Speaker Biographies
2015 Spring Reunion
William P. Alford ’77
Professor Alford’s books includeTo Steal a Book is an Elegant Offense: Intellectual Property Law in Chinese Civilization(Stanford University Press 1995),Raising the Bar: The Emerging Legal Profession in East Asia(Harvard East Asian Legal Studies 2007),残疾人法律保障机制研究(A Study of Legal Mechanisms to Protect Persons with Disabilities) (Huaxia Press 2008, with Wang Liming and Ma Yu’er),andProspects for the Professions in China(Routledge 2011, with William Kirby and Kenneth Winston). He has also written dozens of articles concerning Chinese law and legal history and the US-China relationship.Professor Alford was awarded an honorary degree by the University of Geneva in 2010 and has been an honorary professor or fellow at Renmin University of China, Zhejiang University, the National College of Administration, and the Institute of Law of the Chinese Academy of Social Science, and is the recipient of prizes and fellowships, including the inaugural O’Melveny & Myers Centennial Award, theKluwerChina Prize, the Qatar Pearls of Praise Award, and an Abe (Japan) Fellowship.Professor Alford has served as a consultant to the US government, the World Bank, the Ford Foundation, foreign governments, law firms, nongovernmental organizations, and corporations, and has been a dispute resolution panelist under the US-Canada Free Trade Agreement and the North American Free Trade Agreement.
He is a member of the executive committee and chair of the research and policy committee of the board of directors of Special Olympics International, which serves individuals with intellectual disabilities in more than 180 nations, and which, in 2008,honored him for his work on behalf of persons with intellectual disabilities in China. Professor Alford has a BA from Amherst College (1970); an LLB from the University of Cambridge, St. John’s College (1972); MAsfrom Yale University, in Chinese Studies (1974) and Chinese History (1975); and a JD from Harvard Law School (1977).
Ricardo Anzaldua ’90
Ricardo A. Anzaldua has been executive vice president and general counsel of MetLife, Inc. since December 2012. He leads the company’s global legal operations, and oversees MetLife’s corporate secretary’s office and corporate ethics and compliance group.
Before MetLife, he was the senior vice president and associate general counsel with The Hartford Financial Services Group. There, he led legal support for the two largest operating divisions (commercial and consumer markets) after a three-year tenure leading the legal teams supporting the corporate secretarial, securities, corporate governance, tax, mergers & acquisitions, technology, bankruptcy and real estate functions.
After graduating from Harvard Law School in 1990, Mr. Anzaldua was a partner with Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton LLP in New York.
Before law school, Mr. Anzaldua was the publications director and senior editor of the Center for US-Mexican Studies, a University of California think tank focusing on research relating to Mexico and US-Mexican relations, as well as Latin America more generally.
Since 2014, Mr. Anzaldua has been a member of the board of directors for Common Ground, a New York City supportive housing developer and he is president-elect of the Greater Hartford Legal Aid Foundation. He is also a trustee and pro-bono general counsel of the International Institute of Rural Reconstruction, an international nonprofit focused on economic and community development and empowerment in the developing world and serves on the Board of the Metropolitan Corporate Counsel Association.
Ryan Baker ’00
Ryan G. Baker founded the trial boutique Baker Marquart LLP in 2008, along with two other HLS graduates. Since then, Mr. Baker has represented clients ranging from high net-worth individuals to Fortune 100 companies in complex commercial litigation, both at the trial court and appellate levels. His practice areas include all areas of intellectual property, securities and entertainment law.
Prior to Baker Marquart, Ryan practiced at Quinn Emanuel and Cooley. In addition to serving on class reunion committees, he has actively participated in raising money for the Harvard Law School Fund. Ryan is on the Board of Advisors of After-School All-Stars, a non-profit organization providing after-school educational enrichment activities for children.
Mr. Baker also serves as an Ambassador for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. In 2014, he raced the Leadville 100 Mountain Bike Race to raise money for that hospital. Ryan lives in Sherman Oaks, California, with his wife and two daughters.
In addition to his Harvard degree, Ryan earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Brigham Young University.
Ona Balkus ’13
Ona Balkus is a Clinical Fellow in the Food Law and Policy Clinic at Harvard Law School, where she provides legal and policy guidance to community advocacy groups and non-profits who are working to improve their communities’ food systems. Her clients have included advocacy coalitions in Mississippi, Navajo Nation, and La Paz, Bolivia, among others. She is also the attorney supervisor for the Harvard Mississippi Delta Project, a student practice organization working to improve policies that affect the health, social, and economic outcomes of this region. During law school, Ona was a student in the Food Law and Policy Clinic for three semesters, and then worked as a research assistant for the Clinic’s Director, Emily Broad Leib. Ona first became interested in food law and policy during her year as an AmeriCorps Vista volunteer in Washington, DC, where she led cooking-based nutrition classes for low-income communities. Ona received her joint JD/MPH from Harvard Law School and Harvard School of Public Health in 2013.
Matthew Koch Bugher ’10
Matthew Bugher is the Global Justice Fellow at the Human Rights Program (HRP). He has extensive experience with human rights issues in Myanmar, in particular with the civilian impact of armed conflict in the country. Bugher supervises students on research, fact-finding, and advocacy activities relating to military reform, accountability for human rights violations, and the rule of law in Myanmar.
