Staff

Student Staff | Professional Staff | Publisher & Editor-in-Chief

JURIST is a public service project powered by over 80 law students at 30 law schools across six continents working under the guidance of professional staff and academic leadership based in Pittsburgh PA, USA.


JURIST’s North American staff in the United States and Canada are law students at:

JURIST’s South American staff in Peru are law students at:

JURIST’s European staff in the UK and Ireland are law students at:

JURIST’s African staff in Kenya and Uganda are law students at:

JURIST’s South Asian staff are law students at:

JURIST’s Australasian staff in New Zealand are law students at:

Student Leadership Team

JURIST’s Student Leadership Team is composed of experienced student staffers who take leading roles in managing and writing JURIST.

Deputy Executive Editors

JURIST’s Deputy Executive Editors are Katherine Gemmingen and Akshita Tiwary. Katherine is a 3L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Akshita is a fifth-year law student at Government Law College, Mumbai (IN).

Managing Editors

JURIST’s News Managing Editor is Hannah Brem. She is a 3L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

JURIST’s Deputy News Managing Editor is Sarah Kimball Stephenson. She is a 3L at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Law.

JURIST’s Commentary Managing Editors are Viraj Aditya and Hayley Behal. Viraj is a fifth-year law student at Hidayatullah National Law University (IN). Hayley is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

JURIST’s Deputy Commentary Managing Editor is Rebekah Malkin. She is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

JURIST’s Social Media Managing Editor is Robert Kaufman. He is a 3L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

JURIST’s Digital Content Managing Editor is Khushali Mahajan. She is a fifth-year law student at Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law, Patiala (IN).

Deputy Features Editor

JURIST’s Deputy Features Editor is Jaimee Francis. She is a 2L at Boston University School of Law.

Deputy Dispatches Editor

JURIST’s Deputy Dispatches Editor is Sambhav Sharma. He is a fifth-year law student at Amity Law School, Delhi (IN).

Bureau Chiefs

JURIST’s South Asia Bureau Chief is Anushka Sahay. She is a fifth-year law student at National Law University, Delhi (IN).

JURIST’s Australia/New Zealand Bureau Chief is Nadia Murray-Ragg. She is a fourth-year law student at Victoria University of Wellington Faculty of Law (NZ).

JURIST’s US Bureau Chief is Lauren Ban. She is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

JURIST’s Deputy US Bureau Chief is Tamia Perez. She is a 3L at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Law.

Senior Editors

JURIST’s Senior News editor is Shifa Qureshi. She is a fourth-year law student at Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University (IN).

 

Correspondents

JURIST Staff Correspondents file exclusive first-hand reports from locations around the world.

Canada

Melanie Cantin is a second-year law student at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law.

India

Neelabh Bist is a 2020 graduate of Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai. He is currently a law clerk at the Supreme Court of India. 

Vedika Kakar is a fourth-year law student at Jindal Global Law School (IN).

Myanmar

JURIST has a number of law student correspondents filing regularly from Myanmar. Due to security concerns during the military coup we cannot reveal their names or their law school affiliations.

Afghanistan

JURIST has a number of law student correspondents filing regularly from Afghanistan. Due to security concerns under the Taliban government we cannot reveal their names or their law school affiliations.

Ukraine

Justin Esiobu is a third year law student at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University.

Anna Tymoshenko is a fouth year law student at Kyiv-Mohlya Academy.

 

Associate Editors

JURIST’s Associate Editors are experienced anchors, editors, researchers and technical specialists.

Gaurav Gupte is a 3L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Kashish Khandelwal is a fifth-year law student at National Law University, Delhi (IN).

Demi Kuczala is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Edgar Odongo is a third-year law student at the University of Nairobi School of Law (KE).

Shakira Yazdani is JURIST’s Afghanistan Desk Editor. She is currently a student at the University of Calgary Law School, Calgary (CA).

 

Assistant Editors

JURIST’s Assistant Editors are new anchors, editors, researchers and technical specialists.

Meg Abbott is a third-year law student at the University of Notre Dame, Sydney (AU).

Lawrence Alado is a second-year law student at the Makerere University School of Law (UG).

Syed Taha Anzar is a second-year law student at the University of Oxford Faculty of Law (GB).

Samara Baboolal is a third-year law student at the University of Nottingham School of Law (GB).

