Brandeis Magazine

Jane Kahn, a San Francisco lawyer long active in prisoner rights issues with her husband and law partner, Michael Bien, received the Fay Stender Award from California Women Lawyers. The award recognizes an attorney who is committed to the representation of women, disadvantaged groups and unpopular causes, and whose courage, zest for life and demonstrated ability to effect change as a single individual make her a role model for women attorneys. Jane will be honored for her work in Coleman v. Brown, a class action on behalf of 35,000 prisoners with mental illness that challenged California’s treatment of its mentally ill prisoner population as a violation of the Eighth Amendment, and for her exemplary career as a public interest lawyer.