Former Bradley Fellows
2023-2024 Fellows
Jerry Blake Blevins
Blake is a rising 3L at Georgetown Law. He is the Editor-in-Chief for Volume 22 of the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy and has been a Summer Associate at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and a Student Intern at the United States Department of Justice. In 2020, Blake graduated with honors from the University of Kentucky, earning a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics. After graduating, Blake served as an AmeriCorps VISTA at the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office in Grundy County, Tennessee. Blake was also the Resident Director for the Kentucky Governor’s School for Entrepreneurs during the program’s 2021-2022 session and serves as Treasurer on the Board of Directors of Arts Inside, a non-profit serving incarcerated individuals in rural middle Tennessee.
Alayna Francis
Alayna is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center and a native of southwest Virginia. Graduating magna cum laude from Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering in 2019, she worked as a product manager in financial technology, ultimately becoming a co-inventor of a pending U.S. patent application. At Georgetown, Alayna served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Pauline Newman of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and as a law clerk for the intellectual property litigation boutique Desmarais LLP. After graduation, Alayna will be clerking on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in Birmingham, Alabama.
Julia Leisenring
Julia is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. Julia transferred to GULC from Wake Forest University School of Law where she was a member of the Moot Court Board and earned the Dean Suzanne Reynolds award for excellence in constitutional law. At GULC, Julia is a member of the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy and a Bradley Scholar.
Jaxon Missey
Jaxon Missey is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. At Georgetown Law, he is a Bradley Scholar and Student Fellow in Georgetown’s Center for the Constitution, member of the Conservative and Libertarian Student Association (CALSA), and an executive board member of the GULC Federalist Society chapter. A native Oklahoman, Jaxon graduated from the University of Central Oklahoma with a B.A. in Political Science, summa cum laude, and double minor in International Relations and Pre-Legal Studies. At UCO, Jaxon was Director of the Big Event, a founding member of the College Republicans and a President’s Leadership Council Scholar.
Jakob Urda
Jakob Urda is a 2L at Georgetown Law and is concurrently pursuing a
Masters in Security Studies at the Georgetown Walsh School of Foreign Service. He graded with honors from the University of Chicago in 2019. Jakob is Managing Editor of the American Criminal Law Review. He has served as a judicial extern on the Eastern District of New York and the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. He is also a member of the moot court team, and won Best Oral Advocate at the 2022 Georgetown Beaudry Tournament. In his free time, Jakob coaches middle and high school students in competitive debate.
Alan Wayne
Alan Wayne is part of Georgetown Law’s Class of 2024. He graduated from Harvard with a degree in Applied Math and worked for several years as a high-frequency derivatives trader before coming to law school. At Georgetown, Alan was a member of the Appellate Advocacy team, an Executive Editor of the American Criminal Law Review, a Senior Writing Fellow, and a Peer Tutor. Upon graduation, Alan will serve in the Office of the Solicitor General as a Phillips Fellow, then go on to clerk for Judge Richardson on the Fourth Circuit and Judge Kelly on the DDC. In his free time, Alan enjoys cooking for friends, watching football, and touring art museums.
Rachel Wolff
Rachel is a rising 3L at Georgetown Law and a joint degree student in the M.A. in Security Studies Program at the Georgetown Walsh School of Foreign Service. She was an intern at the Department of State in the Bureau of Arms Control, Verificaiton, and Compliance and a graduate intern at the Pentagon in Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction. During law school, she served as a law clerk on the Senate Judiciary Committee in the Nominations and Constitution Unit under Senator Grassley and as a law clerk for Senator Rubio. She is a Staff Editor on the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy, the Director of Communications for the Conservative and Libertarian Student Association, and the Director of Events and Co-President of the Georgetown Law Federalist Society. Rachel received her B.A. from Tufts University in 2020.
