Dr. Margaret Bull Kovera received the American Psychology-Law Society (APLS) Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology and Law, which honors those who have made distinguished theoretical, empirical and/or applied contributions to the field of psychology and law. The award is reserved for individuals whose contributions are so unusual that they merit special commendation.

As summarized in letters nominating Kovera for the award, “Margaret has continuously demonstrated remarkable dedication, innovation and leadership in the field. Her sustained commitment to excellence, along with the tangible impact of her work on scholarship in the discipline, implementation of that work in the field and the proliferation of those she has mentored make her a worthy candidate for this award.”

Kovera is an internationally recognized expert on eyewitness identification and legal decision-making. For over twenty-five years, she has had continuous funding (over $2.8 million) from federal agencies, including the National Science Foundation and the Bureau of Justice Assistance, for her research on eyewitness identification, jury decision-making and scientific evidence. Her research has been published in Law and Human Behavior, Journal of Applied Psychology, Journal of Applied Research on Memory and Cognition and Psychology, Public Policy and Law and her book, The Psychology of Juries, won the APLS Book Award.

Kovera, who regularly serves as an expert witness in cases involving eyewitness identification, is a past-president of the APLS and former editor-in-chief of Law and Human Behavior, the premier outlet for scholarship in psychology and law. She received the Saleem Shah Award for Early Career Achievement in Psychology and Law from APLS and the American Academy of Forensic Psychology, the Outstanding Teacher and Mentor in Psychology and Law Award from APLS and Distinguished Teaching and Outstanding Scholarly Mentor Awards from John Jay College. Find a more comprehensive biography here.