2002

Ronelle Porter ’02 Receives Prestigious Award

The New York State Bar Association’s Committee on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion has awarded Ronelle Porter '02 the 2023 Ruth Bader Ginsburg Beacon Award. Porter, a partner and assistant deputy chair of the Capital Markets and Corporate department at Loeb & Loeb LLP in New York City, was recognized for qualities that exemplify the work of the late Supreme Court justice. She is the third recipient of the award. Porter serves as chair of Loeb’s affinity group for its Black lawyers, as co-chair of the firm's women-focused affinity group, and as a member of its Diversity & Inclusion Committee. At UConn Law, she served as president of the Black Law Students Association.

Ronelle Porter

Judge Omar Williams ’02 Confirmed to Federal Bench

The U.S. Senate has confirmed Omar A. Williams ’02 to the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut. President Biden nominated Williams in June 2021, and the Senate confirmed his nomination on Oct. 28, 2021. Williams served as a Superior Court judge in Connecticut, having been nominated in 2014 by Gov. Dannel Malloy, after 11 years as a public defender in New Haven. While on the Superior Court bench, he served in the Sentence Review Division and on the wiretap panel, co-chaired the Jury Selection Task Force, and served on the New England Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative. Before entering law school, he earned a BA from the University of Connecticut in 1998.

Omar A. Williams ’02 Nominated to the U.S. District Court for CT

The White House announced that President Joe Biden nominated Judge Omar A. Williams ’02 to serve on the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. In 2016, Judge Williams began serving as a Superior Court Judge in Hartford, where he was involved with the New England Regional Judicial Opioid Initiative, the Sentence Review Division, and the Wiretap Panel. Judge Williams also served as a Superior Court Judge in New London from 2014 to 2016. Prior to his tenure as a state court judge, Judge Williams served as an Assistant Public Defender for the State of Connecticut Division of Public Defender Services from 2003 to 2014. 

UConn Law Alumni Named in HBJ Power 50

Hartford Business Journal announced its 2021 Power 50, which aims to highlight private and public sector, nonprofit, higher education and healthcare leaders in Greater Hartford whose power and influence not only change the organizations they work for but the broader community. The following UConn Law Alumni were recognized: Matt Ritter ’07, Martin Looney ’85, Senator Christopher Murphy ’02, The Honorable Joseph D. Courtney ’78, The Honorable Kevin Kelly ’97, Jennifer Jackson ’93, Michael ’83 JD, and DeVaughn Ward ’11. Read their bios and see rankings here.