Hofstra Law Alumna Sandra J. Vrejan '95 Recalls a "Thoughtful" and "Brilliant" Sotomayor

Hofstra Law School, Hempstead, N.Y. — In the coming weeks, Sonia Sotomayor will hear her first case as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice.  Making history as the nation’s first Hispanic justice on the Court, Sotomayor’s swearing-in ceremony was watched by millions worldwide.  One young woman was especially touched.

While a student at Hofstra Law School, Sandra J. Vrejan '95 interned for then federal district judge for the Southern District of New York Sonia Sotomayor.  More than a decade later, Vrejan celebrates Sotomayor’s rise to the nation’s highest court and treasures her time with the distinguished justice.

“I recall distinctly that Justice Sotomayor was thoughtful and brilliant but at the same time, she did not take herself too seriously,” said Vrejan, now a partner in Morgan Lewis’s Business and Finance Practice.  "Justice Sotomayor served as a role model and mentor to me.  She was warm and engaging and took mentoring seriously.  No matter who crossed her path, from the simplest person to the most celebrated, it was palpable that Justice Sotomayor took a genuine interest in that person."

Vrejan’s clerkship with Sotomayor enhanced her experience at Hofstra Law School, which she described as "intellectually stimulating.  The Hofstra Law faculty taught me how to communicate complicated information simply and how to think critically," she said. 

While a student at Hofstra Law, Vrejan served as Articles Editor of the Hofstra Law Review and she won awards for "Excellence" in Bankruptcy Law and Commercial Law.  She is fluent in French and Spanish.

Vrejan credits her success to the rigorous training she received at Hofstra.  Today, she focuses her practice on a broad range of domestic and international commercial finance, secured transactions and financial restructurings.  Vrejan is admitted to the Bars of Massachusetts, New York and Washington, D.C.

Prior to her work at Morgan Lewis, Vrejan was a partner and member of the Financial Institutions Group at Bingham McCutchen.  After graduating from Hofstra Law, she was a Law Clerk for The Honorable James B. Haines, Jr., U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Maine.

Vrejan has been cited by former President Bill Clinton for her pro bono accomplishments in political asylum cases.  Vrejan also holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston University.