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A Celebration of Milestones and Making History

This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the founding of the William S. Boyd School of Law — our Silver Anniversary. As I reflect on the past 25 years, I think of the many people it took to create this law school. 

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Featured Articles

The 2023 Boyd Law magazine is a celebration of Boyd Law’s past, present, and future and commemorates the many people who have contributed to its successes. It is a glimpse into what the next 25 years has in store for us.

Shaping the Law

For two decades, UNLV’s Immigration Clinic has safeguarded its local community from the fear of deportation.

Giving the Kids a Voice

Launched at Boyd in October 2002, Kids’ Court School was created to educate children ages 4-17 about what to expect from the moment they walk into the courtroom until they’re dismissed.

Making An Impact

Thanks to several students, alumni and faculty of the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV, four new laws were passed during the 82nd Legislative Session.

Melding Journalism and Law

Maria Thompson decided to pursue a law degree to better understand the judicial system and become a better journalist.

Boyd Law School Alumnus Wins National Legal Writing Award

Alumnus Travis Studdard (’22) won a Law360 Legal Writing Award from the Burton Awards for his article, Riling Up As Recommendation: How Commission-Free Brokerages Recommend Active Investing to the Public.

Meet Silvia Villanueva

Growing up in east Las Vegas, Silvia Villanueva (’14) learned the importance of advocating for her own educational opportunities and speaking up for her family’s lack of access to quality legal guidance.

Transforming Nevada and Beyond for 25 Years

In August 1998, the William S. Boyd School of Law opened after years of discussions, advocacy and feasibility studies. Our silver anniversary has allowed us to look back and celebrate the people who created Boyd Law and commemorate the history of our school.

Realizing Possibilities

LEAP partnership with Med School offers Boyd students new career paths.

Boyd Law Externships: Realizing Possibilities

Learn about a few of the many externships students have completed through the William S. Boyd School of Law's Externship Program.

Professor Ann McGinley Leverages Employment Law Background in Recent Scholarship Activities

Ann C. McGinley, Co-Director of the UNLV Workplace Law Program and William S. Boyd Professor of Law, has three scholarship initiatives in the works, beginning with a new casebook.

Leslie C. Griffin's Busy Scholarship Activities Are at the Intersection of Law and Religion

Professor Leslie C. Griffin, William S. Boyd Professor of Law, recently completed the first edition of a Learning Constitutional Law casebook with coauthor Marci A. Hamilton.

Frank Rudy Cooper Co-Edits Book on the Intersection of Hip-Hop Music and the Most Pressing Law and Policy Issues

Frank Rudy Cooper, William S. Boyd Professor of Law and Director, Program on Race, Gender & Policing, recently co-authored three books in his fields of expertise. In addition to Gender and Law: Theory, Doctrine, Commentary, Ninth Edition and Dis/ability in Media, Law and History, Frank joined a member of a writing group to coedit a third book.

Faculty Focus: New Faces

Meet the new faculty members at the William S. Boyd School of Law for Fall 2023.

Boyd School of Law’s Addie Rolnick Appointed to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine’s Committee

Addie C. Rolnick, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians Professor of Law at the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV, has been appointed to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine’s (NASEM) Committee on Law and Justice (CLAJ).

Three Boyd Law Alumni Land Immigrant Justice Corps Justice Fellowships

Three alumni from the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV have been selected to receive 2023 (IJC) Justice Fellowships. This marks the first-time multiple Boyd Law alumni have been selected for the same incoming fellowship class.

Las Vegan Awarded Trial Advocacy Scholarship

Third-year law student, Andrea Killebrew, was honored with the Eglet Adams Trial Advocacy Scholarship, a one-year, full tuition scholarship. The scholarship is awarded to a student who has demonstrated a commitment to trial advocacy, is in good academic standing, and have successfully completed Evidence.

2022-2023 Board of Governors Start SBA Endowment

The 2022-2023 Student Bar Association (SBA) Board of Governors worked together on one goal all year long: Create an SBA Endowment.

Boyd Law School Receives New Gift To Fund Small Business Initiatives

Long-term donors to the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV, Tom and Leslie Thomas, pledged a transformational gift to establish a Small Business Initiatives Endowment Fund, named after them, within the Thomas & Mack Legal Clinic.

ABA Dispute Resolution Conference Reception 2023

The Saltman Center for Conflict Resolution hosted an evening reception for attendees of the 25th Annual American Bar Association Dispute Resolution Spring Conference in Las Vegas.

Save the Date - Beecroft Lecture 2024

Pepperdine Caruso School of Law’s Maureen Arellano to serve as guest speaker for the Saltman Center’s annual lecture series.

Henderson City Attorney’s Office

A number of Boyd Law alumni work for the Henderson City Attorney’s office including Nicholas Vaskov (‘02), Sally Galati (‘05), Kristina Gilmore (‘09), Brandon Kemble (‘07), Brian Reeve (‘06), John Cory (‘13), Ekaterina “Katie” Derjavina (‘15), Adam Osman (‘15), Matt Lay (‘08), and Stephan Rini (‘02).

The Impact of Internships

She discovered she loved the law so much that she moved across the country, earned a degree at the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV in 2015, and is now a Henderson assistant city attorney (criminal division), making a difference in local justice.

No Two Days the Same

Henderson City Attorney Nicholas Vaskov will always be grateful to the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV for a career he never expected.

Paying It Forward

When she was a student at the William S. Boyd School of Law at UNLV, Sally Galati wielded a big red casebook when she, her husband, and their two young sons were on a Pacific Northwest road trip.

New Arenas of Opportunity

Professional sports jobs that used to be few and far between in Southern Nevada are now plentiful — including for lawyers. As a result, Boyd Law in recent years has seen a spike in students interested in pursuing careers in sports law (and doing so not far from campus).

So, what might such a career look like? Four Boyd students recently found out, courtesy of internships with three sports organizations. Those students share their experiences in the ensuing pages — as do two alumni who are currently putting their Boyd Law degrees to use in the local professional sports industry.

Kiana Parkes

Kiana Parkes was forthright when she walked into her internship interview with the Las Vegas Raiders earlier this year: She wasn’t exactly interested in a career in sports law.

Stephanie Allen

Two years ago, Stephanie Allen wouldn’t have labeled herself a rabid fan of the wildly popular auto racing circuit known as Formula One.

Amy Zhao

It’s not uncommon for law students to hold off on choosing a definitive career path until after completing their juris doctor. Amy Zhao certainly is someone who falls into that wait-and-see category.

Justin Carley

Like many of today’s students at the Boyd School of Law, Justin Carley was a big sports fan when he attended the school in the mid-2000s.

TJ Milk

Like the vast majority of college football players, TJ Milk had to hang up his cleats following his four-year run with the University of Jamestown football team in North Dakota.

D'Ahna Scott

Like most sports fans who grew up in Las Vegas, D’Ahna Scott has had February 11, 2024, circled on her calendar for quite some time. The reason: It’s the day that Las Vegas will host the Super Bowl for the first time.