USF Law Review Symposium 2009

Symposium Program as of 1/27/09

Note: This program is subject to change.

Symposium Biographies available here.

Morning Plenary Panels

Plenary Panel #1: New Legal Methods and Approaches for the Newly Defined Immigrant Worker

Start Time: 9:00 AM

• Moderator: Professor Maria Ontiveros, University of San Francisco School of Law
• Participants:
• Professor Ellen Dannin, Penn State Dickinson School of Law
• Professor Ruben Garcia, California Western School of Law
• Professor Beth Lyon, Villanova University School of Law
• Professor Sarah Paoletti, University of Pennsylvania Law School

Panelists take a multifaceted look at immigrant workers and possible avenues for legal protection, including legislation, litigation and organizing. They critique current domestic structures and propose reform through the infusion of human rights law, adoption of particular international treaties, and through the addition of other domestic protections.

Plenary Panel #2: The Meaning of Immigrant Worker — Drawing Parallels Between Chattel Slavery and U.S. Immigration Policy

Start Time: 10:15 AM

• Moderator/Commentator: Professor Gerald Neuman, Harvard Law School
• Participants:
• Professor Devon Carbado, UCLA School of Law
• Dean Kevin Johnson, UC Davis School of Law
• Professor Rhonda Magee, University of San Francisco School of Law

Panelists evaluate the historical and contemporary parallels between the treatment of workers under current U.S. immigration policy and under chattel slavery. Panelists suggest that by recognizing chattel slaves as America's first group of immigrant workers, a more critical analysis of our country's initial development of immigration policy, the significance of naturalization in today's society, and America's stratified labor force can take place.

Plenary Panel #3: Sex and the Female Immigrant Worker: the Continuum Between Slavery, Trafficking, and Harassment

Start Time: 12:00 PM

• Moderator: Mr. Paul Lufkin, Staff Attorney, California Supreme Court
• Participants:
• Professor Adrienne Davis, Washington University School of Law in St. Louis
• Professor Kathleen Kim, Loyola Law School
• Ms. Monica Ramirez, Director, Esperanza: The Immigrant Women's Legal Initiative of the Southern Poverty Law Center
• Professor Leticia Saucedo, William S. Boyd School of Law at University of Nevada, Las Vegas

Panelists evaluate the impact of sexual harassment, trafficking, and exploitation on the female immigrant worker experience. Panelists consider the role of sex and sexuality in the historical context of slavery and in present-day industries, such as agriculture, construction, domestic service, and the sex industry. Panelists also outline new legal protections designed to alleviate the inequitable treatment experienced by female immigrant workers.

Keynote Address

Start Time: 2:00 PM

• John Trasvina, President and General Counsel, Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF): "National Immigration Policy under the New Administration"

Afternoon Breakout Sessions (To Run Concurrently)

ICE Raids: Raising Human Rights Issues in the Immigrant Worker Context

Start Time: 3:00 PM

• Moderator/Commentator: Professor Maria Ontiveros, University of San Francisco School of Law
• Participants:
• Mr. David Bacon, documentary photographer and author
• Professor Bill Hing, UC Davis School of Law
• Professor Lorraine Schmall, Northern Illinois University College of Law

Panelists detail empirical findings and testimonial narratives concerning workplace raids conducted by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency in the last several years. Based upon these findings, panelists address the constitutional, statutory, and human rights issues resulting from these raids. The panel also evaluates future policy choices to be made regarding the continuation of workplace raids and employer-based sanctions for immigration violations.

Immigrant Workers and the Practice of Traditional Labor Law

Start Time: 3:00 PM

• Moderator/Commentator: Professor Christopher Cameron, Southwestern Law School
• Participants:
• Mr. Douglas Barton, Partner, Hanson Bridgett LLP
• Professor Keith Cunningham-Parmeter, Willamette University College of Law
• Ms. Olivia Garcia, Regional Attorney, National Labor Relations Board

Panelists with union, employer and government perspectives consider the impact of undocumented immigrant workers on the practice of traditional labor law. Topics include the right of undocumented workers to vote in union elections, the correlation between employment sites with ongoing labor disputes and ICE raids, the potential effect of the EFCA, discovery relating to immigration status, and remedy issues.

Past, Present, and Future: High-Skilled Immigrants in the U.S. Workforce

Start Time: 3:00 PM

• Moderator: Professor Michelle Travis, University of San Francisco School of Law
• Participants:
• Mr. Martin Lawler, Partner, Lawler & Lawler
• Professor Michele Pistone, Villanova University School of Law
• Professor of Sociology Sharmila Rudrappa, The University of Texas at Austin
• Ms. Stephanie Wolf, Associate, Berry Appleman & Leiden LLP

Panelists focus on various issues affecting high-skilled immigrant workers, with an emphasis on visa employees. They analyze comparisons between today's high-skilled visa workers and previous immigrant worker populations; proposed changes under the Obama administration to current government immigration programs; immigration policy in a carbon-based economy; and the effect of emigration on immigrants' home countries.

Closing Remarks and Reception to Follow Program

Registration and Other Information

Registration for the Symposium is closed. We will also be offering CLE credit for interested attendees. If you have any other questions about the Symposium please contact the Symposium Editor, Jenica Mariani, at jdmariani@usfca.edu.

Related Event

5th Annual Pemberton Lecture on Workplace Justice

We also encourage attendance at the 5th Annual Pemberton Lecture on Workplace Justice the evening before the Symposium, on Thursday, February 26th, 2009, at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The lecture will feature Professor Juan Perea from the University of Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law. Mr. William Tamayo of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) will provide commentary on Professor Perea's remarks. Please contact Professor Maria Ontiveros at ontiveros@usfca.edu for questions concerning this event.

One MCLE credit is available for Pemberton.

The Law Review thanks the following sponsors for their support of this Symposium

Partner Sponsors:

Supporter Sponsors:

	USF Public Interest Law Foundation (PILF)
	American Immigration Lawyers Association