The Center for Gender and Sexuality Law is pleased to congratulate alumna Jenny Rivera ’93 who has been nominated to serve on the New York State Court of Appeals!
Governor Cuomo made the announcement this past Tuesday. “Throughout her career, Professor Rivera has worked to defend the legal rights of all New Yorkers and make our state a fairer, more just place to live,” Governor Cuomo said. ” As a Judge on the Court of Appeals, Professor Rivera’s legal expertise and passion for social justice will serve all New Yorkers well, and I am proud to send her nomination to the Senate today.” (See the official press release here.)
Jenny Rivera is Professor of Law at the City University of New York School of Law and the Founder and Director of the Center on Latino and Latina Rights and Equality (CLORE). Professor Rivera graduated from Princeton University and received her J.D. from New York University School of Law, where she was named a Root-Tilden Scholar, a prestigious program that recognizes top students dedicated to public interest careers. Professor Rivera went on to receive her LL.M. from Columbia University School of Law, where she concentrated on Constitutional and Feminist Theory.
In 1993, Professor Rivera clerked for then District Judge Sonia Sotomayor. During Justice Sotomayor’s United States Supreme Court confirmation process, Professor Rivera organized and served as lead author of a law professors’ review of Justice Sotomayor’s judicial record for the Hispanic National Bar Association (HNBA). Prior to teaching, Professor Rivera clerked in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals Pro Se Law Clerk’s office. She was also a lawyer for the Legal Aid Society’s Homeless Family Rights Project where she represented homeless families in federal and state class actions and administrative hearings, and served as an Associate Counsel for the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, where she worked on education and employment discrimination, equity and testing issues, gender equality and language rights discrimination.
Professor Rivera recently served on the New York City Commission on Human Rights, and was honored by Hispanic Business as one of the Elite Women of 2005, by El Diario/La Prensa as an Outstanding Latina Woman, and has been honored by the Manhattan Borough President and the New York City Chapter of the National Conference of Puerto Rican Women.
We wish her well during the confirmation process!
Congratulations Jenny Rivera !