Judge Alison J. Nathan of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to Deliver Villanova Law’s 2024 Commencement Address
Villanova, Pa. – Mark C. Alexander, The Arthur J. Kania Dean of Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, announced that Judge Alison J. Nathan of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will deliver the commencement address to the Class of 2024. She will also receive the Villanova Law Medallion Award in recognition of her achievements at this year’s commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 18.
Judge Alison J. Nathan was sworn in as a United States Circuit Judge for the Second Circuit in March 2022. Previously, she served ten years as a United States District Court Judge for the Southern District of New York. While on the district court, she served as chair of the SDNY Security Committee and served on the SDNY Grievance Committee.
Prior to taking the district court bench, Judge Nathan worked in state government as special counsel to the solicitor general of New York from 2010 to 2011. From 2009 to 2010, she served in the federal government in the White House Counsel's Office as an associate White House counsel and special assistant to the president.
Judge Nathan also worked in legal academia. From 2006 to 2008, she was a visiting assistant professor of law at Fordham University Law School, where she taught civil procedure. She was a Fritz Alexander Fellow at New York University School of Law from 2008 to 2009. She continues to teach as an adjunct professor at NYU School of Law and Cornell Law School.
Previously, Judge Nathan was in private practice. From 2002 to 2006, she was an associate at Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, LLP in Washington, DC and New York. She was a member of the firm's appellate and Supreme Court litigation practice.
Judge Nathan served as a law clerk for United States Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens from 2001 to 2002 and for Judge Betty B. Fletcher on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 2000 to 2001.
Judge Nathan received her JD, magna cum laude, from Cornell Law School in 2000 and her BA from Cornell University in 1994.
About Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law: Founded in 1953, the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law provides broad-based legal education grounded in academic rigor, practical hands-on training and a foundation in business that prepares graduates for diverse and rewarding legal careers. Accredited by the American Bar Association, Villanova Law offers eight in-house clinics and more than 330 externship opportunities that immerse students in real-world applications of their legal skills to help them become principled leaders. The school is also home to the Eleanor H. McCullen Center for Law, Religion and Public Policy; the David F. and Constance B. Girard-diCarlo Center for Ethics, Integrity and Compliance; the John F. Scarpa Center for Law and Entrepreneurship; the Jeffrey S. Moorad Center for the Study of Sports Law; and the Institute to Address Commercial Sexual Exploitation. These centers of excellence allow students to pursue innovative, interdisciplinary legal fields through study, practical experience and mentorship.
About Villanova University: Since 1842, Villanova University’s Augustinian Catholic intellectual tradition has been the cornerstone of an academic community in which students learn to think critically, act compassionately and succeed while serving others. There are more than 10,000 undergraduate, graduate and law students in the University's six colleges—the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the Villanova School of Business, the College of Engineering, the M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing, the College of Professional Studies and the Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law. Ranked among the nation’s top universities, Villanova supports its students’ intellectual growth and prepares them to become ethical leaders who create positive change everywhere life takes them. For more, visit www.villanova.edu.