Who We Are

Headshot of Rebecca Oyama in front of dark green leaves.

Rebecca Oyama

Director, Clinical

Education

Juris Doctor University of Michigan Law School
B.A., Government Georgetown University

As Clinical Program Director, Rebecca oversees the operation of EBCLC’s academic year clinical program at Berkeley Law and EBCLC’s summer clinical program, while also providing training and ongoing mentorship to the clinical supervising attorneys in EBCLC’s eight legal clinics. Rebecca co-teaches the EBCLC seminar that clinical students take in conjunction with EBCLC clinics.

Rebecca first joined EBCLC in 2019. She previously held the role of Senior Staff Attorney and Clinical Supervisor in EBCLC’s Clean Slate program, where she advocated to remove barriers to employment and civic participation for people with conviction histories through client representation in post-conviction relief and policy advocacy. Rebecca was the recipient of the 2023 Eleanor Swift Award for her work to strengthen Berkeley Law’s commitment to public service.

Rebecca spent the first six years of her legal career at The Bronx Defenders’ Family Defense Practice, defending parents entangled in the family policing system and training junior attorneys in a holistic defense model. Prior to joining EBCLC, she worked at the San Francisco Human Rights Commission, where she enforced local anti-discrimination laws through investigations, mediations, and determinations, including the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, and trained city departments on advancing racial equity.