If Propper has his way, celebrities one day will have a social impact agent the way they do an agent, manager and lawyer.

Today, his social impact agency, Propper Daley, works with Hollywood stars, including Tobey Maguire, to help shape their philanthropic efforts and advocacy. The New York native, who spent time on the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and has degrees from Tufts and Cardozo, is a driving force behind Got Your 6, a coalition of major studios and agencies that works with nonprofit groups to explore veterans' issues.

Among other recent projects: working with LGBT and human rights organizations and talent including Dustin Lance Black and Melissa Etheridge to address the anti-gay laws in Russia.

FIRST JOB: I managed a snack bar at a country club in Westchester, N.Y. Kathie Lee Gifford belonged there, and I used to serve her chicken fingers.

IF I WEREN'T IN THE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY: I'd probably be working as an aide on Capitol Hill.

IF I'M NOT WORKING: You'll probably find me eating at a restaurant around town with my boyfriend.

IN MY BIOPIC, THE ACTOR PLAYING ME WOULD BE: Everybody always thought that I looked like Fred Savage growing up, so I guess I'll go with that.

MOST MEANINGFUL THING IN MY OFFICE: We were actively involved in the Obama campaign over the past couple of cycles, so I have a sign from the 2008 convention that says, "We love Michelle," which she signed.

HUMILIATING PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:I worked on a congressional campaign in Louisiana, where we were following around a candidate whom we didn't believe to be answering questions truthfully. So I spent about a week and a half following him around in a chicken outfit and standing behind him at all his press conferences.

In Cardozo Law's Strategies for Success video series, alumni discuss essential skills that are necessary to develop in order to become a successful lawyer. View the videos by clicking on the images below.

In November 2013, Jonathan Henes '96 visited Cardozo Law to speak to students as part of the Dean's Speaker Series lunchtime event. He spoke on the path he took to become partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP.

January 8, 2014 - Cardozo Law congratulates our alumni of the year, Arthur M. Luxenberg '84, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Weitz & Luxenberg, P.C. and Hon. Martin Shulman '81, Associate Justice, Appellate Term, 1st Judicial Department Justice, Supreme Court, New York County.

Luxenberg and Judge Shulman will be honored at the Seventh Annual Cardozo Law Alumni Association Dinner on Tuesday, January 14, 2014 at The Pierre in New York City. Both alums have established impressive careers in the field of law. 

Since the late 1980’s, Arthur M. Luxenberg has directed Weitz & Luxenberg’s operations, guiding the work that takes place before the firm’s cases make their way to the courtroom or a settlement negotiation. He adroitly administers public and governmental affairs, supervising and managing large-scale settlements, firm operations and masterminding firm branding and marketing. 

Named as the Best Lawyers® 2013 mass tort litigation Lawyer of the Year in New York City, Mr. Luxenberg is a proven troubleshooter, having developed and implemented winning strategies for appellate cases. Mr. Luxenberg’s reputation earned him appointments to the judicial screening and departmental disciplinary committees for the First Judicial Department of the New York State Supreme Court, Appellate Division. Mr. Luxenberg has been rated as a New York “Super Lawyer” every year since 2006 and a “Best Lawyer” annually since 2008. 

Mr. Luxenberg has represented passengers seeking damages from owners of the cruise ship Achille Lauro following its hijacking. He served as liaison counsel for the asbestos and silicone breast implant litigations, and was a member of the DES Steering Committee for the State of New York. He has held leadership positions in trial law advocacy organizations such as the New York State Trial Lawyers Association (including serving as First Vice President) and the New York City Bar Association, where he sat on the influential Committee on Professional and Judicial Ethics. He is also the co-author of a Practicing Law Institute course book. 

Philanthropy is essential to Mr. Luxenberg. He serves as chairman of United Soup Kitchens, a nonprofit organization established to fight hunger in Israel and the former Soviet Union. He is past president and current chairman of the North Shore Hebrew Academy in Great Neck, NY, and led the Jewish Lawyers Guild’s dramatic efforts to restore honor and professional standing to the thousands of German Jewish attorneys and judges who were disbarred after the Nazis swept into power in the 1930’s. 

Arthur Luxenberg has been a devoted Cardozo alumnus attending and supporting many Cardozo alumni events and initiatives including the Public Service Auction and Alumni Dinners. He has been involved in student career counseling and has hosted Cardozo events. Mr. Luxenberg is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council and has been a featured alumnus in the Dean’s Speaker Series.

