University of San Diego School of Law Legal Clinics Honor Student Interns at Virtual Clinics’ Graduation Awards Ceremony

SAN DIEGO (May 20, 2021) – Kicking off graduation weekend, the Legal Clinics at University of San Diego (USD) School of Law celebrated graduating student interns at a virtual awards ceremony on Friday, May 14. As a part of the ceremony, clinic faculty advisors selected a top graduating student in their clinic to honor.

Congratulations to this year’s graduating awardees!

• John Zens – Appellate Clinic
• Taha Majeed –Civil Clinic
• Taylor Needham – Education and Disability Clinic
• Julia Hanson – Entrepreneurship Clinic
• Cortney Harrington – Federal Tax Clinic
• Thomas Yau – Immigration Clinic
• Rosalinda Torres – State Income Tax Clinic
• Sabrina Faramarzi – State Sales and Use Tax Clinic
• Chandler Martin – Veterans Clinic
• Agassi Bagramyan – Women’s Legal Clinic
• Julia Drury – Workers’ Rights Clinic

Dean Robert Schapiro spoke at the event, praising the students for their ability to hone their legal skills and advance the law school’s public service mission during a global pandemic. “Through remote means, they ensured the continuity of the clinics’ work, including interviewing and counseling clients, drafting briefs, negotiating with opposing counsel, conducting hearings, and even successfully completing trials…. Congratulations to our students on all you have accomplished this year in the face of so many challenges. You bring great honor to the school and to the legal profession.”

At the ceremony, the clinics also announced this year’s Outstanding Service Award winner as Julie Bennett, who recently left USD and has supported in the Legal Clinics in various capacities since 2013, including management of the front desk and triaging potential client calls.

About the Legal Clinics at the University of San Diego School of Law

Since 1971, students at USD School of Law have received outstanding training through the Clinical Education Program while providing free legal services to San Diego residents in need. The Legal Clinics at USD are recognized as one of the most extensive and successful clinical programs in the nation, bridging the gap between courses in legal theory and the practical skills and experience individuals need to become effective lawyers. USD clinical programs offer students the opportunity to do real-world legal work while training under experienced professors and attorneys.

About the University of San Diego School of Law

Each year, USD educates approximately 800 Juris Doctor and graduate law students from throughout the United States and around the world.  The law school is best known for its offerings in the areas of business and corporate law, constitutional law, intellectual property, international and comparative law, public interest law and taxation.

USD School of Law is one of the 84 law schools elected to the Order of the Coif, a national honor society for law school graduates.  The law school’s faculty is a strong group of outstanding scholars and teachers with national and international reputations and currently ranks 36th nationally among U.S. law faculties in scholarly impact and 22nd nationally in past-year faculty downloads on the Social Sciences Research Network (SSRN). The school is accredited by the American Bar Association and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. Founded in 1954, the law school is part of the University of San Diego, a private, independent, Roman Catholic university chartered in 1949.