Osler's Razor

On Wednesdays, I am profiling my fellow classmates from my law school class-- I want people to know about the remarkable people in that group other than the one who is in the news again. This week it is the memorable Judith Sandalow.

Judith Sandalow came to law school with a lot of tools some of us (me) lacked: confidence and a sense of mission. Those of us who knew her learned from her as much as we did some of the professors-- and she was a major factor in my maturing as a conscientious adult. In our third year, we were chosen (along with one second-year) to go on a tour of rural Alabama and then address the Alabama Judges' conference in Tuscaloosa. We were sent on this mission by Dan Freed, the professor who set me on my life work in sentencing. The trip was a blast. If you really want to get to know someone, drive around Alabama for a while. And it was a great thing to get to know Judith.

After law school, Judith had a laser focus on a crucial issue: legal representation of children. She started with a fellowship at Georgetown in juvenile justice, and then started her own juvenile justice clinic through an organization called DC Law Students in Court.

In the year 2000, she became the Executive Director of the Children's Law Center in DC. At the time she took the post, the Center had a staff of three. Now, it has a staff of 90 and helps more than 5,000 students in DC every year.  She is one of the nation's leading experts in the field, and has mentored an accomplished group of younger lawyers.

One of the things Judith has brought to the fore is the connection between poverty and the suffering of children. It's an important issue-- and one that many of us would rather not see or think about. That is why a public conscience like Judith is so important: she and people like her make us see what otherwise might be hidden.