Law School Live at UNM Law with Sovereign Hager, Leon Howard, and Riley Masse

Nov 14, 2023

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Thank you to the University of New Mexico School of Law for hosting us LIVE on November 2!

Leon Howard is the Deputy Director of ACLU of New Mexico (ACLU-NM). After graduating from the University of New Mexico School of Law in 2009, Leon worked as a staff attorney for ACLU-NM, concentrating on First and Fourth Amendment cases. Next, he left for the private sector where he continued to focus on civil rights. In 2018, Leon returned to ACLU-NM as Legal Director, where he led the affiliate's legal department and litigation efforts. Now, as Deputy Director, he facilitates the organization's legal, policy, and communications departments. Leon is a board member of the New Mexico Innocence & Justice Project, past co-chair of the New Mexico State Bar Committee on Diversity (8 years), part-time faculty at the University of New Mexico, and Past Vice President of the New Mexico Black Lawyers Association. In 2020 Leon was awarded with the New Mexico State Bar President's award for his commitment to improving diversity in the legal profession. When Leon is not immersed in civil rights issues in our community, he is either walking his dog, Kaepernick, or working at his tougher jobs--being a husband, father, and setting perfect fantasy football lineups.

Sovereign Hager is the Legal Director of the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty. She has more than 10 years of experience working to advance economic and social justice. In the last five years, as an attorney at the Center, she worked extensively to increase access to public benefits in state and federal court, as well as in community, administrative, and legislative forums. She is an established expert in New Mexico on the complex regulatory framework for public benefits programs, eligibility for families that include immigrants and frequently provides expert testimony to the legislature. Ms. Hager has secured major court victories on behalf of her clients to increase access to food and medical assistance, drivers’ licenses, and other programs. Before joining the Center, Ms. Hager worked for two years on the Navajo Nation for DNA People’s Legal Services’ Medical Legal Partnership, where she handled a broad range of legal issues impacting the health of patients at an Indian Health Service facility. Her advocacy included public benefits, domestic violence, special education, housing, and consumer and workers’ rights. Ms. Hager has past advocacy experience working to improve farmworker pay and living conditions and enforcing fair housing laws. Ms. Hager is a graduate of Syracuse University (J.D., M.A.).

Riley Masse is the Housing Stability Managing Attorney at New Mexico Legal Aid. Riley is a graduate of the University of New Mexico School of Law. She was a member of the first class of Fellows for Transformative Advocacy at UNM Law.

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