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Biography
B.S., University of Illinois
J.D., University of Michigan Law School

Professor Melissa L. Breger has been teaching at the law school level for 20+ years, first at The University of Michigan Law School and then at Albany Law School since 2002. Prior to teaching, Professor Breger dedicated her career to children, women and families, with her formative years practicing in New York City in a number of capacities.
She is the recipient of several teaching and service awards, both on a local level and on a national level, including the Shanara C. Gilbert Award in recognition of her excellence in teaching and contributions to the advancement of social justice from the American Association of Law Schools; the L. Hart Wright Excellence in Law Teaching Award from the University of Michigan Law School; and the 2016 Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching, 2018 Faculty Award for Excellence in Service, and 2019 Faculty Award for Excellence in Scholarship from Albany Law School. Professor Breger also received the Albany County Family Court Children’s Center Award “in recognition of her outstanding and tireless work assisting children and families in need and for her dedication to ensure that law students obtain the skills necessary to provide high quality and compassionate legal services to court litigants” in May 2008.
Professor Breger teaches a variety of courses at Albany Law School, including Evidence, Family Law, Criminal Procedure: Investigation (4th, 5th, 6th A), Gender & the Law, Children, Juveniles & the Law (hybrid online), Domestic Violence Seminar, and Children & the Law. She was the Director of the Family Violence Litigation Clinic from 2002 to 2010.
Professor Breger is the co-author of NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, a two-volume treatise published by Reuters-Thomson-West, as well as the author of numerous law review articles regarding issues of family law, gender, and justice. Her scholarly interests include the rights of children and families, gender and racial equality, procedural justice in the courtroom, juvenile justice, the increasing epidemic of child sexual trafficking, implicit bias, law and culture, family violence, and the intersections between psychology and the law.

Books

EXPLORING NORMS AND FAMILY LAWS ACROSS THE GLOBE (Lexington Books/Rowman-Littlefield, forthcoming 2021)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2018-19 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2018-19 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2017-18 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2016-17 (with Judge Elkins, Deseiree Kennedy and Jill Zuccardy) (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.)
New York Law of Domestic Violence, Cumulative Supplement 2015-16 (3rd ed.) Volumes 1 and 2 (published by Thomson-West-Reuters)
New York Law of Domestic Violence, Cumulative Supplement 2014 (co-authors Judge Elkins, Deseiree Kennedy, Jill Zuccardy)100228708
Breger, Kennedy, Zuccardy & Elkins NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (3d ed.) Volumes 1 and 2 (published by Thomson-West-Reuters) papers.cfm
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 2nd ed., (Thomson-West, 2007) (with Judge Lee Elkins and Jane Fosbinder)papers.cfm

