NJ Supreme Court Justice Michael Noriega speaks at Latinx Pre-Law Society networking event
Photo: Andrew Hawthorne
The Latinx Pre-Law society held their second annual spring reception Saturday, featuring a speech from New Jersey Supreme Court Justice and Rutgers alumni Michael Noriega.
The event also served as a networking opportunity, where invited students, faculty, and professionals could meet and make connections.
In his speech, Justice Noriega spoke about his family history and journey through New Jersey law. Noriega also discussed the idea of imposter syndrome, telling students not to second guess their abilities and to trust their successes.
“If the fear is there, you’re probably exactly where you’re supposed to be, because growth doesn’t happen where you’re comfortable. It happens in the space where you think ‘I don’t know if I can do this’, and then you do it anyway,” Noriega told students. “When that feeling shows up – and it will – I don’t want you to shrink, I don’t want you to step back, and I want you to recognize it for what it is. Not a warning that you don’t belong, but evidence that you’re stepping into something bigger.”
After his remarks, WRSU interviewed Noriega about his career, as well as his advice to law and pre-law students. As a former immigration lawyer and immigration law expert, Noriega also discussed the concerns students feel around immigration enforcement coming to campus, and what role the law can play in that issue.
The full interview with Justice Noriega can be found here:
Latinx Pre-Law Society President Isabella Terricina told WRSU the event was the culmination of weeks of community outreach to create a space for students to make meaningful connections with professionals in the community, and with each other.
Terricina said she resonated with Noriega’s advice for students to reach out and find a community to help them succeed, and said she hoped the event would inspire the same kind of community-building.
“I thought [Noriega’s speech] echoed the sentiment that a lot of us feel,” Terracina said. “So often, we do feel like imposters in the legal field, and we really need spaces like this on campus, and also beyond it, to really prove that we aren’t imposters and to rise to reach the achievements we’re all striving for.”