Among the first of its kind in the nation, the BU Program on Reproductive Justice (BUPRJ) is a groundbreaking, interdisciplinary program housed in Boston University School of Law and focused on advancing the conversation about reproductive justice. If you are a JD student whose passions lie in this critical area of the law, the BUPRJ will provide you with a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in the coursework, research, and experiential education that will prepare you to address the complex issues and challenges before the legal profession in the wake of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization (2022).
Co-directors of the Program
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Aziza Ahmed
Professor of Law
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Nicole Huberfeld
Edward R. Utley Professor of Health Law, BU School of Law and BU School of Public Health
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Linda McClain
Robert Kent Professor of Law
Reproductive Justice and Rights Track
The Reproductive Justice and Rights Track is an offering within the Health Law Concentration. This track will prepare law students to address issues of reproductive rights and justice in practice through advocacy and policy work for nonprofit organizations, state legislatures, federal and state agencies, and law firm practice groups. The approval of a concentration advisor is required. Laura Stephens is the faculty advisor for the Health Law concentration, and Aziza Ahmed, Nicole Huberfeld, and Linda C. McClain serve as faculty advisors for the Reproductive Justice concentration. 19 credits required. Learn about summer funding opportunities for student work in reproductive justice and rights.
Affiliated Faculty
Latest News
- Reclaiming Abortion as a Moral—and Religious—DecisionLinda McClain pens a review essay.
- Trump’s Executive Order on IVF: Here’s What It Does and Doesn’t DoAziza Ahmed is quoted.
- Fried Frank Team Files Amicus Brief with North Dakota Supreme Court Arguing Right to Abortion Care Flows from State Constitutional Right to Self-DefenseLinda McClain co-authors an amicus brief.
- Banning Trans Health Care Puts Young People at Risk of HarmAziza Ahmed co-authors an opinion.
- What Does Donald Trump’s Election Mean For…Linda McClain is quoted.
- While Republicans are downplaying abortion ahead of November, Democrats are leaning in on the issueProfessors Huberfeld and McClain co-author an article.
- Abortion Restrictions Worsen Racial Inequities in Maternal CareAziza Ahmed pens an opinion.
- Abortion Rights State Laws Banning Abortion Linked to Increases in Mental Health IssuesGordon Burtch is interviewed.
Past Events
Student Testimonials

Kayla Walker (’21)
“Supporting asylum seekers’ efforts to fight for their right to medical autonomy while in BU’s Immigrants’ Rights and Human Trafficking Clinic exposed me to the norm of medical neglect and prioritization of profit over basic treatment in immigration detention. Now, as a border attorney for detained asylum seekers, I see daily how the violence of detention and the threat of deportation work together to disempower immigrants from making decisions about their own bodies, and I work with my clients to create a world in which their choice to seek safety is respected.”
Carmen Alvarado-Hernandez
“I was able to win asylum for a client and her young child. This was life changing for her because it afforded her a pathway to citizenship, access to benefits, and hope for her future.”

Madeline Comer (’25)
“Working at the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center was a way to come full circle in my own life and work. I’m really grateful for the financial support of my work at BARCC and of BUPRJ’s support for reproductive justice more broadly. This is a really important area to be focusing on right now. A lot of really awful things are happening right now, and it’s on people with resources and power—like BU alumni—to make concrete action happen.”
Deanna Tamborelli (‘20)
“We successfully applied for a T Visa for one of my clients which resulted in her ability to remain in the United States and to work here legally. If she so chose, she could also apply to bring her children to the US to join her. We also put together a webinar and presented at a CLE on Massachusetts’s vacatur law for survivors of trafficking–which has the potential to impact many survivors in the future by giving them an avenue to have victim-related crimes vacated from their criminal records.”
Shannon Gonick
“Reproductive Rights & Justice (RRJ) was one of my favorite courses at BU Law — and it directly prepared me for a research project as a 2L summer associate! I studied nascent reproductive health shield laws as part of a group project in RRJ, specifically considering the extent to which they could facilitate telehealth prescribing of abortion pills across states with different abortion laws. During my subsequent summer associate position, I summarized every shield law enacted across the United States and identified common legislative trends to help inform healthcare clients of how these new statutes may protect people who lawfully participate in abortion care in a given state from liability imposed by other states where the activity would not be legal. The RRJ group project perfectly prepared me to work on this project, which involved tracking down recently enacted shield laws, analyzing their statutory language, and understanding how they strive to protect healthcare providers, patients, and other individuals from out-of-state criminal, civil, and professional liability for abortion care.”