National Co-Chairs
Casey Payton is a student at Howard University School of Law. She is the President of Howard Law’s LGBT student organization, OUTLaw, and a member of the Huver I. Brown Trial Advocacy Moot Court Team. Before law school she was Congresswoman Barbara Lee’s district scheduler in Oakland, California. Casey volunteered as a precinct captain for Oakland City Councilmember At-Large Rebecca Kaplan, and as a crisis counselor for Alameda County’s 24-hour suicide hotline. Her early work as a data collection assistant for the California Black Health Network ignited her interest in advocating for underserved populations in Oakland. She received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley, where she majored in Latin American Studies.
Ashley E. McGovern is a student at Cornell Law School. She received her B.A. from Cornell University, magna cum laude, where she double majored in Government and Feminist, Gender & Sexuality Studies and received the Philo Sherman Bennett Prize for her senior honors thesis, entitled: “Deprivation of Life and Liberty: Gender Ascription and the Unintelligible Transgender Citizen.” In college, she received recognition for her various roles as a campus organizer and activist and interned at the ACLU LGBT & AIDS Project and the Children’s Defense Fund. After college, she served with AmeriCorps as a teacher and tutor of low-income adults and youth in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. While in New York City, she was a member of the Young Leaders Council at the LGBT Community Center, a Fellow with the New Leaders Council, and a volunteer with the LGBT Project at New York Legal Assistance Group (NYLAG). At Cornell Law, she is an associate member of the Cornell Journal of Law and Public Policy and serves on a number of public interest focused committees and organizations. She is also the President of Cornell’s LGBT law student organization and recently completed a summer clerkship with the National Center for Lesbian Rights in San Francisco as an Arent Fox LLP Public Interest Fellow.  Contact the National Co-Chairs

Regional Co-Chairs
Tom Hadid
Northwest and Northern California Region Chair

Tom Hadid is a 3L at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law and a Bar Area native. Before law school, he attended the University of Southern California in Los Angeles where he earned his BA in public relations with a minor in business. He has enjoyed the many opportunities law school has afforded him, such as the chance to represent clients pro bono in employment matters as part of the UC Hastings Civil Justice Clinic. In addition, Tom has worked at eBay in the litigation department and is excited to join Cooley LLP in September 2013. In his spare time (the little that exists), Tom likes to run or go to yoga – then ruin it all by eating lots at dinner!  Contact the Northwest Region Chair
Raphael Briones
Southwest and Southern California Region Chair

Raphael A. Briones is a 3L at Whittier College School of Law. He is originally from the Pacific Northwest where he earned a Double-BA from the University of Washington in Political Science and Law, Societies & Justice. While in undergrad, he interned at Equal Rights Washington, a non-profit organization promoting statewide LGBT equality efforts. Raphael was also an active member of Psi Upsilon Fraternity’s Theta Theta Chapter at the University of Washington. During law school, Raphael interned in the Music Licensing Department at Sony Music Corporation and various private firms that focus on small business and labor & employment law. This past summer, Raphael returned to his native Pacific Northwest and continued his commitment to public service by having the privilege to intern and assist low-income individuals at the Northwest Justice Project in its Tacoma, WA office. Raphael is currently Whittier OUTLaw’s Vice-President and a member of Whittier’s Trial Advocacy Honors Board. He also volunteers at the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center conducting client intake for its legal clinic.  Contact the Southwest and Southern California Region Chair
Carl Charles
South-Central Region Chair

Carl Charles is a third year law student at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law in Denver, Colorado. He earned his B.A. in English and Secondary Education from the University of Northern Colorado and worked as an educator in the Denver-Metro Area before enrolling at the University of Denver. Carl is a current co-president of the DU Outlaws LGBT Law Student Group and a 3L Senator with the Student Bar Association. Last summer, Carl was honored to be chosen as a Holley Law Fellow at The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force in Washington, D.C.. Carl works as a Research Assistant for Catherine Smith, Dean of Inclusivity and Diversity at the Sturm College of Law. Carl is currently working in the University of Denver Law School Criminal Defense Clinic as a Student Attorney, representing indigent clients in criminal cases.  Contact the South-Central Region Chair
Jennifer Webre
Southern Region I Chair