Hon. Martin Shulman began his career as a government attorney. Afterwards, he engaged in private practice for seven years until his 1994 election as New York City Civil Court Judge. In 2004, he was re-elected for a second 10-year term. Appointed an acting Supreme Court Justice in 1998, Justice Shulman was elected a New York State Supreme Court Justice in
November 2005, and from 2000 to 2009, also served as Supervising Judge of the New York County Civil Court. In May 2009, he was appointed an Associate Justice of the Appellate Term, First Judicial Department, which hears appeals from cases originating in the lower New York City Civil and Criminal Courts.

Among other matters, Justice Shulman also maintains an active Supreme Court Part presiding over condemnation, tax certiorari, civil asset forfeiture, asbestos exposure, drug product liability and medical malpractice cases. Justice Shulman is active in a number of bar associations including as an officer and member of the Jewish Lawyers Guild, a member of the New York County Lawyers Association, and a member of the New York Women’s Bar Association. Justice Shulman has authored articles in the complex field of rent regulation and has lectured before national litigation conferences and bar groups. As a member of one of the earliest graduating classes, Justice Shulman’s career has brought honor and distinction to Cardozo. He has participated as a judge in the Cardozo Moot Court competition and the Intensive Trial Advocacy Progam for many years. He has also worked with Cardozo students and alumni in his chambers, effectively mentoring generations of Cardozo attorneys.

For more information, contact cardozoalumni@yu.edu, or visit www.cardozo.yu.edu/annualdinner.

Photos by Sari Goodfriend Photography

The Inspire! Awards on January 30, 2014 honored community members dedicated to providing the highest quality defense representation to those unable to afford an attorney.

Jonathan Rapping, President and Founder of Gideon's Promise, was the special honoree of the night, which included a screening of the award-winning documentary Gideon's Army, the awards ceremony, and the annual public service student-alumni networking event. 

Other recipients of this year's Inspire! Award were Robert Collins, Visiting Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Divorce Mediation Clinic; Yovani Hiciano, Porter and Housekeeper at Cardozo Law; Stanley Neustadter, Director of the Criminal Appeals Clinic, and 3L students: Ryan Brewer, Mallory Harwood, and Laura Tatelman.

The award was also given to Cardozo alumni who have dedicated their careers to indigent defense. 

Thanks to the hard work and generosity of the entire Cardozo community, the 22nd annual Cardozo Public Service Auction brought in $620,000, smashing last year's record. The auction's success means that 254 Cardozo students (every eligible student) will receive a generous $4-5,000 stipend to work in areas of public interest law over the summer. In fact, over the past ten years, every eligible student has received a summer stipend, meaning hundreds of Cardozo students and graduates have been able to fulfill their dreams of gaining work experience in the public service sector, thanks to the financial support of the law school. 

This year's auction marks the 11th year in a row that the public service auction has broken its fundraising record. Due to the auction’s stellar turnout, students will be able to serve the greater good working in international human rights, at nonprofits providing legal services to underserved communities, with federal, state and local government agencies, and with judicial chambers around the country.

The success of the auction is due to the collective commitment of our law school students, alumni, faculty, administration, Board of Overseers, parents, friends and Cardozo staff—and to our Board Chair Emerita, Kathy Greenberg ’82, whose dedication to the Public Service Auction and to Cardozo’s public service programs inspire us always to greater efforts on behalf our students.

By Pedram Tabibi

May 9, 2014 Young Island - This week, I had the opportunity to attend the alumni reunion for the class of 2009 at Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.

Having graduated not too long ago, I haven’t been too many reunions yet. Plus, the power of social media and the Internet have made it easier than ever to connect with friends and classmates from yesteryear.

That being said, I have been quite involved in Cardozo Law School as an alumnus, now being part of the school’s alumni executive committee, and I had great expectations about the event. I must say, it delivered.

The reunion, held for the classes of 1994, 1999, 2004, and 2009, was held at the Harmonie Club in New York City – a beautiful and elegant venue right by Central Park, and an ideal setting for a class reunion. I was pleased to see many familiar faces at the event, from my own classmates – some of whom I have thankfully kept in touch with – to school officials, such as Dean Matthew Diller, Cardozo Director of Alumni Affairs Sharon Lewis and Mark Yagerman, attorney and Chair of the Cardozo Alumni Executive Committee.

In his address, Dean Diller noted that the night was about reconnecting and catching up, and that the alumni should support and be there for each other.  The great networking community we have should be used to be there for the current Cardozo students, he added.

For myself, the event was not only fun and a great way to reconnect with my classmates, but an opportunity to meet other Cardozo alumni, learn about their experiences and get some great advice. I was happy to see how approachable and kind everyone was, and I had great conversations with alumni from each class. Hearing each individual’s career paths and some of the fascinating things they have done, made me proud and optimistic about my own career path. This event was proof positive of the value in meeting and connecting with others face to face, and the great setting and atmosphere, coupled with wonderful alumni, made for a great event.

