot in 28 years on the Contra Costa County Superior Court bench. With the climate for judges becoming increasingly fraught, she’s prioritized her passions as a jurist: pursuing justice in her courtroom while paving the way for new generations of judges, lawyers, and students.

Hiramoto arrived at Berkeley Law during the tumultuous fight over tenure denials for two beloved professors — Eleanor Swift and Marjorie Shultz — and found both of them to be inspiring teachers.

“I credit her with my understanding of contracts,” Hiramoto says of Shultz. “It was shocking that this incredibly smart and capable woman didn’t have the full support of the faculty when it came to tenure allegedly because her published works were in the area of family law.”

Read "In Turbulent Times for the Judiciary, Superior Court Judge Joni Hiramoto ’87 Leans into ‘Justice for All’" https://bit.ly/4gliuIM

08/28/2026

How did the Supreme Court’s latest term affect gun possession and public carry?



Video Description: Berkeley Law Dean Erwin Chemerinsky sits at a wooden conference table in front of a wood-paneled wall, speaking directly to the camera. Text overlay on the video reads: 'How did the Supreme Court’s latest term affect gun possession and public carry?'

08/27/2026

Berkeley Law’s 1L cohort is the strongest since the Admissions Office began keeping track, boasting a median GPA of 3.93 and a median LSAT score of 171.

“It is wonderful to welcome our terrific 1L class to Berkeley Law,” Dean Erwin Chemerinsky says. “They have superb credentials and bring a wealth of different kinds of experience to law school. Already their professors are commenting that the Class of 2029 is truly extraordinary.”

Read "‘A Strong Sense of Camaraderie’: Berkeley Law’s 1L Cohort Sets Another New Standard of Excellence" https://bit.ly/46oN8ek

08/26/2026

Who’s coming to law school, and why? Welcome to our series meeting incoming Berkeley Law students! Our incoming class comes from all walks of life and all corners of the world, including Angela Jimenez from Los Angeles.

Angela spent the last five years working at the US Supreme Court in positions from curatorial intern to Marshal's Aide to Case Analyst. She went to Cal as an undergraduate majoring in Legal Studies and worked at the Consumer Justice Clinic at the East Bay Community Law Center. She’s now a part of the Berkeley Law Leadership Academy.

Q: Why Berkeley Law?
A: I came here for undergrad. Berkeley really taught me to think critically. I like how Berkeley approaches classroom learning, and that we’re learning about the structural impacts of ideas and not just what they are by definition. My major was in Legal Studies, so I was able to take law-specific courses, one including with the Hon. Judge Trina Thompson ‘86. Taking Legal Studies classes exposed me to a lot of legal concepts early on.

08/25/2026

"The Supreme Court's ruling on Monday allowing President Trump's executive order on mail voting to go forward is stunningly insensitive to the context: Trump is trying to exercise control over elections when he has absolutely no authority to do so."

— Opinion by Dean Erwin Chemerinsky via Los Angeles Times:
https://lat.ms/4wTBG5s

Voting operations are legally the domain of state governments. An executive order won't change that.

08/25/2026

Berkeley Law’s Career Development Office (CDO) recently launched the second year of its popular Coffee Chat Series, a weekly event during the fall semester that lets first-year students network informally with and gain valuable information from a diverse range of legal employers that include private law firms, government offices, and public interest organizations.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/4gQhg8w

Berkeley Law’s Career Development Office (CDO) recently launched the second year of its popular Coffee Chat Series, a weekly event during the fall semester that lets first-year students network informally […]

08/25/2026

Here’s to new ideas, new friendships, and everything ahead!

08/22/2026

On the first day of classes, first-year, transfer and LL.M. students attended the Public Interest & Social Justice Orientation to learn about the many ways to get involved at Berkeley Law.

The event was hosted by the Public Interest Working Group (PIWG) made up of staff members from the Henderson Center for Social Justice, the Pro Bono Program, the Clinical Program, the East Bay Community Law Center, the Career Development Office, the Field Placement Program, the LL.M. Career and Academic Advising Team, and the Financial Aid Office. Learn more about some of these programs below:

Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice

The Clinical Program at Berkeley Law includes 15 clinics that offer students an opportunity to advance racial, economic, and social justice while receiving academic credit. Through clinic seminars, students gain a solid foundation in law and practice and gain experience with hands-on client work that helps them build critical lawyering skills.

East Bay Community Law Center, founded by Berkeley Law graduates, houses eight of the 15 clinics where students participate in offering free legal services to low-income community members.

The Pro Bono Program at Berkeley Law offers students the opportunity to promote the public interest and help close the justice gap. Students develop lawyering skills and leadership skills while bringing life-changing legal services to underserved communities.