We are excited to announce a weekend of events celebrating Latinos and Latinas in the law beginning with our Twelfth Annual Symposium entitled Raising the Bar: Latino and Latina Presence in the Judiciary and the Struggle for Representation.  This year's symposium will commemorate the fortieth anniversary of the first Latino appointed to the federal bench with a celebratory and critical examination of the contribution of Latinos and Latinas to the state and federal bench. This weekend will conclude with the fifth annual National Latino Law Student conference being hosted this year by the Berkeley La Raza Law Students Association.

The Symposium is being co-hosted by the Journal, the Berkeley La Raza Law Students Association, the Boalt Hall Center for Social Justice, and the Center for Latino Policy Research.

The symposium will begin on Friday, October 26, 2001 with Judge Mario Olmos Memorial Lecture and a reception honoring the Latino and Latina pioneers on the state and federal benches. It will be followed by a day of panels on Saturday, October 27, 2001 at Boalt Hall School of Law, located in the UC Berkeley campus.

Symposium Agenda

Friday, October 26, 2001

4:00 - 5:00 P.M.  Judge Mario G. Olmos Memorial Lecture & Keynote Address
Hon. Sonia Sotomayor, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit

5:00 - 7:00 P.M.  Reception in Honor of the Latino and Latina Pioneers on the Bench

Saturday, October 27, 2001

8:00 - 8:45 A.M.  Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:45 - 9:00 A.M.  Welcome and Opening Remarks

Dean John Dwyer, Boalt Hall School of Law

9:00 - 10:30 A.M.  Breaking the Barrier: Latino/a Pioneers on the Federal and State Benches
Moderator: Dean Kevin Johnson, UC Davis Law School
Panelists:
Hon. Cruz Reynoso, former California Supreme Court Justice and UC Davis Law School professor
Hon. Frances Muñoz, Harbor Municipal Court
Hon. Raul Ramirez, former U.S. District Court judge in the Northern District of California*

10:45 - 12:15 P.M.  Institutional (Dis)Location: Latino/a Representation and the Politics of Appointment
Moderator: Prof. Carl Tobias, UNLV Law School
Panelists:
Maria Echaveste, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee*
Carlos Ortiz, former president of Hispanic National Bar Association
Roberta Sistos, Hispanic National Bar Association Supreme Court committee co-chair

12:15 - 1:30 P.M.  Lunch

1:45 - 3:15 P.M.  Latinos/as on the Bench and in Society: Different Voices, Different Perspectives for 21st Century Issues
Moderator: Prof. Gerald Torres, UT-Austin Law School
Panelists:
Hon. Richard Paez, U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Hon. Valeriano Saucedo, Tulare County Superior Court
Dean Victoria Ortiz, Boalt Hall School of Law
Jessica Delgado, Monterey County Public Defender

3:30 - 5:00 P.M.  Barriers to Latinos/as in the Law School: The Need to Increase the Role We Play as Lawyers, Judges, and Professors
Moderator: Professor Rachel Moran, Boalt Hall School of Law
Panelists:
Hon. Martha Vazquez, U.S. District Court, New Mexico
Juan Figueroa, President of Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund
Dean Leo Martinez, Hastings Law School
Professor Laura Gomez, UCLA Law School
Professor Miguel Mendez, Stanford Law School

5:00 - 7:00 P.M.  Closing Reception

7:00 - 9:00 P.M.  Student Conference Dinner and Welcoming Address
José Padilla, Executive Director, California Rural Legal Assistance

Sunday, October 28, 2001

National Latino Law Students Conference

10:00 - 10:45 A.M.  University Policies & Student Strategies: Student Recruitment and Retention

10:00 - 10:45 A.M.  University Policies & Student Strategies: Faculty Recruitment and Retention

11:00 - 12:00 P.M.  Breakout Sessions on Student & Faculty Issues

12:00 - 1:00 P.M.  Luncheon Address
Professor Margaret Montoya, University of New Mexico School of Law

1:00 - 2:00 P.M.  National Latino/a Student Network Creation

2:00 - 3:00 P.M.  Coalition Building Across Communities

* Speakers to be confirmed

THIS SYMPOSIUM HAS BEEN CERTIFIED FOR 7.0 HOURS OF MCLE ELIMINATION OF BIAS CREDIT.  REGISTRATION WILL SOON BE AVAILABLE ONLINE.  

Requests for information should be directed to Victor Rodriguez, Symposium Editor. He can be reached via email at vrodrig@boalthall.berkeley.edu or via phone at 510-525-0795.

Special Thanks to our Event Sponsors:

Amigos ($100):
Miguel Martinez
Nicole Marie Townsend
Esther Herrera
Debra Lynn Gonzales
Robert W. Mockler
Lydia Villareal
Shook, Hardy & Bacon, LLP
Dickenson, Peatman & Fogerty
Lydia Sandoval & John Pacheco, Jr.

Sponsors ($500):
McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enerson, LLP
Perkins Coie, LLP
Morrison & Foerster
Pillsbury Winthrop, LLP
Heller, Ehrman, White & McAuliffe, LLP

Patrons ($1000):
Goya Foods, Inc.

Angels ($5000):
Boalt Hall Dean's Office & Boalt Hall Student Services Office

Those law firms, companies, or individuals interested in supporting these events should contact Victor Rodriguez or the Journal at 510-642-9351.