Prior to joining HRP, Bugher spent three years in Southeast Asia focused on human rights issues in Myanmar. During that time, he worked with Aegis Trust, Amnesty International, and the International Commission of Jurists on topics including economic, social and cultural rights, armed conflict, and political prisoners. Additionally, as Myanmar Project Manager for Justice Base, a UK-based rule of law organization, Matthew established an office in Yangon, Myanmar and initiated various programs to support local lawyers and activists. Bugher is a graduate of Harvard Law School and an alumni of the International Human Right Clinic. He holds a BS in Business and Economics from Grove City College.
Joaquin Castro ’00
Joaquin Castro represents Texas’ 20th Congressional District and serves on the House Armed Services Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee. First elected to Congress in 2012, Castro was the 2013 co-president for the House freshman Democrats and now serves in the House Democratic Leadership as Chief Deputy Whip. Castro, who hails from San Antonio, graduated from Stanford University in 1996 and from Harvard Law School in 2000. At the age of 28, Castro was elected to the Texas Legislature where he served for ten years. While a state representative, Castro created the Trailblazers College Tour, personally raising money to send underprivileged students on college visits, exposing them to some of the nation’s best institutions of higher education.
Julián Castro ’00
Julián Castro was sworn in as the 16th Secretary of the US Department of Housing and Urban Development on July 28, 2014. In this role, Castro oversees 8,000 employees and a budget of $46 billion, using a performance-driven approach to achieve the Department’s mission of expanding opportunity for all Americans.
“Julián is a proven leader, a champion for safe, affordable housing and strong, sustainable neighborhoods,” said President Barack Obama after Castro’s confirmation. “I know that together with the dedicated professionals at HUD, Julián will help build on the progress we’ve made battling back from the Great Recession - rebuilding our housing market, reducing homelessness among veterans, and connecting neighborhoods with good schools and good jobs that help our citizens succeed.”
As Secretary, Castro’s focus is ensuring that HUD is a transparent, efficient and effective champion for the people it serves. Utilizing an evidence-based management style, he has charged the Department with one goal: giving every person, regardless of their station in life, new opportunities to thrive.
Before HUD, Castro served as Mayor of the City of San Antonio. During his tenure, he became known as a national leader in urban development. In 2010, the City launched the “Decade of Downtown”, an initiative to spark investment in San Antonio’s center city and older neighborhoods. This effort has attracted $350 million in private sector investment,with the goal of building additional housing units in the city. In addition, San Antonio’s East Side is the only neighborhood in America that has received funding to implement major projects under three key Obama Administration revitalization initiatives: Choice Neighborhoods, Promise Neighborhoods and the Byrne Criminal Justice Program.
In March 2010, Castro was named to the World Economic Forum’s list of Young Global Leaders. Later that year, Time magazine placed him on its“40 under 40” list of rising stars in American politics.
Previously, Castro served as a member of the San Antonio City Council. He is also an attorney and worked at Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld before starting his own practice.
Secretary Castro received a BA from Stanford University in 1996, and a JD from Harvard Law School in 2000. He and his wife, Erica, have a daughter, Carina and a son, Cristian.
Emily Cole ’15
Emily Cole is a third-year law student from Chicago. After graduating from Yale University in 2009, she worked for three years at Analysis Group, a consulting firm that specializes in providing support to expert witnesses testifying in litigation. Since starting law school in 2012, Emily has been a research assistant for Professor Guhan Subramanian. During the summer after her first year at Harvard, Emily interned at CORE Media Group, a portfolio company of Apollo Management that produces and manages entertainment brands and content. She spent her second summer at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in Chicago, where she worked primarily on private equity transactions. This semester, Emily’s work with the Food Law & Policy Clinic has focused on reducing food waste through expiration date law reform and ensuring increased access to nutritious food in Congress’ upcoming reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act. Emily is graduating from Harvard this spring and will return to Kirkland as a corporate associate in the fall.
Kenyon Colli ’16
Kenyon Colli is a second-year law student from Darien, Connecticut. She received her BA in Psychology and International Relations from the University of Connecticut. Before coming to law school, she worked on a research team focused on the implementation of evidence-based practices and spent a year working as a Residence Director at a small liberal arts college in Massachusetts. During her 1L summer, she interned at the Federal Public Defender Office in Boston. At HLS, Kenyon is the incoming President of the Women’s Law Association, Community Service Cochair for La Alianza, and a member of the Prison Legal Assistance Project.
