Patrick A. Berry L’18 wins award honoring community service

Penn Law student Patrick A. Berry L’18 was named the recipient of the Samuel T. Gomez Award by the Philadelphia Bar Foundation and the Asian American Bar Association of Philadelphia.

The Samuel T. Gomez Award is presented to a law student who embodies commitment and compassion for the underserved through his or her community service, and it recognizes outstanding and exemplary services among law students, regardless of their ethnicity. Gomez, a graduate of Temple University’s Beasley School of Law, spent his career at Community Legal Services and has lectured on immigration law at Penn Law. In his honor, this award is presented on alternating years to students at Penn Law and Temple’s Beasley School of Law.

“Patrick has spent his time at Penn Law working to ensure that everyone’s voice is heard in our democracy,” said Neta Borshansky, Associate Director of Public Service Careers and Director of Government Programs. “This is a well-deserved award for a student who truly exemplifies the spirit of community service.”

Berry is currently interning with the Brennan Center for Justice’s Democracy Program in conjunction with the Penn Law Legislative Clinic. He has served as a law clerk at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington and at Open Primaries, and he is the Executive Editor of the Journal of Law & Public Affairs.

Prior to Penn Law, Berry graduated summa cum laude from the University of Central Florida, where he received a BA in legal studies.

He was presented with the Samuel T. Gomez Award at the annual dinner of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Pennsylvania on February 2.