MACON — Valerie Caproni, general counsel for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at Mercer Law School’s 2010 Law Day luncheon on March 12.
A summa cum laude graduate of University of Georgia Law School, Caproni was named FBI general counsel August 2003 by then FBI Director Robert Mueller. Among her responsibilities is helping agents understand the legal parameters within which they can track down, investigate and detain suspected terrorists. She also helps expedite requests for subpoenas for national security wiretaps, responds to litigation challenging the FBI’s powers under the Patriot Act and ensures no laws are broken when intelligence gatherers share information with criminal investigators, both within and outside the agency.
The 2010 Law Day Luncheon starts at 12:30 p.m. and will be held in the University Center on Mercer University’s main campus. During the event, Mercer Law School will recognize three people for their outstanding contributions to the legal profession: Judge Hugh Lawson (Meritorious Service Award), Judge Tommy Day Wilcox ’73 (Alumni Meritorious Service Award), and Judge Yvette Miller ’80 (Distinguished Alumna Award).
“We are extremely fortunate to have someone of Valerie Caproni’s stature and legal acumen speak at our annual Law Day luncheon this year,” Mercer Law Dean Daisy Hurst Floyd said.
“It’s not a stretch to suggest that her responsibilities impact all of our lives. In that regard, she helps us better understand the enormous influence lawyers have in society and, with that, the enormous skill and humility that must accompany that influence. For that reason, she is a perfect keynote speaker for the students, faculty, alumni and friends of Mercer Law School.”
Caproni graduated magna cum laude from Newcomb College of Tulane University in 1976 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology. During law school, she served on the Georgia Law Review and was inducted into Order of the Coif. After graduation, Caproni clerked for the Honorable Phyllis Kravitch, U.S. Court of Appeals, 11th Circuit. Since 1980, she has been an associate in the litigation department of Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York City; an assistant U.S. Attorney in the Criminal Division of the U. S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of New York; general counsel of the New York State Urban Development Corporation; chief of special prosecution and chief of organized crime and racketeering section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office; chief of the Criminal Division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office; and regional director of the Pacific Regional Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission, where she oversaw the enforcement and regulatory programs of the SEC in the nine far western states, managing a staff of approximately 250 lawyers, accountants and examiners located in Los Angeles and San Francisco, Calif.
Established in 1958 by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Law Day is designed to strengthen the public’s understanding of the American justice system. Though the national observance of Law Day is generally May 1, many law schools, including Mercer Law School, publicly recognize it earlier in the spring semester due to the heavy academic demands in May. The Law Day theme this year is “Law in the 21st Century: Enduring Traditions, Emerging Challenges.”
About Mercer Law School
Founded in 1873, the Mercer University Walter F. George School of Law is one of the oldest law schools in the United States and the first one in the state of Georgia accredited by the American Bar Association. Mercer Law School’s educational philosophy is based on a broadly shared commitment to prepare students for the high-quality, general practice of law in a day-to-day learning environment that is both strongly supportive and consistently professional. Its innovative Woodruff Curriculum – which focuses on ethics and practical skills amid small class sizes – earned the Gambrell Professionalism Award from the ABA for its “depth of excellence.” With an enrollment of about 430 students, Mercer Law School is nationally recognized for its exceptional programs in legal writing, moot court, public service, and ethics and professionalism. For more information about Mercer Law School, visit www.law.mercer.edu or call 478.301.5000.
