Laura Gómez graduated from Stanford Law School with honors in 1992. She holds an M.A. and a Ph.D. in Sociology from Stanford University and an A.B. with honors in Social Studies from Harvard College. Professor Gómez clerked for Judge Dorothy W. Nelson on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and worked as a legislative aide to U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico.

Gómez has lectured widely and has published numerous articles, book chapters, and books. Her research focuses on the intersection of law, politics, and inequality both today and in the distant past. Her books include the following: Misconceiving Mothers: Legislators, Prosecutors and the Politics of Prenatal Drug Exposure; Mapping “Race”: Critical Approaches to Health Disparities Research, a book co-edited with Dr. Nancy López; and Manifest Destinies: The Making of the Mexican American Race. Her latest book Inventing Latino: A New Story of American Racism was named an NPR Best Book of 2020 and will be published in paperback next month.

Gómez previously taught at the University of New Mexico School of Law from 2005-2011. While at the University of New Mexico, she became the first professor to hold a joint appointment between the School of Law and the College of Arts & Sciences. In 2007, she became the Associate Dean for Faculty Development in the Law School and the founding co-director of the Institute for the Study of “Race” and Social Justice with Dr. Nancy López.

Vanessa Racehorse (Shoshone-Bannock Tribes) has an LL.M in International Criminal Law from the University of Amsterdam and a JD from Columbia Law School, where she was awarded the Parker School Recognition of Achievement in International and Comparative Law. In law school, Racehorse served as President of the Columbia Native American Law Students Association and the Bluebook Editor for the Columbia Law Review. 

Allison Freedman received her BA in Political Science, magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania, and her JD, cum laude, from the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law. At Northwestern, she was on the Bartlit Center National Trial Team, winning two national titles, and served as Comment Editor for the Northwestern Journal of International Human Rights. In 2009, she received a Fulbright Fellowship, during which she taught classes in politics, debate, and Spanish at a university in Hong Kong. 

Freedman has held several teaching positions. She was a Clinical Fellow in the University of Michigan Law School’s Civil-Criminal Litigation Clinic and an Adjunct Professor of Advanced Trial Practice at Northwestern School of Law. She also served as a law clerk to the Hon. Joan H. Lefkow of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. After the clerkship, Freedman litigated a wide variety of cases in federal and state court as an associate at the Katten Muchin Rosenman law firm in Chicago. During that time, she maintained an active pro bono practice, prevailing in an immigration appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, and representing clients in housing, public benefits, consumer rights, and custody disputes. 

Nadine Padilla (’18) is an alumna of the University of New Mexico School of Law where she graduated with Clinical Honors and earned a certificate in Natural Resources and Environmental Law. Prior to joining the faculty of the University of New Mexico School of Law, Padilla served in an appointed position as the Deputy Cabinet Secretary of the New Mexico Indian Affairs Department. Padilla has also practiced environmental law with the New Mexico Environmental Law Center, a non-profit environmental law firm in Santa Fe, and brings over a decade of experience working with tribes and environmental justice communities throughout our state. 

Prior to enrolling in law school, Padilla worked with grassroots organizations to protect sacred sites, including Mt. Taylor in western New Mexico, a mountain sacred to tribes throughout the Southwest. During law school, she was the Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Natural Resources Journal, a writing tutor for first-year law students, a volunteer with the Native American Law Student Association, and a Teaching Assistant for the Pre-Law Summer Institute. Padilla received her BA from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. 

The Natural Resources Journal is excited to announce the publication of Volume 62, Issue 2. The NRJ Board extends its sincere thanks to all of those who helped make this issue come together. The NRJ is published two times per year by the UNM School of Law. The Journal’s interdisciplinary nature is featured throughout issue 2 in the articles, book reviews, and essays.

The 2022 Justice Pamela B. Minzner Award for Professionalism and Ethics was presented to Kevin Garcia. This award is presented annually to a UNM Law student entering their final year of law school who demonstrates an interest in professionalism and legal ethics. This prize was made possible by the generosity of Richard Minzner. Congratulations, Kevin, for your achievements and for being the ninth recipient of the Justice Pamela B. Minzner Award in Professionalism and Ethics!

This year’s recipient of the Salazar Prize for Outstanding Academic Achievement (in Memory of Tibo J. Chavez, Esq.) is Cody Barnes. The Salazar Prize is awarded annually to the student with the highest cumulative grade point average at the conclusion of the second year of law school. The Salazar Prize honors the memory of Tibo J. Chavez, John Salazar’s late uncle, who inspired lives of service and excellence in the law through his many accomplishments. This prize was made possible by the generosity of John Salazar and his wife Terri Salazar. Congratulations, Cody on your academic achievements!

J. Spenser Lotz and several other law and graduate students have been granted observer status to attend CITES CoP19 as UNM Delegates. CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) is the single largest multilateral treaty relating to species conservation and is the basis for the U.S. Endangered Species Act. “I am so thankful for this tremendous academic opportunity, and I can't wait to share what I learn with the UNM Community,” said Lotz. Congratulations, Spenser!

Emmalee Johnston has been recognized with an Honorable Mention in the 2021-2022 Marshall Schulman Writing Competition. The competition is sponsored by the California Lawyers Association Criminal Law Section. Entitled “From Invisibility to Hyper-Invisibility,” her paper analyzes the current state of hate crimes legislation and argues that California statutes can serve as a model for other states. She earned $500 in prize money plus an offer of publication in the Criminal Law Journal, the official quarterly publication of the Section. Congratulations, Emmalee!

Professor Jennifer Moore traveled to Sierra Leone and Northern Uganda this summer. She is researching for a book manuscript on women peacebuilders in these countries. Her research has entailed traveling through very remote rural communities and interviewing women involved in promoting micro-credit, collective agriculture, and several other areas of legal and political reform. Professor Moore has met with political leaders and law professors to establish relationships between UNM Law School and institutions of law in Sierra Leone. 

Lauren Hund was awarded the prestigious Daniels Diploma. The Daniels Diploma is an annual award honoring the late Justice Charles W. Daniels ('69) of the New Mexico Supreme Court. It is generally awarded to the person who graduates first in the class. Hund realized her legal calling later in life, quit her job, and started attending UNM School of Law. In law school, she also started the Legal Eaglets book series to share her love of the law with her kids. Congratulations, Lauren!

You are invited to join the UNM SOL ’22-‘23 Social Justice Book Club. This year’s book discussions will be scheduled via Doodle Poll.  If you would like to participate in a discussion, please email Professor Elizabeth Elia (elia@law.unm.edu) to be added to the Doodle Poll list. Here is the list of this year's book club selections:

The Night Watchman by Louise Erdrich

The Color of Law by Richard Rothstein

Woman of Light by Kali Fajardo-Anstine

Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann

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