Rate My Professor Thiadora Pina

Thiadora A. Pina is Clinical Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence at Santa Clara University School of Law. She earned a B.A. magna cum laude from the University of Massachusetts Amherst and a J.D. from Boston University School of Law. Before entering academia, Pina practiced civil litigation for over 11 years in Boston, concentrating on insurance, healthcare, and personal bankruptcy law, with regular appearances in state and federal courts. She joined Santa Clara Law in 2012 as Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Assistant Director of the Externship Program, advancing to Clinical Professor and Director of the Externship Program. In 2023, she was appointed the inaugural Senior Director for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to lead implementation of DEI goals, including boosting enrollment, retention, and success for underrepresented students and faculty, as well as recruiting diverse educators and advancing anti-racism and restorative-justice initiatives.

Pina directs the mandatory first-year Critical Lawyering Skills Seminar, which earned Santa Clara Law the 2023 American Bar Association E. Smythe Gambrell Professionalism Award, with Pina commended as lead author of its core text, Essential Lawyering Skills: A Companion Guide to Neil W. Hamilton’s ROADMAP (ABA Publishing, 2021), co-authored with Laura Jacobus and Rupa Bhandari. She also authored Critical Lawyering Skills: A Path to Professional Identity (Carolina Academic Press, 2025). Her teaching portfolio includes Torts, Advanced Torts, and an introductory law course for first-generation undergraduates via the LEAD Scholars program. As founding faculty advisor to the First-Generation Law Student Association and advisor to the Black Law Student Association, she fosters belonging through a relational approach. Pina presented the workshop 'Expanding and Teaching Lawyer Cultural Competence' at NALP’s 2021 Professional Development Institute Conference, drawing from her book, served on the Clinical Legal Education Association Board of Directors since 2021, acts as Faculty Director of the da Vinci Residential Learning Community, and as a Faculty Associate explores science-focused pedagogical methods.