Stanford Law Students Honored for Dedication to Public Service, Pro Bono Work

Stanford Law School (SLS) students and recent alumni were honored for their contributions to public interest law and pro bono work during a May 15 ceremony at the law school. A standing-room-only crowd of faculty, staff, students, and award winners’ family members gathered for the Spring Community Leadership and Public Interest Awards Reception presented by the Office of Student Affairs and the John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law.  

In addition to recognizing individual award and scholarship recipients, the event also marked the accomplishments of the 113 members of the class of 2023 who collectively engaged in more than 17,000 hours of pro bono work during their time in law school. The reception also honored graduating students and alumni who secured entry-level public interest jobs; graduating students who earned Pro Bono Distinction; students selected as Justice John Paul Stevens Fellows; and students who served as Pro Bono Project leaders, Public Interest Fellows, Public Interest Associates, and Public Interest Mentors. 

“Carrying out a passion for service can only be accomplished with institutional commitment and within an institutional culture,” said Jenny Martinez, Richard E. Lang Professor of Law and SLS Dean.

“I want to thank the staff of the Levin Center and Office of Student Affairs for supporting students and helping to pave the way for the varied and inspiring paths our students traverse as they seek to use the legal knowledge they are gaining to serve clients and address unmet community needs.” 

Martinez also recognized Associate Dean for Public Service and Public Interest Law, Diane Chin, who will retire this summer, for her two decades of work building and expanding SLS’s public interest program. “All of the progress that we have made in supporting our students in these career paths would not have been possible without her dedication,” Martinez said. 

Leon M. Cain Community Service Award

Leon M. Cain Community Service award winners and Dean Jenny Martinez (left to right: Charlotte Finegold, Amanpreet Singh, Royce Chang, Christine Strauss and Dean Jenny Martinez)
Leon M. Cain Community Service award winners and Dean Jenny Martinez (left to right: Charlotte Finegold, JD ’24, Amanpreet Singh, JD ’25, Royce Chang, JD ’23, Christine Strauss, LLM ’23, and Dean Jenny Martinez)

The Leon M. Cain Community Award honors a highly regarded third-year SLS student who died in an accident in 2018. The annual award goes to one student from each JD class and one student in the advanced degree program who have “made outstanding contributions to enhancing the Stanford Law School community.” Students can be nominated by other students, faculty, or staff and are selected by a committee composed of past award recipients, faculty and staff members.

With quotes about each student from the selection committee, the 2023 Leon M. Cain Community Award winners are:

Royce Chang, JD ’23 

“Royce is recognized by his classmates as someone who strengthens the fabric of this community in both small and significant ways, building meaningful relationships and showing up for others when they are in need. Royce takes his mentorship role seriously and serves as a connector for others.”

Christine Strauss, LLM ’23 

“Christine spares no effort to make the LLM class a community on top of planning adventures of all kinds. She’s appreciated as being an all around wonderful person.”

Charlotte Finegold, JD ’24

“Charlotte is recognized for being incredibly generous with her time and energy and a force to be reckoned with when it comes to getting things done. She is a bridge-builder and a coalition-builder. She works tirelessly behind the scenes without seeking recognition.”

Amanpreet Singh, JD ’25

“In addition to being a wonderful section representative, Amanpreet goes above and beyond to get classmates engaged in social activities. Amanpreet is someone who is committed to inclusion and willing to engage in dialogue with those who may not share their viewpoints.”

Lisa Schnitzer Memorial Scholarship

Mahshad Badii, recipient of Lisa Schnitzer Memorial Scholarship
Mahshad Badii, JD ’25, recipient of Lisa Schnitzer Memorial Scholarship

The family and friends of a first-year student at SLS who was killed in a car accident in 1987 established the Lisa M. Schnitzer Memorial Scholarship to honor Schnitzer’s commitment to public interest law. The scholarship recognizes a public interest student completing the first year in law school who will spend 1L summer working for a public interest/public sector employer, a charitable organization, or another nonprofit organization working in the public interest. This year’s winner was Mahshad Badii, JD ’25, who was introduced by the 2022 scholarship recipient, Jamie Halper, JD ’24. “The selection committee found Mahshad’s long standing emphasis on workers rights to be exceptionally compelling and inspiring,” Halper said. “She has worked in the labor justice space for years already, pursuing research that has transcended borders.”

