- About
About USC Gould
USC Gould is a top-ranked law school with a 120-year history and reputation for academic excellence. We are located on the beautiful 228-acre USC University Park Campus, just south of downtown Los Angeles.
- Academics
Academics
Learn about our interdisciplinary curriculum, experiential learning opportunities and specialized areas.
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- Admissions
Admissions
USC Gould helps prepare you for a stellar legal career. You can pursue a JD degree, one of our numerous graduate and international offerings, or an online degree or certificate.
- Students
Students
Participate in an unparalleled learning experience with diversity of people and thought. Get involved in the law school community and participate in activities that enhance your studies.
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- Careers
Careers
We work closely with students, graduates and employers to support successful career goals and outcomes. Our overall placement rate is consistently strong, with 94 percent of our JD class employed within 10 months after graduation.
- Faculty
Faculty
Our faculty is distinguished for its scholarship, as well as for its commitment to teaching. Our 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio creates an intimate and collegial learning environment.
- Alumni and Giving
Alumni and Giving
The global Trojan network of more than 10,000 law alumni and donors include recognized leaders in numerous fields who are deeply committed to supporting student and law school success.
- Admissions

Rakel P Larson
- FACULTY DIRECTORY
- LECTURERS IN LAW DIRECTORY
- EXPERTS DIRECTORY
- FACULTY IN THE NEWS
- SCHOLARSHIP AND PUBLICATIONS
- DISTINCTIONS AND AWARDS
- + CENTERS AND INITIATIVES
- CENTER FOR LAW AND PHILOSOPHY (CLP)
- CENTER FOR LAW AND SOCIAL SCIENCE (CLASS)
- CENTER FOR LAW, HISTORY AND CULTURE (CLHC)
- CENTER FOR TRANSNATIONAL LAW AND BUSINESS (CTLB)
- INITIATIVE AND REFERENDUM INSTITUTE (IRI)
- PACIFIC CENTER FOR HEALTH POLICY AND ETHICS
- SAKS INSTITUTE FOR MENTAL HEALTH LAW, POLICY, AND ETHICS
- + WORKSHOPS AND CONFERENCES

Visiting Assistant Professor of Law
699 Exposition Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90089-0074 USA
Last Updated: July 5, 2018
Rakel Larson is a visiting assistant professor teaching Psychology and Law in the USC Gould School of Law. She received her MS in Child Development from the University of California, Davis and her PhD in Psychology from the University of California, Riverside. Her research examines factors that influence witness participation in the criminal justice process (e.g., perceptions of procedural justice), eyewitness memory, and forensic interview techniques for eliciting reliable and high quality memory reports from both children and adults. The work addresses issues affecting historically underrepresented groups, such as ethnic minorities, individuals with histories of trauma (e.g., child maltreatment), and those from economically disadvantaged environments. The research has implications for theory, public policy, and practice with victims and witnesses of crime.
FACULTY IN THE NEWS
The Guardian
March 3, 2021
Re: Jody David Armour
Jody Armour was interviewed about the lack of change in the LAPD thirty years after the savage assault on Rodney King. "So many activists are calling for defunding the police because the changes that have occurred in cosmetics have not made real changes in how many Angelenos and marginalized communities are experiencing policing," he said.
RECENT SCHOLARSHIP
Thomas D. Lyon
January, 2021
“Understanding expert testimony on child sexual abuse denial after New Jersey v. J.L.G.: Ground truth, disclosure suspicion bias, and disclosure substantiation bias,” (with Shanna Williams & Stacia N. Stolzenberg) Behavioral Sciences & the Law 38 (2020).
Daniel Klerman
January, 2021
“Choice of Law and the Art World” (with Anja Shortland), The Global Law Market (conference), CEGLA Center, Tel Aviv University.
Daniel Klerman
January, 2021
“Art Theft and the Art Loss Register: Law, Norms & Institutions” (with Anja Shortland), Departmental Seminar, Economics Subject Group, Management School, Queens University Belfast.