The award serves as a memorial to Deborah L. Rhode, who died in January 2021 after an illustrious career in law. She was the Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law and director of the Center on the Legal Profession at Stanford Law School. Rhode served as president of the Association of American Law Schools in 1998; was founding president of the International Association of Legal Ethics in 2010; and was the author of 30 books in the areas of leadership, professional responsibility, and gender law and public policy.
The award honors the contributions, service, and leadership of Deborah Rhode by recognizing a current trailblazer in legal education and the legal profession. The award is given annually by four Sections of the Association of American Law Schools in which Deborah Rhode made an indelible impact—Section on Leadership, Section on Pro Bono & Service Opportunities, Section on Professional Responsibility, and Section on Women in Legal Education. The award is given to a legal academic or lawyer who exemplifies the groundbreaking work, imagination, and inspired action of Deborah Rhode during her career. The recipient is someone who has great potential to make a mark during their career as evidenced by work that brings a novel perspective or call for action in legal education or the legal profession.
Recipients
2024
Penelope Andrews, John Marshall Harlan II Professor of Law and Director of the Racial Justice Project at New York Law School and Renee Knake Jefferson, Professor of Law and the Joanne and Larry Doherty Chair in Legal Ethics and Director of the Law Center Outcomes and Assessments at University of Houston Law Center have been awarded the Deborah L. Rhode Award, a joint recognition by four sections of the Association of American Law Schools.
New York Law School
The annual award serves as a memorial to Deborah L. Rhode, who died in January 2021 after an illustrious career in law. She was the Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law and director of the Center on the Legal Profession at Stanford Law School. Rhode served as president of the Association of American Law Schools in 1998; was founding president of the International Association of Legal Ethics in 2010; and was the author of 30 books in the areas of leadership, professional responsibility, and gender law and public policy.
University of Houston Law Center
“To have my name associated with Deborah Rhode in this way is an honor and a joy,” Andrews said. “The quintessential scholar, lawyer and teacher, Deborah was an inspiration to all who grappled with the ethical challenges unearthed in the law”
“I’m honored to receive what is a bittersweet award for me,” Jefferson said. “Deborah was a dear friend and mentor, who left us much too soon. My scholarship, like hers, intersects ethics, access to justice, leadership, and gender, and I am grateful to be recognized in this way.”
The Deborah L. Rhode Award is presented by the AALS Sections on Leadership, Pro Bono & Service Opportunities, Professional Responsibility, and Women in Legal Education. It is awarded annually to the law professor or lawyer who exemplifies the groundbreaking work, imagination, and inspired action of Deborah Rhode. This is the third year that the award is presented by the four sections.
“Professors Andrews and Knake Jefferson were among many excellent nominees this year, all doing critically important work in line with Professor Rhode’s example,” said Eliza Vorenberg, chair of the award selection committee and Clinical Professor of Law at Roger Williams University School of Law. “The honorees stood out as exemplars of all the qualities that made Professor Rhode exceptional – her commitment to legal education and the legal profession, her trailblazing scholarship on pro bono, access to justice and the health of our legal systems, and her role as mentor and leader, among others. The selection committee was unanimous in choosing Professors Andrews and Jefferson for the award and we know they will continue to build upon Deborah Rhode’s legacy.”
The selection committee for the award also included April Barton (Thomas R. Kline School of Law of Duquesne University), Sande Buhai (LMU Loyola Law School), and Victoria Haneman (Creighton University School of Law).
The award was presented at an awards ceremony at the AALS Annual Meeting in Washington, DC on January 4, 2024.
2023
Maryam Ahranjani, Ronald and Susan Friedman Professor at University of New Mexico School of Law and Jamelia N. Morgan, Professor and Director, Center for Racial and Disability Justice at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law have been awarded the Deborah L. Rhode Award, a joint recognition by four AALS sections.
University of New Mexico School of Law
“I am extremely grateful to receive this award,” Ahranjani said. “Professor Rhode left huge footprints in so many spaces and inspired so many of us. I hope to continue her legacy by advocating for new ways to think about issues of public importance.”
“It is a tremendous honor to receive the Deborah Rhode Award,” Morgan said. “Professor Rhode was a giant in the legal field and her groundbreaking work inspires me as a legal scholar to use my scholarship to push for justice for groups long-marginalized by law.”
The annual award serves as a memorial to Deborah L. Rhode, who died in January 2021 after an illustrious career in law. She was the Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law and director of the Center on the Legal Profession at Stanford Law School. Rhode served as president of the Association of American Law Schools in 1998; was founding president of the International Association of Legal Ethics in 2010; and was the author of 30 books in the areas of leadership, professional responsibility, and gender law and public policy.
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Deborah L. Rhode Award is presented by the AALS Sections on Leadership, Pro Bono & Service Opportunities, Professional Responsibility, and Women in Legal Education. It is awarded annually to the law professor or lawyer who exemplifies the groundbreaking work, imagination, and inspired action of Deborah Rhode. This is the second year that the award is presented by the four sections.
“Professors Ahranjani and Morgan are trailblazers who exemplify Professor Rhode’s commitment to legal education and the legal profession,” said Elysa Dishman, chair of the award selection committee and Associate Professor at Brigham Young University J. Reuben Clark Law School. “The Selection Committee received many compelling nominations in support of an array of legal educators who carry on Professor Rhode’s legacy. It is a tribute to Professor Rhode that there were many deserving nominees who follow in her footsteps. This year, the Selection Committee was unanimous in choosing Professors Ahranjani and Morgan for the award and believe they will continue to build upon Deborah Rhode’s work in new and exciting ways to benefit the legal academy and profession.”
The selection committee for the award also included:
- Tara Casey, University of Richmond School of Law
- Elysa Dishman, Brigham Young University, J. Reuben Clark Law School, Chair
- Adrien Wing, University of Iowa College of Law
- Ellen Yaroshefsky, Hofstra University Maurice A. Deane School of Law
The award was presented in-person at the awards ceremony at the AALS Annual Meeting in San Diego, California on January 5, 2023.