By Andrew Cohen
During a year that saw the rule of law increasingly threatened all over the world, Berkeley Law’s commitment to excellence, community, public mission, and leadership was on full display. From extensive pro bono work and influential policy guidance to new clinics and groundbreaking research to school record figures in job placement success and first-year J.D. class credentials, the school enjoyed a remarkable 2025.
The energy, entrepreneurial spirit, and commitment to justice generated by Berkeley Law students, faculty, staff, and alumni surface regularly in the 96 news articles and 50 Spotlight items that appeared on our homepage this year. Here are a dozen of them that provide just a sampling of the school’s innovative environment and collaborative culture.
‘Such a Strong Law School’: Seven New Hires Bring Expertise and Enthusiasm Across a Wide Range of Fields
Berkeley Law had yet another banner hiring year, adding seven new professors across a wide range of fields and disciplines to an already stellar faculty. The hires include four senior scholars — Professors Brian Galle, Joy Milligan Ph.D. ’18, Bertrall Ross, and Kevin Washburn — Assistant Professors Ryan Sakoda and Jason Ferguson, and Clinical Professor Alina Ball. They’re the latest in a transformative wave of hiring since Dean Erwin Chemerinsky arrived in 2017. “We had a spectacular year in faculty hiring,” he says. “We’ve added terrific faculty in many different fields who will be great classroom teachers as well as influential scholars. We are tremendously fortunate to have them join us.”
First-Year Students Bring Record-Setting Credentials and Intriguing Experiences to Berkeley Law
Berkeley Law’s first-year J.D. students continue to scale new peaks. “Every year, it seems they keep raising the bar,” Chemerinsky says. The current 1L class posted an undergraduate grade point average of 3.92 — up from 3.87 last year and the highest mark since the school began tracking it — and a record-tying median LSAT score of 170 (around the 96th percentile). Class members hail from 33 states and nine countries, 55% are students of color, 37% identify as LGBTQIA+, and 17% are the first in their family to receive a college degree. More figures and examples of their work are on the school’s entering class profile page. But the academic data tells just a small part of the story.
Peak Performer: How Wayne Stacy Helped Nepal’s Top University Build a Tech Law Curriculum From Scratch
As a top patent litigator, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office West Coast branch leader, classroom teacher, and now Berkeley Center for Law & Technology executive director, Wayne Stacy has been positioned at the nexus of innovation and America’s legal and governmental principles. But what if a resource-limited country lacked that history to rely on, and had questions about where to invest? Stacy found out in Nepal as a Fulbright Specialist, part of a U.S. Department of State program. Over just 30 days, he helped the law faculty at Tribhuvan University — which oversees Nepal’s public legal-education system — build out a brand-new tech law curriculum for all of the country’s public law schools.
Berkeley Law Rankings Hit High Marks for Major Fields and Scholarly Impact of Standout Professors
Berkeley Law is the nation’s top public law school, according to Times Higher Education and Quacquarelli Symonds’ World University Ranking, which rank it No. 6 and No. 7 worldwide, respectively. Two recent scholarly impact studies rate the faculty as the best among public institutions, and preLaw magazine gives Berkeley Law an A+ rating for technology, international, criminal, intellectual property, environmental, human rights, business law, legal technology (No. 1 nationally), and racial justice. Another study tracking faculty citations ranks Berkeley Law sixth nationally in scholarly impact, and a ranking of the top 100 legal scholars by citation shows the school tied for No. 2 with six professors.
‘His Life is a Tribute to This Country: $6 Million Gift Establishes Thelton E. Henderson ’62 Chair in Civil Rights Law
A $6 million gift from Bob and Colleen Haas will establish the Thelton E. Henderson ’62 Chair in Civil Rights Law, honoring the distinguished Berkeley Law alum and celebrating his name, legendary life’s work, and passion for molding a fairer and more just society for future students, faculty, and staff. The gift from the Haases, who have funded transformative programs at UC Berkeley, commemorates not just Henderson’s influential career as a civil rights lawyer and longtime federal judge but also a deep 57-year friendship. “He’s a model of the best a person could be, and his life is a tribute to this country,” Colleen Haas says. “So it’s with total happiness that we’re able to endow this chair.”
Environmental Impact: Berkeley Law Center Plays Vital Role in Shaping New California Climate Bills
From its informal origins 20 years ago, Berkeley Law’s Center for Law, Energy & the Environment (CLEE) — which has quadrupled its staff in the last decade alone — has grown into a policy powerhouse that increasingly shapes state-level decision-making in numerous ways. During California’s recently concluded legislative session, the center delivered pivotal guidance for multiple bills revolving around housing, greenhouse gas emissions, and cap-and-trade. Working closely with nonprofit sponsors and legislative staff, CLEE experts provided wide-ranging objective research, data, technical assistance, and drafting language to support crucial policy advancements across the environmental landscape.
Proactive Approach: First-Year Students Praise New Program Created in Response to Earlier Hiring Practices
As legal recruiting continued to evolve and start earlier in students’ first year of law school, Berkeley Law’s Career Development Office (CDO) promptly moved up many of its flagship student and employer networking programs from spring to fall. The CDO also added a completely new program called the Coffee Chat Series, which took place at the law school for 11 consecutive fall Thursdays. The program provided an informal, open house-style, drop-in format for first-year students to talk 1-on-1 with prospective employers — a mix of law firms, public interest and public sector employees, and judicial staff. Each week, 60 to 100 students would come meet with four to five employers in attendance.
Navajo Nation Supreme Court Visit and Inaugural Roundtable Give Students Prime Insights Into Tribal Law
Launched last year, the Center for Indigenous Law and Justice advanced tribal sovereignty, supported Native nations, and expanded awareness of how tribes engage with the law over two enlightening days that featured the Navajo Nation Supreme Court holding a case argument at Berkeley Law and the center’s inaugural Three Sovereigns, One Conversation roundtable with tribal, state, and federal government representatives discussing collaborative approaches. “We’re grateful that this diverse audience had a powerful opportunity to witness tribal law and justice in action, and to learn more about our different legal systems and how they can work together,” says Executive Director Merri Lopez-Keifer.
As Innovative LL.M. Certificate in AI Law and Regulation Expands, Alums Describe ‘Incredible Experience’
Berkeley Law’s groundbreaking AI program for Master of Laws (LL.M.) executive track students is expanding — and drawing rave reviews from its first participants. The LL.M. Certificate in AI Law and Regulation, which began in August 2024, is the first of its kind at an American law school and has attracted students from over 40 countries, including lawyers working in the U.S. looking to broaden their expertise. The first crop of graduates are already making an impact, advising tech firms, governments, and nongovernmental organizations on responsible AI policy. Jones Walker partner Graham H. Ryan LL.M. ’25 calls the program “a deep dive into how AI is transforming business, law, and society.”
TikTok, She Won’t Stop: LL.M. Grad Makes Her Mark With Social Media Titans and Back Home in Ukraine
Growing up in newly independent Ukraine, as a teenager Tetiana Poudel LL.M. ’16 advocated for democracy and transparent governance during protests sparked by election fraud. While calling Berkeley Law’s LL.M. Program “a major stepping stone” in propelling her tech law career at Spotify and now TikTok, she says it also fueled confidence to act when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022. Poudel raised money for protective gear and supplies for her father’s army unit, delivered medications over the border, and joined venture capital initiatives to help bolster Ukraine’s economy and tech innovation. “The most rewarding part of this work has been contributing to something bigger than myself,” she says.
From Inmate to Lawyer: Calvin Duncan, Imprisoned for 28 Years After Being Falsely Accused of Murder, Shares His Story
Berkeley Law hosts a constant flow of events with top policymakers, scholars, legal experts — and those impacted by the law head-on. At one such gathering, Calvin Duncan exuded hope, enthusiasm, and optimism, unlikely traits after spending 28 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit. Duncan described the legal system’s failings after he was falsely identified as the culprit in a shooting, and his push to learn the law while incarcerated to pursue justice for himself and many fellow prisoners. He recently created a program to improve court access for those who are incarcerated, graduated from law school at age 60, and in November was elected New Orleans Criminal Court Clerk with 68% of the vote.
Legal Leadership: Berkeley Law Faculty Help Bolster the School’s Pro Bono Culture
While renowned for their scholarship and treasured for their teaching and mentoring, many Berkeley Law faculty also lend their field expertise, research chops, and analytical skills to unpaid legal work. From writing amicus curiae briefs to overseeing student projects and organizations to courtroom work, they extend the school’s influence far beyond its walls and legal academia. Pro Bono Program Director Deborah Scholsberg says this engagement tells students that “their law degrees come with a responsibility to provide access to our legal system,” calling it “an integral component of our pro bono culture.” Each year, more than 90% of Berkeley Law students do over 10,000 hours of pro bono work.
All articles from the past year are available on UC Berkeley Law’s 2025 news archive page.