Fried Frank, a New York-based law firm with offices in Washington, D.C., London, Paris, and Frankfurt, has awarded Texas Law graduate Daniel Hatoum, ’16, its 2017 Civil Rights Fellowship.
Hatoum will work for two years in New York as a Fried Frank litigator and then two years as a staff attorney with the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF). MALDEF is the nation’s leading Latino litigation, advocacy and educational outreach organization with offices in California, Texas, Chicago and Washington, D.C. Founded in San Antonio in 1968, MALDEF’s primary objective is to bring Latinos into the mainstream of American political and socio-economic life.
“Daniel was an excellent student and we are confident he will achieve great things as an attorney,” said Eden Harrington, director of the William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law. “The Fried Frank/MALDEF fellowship is highly competitive and we are proud that Daniel has received this prestigious opportunity to begin his legal career.”
Hatoum attended the University of Texas at Austin as an undergraduate and recently completed a clerkship with Chief Judge Brian A. Jackson of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana in Baton Rouge. At the law school, Hatoum participated on the National Civil Rights and Liberties Moot Court Team and National Bankruptcy Moot Court Team, was associate editor of the Texas Law Review, and a Public Service Scholar with the Justice Center. He worked for the ACLU National Prison Project and Texas RioGrande Legal Aid; participated in the Civil Rights Clinic, Immigration Clinic, and Criminal Defense Clinic; and completed over 270 hours of pro bono service. He will begin the fellowship this fall.
“Pro bono projects and clinics gave me a chance to do hands on work, so I could help other people and discover my passions at the same time,” said Hatoum. “But perhaps even more importantly, Texas Law connected me to other people doing the same thing, giving me the opportunity to not only network, but make life-long friendships.”
Alejandra Avila, ’14, was the first Texas Law graduate to receive this prestigious fellowship.