Federal Judge Tells Law Graduates to 'Run Toward the Injustice'
A federal judge and University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law alumnus told graduates at the May 15 hooding ceremony that defending democracy falls squarely on their shoulders and that the best way to do so is by being a good lawyer.
Profs. Leigh Goodmark and Kathleen Hoke hood a Maryland Carey Law graduate.
U.S. District Judge Brendan A. Hurson, JD, a 2005 graduate of Maryland Carey Law, delivered the keynote address at the school’s annual hooding ceremony at the Hippodrome Theatre. The class included 205 Juris Doctor graduates, 19 who earned Master of Laws degrees, and 18 who received Master of Science in Law degrees.
Maryland Carey Law Dean Renée Laurent, JD, welcomed graduates and their families, acknowledging the impact the class had achieved beyond the classroom, including clinic work representing real clients, competition wins on national trial and moot court teams, and leadership of student organizations.
“You are amazing and have worked incredibly hard to get here,” Laurent said. “You belong in the legal profession, and even if it does not feel like it just yet, I promise you, you are ready to launch your careers.”
Hurson, who was confirmed to the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland in 2023, delivered a speech that was both humorous and sobering. He pointed to rising threats against the courts and increasing political division, and said the graduates were entering the profession at a critical moment.
“I encourage you to run toward the injustice, not away from it,” Hurson said.
Tackling an issue that has evoked boos for some commencement speakers this graduation season, Hurson reminded graduates that the human aspects of being a lawyer, such as listening to a grieving mother before a sentencing or counseling a small business owner facing bureaucratic obstacles, are what separate good lawyers from anything technology such as artificial intelligence (AI) can replicate.
“AI can’t do that,” he said. “But a good lawyer can.”
He also called on graduates to take seriously even the smallest tasks of their careers.
“There are no small things. Everything you do demands attention to detail,” Hurson said. “By paying attention to the details and caring about all tasks, big and small, you model what good lawyers know.”
Day Division Class President Rasul Wright, JD ’26, who began his higher education at Prince George’s Community College, opened the student portion of the program by reframing what it means to be a hero.
“Superheroes are the fantasies we wait for, while heroes are the ones who show up,” Wright told the audience. “When I look around this room today, I see a room full of heroes. So, Class of 2026, when that day comes and a client walks into your office with their future in your hands, you don’t need to be a superhero. You just need to show up.”
After graduates walked across the stage and received their purple hoods from law school faculty, University of Maryland, Baltimore President Bruce E. Jarrell, MD, FACS, made it official near the end of the ceremony, conferring the degrees on behalf of the State of Maryland.
Several graduates said the ceremony marked not just an academic milestone but a personal one.
Baltimore native Leah Bartlett, JD ’26, who will clerk for a three-judge panel at the Worcester County Circuit Court in Maryland, said an internship in the office of former U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin, JD ’67, solidified her commitment to the profession.
“I loved all the lawyers on his staff,” Bartlett said. “I loved seeing the way they thought through issues, and I wanted to think like them.”
Mia Conde, JD ’26, will be the first attorney in her immediate family. She credited older relatives who practiced law with inspiring her from an early age to pursue the profession.
“They looked like superheroes in my eyes,” Conde said. “So I knew I was going to go to law school.”
Conde said she plans to focus on education law and nonprofit law.
Hurson closed his remarks by looking out at the sea of graduates in the audience and offering words of encouragement that seemed to capture the spirit of the day.
“Here you sit, together, united in your joy, united in your anticipation of what’s to come,” he said. “This is the future of our profession, our nation, our democracy, and from this vantage point, it looks like they’re going to be just fine.”