Badii is a member of SLS’s Workers Rights Pro Bono Project through which she has helped low-income workers in East Palo Alto navigate wage and hour claims, discrimination, and unemployment matters. Prior to law school, she worked in the Department of Justice’s Competition Policy and Advocacy, Antitrust Division and engaged in research and advocacy for workers in Amman, Jordan. This summer, Badii will serve as an intern in the Office of General Counsel at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.  

Deborah L. Rhode Public Interest Awards

The Deborah L. Rhode Public Interest Award recognizes graduating students whose activities have resulted in outstanding contributions to underrepresented groups or public interest causes outside of SLS and/or outstanding public service within the law school. Rhode was the Ernest W. McFarland Professor of Law at SLS prior to her passing in 2021. A world renowned scholar in legal ethics, she founded and led several research centers at Stanford, including the Center on the Legal Profession.

The award selection committee—composed of alumni who are past Rhode Award winners—chose two recipients who were nominated by faculty, staff, and fellow students:  

Daniel Ahrens, JD '23, recipient of the Deborah L. Rhode Public Interest Award
Daniel Ahrens, JD ’23, recipient of the Deborah L. Rhode Public Interest Award
Daniel Ahrens, JD ’23

“We are inspired by Daniel’s ability to repeatedly show up as a leader,” said Chin, conveying the words of the award selection committee. “Daniel has fully devoted himself to serving Native people, both within Stanford and in the broader community. It is clear that Daniel’s efforts have had a tremendous impact on his peers which describe him as a transformational leader and an inspiration.”

In addition to serving as this year’s co-president of the Native American Law Students Association (NALSA), Aherns also co-founded and directs the Native Law Pro Bono Project, which partners with California Indian Legal Services and the Northwest Justice Project to serve Native communities in California. 

Diane Chin and Kerry Guerin, JD '23, recipient of the Deborah L. Rhode Public Interest Award
Diane Chin and Kerry Guerin, JD ’23, recipient of the Deborah L. Rhode Public Interest Award
Kerry Guerin ’JD 23

Chin said the award selection committee was impressed by Kerry’s advocacy at the intersection of environmental justice and trans and queer rights. The committee was “struck by Kerry’s large impact far beyond the confines of Stanford’s ivory towers, while at the same time being a steadfast presence for their community members at Stanford Law School—an inspiring activist, perceptive organizer, and magnanimous shoulder to lean on,” Chin said. 

Kerry has held a number of positions while at SLS in environmental and queer and trans organizations, including as one of the co-presidents of OutLaw, the LGBTQ+ student group. They were a leader of the Transgender and Gender Variant and Intersex Pro Bono Project and served as an intern at the Transgender Law Center in Oakland. Kerry has worked on environmental justice issues with Communities for a Better Environment in the East Bay Area and Earthjustice.

About the John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law

The mission of the John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law at Stanford Law School is – through courses, research, pro bono projects, public lectures, academic conferences, funding programs and career development – to make public service a pervasive part of every law student’s experience and ultimately help shape the values that students take into their careers. It also engages in programming and research that support development of the public interest legal community to increase access to justice.

About Stanford Law School

Stanford Law School is one of the nation’s leading institutions for legal scholarship and education. Its alumni are among the most influential decision makers in law, politics, business and high technology. Faculty members argue before the Supreme Court, testify before Congress, produce outstanding legal scholarship and empirical analysis, and contribute regularly to the nation’s press as legal and policy experts. Stanford Law School has established a new model for legal education that provides rigorous interdisciplinary training, hands-on experience, global perspective and focus on public service, spearheading a movement for change.