Shomari Ward

Professor Ward teachers LAWRS and Civil Procedure at Rutgers Law School. He was previously an Adjunct Professor of Clinical Law at Brooklyn Law School where he administered the Youth Defense & Re-Entry Clinic. Professor Ward was also an Adjunct Professor at CUNY School of Law where he taught Lawyering Seminars I and II. 

Professor Ward worked for years at community-based organizations focusing on youth development before pursuing a career in law. After law school, he joined The Legal Aid Society NYC’s Juvenile Rights Practice (JRP) where he managed a litigation docket, which included child protective and “juvenile delinquency” proceedings. He subsequently worked in JRP’s Special Litigation and Law Reform Unit representing children in systemic, class-action litigation and legislative reform efforts. Following his time at JRP, Professor Ward served as the Litigation Director at Youth Represent (YR) where he led a team that identified, investigated, and filed individual and class-action cases that provided systemic changes for young people from indigent and historically oppressed communities. At YR, Professor Ward also coordinated efforts to draft and file various amicus briefs for youth justice cases in high appellate courts. For over a decade, Professor Ward has facilitated trainings on race, class, and community for practitioners across the country, who work directly and collaterally with indigent youth and families of color. Additionally, Professor Ward was appointed to the New York State Permanent Commission on Justice for Families (PCJF) where he currently is Co-Chair of PCJF’s “Juvenile Delinquency” and Youth Justice Working Group.

He holds a J.D. from Howard University School of Law and a B.A. from State University of New York - Albany.