Prominent Civil Rights Attorney Theodore Shaw to Keynote at 2011 National Black Pre-Law Conference

April 21, 2011 - PRLog -- The National Black Pre-Law Admissions & Preparation Conference and Law School Recruitment Fair is the nation’s premier information-sharing and networking empowerment event focused on the success of aspiring Black lawyers.  The purpose of the conference is to share critical information about what it takes to achieve the goals of getting into law school, succeeding in law school, and passing the bar exam.  It also directly addresses diversity issues and increases awareness of the career options available to those possessing a legal education.  However, just as importantly, it aims to provide real life positive role models of successful African American lawyers who have beaten the odds to achieve success and who are committed to making a difference in their communities.  In keeping with this goal, the conference is proud to announce that prominent civil rights attorney Theodore M. Shaw will serve as one of the featured keynote speakers at this year’s event.  

Theodore M. Shaw is currently the professor of professional practice in law at Columbia University School of Law in New York where he specializes in constitutional law and civil procedure.  He also serves as of counsel to the law firm of Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.  Prior to his current positions, he served as director-counsel and president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF).  He has worked for the LDF in various positions for over 26 years where he has litigated education, housing, capital punishment, voting rights, police misconduct, employment, and other civil rights cases.

He served as lead counsel representing both African American and Latino student intervenors in the University of Michigan undergraduate affirmative action admissions case.  While teaching at Michigan, he played a pivotal role in reviewing and carrying out the admissions program that was upheld in the landmark 2003 Grutter v. Bollinger Supreme Court affirmative action case.  This case found that diversity was a compelling state interest and enabled schools to legally continue using race as one factor to be considered among many in making their admissions decision.

In addition to his work for the NAACP, Shaw has worked as a civil rights trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice.  In the world of academia, he has served as a law school faculty member at the University of Michigan School of Law, City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law, and Temple University Law School.

His professional honors include the National Bar Association’s A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr. Memorial Award, the Columbia University Lawrence A. Wein Prize for Social Justice, the Wesleyan University Baldwin Medal, and the CUNY School of Law Haywood Burns Chair in Civil Rights.  Additionally, he has earned several fellowships including the Charles Evan Hughes Fellow at Columbia Law School, an Aspen Fellow in Law and Social Justice, a Twenty-First Century Fellow in London, England, and a Salzburg Fellow in Salzburg, Austria.

Attorney Shaw has testified before local legislators, state legislators, and members of Congress on a number of occasions.  He has also traveled extensively throughout the world on the African, Asian, European, and South American continents lecturing on the topics of civil rights and human rights.  Mr. Shaw earned his bachelor of arts with honors from Wesleyan University and his juris doctor from Columbia University Law School.

Meet attorney and law professor Theodore M. Shaw at the Seventh Annual National Black Pre-Law Conference and Law Fair 2011, which will be held on Thursday, November 17, 2011 to Saturday, November 19, 2011 at the Hilton - University of Houston Hotel and Conference Center in Houston, Texas.  Registration is now open for this groundbreaking “must attend” event.  

High school students, college students and graduates, working professionals, career changers, advisors, mentors, and parents are all encouraged to come out and take advantage of all of the unmatched opportunities this conference offers.  Regular, deluxe, and premium registration options are now available.  Regular registration is free of charge.

For more information regarding the event, please visit the official conference website at www.BlackPreLawConference.com. You may also call 281-247-4026 or send an e-mail to blackprelawconference@live.com.  Register online now at http://blackprelawconference2011.eventbrite.com/.

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The nation's premier information-sharing and networking empowerment event for aspiring Black lawyers.