- 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

EmmaElizabeth Gonzalez
- 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

Lecture in Law
699 Exposition Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90089-0074 USA
Last Updated: August 24, 2020
In her role as directing attorney for the Consumer Unit at the Public Law Center, EmmaElizabeth Gonzalez focuses on areas of consumer and elder law, and directs three of PLC’s courthouse-based self-help clinics. She oversees PLC’s Federal Pro Se, Chapter 7 Bankruptcy and Bankruptcy Reaffirmation clinics for unrepresented individuals. Through her consumer work, Gonzalez litigates debt collection defense cases, student loan matters, elder financial abuse matters and various civil matters involving unfair business practices and fraud. Through her bankruptcy work, she prepares and files Chapter 7 bankruptcies for low-income debtors, and worked with pro bono counsel to litigate and obtain a published decision in Rivera v. Orange Cnty. Prob. Dep’t ((In re Rivera) (9th Cir. 2016) 832 F.3d 1103, 1104), which held that a debt arising out of the involuntary incarceration of a debtor’s minor child was not a domestic support obligation and thus was not excepted from discharge.
Prior to joining PLC, Gonzalez practiced labor and employment litigation at Loeb & Loeb LLP for three years. While at Loeb & Loeb, Gonzalez was a member of the team that was awarded the State Bar of California’s 2011 President’s Pro Bono Service Award for their work securing asylum for several clients.
Gonzalez graduated from the USC Gould School of Law in 2009, and was involved with PILF, LAAB, LLSA, and the Immigration Clinic while attending Gould. Since graduating, Gonzalez has been involved with PILF and Gould’s C. David Molina First Generation Professionals Program.
Before attending law school, Gonzalez spent five years working in development at the ACLU of Southern California and Manhattan Theatre Club, and two years working as a community organizer with Cornerstone Theater Company. Gonzalez completed her undergraduate degrees in philosophy and theater from the University of Southern California, where she was a member of the USC Trojan Marching Band and a McNair Scholar.
FACULTY IN THE NEWS
KPCC Take Two
January 13, 2021
Re: Franita Tolson
Franita Tolson was interviewed about Donald Trump's second impeachment proceedings. "Impeaching this quickly is a message that as a democracy, we cannot stand for what happened last week," she said.
RECENT SCHOLARSHIP
Felipe Jiménez
November, 2020
"Rethinking Contract Remedies," Oxford Jurisprudence Discussion Group, Oxford University, Oxford, UK.
Ariela Gross
November, 2020
“Mourning, Memory, and Metahistory,” English Language Notes (forthcoming 2021).
Ariela Gross
November, 2020
“Becoming Free, Becoming Black: Race, Freedom, and Law in Cuba, Virginia, and Louisiana,” Gilder Lehrman Center at Yale University Annual Conference on Cuban Slavery, Yale University, New Haven, CT.