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A Lawfare Farewell: Raffaela Wakeman

Benjamin Wittes
Thursday, January 30, 2014, 10:26 AM
I don't normally write a post noting departures from our masthead. Our student contributors come and go with the turn of the seasons. They write for a while and then take clerkships, go to law firms, or go into government work. But for the careful reader who has noticed the sudden absence from our masthead of Raffaela Wakeman---our erstwhile associate editor---a word of explanation is warranted. And for all of Lawfare's readers, a word of appreciation on my part is in order for a young woman who has played a remarkable---if sometimes invisible---role here over the site's life.

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I don't normally write a post noting departures from our masthead. Our student contributors come and go with the turn of the seasons. They write for a while and then take clerkships, go to law firms, or go into government work. But for the careful reader who has noticed the sudden absence from our masthead of Raffaela Wakeman---our erstwhile associate editor---a word of explanation is warranted. And for all of Lawfare's readers, a word of appreciation on my part is in order for a young woman who has played a remarkable---if sometimes invisible---role here over the site's life. Raffaela, who has worked at Brookings for a number of years and is also a part-time law student, has left us for a wonderful opportunity in the Justice Department. She came to Lawfare a bit indirectly. But she has been one of the true workhorses of the site---tracking legislation, writing posts, making sure important documents on little-watched dockets find their way to readers. Along with Ritika Singh, she developed the Today's Headlines & Commentary feature. A huge amount of Lawfare's behind-the-scenes management has involved her executive arm. She has been Wells's and my eyes and ears for a lot of news and developments in the evenings and on weekends. Without the work she has done, Lawfare would look very different from the way it does---and much poorer. Here's wishing her all the best.

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Benjamin Wittes is editor in chief of Lawfare and a Senior Fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. He is the author of several books.