2024-2025 Executive Board
President, Evan Ortiz (J.D. ’26)
Evan Ortiz (he/they) is from Houston, Texas. In undergrad, he studied Government and Political Communications at the University of Texas at Austin (ask them about Bevo, please). Before law school, Evan worked in Accounts Receivables at a law firm and was a speech instructor at his alma mater (he really loves UT). In their first year, Evan was a 1L Rep for OutLaw and First-Generation Professionals. He also served on the Curriculum Committee with the Duke Bar Association. Evan also competed in all three interscholastic 1L competitions: Transactional Law Competition, Mock Trial, and Moot Court. Last summer, Evan interned at Baker Botts in Houston as a Rufus Cormier Diversity Fellow. Evan’s favorite LGBTQ+ artist is Björk! Evan loves Stephen King horror novels and baking cookies. His favorite music genre is intelligent dance music.
Vice President, Scott Tompetrini (J.D. ’26)
Scott Tompetrini (he/him) is originally from Wyckoff, NJ. During undergrad, he studied Government and History at the College of William & Mary. Before law school, he worked as a grant writer for a grant consulting firm in New York State. At Duke, Scott is involved with Outlaw and the Human Rights Pro Bono Program. During the summer of 2024, Scott worked as a legal intern at the U.S. Department of Transportation in Washington DC, and next summer he will be working as a summer associate for Freshfields in their New York office. Outside of law school Scott enjoys trip planning, trashy reality tv, museum hopping, and watching sports. Scott’s queer icon is currently Tinashe, and his favorite music genre is R&B.
Director of Communications, Olive Roerich (J.D. ’26)
Olive Roerich (she/her) is from Oxnard, California. She pursued her undergraduate education at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in International Relations and minoring in Philosophy. During her time there, Olive was an Americorps member and was a volunteer counselor on a sexual assault hotline. Before attending law school, Olive took a gap year to explore the themes of death and life. She trained as a death doula in Cincinnati, Ohio, and worked as a farmhand in Northern Germany to explore these subjects. Currently, alongside her involvement in Outlaw, she serves as the Vice President of the Duke Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild. During the summer of 2024, Olive worked as a research assistant at the Wilson Center for Science and Justice. In the upcoming summer, she will be a summer associate at Gibson Dunn in New York. Olive’s favorite LGBTQ+ movie is Moonlight, and she enjoys hyperpop as her favorite music genre. In her leisure time, she enjoys flower arranging, playing pickleball, and watching cult documentaries.
Director of Finance, Jared Danaher (J.D. ’26)
Jared Danaher (he/him) is from Fayetteville, North Carolina and attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he studied history and philosophy. At Duke, he is involved with Mock Trial, Moot Court, and the Competition Law Society in addition to OutLaw. In his free time he enjoys working out, listening to alternative music, and watching movies. His favorite LGBT pop culture item is Call Me By Your Name.
Director of Advocacy, Suresh Hanubal (J.D. ’26)
Suresh Hanubal (he/him) is from Washingtonville, New York. He went to Fordham University for undergrad and majored in International Political Economy. He was a crisis management consultant before law school at Akin, a multinational consulting firm. Currently, he is the President of NLG, the Vice President of Communications of ACS, and part of SALSA. The summer of 2024 he worked as a Law Clerk at IDEXX in Portland, ME. Next summer, he will be at Dechert in NYC. His favorite LGBTQ+ piece of media is Call Me by Your Name and his favorite genre of music is Indie Pop.
Director of Outreach, Brendan Genaw (J.D. ’26)
Brendan Genaw(he/him) grew up in Canton, Michigan and attended the University of Michigan where he studied Biology. Prior to law school, he worked in public health addressing malaria interventions and polio outbreaks in West Africa. He later took a job helping entrepreneurs actualize their concepts and launch their ideas. At Duke, Brendan is involved in the Clemency Project, the Innocence Project, and IPLS. Last summer, he interned at the Orleans Public Defenders. Outside of law school, Brendan enjoys running, trying new beers, wailing off key at karaoke, hiking, and camping. His favorite LGBTQ+ icon is Freddie Mercury.
Co-Director of Professional Development (Law Firm), Leo Zhu (J.D. ’26)
Leo Zhu (he/him) is from Warren, NJ. Leo graduated from New York University in 2023. In undergrad, he was involved in the NYU Undergraduate Law Review and interned for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Leo is interested in private equity law and worked in-house as a capital markets and securities intern in New York the summer of 2024. At Duke, Leo is involved in the Duke Bar Association, the Business Law Society, APALSA, and OutLaw. He loves playing pickleball, taking walks, and listening to music (he even wears AirPods in the shower). Leo’s favorite genre of music is reggaeton.
