KU Law Brief
April 2009 - Printable edition
Back to electronic edition
Spring has arrived in Kansas, and the flowering trees around Green Hall are starting to show their colors. The law school is bustling as ever. More than 100 alumni ventured back on Friday for the second annual Return to Green CLE. A three-judge panel from the Kansas Court of Appeals is hearing oral arguments today in the Snell Courtroom and will judge the moot court finals this afternoon. We hope you find a reason to visit us in the coming months. Remember, the spring edition of the KU Law Magazine will be electronic rather than printed. We will let you know soon when and where to find it online.
KU moot court team to compete in international finals in May in Taipei
A team from the University of Kansas School of Law will head to Taipei in May to compete in the international finals of the European Law Students’ Association Moot Court Competition.
Four students guaranteed their spot in the finals by advancing to the final round of the North American regional on March 12 in Washington, D.C. Christina Elmore, Ben Sharp, Carrie Bader and Beau Jackson — all third-year law students — represent the first KU team to make it to the world level of the seven-year-old competition.
“This was a terrific student effort,” said Pam Keller, clinical associate professor and director of the law school’s moot court program. “The team wrote two lengthy briefs and practiced tirelessly for the oral rounds. Their hard work paid off, and the KU School of Law is proud of their success.”
Raj Bhala, the Raymond F. Rice Distinguished Professor of Law, coaches the team.
The ELSA Moot Court Competition is a simulated hearing in the World Trade Organization dispute settlement system. Competitor teams represent both parties to the case by presenting oral submissions in front of a panel, which consists of World Trade Organization law experts. The 2008-09 case deals with a hypothetical dispute over trade and regulatory measures aimed at addressing climate change.
KU joined teams from Duke University, the University of Ottawa in Canada and George Washington University in the semifinals. After defeating Ottawa to advance to the final round, KU lost a close match to Duke. The top two teams will move on to the international finals to square off against the winners of regional contests around the globe.
“It was an honor to represent KU and to compete against teams from some of the best law schools in North America,” Jackson said. “Our success is a testament to the world-class education we've received at KU, particularly the guidance of Professors Raj Bhala and Pam Keller. We’re looking forward to the international finals in Taiwan.”
Participation in the ELSA Moot Court Competition has become an important component in the KU School of Law’s International and Comparative Law Program, along with the International Environmental Law Moot Court Competition and the Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition. KU teams in the Jessup competition have advanced to the international level six times and been crowned champion twice.
Students participating in the competition are listed below by hometown.
JOHNSON COUNTY
From Prairie Village 66208
Carrie Bader is the daughter of Doralee K. Bader of Kansas City, Mo. She graduated from Shawnee Mission East High School and received her undergraduate degree from the University of Southern California-Los Angeles.
PAWNEE COUNTY
From Larned 67550
Christina Elmore is the daughter of George and Kay Elmore of Larned. She graduated from Larned High School and received her undergraduate degree from William Jewell College in Liberty, Mo.
SEDGWICK COUNTY
From Wichita 67230
Beau Jackson is the son of Courtley and Kristen Jackson of Wichita. He graduated from Andover High School and received his undergraduate degree in political science from KU in spring 2003.
SHAWNEE COUNTY
From Rossville 66533
Ben Sharp is the son of Dave and Janice Sharp of Rossville. He graduated from Rossville High School and received his undergraduate degree from Kansas State University in Manhattan.
Diversity in Law Banquet draws record crowd, donations
First-year law student Jatin Patel, left, and Professor Martin Dickinson enjoy remarks during the 2009 Diversity in Law Banquet on March 6.
It was a record-setting year for the Diversity in Law Banquet.
More than 200 people attended the annual event that celebrates diversity at the University of Kansas School of Law and in the legal profession. Nineteen law firms, legal organizations and bar associations served as sponsors for the evening of cocktails, dinner, conversation and networking. All told, the March 6 festivities raised more than $x for the school’s Diversity Scholarship Fund.
“I was pleased with this year’s banquet turnout. It will go a long way toward supporting diversity in the classroom,” said Tracie Revis, president of the Native American Law Students Association, which sponsored this year’s banquet. “More than anything, I was impressed by the support of all the student organizations, the faculty and staff, and the community. Diversity is not just color or gender; it’s the people who represent the diversity that make the difference. I think it exemplifies the type of impact that can be made when we all come together and support each other.”