Publications

Corporal Punishment, Social Norms and Norm Cascades: Examining Cross-National Laws and Trends in Homes Across the Globe, 26 William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender & Social Justice 483 (2020) (with Victor Asal, Lucy Sorensen, and Charmaine Willis)» Link to Publication
“Reforming by Re-Norming: How the Legal System Has the Potential to Change a Toxic Culture of Domestic Violence” in WOMEN AND THE LAW (Thomson Reuters 2019) (Tracy A. Thomas, ed.)» Link to Publication
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2018-19 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)
Making the Invisible Visible: Exploring Implicit Bias, Judicial Diversity, and the Bench Trial, 53 University of Richmond Law Review 1039 Link to publication
Re-Norming Sport for Inclusivity: How the Sport Community Has the Potential to Change a Toxic Culture of Harassment and Abuse, 13 Journal of Clinical Sport Psychology 274 (2019) (with Margery Holman and Michelle Guerrero)» Link to Publication
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2018-19 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)
Reforming by Re-Norming: How the Legal System Has the Potential to Change a Toxic Culture of Domestic Violence, 44 Notre Dame Journal of Legislation 170 (2017)Link to publication
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2017-18 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)
"Trauma in Sex-Trafficked Children" in HUMAN TRAFFICKING: EMERGING LEGAL ISSUES AND APPLICATIONS (Nora Cronin and Kimberly Ellis, eds.) (Lawyers & Judges Publishing Company, 2017)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2016-17 (with Judge Elkins, Deseiree Kennedy and Jill Zuccardy) (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed.)
Healing Sex-Trafficked Children: A Domestic Family Law Approach to an International Epidemic, 118 West Virginia Law Review 1131 (2016)papers.cfm
New York Law of Domestic Violence, Cumulative Supplement 2015-16 (3rd ed.) Volumes 1 and 2 (published by Thomson-West-Reuters)
Transforming Cultural Norms of Sexual Violence Against Women, 4(2) Journal of Research in Gender Studies 39 (2014). papers.cfm
New York Law of Domestic Violence, Cumulative Supplement 2014 (co-authors Judge Elkins, Deseiree Kennedy, Jill Zuccardy)100228708
From Kate Stoneman to Kate Stoneman Chair, Katheryn D. Katz: Feminist Waves and the First Domestic Violence Course at a United States Law School, 77 Albany Law Review 443 (2014) (with Mary A. Lynch)
Breger, Kennedy, Zuccardy & Elkins NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (3d ed.) Volumes 1 and 2 (published by Thomson-West-Reuters) papers.cfm
Transforming Our Cultural Norms and Deconstructing Sexual Violence against Women, Albany Law School Research Paper No. 4 for 2013-2014papers.cfm
The (In)Visibility of Gender and Motherhood in Family Court Proceedings, 36 NYU Review of Law & Social Change, 555, Fall 2012papers.cfm
Making Waves or Keeping the Calm?: Analyzing the Institutional Culture of Family Courts Through the Lens of Social Psychology Groupthink Theory, 34 Law & Psychol. Rev. 55 (2010)papers.cfm
Against the Dilution of a Child's Voice in Court, 20 Indiana International and Comparative Law Review 175 (2010)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE 2nd ed., (Thomson-West, 2007) (with Judge Lee Elkins and Jane Fosbinder)papers.cfm
Implementing a Jury Option in Family Violence Proceedings in FAMILY LAW: BALANCING INTERESTS AND PURSUING PRIORITIES 306 (Lynn D. Wardle & Camille S. Williams eds.) (2007) papers.cfm
Advancing the Future of Family Violence Law Pedagogy: The Founding of a Law School Clinic, 41 University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform 167 (2007) with Theresa Hughes
Introducing the Construct of the Jury into Family Violence Proceedings and Family Court Jurisprudence, 13 Michigan Journal of Gender & Law 1 (2006) papers.cfm
Co-author, 2006 CUMULATIVE SUPPLEMENT to NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (Thomson-West, 2006) (with Judge L. Elkins and J. Fosbinder)
Teaching Professionalism in Context: Insights from Students Clients, Adversaries and Judges, 55 South Carolina Law Review 304 (2003) (with Gina Calabrese and Theresa Hughes)papers.cfm
Building Pediatric Law Careers: The University of Michigan Law School Experience, 34 Family Law Quarterly 531 (2000) with S. Scarnecchia, F. Vandervort, and N. Woloshinpapers.cfm

Forthcoming Publications

Paddling the Pupils: The Legality (or Not) of Corporal Punishment in Schools (forthcoming) (with Victor Asal, Lucy Sorensen, and Charmaine Willis) » Link to Publication
EXPLORING NORMS AND FAMILY LAWS ACROSS THE GLOBE (Lexington Books/Rowman-Littlefield, forthcoming 2021)
NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, Cumulative Supplement 2019-20 (Thomson-West-Reuters, 3rd ed., forthcoming 2020) (with Judge Lee Elkins, Deseriee Kennedy and Jill M. Zuccardy)

