Bio

I’m the Associate Dean of Strategic Initiatives and a Professor of Law at Wake Forest University School of Law. I earned my B.S. in Psychology from Howard University, M.S. in Forensic Psychology from the City University of New York, M.A. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Kentucky, and a J.D. from Cornell University.

After law school, I clerked for The Honorable Anna Blackburne-Rigsby (District of Columbia Court of Appeals) and The Honorable Andre M. Davis (United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit). After clerking, I was a Visiting Fellow at Cornell Law School and then a Litigation Associate at McDermott, Will & Emery LLP in their Washington, D.C. office where I worked on trial and appellate matters.

My teaching focuses on civil procedure (e.g., Civil Procedure, Complex Litigation, Conflict of Laws), race & law, and social science & law. My research falls into several domains: race & law, social science & law, fraternal organizations & the law, and popular culture & the law. My books have been published by Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, The New Press, NYU Press, University Press of Kentucky, the University Press of Mississippi, and Fairleigh Dickinson University Press. My scholarly articles have appeared in such journals as: Fordham Law Review, Illinois Law Review, Indiana Law Journal, Nebraska Law Review, Southern California Law Review, UC Davis Law Review, UCLA Law Review, University of Chicago Law Review, Wake Forest Law Review,  and Washington & Lee Law Review.

I’m an active member of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated—having served in a variety of local, regional, and national leadership positions. My primary hobby is martial arts. I’m a 4th degree black belt in karate, Brazilian jujitsu purple belt, and proficient in Muay Thai. 

I’m a native of Long Island, New York, where my three sisters and I were raised by our parents.