Keynote speaker Sarah Deer, L’99, a visiting professor at William Mitchell College of Law, attempted to gauge the pulse of the nation’s legal system on the issue of diversity. She highlighted two recent Supreme Court cases that deal with the question of whether diversity is a compelling state interest: Grutter v. Bollinger (2003) and Parents Involved in Community Schools v. Seattle School District No. 1 (2007).
She noted that the Grutter opinion, written by Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and affirming the constitutionality of race-conscious admissions standards, includes positive language about the inherent value of diversity.
“Access to legal education (and thus the legal profession) must be inclusive of talented and qualified individuals of every race and ethnicity, so that all members of our heterogeneous society may participate in the educational institutions that provide the training and education necessary to succeed in America,” O’Connor wrote.
“Effective participation by members of all racial and ethnic groups in the civic life of our nation is essential if the dream of one nation, indivisible, is to be realized.”
O’Connor goes on to suggest, however, that the kind of admissions standards used at the University of Michigan School of Law to ensure a diverse student body won’t be necessary by the year 2028.
“Is this because diversity is only important in certain time frames or until certain milestones are meant?” Deer asked. “Because for me the inherent value of diversity is timeless.”
The court’s ruling in the Seattle case, which deems unconstitutional a method of creating diversity in the public school system, does not specifically overturn the Grutter decision. But it does seem to indicate that the current court looks more skeptically at methodology used to achieve diversity, Deer said, and that it’s moving in a more “color blind” direction.
Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote in his concurring opinion, “The enduring hope is that race should not matter; the reality is that too often it does.”
“But my question in thinking about that statement is: Is the hope really that race should not matter?” Deer asked. “Because if diversity is inherently a good thing that enhances education and makes the world a better place, then what good comes from neutralizing it?”
Deer encouraged law students especially to study carefully the words of our leaders on the value of diversity and to define it for themselves in order to pursue it effectively.
“I do believe that as the legal profession we have the capacity to promote and support diversity within the profession,” she said, “even if it’s not a law or official policy.”
Deer, a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, has accepted a tenure-track position and will join the William Mitchell law faculty in the fall. She will be the seventh female law professor in the United States who is also a citizen of a federally recognized Indian tribe.
KU law professor recognized as Kansas City Legal Leader
David Gottlieb
A University of Kansas law professor has been recognized as a 2009 Legal Leader by a Kansas City legal newspaper.
David Gottlieb, professor of law and associate dean of clinical programs, received the award from the Daily Record for his role as a legal scholar. The award honors faculty or staff at area law schools who demonstrate leadership through their work with the justice system, research or scholarship, or teaching and inspiring others.
Gottlieb will be recognized during a luncheon Friday, March 27, at the Hilton President in Kansas City, Mo.
“In over a decade of teaching at two law schools, I have never encountered a law professor who gave more of himself to the system of justice or was a greater inspiration to students and teachers alike than David Gottlieb,” said Gail Agrawal, dean and professor of law. “Professor Gottlieb has focused his career on service to the justice system as a teacher and a scholar. He has served as a mentor to generations of law students. I am grateful to Professor Gottlieb’s wisdom, his leadership and his many contributions to our school and the community.”
Altogether, 16 people and two law firms were honored in 12 categories designed to celebrate those who have improved the quality of justice in their communities and exemplified the highest ideals of the legal profession. Nine members of the Kansas City legal community selected the award winners from a slate of nominees.
Gottlieb has been a professor at KU’s School of Law since 1979. He teaches criminal procedure, international human rights and refugee and asylum law, among other courses. He studies guideline sentencing and the death penalty and is nationally recognized for his leadership in clinical legal education.
From 1979 to 1999, he led the law school’s signature clinical program, the Paul E. Wilson Defender Project. That program is now led by one of his former students. Under the auspices of the Defender Project, faculty members and students defend the civil rights of prisoners and pursue justice on behalf of those who were wrongly convicted of crimes.
“I have talked with many alumni who credit their student days with the Defender Project under Professor Gottlieb’s instruction for their professional work in public interest law, both full-time and pro bono,” Agrawal said.