Selected Achievements

Professor Melissa Breger was appointed to the New York State Bar Association's Committee on Children & the Law.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Stemming the Tide: Social Norms and Child Sex Trafficking" at Yeshiva University's Family Law Workshop on August 7, 2020. Breger also presented the work at the Law and Society Association (LSA) meeting in May 2020 as part of the Feminist Legal Theory panel The State and Violence: New Proposals for Stopping the Cycle.
Professor Melissa Breger has been selected as this year's co-recipient of the New York State Bar Association Committee on Children and the Law's Howard A. Levine Award for Excellence in Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare.
Professor Melissa Breger's work in progress "Stemming the Tide: Social Norms and Child Sex Trafficking" was accepted to be presented at the Law and Society Association (LSA) meeting in Denver, Colo., in May 2020.
Professor Melissa Breger chaired a scholarship panel (virtually) at the Law and Society Association meeting in May 2020 on State Power & the Lives of Children.
Professor Melissa Breger gave a presentation at Albany Leadership Charter High for Girls' Career Day on March 10, 2020. She spoke to the high school students about the law school experience.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Stemming the Tide: Social Norms and Child Sex Trafficking" at the Capital District Consortium Conference at Union College on February 7, 2020.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Implicit Bias in the Courtroom" at a CLE for the Capital District Trial Lawyers Association in October 2019.
Professor Melissa Breger's NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE was cited by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in Barrera v. Graham (January 2019).
Professor Melissa Breger's article "Reforming by Re-Norming: How the Legal System Has the Potential to Change a Toxic Culture of Domestic Violence" (44 Notre Dame Journal of Legislation) was selected to be reprinted in the 2019 Edition of WOMEN AND THE LAW (Thomson Reuters).
Professor Melissa Breger received Albany Law School's Excellence in Scholarship Award on May 24, 2019.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Making the Invisible Visible: Implicit Bias in Law and Society" at the firm Carter Conboy in Albany on May 15, 2019.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Making the Invisible Visible: Implicit Bias in Law and Society" to the New York State Department of Health attorneys at a CLE at the New York State Museum on April 16, 2019.
Professor Melissa Breger's co-authored treatise, NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, was cited by the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands in the decision Gayanich v. Gayanich.
Professor Melissa Breger moderated the panel "Investigation and Litigation" at the Albany Law Journal of Science and Technology's annual symposium, From Investigation to Incarceration: How Science and Technology Impact the Different Stages of the Criminal Justice System, on November 8, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger's treatise NEW YORK LAW OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE was cited in the Supreme Court of the Virgin Islands' opinion in Gayanich v. Gayanich.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Representing Children in Cases Involving Domestic Violence" at the Introduction to Effective Representation of Children CLE, presented by the Offices of Attorneys for Children, Appellate Division, Third and Fourth Judicial Departments in Latham, N.Y., on October 11, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger was reappointed to the Third Department's Office of Attorneys for Children Advisory Committee for a two-year term, effective August 1, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger presented at "Not so Blind Justice: Implicit Bias and the Legal System," a CLE presented by the Third Judicial District and others in Castleton-on-Hudson, N.Y., on June 13, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger presented her paper “Reforming by Re-Norming: How the Legal System Has the Potential to Change a Toxic Culture of Domestic Violence” as part of the Feminist Legal Theory Collaborative Research Network panel “Using Feminist Perspectives to Reform Tort and Criminal Law” at the Law and Society Association's Annual Meeting in Toronto, Canada, on June 8, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger delivered her remarks, "Motherhood Bias," while participating in a panel discussion of the book BLAMING MOTHERS: AMERICAN LAW AND THE RISKS TO CHILDREN'S HEALTH at the Law and Society Association's Annual Meeting in Toronto, Canada, on June 7, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger received the Faculty Award for Excellence in Service at Albany Law School's 167th Commencement on May 18, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger moderated the panel "Tackling Tough Cases and Complex Issues" for the Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department, Office of Attorneys for Children in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., on April 27, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger spoke at the film screening of "Very Young Girls" and panel discussion presented by the Sex Trafficking Committee of the Capital District Women's Bar Association and Albany Law School on February 22, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger gave a presentation on the trauma to young victims of sex trafficking for the Capital District Women’s Bar Association on December 18, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger presented “Child Sex Trafficking: Complex Trauma, Poly-Victimization and Linkages to Child Sexual Abuse” for the New York State Anti-Trafficking Coalition (NYSATC) in New York City on November 16, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger delivered a lecture at Bethlehem Central High School entitled “Human Trafficking: What Post-Millennials Should Know” for the Our Community, Our World series arranged by Students for Peace and Survival on October 26, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger presented “Representing Children in Cases Involving Domestic Violence” at a two-day CLE for the Office of Attorneys for Children—Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department in Latham, N.Y., on October 19, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger was invited to join the New York State Anti-Trafficking Coalition based in New York City. She will present to the coalition in June.
Professor Melissa Breger presented "Making the Invisible Visible: Analyzing Implicit Bias in the Courtroom" at Boston University on April 13, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger presented at the “Balancing the Scales of Justice: The Impact of Judicial Diversity” CLE sponsored by the Third Judicial District Gender Fairness Committee in Albany, N.Y. on March 31, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger was appointed to the New York State CLE Board by Chief Administrative Judge Lawrence Marks.
Professor Melissa Breger presented “How the Legal System Has the Potential to Change a Culture of Domestic Violence” at the conference “Domestic Violence Update: Where We Were, Where We Are Now, & the Work Ahead” at UB School of Law on November 18, 2016.
Professor Melissa Breger co-led a discussion on Anne Fadiman's book "The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down" at the University at Albany on October 27, 2016.
Professor Melissa Breger delivered a CLE for the Office of Attorneys for Children — Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department, on October 13, 2016, in Latham, N.Y. Presenters over the two-day Introduction to Effective Representation of Children training included Judge Garry, Judge Powers, Professor Mooney of Cornell Law, Gary Solomon of Legal Aid NYC, Dr. Schockmel and others. Professor Breger’s segment was entitled "Representing Children in Cases Involving Domestic Violence."
Professor Melissa Breger was reappointed for a two-year term as a member of the Appellate Division, Third Judicial Department’s Office of Attorneys for Children Advisory Committee. The reappointment commences August 1, 2016.
Professor Melissa Breger was a panelist at the "Human Trafficking: An Upstate Perspective" CLE at Albany Law School on June 16, 2016.
Professor Melissa Breger received Albany Law School's Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching on May 20, 2016.
Professor Melissa Breger presented “Implicit Bias: Making the Invisible Visible” at the law firm of Barclay Damon on April 7, 2016. Her lecture was webcast to the firm's attorneys and staff members nationwide.
Professor Melissa Breger presented “How the Legal System Has the Potential to Change a Culture of Domestic Violence” at Boston University on March 24, 2016.
Professor Melissa Breger was invited to join the Editorial Advisory Board for a new journal being launched through Addleton Academic Publishers entitled Sociology and Social Work.
Professor Melissa Breger was invited to review and critique a manuscript for inclusion in the open access journal LAWS, published quarterly by MDPI in Basel, Switzerland.
Professor Melissa Breger's works were cited in eight statutes (two in Michigan, six in New York) in 2015.
Professor Melissa Breger organized the interdisciplinary conference "Domestic Violence Update: Where We Were, Where We Are Now, and the Work Ahead” and presented a paper for the conference at Albany Law School on October 23, 2015.
Professor Melissa Breger is quoted in footnote 8 of the United States v. Ray, No. 14-2159 (6th Cir. 2015).
Professor Melissa Breger presented a CLE for the Appellate Division, Third Department Office of Attorneys for Children in September 2015.
Professor Melissa Breger presented at the conference "Combatting Slavery in the 21st Century" at the United Nations on April 9, 2014.
Professor Melissa Breger presented her research “Healing the Wounds of Children Sexually Trafficked Internationally by Examining Strategies for Family Violence Prevention Domestically” at the International Society of Family Law (ISFL) Conference held at Brooklyn Law School from June 6 through 9, 2013.
NYS COLLATERAL CONSEQUENCES OF CRIMINAL CHARGES (website)
Website designed, Columbia Law School Clinic, NYC, Fall 2005
Project launched, State of Judiciary Address, Albany, February 2006
Next colloquium, State Judicial Institute, White Plains, June 2006

