Reception: 5:30 – 6 pm
Award Ceremony: 6-7 pm
Location: Adobe Lodge
The 2019 Katharine & George Alexander Law Prize will be awarded to Jessica Jackson J.D. ’11.
Jackson is a human rights attorney who began her career representing California death row inmates in post-conviction appeals. She is currently the national director and cofounder, with Van Jones, of DreamCorps #cut50, a bi-partisan national initiative to reduce the prison population by 50 percent.
On December 21, 2018, President Trump signed into law The First Step Act, a major prison reform bill that The New York Times said will deliver “the most significant changes to the criminal justice system in a generation.” For this legislation, #Cut50 put together a bi-partisan coalition and took a leadership role to get the bill passed.
Jackson has spearheaded other prison reform including the Dignity for Incarcerated Women’s Act, an initiative led by formally incarcerated women that seeks to improve the treatment of women in prison, including allowing these women access to their children while incarcerated. Jackson helped introduce this bill with Senators Cory Booker, Elizabeth Warren, and Kamala Harris, and Jackson now leads the effort nationally to change laws in 20 states by 2020.
Jackson sits on the Committee for a Fair Judiciary, serves as an advisory board member of the American Constitution Society Bay Area Chapter, and represents Congressman Jared Huffman on the Democratic Central Committee of Marin.
In November 2013, she became the youngest ever elected official in Marin County when she joined the Mill Valley City Council, becoming the mayor of Mill Valley in November 2016.
Jackson earned her B.A. in political science from the University of South Florida Honors College and her J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law, where she received the Dean’s Outstanding Student Leadership Award.
For more information on Jackson and her work, see www.cut50.org.
The first Katharine & George Alexander Law Prize was presented in March 2008 and has been awarded annually thereafter. This award has been made possible through the generosity of Katharine & George Alexander to bring recognition to legal advocates who have used their legal careers to help alleviate injustice and inequity. The hope is that recognition of such individuals will improve the image of lawyers around the world.
The winner receives a substantial cash award to be used as the he or she chooses. The winner will be brought to Santa Clara University to be honored at a ceremony in March. The winner will also be invited to participate in lectures and classes and may choose to serve as a teacher, mentor and scholar for a limited period at Santa Clara Law.
Katharine & George Alexander
Katharine Alexander practiced law for 25 years as a public defender for Santa Clara County and taught law courses for several years at San Jose State University.
The late George Alexander served as professor of law at Santa Clara University for 34 years and as dean of its School of Law for 15 years.
Both Katharine and George have dedicated their lives to instilling in students and lawyers a commitment to justice. Their service to humanity serves as a model for other lawyers.
Selection Committee
Francisco Rivera Juaristi, Chair
Associate Clinical Professor and Director, International Human Rights Clinic, Santa Clara Law
Ellen Kreitzberg, Co-Chair
Professor of Law and Director, Center for Social Justice and Public Service, Santa Clara Law
Scott Maurer
Associate Clinical Professor, Katharine and George Alexander Community Law Center, Santa Clara Law
Lynette Parker
Associate Clinical Professor, Katharine and George Alexander Community Law Center, Santa Clara Law
Kathleen “Cookie” Ridolfi
Professor of Law, cofounder and former Director, Northern California Innocence Project, Santa Clara Law
Skip Horne
(Former) Sr. Assistant Dean for External Relations, Santa Clara Law
