Trial Advocacy, Navigating Structural Barriers, and a 40 Year Career in Justice with Kenneth J Kunken

This week on Studying Law Around the World, I have the distinct privilege of hosting Kenneth J Kunken. In 1970, Ken sustained a spinal cord injury while playing football for Cornell University, resulting in quadriplegia. Navigating an era nearly two decades before the Americans with Disabilities Act, he confronted and overcame massive physical and attitudinal barriers to become the first quadriplegic student to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees from Cornell.Ken went on to earn a law degree from Hofstra University and built a formidable 40-year career as an Assistant District Attorney in Nassau County, ultimately rising to the position of Deputy Bureau Chief. In this episode, we discuss his journey to the prosecutor's office, the reality of inaccessible courtrooms, and his high-level advice for navigating trial work.