William H. Bowen School of Law to Host Ben J. Altheimer Symposium April 4

The UA Little Rock Law Review, a student-led quarterly publication, will host the 2025 Ben J. Altheimer Symposium on Friday, April 4, in the Friday Courtroom at the William H. Bowen School of Law. 

Each year, the Law Review’s Editorial Board selects a timely legal topic for discussion, bringing together scholars and practitioners to examine pressing issues in the field of law. This year’s symposium, titled “Immigration Law, Access to Justice, and Rethinking the ‘Criminal Alien,’” was chosen by students to explore the evolving relationship of immigration and the legal system.

The symposium will feature keynote speaker César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández, along with two panels of legal experts specializing in immigration law. Professor Hernández is the Gregory H. Williams Chair in Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. He is a leading scholar in the intersection of immigration and criminal law and has published extensively on the subject. 

His most recent book, “Welcome the Wretched: In Defense of the ‘Criminal Alien’” (2024), examines the legal and historical frameworks surrounding immigration enforcement. His scholarship has been featured in leading law journals, and he is recognized as one of the most-cited immigration law scholars in the United States.

The symposium will feature the following panelists:

• Matthew Boaz – Assistant Professor of Law, University of Kentucky J. David Rosenberg College of Law
• Annie Bright – Visiting Assistant Professor, St. Mary’s University
• Kit Johnson – Professor of Law, University of Oklahoma College of Law
• Elizabeth Jordan – Visiting Assistant Professor; Director, Immigration Law & Policy Clinic, University of Denver Sturm College of Law
• Allison McCarthy – Director of the Refugee Clinic and Instructor of Law, Drake University Law School
• Paul Schmidt – Adjunct Professor of Law, Georgetown Law; retired Immigration Judge; former Chairman, Board of Immigration Appeals
• Doug Smith, J.D. – Legal Programs Director, The Right to Immigration Institute and Dignidad; Lecturer in Legal Studies, Brandeis University
• Matthew Vogel – Supervising Attorney, National Immigration Project

The Ben J. Altheimer Symposium is an endowed annual event organized by the UA Little Rock Law Review. Symposium participants contribute articles based on their presentations that will be published in a symposium issue of the UA Little Rock Law Review. The symposium will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Attendance is free, but space is limited. Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credit is pending approval. To learn more and register to attend, please visit this website.