Gottlieb was instrumental in creating the law school’s newest clinical program, a medical-legal clinic housed in the Southwest Boulevard Family Health Care Clinic that provides legal services to indigent patients referred by their physicians. He is its director. Both the American Bar Association and the American Medical Association have taken public positions encouraging the development of medical-legal partnerships to meet the full range of patient needs by addressing social determinants of health status and quality of life. Under Gottlieb’s leadership, KU’s School of Law is one of 10 to 12 law schools in the country to create such a program for law students.
Before joining the university, Gottlieb was an appeals attorney with the Legal Aid Society in New York. He earned his law degree in 1974 from Georgetown University Law Center, where he was editor of the law journal.
The awards committee also honored Heather Jones, a 2000 graduate of the law school who took at least one class from Gottlieb during her time at Green Hall. She was named a Rising Legal Leader.
Jones became a shareholder just one year after she joined Seigfreid, Bingham, Levy, Selzer & Gee, where she handles construction law, equipment dealerships and dealer associations and other business-related law. She is heavily involved in the Lawyers Association of Kansas City and is chair of the Liberty (Mo.) Arts Commission.
Newsletter, multilingual brochure tout international law program
The latest issue of the International Law at KU newsletter chronicles the student activities and accomplishments, distinguished speakers, faculty publications and presentations, and other elements of the law school’s International and Comparative Law Program. The school recently published a brochure in Arabic, Chinese, English and Spanish to spread the word about the program to a broader audience.
Download PDFs of the newsletter and the brochure at http://www.law.ku.edu/academics/icl/
Former U.S. solicitor general visits KU Law
Paul Clement, the 43rd solicitor general of the United States, gave a KU Law audience a behind-the-scenes look at the workings of the office that he oversaw from June 2005 to June 2008. Having argued 49 cases at the U.S. Supreme Court, Clement also offered perspectives on the differences between advocating before the Rehnquist Court and the Roberts Court.
Listen to the podcast and read more about Clement at http://www.law.ku.edu/media/podcasts_videos/
Alumni notes
Items were received or collected between Dec. 1, 2008 and March 15, 2009. Alumni news items may be submitted by e-mail to patti@ku.edu or by visiting the law school’s Web site at www.law.ku.edu – click on Alumni and look for Keep in Touch. We rely on our alumni for the accuracy of information submitted.
1960s
William L. Turner, L’60, was elected president of the board of directors of We Tell Stories, a Los Angeles-based theater company, where he has been on the board since 2003. We Tell Stories is a non-for-profit multi-ethnic community of artists dedicated to educating and nurturing young audiences in literature and theater. We Tell Stories brings classic literature and folk tales to life in classrooms, theaters, schools, museums, festivals, special events and libraries. Its goals are to inspire creativity, enhance literacy, cultivate intercultural awareness and harmony, and spark a love of the theater and spoken word.
Peter K. Curran, L’66, was selected for repeat inclusion in the 2009 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Curran practices with Stevens & Brand LLP in Lawrence. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a peer-review survey, with more than 2.5 million lawyers confidentially evaluating other lawyers.
John Smith, L’68, has been elected president of the Lake City, Colo., Community Arts Center. Prior to his retirement, Smith was with Enterprise Products Partners in Houston.
1970s
Robert O. Watchous, L’73, Emporia, retired in June 2003.
Mary Torrence, L’74, serves as the Kansas Revisor of Statutes. Torrence is the first KU graduate and first woman to hold the position. The Office of Revisor of Statutes is the legal staff agency of the Kansas Legislature and currently has a staff of 21 attorneys.
Sheila Bair, L’78, chair of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, received a 2008-09 Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award from the University of Kansas College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
1980s
Pat Haley, L’80, received the Labette Community College 2008 Van Meter Outstanding Alumni Award from the board of directors of the LCC Foundation and Alumni Association.
Judge Janice Miller Karlin, L’80, a bankruptcy judge for the federal district of Kansas, has been appointed to the U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the 10th Circuit. Karlin is a member of numerous bankruptcy associations and committees and has contributed chapters to practice manuals on bankruptcy law and civil procedure.
