Karen Tokarz

Karen Tokarz


Charles Nagel Professor of Public Interest Law & Public Service

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Tokarz is a leader in both national and international clinical education, as well as an expert in civil rights mediation and the law of employment discrimination.She has been named to Best Lawyers in Mediation & Alternative Dispute Resolution every year since 2010. Her scholarship addresses public interest law issues, including clinical legal education, dispute resolution, judicial selection and elder law. Director of the law school’s Negotiation & Dispute Resolution Program, she is past director of the school’s highly ranked Clinical Education Program. In 2008–09, she was a visiting scholar at Harvard Law School, based in the Program on Negotiation, and served as a Fulbright Senior Specialist at the University of Kwa Zulu-Natal in South Africa, consulting on international dispute resolution.

Stories

Tokarz honored by AALS

Karen Tokarz, the Charles Nagel Professor of Public Interest Law & Policy, received the William Pincus Award from the Association of American Law Schools during the organization’s conference on clinical legal education May 3.
‘Access to Justice’ is focus of law speaker series

‘Access to Justice’ is focus of law speaker series

The 2018-19 “Access to Justice” Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series at Washington University School of Law in St. Louis will address a spectrum of high-profile issues including American politics, immigration policy, the U.S. Supreme Court, the #MeToo movement, criminal forensics and gun violence. The first speaker is Jonah Goldberg, political analyst and senior editor for the National Review, Tuesday, Sept. 18.
Public Interest Law and Policy Speakers series begins Sept. 12

Public Interest Law and Policy Speakers series begins Sept. 12

The School of Law’s 2016-17 Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers series at Washington University in St. Louis features an outstanding lineup of judges, lawyers, authors, and academics with expertise in public interest law and policy. The series begins at noon Monday, Sept. 12, with a lecture by Brenda Hollis, chief prosecutor at the Residual Special Court for Sierra Leone.
Norwood, Tokarz attend White House conference on incarceration​

Norwood, Tokarz attend White House conference on incarceration​

Karen Tokarz, JD, the Charles Nagel Professor of Public Interest Law & Public Service, director of the Civil Rights & Community Justice Clinic and of the Negotiation & Dispute Resolution Program and professor of African and African-American Studies in Arts & Sciences, and Kimberly Norwood, JD, professor of law and of African and African-American Studies, attended events at the Department of Justice and at the White House on “A Cycle of Incarceration: Prison, Debt, and Bail Practices.”

Public Interest Law & Policy Speaker Series begins Sept. 16

The fall lineup of the 18th annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series, sponsored by the School of Law at Washington University in St. Louis, kicks off with two lectures Sept. 16-17. The yearlong series brings to the university nationally and internationally prominent experts from law and related fields to address issues of access to justice. Melvin Oliver, PhD, opens the series at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16 Anheuser-Busch Hall’s Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom.

Municipal court reform a year after Ferguson

Following the death of Michael Brown a year ago this August, one of the key issues to emerge was a critical examination of the municipal court system in the individual communities that make up St. Louis County. Many of the courts were accused of not working primarily for justice, but as a way to raise funds for municipalities. Three faculty members from the School of Law, all of whom are involved in court reform efforts, express their thoughts on the reform process.

Ifill to focus on ‘unfinished business’ of civil rights for Assembly Series

On Sept. 17, Sherrilyn Ifill, the distinguished legal scholar and president/director-general of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. will visit campus to deliver an Assembly Series lecture, “From Brown to Ferguson: The Unfinished Business of Civil Rights” at noon in Anheuser-Busch Hall’s Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom on the Danforth Campus. Due to an expected large turnout, remote viewing sites within Anheuser-Busch Hall will be available.

