UC College of Law Assistant Dean Named President-Elect of the National Association for Law Placement

Mina Jones Jefferson, assistant dean and director of the Center for Professional Development at the University of Cincinnati College of Law, has been named president-elect of the National Association for Law Placement (NALP), an association of over 2,500 legal career professionals dedicated to facilitating legal career counseling and planning; recruitment and retention; and the professional development of law students and lawyers. The 44-year-old organization advises law students, lawyers, law offices and law schools across North America and beyond.

Jefferson was recognized as president-elect at the NALP annual conference in Chicago in April 2015. Her term includes service as president-elect in 2015-16, president in 2016-2017 and immediate past president in 2017-2018.

“This is a wonderful and well-deserved honor for Dean Jefferson that reflects the high esteem in which she is held by her peers across the country,” said College of Law Dean Louis D. Bilionis. “As the legal profession continues to experience major change, it needs strong leaders – and Mina is a great leader in the field.”

“It’s a privilege to have a leadership role with the preeminent organization for legal career professionals,” said Jefferson. “I look forward to advancing the initiatives identified in NALP’s strategic plan and upholding its foundational beliefs that law students and lawyers should benefit from a fair and ethical hiring process; that law students and lawyers are more successful when supported by professional development and legal career professionals; and that a diverse and inclusive legal profession best serves clients and our communities.”

Jefferson, a University of Cincinnati College of Law graduate, has a strong background in the legal hiring field. As a former hiring partner at a National Law Journal Top 250 law firm, she is one of the few law school career services professionals in the country who has worked on both sides of the table. She practiced commercial litigation for almost a decade and was one of the first African-American women in the region elected to partnership at a large firm.

A published author, Jefferson writes on the topic of careers and professional development for numerous legal publications and is a sought after speaker on the topic of professionalism. She has also taught ethics courses at the college, as well as the legal extern course.

Active in the community, she currently serves on the Steering Committee for the Cincinnati Academy of Leadership for Lawyers (CALL).  Jefferson, a former co-director of the Law & Leadership Institute at the College, also served — by appointment — on the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Continuing Legal Education Committee. Additionally she has been a member of the board of the Legal Aid Society of Greater Cincinnati, Children’s Law Center, ProKids and the Cincinnati Bar Foundation.