The Capitol, east front, at sunset (click on the photo for the Architect of the Capitol's virtual tour of the building)

Introduction

Welcome, and thanks for your interest in the UCDC Law Program, launched by the Berkeley and UCLA law schools in 2008-09 as a full-semester Washington externship program for their law students. Davis law students joined us starting in spring 2010, and Irvine law students participated for the first time in Spring 2011.



Our distinctive program offers full-time, semester-long placements in government and public interest advocacy organizations matched to our students' interests and styles of learning, with a companion course and individual mentorship and counseling designed to enrich the academic experience of law study, to bridge the gap between law school and the world of practice, and to launch some of the nation's most exciting young people on the Washington legal careers of their choice.



We are housed at the University of California Washington Center, whose warm support and state-of-the-art facilities will allow us to share Washington ever more fully with our participating law schools and bring their rich talent to Washington's doorstep. We welcome your participation and ideas as we grow.


The Capitol dome from inside

The U.S. Supreme Court bench (click on photo for oral argument information)

First lady and DC schoolchildren plant White House kitchen garden, March 16, 2011 (click for White House video)

New Director

Nicole V. Lehtman is the newly appointed Director of the University of California Washington DC Law Program. Prior to joining the UCDC Law Program, Ms. Lehtman served as the first program manager and adjunct professor for the Arizona State University, Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law’s Washington DC Legal Externship Program. In that position, Ms. Lehtman was responsible for counseling law students from across the country on available externship opportunities with the federal government and DC-based non-profit organizations; and provided students with support and guidance throughout their time in Washington, DC. Ms. Lehtman also has served as an adjunct professor in the Trial Advocacy program at American University’s Washington College of Law.Ms. Lehtman has extensive government experience working as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Department of Justice. Most recently, Ms. Lehtman served as a trial attorney in the Justice Department's Criminal Division, Office of International Affairs, where she coordinated international extradition and mutual legal assistance matters involving Latin America. Ms. Lehtman previously served as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia where she was responsible for prosecuting criminal actions in the District of Columbia on behalf of the United States. Ms. Lehtman also has worked at a private law firm in South Florida specializing in civil litigation and international arbitration.  Born in Miami, Ms. Lehtman is a native Spanish speaker whose family is from Santiago, Chile. She is a graduate, cum laude, of American University’s Washington College of Law and of the University of Miami, where she graduated, with honors, with a degree in Political Science and International Studies.