2022-2023 Fellows
Chris Gaarder
Chris Gaarder is a 1L at the Georgetown University Law Center. He graduated with honors from Claremont McKenna College in 2015. While at CMC, Chris served as editor-in-chief of the Keck Journal of Foreign Affairs and the Claremont Independent. He also supported Karl Rove with research for his book The Triumph of William McKinley and Professor Ralph Rossum in editing his book Understanding Clarence Thomas. After CMC, he worked for California State Senator Bob Huff as a field representative. Then, was a policy advisor to Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do for nearly five years, managing transportation, infrastructure, finance, public safety, the pandemic, and homelessness. Chris also served for four years as a planning commissioner for the City of Fullerton. He is a co-founder of the YIMBY group People for Housing OC.
Alex Hakes
Alexander Hakes is a rising 2L at Georgetown University Law Center and is the incoming treasurer for the J. Reuben Clark Law Society. Originally from Idaho, he worked in the dairy industry for 4 years managing an international dairy equipment manufacturer. Dedicated to volunteer service, he is an Eagle Scout with the Boy Scouts of America and also frequently volunteers his time for his church. He currently teaches Sunday School for children ages 4-6. He also served a 2-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in South Korea. While on his mission, he taught himself the Korean language and is fluent. He also served as Zone Leader, in which he trained, supervised, and tutored groups of missionaries usually numbering around 40. After his mission, he graduated Magna Cum Laude from Brigham Young University in 2019 with a B.A. in Korean Language and History, with minors in Asian History, Philosophy, and Global Business and Literacy.
Nicole Johnson
Nicole Johnson is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. During law school, Nicole has served as a judicial intern for the Honorable Richard J. Leon of the District Court for the District of Columbia and as a legal extern for Senator Marco Rubio. Nicole is a member of the Federalist Society and the Journal of National Security Law & Policy. Prior to law school, she was a consultant at IBM. Nicole earned her B.A. in Foreign Affairs from the University of Virginia where she also played on the Women’s Varsity soccer team.
Meg Leatherwood
Meg Leatherwood is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. She is a native of Greenville, S.C. and a graduate of Harvard University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics. After graduating from GULC, Meg will be clerking on the District Court for the District of South Carolina and on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
Nicolaus Neser
Nic Neser just completed his first year at Georgetown University Law Center, where he is involved in numerous on-campus activities. He is a Bradley Scholar in Georgetown’s Center for the Constitution, a Business Law Scholar, a member of the Federalist Society, and the incoming President of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society. He is interested in a variety of practice areas including litigation, mergers & acquisitions, antitrust counseling/investigating, and government relations. Nic graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.A. in American Studies, where he was active on-campus. He was Editor-in-Chief of Americana, a Lu Ann Snyder Scholar, and a defenseman on the men’s varsity lacrosse team.
Taylor Myers
Taylor Myers is a rising 3E at Georgetown University Law Center. During the day, he works full time as a research fellow at Boyden Gray & Associates. Taylor is the managing editor of the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy and the co-President of the Georgetown Energy Law Group. Taylor also holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Maryland. Before joining Boyden Gray & Associates, he founded and served as lead scientist and designer in a company designing and manufacturing biomass combustion devices.
Stephanie Rigizadeh
Stephanie Rigizadeh is a 2L at Georgetown Law from Silver Spring, Maryland. At Georgetown, Stephanie is a Staff Editor on the Journal of Legal Ethics, a mentor in the Latin American Law Students Association, and a leader for Campus Ministry services. Before law school, Stephanie worked in broadcast journalism and public affairs consulting. Stephanie graduated from Princeton University in 2015.
