University News

WNE Center for Social Justice to Present Victory in Charlottesville

Published: January 24, 2022 | Categories: All News, Law
Alan Levine portrait

Western New England University (WNE) School of Law's Center for Social Justice in conjunction with the Springfield Public Forum will present Victory in Charlottesville on Wednesday, February 2, 2022 from 5:00-6:00 p.m.

The public is invited to hear from Alan Levine, one of the lead attorneys who won a historic victory in the landmark federal lawsuit Sines v. Kessler which brought justice to nine plaintiffs who were victims of white supremacists during the deadly "Unite the Right" rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in August 2017. Register for this virtual zoom event at bit.ly/CharlottesvilleTrial.

Levine is a senior counsel at Cooley LLP in the commercial litigation, securities litigation, and white collar & regulatory practice groups of the litigation department. For over 40 years, Levine has represented individuals and companies in complex civil, criminal, and regulatory matters as lead trial counsel.

Levine previously served on the management and compensation committees and as managing partner of Kronish Lieb Weiner & Hellman LLP. Prior to that, Levine served as an assistant United States attorney in the Southern District of New York, where he played a key role in the investigation and prosecution of union corruption on the New York City waterfront.

A Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, Levine has repeatedly been recognized by his peers, having been asked to assume leadership roles in the American College of Trial Lawyers, The Legal Aid Society, the American Bar Association, and the New York State Bar Association. From 2007 through 2010, he served as chairman of the board of The Legal Aid Society, the largest public law firm in the United States. In 2003, he represented the Legal Services Corporation in a landmark case involving federal legal services funding, which he argued before the United States Supreme Court.

Levine graduated from New York University School of Law, where he was a member of the Law Review. He earned his BS from the University of Pennsylvania.

The Western New England University's Center for Social Justice works toward advancing social justice through research, advocacy, education, innovation, and public engagement. It is designed to strengthen collaborative efforts between the School of Law and the region to work toward a more just, equitable, and inclusive society. The Center provides a centralized hub of activity for the School of Law's justice-related teaching, scholarship, and service. It broadens social justice academic offerings, helps students aspiring to be social justice lawyers achieve their goals, imbues a culture of pro bono volunteerism in students, faculty and other legal professionals, manages in-house pro bono projects, and works closely with community organizations and partners to identify and address unmet needs that require a multi-dimensional response cutting across law and other fields.

For more information, visit wne.edu/csj or contact Center for Social Justice Director Ariel Clemmer at ariel.clemmer@law.wne.edu.