A Celebration of Public Service
The Public Service Awards Ceremony will recognize graduating students, alumni, faculty, and community members who have made significant public service contributions.
The ceremony will include a speech by our keynote speaker and recipient of our Distinguished Commitment to Public Service Award, labor lawyer Seth Goldstein, a partner at Julien, Mirer, Singla & Goldstein PLLC, A Working People’s Law Center.
Seth Goldstein is at the forefront of the fight for workers’ rights at the national level, representing public and private unions, including Amazon Labor Union and Trader Joe’s Workers United, before the National Labor Relations Board, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and U.S Department of Labor. He provides daily proactive advice to clients dealing with employer labor law violations, wage and hour issues, union election strategy, grievances, arbitration, and collective bargaining negotiations.
Reception to follow Awards Ceremony.
Awardees
Members of the Class of 2023
Alumni Award for Excellence in Public Service
Janet Ginzberg ’93
Janet Ginzberg was a Senior Staff Attorney in the Employment Law Unit of Community Legal Services (CLS) of Philadelphia from 1999 to 2021. She advised and represented low-income individuals in a broad variety of employment-related matters, including discrimination, wage theft, working conditions, criminal records, child abuse expungements, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and pension and disability benefits. Ms. Ginzberg partnered with private law firms in class action and impact litigation and also worked with coalitions and individuals to advocate for legislative and policy reforms aimed at workers’ rights. She left CLS in 2021 to focus on reproductive justice and access to abortion.
Faculty Award for Excellence in Public Service
Minna Kotkin (1951-2021)
Professor Minna Kotkin was a longtime and esteemed member of the Brooklyn Law School faculty and a trailblazer in employment law and sexual harassment law. Joining the faculty in 1984, she was a professor of law and director of the Federal Litigation Clinic and the Employment Law Clinic, specializing in employment discrimination law and sexual harassment issues. She also taught civil procedure, administrative law, civil rights law, and interviewing and counseling. In 2020, in response to the nationwide shutdown of businesses caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Kotkin launched the Pandemic Employment Relief Clinic, which rallied hundreds of law students to help New York workers who had been displaced, particularly freelance or gig workers.
Visitor COVID-19 Vaccination Policies and Guidelines
Only guests with proof of a primary COVID-19 vaccination series with an FDA-authorized or WHO-listed vaccine may visit the main Law School building (250 Joralemon St.) or our high-rise residential building, Feil Hall (205 State St.). One-time visitors and guests who wish to attend in-person events are also required to provide the security guard on duty at the Law School with proof of vaccination and current identification (including your name, photo, and date of birth).
Please view the Brooklyn Law School (BLS) Visitor COVID-19 Vaccination Policies and Guidelines prior to attending the event for more information and instructions for guests traveling from outside the U.S.
More Information
For general inquiries regarding this event, please contact the Brooklyn Law School Public Service Law Center at publicservice@brooklaw.edu.
Requests for a reasonable accommodation based on a disability to attend this event should be made to Louise Cohen, Director of Equal Opportunity and Title IX Coordinator, at louise.cohen@brooklaw.edu. Please make your request at least ten days before the event. We will do our best to address accommodation requests made after the ten days.