George Sakkopoulos
George Sakkopoulos is a rising 2L at Georgetown Law. He is a Business Law Scholar, a Bradley Scholar, a Student Fellow at the Georgetown Center for the Constitution, and a Research Assistant for Professor Linda Jeng at Georgetown’s Institute of International Economic Law, at which he is also a Fellow. George graduated from the University of Manchester with a Bachelor of Laws, first class with honors, and with a Master of Laws, with distinction, in International Business and Commercial Law. He was an editor of the Manchester Review of Law, Crime, and Ethics and a research intern for Professor Christopher Humphrey of the Alliance Manchester Business School. He worked at the University of Manchester Justice Hub on employment, immigration, and housing law cases and on a legal tech project. His LL.M. thesis examined the role and potential reform of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes and his article on U.S. and E.U. antitrust law and policy was published in Volume X of the Manchester Review of Law, Crime, and Ethics. He served as chapter vice president of alumni relations of the Alpha Kappa Psi Business Fraternity.
2021-2022 Fellows
Bunting, Luke
Luke Bunting is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. At Georgetown, he is the Editor-in-Chief of the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy, the Media Chair for the Conservative and Libertarian Student Association (CALSA), a Class Representative for The Federalist Society, and a member of the Fund for American Studies’ Board of Visitors. Before coming to law school, Luke was the recipient of a Fulbright grant to South Korea and worked as the communications director for several members of the U.S. House of Representatives, continuing his employment until his boss’s retirement in 2021. A native Hoosier, he graduated summa cum laude from Butler University in 2014 with a B.A. in Political Science. His undergraduate thesis on presidential campaign microtargeting was published in the inaugural issue of the Butler Journal of Undergraduate Research.
Denler, Haley
Haley is currently a student at the Georgetown University Law Center, where she is on the Dean’s List and involved in numerous on-campus activities. Haley is a law fellow in Georgetown’s legal research and writing program, an Executive Editor for the Georgetown Journal of International Law, a member of the Federalist Society, Treasurer of the Conservative and Libertarian Student Association, and the incoming President of the J. Reuben Clark Law Society. During her time in law school, Haley has served as a law clerk in the Office of White House Counsel, for Senator Mike Lee at the Senate Judiciary Committee, and with the U.S. Office of Special Counsel. Haley has also worked as a judicial extern for Judge Trevor McFadden at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. A native of Huntington Beach, California, Haley graduated magna cum laude from Brigham Young University with a B.A. in political science and a minor in Spanish. She previously completed academic research in the United Kingdom and is a co-author of two working papers on political psychology.
Hardiman, Kate
Kate Hardiman is a rising 3L at Georgetown University Law Center. During her first two years of law school, she took classes in the evening program and worked full time as a Rehnquist Fellow at Cooper & Kirk PLLC. Kate is a member of the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy, Clerkship Chair for the GULC Federalist Society chapter, and a 2020 Alliance Defending Freedom Blackstone Fellow. She graduated summa cum laude from the University of Notre Dame in 2017. Kate also holds an M.Ed from the University of Notre Dame and previously taught high school in inner-city Chicago. She has written extensively on education law and policy issues for the Washington Examiner and co-authored Unshackled: Freeing America’s K-12 Education System. After graduating from GULC, Kate will be clerking on the District Court for the District of Columbia and on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
Khiatani, Tanya
Tanya Khiatani is a rising 2L at Georgetown University Law Center. She is a Business Law Scholar and the President and co-founder of the Georgetown Energy Law Group. Prior to law school, Tanya spent many years working in complex, highly regulated industries. After graduating from college, she ran the equity trading desk for a large institutional investor and went on to run a structured transactions desk for the retail arm of one of the nation’s largest power producers. Unbeknownst to her at the time, she advocated for an originalist argument when challenging a utility for the right to sell renewable energy products to her clients in an eastern state, and this experience is what led her to law school. She obtained her B.A. in Economics from the University of California, Berkeley, and her M.Sc. in Statistics from the London School of Economics where she wrote her dissertation on adding a fourth factor to the Fama-French model.
Lifhits, Jenna
Jenna works on foreign policy and defense issues for GOP Conference Chair Rep. Liz Cheney. She is a first-year evening student at Georgetown Law, where she is a member of the Federalist Society and an evening student representative for the Conservative and Libertarian Student Association. Jenna was formerly a staff writer at The Weekly Standard covering national security and the Senate. She graduated summa cum laude from Middlebury College in 2015 with a double major in Russian and Political Science.
