Tell us about your community growing up. Looking back, how did they shape who you are now?

I grew up in a middle-class neighborhood in New York. My mother was raised in New York City and my father moved to the city for college after growing up in Knoxville, Tennessee. My parents sacrificed a lot for my siblings and I, and I try my best to honor them every day by working hard and making the most of the opportunities they’ve given me.

Describe your journey to law school. What motivated you to apply?

When I was a teenager, I spent one of my summers at a mock trial program in the city for high school students. It was a formative experience for me and my first meaningful exposure to the legal profession. At the conclusion of the program, one of the instructors pulled me aside and strongly encouraged me to go to law school. I still vividly remember that conversation decades later, and it always reminds me how mentors can have an extremely positive influence on a young person’s life.

What was your law school experience like?

I attended Yale Law School during a moment of vigorous national debate over criminal justice reform and racial equality following the deaths of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and Sandra Bland, and the emergence of the Black Lives Matter movement. It was a tumultuous moment for students of color, but we grew closer and became better lawyers as a result. The experience helped me think critically about courts and the rule of law.

Did you know about appellate work in law school? If not, when and how did it first get on your radar and why were you drawn to it?

I was initially exposed to appellate work in law school through our school’s moot court competition and by serving as an editor on the Yale Law Journal. Those experiences strengthened my research and writing skills, which are critical components of every appellate lawyer’s toolkit. I decided to pursue a career in appellate law during my clerkship on the D.C. Circuit, where I had the opportunity to see some extraordinary appellate advocates in action. I viewed many of them as role models and was fortunate enough to have my first appellate argument at the same podium years later.

Tell us about one of your appellate cases that you found particularly meaningful.

Before joining the Department of Justice, I was a voting rights lawyer and represented the plaintiffs in Moore v. Harper, 600 U.S. 1 (2023). We challenged North Carolina’s congressional redistricting maps under the state constitution, arguing that state legislators intentionally drew the maps to maximize their party’s advantage and guarantee the outcome of elections before anyone cast a ballot. We prevailed in the North Carolina Supreme Court in 2022, ensuring that fair maps were in place for the midterm elections later that year.

The U.S. Supreme Court subsequently granted certiorari to decide whether our victory should be overturned under the independent state legislature theory, a controversial doctrine asserting that election laws passed by state legislators are unreviewable in state courts. The theory, if adopted, would have given state legislatures unchecked authority to gerrymander electoral maps, pass voter suppression laws, and even overturn election results. We prevailed at the Supreme Court, 6 to 3, in a decision that rejected the dangerous theory. It was an important victory for American democracy, and getting to work alongside an outstanding team of brilliant lawyers, mentors, and friends made it all the more meaningful.

How often do you encounter other LGBTQ+ individuals, particularly those of color, in the appellate field? Why do you think that representation is important?

Not nearly enough! The number of LGBTQ+ appellate lawyers is growing, but in my experience LGBTQ+ appellate lawyers of color are few and far between. Diversity is critical to the integrity of the legal profession and the courts, specifically. Courts lose credibility when they do not reflect the communities they serve, which is why organizations like TAP that open the doors to underrepresented groups are so important.

What advice would you give to a law student of color who aspires to be where you are now?

There is no substitute for strong writing skills. Take a legal writing course while you have the chance and read the legal writing of the nation’s best appellate advocates.

And don’t forget to surround yourself with mentors who want you to succeed. At every stage of my legal career, I’ve had the opportunity to learn from some extraordinary mentors who taught me how to be an effective lawyer, exposed me to challenging and rewarding legal work, and always steered me in the right direction.

What’s one thing law schools and/or the appellate bar can do to ensure our highest courts are representative of all our communities?

Law schools should continue encouraging students from underrepresented groups to pursue clerkships with state and federal judges. Clerkships are formative experiences for young lawyers and are often critical to pursuing a career in appellate law.