Professor Sarah Davis received the 2025 Marygold Melli Achievement Award during a reception Sept. 25.
Davis is distinguished clinical professor of law and director of the interdisciplinary Center for Patient Partnerships, an interdisciplinary cross-campus center which offers experiential patient advocacy education to students. The curriculum focuses on health advocacy, patient-centered care and health systems change, offering a 12-credit certificate in Health Advocacy. Davis is also a founder/advisor of LIFT Wisconsin, a collaborative initiative to increase access to justice through technology, reforming court systems and changing how people think about legal issues.
Established in 1994 by the Legal Association for Women, the Marygold Melli Achievement Award recognizes and celebrates an outstanding individual in Wisconsin who has made substantial contributions to the interests of women in the law, has achieved professional excellence and has contributed significantly to the eradication of gender bias in the legal system. The award honors Marygold (Margo) Shire Melli, professor emerita at University of Wisconsin Law School, a distinguished teacher, prolific scholar, parent of four children and contributor to her profession and her community. Professor Melli passed away in 2018.
We sat down with Davis to discuss her work and vision for the future of women in law.
Q&A
Q: What does receiving this award mean to you personally and professionally?
A: I am so humbled. Being nominated by peer lawyers I admire – an elected official, a judge and a consumer advocate attorney - means the world to me. And so, so many of the people who have won this award in the past are mentors and champions for social justice - Marsha Mansfield, Carin Clauss, Louise Trubek, Asifa Quraishi-Landes - to join them on this list is an unimaginable honor.
Q: Looking back on your career, is there a moment from your work that stands out to you that you feel has had a lasting impact or that you were especially proud of?
A: Along with a team of other lawyers and community service providers, winning the Dream Up competition to launch LIFT Wisconsin and build LegalTuneUp.org as a way to advance access to legal justice for all the people in our state was a moment to celebrate. That award infused $1.1 million into our state to address what feels like an intractable problem, and it pushed us to imagine how technology could augment human support to educate about legal issues and support self-representation. A year later, we also received another million-dollar grant from UW’s Wisconsin Partnership Program to expand the reach of the tool to other counties and statewide and evaluate how solving legal problems can improve health - mental and physical. I am proud of this accomplishment.
Q: Your career shows that “lawyering” can take many forms — education, advocacy, health systems change. How do you encourage women to see the law as a tool for innovation and not just litigation?
A: We have a mantra at the Center for Patient Partnerships, which is “where does your joy meet the needs of the world?” When I mentor students from many backgrounds - women, nonbinary, first generation, people of color, LGBTQ+, men wishing to pursue a nontraditional path - I start by asking what motivated them to pursue a law degree - it is easy to lose sight of this during the rigor and noise of law school. Ground yourself in your “north star.” And there are so many mentors and examples of the breadth of lawyering, that it is easy to point to all the ways it is being used as a tool for innovation, leadership and collaboration to build a better world.
Q: The Melli Award celebrates leadership that advances justice and equality. How have you learned to lead authentically in spaces where women’s voices haven’t always been centered — and what advice would you give to women finding their voice in law and policy?
A: I had an amazing mentor in my mom. She was born in a generation where most women of her economic class had three choices: teacher, secretary or nurse. From a very young age she wanted to become a lawyer, but she first became a nurse. She had three kids, and when I was 10, she went to part-time night law school for four years. She became a lawyer at 42 and went on to have a 25+ year career in law. In her first firm, she was the only woman. She was appointed to the local hospital board as the token woman, and she recently shared how she would suggest an idea, only to have it be dismissed and then accepted when a male colleague repeated the same thing. She said, “I was just glad it got implemented.” We owe a debt of gratitude to women like my mom whose voices were outright dismissed, and yet they persisted, focusing on what mattered - getting the right action to happen. Today, there is usually more than one woman on a board, so what I have found successful is to amplify other women’s ideas - to lift up other voices that need to be heard. Sometimes, a colleague and I will strategize before a meeting to do just that. My advice: Be brave! Pushback usually means you are on to something - it is not personal even when pushback is personalized - keep focused on the goal and lean on your colleagues. And have spaces where you get support - such as the Legal Association of Women.
Q: You’ve touched on some of this in your previous responses, but you’ve guided so many students through both legal education and interdisciplinary advocacy. What do you see as the most powerful way to mentor women in law today, and how can institutions like UW Law better support that pipeline? Is there a piece of advice you often share with women entering the legal field?
A: Follow the path you are meant to follow. There are so, so many ways to be a lawyer / advocate. Find your path. And there are very few wrong ways to start - you can learn and grow in many situations and demonstrate the skills you continue to build. Lawyering involves life-long learning. If you feel stuck, seek advice from people you trust to move toward something else. I think institutions can make sure folks know there are many paths and ways to be a lawyer.
Q: As you reflect on receiving the Melli Award, what do you hope your legacy will be for the next generation of women lawyers, and what gives you hope about where the profession is headed?
A: Legacy is a big word. I still share advice that Emerita Professor Carin Clauss shared with me when I was in law school 25 years ago - so I hope the next generation keeps passing on the tidbits that help women lawyers find their strength and voice.
I am heartened by the Frontline Justice Worker movement - modeled after Community Health Workers - it “takes a village” to ensure legal justice for all - I think expanding who can help solve legal problems is necessary and good for our profession.
Submitted by Law School News on November 19, 2025
This article appears in the categories: Faculty, Features
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