‘Access to Justice’ series begins Sept. 23

Terry Smith, J.D., professor of law at Fordham University and nationally recognized expert on race and politics, will kick off the School of Law’s 11th annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series at noon Sept. 23 with a timely talk on politics and racism. The fall lineup of speakers also includes an international peace […]

‘Access to Justice’ series begins Sept. 23

Terry Smith, J.D., professor of law at Fordham University and nationally recognized expert on race and politics, will kick off the School of Law’s 11th annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series with a talk on “Politics and Post-Racialism: Reflections on the Meaning of a Black President” September 23.

Washington University School of Law’s 11th annual “Access to Justice” speaker series begins Sept. 23

Terry Smith, J.D., professor of law at Fordham University and nationally recognized expert on race and politics, will kick off Washington University School of Law’s 11th annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series with a timely talk on “Politics and Post-Racialism: Reflections on the Meaning of a Black President” on Tuesday, Sept. 23. The fall line-up of speakers also includes an international peace negotiator, a former government environmental attorney and administrator, a renowned human rights lawyer and author, and a nationally recognized leader in the marriage equality movement.

Law school speakers to focus on access to justice

Presentations about Guantanamo and the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy are among the highlights of the School of Law’s tenth annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series, which begins Sept. 10. All lectures will be held at noon in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom of Anheuser-Busch Hall. They are free and open to the public.

Wrongful executions to be examined at WUSTL law conference Nov. 17

The WUSTL School of Law’s Clinical Education Program and Center for Interdisciplinary Studies will host the sixth annual Access to Equal Justice conference Nov. 17 in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom of Anheuser-Busch Hall. The conference will focus on “Examining the Risks of Wrongful Executions and the Role of Prosecutors, Defense Attorneys, Academia and the Press.” Panelists will examine four criminal cases that many critics believe ended in the executions of innocent defendants.

Law school speaker series focuses on public interest

A lead counsel in the Guantanamo Bay detainees U.S. Supreme Court case, an expert on pornography in feminism and law, and a Nobel Peace Prize nominee for his work in international criminal justice are part of the fall lineup for the School of Law’s ninth annual Public Interest Law & Policy Speakers Series.

Renowned capital punishment opponent Stephen B. Bright to deliver Assembly Series and School of Law joint lecture

Nationally recognized attorney and human rights advocate Stephen Bright will discuss his views on the death penalty and the current state of the U.S. prison system in a talk entitled, “Crime, Prison, and the Death Penalty: The Influence of Race and Poverty.” The talk, part of Washington University’s Assembly Series and the School of Law’s “Access to Justice” series, will be held at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 2 in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom, Anheuser-Busch Hall.

Washington University to host conference on “Poverty, Wealth and the Working Poor: Clinical and Interdisciplinary Perspectives,” April 1

The School of Law and the George Warren Brown School of Social Work at Washington University will host the fifth annual access to equal justice conference, “Poverty, Wealth and the Working Poor: Clinical and Interdisciplinary Perspectives,” from 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. April 1 in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom of Anheuser-Busch Hall. The conference will explore the many barriers to economic prosperity and well-being for America’s working poor. Particular emphasis will be given to the interplay of race, gender, wealth, and power in regards to employment, welfare, housing, health care, education and the environment.

Access to justice speaker series continues Jan. 26

The former U.S. Solicitor General, the founder of the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) Lesbian & Gay Rights Project and the president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition are part of the spring lineup for the School of Law’s seventh annual Public Interest Law Speakers Series. Titled “Access to Justice: The Social Responsibility of Lawyers,” the series brings to the University outstanding academics and practitioners in areas such as international human rights, the economics of poverty, civil liberties, racial justice, capital punishment, clinical legal education, and government and private public service. The series, which is free and open to the public, begins 11 a.m. Jan. 26 in Anheuser-Busch Hall.

“Access to Justice” speakers series presented by Washington University School of Law

The former U.S. Solicitor General, the founder of the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) Lesbian & Gay Rights Project and the president of the National Breast Cancer Coalition are part of the spring lineup for the School of Law’s seventh annual Public Interest Law Speakers Series. Titled “Access to Justice: The Social Responsibility of Lawyers,” the series brings to the University outstanding academics and practitioners in areas such as international human rights, the economics of poverty, civil liberties, racial justice, capital punishment, clinical legal education, and government and private public service. The series, which is free and open to the public, begins 11 a.m. Jan. 26 in Anheuser-Busch Hall.

