UMass Law welcomes six faculty members with experience in scholarship, technology, and practice

New faculty expand expertise in technology, criminal justice, health law, advocacy, legal skills, and academic success

From artificial intelligence and data privacy to criminal justice, health law, and courtroom advocacy, six faculty members are bringing new areas of scholarship, teaching, and professional experience to the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth's School of Law (UMass Law) this academic year.

Aileen Nielsen and Adam Sandel join UMass Law as assistant professors, while Lisa Ungerbuehler takes on an expanded role as an assistant professor and director of Advocacy Programs after previously serving as a visiting professor. Jessica Edwards, Mary McBride, and Kevin Buono also join the law school's teaching faculty.

"We are thrilled to welcome this talented group to UMass Law," said UMass Law Dean Eric Mitnick. "They bring a wide range of experience as scholars, practicing attorneys, public servants, and educators, but what they share is a commitment to our students. Their expertise strengthens both the academic rigor of our program and our ability to prepare graduates to enter the profession ready to make an impact."

Assistant Professor Aileen Nielsen brings a background spanning law and data science to her research on how people understand data privacy, algorithms, and emerging technology—and what those perspectives mean for regulating technology fairly. Much of her work is about making sure the people most affected by technology, and least often consulted about it, have a voice in how the law responds.

Nielsen, who teaches Contracts, Consumer Protection, Privacy Law, and courses focused on artificial intelligence, has published scholarship in the Indiana Law Journal, Columbia Science & Technology Law Review, Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, and Nature Cities. She is also the author of two books on machine learning.

Before joining UMass Law, Nielsen spent three years as a visiting assistant professor at Harvard Law School, practiced at Cleary Gottlieb in New York, and worked in data science. She earned a PhD from ETH Zurich, her JD from Yale Law School, and a bachelor's degree from Princeton University.

Assistant Professor Adam Sandel's research sits at the intersection of law and philosophy, focusing on criminal law and procedure and questions surrounding crime and punishment.

A former assistant district attorney in Brooklyn, NY, Sandel studies prosecutorial discretion, the prosecutor's role as both advocate and minister of justice, public safety as an aim of law enforcement, and the implications of algorithmic decision-making in the criminal justice system.

Sandel earned his JD from Harvard Law School and doctorate in political theory from the University of Oxford. He previously taught at Harvard College and is the author of two books published by Harvard University Press.

Lisa Ungerbuehler, who joined UMass Law as a visiting professor in 2024, begins an expanded role as an assistant professor and director of advocacy programs.

Her scholarship focuses on health care law, policy, and ethics, including patient autonomy, health care governance, and the relationship between health care consolidation and market competition. She teaches Civil Procedure, Business Organizations, and Health Law.

As director of advocacy programs, Ungerbuehler oversees UMass Law's student advocacy teams and their participation in regional and national competitions, including moot court and mock trial. Before UMass Law, she taught at Barry University School of Law and Nova Southeastern University College of Law and served as assistant general counsel for the Florida Department of Health.

"We are thrilled to welcome this talented group to UMass Law. They bring a wide range of experience as scholars, practicing attorneys, public servants, and educators, but what they share is a commitment to our students."

Assistant Teaching Professor Mary McBride '18 returns to UMass Law to teach in the Legal Skills Program after earning her JD, magna cum laude, from UMass Law.

McBride previously clerked for Massachusetts Appeals Court Justice Peter W. Agnes Jr., worked as a research attorney in the Massachusetts Superior Court system, and served as an attorney adviser with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she worked on complex Medicare coverage and payment disputes.

Jessica Edwards joins UMass Law with more than a decade of experience in bar preparation and legal education. She has taught and mentored law students at Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law and the University of New Hampshire Franklin Pierce School of Law, and has held leadership positions with BARBRI, Quimbee, and Kaplan Bar Review.

Edwards earned her JD, cum laude, from Baylor Law School and bachelor's degree from the University of Connecticut.

Kevin Buono brings more than a decade of private practice experience to UMass Law, having served as a partner in the Boston office of Morrison Mahoney LLP.

His practice focuses on health care commercial transactions, regulatory compliance, and litigation. Buono previously served on the full-time faculty at the University of Oklahoma College of Law and taught at Rutgers Law School and New England Law | Boston. He earned his JD from New England Law | Boston and bachelor's degree from American University.