The Francis D. Murnaghan, Jr. Appellate Advocacy Fellowship Home Page
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The Legacy Behind our Work 

If a theme runs through Francis D. Murnaghan’s career, it is using the law to recognize the American people’s constitutional freedoms. – The Baltimore Sun

Read more about the life of Judge Murnaghan.

 

The Fellowship Experience 

I look forward towards continuing to work towards a more just society and am forever indebted to the Murnaghan community for giving me this opportunity. – 2012-2013 Murnaghan Fellow Jean Zachariasiewicz

See where our former Fellows are now.

 

Recent Fellows

Olivia N. Sedwick, Esq. Olivia N. Sedwick, Esq. is the 2020-2021 Francis D. Murnaghan Appellate Advocacy Fellow.

Olivia previously served as a law clerk to the Honorable Carl E. Stewart on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans, Louisiana. Before her clerkship, Olivia was an associate in the Washington, D.C. office of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter, & Hampton, LLP.  She is a graduate of the Howard University School of Law and Winston-Salem State University, where she served as student body president and in other leadership roles.

_home_murnaghan_pennstation_releases_next_public_penn_station_folders_fellow_photos_Dena_Headshot_jpgDena Robinson served as the 2019-2020 Francis D. Murnaghan, Jr. Appellate Advocacy Fellow, briefing and arguing cases in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the Maryland appellate courts, and other courts around the country.

Prior to her fellowship, Dena served as the Senior Law Clerk to the Honorable Alexander Wright Jr. of the Maryland Court of Special Appeals.  She is a graduate of the University of Maryland Carey School of Law.  A former ESOL teacher, Dena also holds a masters degree from Johns Hopkins University and an undergraduate degree from Colgate University.  Since the conclusion of her fellowship, Dena has joined the Civil Rights Division at the U.S. Department of Justice.

More about the Fellows.

Fellowship Blog

Thank you, Olivia!

Highlights from Olivia Sedwick's Year as the 2020-2021 Murnaghan Fellow

Murnaghan Fellow at Fourth Circuit

Fellow argues on behalf of terminated African-American employee, who alleges that he was subjected to discriminatory, ad hoc “background check”

Murnaghan Fellow at Maryland Court of Appeals

Fellow argues Consumer Protection Act case on behalf of homeowners