Dr. Risa Kaufman

Biography

Risa Kaufman is an adjunct professor at New York University School of Law and serves as the Director of Human Rights at the Overbrook Foundation. Her expertise lies in the intersection of human rights and social justice lawyering within the United States. Kaufman's courses focus on the relevance of the human rights framework to enhance U.S. advocacy for human rights. She explores how American lawyers can engage with international human rights mechanisms to address various issues such as police violence, immigration detention, housing rights, and reproductive justice. Throughout her career, Kaufman has emphasized the importance of collaboration with communities impacted by human rights violations and examines strategies to incorporate human rights discourse into domestic legal practices. She has a strong academic background, having graduated cum laude from New York University School of Law with a JD in 1997 and summa cum laude from Tulane University with a BA in Political Science and Women's Studies in 1994.

Research Interests