Most influential people in Time
Professor Elizabeth Warren was named one of the 100 Most Influential People in 2009 by Time Magazine. Listed in the Leaders & Revolutionaries category as one of the people who most affect our world, Warren was recognized for her bankruptcy work and her role as chairwoman of the Congressional Oversight Panel charged with overseeing the Treasury Department’s Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Senate panel approves Sunstein
In May, HLS Professor Cass Sunstein ’78 was approved by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee to lead the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs. Sunstein will oversee all new governmental regulation, tackling issues including the financial services industry overhaul, universal health care and greenhouse gas emissions.
Bordone appointed clinical professor
Robert Bordone ’97, formerly the Thaddeus R. Beal Assistant Clinical Professor of Law, was named a full clinical professor of law. An expert in negotiation and dispute resolution, Bordone is the founding director of the Harvard Negotiation and Mediation Clinical Program.
Subramanian leads ‘Top 10’
An article by Professor Guhan Subramanian ’98 was included on this year’s list of the 10 Best Corporate and Securities Articles by the legal journal Corporate Practice Commentator. His article, published in the May 2008 issue of The Business Lawyer, examined the role of go-shop clauses in private equity deals from 2005 to 2007. Subramanian is the first person to hold tenured appointments at both HLS and Harvard Business School. He also serves as faculty chair for Harvard’s J.D./M.B.A. program.
Heard on the Hill
This spring, three HLS professors testified before congressional committees: Professor Elizabeth Warren appeared before the Joint Economic Committee on June 9 at a hearing titled “TARP Accountability and Oversight: Measuring the Strength of Financial Institutions.” As chairwoman of the Congressional Oversight Panel, Warren addressed the current state of the economy and financial institutions as they pertain to the TARP program. Professor Lucian Bebchuk LL.M. ’80 S.J.D. ’84 testified on June 11 on the distortionary and risk-inducing consequences of executive pay arrangements, before the House Financial Services Committee in a hearing titled “Compensation Structure and Systematic Risk.” Also on June 11, Professor Charles Ogletree ’78 appeared before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs on the proposed National Criminal Justice Commission Act of 2009. Ogletree, the director of HLS’s Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice, spoke in support of the proposed bill, citing its ability to study and reform obsolete facets of the criminal justice system.
Suk named a 2009 Guggenheim Fellow
HLS Assistant Professor Jeannie Suk ’02 was awarded a 2009 Guggenheim Fellowship to support her research on the legal construction of trauma. Suk, who joined the faculty in 2006, focuses on criminal and family law and is the author of two books, including “At Home in the Law” (Yale University Press, forthcoming). She will use her fellowship to write her third book, which will explore how views of psychological trauma have influenced ideas about human agency and experience, shaping legal doctrine and discourse today. While a Guggenheim Fellow, Suk will also be a senior fellow of the Humanities Center at Harvard.
Donna Chiozzi retires
Donna Chiozzi, director of alumni affairs, retired on June 30 after a 40-year career at HLS. Her law school career began in 1971, as an assistant to Dean Albert Sacks ’48. She was named director of reunions and special events in 1983, associate director of the HLSA in 1986, and director of alumni affairs in 1999. In addition to biannual class reunions, Chiozzi’s accomplishments include working with alumni and faculty to bring about special interest reunions for graduates, and developing and strengthening regional alumni associations nationally and internationally. She played a major role in bringing about the HLSA’s first international meetings—Worldwide Alumni Congresses—the first of which was held in Rome in June 1998. In April, the HLSA presented Chiozzi with the James Coolidge Carter Award for Distinguished Service.
An amazing race
Sibling teammates Victor Jih ’96 and Tammy Jih ’06 finished first to take the million-dollar prize on CBS’s “The Amazing Race 14” in May. Traveling more than 40,000 miles in 22 days, through nine countries on three continents, the pair raced through a Siberian snowstorm and stultifying Indian heat. After their adventure, they returned to California, where Victor is a partner at O’Melveny & Myers in Los Angeles and Tammy is an associate at Quinn Emanuel in San Francisco.