Congratulations to Our 2020 AALASC / ChangeLawyers 3L Diversity Scholar

Congratulations to Jad Essayli, who was recently awarded the 2020 California ChangeLawyers  Diversity Scholar, given in partnership with AALASC.  Each year, the $5,000 scholarship is awarded to a 3L law student serving Southern California communities that displays leadership potential, a commitment to public service, and demonstrates positive contributions to the Arab American legal community.

 Jad is a third-year law student at the University of San Diego School of Law.  He will be graduating in the Spring of 2020, with a concentration in International Law. Jad is passionately pursuing a career in immigration and business law.  Growing up between Southern California and Beirut, Lebanon allowed Jad to understand the importance of defending the rights of marginalized communities both within the United States and abroad.  Throughout his time at USD Law, Jad dedicated himself towards providing a supportive and pro-active environment for Arab American students. As president of the Middle Eastern Law Students Association, Jad planned and moderated panels on matters of importance to our community, including constitutional concerns regarding legislation targeting advocacy for Palestine and a “Know Your Rights” event responding to the detainment of Iranian Americans by U.S. Customs and Border Protection. As an editor of the San Diego International Law Journal, Jad successfully published a comparative piece regarding the legality of anti-Palestinian legislation in both the United States and the European Union.  Jad also externed at the American Bar Association’s Immigration Justice Project, where he assisted attorneys providing direct representation to some of the most vulnerable populations detained at the Otay Mesa Detention Center.  As a native Arabic speaker, Jad specifically assisted individuals who faced discrimination and unsubstantiated accusations by ICE simply because they were Muslim or came from Muslim-majority countries.  Jad believes it is imperative to empower the future generation of Arab American attorneys in order to fight for equal justice, to challenge false and harmful narratives, and to ensure that minority voices have a seat at the table when pivotal laws are written.  Read USD Article

AALASC Awards – Call for Nominations (Submission Deadline Extended)

Trailblazer Award

The Trailblazer Award recognizes the outstanding achievements, commitment, and leadership of lawyers who have paved the way for the advancement of other Arab American attorneys. Trailblazers have demonstrated vision, courage, and tenacity in their practice. 

Selection Criteria and Required Material: The award recipient will be selected based on lifetime achievements, commitment, and leadership that have paved the way for the advancement of Arab American attorneys in Southern California.  Of particular importance are those accomplishments that broke a barrier or resulted in attaining a goal not yet previously attained by an Arab American, including diversity and inclusion achievements in various practice areas (e.g., law firm, in-house, judge, civil rights, community organization, public sector, legal education).  Prior involvement with AALASC is preferred, but not required.  To apply or to recommend someone for this award, please provide a written statement detailing the nominee’s lifetime achievements that have paved the way for the advancement of Arab American attorneys in Southern California.  Please also attach a current resume or company bio of the nominee.

Best Lawyers Under 40 Award

The Best Lawyers Under 40 Award recognizes talented individuals within the Arab American legal community under the age of 40 who have achieved prominence and distinction in their fields of endeavor—be it the practice of law, academia, business, civic and charitable affairs, the judiciary, or politics. 

Selection Criteria and Required Material:  Nominees must be Arab American attorneys admitted to practice in California, and be under the age of 40 as of May 1, 2020.  Verification of this qualification may be required.  The award recipients will be selected based on their demonstrated success and professionalism in the practice of law.  Prior involvement with AALASC is preferred, but not required.  To apply or to recommend someone for this award, please provide a written statement detailing the nominee's demonstrated success and professionalism in the practice of law.  Please also attach a resume or company bio of the nominee.

AALASC’s Annual Banquet Will Be Reschedule to Fall 2020 or Spring 2021

AALASC's first newsletter is here!

AALASC’s inaugural newsletter was emailed to subscribers on February 4, 2020.

See newsletter

UCI Law Moot Court – Seeking Oral Argument Judges

Several available sessions in Feb. and March 2020

UCI Law Moot Court- Seeking Oral Argument Judges
Message from the UCI Law’s Moot Court Board:  

This year's Moot Court Board is striving to increase the diversity among the oral argument judges. In order to do this, we have been partnering with student affinity groups and local diversity bar associations.  

It is with great pleasure that the Executive Board of the 2019–2020 UC Irvine School of Law Moot Court Competition invites you to serve as an oral argument judge for this year’s competition.

As a growing law school, we count on the local legal community to train and encourage our next generation of lawyers. We are incredibly grateful that we have been able to rely on local judges and attorneys each year to provide challenging questions and valuable feedback. This year, we have 100 student competitors, which is the largest group in UCI Law Moot Court history and almost double the number of competitors of last year’s competition. The students are eager to expand their legal skill set – and answer tough questions from the judges. We are asking for your expertise to give these students a truly challenging and constructive competition experience.

The oral argument schedule is as follows: 

Preliminary Round I: February 4, 6, 11, 13, and 15   

Preliminary Round II: February 18, 20, 22, 25,  and 27

Top 16 Elimination Round: March 17 and 19

Quarterfinal Round: March 23 and 25

On weekdays, we will hold two to four rounds beginning at 7:00 p.m. On Saturdays, we will hold arguments from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For Saturday arguments, we ask judges to commit to either a morning session or afternoon session, or both. All arguments will take place here at UCI Law. Prior to oral arguments, judges will receive a bench memorandum summarizing the relevant law and containing suggested questions for competitors. Meals and parking will be provided to judges by the Competition.  

The 2019-2020 Moot Court Competition centers around a recent case from the Ninth Circuit, Vos v. City of Newport Beach, 892 F.3d 1024 (9th Cir. 2018).  This case involves a mentally ill man shot and killed by police officers in Newport Beach, California. The victim’s parents sued the City of Newport Beach alleging, inter alia, excessive force in violation of the Fourth Amendment and failure to provide reasonable accommodations to an individual with a disability in violation of Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The case presents the following questions presented (slightly modified for the competition):

I.               Does Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act apply to police conduct during the course of an arrest?

II.             If Title II does apply to arrests, to what extent does Title II require officers to make “reasonable accommodations” for an armed arrestee prior to securing the scene and taking the arrestee into custody?

III.           Under the Fourth Amendment “totality of the circumstances” test for assessing the “objective reasonableness” of police use of force, (a) may a court consider only the facts and circumstances at the moment force was used; or (b) may it also consider the relevant facts and circumstances leading up to the use of force, including alleged police failures to de-escalate the situation or the suspect’s mental illness?

If you are able to donate your time during one or more of these dates and times, please email me at lawmootcourt@lawnet.uci.edu. Please include your email address and phone number, and also indicate your preference for the dates and times that you are available to judge the competition.

As you know, courtroom experience is pivotal to law students’ growth as young professionals. We rely on our community partners to assist us in providing this unique and vital opportunity to the next generation of Orange County attorneys. Thank you for your kind consideration of this invitation, and we hope that you can join us. Please do not hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns.