Brooklyn College invites students, staff, faculty, and community members to this year’s Samuel J. Konefsky Memorial Lecture, featuring Lee Gelernt, one of the nation’s most prominent public interest lawyers and a leading figure in contemporary immigration litigation. The event will be held on March 3 at 12:30 p.m. in the Woody Tanger Auditorium, Brooklyn College Library. Gelernt serves as a senior attorney with the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project and has argued many of the country’s most consequential cases, including before the U.S. Supreme Court and multiple federal courts of appeals. His work has also brought him before both the House and Senate as an expert witness, and he teaches at Columbia Law School. His litigation has shaped national conversations on immigration policy. Among his notable cases is the challenge to the Trump Administration’s family‑separation policy, a case that drew international attention and was featured in the documentary. The Fight and a New York Times Magazine cover story. He currently serves as lead counsel in litigation concerning the administration’s use of the Alien Enemies Act, which has raised significant questions about due process and the treatment of Venezuelan migrants. Gelernt’s contributions have earned him numerous awards and recognition as one of the 500 leading lawyers in the United States. His commentary and expertise appear frequently in major media outlets, documentaries, books, and podcasts. This event offers a rare opportunity to hear directly from a central figure in the legal battles shaping U.S. immigration policy. The Konefsky Lecture is an annual event that honors Samuel J. Konefsky, a Brooklyn College alumnus who was a professor of constitutional law at the college from the 1940s to 1970. At the event, a scholarship generously donated by the Konefsky family is presented to a Brooklyn College pre-law student.
