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Petra Emerson
February 2010
The VLP is pleased
to announce
that Petra Emerson
has been
selected as our
Outstanding Law
Student Volunteer
for the month
of February. As a
3L, Petra has
volunteered in the
VLP’s Service
Center Clinic and
Bankruptcy
Reaffirmation
Clinics. Petra is
dedicated and
fearless. She is
not a native
English speaker
but did not let
that intimidate
her for one minute
and chose
to volunteer in a
clinic that
provided the
opportunity to appear
in court. She did
a wonderful job and has always been willing to volunteer at a
moment’s notice.
VLP clients have certainly benefited from her generosity and
we are extremely
proud to have Petra as a volunteer.
Petra is originally from Prague in the Czech Republic. She received a B.S.
in Political Science and Psychology from Masaryk University in the Czech
Republic in 2004. After moving to the United States, Petra started her legal
studies at Indiana University where she excelled – earning a spot in the top
15% of her class. While at Indiana, Petra served as the VP of the International
Human Rights Society and volunteered as a student ambassador and with
Indiana Coalition Against Domestic Violence. Since transferring to the U of
A, Petra continues to work toward her dream of practicing international law.
She is a member of the International Law Society and
Phi Delta Phi, an
international legal fraternity. Petra also feels very
fortunate to be inspired
by many excellent teachers and scholars at the U of A’s law school. “I am
grateful to Prof. Tom Wilson, Prof. Robert Hornick, Prof. Barack Orbach, Prof.
Jamie Ratner, Prof. Toni Massaro, Prof. Anita Royal, and Prof. David Gantz for
their passion to teach, scholarship, openness and kind encouragement.”
We asked Petra what made her interested in volunteering with the VLP
and she
replied:
At first, I was
curious to learn more about the practical aspects
of practicing law
in the United States. I hoped to observe
experienced
attorneys responding to client needs in real time.
Through
observation, I hoped to improve my own skills and
reflect on my
plans after school. I really wanted interaction
with people and
was impatient to use my newly acquired
knowledge.
Petra believes
that her experiences with the VLP and in law school have
changed her
perception of the law. She says that she had a very idealistic
point of view to
begin with and has come to get a better understanding and
appreciation for
the practical effects of legal rules on people’s lives. She
says further, “my
original notion of a legal system as a guardian of democracy
or forum for
justice has evolved into a living mirror of human experience and
struggle for
better social understanding.” Petra also describes her experience
with the VLP as
“so much more than I envisioned.” She feels that “making
difference in
someone else’s life like that was a very powerful experience.
Not that I don’t
also want to earn a living, but this experience has reinforced
my confidence that
I really want to be of and in this profession. I am excited
by the realization
of becoming a lawyer.”
As a student of
international law and relations, it’s no surprise that Petra
enjoys visiting
and learning about many cultures and countries. She is
multilingual
speaks Czech, Slovak, English, German and a little Russian.
Petra doesn’t have
a favorite restaurant here in Tucson as she likes to
explore different
cuisines including Indian, Chinese, African, Mexican, and
French. Her
favorite vacations spots also include a diverse group of places
ranging from the
Florida Keys to Scotland to Morocco. She hopes to one
day see the
Aurora Borealis and explore as many cultures as she can.
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Past Outstanding Volunteer
Student Awards |