Especially in these times, to have a resource such as your alma mater and fellow alumni is important. Young professionals would be wise to attend these types of events and reconnect not only with former classmates, but connect with other alumni. Young professionals could learn a lot from those who came before them. Kudos to Cardozo Law School on a great alumni event and to my fellow alumni who made the night special. Granted there are a few years to go, but I am already looking forward to the next reunion and many new and additional friends and colleagues.

Pedram Tabibi is an attorney at Meltzer, Lippe, Goldstein & Breitstone. He can be reached via LinkedIn or email at ptabibi@meltzerlippe.com

CARDOZO LAW ANNOUNCES ELECTION OF DAVID SAMSON ’93 AS NEW CHAIR OF THE CARDOZO BOARD OF OVERSEERS

Jeffrey Goldfarb ’02 and Jonathan Henes ’96 Elected as New Members of Board

June 3, 2014 – NEW YORK, NY – Dean Matthew Diller announced today that David Samson ’93, President of the Miami Marlins, has been elected Chair of the Cardozo Board of Overseers.

“I am delighted that David will be leading the Cardozo Board of Overseers,” said Dean Matthew Diller. “He has been an energetic supporter of the law school for years, and a champion of many of our most innovative new programs. David will be a wonderful Chair of the Board.”

David Samson was elected to the Board of Overseers on December 8, 2010. As a board member, he has been instrumental in helping to shape the long-range goals of the law school and to envision a vital role for Cardozo in the changing legal landscape. A strong proponent of Cardozo’s clinical education, he has recently donated significant funds towards the school’s experiential education programs, and wants Cardozo alumni to stand out in the employment market. A frequent speaker at law school events (and always a great student favorite), a mentor of students, a 2010 Alumni of the Year and a spirited advocate for Cardozo, David is deeply engaged in the law school at every level.

"I am very humbled and thankful to have been nominated to serve as Chairman of the Cardozo School of Law Board of Overseers,” Samson said. “I look forward to working with Dean Matthew Diller and the entire board and to continue the great work of immediate past Chair Leslie Payson. Cardozo is well positioned to tackle the many complex issues that are before it and I am excited to get started.”

David Samson received his J.D. from Cardozo Law in 1993. He has been President of the Miami Marlins since 2002. As President, he played a key role in securing a public-private partnership to build a retractable roof ballpark in Miami, which opened in 2012. He was a force behind the team’s successful rebranding in 2011. In 2003, the Marlins won the World Series with Samson as President. He is one of just eight current team presidents to preside over a World Series Championship.

Previously, Samson was the Executive Vice President of the Montreal Expos from 1999 to 2002. Following his graduation from Cardozo, he founded News Travels Fast, which delivered The New York Times, Barron’s and The Wall Street Journal to Europe daily. In 1997, he joined Morgan Stanley as an investment advisor, and he held that position until he joined the Expos.

Samson was honored as a Cardozo Alumni of the Year in 2010 for his achievements and his many contributions to the law school. A native of New York City, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1990 with a B.A. in Economics.

Samson is taking over leadership duties from Leslie E. Payson ’91, Managing Director of Global Operations and Technology at Citigroup, who was Chair of the Board since 2010. Payson’s managerial leadership was vital to maintaining the fiscal health of the school and to the development of new initiatives. She was the first board liaison to the Junior Advisory Board and has been a leader and advocate for advancing the quality of student life at Cardozo.

“Leslie has been a wonderful Chair. During her tenure, she set a high bar – not only for her successor, but also for everyone who served on the board with her. Her energy and her affection for the law school made her a natural leader and an effective motivator,” said Patricia Weiss, Associate Dean of Institutional Advancement and Alumni Affairs. “Leslie knows how to get things done and move us forward, and always with focus and grace.”

Past Board Chairs include Chair Emeriti Kathryn O. Greenberg ’82, Founder and Honorary Chairman, New York Legal Assistance Group and Hon. Earle I. Mack, Senior Partner, The Mack Company.

The Cardozo Law Board of Overseers also elected two new distinguished members, Jeffrey Goldfarb ’02 and Jonathan Henes ’96.

Jeffrey Goldfarb is Director of Strategic Planning at G-III Apparel Group, which designs, manufactures, imports, and markets men and women’s apparel. He joined G-III in 2002 and was named to his current position in 2004. He is a 2002 graduate of Cardozo, and received his B.A. from Boston University.