Ponomarov, Volodymyr
Volodymyr Ponomarov is a student at Georgetown University Law Center. Volodymyr graduated from law school in Ukraine and also holds LL.M. degree from the University of Miami School of Law. Before starting at Georgetown, Volodymyr worked as an international attorney in a DC law firm handling investor-state and commercial arbitration matters. At Georgetown, Volodymyr is on the dean’s list and is a member of the Georgetown Environmental Law Review.
Posner, Ilan
Ilan Posner just completed his second year as an evening student at Georgetown Law. Born in Dallas, Ilan grew up in Perth, Australia and moved back to the U.S. upon completion of his undergraduate degree from the University of Western Australia. Ilan works full-time as a research assistant for U.S Senator Ben Sasse where his focus includes the changing landscape of higher education, future of work issues and technological advancements. He is a law fellow in the legal research and writing program, an active member of the Federalist Society and the Membership Chair of the recently established Conservative and Libertarian Student Association (CALSA) at Georgetown Law. He is also a senior staff member on the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy.
2020-2021 Fellows
Heigis, Eric (L’22)
Eric Heigis is the Legislative Director to a Member of the U.S. House of Representatives and a second-year evening student at Georgetown University Law Center. In his day job he focuses on Oversight, Transportation, Judiciary, and Economic policy. At Georgetown he is an active member of the Federalist Society and serves as an Executive Editor for the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy. Eric has been a licensed pilot for eight years, and in his free time he enjoys flying to small airports up and down the East Coast in his Cessna. Eric is a native of Orange County, California and moved to the Washington, D.C. area to attend college. He graduated from American University with a combined major in Communications, Law, Economics, and Government (CLEG) and a minor in Business Administration. While at American University he served for three years on the student government’s Judicial Board, rising to the position of Chief Justice.
Henry, Elizabeth (L’22)
Elizabeth just completed her second year as an evening student at Georgetown Law, while continuing to work full-time in the United States Senate. Elizabeth currently serves as Health Policy Advisor and Director of Administration to Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith. Prior to this role, Elizabeth served as Health Legislative Assistant to Senator Thad Cochran, who was then Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. At Georgetown Law, Elizabeth is on the Dean’s List and is active in several student activities. She is the Vice President for Evening Students of the Georgetown Law Federalist Society, a member of the nationally ranked Georgetown Law Appellate Advocacy (moot court) team, an Executive Editor of the Food and Drug Law Journal, and a law fellow in the legal research and writing program. A Mississippi native, she graduated cum laude from Yale in 2014 with a B.A. in ethics, politics, and economics.
Hogan, Molly (L’21)
Molly Hogan is a student at Georgetown University Law Center, originally from Chicago, Illinois. Previously, Molly was as a legal assistant at Schiff Hardin and a Dave Kennedy Fellow at the Institute for Justice. Molly is a member of the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy, co-President of the Federalist Society chapter at GULC, and a 2019 Blackstone Fellow. She graduated from The George Washington University magna cum laude with departmental honors in 2016, where she studied Political Communication and wrote her thesis on public perception of mandatory minimum sentencing.
Reiger, Michael (L’22)
Michael is a rising 2L at Georgetown University Law Center. He graduated from the University of Michigan in 2016 with the highest honors and a major in history. He has previously worked for Rep. Justin Amash in the House of Representatives and the Cato Institute.
Ristuccia, Nathan (L’22)
Nathan J. Ristuccia is a student at Georgetown University Law Center. He received his B.A. in Classics from Princeton University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Medieval Studies from the University of Notre Dame. Prior to entering Georgetown, Nathan taught history and Latin for years at the University of Chicago and Rockbridge Academy. Nathan has published more than twenty article and essays on European intellectual history and the Middle Ages. His first book—Christianization and Commonwealth in Early Medieval Europe: A Ritual Interpretation (Oxford: 2018)—won the 2019 Brewer Prize from the American Society of Church History.
