Kasama Star ’23 grew up in a single parent immigrant household, moving from Thailand to Queens when she was 7 years old. After completing her undergraduate degree, MBA, and taking time off to raise her family, it was the murder of George Floyd that motivated Kasama to apply to Haub Law. Three years later, Kasama feels that Haub Law has provided her with top tier opportunities, experiences, and resources. After taking the bar exam, she will begin her legal journey as a litigation associate at a NYC firm.

What will you miss about Haub Law?

So much. I am sad to graduate, there is always so much more to learn. I picked up a new interest/skill even in my last semester when I took the Mediation Practicum with Professor Erin Gleason Alvarez. I have really enjoyed being a mediator. Mediation is a skillset that builds upon my previous life experiences (studying psychology and business). It feels really gratifying to give people a chance to air their feelings and an opportunity to resolve their disputes so that they can avoid the costs and expenses (mental and physical) of litigation. But most importantly, witnessing the opportunity to repair a relationship after a dispute is what really gratifies me as a mediator. So, I will miss the constant stream of opportunities to learn more, do more, and discover new passions. Haub Law has left me feeling very blessed and well-trained.

What brought you to law school and to Haub Law in particular?

I grew up in a single parent immigrant household and am originally from Thailand. Growing up as an immigrant, I never thought going into law was a possibility. I was raised with the mentality that professions like law are not something immigrants do, and I shouldn’t even think about it. I completed my undergraduate studies at Cornell and worked as a web designer. From there, I received my MBA at NYU Stern and transitioned to business process management. Then, I took time off to care for my kids and be a mom. It was during the pandemic, after the murder of George Floyd that I knew I wanted to do something. I decided to go to law school. I applied to two law schools and was accepted into both. Haub Law had a lot of what I was looking for in terms of location and size. I chose Haub Law, and the rest is history.

You have been very involved during your time at Haub Law, in particular with the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA) – what has that experience meant to you?

As soon as I came to law school, I was able to get involved with the Land Use Law Center and Professor Nolon and during that time I read the book “The Color of Law” – which discusses redlining and the way it impacts Black Americans to this day. In that book, you learn about the case, Shelley v. Kraemer, which discusses restrictive covenants. Until I read the case in entirety, I didn’t realize that they had consolidated two cases, one had a covenant that was also restrictive against Asians (restriction applied to “Mongolian Race”), while another also implied the exclusion of Asians (and other non-White races) and I was fascinated by it. So, circling back to an earlier question about how I got to law school – I am here because of George Floyd, but the moment I read that case, I realized that I am here because of my upbringing too. I ended up doing extensive research on our American history against Asian Americans and was able to conduct several panels and presentations through APALSA. As an immigrant, you can feel very powerless, and the fear of deportation is driven into the back of your mind. When I came to law school, to be able to be involved in an organization like APALSA, learning more about the appalling legal history of AAPI discrimination and presenting on it have been empowering. Also, in my Environmental Justice class, I learned so much more about structural inequities and atrocities like the mass sterilization of Native American women. I feel so much more powerful and equipped to respond to arguments positing structural inequities as choices or coincidences.

Which professors at Haub Law have been most impactful for you?

Where do I begin? All of them, really. As soon as I started law school, I knew what a great community I had just become a part of and as a result, my (non-exhaustive) list of impactful professors and staff is very long. Professor Waldman has been an incredible mentor to me. She really cares about her students and teaches the subject of civ pro in a way that is thorough, but not intimidating. I loved taking classes with Professor Humbach, Professor Gershman, Professor Cassuto, Professor Pollans, Professor Brown, Professor Narula, Professor Kuh, Professor Lin, Dean Horace Anderson, Dean Jill Gross – they have all been amazing in their own unique ways. The Center for Career and Professional Development staff members Jill Backer, Kapila Juthani, and Elyse Diamond have all been a great support system and mentored me during my job search. I’ve also enjoyed learning from adjunct professors – Professor Hatcliffe, Professor Lettera, Professor Stephen Brown, Professor Muller, Professor Jay Diamond, Professor Shahmanesh, Professor Gleason Alvarez and Professor Carbone. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the incredible support that I have received as a Haub Sustainable Business Law Hub Scholar as well as all the support staff at Pace who truly make it run.