Co-Director of Professional Development (Law Firm), Roderick Mullen (J.D. ’26)
Roderick Mullen (he/him), is a rising 2L at Duke. He is from Houston, TX, but I currently lives in Chicago. He went to undergrad at Harvard, where he studied Government and Spanish. Before law school, he worked in immigration law as a Project Assistant at Sidley Austin in Chicago. Last summer, he returned to Chicago and is a 1L summer associate at White and Case. At Duke Law, he is a part of the Black Law Students Association, the Business Law Society, First Class, and the Dean’s Advisory Council. His favorite LGBT-related piece of media is Renaissance by Beyonce. In fact, he is a huge fan of all things Beyonce, and can recite most, if not all, of her songs word for word. Relatedly, his favorite genre of music is R&B. In his free time, he enjoys singing R&B music, playing volleyball, or lifting in the gym. He is super excited for the year ahead and to get to serve his OutLaw community!
Director of Professional Development (GPI), Claudia Modarelli (J.D. ’26)
Claudia Modarelli (she/he/they) is from Tacoma, Washington. In undergrad, she studied history and Spanish at the University of Washington in Seattle, where her studies focused on queer and trans history in 20th century America. At Duke, Claudia is involved with Duke Immigrant & Refugee project, having served as a 1L Representative and pro bono volunteer, and will one of DIRP’s Pro Bono Directors this upcoming school year. Last summer, she went back to her hometown interning at Northwest Immigrant Rights Project on their Detained Immigrant Advocates team. Claudia’s favorite LGBTQ+ book is Fun Home by Alison Bechdel, and her favorite LGBTQ+ artist is Sleater-Kinney. Claudia loves cooking and going to breweries, and is getting into running. Her favorite genre is indie rock.
Director of Service & Pro Bono, Rasa Kerelis (J.D. ’26)
Rasa Kerelis (she/they) is from Chicago, IL. Prior to law school, Rasa worked at Morningstar as a financial research analyst. Rasa graduated from Northwestern University with a Political Science major and Classics minor, rowed for the Northwestern Crew Team, was a member of Northwestern’s Political Union, and conducted research on the European Union. At Duke, Rasa is also a member of the Moot Court Board and works with DAAP pro-bono. Last summer, Rasa worked at the Securities & Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C. and hopes to pursue a career in corporate law. They love the outdoors, cooking (aka: feeding people), gender-bending queer spaces, Lithuania, and embracing her inner gremlin. Her most-frequented genres of music are lo-fi beats, Stravinsky, and anything you’d listen to while sitting around a bonfire.
3L Representative, Justin Fiszer (J.D. ’25)
Justin Fiszer (he/him) is from Randolph, NJ. In undergrad, he studied Human Rights at Columbia University and Jewish Thought at the Jewish Theological Seminary. Before law school, he worked as a paralegal at Ropes & Gray and Onex Credit Partners in NYC. Justin was the VP of Religious Education for the Jewish Law Students Association and a former 1L Rep in the Business Law Society. Justin is spending his 2L summer as a summer associate at Debevoise and Plimpton. Justin’s favorite LGBTQ+ book is The Velvet Rage and he loves dancing, his motorcycle, and is a staunch defender of Apple Pages. His favorite genre is country music.
3L Representative, Jillian Baggett (J.D. ’25)
Jillian Baggett (she/her) is from Victor, New York and went to undergrad at Tulane University to study biomedical engineering and computer science. In undergrad, she was involved in Tau Beta Pi, Theta Tau Engineering Fraternity, and several design teams. She’s interested in patent litigation and prosecution, and will be worked at an IP firm in Atlanta last summer. At Duke she is involved with Outlaw, DIRP, and Duke Law and Tech Society. Her LGTBQ+ icon is Lauren Sanderson and her non-law related interests are running, roller skating, and hiking!
Faculty Advisor
Elana Fogel
Elana R. Fogel is an assistant clinical professor and the inaugural director of Duke Law’s Criminal Defense Clinic. She joined the Duke Law faculty in July from Federal Defenders of San Diego, where she was a trial attorney representing indigent persons accused of criminal offenses in federal court. She has practiced law at both the state and federal level. Before joining Federal Defenders in 2017, Fogel was a post-graduate fellow at Harvard’s Criminal Justice Policy Program, where her work included advocating for oversight and transparency in the use of emerging science and technologies in policing and data-driven approaches to combating mass incarceration. Prior to that, she was a public defender at the Committee for Public Counsel Services in Boston. Fogel earned her bachelor’s degree in politics from New York University, where she was a member of the women’s basketball team and all-academic team honoree. She received her JD from NYU School of Law, where she was a Root-Tilden-Kern Lindemann Family Public Service Scholar and worked at the Bronx Defenders and the American Civil Liberties Union’s Initiative to Combat Mass Incarceration.