Goldfarb has been actively involved at Cardozo, participating as a member of the Dean’s Advisory Council, a speaker for the Dean’s Speaker Series, and an active participant in the Public Service Auction. He has been a driving force in establishing the joint program with the Fashion Institute of Technology and Cardozo Law, and is instrumental in hiring Cardozo student interns.

Jonathan Henes is recognized as one of the nation’s top restructuring lawyers. He is a Partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, leading some of the most complex restructurings in the U.S. and abroad in a variety of industries, including media, chemicals, energy, manufacturing, real estate, retail, and telecommunications. He is a 1996 cum laude graduate of Cardozo, where he was Managing Editor of the Cardozo Law Review. He holds a B.A. from Union College.

Henes is a great supporter of Cardozo Law. He is the Chairman of the Advisory Committee for the Samuel and Ronnie Heyman Center on Corporate Governance. Henes frequently organizes major conferences, most recently, “The Wolf of Wall Street: Behind the Scenes at Stratton Oakmont.” He often speaks to students as part of the Dean’s Speaker Series and Heyman Center Lunch Talks. As an Adjunct Professor, Henes teaches distressed investing and corporate restructuring.

For more information contact:

John DeNatale

Assistant Dean of Communications

212.790.0237

DeNatale@yu.edu

Jacqueline Reeves

Assistant Director of Communications

212.790.0837

Reeves@yu.edu

Summa Cum Laude

Harry R. Kaplan
Elin B. Lassen
Matthew F. Longobardi
Yan Slavinskiy (Brandeis Award)

Magna Cum Laude

Gershon Akerman
Daria A. Andryushchenko
Julie E. Bernstein
Emily M. Burgess
Gregory Capobianco
Benjamin F. Cooper
Molly R. Duane
David I. Feinstein
Rachel Chana Flaschner
Elizabeth Friedler
Amanda J. Goldstein
Jonathan W. Greisman
Alexandra H. Gutman
Kodey M. Haddox
Anastasia L. Holoboff
Bryan R. Joggerst
Catherine S. Leibowitz
Adrienne D. Levy
Jonathan A. Lynn
Madelyn A. Morris
Allison Nicole Netto
Christina C. Orlando
Nicholas J. Phillips
Jodi A. Raab
Sophia Albina Ray
Nicholas Roper
Eric Howard Rosoff
Zachary A. Ross
Jessica R. Schissel
Nahid A. Shaikh
Zubin D. Soleimany
Pamela Takefman
Laura B. Tatelman
Kerry B. Van Schoyck
Melissa A. Wollis

Cum Laude

Gill Benedek
Michael Brasky
Ryan C. Brewer
Amy L. Cassidy
Albert D. Chang
Ross S. Clements
Mark DeAngelis
Alexander S. Dombroff
Morris S. Dweck
Daniel A. Feinstein
Shlomo Fishelis
Michael Galen
Theadora B. Gersten
Andrew E. Glantz
Emma B. Glazer
Jenny Lian Greisman
Michal Gross
Avi Guttman
Mallory E. Harwood
Daniel A. Hoffman
Dena M. Ingerman
David Israel
Robert D. Keeler
Yuu Kinoshita
Michelle L. Kornblit
David C. Kurlander
Anna Linetskaya
Jessica M. Marshall
Rebecca A. Martin
Maegan B. McAdam
Paul Mezan
Melanie L. Miller
Danit L. Mishani
Jessica E. Morak
Andrew W. Moses
Devin W. Ness
Darius E. Niknamfard
Kelli D. Ortega
Arie A. Peled
Lee F. Pickett
Daniel S. Rabinowitz
Jessica M. Rubenstein
Hugo Ruiz de la Torre
Laura C. Sayler
Lisa A. Schlesinger
Gulsah Senol
Katie A. Serrano
Alexandra R. Simmerson
Courtney L. Sirwatka
Alicia D. Sklan
Alexis D. Soshnick
Joshua Stein
Bryan Noah Sterba
Solomon Suleymanov
Steven N. Tremblay
Karina C. Can Ginkel
Shane D. Wax
Andrew L. Weg
Gabrielle C. Wilson

From left, Michael Morton's mom, Michael Morton, Rachel Pecker '13, and Nina Morrison, senior staff attorney at the Innocence Project

Michael Morton spent nearly 25 years in a Williamson County, Texas, prison for murdering his wife, Christine, until the Innocence Project took on his case. DNA testing proved his innocence and implicated the real perpetrator, Mark Alan Norwood, who had a long criminal history. Norwood has also been tied to a similar Texas murder that occurred two years after the murder of Morton’s wife. 

