Gabriel Pell and Fernando Mendoza Lopez Join the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University as Visiting Assistant Professors

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The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University is pleased to announce that Gabriel Pell and Fernando Mendoza Lopez have joined its faculty as Visiting Assistant Professors of Law. Professor Pell is a former prosecutor who comes to Haub Law after having taught for several years at New York Law School. Professor Mendoza Lopez recently received his JD and PhD from Vanderbilt Law School, and previously served as Director of Economic Studies in the Mexican federal government.

"The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University prides itself on bringing unique teaching perspectives to the classroom,” said Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University Dean Horace E. Anderson Jr. “Our Visiting Professors are both scholars and practitioners whose diverse experience will benefit the Haub Law student experience. We are thrilled to welcome Professors Pell and Mendoza Lopez to Haub Law.”

Professor Pell's research and writing interests focus on criminal law and criminal procedure. He speaks and writes about the application of traditional search-and-seizure practices and other investigatory techniques to new technologies in the digital era. Before joining the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Law, Professor Pell served as an Assistant Professor of Law at New York Law School. Prior to entering academia, Professor Pell spent the bulk of his practicing career as a prosecutor, most recently as an Assistant District Attorney specializing in appeals and post-conviction matters with the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office in Massachusetts. Professor Pell also served as an Assistant District Attorney with the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office and has held positions in the private sector as well.

Following his graduation from law school, Professor Pell clerked for the Honorable F. Dennis Saylor IV of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. Later in his career, Professor Pell clerked for the Honorable Gary S. Katzmann at the Massachusetts Appeals Court. He earned his JD from Harvard Law School and his AB from Princeton University.

“Haub Law has a strong reputation in criminal law – both in its graduating students who go on to become successful Assistant District Attorneys and in its faculty who are experts in the field,” said Professor Pell. “I look forward to sharing my research and experience in this field with the Haub Law community and collaborating with its faculty and students.”

Professor Mendoza Lopez’s research interests include the intersection of public policy and government contracting, with a focus on investigating how procurement processes can be leveraged to achieve broader societal objectives. Prior to entering graduate school, Professor Mendoza Lopez served as Director of Economic Studies in the Mexican federal government, where he oversaw procurement strategies for a range of public goods and services. His experience includes developing policies to enhance competition, promote small businesses, and incorporate environmental considerations into purchasing decisions.

Professor Mendoza Lopez holds a BA and MA in Economics, from the Tecnologico de Monterrey, and the University of Texas at Austin, respectively. In 2024, he earned his JD from Vanderbilt Law School and his PhD in Law and Economics from Vanderbilt University. Additionally, he holds a Masters in International Trade and Finance from Yonsei University’s Graduate School of International Studies in South Korea.

“Throughout my career I have focused on developing positive policies to better society and I cannot think of a better institution to not only share my research towards this end, but to learn from an institution who has been doing exactly that since its founding,” said Professor Mendoza Lopez. “Haub Law’s many centers and clinics are devoted to using the law to better society and I am thrilled to have an opportunity to be part of that end goal.”

In 2023, the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University appointed Paul Rink and Salihah Denman as Visiting Assistant Professors. Professors Rink and Denman will each remain at Haub Law for a second year as Visiting Assistant Professors for the 2024–2025 academic year.