Distinguished Lawyer, Author and Analyst Joyce Vance to Participate in Keynote Conversation at Northeastern Law’s Women in the Law Conference
09.15.2025 — Joyce White Vance, who served as US Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama during the Obama administration, will participate in a keynote conversation at the 18th annual Brown Forum for Women in the Law Conference on May 15, 2026. Vance is currently a Distinguished Professor of the Practice of Law at the University of Alabama School of Law and a fellow at the Brennan Center for Justice. She is also a legal analyst for MSNOW, and the author of the popular Civil Discourse newsletter. She co-hosts two podcasts, #SistersInLaw and Café.com’s Insider Podcast with Preet Bharara.
Vance’s first book, Giving Up Is Unforgivable: A Manual for Keeping a Democracy (Penguin Random House, 2025), is a clarion call to action, putting our current crisis in historical context and sketching out a vision for where we go next.
Vance’s service as US attorney for the Northern District of Alabama was the capstone of a 25-year career at the US Department Justice Department. She resigned the night before Donald Trump’s first inauguration. Before that, she was in private practice in both Washington, DC, and Birmingham, Alabama.
Vance is a 1985 graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law and a 1982 graduate of Bates College. She is married to retired Alabama Circuit Judge Robert S. Vance, Jr. They have four children, two dogs, four cats, and an undisclosed number of chickens. Vance knits a lot.
The Brown Forum for Women in the Law Conference is an annual dynamic gathering that draws women from every level of professional development and accomplishment, providing career guidance, unparalleled professional development advice, networking and inspiration. Women from across the country (and sometimes from other countries) join us every year for this special day dedicated to empowerment, enrichment and enlightenment. The 2026 conference, Elevate Your Voice, will feature dynamic and powerful speakers sharing how they elevate their voices to shape the legal field and beyond. Their journeys will offer perspective, comfort and inspiration — illuminating paths forward in both joyful and uncertain times and reminding us of the strength we find in one another.
About Northeastern University School of Law
The nation’s leader in experiential legal education since 1968, Northeastern University School of Law offers the longest-running, most extensive experience-based legal education program in the country. Northeastern guarantees its students unparalleled practical legal work experiences through its signature Cooperative Legal Education Program. More than 1,100 employers worldwide in a wide range of legal, government, nonprofit and business organizations participate in the program. With a focus on social justice and innovation, Northeastern University School of Law blends theory and practice, providing students with a unique set of skills and experiences to successfully practice law.
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