Professor Erin McBride, J.D. candidates Clarence “Kamau” Allen and Duranya Freeman, and Master of Laws candidate Mohammed Bataineh have been named speakers for University of Wisconsin Law School’s 2025 Hooding Ceremony.
They will join keynote speaker Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Janet C. Protasiewicz in addressing Law School graduates, family and friends at the event, which will take place at 1 p.m. Friday, May 9, at the Monona Terrace Community and Convention Center Exhibition Hall, 1 John Nolen Drive, Madison.
At the ceremony — a special recognition for students receiving law degrees — faculty members place the hood over the head of the graduate to signify their success in completing their law degree. The hooding event is in addition to, and does not replace, the university-wide commencement.
McBride directs the Government and Legislative Clinic and the Native Nations Externship Program at the Law School and teaches regulatory state and legislative procedure. Through her programs, students have the opportunity to observe and participate in the many facets of governmental law, policy, legislation and tribal governance.
Before joining the Law School, Professor Erin McBride was a managing attorney at ABC for Health. She engaged in direct legal advocacy and litigation on behalf of clients, taking federal ERISA cases as far as the U.S. Supreme Court. She also lobbied on behalf of children with special health care needs and negotiated with federal, state and private benefits and insurance institutions.
McBride also served as a managing attorney at Wisconsin Judicare Inc., where she represented victims of violent crime in partnership with the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women, testified at the United Nations North American Consultation on Adequate Housing and in conjunction with the Canadian Bar Association’s position on the civil right to an attorney in matters of housing, sued the Canadian government and the Queen of England.
While at Wisconsin Judicare, she co-founded (with her twin sister and colleague, Brynne) a free legal clinic/coffeehouse, “Legal Grounds Wisconsin®.” They were awarded the State Bar of Wisconsin Lawyer Demonstrating Exemplary Commitment to Community recognition for that initiative.
McBride received her J.D. from the University of Iowa College of Law, where she was note and comment editor of the Iowa Law Review, and received a B.A. in both chemistry and architecture from Bryn Mawr College. She is admitted to practice in the State of Wisconsin, Federal District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, U.S. Tax Court and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Prior to a career in law, she engaged in extensive research and development initiatives as a chemical engineer for the Kimberly Clark Corporation, where she was awarded eight U.S. and international patents for the development of cationic binder polymers.
Submitted by Law School News on April 23, 2025
This article appears in the categories: Faculty, Features, Students
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