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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.
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Academics
Learn about our interdisciplinary curriculum, experiential learning opportunities and specialized areas.
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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.
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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
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.
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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.
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Jonathan Paz
USC Gould School of Law
- FACULTY DIRECTORY
- LECTURERS IN LAW DIRECTORY
- EXPERTS DIRECTORY
- FACULTY IN THE NEWS
- SCHOLARSHIP AND PUBLICATIONS
- DISTINCTIONS AND AWARDS
- + CENTERS AND INITIATIVES
- CENTER FOR DISPUTE RESOLUTION
- 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

Lecturer in Law
Email: jpaz@law.usc.edu699 Exposition Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90089-0074 USA
Last Updated: August 28, 2019
Jonathan Paz is currently practicing criminal and immigration law in private practice. Previously, he spent almost five years at the Orange County Public Defender's Office, trying cases for indigent clients on the full spectrum of criminal charges. His client-centered and hard-charging approach earned him the respect of clients, colleagues and judges. There was hardly a day that Paz was not involved in a jury trial, bench trial or motion hearing to protect his client's rights. While representing juveniles, he won numerous bench verdicts on cases where his clients were charged with felonies and strikes, both of which would have ended their futures before they began. He was later assigned to handle felony preliminary hearings where he scrutinized every element from the prosecution's witnesses in uphill battles to prove a lack of probable cause.
Paz earned his BA in sociology from the University of California, Berkeley, and his JD from the USC Gould School of Law.
FACULTY IN THE NEWS
Bloomberg Tax
January 18, 2023
Re: Michael Simkovic
Michael Simkovic recently discussed how many crypto firms are working to reorganize after the economic market downturns. “Cryptocurrency firms basically have to answer the question, ‘What is the value that they provide that existing financial institutions cannot provide just as well,’” Simkovic said.
RECENT SCHOLARSHIP
Robin Craig
December, 2022
"Climate Adaptation in the United States," 9 Frontiers in Marine Science, Special Topic: Ocean Governance and Climate Adaptation: Comparing Responses, Charting Future Courses (2022).
Scott Altman
December, 2022
"Why Parents' Interests Matter," 133 Ethics 271 (Forthcoming 2023).
Jonathan Barnett
December, 2022
"The China Innovation Challenge," Center for Strategic & International Studies, Washington, D.C., December 9, 2022.