Carol Robles-Román
Carol Robles-Román ’89 was a champion for equal justice and a public servant in every sense of the word. A steadfast advocate for people of color, women, and underrepresented groups, she was singularly focused on advancing justice and equality, both personally and professionally. In hopes of building on her progress in this critical space, we are proud to announce the Carol Robles-Román ’89 Equal Justice Award at NYU Law. Please visit the Ways to Give page to learn more.
Career and Bio
Carol understood early on that access to justice requires access to courts, where she focused much of her impressive career. In the New York State court system, she worked alongside other notable NYU Law alumni such as Judges Judith Kaye ’62, Jonathan Lippman ’68, and Barry Cozier ’75 to help implement diversity and inclusion programs, anti-bias programs, and expand access to justice. As Deputy Mayor for Legal Affairs and Counsel to the Mayor in the Bloomberg administration, she headed the Mayor’s Executive Committee on the Judiciary, identifying highly qualified diverse candidates for appointment by the Mayor to New York State courts in the five boroughs, developing ethics training for all city employees, leading the formation of The New York City Family Justice Centers, creating a New York City judicial code of conduct, and advocating for the passage of the New York State anti-trafficking law. Following her years in government service, she prioritized working with advocacy organizations that focused on equality for women and girls. Carol became CEO of Legal Momentum and President and CEO for the Equal Rights Amendment Coalition, where she continued anti-human trafficking and Equal Rights Amendment advocacy in New York State and Washington DC. Carol would also go on to be named Dean of Faculty at Hunter College, a fitting culmination to a decades-long career in public service.
Carol’s dedication was evident even during her student days at NYU Law, where she worked on the Review of Law and Social Change and with the Unemployment Action Center. She became president of the then-named Latinx Law Students Association, ensuring students had the support, visibility, and voice they needed on campus and in the profession. When those voices were overlooked, she participated in sit-ins and took her message national by helping form The National Law Students Association. Upon graduation, Carol received the Vanderbilt Medal for performing the highest level of service to the Law School, foreshadowing the incredible work she would do for vulnerable communities during her impressive career. She returned to NYU Law as an alumna to serve as president of the Black, Latinx, Asian and Pacific Law Alumni Association (now known as LACA) and a mentor through the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Center, modeling exceptional leadership behavior for NYU Law students eager to follow in her footsteps. Carol’s mark on NYU Law and New York City will be felt by generations of New Yorkers whose interests she tirelessly worked to represent.
The Carol Robles-Román ’89 Equal Justice Award
To honor her distinguished life and legacy, we are proud to announce the Carol Robles-Román ’89 Equal Justice Award. This award will be presented annually at graduation to a student like Carol, who the New York Daily News described as “principled, perfectionistic and passionate.” To be considered for this meaningful recognition, students must demonstrate a deep commitment to championing equal justice and diversity in the legal profession through meaningful advocacy work, either in a legal clinic and or public service and public interest roles during law school, and plan to enter public service or non-profit and community based legal advocacy upon graduation.
We hope all who respected her work, felt represented by it, and want to honor her legacy will make a gift as a tribute to all Carol fought for. Please consider making a contribution today to keep justice and equality at the forefront of legal education at NYU Law.