Students & Faculty in Action
Written By: Tommy Gugino
Supporting Local Entrepreneurs
The Economic Justice and Small Business Clinic (EJSBC) partnered in the spring 2025 semester with Nevada Partners, Inc.’s nonprofit business incubator to help strengthen Las Vegas’s small business community. Through surveys of local entrepreneurs, the clinic identified key areas of need and developed three practical courses: Business Formation & Operations (Parts I & II), Contracting Best Practices for Small Business Owners, and Intellectual Property Basics for Small Business Owners. The collaboration equips emerging business leaders with the legal knowledge and tools to build sustainable, thriving enterprises. In addition, EJSBC Student Attorneys advised a handbag designer, an HR consultant, a self-published author, an event planner, and a community organizer. Client matters included advice about and/or documentation for business formation, intellectual property, contract law, economic development certifications, and community benefits agreements.
Boyd Students Argue Before the Ninth Circuit
Students Sara Kerby (’26) and Blanca Peña (’26) presented oral arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Artiga-Morales v. Bondi, representing an asylum seeker from El Salvador who feared torture if deported.
The pair first worked on the case during their 2024 summer fellowships at the UNLV Immigration Clinic, contributing at the briefing stage. Under the mentorship of Managing Attorney Alissa Cooley Yonesawa (’14), they spent eight weeks preparing for this pivotal hearing—an extraordinary opportunity to advocate at the federal appellate level while still in law school.
Clinic Secures Clemency and Client’s Release
The Survivor Representation & Advocacy Clinic celebrated a major victory after helping secure clemency and parole for a longtime client. Beginning work in January 2024, the clinic applied to the Nevada Pardons Board, which unanimously voted in December to commute the client’s sentence from life without parole to life with parole.
Alumni Jeanette Marquez (’24), Courtney Poe (’24), and Emily Kunz (’24)—joined by other former students — continued work on the case after graduation, alongside Professor Courtney Cross and former Distinguished Fellow Nancy Lemcke. Their advocacy was followed by efforts from current students Toree Robinson (’25) and Ciara Clark (’25), who represented the client at a February 2025 parole hearing.
The Nevada Parole Board voted in the client’s favor, leading to his release in May 2025 after 35 years of incarceration — a long-awaited reunion with his family and a powerful testament to the clinic’s impact.