Eva Herbst Davis ’90
For more than 20 years, Eva has advised her clients on US and cross-border complex business transactions with a particular focus on mergers and acquisitions and private equity. As an advisor to strategics and private equity funds and their portfolio companies, Eva counsels domestic and international clients in public and private M&A transactions, public and private debt and equity financing transactions, including initial public offerings, and distressed sales and investments in and out of bankruptcy. Eva also represents public companies and their boards of directors and special committees in connection with enterprise-transformative business opportunities and legal challenges, as well as providing corporate governance advice. Eva serves as lead deal counsel, and negotiated and completed transactions in a wide variety of industries, including automotive, consumer products, energy, entertainment, financial services, manufacturing, medical devices, pharmaceutical, retail, semiconductor, technology and telecommunications. In 2014, Eva was recognized by Chambers USA in the Corporate/M&A/Private Equity category and was also honored with a “Client Choice Award” for her M&A work in California. Eva served as Harvard Celebration 60 Outreach Cochairwoman. Eva graduated summa cum laude from Duke University in 1987.
Christine Desan
Christine Desan teaches about the international monetary system, the constitutional law of money, constitutional history, political economy, and legal theory. She is the cofounder of Harvard’s Program on the Study of Capitalism, an interdisciplinary project that brings together classes, resources, research funds, and advising aimed at exploring that topic. With codirector, Professor Sven Beckert (History), she has taught the Program’s anchoring research seminar, the Workshop on the Political Economy of Modern Capitalism, since 2005.
Professor Desan’s research explores money as a legal and political project, one that configures the market it sets out to measure. Her approach aims to open economic orthodoxy to question, particularly insofar as it assumes money as a neutral instrument and markets as autonomous phenomena. She recently completed a book called Making Money: Coin, Currency, and the Coming of Capitalism (Oxford University Press, 2014). She is also the editor of Inside Money: Re-Theorizing Liquidity (forthcoming, University of Pennsylvania Press), and is coeditor with Sven Beckert of Capitalism in America: New Histories (in progress). Her articles include Coin Reconsidered: The Political Alchemy of Commodity Money, Theoretical Inquiries in Law 287 (January, 2010), and Beyond Commodification: Contract and the Credit-Based World of Modern Capitalism, in Transformation of American Law II: Essays for Morton Horwitz (2010).
She is on the Board of the Institute for Global Law and Policy, is a faculty member of the Program on American Studies at Harvard University, and has served on the editorial board for the Law and History Review, and as an advisory editor of Eighteenth Century Studies. From 2003 – 2014, Desan was the President of the Ames Foundation, an independent foundation at Harvard Law School. For 10 years,Professor Desan served on a town committee in Brookline, MA,that researched and drafted legislation promoting campaign finance reform, and,thensupervised that reform once it was enacted.
George E. Edwards ’85
George E. Edwards is Special Assistant to the Dean for Intergovernmental and Non-Governmental Organizations and The C.M. Gray Professor of Law at Indiana University McKinney School of Law.
At Indiana, he founded the Program in International Human Rights Law (Master of Laws LLM Track), which has had over 200 Indiana law student placements in 56 countries on 6 continents with the United Nations, governments and NGOs. His Indiana program was awarded Special Consultative Status with Accreditation to the United Nations Economic & Social Council (UN-ECOSOC). He modeled his Indiana program after the HLS Human Rights Program, which was founded when he was an HLS student. He was one of the first HLS Human Rights Program overseas interns, and was awarded a Professor C. Clyde Ferguson Fellowship to intern for an NGO in Sudan and Ethiopia during a famine year, and for the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees.
The Pentagon awarded his Indiana human rights program NGO Observer Status, and he then founded the Military Commission Observation Project (MCOP) ( that sends law students, faculty, staff and graduates to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to monitor military commission hearings.
Mr. Edwards has worked on or been expert witness on many international cases including that of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milošević at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague.
He is an elected member of the American Law Institute (ALI) and an elected Fellow of the American Bar Foundation (ABF), and was appointed as a Center for National Policy (CNP) Fellow in International Human Rights in Washington, DC.
Mr. Edwards created a global Master of Laws information portal that builds on his book, LL.M. Roadmap: An International Student’s Guide To US Law School Programs (Wolters Kluwer) (
He was Visiting Professor at DePaul College of Law and Stetson College of Law, and Visiting Fellow at Queen Mary University of London and the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom. He is Life Member, Wolfson College, University of Cambridge. He received a Fulbright grant to teach at Universidad de San Pedro, in Peru.
Previously, Mr. Edwards spent 5 years at the University of Hong Kong Faculty of Law, was an Associate at Cravath, Swaine & Moore in New York, and clerked for Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum in the Southern District of New York. At HLS he was a member of the Harvard Law Review, the Harvard International Law Journal, and the Black Law Students Association (BLSA), and he was a Research Assistant to the Graduate Law Programs.
He is widely published internationally in international human rights law, and has received numerous Teaching, Research and Civic Engagement Awards from Indiana University.
Lisa M. Fairfax ’95
Lisa M. Fairfax, Harvard College ’92, Harvard Law School ’95, is the Leroy Sorenson Merrifield Research Professor of Law at George Washington University Law School. Sheteaches courses on corporations, securities regulation, shareholder activism, and contracts, and her scholarly interests include corporate governance matters, directors’ fiduciary obligations, board diversity, securities fraud, and shareholder participation. In addition to her numerous law review articles, Professor Fairfax has authored a book entitled, Shareholder Democracy: A Primer on Shareholder Activism and Participation, and a chapter on board independence in the Research Handbook on the Economics of Economics of Corporate Law.