What do you feel makes a “good” lawyer?

I am going to use the words that I have learned from my professors. “Don’t lose your heart, don’t lose yourself and the reasons why you came to law school.”

Do you have any advice for current or future law students?

Law school is emotionally demanding. Have confidence in yourself and just go for it. And three years later, when you are about to graduate, don’t forget to take note of what an accomplishment that is. Professor Narula reminded me before graduation about how powerful a law degree is and what a defining moment it is to accomplish graduating law school. Stay motivated - although it has been demanding, it has also been very rewarding. Haub Law graduates can do anything!

Unhappy in her job at the time, Eliana J. Cruz ’26 decided to study for the LSAT and apply to attend law school. “It was a long time coming, with each path my career took, I became more interested in the law. Finally, I decided to finally take a leap of faith. At the same time, I switched careers and became a paralegal. To me, it made sense that if I was working, I should work directly with attorneys while attending law school.”

Eliana’s background also inspired her to push herself and her education further. “I come from a big multi-generational, multi-cultural Latinx family from the Bronx. I’m privileged to say most of my family has attended and graduated from college. We were inspired by my grandfather. He immigrated to The Bronx with his parents and small children, he did not have a high school diploma to his name. I dedicate all my academic accomplishments to him. All my degrees are his, too.”

Eliana chose the FLEX JD program at Haub Law because she knew she would receive a quality legal education in New York while working at a job she enjoyed and provided her with an income. “The FLEX JD program allowed me to have it all and not have to fall into debt. When I graduate, I will be competing for jobs I want in the City I call home.” While balancing working and attending law school has had its challenges, Eliana is steadfast in her belief that it is well worth it. “My paralegal work has been paramount in gaining experience that will land me a job after graduating. I am actively applying what I learn in class, while networking with some of the top attorneys in my field. It’s a win-win. And the Haub Law community is tremendously supportive. I feel a true sense of camaraderie. I know if my classmates can do it, I can do it.”

As a FLEX JD student, Eliana has not yet participated in clinics or externships, however, her most recent career move has her as a Legal Operations Manager at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. “This position has fueled my interest in media and intellectual property law; however, transactional law is where my passion is now. I enjoy the technical aspects of it.” Prior to her position at Lincoln Center, Eliana was a Foreclosure Defense Paralegal at New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG).

Notably, Eliana also co-founded NYC Celebrates Women, a non-profit group dedicated to Women of Color Entrepreneurs. "The non-profit was co-founded by a friend and former manager of mine. We saw that the services offered by WOC owned businesses in our neighborhood were of exceptional quality, but lacked the investment and marketing needed to compete with other businesses at the level they wanted to. So, we created an organization as a platform for these women to connect and grow as entrepreneurs."

Despite her busy schedule, Eliana likes to stay active. “I swim whenever I can. I also paint, draw, and write in my free time.” Outside of work, Eliana has also had some of her writing published and her art featured in different galleries across Westchester.

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Camden Robertson ’23, Peace and Justice Studies, was awarded the 2023 Best Undergraduate Thesis of the Year by the Peace and Justice Studies Association for her work “Extinction Rebellion: A Case Study of Nonviolent Climate Activism.”

Robertson was presented with the award at the Peace and Justice Studies Association Annual Conference, held from September 14–17 at Iowa State University. Robertson’s work was a case study on Extinction Rebellion NYC, an environmental movement using nonviolent civil disobedience to advocate for government action. Through ethnographic data and interviews, Robertson explored “the human capacity to resist forces of social, economic and political power and demand action in the face of crisis.”

