Angela A. Allen-Bell

Associate Professor, B.K. Agnihotri Endowed Professor, Southern University Law Center

Angela A. Allen-Bell is a graduate of the Southern University Law Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. After law school, she spent ten years working at an appellate court and, in this capacity, gained an expertise in appellate law. In 2008, she left the judiciary and began her career in academia as a law professor. She holds the B. K. Agnihotri Endowed Professorship and is currently an associate professor.

Professor Bell is a respected local, national and international legal scholar and expert on civil and human rights, social and restorative justice and the interplay between race and justice. It was her research that catapulted the recent movement that, in November 2018, successfully ended the use of non-unanimous juries in Louisiana. And she is one of the founding members of the advocacy team that led this effort to reform Louisiana’s jury system through the adoption of legislation that would require unanimous juries in criminal trials in Louisiana state courts. She has the distinction of having worked on several other historic advocacy campaigns, such as the Angola 3 case, the case of Soledad Brother John Clutchette and the case of Robert Holbrook. The House of Representatives of the Legislature of Louisiana has commended her “for her achievements as a legal scholar” and has recognized and recorded “the tremendous pride and honor that she brings” to the state of Louisiana.

Professor Bell has made many media appearances and participated in many local, national and international collaborations to discuss her scholarship and advocacy work, including La Presse (France), Le Nouvel Observateur (France), MSNBC (News Nation with Tamron Hall), NBC Nightly News and National Public Radio (All Things Considered). She has twice submitted written testimony to the United States Senate’s Judiciary Committee on the Constitution and she has been published in or quoted in a range of print media sources, such as the Washington Post, Russia Today TV, the New Yorker, the Huffington Post and the Advocate.

She is a member of the National Black Lawyers-Top 100, an invitation-only society. She is also a member of the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation, an invitation-only society whose membership is limited to one percent of lawyers licensed to practice in each jurisdiction. She has been recognized by the Girl Scouts Louisiana East as a Woman of Distinction and is a recipient of the National Civil Rights Conference Civil Rights and Social Justice Award. She was recently named by the Drum Newspaper as one of its “People for 2021.” Jeremiah 5:1, says “give me one who seeks justice.” Professor Bell has adopted this call as her personal edict. Her signature traits are her never-ceasing desire to fight injustice and her tireless commitment to dismantling systems of oppression.