IRVINE, Calif. (June 10, 2025) — University of California, Irvine School of Law Professor Ji Seon Song has been honored with the 2025 Ian Kerr Best Paper Award at the Privacy Law Scholars Conference (PLSC), held May 29–30 at UCLA School of Law. The award recognizes her article, “The Interdisciplinary Policing of Pregnancy Criminalization,” written in collaboration with Professors Wendy Bach (University of Tennessee College of Law) and Madalyn Wasilczuk (University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law).
The Ian Kerr Award, named for the late Canadian privacy scholar, is presented annually at PLSC to the authors of the most outstanding scholarly paper on privacy law and related fields concerning law and technology.
Professor Song’s teaching and research center on criminal law, criminal procedure, and the intersections of policing and public health. Her scholarship explores how policing power is exercised — particularly in ways that disproportionately affect racial minorities and marginalized communities — and develops strategies to combat race- and class-based disparities in law enforcement.
A former Deputy Public Defender in Contra Costa County and Prettyman Fellow at Georgetown Law, Professor Song brings years of public defense and policy experience to her academic work. Before joining UC Irvine Law, she was a Thomas C. Grey Fellow and Lecturer at Stanford Law School, where she began her research project on policing in hospital settings.
Professor Song is part of the Health Equity and Access for Law Enforcement-Involved Patients, a national coalition of scholars and practitioners with the mission of ensuring access equitable healthcare for patients impacted by interactions with law enforcement. Professor Song previously co-founded the Working Group on Policing and Patient Rights in collaboration with Georgetown University’s Health Justice Alliance. Professor Song continues to advise medical professionals on how law enforcement practices intersect with patient care. Professor Song also serves on the Executive Board of the California Youth Defender Center, advocating for youth justice reform.
Professor Song earned her B.A. from Columbia University, her J.D. from Columbia Law School, and her LL.M. from Georgetown Law.
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