Schneider, Dana (L’22)
Dana Schneider is a rising 2L at Georgetown Law. At Georgetown, she is a fellow in both the Institute of International Economic Law and the Georgetown Center for the Constitution. She is a member of the Federalist Society and 1L representative. Prior to law school, Dana worked as a Banking Fellow for Senator Pat Toomey and as head paralegal in Davis Polk’s Financial Institutions Group. She obtained her B.A. in Political Science, with distinction, from Yale College. Her undergraduate thesis on the exclusionary rule won the Percival Wood Clement Prize. Dana also holds a Master of Music degree in Harp Performance from the New England Conservatory and has won numerous prizes as a professional harpist. She is from Harmony, PA.
2019-2020 Fellows
Atherton, Blake
Blake attended Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, where he graduated magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, and with honors in the major. Also while at Georgetown, Blake walked-on to the Men’s Varsity Soccer Team as a freshman, which reached the Division I National Championship. Upon graduating from Georgetown, Blake won the Saint Andrew’s Society Scholarship to earn his postgraduate degree in the U.K., where he received a Master’s degree with Distinction from the University of St Andrews. At Georgetown Law, Blake is a Senior Articles Editor on the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy, an Executive Board member of the Federalist Society, and a Global Law Scholar
Davidson, Erielle
Erielle Davidson is a Senior Contributor at the Federalist and a law student at Georgetown University Law Center. She previously was an economic research assistant at the Hoover Institution and a Publius Fellow at the Claremont Institute. She graduated from Middlebury College with a B.A in Russian, with a focus on Eastern European security issues.
Freeman, Ellie (L’21)
Ellie graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 2021. As a law student, she was a Global Law Scholar, represented asylum seekers in the Center for Applied Legal Studies clinic, and supported research work with Georgetown’s Center for National Security & the Law, in addition to being a Bradley Fellow. Prior to law school, Ellie graduated with her Master of International Affairs degree from the Bush School of Government & Public Service at Texas A&M University. Ellie is fluent in Arabic, Spanish, and conversational in French, and now practices in national security law in Washington D.C.
Iacono, Nicholas (L’22)
Nick Iacono is a third-year evening student at Georgetown University Law Center and a native of Staten Island, New York. Prior to law school, Nick held a number of high-profile positions in strategic communications, serving as the Director of Public Relations for the Archdiocese of New York’s Catholic School System and Director of Communications for a U.S. Congressman. A proud “Double Hoya,” Nick graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University in 2012 with a B.A. in government. At Georgetown, Nick was elected president of the Philodemic Society, one of the oldest collegiate debate societies in the country, and was the 2011 winner of the distinguished Richard T. Merrick Debating Medal. Nick currently works full-time as an Associate Director in Georgetown’s development office, where he focuses on law firm-based alumni development. From 2020-2021, Nick served as the Student Bar Association’s Vice President for Evening Students, representing the Law Center’s 200+ evening students to the university administration. In addition to his work with the SBA, Nick is a member of Georgetown’s nationally-ranked Trial Advocacy Team and is on the staff of the Georgetown Journal of Law & Public Policy. Nick will spend summer 2021 working as a Summer Associate in Skadden, Arps’ New York office. In his spare time, Nick enjoys running, cooking, and pursuing his lifelong dream of being a Jeopardy contestant.
Palmer, Leah
Leah Palmer is a first-year law student at Georgetown University Law Center. Originally from Saint Paul, Minnesota, Leah recently moved to Virginia from the United Kingdom after completing her undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Glasgow and working in various user experience research positions in London’s technology sector. Leah is a Public Interest Fellow at GULC and is interested in working in impact litigation and criminal justice reform.
