Jaehyun Oh, Esq. Presents at 2024 Prison Law and Advocacy Conference

On October 19, 2024, Jaehyun Oh spoke at the 2024 National Prison Law & Advocacy Conference, held in Atlanta, GA. Jaehyun was selected to speak on the Claims for Monetary Damages Panel due to her extensive work recovering significant monetary awards on behalf of wrongfully injured incarcerated individuals. The panel also qualified as a CLE credit in several states.

In the panel, Jae discussed different avenues for pursuing monetary damages on behalf of incarcerated individuals, assessing the strengths and weaknesses of new claims, the difference between bringing forward FTCA and Bivens claims, as well as strategies for successfully recovering monetary awards. Jae also covered the importance of advocating on behalf of incarcerated people in a way that emphasizes their humanity. According to Jae,

"You have to humanize the incarcerated people. You have to help the Judge and the US Attorneys understand what they go through on a daily basis, and if you can convince them that they are just as victimized and this is just as unacceptable, sometimes you can see the switch, where they realize this is not just some hypothetical we're considering."

In addition, Jae presented Plaintiff’s Opposition to Motion to Dismiss in her historic case, Herrera v. USA, No. 1:20-cv-10206-PKC (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 6, 2021) as CLE materials for the lecture. Submitted in response to the Defendant’s motion to dismiss, the Opposition examines all case law relevant to bringing forward both Bivens and FTCA claims on behalf of incarcerated victims of staff-sexual abuse. Although the Judge only upheld the FTCA claim, Jae explained that bringing forward both claims can be a strategic decision if the case is worthwhile:

“On the principle, we should still push back when the case is worthwhile justifying on the Bivens ground. … The judge cannot tell you that there is an alternative remedy to Bivens through FTCA and therefore dismiss your Bivens claim, and then also say that you don’t have an FTCA claim. That would be contradictory.”

The Prison Law & Advocacy Conference is a biennial conference that brings together legal and academic advocates, formerly incarcerated individuals, and community members to discuss advocacy and litigation strategies for incarcerated individuals.

The Jacob Fuchsberg Law Firm is honored to take part in such an important cause, and our Civil Rights Team is committed to obtaining justice for wrongfully injured incarcerated individuals across the nation.