Jennifer Webre is a 3L at Loyola New Orleans College of Law and a New Orleans native. Before law school, she attended the University of New Orleans where she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts, majoring in political science. Surviving Hurricane Katrina and the devastation of its aftermath inspired her to attend law school. Jennifer has enjoyed the many opportunities law school has afforded her and has spent her time in between the school years representing low-income clients at Acadiana Legal Services in Lafayette, LA, a legal aid agency that serves the low-income citizens of 16 parishes in Louisiana, during the summer after her first year; and at Health Law Advocates of Louisiana, a nonprofit organization that was located in New Orleans and assisted low-income clients in obtaining healthcare, during the summer after her second year. Another of these opportunities to serve low-income members of the community presented itself via the Loyola Law Clinic, where she is currently working as a student practitioner in the Children’s Rights Section throughout her third and final year. Jennifer has been an active participant in Loyola’s chapter of the Lambda Law Alliance since beginning law school and is currently serving as the organization’s President. She is also an active member in Loyola’s chapters of National Lawyer’s Guild, Association of Women Law Students, and the Public Interest Law Group.  Contact the Southern Region I Chair
Sarah Demarest
Southern Region II Chair

Sarah Demarest is a 3L at Charlotte School of Law. She’s passionate about community building and ending oppression. This passion is evidenced in her many accomplishments. Previously, she was a Holley Law Fellow at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, doing Federal legislative and administrative work. She also spent eight-months interning with the Consumer Protection Division of Legal Services of Southern Piedmont. It was there that she worked closely with consumers to prevent foreclosures and combat housing discrimination. Prior to that, she worked as the volunteer coordinator for LaWana Mayfield- Charlotte’s first openly gay city council member. Currently, she serves as the President of the LGBT Legal Society, is an intern with Equality North Carolina, and volunteers for the Freedom Center For Social Justice, working on initiatives like the TransFaith in Color conference and a tutoring program to help at-risk students in Charlotte. Sarah pursued her undergraduate studies at Guilford College in Greensboro, North Carolina. When she’s not studying for law exams or fulfilling her various roles, she enjoys cooking, dancing, and playing Michael Jackson: The Experience with her girlfriend and her girlfriend’s seven-year-old niece.  Contact the Southern Region II Chair
Charles C. McGinley, II
Florida and Puerto Rico Region Chair

Charles C. McGinley, II is a second year law student at the University of Miami School of Law, where he serves as Co-President of OUTLaw, an organization that seeks to educate the law school community concerning gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender politics and culture.  He also serves on the school’s Public Interest Leadership Board, and the Society of Bar & Gavel.  Additionally, Mr. McGinley is currently a Co-Chair of the Young Guardians of SAVE Dade.  He spent the summer in Tanzania on the African Probate & Policy Initiative, where he was drafting wills for Tanzanians, and also working on a research project on LGBT issues in Africa.  He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Finance from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.  Contact the Florida and Puerto Rico Region Chair
Sandy James
Mid-Atlantic Region Chair

Sandy James is a second year student at Georgetown University Law Center and a Ph.D. student in the Georgetown University Department of Government. Sandy is currently conducting research on civil rights issues affecting the LGBT community with a particular focus on legislation and policies that impact LGBT communities of color and the transgender community. During the summer of 2011, Sandy attended the Sexual Orientation Law Program in Barcelona, Spain and studied the impact of domestic and international laws and policies on the LGBT community. Sandy has worked as a Federal and State Policy Clerk at the National Center for Lesbian Rights and spent the past summer at the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force as a Holley Law Fellow. Sandy is a member of the Georgetown Journal of Gender and the Law and has served as a board member with Outlaw. Sandy currently serves on the steering committee for Trans Legal Advocates of Washington (TransLAW), an organization that aims to serve and meet the legal needs of transgender people in the Metro Washington, D.C. area. Sandy is also an active member of the Black Law Students Association and, as an avid musician, is a member of the Georgetown Gilbert and Sullivan Society theater group.  Contact the Mid-Atlantic Region Chair
Jimmy Smith
Northeastern Region Chair

