Barbara Caulfield, Dorothy Ehrlich and Mona Tawatao Join EJS Board of Directors

The Equal Justice Society board of directors earlier this week approved the appointments of three new directors: former U.S. District Judge Barbara A. Caulfield, National ACLU Deputy Executive Director Dorothy M. Ehrlich and Legal Services of Northern California Regional Counsel Mona Tawatao.

Barbara, Dorothy and Mona join the existing directors:

  • Board Chair Anthony Solana, Jr. (President and Chairperson, For People of Color, Inc.)
  • John Bonifaz (Founder, National Voting Rights Institute)
  • James J. Brosnahan (Senior Partner, Morrison & Foerster)
  • Kate Kendell (Executive Director, National Center for Lesbian Rights)
  • Eva Paterson (President, Equal Justice Society)
  • Tobias Wolff (Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School)
  • Eric Yamamoto (Professor of Law, University of Hawai`i School of Law)

EJS is thrilled to have many of the country’s top progressive leaders and advocates serve on our board, devoting significant time and expertise to help guide our initiatives and programs. Our impact is more meaningful because of the involvement of our board members and we thank each one of them for investing their time and resources into our organization.

Barbara A. Caulfield is the Managing Partner of the Silicon Valley office of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP and Co-Chair of the firm’s Intellectual Property Litigation Group. She has experience in complex intellectual property litigation for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies.

Prior to joining Dewey & LeBoeuf, Ms. Caulfield was the Executive Vice President and General Counsel for Affymetrix, Inc., a biotechnology company in the Silicon Valley. Before working at Affymetrix, Inc., she was a partner at a major international law firm, where she served as the San Francisco Litigation Partner-In-Charge from 1997-2001.

Previously, Ms. Caulfield served as a United States District Judge in the Northern District of California from 1991-1994. In addition, she has taught various courses at Northwestern Law School, University of California, Hasting College of Law and University of Oregon Law School.

She has also given lectures and instructed on trial advocacy programs around the country, including Harvard University Law School and the San Francisco Bar Association Advocacy Training Program.

Dorothy M. Ehrlich is Deputy Executive Director of the national American Civil Liberties Union, the nation’s premier defender of liberty and individual freedom.

Previously, Ehrlich served as Executive Director of the ACLU of Northern California, the largest ACLU affiliate in the nation, for 28 years.

Ehrlich has led civil liberties campaigns around reproductive rights, opposition to the death penalty, censorship, and civil rights, launched projects focused on youth, racial justice and reproductive rights. She was the driving force behind the affiliate’s vigorous response to the federal erosion of civil liberties since September 11, 2001.

An accomplished spokesperson and writer, Ehrlich has been a frequent contributor to KQED Radio’s Perspectives Series, the Daily Journal’s “Taking Liberties” column, the San Francisco Chronicle’s “Open Forum,” and other publications. Ehrlich has received civil rights leadership awards from the Asian Law Caucus and Equal Rights Advocates and was also honored with the Mario Cuomo Acts of Courage Award from Death Penalty Focus. She was awarded a Gerbode Fellowship in 1992.

Mona Tawatao has been a regional counsel with Legal Services of Northern California (LSNC) since October 1999. In this capacity, she directs LSNC’s major land use and housing advocacy in its 23 county service area. She is also a co-coordinator of LSNC’s Race Equity Project.

Ms. Tawatao has led numerous land use, housing and civil rights litigation and policy advocacy projects on the state and federal level in her current position and also previously, as a directing attorney with Neighborhood Legal Services in Los Angeles.

Ms. Tawatao is a visiting professor at UC Davis School of Law and serves on the boards of the Public Interest Law Project and the Advisory Editorial Board of the Clearinghouse Review. Ms. Tawatao received her J.D. from UCLA School of Law in 1986.

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