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Three students have been named winners of the 2025 Stauffer Charitable Trust Writing Competition, earning a combined $7,500 in prize money for their outstanding legal writing. The competition aimed to highlight matters of significant public concern, encouraging students to engage critically with real-world legal challenges facing the state.

Lacy Johnson 鈥�26, Jordan Fortunati 鈥�26, and Malea Parcasio-Eshelman 鈥�26 authored the winning submissions recognized for the strength of their research, analysis, and writing.

The committee judged submissions based on thoroughness and accuracy of research and legal analysis, proper organization, logical development of thesis, clarity of expression, originality, and appropriateness of subject matter. 

鈥淭he quality of the submissions for this year鈥檚 competition was superb, which made selecting our winners a great challenge,鈥� said Jeff Proske, assistant dean for academic affairs. 鈥淭he winning entries were recognized for their thoroughness and accuracy of research and legal analysis, proper organization, logical development of thesis, clarity of expression, originality, and appropriateness of subject matter.鈥�

Johnson was acknowledged for her paper, 鈥淕iving Birth Should Never Be a Death Sentence: AB 2319 and the Path to Maternal Equity,鈥� which explores California legislation aimed at addressing racial disparities in maternal mortality, focusing on a law that mandates implicit bias training for health care providers.

A paper by Fortunati was recognized as one of the winning entries. The paper, 鈥淧rotecting Portraits and Painters: How AB 1836 Could Finally Fix the Right to Publicity in the Age of AI,鈥� examines the legal challenges posed by AI-generated likenesses and proposes a new framework for balancing publicity rights with free expression.

Parcasio-Eshelman was honored for her paper, 鈥淯nveiling the Dark Side of Neurotechnology: How Chapter 887 Fails to Bring Balance to the Force,鈥� which critiques California鈥檚 neural data privacy law and calls for stronger enforcement to protect cognitive privacy.

McGeorge School of Law plays a central role in empowering students to succeed in competitions like Stauffer. From the first-year Legal Research and Writing courses to advanced electives and experiential opportunities, students receive rigorous training in legal analysis, persuasive writing and real-world advocacy. With small class sizes, individualized feedback and a curriculum designed to build strong, practice-ready skills, McGeorge ensures its graduates are equipped to lead in any legal setting.