Cardozo alumna Rachel Pecker '13 worked on the case as a student and intern in the Innocence Project. Here, she recounts her experience on the case, and what it was like to be there when Morton was freed. Her reflection is on behalf of Morton’s memoir, Getting Life: An Innocent Man’s 25-Year Journey From Prison to Peace, being released on July 8. Learn more about Morton's book and purchase a copy here.  

"The summer of my 1L year, like 10 previous law students before me, I was assigned to work on Michael Morton’s case as an Innocence Project clinic student. I combed through thousands of documents – reading every word on every page of documents filling boxes piled around me – in search of any evidence that would help free Michael. And then we found them, a few documents, buried for more than two decades, because the prosecution had wrongly withheld them from the defense.  At the same time, DNA test results finally came back, proving conclusively that Christine’s and another man’s, not Michael's, DNA were on evidence from the crime scene.

I remember the ache of being on a call with Michael weeks prior when we had to tell him we had no good news to share.  And then I remember the whirlwind of events and calls when we told him the amazing news: he'd be free in only a few days. 

I travelled to Texas with a team of lawyers and the Innocence Project social worker for his court date. On the morning he was to be released, I was with his mother, father, and sister at a café a mile from the courthouse, to shield them from the media as we waited for word it was time.  His family could have been my family: they were gentle, well-spoken, exhausted yet alert. They repeated that they hadn't known whether they would live to see the day Michael would get out. I was speechless: overcome by their strength, faith, and their patience. I was baffled that somehow, I’d ended up in a small town in Texas, and was sharing this unimaginable moment in their lives. It was a privilege.

There's so much we take for granted in our lives. Michael's first night out, I remember him having to choose from a menu, choose what to drink (including alcohol!), and swimming, in the hotel pool, for the first time in twenty-five years. And I laugh remembering Michael’s face when Barry Scheck showed him how to check baseball scores on this new contraption called an ipad.

There are two things that I will always remember from that case. As a lawyer, I think of the creative, persistent, and incredible teamwork of the many lawyers from the Innocence Project, co-counsel's firms, and pro bono firms that it took to force the case forward. As a human, I am forever awed and humbled by the poise, kindness and grace of Michael and his family. That people can be so wronged, so hurt, and yet emerge without being consumed by bitterness and anger? It's still hard for me to fathom. But Michael has. His fortitude, self-control, and capacity for love are a model I strive to emulate in any way I can."

-Rachel Pecker '13

Read more about Morton's case

In the fall 2014 edition of Cardozo Life magazine, we profile six alumni who are big names in the sports law field. Check out their stories:

Cardozo law alumna and professor Melanie Leslie took her post this summer as the school's new vice dean. Read about her rise from Cardozo Law student, to professor, to vice dean in the upcoming issue of Cardozo Life:

In the upcoming issue of Cardozo Life, we profile Kian Khatibi '14, who was convicted and sent to prison for almost 10 years for two stabbings he did not commit. Khatibi graduated from Cardozo School of Law this May. View a sneak preview of the article.

Jonathan Henes '96 visited Cardozo Law in September 2014 to speak to students as part of the Dean's Speaker Series lunchtime event. Henes, who is a partner at Kirkland & Ellis LLP, spoke about his road to success, saying that "you never want to stop growing, you always want to continue to grow."

As a student in the Innocence Project clinic, Rachel Pecker '13 helped win Michael Morton's freedom after he spent 25 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. The Innocence Project was started in 1992 at Cardozo Law by Barry Scheck and Peter Neufeld. It pioneered the use of DNA evidence to prove the innocence of those who have been wrongly convicted.

Shawna Benston '14 and Michelle Chu '15 are the winners of a writing competition held by the Elder and Special Needs Law Journal, which is a publication of the NYSBA's Elder and Special Needs Section. Benston's paper is titled "Balancing Autonomy and Beneficence: The Legal, Sociopolitical, and Philosophical History of and Support for Legalizing Assisted Suicide" and Chu's paper is titled "Universal Service in the 21st Century: Improving Telecommunications Accessibility for Americans with Disabilities."

They each received a cash prize and will both be published in the journal's fall issue. They were presented with their prizes at the Elder and Special Needs Conference, which took place on October 30-31, 2014. Congratulations!

New York City is at the heart of a Cardozo Law education. In the My New York series, students and alumni speak about their professional and personal connections to one of the greatest cities in the world. In this video, Cardozo Law alumna Alexandra Simmerson '14 talks about studying fashion law in New York City.

New York City is at the heart of a Cardozo Law education. In the My New York video series, students and alumni speak about their professional and personal connections to one of the greatest cities in the world. In this video, Ben Cooper '14 talks about the exceptional faculty at Cardozo Law, the friends he made during his time in law school, and how living in NYC helped him get into corporate law.