2008-2009 William Pew Religious Freedom Scholarship Winner Announced
ADF is pleased to announce that the winner of the 2008-2009 William Pew Religious Freedom Scholarship Competition is Michael J. O’Connor. ADF extends special congratulations to Michael. He will receive a cash award in the amount of $2,500.00.
His winning paper is titled: Legitimate Defense of Civil Rights or Raw Congressional Power Grab? The Constitutionality of the Freedom of Choice Act. It is available online along with the new writing topic and rules for the 2009-2010 William Pew Religious Freedom Scholarship at:
http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/whatwedo/funding/Scholarships.aspx
Michael O’Connor is a 2009 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and 2005 graduate of Penn State University. While at Penn, he served as an Articles Editor for the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law and as an Editor for the Symposium Issue of the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. In his third year, he was the Chair of the Spring Moot Court Board and the Vice-President of the Federalist Society, responsible for compiling the school’s successful bid for the 2010 National Student Symposium. He worked as a research assistant for Professor Stephen Burbank throughout his time at Penn, studying civil procedure and complex federal litigation. In 2008, he was a summer associate at the Washington, D.C., office of White & Case, LLP, where he will start as a litigation associate in November 2009. He took the Pennsylvania bar in July 2009, and is volunteering for the Penn Supreme Court Clinic while awaiting the results and his start date at White & Case.
ADF received many fine papers for the 2008-2009 competition and special thanks is due to all law students who participated. Gratitude is also due to the independent panel of judges who volunteered their time and to the family of the late William Pew whose gracious contributions make the competition possible.
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pewscholarship@alliancedefensefund.org
Website: www.alliancedefensefund.org