Stepping up for the public interest
The great work that UB law students do isn’t just in the classroom—it’s also done at summer positions where they apply their new legal skills. For many, that means positions in public-interest organizations, from criminal prosecution and defense to advocacy on behalf of indigent clients.
The hard reality is that many of these positions go unpaid, a real hardship for most aspiring lawyers. To fill that gap, along with support from alumni-funded fellowships, the student-run Buffalo Public Interest Law Program awards fellowships for students working in the public interest.
The law school community steps up each year to show its support of BPILP's work at the organization’s biggest annual fundraiser, the BPILP Social & Live Auction, happening on the evening of Feb. 21 at Pearl Street Grill & Brewery in downtown Buffalo. Tickets, which include food and two beverages, are available online.
It’s a major undertaking; BPILP members have been reaching out to law school faculty, staff, alumni and members of the Western New York legal and business communities to secure auction items. Some will be auctioned live on Feb. 21, along with baskets and other items; there will also be a silent online auction for those unable to attend the event. Sponsors for this year’s event are Greco Trapp PLLC and Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo.
“Whatever we make in profit goes right back to the students,” says Corrin Raynor, a second-year law student who is BPILP’s current fundraising chair. “The more we raise, the more students we can fund this summer.”
Raynor notes that the grants—$3,500 for full-time positions, prorated for part-time positions—are open to any student working in the public interest. Preference is given to those who have put some sweat equity into BPILP. The organization awarded 10 fellowships last summer, with $20,000 in total support.
The annual auction attracts a diverse and enthusiastic crowd, drawn in by merchandise both luxe and whimsical. Some examples: a dedicated study carrel in the Charles B. Sears Law Library; a “Just Before Spring Break” brewery tour; bar prep course vouchers; a watercolor pet portrait by Lisa Patterson, director of externships and access to justice initiatives; and a weekend getaway at the Adirondack cabin of Matthew Pelkey ’10, who directs the law school’s Entrepreneurial Law Center.
And the benefits, both to our students and to those they will serve this summer, are substantial. BPILP has provided valuable placement opportunities in areas of law addressing domestic violence, human rights, child welfare, housing, disabilities, homelessness, the elderly and unemployment. Last summer, UB law students worked in the courts, in district attorneys' and public defenders' offices, at farmworker legal assistance and refugee services.
Event Details
2025 BPILP Social & Live Auction
Friday, February 21, 2025
6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
Pearl Street Grill, Third Floor
76 Pearl St, Buffalo, NY 14202 [view map]
Auction tickets are available for purchase online! $5 more if ticket is purchased at the door.
Become an Auction Sponsor! Donors will be recognized at the event.
Questions? Contact BPILP at law-bpilp@buffalo.edu.
Support the online auction
Live on Thursday, February 20 at 5 p.m.
Joshua Ferrullo, now a second-year law student, was placed at the Attorneys for Children (AFC) Unit of the Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo. “It was an incredibly valuable and memorable experience,” he says. “One aspect that really surprised me was how often the AFCs work with other attorneys at Erie County Social Services. It was interesting to see how many different actors, including attorneys, social workers and the court, play a role in bettering the lives of children within the area.”
His classmate Momoko Hiwatashi spent last summer at the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas, among other tasks drafting opinions for a criminal division judge. “It was challenging for me to extract facts from the pile of motions and pieces of evidence,” she says. “Specifically, it took a lot of time and effort to understand handwritten pro se motions. There was even a pro se defendant in civil court who tearfully pleaded something completely unrelated to the subject matter. This made me keenly aware of the significance of a legal education.”
And Lily Leffler, also a current 2L student, says her experience at the Erie County District Attorney’s Office gave her an inside look at the multifaceted work of prosecutors. Among the practical lessons of the internship, she says, was “the opportunity to use evidence databases such as the Prosecutor Case Management System and Evidence.com, which allowed me to understand the importance of body camera footage, police documentation and the discovery process as a whole.”