Special thanks to Annie Nicholson ’21, Law Alumni Association President, and Eemaan Jalili, OCBA Board Member and Co-Chair of the Artificial Intelligence and DEI Committees, for their thoughtful remarks during the ceremony.

This milestone comes in a standout year for UC Irvine Law: 90 percent of first-time test takers passed the July 2025 California Bar Exam — tying the highest pass rate in the law school’s history. We couldn’t be more proud.

Prof. Southworth is the author of "Big Money Unleashed: The Campaign to Deregulate Election Spending," which explores the role lawyers, advocacy organizations, & their patrons have played in the creation of U.S. Supreme Court doctrine invalidating campaign finance laws on First Amendment grounds.

"Kelly brings a wealth of experience, and I know her proven success, her commitment to accessibility and inclusivity, and her strong leadership skills position her to excel in this key role," said Austen Parrish, Dean and Chancellor’s Professor of Law.

Before her career in law school admissions, Greer worked for the Los Angeles County Public Defender. She received her B.A. in both International Developmental Studies and Japanese from UCLA, magna cum laude, and her J.D. from Loyola Law School, Loyola Marymount University.

Over her career, Greer has held positions with the Law School Admission Council, the State Bar of California’s Council on Access and Fairness, and the Young Professionals Board of the Disability Rights Legal Center.

Prior to that she served as a senior associate director of admissions for Southwestern Law School.

An accomplished law school admissions leader for more than 18 years, Greer joins UC Irvine Law from Loyola Law School, Loyola Marymount University, where she has served as the senior director of admissions for over 10 years.

“Our Graduate Tax Program is an exceptional program for students interested in a tax career, and we are grateful for all that Lavar Taylor and Taylor Nelson Amitrano LLP have done to support our students and our school,” said Austen Parrish, Dean and Chancellor’s Professor of Law.

“We are deeply honored by Lavar and Lynda Taylor’s extraordinary generosity in establishing this endowed scholarship that will benefit our graduate tax students for years to come,” said Natascha Fastabend, Executive Director of the Graduate Tax Program.

He has been an adjunct faculty member at the Law School, teaching & mentoring our students; he has launched career opportunities for our students through our externship program & post-graduate hiring program; & Lavar has been the title sponsor for every annual Grad Tax Program Symposium since 2019.

Lavar Taylor — the founder of Taylor Nelson Amitrano LLP, a Tax Controversy Law Firm — has been deeply supportive of the UC Irvine Law Graduate Tax Program since its launch in 2019. A true partner in every sense of the word, Lavar’s generosity extends to every facet of the Graduate Tax Program.

Each faculty member chose up to four recent publications showcasing the depth and impact of their research.

Sheppard Mullin
Troutman Pepper Locke
White & Case LLP
U.S. Air Force JAG Corps
U.S. Army JAG Corps
Venable LLP
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati

Special thanks to our Fall 2025 participants:

Immigrant Justice Corps
Orange County Counsel
Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum
Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
Morrison & Foerster LLP
Pettit Kohn Ingrassia Lutz & Dolin PC