Perspectives That Inspire | News | The Law School

As Hispanic Heritage Month comes to a close, we take this moment to recognize the extraordinary scholarship, leadership, and service of Hispanic and Latino faculty whose work continues to enrich the Notre Dame Law School community. Their research and teaching reflect the Law School’s mission to educate a "different kind of lawyer"—one who brings intellectual rigor, empathy, and a commitment to justice to every aspect of the legal profession. Associate Professor Maria Maciá, Adjunct Professor Cecilia Monterrosa, and Adjunct Professor Rudy Monterrosa exemplify this calling through their distinct fields and shared dedication to inspiring the next generation of lawyers and advancing the common good.

Read below to learn more about their work and perspectives.

Maria Maciá

Associate Professor Maria Maciá is an economist whose research considers the regulation of corporations and valuation issues through an empirical approach. She considers the effects of regulations that encourage corporate social responsibility and risk management, and she has a particular interest in disclosure requirements and the regulation of banks. Previously, she has written on the usefulness of well-being measures for tailoring compensation in the eminent domain context. She teaches corporate finance.

What is your teaching philosophy as a law professor and economist?

"Economic analysis starts with the idea that incentives matter and works through how they will matter in a systematic way. Teaching students to bring economic intuitions into their legal practice can help them apply legal doctrines, such as when antitrust law requires them to evaluate whether a merger will create incentives for the new company to raise prices. And it prepares them to realistically think through the potential effects of laws that they may have an opportunity to shape. In my classes, I help students get comfortable with economic reasoning so they are not intimidated when the law requires them to use it, and I invite them to think about how to bring economic considerations into dialogue with other moral approaches to thinking about what the law should be."

Cecilia Monterrosa

A smiling woman with long, dark, wavy hair, wearing patterned glasses with gold accents, bright red lipstick, a pearl necklace, and a gray blazer.

Adjunct Professor Cecilia Lopez Monterrosa is the managing attorney at the Monterrosa Law Group, LLC. in South Bend, where she practices criminal defense, family law, and immigration law nationwide. She is the supervising deputy public defender for St. Joseph County – Traffic and Misdemeanor Court, and is also a 2016 recipient of Michiana's 40 Under 40 award. A founding member of the Indiana Latino Bar Association, Lopez Monterrosa also served as the secretary for the St. Joseph County Bar Association Board of Governors. In 2025, she received her MBA from the University of Notre Dame. She is currently an adjunct professor of law at Notre Dame Law School, co-teaching the Public Defender Externship.

What do you hope students take away from the Public Defender Externship that they might not learn in a traditional classroom setting?

"The externship teaches students to advocate effectively within resource constraints while maintaining genuine compassion and respect for clients' dignity and circumstances. Students learn first-hand how to deal with poverty, trauma, and systemic barriers that are impossible to fully grasp from a textbook. Most importantly, they learn that representing clients requires both legal skill and the ability to truly listen to and understand the communities we serve."

Rudy Monterrosa

Smiling man wearing a dark suit, checkered shirt, and a navy tie with gold bee patterns. Blurred bookshelves in background.

Adjunct Professor Rodolfo “Rudy” Monterrosa has practiced criminal, immigration, and family law in South Bend, Indiana since 2001. He is the founding attorney of the Monterrosa Law Group, LLC. He served as the first Latino deputy public defender for St. Joseph County, serving in the misdemeanor and felony courts for over 17 years. He has represented clients with misdemeanor and felony cases at both the State and Federal level as well as clients with immigration cases in all stages of proceedings throughout the country. He serves as an adjunct professor at Notre Dame Law School where he teaches a course on immigration and nationality law and co-teaches the Public Defender Externship course with his wife, a fellow Domer, Cecilia Monterrosa.

How do you prepare your Notre Dame students to navigate the practical and emotional challenges of working with immigrant communities?

"It's essential that the law students in my Immigration Law course understand that immigration law isn't just statutes, policy, and the law. We are talking about the very real impact immigration law has on families and people who are seeking to better their lives or seeking protection from their countries as they flee persecution. To prepare them in the areas of immigration law or to consider pro bono opportunities, a component of the class involves giving back and discussing current events. By welcoming the stranger from a foreign land, I seek to educate 'a different kind of lawyer.'"