Elaine Albenda, Adjunct Professor of Law at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law

Hon. Elaine Albenda

Adjunct Professor
Elisabeth Haub School of Law
Criminal Justice
Litigation

Biography

Adjunct Professor Elaine Albenda is currently an Administrative Law Judge for New York State. Prior to this appointment she served as criminal prosecutor and trial attorney for twelve years at the Brooklyn District Attorney's office. She has prosecuted thousands of criminal cases and conducted dozens of jury trials. Her last several years at the DA's office she served as a homicide prosecutor.

Professor Albenda began her legal career working at the Red Hook Community Justice Center where she prosecuted misdemeanor cases with a focus on alternative resolutions including mental health and drug treatment. She then spent the next several years prosecuting all manners of felonies including attempted murders, rape and sexual assault, robberies, burglaries and financial fraud before she was promoted to handling homicides. She has prosecuted in excess of thirty homicide cases.

She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania School of Law where she was a recipient of the Most Valuable Student Volunteer Award.

Prior to becoming a lawyer she was an instructor of English at the City University of New York. She has also taught English in a remote village in Thailand, volunteered at an orphanage in Peru for which she spearheaded a fundraising campaign and participated in several environmentally focused volunteer projects in Latin America.

Education

  • JD, University of Pennsylvania School of Law

Courses Taught

Honors & Awards

  • Most Valuable Student Volunteer Award, University of Pennsylvania Law School 2010
  • Outstanding Pro Bono Service Award
  • Morris Fellow

Areas of Interest

Homicide, Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Prosecutions, Alternatives to Incarceration, Jury Selection