Cohen, Marsha

Professor of Law
UC Hastings College of Law

Professor Marsha N. Cohen is a long-time member of the faculty at UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco.  Her primary teaching assignments have been food and drug law, torts, and administrative law, and for many years she supervised the college’s large judicial externship program.

Professor Cohen began to specialize in food and drug law as a staff attorney with the Washington Office of Consumers Union.  When she moved to California she was appointed to, and served for two terms as a member of, the California State Board of Pharmacy; she was the first non-pharmacist to serve as Board president.  She is the author (formerly with the late William L. Marcus, currently with Sami Sedghani, Hastings 2011) of Pharmacy Law for California Pharmacists, now in its seventh edition.

Prof. Cohen has served on four National Academy of Sciences committees:  Strategies to Reduce Sodium Intake in the United States (2010), Review of the Use of Scientific Criteria and Performance Standards for Safe Food (2002-2003), Ensuring Safe Food from Production to Consumption (1998), and State Food Labeling (1991).  She has also served on the FDA’s Food Advisory and Device Good Manufacturing Practices Advisory Committees, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences Council, and the HEW Review Panel on New Drug Regulation.  

Interests: Food and drug law, federal and state pharmacy regulations, administrative law, torts