University of Houston Law Center professor Michael Olivas and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor said she strives to stay away from politics, but the justice worked the room like a politician while speaking on Friday to law students, lawyers and judges at the University of Houston Law Center.

During an hour-long talk and question-and-answer session, Sotomayor offered her thoughts on what is needed in a legal education, the quality of lawyers who argue before the Supreme Court and the intersection of politics and the law.

For the first half hour, Sotomayor sat on a stage and answered questions posed by UH Law Center professor Michael Olivas, who is a friend of Sotomayor. During the next 30 minutes, she walked through Max Krost Hall and answered questions from law students while simultaneously shaking hands with audience members and posing for photos with the law students who had questions for her.