The Law School held a reception to honor the first Hasidic woman judge
Judge Rachel Freier ’05, the country’s first-ever Hasidic female elected official, was honored at the Law School in March for her achievements.“Our law school has been a gateway to opportunity for generations,” Dean Nick Allard said. “From our founding more than 116 years ago, our doors have been wide open. We are a law school whose legacy has been shaped by pioneers and trailblazers who have gone on to lead in the profession as well as in government, public service and business.”
Professor Aaron Twerski, state Assemblymember Dov Hikind, and Judge of the U.S. Court of International Trade Claire R. Kelly ’93 also gave remarks.
“I have to thank Brooklyn Law School for giving me my law degree and making this all possible,” Freier said. “Yes, my husband and my family were all there to support me, but it was Brooklyn Law School that made this all possible.”
Freier, who started her career as a legal secretary before becoming a paralegal and then attending the Law School part time, has spent more than 30 years in legal and political service. In addition to practicing law in offices in Brooklyn and Monroe, NY, she served as a community board member in the Borough Park neighborhood of Brooklyn. She is also a licensed paramedic, and founded an all-woman volunteer EMT agency, Ezras Nashim.
“I was very content with my high school diploma,” she said. “I was a legal secretary and I was very happy. I kept getting better and better jobs and I started making more money than some of the men that I know and that was a great feeling. That was until I started working for lawyers that were younger than me. That’s when I wondered, ‘Am I going to be a secretary my whole life?’ I had to try because I didn’t want to tell my grandkids that I could have been a lawyer, but I didn’t try.”