Lula Hagos

Lula Hagos serves as Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Criminal Defense and Justice Clinic at The George Washington University Law School, which she launched in Fall 2021 to provide representation for indigent clients facing misdemeanor charges in D.C. Superior Court. Her career spans federal and state public defense, clinical teaching, and scholarship at the intersection of criminal justice and racial equity.

Education:

• BA with distinction, University of Virginia
• JD, Georgetown University Law Center
• LLM, Georgetown University Law Center

Professor Hagos's research critically examines systemic issues in criminal procedure, racial disparities in legal outcomes, and barriers to justice for marginalized communities. Her work is deeply informed by over a decade of frontline defense experience, focusing on how race and socioeconomic status impact courtroom dynamics and sentencing. She advocates for structural reforms through both scholarly analysis and direct client representation.

Professional Engagement: She supervises law students in high-stakes misdemeanor defense while managing complex federal cases involving fraud and terrorism-related offenses during her tenure as Assistant Federal Public Defender. Her clinical approach integrates trauma-informed advocacy with mental health service coordination for vulnerable clients.

Teaching Legacy: Previously trained new public defenders at the D.C. Public Defender Service and co-taught criminal trial advocacy at Georgetown University Law Center during her E. Barrett Prettyman Fellowship, where she supervised students representing youth in delinquency proceedings.