Santa Clara University School of Law to Honor Two Human Rights Advocates at the Sixth Annual Diversity Gala

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
Santa Clara University School of Law will honor two outstanding leaders who have
consistently fought for equality and human rights during their careers. The
Santa Clara University School of Law Social Justice and Human Rights Awards will
be presented Tuesday, October 20, to California Supreme Court Associate Justice
Carlos Moreno and UnCommon Law founder Keith Wattley, J.D.`99 at the
University`s sixth annual Diversity Gala: A Celebration of Diversity in the
Legal Profession.

Justice Carlos Moreno was sworn in as associate justice of the Supreme Court of
California on October 18, 2001, following his nomination by Gov. Gray Davis.
This achievement capped a highly successful career track spanning from deputy
Los Angeles city attorney to municipal judge in Compton to Los Angeles County
Superior Court justice, and to federal district court judge.

In 1997, Moreno received the Criminal Justice Superior Court Judge of the Year
Award from the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and in 2003 the Roger J.
Traynor Appellate Justice of the Year Award from the Consumer Attorneys
Association of Los Angeles.

Justice Moreno is being honored as a judicial pioneer, as one of the state`s few
Latino judges who broke barriers for other Latino lawyers at all levels of the
judicial spectrum. In addition, his dissenting opinion in Strauss v. Horton,
asserting the right of gay and lesbian Californians to recognized legal
marriages has been hailed as a historic dissent by many civil-rights advocates
and legal analysts. In addition, Justice Moreno chairs the California Blue
Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care.

Keith Wattley, J.D. `99, is the founder of UnCommon Law, which helps prisoners
challenge unlawful prison conditions, including the parole consideration process
for lifers. He began advocating for the rights of prisoners and parolees as a
law student intern at the Prison Law Office in 1998. As an attorney, Wattley has
represented thousands of prisoners in both individual and class-action
litigation involving mental health care, religious freedom, excessive force,
prison infirmary licensing standards, medical access, gang validation,
post-release civil commitment, parole for lifers, and visitation and parole
revocation proceedings.

One of Wattley`s primary goals with UnCommon Law is to help educate and empower
prisoners and their supporters to become effective advocates for themselves.

Besides recognizing the work of these two outstanding men for the cause of
equality, social justice, and human rights, the Diversity Gala also provides
students an opportunity to build valuable relationships with members of the
legal profession.

WHEN: Tuesday, Oct. 20, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

WHERE: Adobe Lodge, Santa Clara University
500 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95053

WHO: Students, faculty, and alumni of Santa Clara Law, and members of the bench
and bar

The Diversity Gala is sponsored by leading corporate law firms with title
sponsor, Cooley Godward Kronish LLP, providing generous support.

About Santa Clara University

Santa Clara University, a comprehensive Jesuit, Catholic university located 40
miles south of San Francisco in California`s Silicon Valley, offers its 8,758
students rigorous undergraduate curricula in arts and sciences, business, and
engineering, plus masters and law degrees, and engineering Ph.D.s. Distinguished
nationally by one of the highest graduation rates among all U.S. masters
universities, California`s oldest operating higher-education institution
demonstrates faith-inspired values of ethics and social justice. For more
information, see www.scu.edu.

About Santa Clara Law

Santa Clara University School of Law, founded in 1911 on the site of
California`s oldest operating higher-education institution, is dedicated to
educating lawyers who lead with a commitment to excellence, ethics, and social
justice. One of the nation`s most diverse law schools, Santa Clara Law offers
its 975 students an academically rigorous program, including graduate degrees in
international law and intellectual property law; combined J.D./MBA and J.D./MSIS
degrees; and certificates in intellectual property law, international law, and
public interest and social justice law. Santa Clara Law is located in the
world-class business center of Silicon Valley, and is distinguished nationally
for our top-ranked program in intellectual property. For more information, see
www.law.scu.edu

Media interested in the event can contact Deborah Lohse of University Media
Relations, (408) 554-5121.

Santa Clara University
Deborah Lohse, 408-554-5121
University Media Relations

Copyright Business Wire 2009