Without doubt, 2020 was unprecedented. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic changed how Vanderbilt Law School delivered a legal education for a time. The VLS Class of 2020 persevered despite these new challenges and have successfully begun shaping their legal careers.
We are extremely pleased (at last) to celebrate the Vanderbilt Law School Class of 2020 at a Commencement ceremony being held on Sunday, May 2, 2021.
More information and watch a livestream of the ceremony
Apr. 28, 2021
Thirty-three members of the Class of 2020 secured 35 clerkships in federal appellate, district and bankruptcy courts, and six in state courts, including the Delaware Court of Chancery.
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Apr. 20, 2021
With today’s news that the jury voted to convict Derek Chauvin for the murder of George Floyd, it is important to acknowledge that the trauma of this case, like so many others, remains with us. We have had to relive this violent encounter through the horrific video that many of us have seen with our...
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Apr. 16, 2021
VBA President Esther Lee, BLSA President Samantha Furman, Co-Counsel Mentoring Program President Asha Menon and Legal Aid Society President Kira Benton were recognized for student leadership, while three student organizations-the Voting Rights and Advocacy Society, the Investment and Securities Club, and the Law Students for Social Justice-were honored for their contributions to student life.
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Apr. 16, 2021
The annual awards are given based on a student poll conducted by Vanderbilt Bar Association.
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Apr. 14, 2021
Yadav is an expert in securities regulation. In an in-depth discussion with Odd Lots hosts Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway of Bloomberg Business, Yadav argues that recent, seeming inexplicable bouts of volatility in the teasury market can be explained by the inadequate patchwork of regulations governing this market.
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Feb. 25, 2021
Belton was a pioneering scholar of labor and employment law and the law school’s first tenured African American professor. The position of Robert Belton Director of Diversity, Equity and Community will be endowed by an anonymous donor this year
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Feb. 23, 2021
Aaron Bernard ’22 and Emily Webb ’22 are Moot Court finalists, with Emily Detiveaux ’22 honored for Best Oralist and Peter Byrne ’22 and Caylyn Harvey ’22 for Best Brief.
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Feb. 11, 2021
The award recognizes the best paper written by a law student on a military justice topic. Fitzgerald’s essay, “Thank Me for My Service: An Ethics Oversight in DoD Social Media Policy,” will be published in the Harvard National Security Law Journal.
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Jan. 28, 2021
Clarke’s article has been reprinted in the UCLA Law Dukeminier Awards Journal, which annually recognizes the best legal scholarship on sexual orientation and gender identity issues.
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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Chief Counsel Honors Program, Huntsville, Alabama
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Associate, Special Matters and Government Investigations, King & Spalding, Washington, D.C.
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Finance Lawyer, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, London
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Clerk, Judge Julia Smith Gibbons, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Memphis
2020-21 Clerk, Judge Joseph H. McKinley Jr., U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky
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2020-21 Clerk, Judge Joan L. Larsen, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
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"I wanted to be at a law school where professors and more experienced attorneys care about my growth."
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2019-21 Clerk, Judge Marcia Morales Howard, U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida
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Entertainment and Corporate Attorney, Shackelford Bowen McKinley & Norton, Nashville
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Attorney at Coronel & Pérez, Guayaquil and Professor of Civil Law at Universidad Espíritu Santo, Samborondón, Ecuador
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2020-21 Clerk, Judge Eduardo C. Robreno, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
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"I've always been passionate about criminal law and business transactions, and I wanted to see the American perspective in both areas."
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Staff Attorney, Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund, Berkeley, California
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Clerk, Judge Jerome T. Kearney ’81, Eastern District of Arkansas
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We, at Vanderbilt Law School, have been sickened and profoundly saddened by the recent spate of hateful violence against Asian communities across America and the horrifying, evil killings in Atlanta. Our first thoughts lie with the victims of this violence, their families and communities. We mourn the lives of Daoyou Feng, Hyun Jung Grant, Suncha Kim, Paul Andre Michels, Soon Chung Park, Xiaojie Tan, Yong Ae Yue, Delaina Ashley Yaun and we wish Elcias Hernandez-Ortiz fullest recovery from his injuries.
As this devastating wave of hate sweeps across the country, we are reminded of our most solemn duty as a law school community – to ensure that our staff, students and faculty come together in solidarity to condemn hate, discrimination and bigotry in the strongest possible terms. We stand up for one another and we ensure that our students, staff and faculty feel welcome, valued and protected at all times. Throughout the unprecedented challenges of this last year, and the racial reckoning that is underway in our country, we are also reminded of our mission as an institution of learning and action – to build a community of lawyers that are educated about the long and difficult history facing Asian-Americans and communities of color in America, to serve the rule of law and to help move our country’s lived reality towards a more equitable, fairer and decent future.
At this challenging time, we would urge all our community members to be mindful of the safety and well-being of others and to immediately report any instances of bigotry or hate around campus to a member of the Law School administration. If members experience or witness any potential for or actual violence, please call 911 immediately or Vanderbilt Police on (615) 421-1911.
