Duke Law Class of 2023

This year's MJS class speaker was Justice Douglas M. Fasciale

Justice Douglas M. Fasciale was sworn in as an associate justice on the New Jersey Supreme Court in 2022. He was appointed to the New Jersey Superior Court in 2004 and elevated to the Appellate Division in 2010. He previously practiced law as a trial attorney for 17 years and in 2000 became a Certified Civil Trial Attorney by the New Jersey Supreme Court, a designation that was held by fewer than three percent of New Jersey attorneys. Fasciale is a first-generation U.S. citizen, a graduate of Seton Hall University, and a member of the American Law Institute.

This year's LLM class speaker was Rennan Gil Alves Nascimento.

Rennan Gil Alves Nascimento earned his undergraduate degree at Pontifícia Universidade Catolica in São Paulo and a postgraduate diploma in Corporate Labor and Employment Law from Fundação Getúlio Vargas. With a Business Administration Certificate from Insper, he served as treasurer for Duke's Global Law Student Association. Following graduation, he will return to working at Pinheiro Neto Advogados in São Paulo.

This year's JD class speaker was Vanessa Keverenge.

Vanessa Keverenge, a Winter Haven, Florida native, was a voting rights and grassroots political organizer before law school. She earned a bachelor's degree in theatre and international relations from Mount Holyoke College. At Duke, she has served as president of the Black Law Students Association, co-policy director of the Innocence Project, a member of the Tricky Dick sketch comedy group, and on the Graduating Class Fundraising Committee. After graduation, she will work for Baker McKenzie in Washington, D.C.

Kate Adams, general counsel at Apple, gave this year's Convocation address.

Kate Adams is Apple’s general counsel and senior vice president of Legal and Global Security, reporting to CEO Tim Cook. Kate serves on the company’s executive team and oversees Apple’s legal matters, including corporate governance, intellectual property, litigation and securities compliance, global security, and privacy. Kate joined Apple from Honeywell in 2017, where she worked for 14 years, most recently as senior vice president and general counsel.

Prior to joining Honeywell, Kate was a partner at the law firm Sidley Austin LLP. Earlier in her career, she served as a law clerk for Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, as trial attorney for the United States Department of Justice in the Environment and Natural Resources Division, and as law clerk for Stephen Breyer, then chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. She has served as an adjunct professor of law at Columbia University and New York University. Kate is the President and member of the board of the Beaverkill Valley Land Trust.

She is also on the boards of the Natural Resources Defense Council and the University of Chicago. Previously she was a trustee of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, and member of the boards of directors of the New Jersey Conservation Foundation and the Brooklyn Bridge Park Coalition. Kate earned a bachelor’s degree in Comparative Literature from Brown University and a law degree from the University of Chicago Law School, where she serves on the Law School Council.

Public Interest and Public Service Law Certificate Graduation Ceremony