Marissa Balonon-Rosen

Scholar Criminal Law / Post-Conviction
Class of 2019
Marissa Balonon-Rosen

"As an Equal Justice Scholar, I immediately entered a network of students who are passionate about using the law to spark real change. At Texas Law, there were so many opportunities to participate in pro bono legal clinics, speak to renowned public interest attorneys, and attend public interest conferences. I am incredibly grateful for the support I received from the Justice Center's faculty and staff!"

Marissa Balonon-Rosen is a staff attorney with The Bronx Defenders' Criminal Defense Practice in New York. Immediately after law school, she worked for two years representing indigent adults and juveniles as an attorney with the New Hampshire Public Defender.

At Texas Law, Marissa was co-president of the Public Interest Law Association; a member of the Texas Law chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, the Justice Center's student advisory board, the Lloyd Lochridge American Inn of Court, and Sex Parte (the law school band); and an Associate Editor for the Texas Journal on Civil Liberties & Civil Rights. A conservatory-trained pianist, Marissa organized music recitals in the law school's courtroom featuring classically-trained law students.

Marissa participated in the Civil Rights Clinic, the Criminal Defense Clinic, and the Housing Clinic, and was also involved in a number of pro bono projects, including the Expunction Clinic, the Trans Name and Gender Marker Project, the Driver's License Recovery Project, and the Immigrant Family Assistance Project at Karnes. She participated in the 2017 Pro Bono in January trip, working with the ProBAR Asylum team to assist immigrants detained in Port Isabel Detention Center in south Texas.

Marissa spent the summer after her first year working at the Capital Appeals Project in New Orleans and her 2L winter break working at Open Door Legal in San Francisco. The summer after her second year, she worked as a certified student attorney at the Alaska Public Defender Agency in Ketchikan, Alaska.

 

 

 

Leadership and Affiliates