Dinh, who worked on Patriot Act, to talk Sept. 22

Viet D. Dinh, professor of law and director of the Asian Law and Policy Studies Program at Georgetown University, will speak about “Liberty and the Rule of Law After September 11th” for the Assembly Series Sept. 22. The talk, which is part of the School of Law’s “Access to Justice” Public Interest Law Speakers Series, […]

David D. Cole, Georgetown law professor will discuss John Ashcroft and the future of civil liberties

David D. Cole, professor of law at Georgetown University, author of numerous books on terrorism and civil liberties, and cooperating attorney for the Center for Constitutional Rights, will discuss “John Ashcroft’s Paradigm of Prevention and the Future of Civil Liberties”. After graduating from Yale Law School and clerking with the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Cole joined the Center for Constitutional Rights where he litigated several First Amendment cases, including the case that established protection allowing flag burning under the First Amendment. As a volunteer staff attorney for the Center, Cole continues to litigate First Amendment issues.

Assembly Series and the School of Law present Viet Dinh

Viet D. Dinh, professor of law and director of the Asian Law and Policy Studies Program at Georgetown University, will speak about “Liberty and the Rule of Law After September 11” for the Assembly Series. As the U.S. Assistant Attorney General for Legal Policy under John Ashcroft from 2001 to 2003, Dinh worked on a number of important initiatives, including the U.S.A. Patriot Act.

“Access to Justice” speakers series presented by Washington University School of Law

The special master of the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund and the editor and publisher of The Weekly Standard are part of the fall lineup for the School of Law’s seventh annual Public Interest Law Speakers Series. This popular series, titled “Access to Justice: The Social Responsibility of Lawyers,” brings to Washington University outstanding academics and practitioners in such areas as international human rights, the economics of poverty, civil liberties, racial justice, capital punishment, clinical legal education, and government and private public service. The series, which is free and open to the public, begins Sept. 14.

Herma Hill Kay to deliver lecture, “Celebrating Early Women Law Professors,” March 4

Herma Hill Kay, the Barbara Nachtrieb Armstrong Professor of Law and former dean at the University of California, Berkeley (Boalt Hall), will deliver a lecture on “Celebrating Early Women Law Professors” 9 a.m. March 4 in the Bryan Cave Moot Courtroom in Anheuser-Busch Hall. The lecture will follow the Women’s Law Caucus’ fifth annual International Women’s Day Celebration at 8 a.m. in the Janite Lee Reading Room, honoring Kay, Washington University School of Law alumnae who graduated 50 or more years ago, and the law school’s first three tenured women professors, Susan Appleton, Kathleen Brickey, and Karen Tokarz.

Law school presents “Access to Justice” speaker series

The Counsel for the NAACP, the Chief Judge Emeritus and Circuit Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, and experts on American Indian water rights, globalization, civil rights, women’s legal history, disability rights, death penalty, and economics are part of the spring lineup for the School of Law’s sixth annual Public Interest Law Speaker Series.

Law school presents “Access to Justice” speaker series

BollingerThe respondent in the U.S. Supreme Court affirmative action cases Grutter v. Bollinger and Gratz v. Bollinger and a member of the American Society on International Law’s executive counsel are part of the fall lineup for the School of Law’s sixth annual Public Interest Speaker Series. This popular series, titled “Access to Justice: The Social Responsibility of Lawyers,” was initiated to highlight the excellence of the law school’s Clinical Education Program; to expose students to public interest advocates and practitioners; to illuminate the pro bono and public interest responsibility of law students and lawyers; and to engage the wider University community in an interdisciplinary discussion about social justice. All of the fall lectures are held in Anheuser-Busch Hall unless otherwise noted, and are free and open to the public.