The Niagara University Pre-Law Student Association recently returned from its annual trip to Washington, D.C., to attend oral arguments at the U.S. Supreme Court.
After attending oral arguments in Wittman v. Personhuballah and RJR Nabisco Inc. v. The European Community, pre-law students Crystal Borynski, Carley McMullen, Tabita Saraj, and Molly Smarr took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Supreme Court. The tour was led by Western New York native Lucas Walker, who currently serves as a law clerk to Associate Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr.
(The tour included a chance to stand at the podium typically reserved for Supreme Court advocates, as well as a visit to the basketball court located above the courtroom, which has famously been dubbed “the highest court in the land.”)
The students also met with Niagara University alumni and legal practitioners from the Washington, D.C., area, including Jason Pope, ’03, a Syracuse law graduate and assistant chief counsel at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and John Celock, ’03, a Columbia Journalism School graduate and award-winning political journalist. Celock is president of Celock Media Group and editor of The Celock Report.
In addition, the students took their study of law and legal institutions beyond the classroom by visiting museums and monuments throughout the nation’s capital, including the Charters of Freedom displayed at the National Archives, the Lincoln Memorial, and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, to name just a few.
Any current or future NU students who are considering law school or legal careers – or who would like to join next year’s Supreme Court trip – are invited to contact Kevin Hinkley, ’05, pre-law program advisor, at ude.aragain@yelknihk.