Keynote Speaker

Debra Bowen, Secretary of State of California

A pioneer in open government reform, election integrity, and personal privacy rights, Debra Bowen is the sixth woman in California history to have been elected to a statewide constitutional office. As the state’s chief elections officer, Secretary Bowen is responsible for overseeing state and federal elections, a role that requires her to test and certify all voting equipment. Her goal is to ensure that voting systems certified for use in California elections are secure, accurate, reliable, and accessible, and every voter’s ballot is counted exactly as it was cast. As Secretary of State, Bowen is also charged with managing many business and nonprofit organization filings, campaign finance and lobbying activity filings, the state archives, and other key government services.

An attorney, Bowen served for 14 years in the State Legislature prior to being elected Secretary of State in November 2006. In addition to being a leader on election-reform and energy issues, she authored landmark consumer protection laws to protect people from becoming identity theft victims and closed the digital divide by authoring the first-in-the-nation law that put all of California’s legislative information online.

Secretary Bowen's keynote address will begin at 11:30 on Saturday, February 27, in Caplin Pavilion. Doors open at 10:00 for seating.

Special Guest Speaker
Clarence M. Dunnaville, Jr.

Clarence M. Dunnaville, Jr., is a Richmond attorney whose efforts have led him from protest demonstrations in the 1950s, to serving as a volunteer civil rights attorney in Mississippi in the 1960s, and to preserving the legacies of the movements’ leaders and continuing courtroom battles on behalf of the poor in the 21st century.

Mr. Dunnaville has worked as Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, as a Senior Attorney for AT&T and as a solo practitioner. He has written numerous Articles which have appeared in legal journals and has served as Scholar in Residence at Washington and Lee University School of Law. He is the recipient of the Virginia State Bar’s Lewis F. Powell, Jr., Pro Bono Award and other awards, including the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law’s Segal – Tweed Founders Award. He was named as a Virginia Leader in the Law by the Virginia Lawyer’s Weekly in October 2009.

Mr. Dunnaville has a bachelor’s degree from Morgan State University and a law degree from St. John’s University.

About the Conference

Founded by law students at the University of Virginia ten years ago, the Conference on Public Service and the Law brings together students, faculty, attorneys, and policymakers to explore public interest issues facing today's legal community and related career paths for young attorneys.

Past conferences have drawn hundreds of llaw students and close to 100 panelists from across the country. Keynote speakers have included Virginia Governor Tim Kaine; Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy '59; ACLU President Nadine Strossen; U.S. Supreme Court Justices Stephen Breyer & Samuel Alito; and Arizona Governor Janet Napolitano '83.

Questions, comments, or suggestions? Contact the 2010 Conference Co-chairs, Corrie Sorkin (cej5n@virginia.edu) and Alexandra Morgan (am6up@virginia.edu).