Joseph A. Rosenberg, Professor, Co-Directs the Disability & Aging Justice Clinic in Main Street Legal Services, CUNY Law’s clinical program. Joe has also recently taught first Lawyering Seminar and electives in Technology & Law and Planning with Undocumented Parents (planningwithparents.commons.gc.cuny.edu). Joe served as Senior Associate Dean for Clinical Programs from 2012-2016. Joe supervised CUNY Law’s first group of pro bono scholars in the Spring of 2016, where they did housing work as part of a joint project with Queens Legal Services. Joe is a member of the CUNY-wide and law school Committees on Academic Technology, on which he currently serves as Chair.

Joe was a member of CUNY Law’s inaugural class in 1986. After graduation, he worked as a staff attorney for the Legal Aid Society of Northeastern New York, specializing in government benefits, health law, and family law. He was co-author of the practice treatise New York Elder Law from 1999-2019. His law review articles have explored adult guardianships and the vulnerable elderly, using online instruction to teach lawyering skills, supplemental needs trusts for people with disabilities, and professional responsibility issues in elder law practice.

Joe’s current research is focused on “writing for the digital reader” and the role of anti-racism, mindfulness, and technology in the law school curriculum. In Joe’s clinical work, two main areas of focus are adult guardianship litigation, including representing individuals who want to restore their freedom by discharging their court-appointed guardian, and “lawyering in the digital age.” In 2015, when New York State was considering whether to adopt the Uniform Bar Exam, Joe testified in favor of an alternative to the bar exam based on a diploma privilege model and provided written testimony. Joe previously served on the Board of Directors of Queens Legal Services and is a member of the Elder Law Section of the New York State Bar Association.

Why I Teach at CUNY Law

“I teach at CUNY School of Law not only because of our social justice and access missions, but because we are a leader in the law school experiential learning movement and continue to aspire to be an alternative to the competitive and hierarchical environment that is the norm at many law schools.”

Contact

Email
rosenberg@law.cuny.edu
Phone
718-340-4375
Office
5-307

Featured Work

Curriculum Vitae