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Several Dyson faculty members and students also presented at the conference. Associate Professor of Peace and Justice Studies Emily Welty, PhD, and students Dante Dallago ’24, Peace and Justice Studies, and Kalina Walaski ’24, Peace and Justice Studies, presented as part of a panel on Peacebuilding and the Arts.

Welty and Robertson were also joined by Assistant Professor Garrett FitzGerald, PhD, and Peace and Justice students Mikayla Meachem ’24 and Natale Maclay Tijerina ’26 on a panel on Intersectional Approaches to Peace and Justice.

The Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University is proud to announce that Professor James Toomey was awarded the 2023 Goettel Prize for Faculty Scholarship for his article, “Property’s Boundaries” published by Virginia Law Review (109 Va. L. Rev. 131 (2023)).

The Goettel Prize was created in 2004 to encourage and recognize outstanding scholarship by members of the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University faculty. Each year, members of the tenured and tenure-track faculty are invited to submit their work for consideration (on an anonymous basis) by a selection committee of outside reviewers. This year's committee consisted of three distinguished law school professors: Professor Andrea Schneider of Cardozo Law, Professor Ed Snow of University of South Carolina School of Law, and Professor D. Theodore Rave of The University of Texas at Austin School of Law.

Associate Dean for Faculty Development and Operations and Professor of Law at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, Emily Waldman, noted, “Since joining our faculty last year, James Toomey has continued to establish himself as an exciting new scholar writing at the intersection of bioethics, health law, private law theory, and elder law. In his prize-winning article, "Property's Boundaries," he brings together questions of bioethics and property by analyzing how to think about ownership rights in body-related things like cells, genes, organs, embryos, and more. Do I own, for instance, the information in my genes? What about my blood cells themselves? These questions are becoming more pressing than ever before, in light of new scientific research and developments, and Professor Toomey provides a thoughtful and pragmatic framework for how courts should approach these types of questions. We are very proud to see his work recognized by our distinguished panel of external judges."

“I am deeply honored that “Property’s Boundaries” has been selected by this year’s committee for the Goettel Prize. This piece sits at the core of my scholarship in bioethics and private law theory, and was a lot of fun to write, bringing together sources in philosophy, psychology, and legal theory to address one of the most difficult and persistent questions in bioethics,” stated Professor James Toomey. ““Property’s Boundaries” also took my thinking in generative new directions—laying the foundations for a forthcoming collection of essays I’m co-editing with Professors Marietta Auer, Henry Smith, and Paul Miller, called Reinach and the Foundations of Private Law (Professor James Toomey draft contribution to Reinach and the Foundations of Private Law), and my paper “Evolutionary Anamnesis,” in the journal Biology and Philosophy.”

Professor James Toomey joined the Haub Law faculty as an Assistant Professor of Law in 2022. He teaches Property, Contracts, Health Law in America, and Wills, Trusts and Estates. Professor Toomey’s scholarship focuses on health law, bioethics, private law theory, and elder law, and his work has been published or is forthcoming in a number of leading journals including the Virginia Law Review, the Washington University Law Review, the Indiana Law Journal, the North Carolina Law Review, the Harvard Journal on Legislation, the Elder Law Journal and the Journal of Law and the Biosciences. Prior to joining the Haub Law faculty, Professor Toomey was a Climenko Fellow & Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School. Before that, he clerked for Judge Stanley Marcus on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Professor Toomey holds a JD, magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School, and a BA, summa cum laude, from Cornell University.

The Lubin Link Podcast

Leo Krkuti '17 knows good pizza—not just because he's a native New Yorker, but because he comes from a family of successful pizzeria owners. On this episode of The Lubin Link, Leo discusses how his marketing degree helped him open his own pizzeria, Traditas Pizza, and how he received a raving review from an A-list celebrity.

This episode was recorded on September 18, 2023.

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Tune into the Lubin Link podcast to hear how guests went from go-getting Lubin students to successful entrepreneurs, social media mavens, directors, CEOs, and beyond. They offer their best tips to students and share how you can make the most out of your #LubinLife.