In the News

Professor Melissa Breger was quoted in the article, "Emerging activist in Saratoga Springs understands juvenile detention system from the inside," in the Schenectady Gazette on July 26, 2020.
Professor Melissa Breger was quoted in the Schenectady Gazette article, "Lawsuit alleges minor-against-minor abuse from late-1970s; Niskayuna schools a defendant," on Jan. 29, 2020.
Professor Melissa Breger was quoted in the Times Union article "Other states offer glimpse of ways NY's abuse cases could play out" on August 26, 2019.
Professor Melissa Breger's co-authored article "School spankings are banned just about everywhere around the world except in US" was published in the Conversation and syndicated by major media outlets nationwide on July 31, 2019.
Professor Melissa Breger was mentioned for her work with the NYS CLE Board in the New York Law Journal article “Changes to State CLE Requirements Now Include Diversity, Inclusion and Elimination of Bias” on March 23, 2018.
Professors Melissa Breger and Mary A. Lynch, Kate Stoneman Chair in Law and Democracy, were quoted in the All Over Albany article "No precedent: The life of Kate Stoneman" on March 21, 2018. The article was authored by 2L Justin Devendorf.
Professor Melissa Breger was quoted in the Altamont Enterprise article "Sex trafficking is here, largely fueled by social media" on February 27, 2018.
Professor Melissa Breger was quoted in Crixeo's National Human Trafficking Awareness Day article, "Human Trafficking: 5 Important Things You Should Know," on January 11, 2018.
Professors Melissa Breger and Donna Young spoke with News 10 ABC for the segment “Teaching about harassment in the workplace,” which centered on students’ interest in learning about the laws governing sexual harassment, on November 29, 2017.
Professor Melissa Breger joined "The Capitol Pressroom" for a roundtable on human trafficking on June 15, 2016.

Melissa Breger

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