By Andrew Cohen
Nicole Ries ’09 is one of only four applicants to receive the coveted Bristow Fellowship, awarded annually by the U.S. Department of Justice.
Bristow Fellows work for one year in the Office of the Solicitor General in Washington, D.C. They draft briefs in opposition to certiorari filed against the government in the U.S. Supreme Court, and prepare recommendations to the Solicitor General regarding authorization of government appeals in the lower courts.
Ries will also help prepare petitions for certiorari and briefs on the merits in Supreme Court cases, work on special projects, and assist the Solicitor General and other staff lawyers in preparing oral arguments in the Supreme Court.
A litigation attorney at the Los Angeles office of Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP, Ries spent her first year after graduating from Berkeley Law as a law clerk to U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Judge William A. Fletcher.
It marks the second consecutive year that a Berkeley Law graduate received a Bristow Fellowship. She follows Gerry Sinzdak ‘08, who will begin clerking for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg later this year.
“I learned about the program through Gerry,” Ries said. “He was my Academic Support Program tutor in my first-year Contracts class, and an exceptional source of guidance throughout my time at Berkeley Law. It’s a special honor to be following in his footsteps.”