Assistant Law School Dean Lorenzo Trujillo wins 2007 Latino Lawyer of the Year
Lorenzo Trujillo, assistant dean of the CU law school, was named 2007 Latino Lawyer of the Year by the Hispanic National Bar Association.
Gilbert Roman, judge in the Colorado Court of Appeals, nominated Trujillo for the award.
“I cannot think of a more deserving individual who has impacted significant issues affecting Latinos in the United States and the profession,” Roman wrote in his nominating statement.
After all the nominations were sent in, a national panel reviewed all the submissions and selected the top candidate. The name was sent to the National Hispanic Bar Association for confirmation.
Trujillo said he feels humbled to receive such a prestigious award.
“Among all the Latino lawyers, to be selected is overwhelming,” Trujillo said. “I never dreamed of receiving such an award.”
Trujillo said he came into law as a second career. He was a public school administrator for Jefferson County School District in Colorado. Then, he went into law and finally returned to public schools in a different capacity.
Trujillo became the attorney for the Adams County School District and also worked on the Colorado Lawyers Committee. While working for the school district, he said he advised the state legislature to revise truancy, suspension and expulsion.
Trujillo said he also worked to make it illegal for students to be thrown out of school without a probable cause. The model he helped create received national attention and gave him notoriety. Trujillo even received a personally written letter from First Lady Laura Bush.
Trujillo has many published works through the Aspen Institute. One focuses on making the law bar exam more modern.
Trujillo teaches two classes: legal drafting in Spanish for family law and professors for externs. He is also the supervisor for law students working at internships in the state, nationally and internationally.
“Lorenzo Trujillo does not just ‘talk the talk’, on behalf the Latino Community, he ‘walks the walk’,” Roman wrote.
Contact Campus Press Staff Writer Aaron Musick at aaron.musick@thecampuspress.com