Adebusola Abigail Bada is a second-year law student at Newcastle Law School (GB).

Miteau Butskhrikidze is a law student at the University of Ottawa Faculty of Law (CA).

Audrey Cheng is a 1L at Harvard Law School (US).

Brooke Chmura is a 3L at Vermont Law School.

David DeNotaris is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Ciara Dinneny is a trainee at the Law Society of Ireland.

James Ekin is an MA student at Keele University (GB).

Sarah Ethington is a 3L at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Law.

Niamh Forgie is a third-year law student at the University of Auckland (NZ).

Raghu Gagneja is a third-year law student at Symbiosis Law School (IN).

Aynsley Genga is a third-year law student at the University of Nairobi School of Law (KE).

Sarthak Gupta is a fifth-year law student at the Nirma University Institute of Law, Ahmedabad (IN).

Elizabeth Haigh is a 1L at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, School of Law.

Rida Idris is a second-year law student at Queensland University of Technology (AU).

Caleb Keraka is a fourth-year law student at the University of Nairobi School of Law (KE).

Yahng Lan is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Amanda March is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Casey McGowan is a 3L at Vermont Law School.

Anjana Meza is a law student at the Facultad de Derecho PUCP (PE).

Nwe Mon Mon Oo is a law student at Chulalongkorn University (TH).

Hope Morris is a 1L at Harvard Law School (US).

Marvin Nuwe Ahareza is a second-year law student at the Makerere University School of Law (UG).

Brian Otieno is a finalist at the Kenya School of Law.

Patrick Slater is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Samantha Smith is a 2L at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law.

Ananya Upadhya is a third-year law student at National Law University, Delhi (IN).

Cornelius van Haperen is an LLM student at the University of Nottingham School of Law (GB).

Aimee Woodmass is a second-year law student at Newcastle Law School (GB).

 

Graduated Staff

Several of JURIST’s recently graduated law student staff are continuing to write and work for JURIST as they begin their legal careers.

Terry Ang is a 2021 graduate of the Victoria University of Wellington Faculty of Law (NZ).

Vishwanath Petkar is a 2021 graduate of Paris II Panthéon-Assas University (MU).

Samriddha Sen is a 2022 graduate of the University of Calcutta (IN).

Muskan Yadav is a 2021 graduate of Nirma University (IN).

 

Professional Staff

Megan McKee is JURIST’s Executive Director. She holds a BA (hons.) in Hispanic Studies and International Development Studies and an MA in History from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. She is also a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Megan was admitted to the practice of law in New York and pursued doctoral studies at the University of Maryland, where she was a Flagship Fellow, before coming to JURIST. Since July 2021, Megan has held this position on a pro bono basis
Jaclyn Belczyk is JURIST’s Executive Editor and a Professor of Practice at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US. Jaclyn is a 2008 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, from which she holds a JD and a Certificate in Latin American Studies. She also holds a BA in Anthropology and Philosophy and a Master of Public Policy and Management from the University of Pittsburgh.
Ingrid Burke Friedman is JURIST’s Features Editor. A 2011 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, she served as Managing Editor during her 3L year. After graduation, she moved into full-time journalism for several years, and then served with the U.S. Department of State as a Consular Officer. She now divides her time between JURIST and a research fellowship at Harvard University’s Davis Center for Russian & Eurasian Studies.
Ram Eachambadi is JURIST’s Operations Director. A 2018 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, he joined JURIST as a 1L and served as JURIST’s Chief of Staff in his 3L year. He is a member of the New York state bar and is a Certified Public Accountant. From 2018-2021 he was a tax lawyer/accountant with EY; before law school, he worked with Deloitte. He is holding this position on a pro bono basis into 2022.
Joshua Cossin is JURIST’s Special Projects Director. A 2022 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law, he joined JURIST as a 1L and served as JURIST’s News Managing in his 3L year.

 

Publisher & Editor-in-Chief

Bernard Hibbitts is JURIST’s Publisher and Editor-in-Chief and a Professor of Law at the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, US. A Canadian Rhodes Scholar born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, he studied law at Oxford University, Dalhousie Law School, the University of Toronto, and finally Harvard Law School (LLM 1988). He is a former law clerk to Justice Gerald LeDain of the Supreme Court of Canada. He created the site that became JURIST in 1996.