For her entire career, Dorothy Wolpert ’76 lived out the often-repeated saying that someone with a degree from UCLA School of Law can do anything. Over a half century, she founded a major law firm, stood as a staunch supporter of public interest legal causes, and changed the lives of countless clients and community members.

Today, people throughout the law school family and greater legal community are remembering Wolpert, who died on July 29, with tremendous fondness, invariably describing her as a “special person” and someone who was as deeply committed to securing justice through the law as she was to her alma mater.

“Dorothy was a force of nature,” says Michael Waterstone, UCLA Law’s dean. “She worked tirelessly on behalf of those who would not otherwise have access to justice. And she brought others in, and inspired countless other members of our community, with her warmth, wit, and passion.”

A relatively late-career law student, Wolpert earned her J.D. around age 40 and remained close with her friends and colleagues at UCLA Law through the decades. She was a member of the law school’s alumni board of directors for over a dozen years and served on the reunion committee for her Class of 1976. As a mentor, she developed relationships with many students and fellow alums, including through her contributions to the UCLA Law Women LEAD network. Her largesse was significant, and she was a lifetime member of the UCLA Law Dean’s Circle and longtime representative for the annual Law Firm Challenge.

It was a dedication that mirrored her inspiring work in practice and the public space. Wolpert, a renowned trial lawyer, was a founding partner of the Bird Marella law firm, which remembers her as “an exceptional leader and mentor for generations of attorneys, colleagues, and clients at the firm and throughout the broader Los Angeles legal community.”

She distinguished herself even further through her devotion to what her firm describes as, “pro bono advocacy, championing the rights of vulnerable individuals and underserved communities, and serving as a leader for organizations dedicated to expanding access to justice, including the Inner City Law Center and the Western Center on Law & Poverty. Those who knew her best point not just to her accomplishments in the courtroom, but to the generosity and humanity she brought to every endeavor.”

In 2022, UCLA Law recognized her “uncommon decency” with a U Serve L.A. award, which the law school presents each year to alumni and others who are distinguished in putting into action the law school’s mission of public service. That coincided with the founding of the Dorothy and Stanley Wolpert Public Interest Law Fellowship, which provides financial support to UCLA Law students who work for the Inner City Law Center.

In a long profile article that accompanied those accolades, Wolpert talked about what motivated her most. “There are so many people in this city who do good work and care about this community and our fellow humans,” she said. “To the extent that this is any kind of acknowledgement of me, I think it's really an acknowledgement of everyone who does this work ... . Those who do this day in and day out are the true heroes.”

Read more about Dorothy Wolpert, including reflections from Bird Marella and the Inner City Law Center, as well as UCLA Law’s in-depth story about her incredible life and career.