IRVINE, Calif. (March 12, 2024) — Sarah Beydoun (’23) has recently been hired to serve as the inaugural Legal Empowerment Attorney with the University of California, Irvine School of Law (UCI Law), through a partnership with El Centro Cultural de México (El Centro), in a position that will help deepen the relationship between UCI Law’s acclaimed clinical program and the Orange County community.
In her new role, Beydoun will be based at El Centro’s offices in downtown Santa Ana. Founded in 1994, El Centro is a volunteer-led alternative space in Santa Ana focusing on local and transnational projects that link the arts, culture, and social justice. It has been the site of vibrant community organizing by domestic workers, tenants, immigrants, and others. The UCI Law Clinics have long collaborated with El Centro and other groups that meet in the space and have had a physical presence at El Centro since 2021.
Beydoun will engage in several projects, including offering holistic legal representation and pro se counseling to community members, particularly in the areas of housing, workers’ rights, and immigration. She will also collaborate closely with community organizers at El Centro to support policy campaigns and contribute to program design and development. Finally, Beydoun will serve as a key liaison with the UCI Law clinics and help to develop an effective intake and referral process for prospective clinic clients.
“We are thrilled to welcome Sarah as the inaugural Legal Empowerment Attorney,” said Annie Lai, Clinical Professor of Law and Co-Associate Dean for Experiential Education. “Her prior experiences, including as a student in our Community and Economic Development (CED) Clinic, made her an ideal candidate for this role. She is already grappling with some the most crucial questions confronting lawyers who seek to work alongside grassroots partners for transformative social change. I look forward to seeing all that she will do.”
Beydoun brings a rich background in public service to the position. Prior to this role, Beydoun served as a Stay Housed Fellow at Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County, where she counseled clients on unlawful detainer actions. She also interned at the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, clerked at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights in San Francisco, and externed at the Elder Law and Disability Rights Center. She received a J.D. from UCI Law in 2023 and a B.A. in Rhetoric with a concentration in Public Discourse, magna cum laude, from the University of California, Berkeley in 2017.
Beydoun’s appointment as the inaugural Legal Empowerment Attorney underscores UCI Law’s mission to integrate experiential learning with community service, ensuring that students and faculty are actively engaged in the community through legal advocacy for underserved populations. Learn more about UCI Law’s dynamic experiential education program.
About the University of California, Irvine School of Law
The University of California, Irvine School of Law is a visionary law school that provides an innovative and comprehensive curriculum, prioritizes public service, and demonstrates a commitment to equity within the legal profession. Nearly half of all UCI Law’s J.D. graduates are people of color, and almost a third are first-generation students. At UCI Law, we are driven to improve our local, national, and global communities by grappling with important issues as scholars, as practitioners, and as teachers who are preparing the next generation of leaders. The collaborative and interdisciplinary community at UCI Law includes extraordinary students, world-renowned faculty, dedicated staff, engaged alumni, and enthusiastic supporters. Connect with us on Instagram, LinkedIn, Facebook, Threads, and sign up for our monthly newsletter for the latest news and events at UCI Law.
Q&A with Sarah Beydoun ’23
Q: Congratulations on your new role as the Santa Ana Legal Empowerment Attorney. What excites you most about working in partnership with UCI Law and El Centro Cultural de México in Santa Ana?
I am thrilled to work with the wonderful community organizers at El Centro Cultural de México, who are connected to their community in Santa Ana and deeply committed to their work. The history of organizing at El Centro Cultural de México is long and inspiring. Most recently, they successfully lobbied for a revolutionary rent control ordinance written by tenants, advocates and stakeholders. It is an honor to learn from their organizers and members, support them in their campaigns, and work together toward economic and racial justice.
I am also excited to do work that encourages creativity and is driven by hope. We are intentional in our approach, balancing the need to provide direct services to community members with the need to advocate for comprehensive, long-term change that will empower the community and prevent future crises. This is what I always dreamed legal practice could be.
Q: How did UCI Law prepare you for your legal practice?
Starting in the fall of my 1L year, I joined pro bono projects and externships that taught me practical legal writing, legal research and civil procedure based on real-world timelines for real-world clients. I gained a lot of experience drafting practical legal documents through pro bono projects and externships. The clinics at UCI Law took this practical experience even further. The clinical work provided valuable insights into the responsibilities that come with practicing law. Specifically, it underscored the pivotal role attorneys play in their interactions with clients and highlighted the importance of ensuring that clients have complete control over their cases.
While doctrinal law school courses offer critical frameworks, backgrounds, and analytical tools for understanding the law, there’s no substitute for practical experience when it comes to preparing for legal practice.
Q: What was the best part about being a student at UCI Law?
Without question, the best part of being a student at UCI Law is the community. Everyone at UCI Law is so kind and supportive. Even though our paths and interests may not always align, everyone I’ve met from the UCI Law community is happy to talk, answer questions and exchange ideas. We may be young, but this openness makes our community rich.
Q: As an alumna returning to work closely with UCI Law, what aspects of your own legal education and professional journey do you hope to impart to current students?
I don’t know if I have enough experience to impart any lessons or cautionary tales! I’m still trying to find my way as an attorney, learning what kind of lawyer I want to be, staying open-minded and thoughtful, and aiming to support and uplift my clients.
If I had to say anything, it would be this: understanding how to truly represent someone as their attorney is crucial. Many of my clients have shared frustrations after consultations with attorneys who, at times, conveyed that the law rendered their goals unattainable. Not only was this advice unhelpful, but it also discouraged these clients from engaging in the legal process and disempowered them. The most challenging aspect of these recent months has been shifting away from a rigid interpretation of the law towards envisioning its potential to support our clients’ objectives.