Gary Blasi, professor emeritus of law, will receive the Earl Johnson Equal Justice Award from the Western Center on Law and Poverty on Sept. 28.The award, named after retired California appellate court justice Earl Johnson, honors national equal justice leaders for a lifelong body of work and achievements. The center is dedicated exclusively to the interests of the poor and to helping low-income Californians find the best possible legal representation. Blasi has co-counseled numerous cases and projects on behalf of the center and will be recognized for his many contributions to the realization of equal justice under the law.
Since joining the faculty of the UCLA School of Law in 1991, Blasi served as director of the UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment and was a founding faculty member of the UCLA Law’s David J. Epstein Program in Public Interest Law and Policy. He practices, teaches, conducts research and writes about advocacy on behalf of children in substandard schools; homeless families and individuals; low-income tenants; veterans; low-wage workers; and victims of discrimination. Blasi has received numerous awards for his work. In 2007, the Daily Journal named him one of the top 100 lawyers in California, cited as the “go-to lawyer for community groups in need of advice.”