Fun Fact: I’m a trilingual surfer. I’m Jimmy! I’m from Danbury, Connecticut originally, but by way of Manhattan. I went to New York University, where I earned my bachelor’s and master’s degrees. I’ve lived on three continents, prefer fiction over nonfiction, and bake as a hobby. On a serious note, I have been an LGBT rights activist in tri-state area during and after college. I worked extensively with Marriage Equality New York and a variety of other causes that promotes LGBT Equality. At Georgetown, I am a member of OutLaw, our school’s LGBT organization, and I also serve on Georgetown Law’s Committee on Student Life, Diversity, and Wellness.Contact the Northeastern Region Chair
Christopher Smith
Northern Region Chair

Christopher is currently in his second year at Vermont Law School. Prior to law school Christopher worked nine years for Starbucks Coffee Company. After several years in a management role, he resigned to continue his education. He graduated magna cum laude from Suffolk University, majoring in Politics, Law & the Courts and History of Women and Gender. In his final year of undergrad, Christopher wrote an honors thesis titled “Patriotic Masculinity: Gender Performance of Hegemonic Masculinity in America’s WWII Military.” Since starting law school, Christopher has become an active member of Vermont Law School Alliance. He plays a leadership role in the Vermont Law’s LGBTQ student organization. Christopher worked with local organizations to bring free, semi-annual HIV-testing to campus. He collaborated to bring a Trans-Activist and a Vermont Legislator to campus to discuss his work passing the land-mark bill allowing transgender individuals to redraft their birth certificates as part of Transgender Day of Remembrance events. Christopher presented about the progression of transgender rights around the world at an information event leading up to solutions conference addressing worldwide LGBTQI issues. This year Christopher is serving as a Research Assistant for a Professor on transgender rights for military service-members.  Contact the Northern Region Chair
Hannah Botkin-Doty
Midwest Region I Chair

Hannah Botkin-Doty is currently a third-year student at Capital University Law School in Columbus, Ohio. At CULS, Hannah has served the Capital Community in many areas but most notably as the Women’s Law Association President for 2011-2012 and is spending her last year at school as the President of the LGBT Student Organization, Capital Equality Alliance. Hannah is also active on the CULS Mock Trial team and is working as a pro bono intern for the State of Ohio Ethics Commission. After graduating from law school, Hannah plans to practice as a civil litigator and remain active in her ongoing efforts to advocate for equality. She currently resides in Columbus, Ohio with her wife Kristin and their cat Mr. Humphreys.  Contact the Midwest Region I Chair
Jonah Richmond
Midwest Region II Chair

Jonah Richmond is a second year student at Vermont Law School. Before law school, Jonah worked for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention doing regulatory coordination. Jonah is a co-chair of Vermont Law School’s LGBT student group, Alliance, as well as a board member of the Jewish Law Student Association and the director of the school’s a capella choir.  He plans to pursue a career in environmental law. He holds a Commercial Driver’s License, as well as a B.S. in Environmental Science and Policy from the University of Maryland, College Park. Contact the Midwest Region II Chair
Nicholas McInerney
Midwest Region III Chair
Nicholas McInerney is a third year student at the University of South Dakota School of Law. He graduated from National American University in 2009 with a Bachelors of Business Administration emphasis in Management. He will graduate with his Masters of Political Science with a specialization in American Politics and Public Policy concurrently with his Juris Doctor. Nicholas comes from a management and training background prior to his law school career. He currently works as a Graduate Teaching Assistant for USD’s Communication Department educating undergraduates in basic public speaking. He has interned with the American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota twice where he was able to co-author several pieces of legislation for the South Dakota Legislative Session in 2012. He also founded the OUTlaws, the first LGBT-focused student group at USD’s School of Law.  Contact the Midwest Region III Chair