Velenchuk, Timofey (L’21)
Tim is graduating from Georgetown Law in the Spring of 2021. He is starting as an associate with Gibson, Dunn, & Crutcher in Washington D.C. in the Fall of 2021, where he was also a summer associate in the Summer of 2020. Most recently, he externed at First Liberty Institute where he worked on cases dealing with religious liberty issues. Before that, he was a Judicial Intern to the Honorable Barbara Jacobs Rothstein at the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. At Georgetown, he is the Administrative Editor for the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy and is a member of the Federalist Society. Before Georgetown, he went to college at Penn State where he was part of the Schreyer Honors College and where he primarily studied economics and political science, writing his thesis on regime change and conflict and graduating summa cum laude in 2018. Tim was born in Ukraine and speaks Ukrainian and Russian.
2018-2019 Fellows
Enos, Zachary (L’19)
After graduation, Zachary Enos clerked for Judge Stephanos Bibas on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. At present, he is clerking for Judge Carl Nichols on the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
Knight, James (L’19)
James T. Knight II was a Bradley Fellow with the Georgetown Center for the Constitution from 2018 to 2019 and is currently a Law & Liberty Fellow at the Institute for Justice. Before his time at IJ, James was a legal associate in the Cato Institute’s Robert A. Levy Center for Constitutional Studies. James earned his J.D., cum laude, from Georgetown in 2019. At Georgetown, in addition to being a Bradley Fellow, he was a senior article editor on the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy. During law school, James interned at the D.C. Superior Court, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, and the Cato Institute. James graduated, magna cum laude, with a B.A. in political science and philosophy from Fordham University in 2016, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and treasurer of the Debate Society. He is originally from New Hampshire.
Rattey, Justin (L’20)
Dr. Justin D. Rattey is currently an associate at Jones Day in Washington, D.C. He graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown Law and defended his doctoral dissertation with distinction in Government (also at Georgetown) in 2020. His dissertation focused on the normative value of associations in American society, and his committee included Larry Solum—who Justin first met as a Bradley Fellow. In law school, Justin was Executive Articles Editor on the Georgetown Law Journal and received the Meritorious Service Award for his service on the journal. He was in the Civil Litigation Clinic and worked for two Department of Justice sections during law school—the Office of Legal Policy and the Criminal Division, Fraud Section. He also worked as a research assistant for Dean William Treanor and then Professor Carlos Vázquez. Justin received his undergraduate degree summa cum laude in Political Science and Philosophy from St. Mary’s College of Maryland.
Sebring, Michael (L’19)
Michael is currently a clerk for Judge Carlos Bea on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. After graduating from Georgetown Law, Michael was a litigation associate with Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan at their D.C. office.
Cairns, Megan
Ullery, Alyse
2017-2018 Fellows
Cahill, Claire (L’19)
Claire Cahill is a judicial law clerk for Judge Britt Grant on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. She graduated from Georgetown University Law Center summa cum laude in 2019 and spent the following year clerking with Judge Trevor N. McFadden on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. While attending Georgetown Law, she was the Senior Online Editor for the Georgetown Law Journal, a Research & Writing Law Fellow, and a member of the Barristers’ Council Moot Court team. She graduated summa cum laude from Patrick Henry College with a B.A. in Government. Following her current clerkship, she will be clerking with Judge Thomas Ambro on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit and Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Elmonairy, Kier
McCullough, Noah
McDonald, Thea
Merriam, Darina
Redmond, Caleb (L’18)
Caleb Redmond graduated magna cum laude from Georgetown University Law Center in May 2018. Before graduating, he served as the Editor-in-Chief of the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy, externed on the Senate Judiciary Committee for Senator Mike Lee, and successfully argued a constitutional mootness case before the D.C. Circuit. After graduating, Caleb worked at Jones Day in Washington, D.C., drafting merits briefs in cases before the United States Supreme Court and several other appellate courts. He then clerked for Judge Britt C. Grant on the Eleventh Circuit, and is currently clerking for Judge Richard J. Sullivan on the Second Circuit.