Susman Godfrey Announces Recipients of 2025 Susman Godfrey Prize

HOUSTON, Texas, May 16, 2025 –- Susman Godfrey is pleased to announce 25 recipients of this year’s Susman Godfrey Prize, an award given to first- and second-year law students of color who have demonstrated academic excellence and overall achievement.

Susman Godfrey has increased the number of award recipients this year from 20 to 25 and increased the award prize from $3,500 to $4,000.

“In its fifth year, the Susman Godfrey Prize continues to champion law students of color who embody values of integrity, leadership, and academic excellence,” said Susman Godfrey Co-Managing Partner Kalpana Srinivasan. “This year’s recipients have demonstrated great potential for promising legal careers, and we hope this recognition serves as a helpful step forward in achieving their professional goals.”

The Susman Godfrey Prize, launched in 2021, is open to students of color from eligible law schools who are finishing their first or second year of their program and who have been nominated by a law school professor or administrator. The nominees initially are evaluated based on their resumes, transcripts, and letters of recommendation. After being narrowed down to a group of finalists, winners are selected after being interviewed by a team of lawyers from the firm.

“The firm is honored to continue to award and recognize law students for their hard work and dedication to the legal profession,” adds Co-Managing Partner Vineet Bhatia.

Click here to meet the 2025 Susman Godfrey Prize Winers. They include:

Alex Liang; 2L, Harvard Law School
Ana Chaves; 2L, University of Chicago Law School
Avi Gupta; 2L, Yale Law School
Bill De La Rosa; 2L, Yale Law School
Brian Xu; 2L, Stanford Law School
Cindy Guo; 1L, Harvard Law School
Daniela Alvarez; 2L, Yale Law School
Danielle Cross; 2L, Yale Law School
Deumjee Choi; 2L, University of Washington Law School
Elijah DeVaughn; 1L, Yale Law School
Elizabeth E. Martin; 2L; University of Texas Law School
G. Terrell Seabrooks; 2L, Harvard Law School
Ikenna “Ike” Okoye; 1L, University of Houston Law Center
Janice Rotich; 1L, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School
Janis Jin; 1L, Yale Law School
Jessica Wang; 2L, Stanford Law School
Jorge Ledesma; 2L, Yale Law School
Lauren Parker; 2L, UCLA School of Law
Liliana Gutierrez; 1L, UC Berkeley School of Law
Mark Grujic; 1L, UCLA School of Law
Niki Hua; 2L, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Ria Debnath; 1L, UCLA School of Law
Sky Park; 1L, Stanford Law School
Sydney Brown; 1L, Yale Law School
Yi Qu; 1L, Harvard Law School

ABOUT Susman Godfrey

Susman Godfrey is a nationwide law firm of 170 trial lawyers. We handle high-stakes litigation for both plaintiffs and defendants in a broad range of practice areas and industries. Susman Godfrey’s attorneys are known for finding a fee arrangement—contingent, flat, hourly, or hybrid—that best suits a client’s case. With a relentless focus on winning at trial, Susman Godfrey is recognized as American Lawyer’s National Boutique Litigation Firm of the Year and for thirteen consecutive years has been named by Vault as the nation’s leading litigation boutique. Visit www.susmangodfrey.com to learn more about our unique approach to winning cases.