Bruce Mallonee, L’80, has agreed to serve as the 2009 chairman of the Campaign for Justice. The campaign brings together well-known and respected lawyers from around Maine to raise funds on behalf of six civil legal aid providers in the state. Mallonee is a partner at the Bangor law firm of Rudman and Winchell. He was recognized in 2007 by the Volunteer Lawyers Project with the Lew Vafiades Pro Bono Award. During his legal career, Mallonee has donated more than 800 hours to impoverished clients, many of whom were victims of domestic violence.
Sherrie E. Loveland, L’82, was selected for repeat inclusion in the 2009 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Loveland practices with Stevens & Brand LLP in Lawrence. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a peer-review survey, with more than 2.5 million lawyers confidentially evaluating other lawyers.
Neil B. Foth, L’84, has been appointed as a Johnson County District Court judge by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius. He replaces Judge John Anderson III, who retired in January 2009 after more than 21 years on the bench.
Grant Burgoyne, L’88, was elected to the Idaho House of Representatives in the 2008 general election.
Kevin Kelly, L’89, is an associate development director at the Kansas University Endowment Association, where his responsibilities include development work to support the KU Libraries and KU’s deferred maintenance needs. Kevin served as the director of outreach at KU Law and managed a solo law practice in Lawrence from 1990 to 2006. Kevin, his wife, Christy Kelly, and son, Trey (6), make their home in Lawrence.
1990s
Steve Ariagno, L’90, was recently married to Jessie Prock in Wichita. He is a partner in Ariagno, Kerns, Mank & White LLC, practicing in criminal defense. Ariagno has been named a Missouri/Kansas Super Lawyer. He also has a daughter, Meghan (7).
Melanie (Dick) McMullen, L’90, has joined the National Cable Television Cooperative Inc. in Lenexa as director of business & legal affairs. NCTC is a programming and hardware purchasing organization representing 1,100 cable television operators in the United States and its territories. Melanie and her husband, Keith, live in Kearney, Mo., with their sons Alex (13) and Sean (11).
John E. Hayes III, L’91, is in-house counsel with Coldwater Creek in Colorado.
Molly M. Wood, L’91, was selected for repeat inclusion in the 2009 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Wood practices with Stevens & Brand LLP in Lawrence. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a peer-review survey, with more than 2.5 million lawyers confidentially evaluating other lawyers.
Laura Fey, L’92, is practicing with Daley Crowley LLP in Kansas City, Mo. Fey was formerly with Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP.
Kurt A. Level, L’92, has been named vice president and associate general counsel for Harrah’s Operating Company, Las Vegas.
Gregory Glass, L’93, has been named managing editor of Asia IP, a Hong Kong-based magazine focusing on intellectual property law in Asia and the Pacific.
Evan H. Ice, L’93, was selected for repeat inclusion in the 2009 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Ice practices with Stevens & Brand LLP in Lawrence. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a peer-review survey, with more than 2.5 million lawyers confidentially evaluating other lawyers.
Dan Wiley, L’93, has been selected by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius as the newest 1st Judicial District judge serving Leavenworth and Atchison counties. Wiley has been practicing with the Leavenworth firm of Murray, Tillotson and Wiley since 1993. He also serves the Leavenworth area as a municipal judge for the city of Leavenworth and as a district judge pro tem for the Leavenworth County District Court. Wiley has more than 11 years of judicial experience in Leavenworth County.
Katherine (Basom) McClendon, L’94, is company counsel at Lineage Power Corporation in Mesquite, Texas.
Nate Muyskens, L’95, is a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP. He was previously a partner at Troutman Sanders LLP.
David M. Staker, L’95, is married to Christina Dunn Staker, L’96, with four children, Gabrielle (7), Matthew (5), Joseph (3) and Madeleine (1). Staker is president of Plastic Packaging Technologies, a flexible packaging manufacturer in Kansas City, Kan.
Thomas Tronsdal, L’95, is the owner of Canyon Fence Company in Tucson, Ariz., the largest fence company in southern Arizona.
Geoffrey J. Lysaught, L’98, has been appointed director of the Searle Civil Justice Institute and senior lecturer at Northwestern University School of Law in Chicago.
Rachel Smith, L’99, and Chris Vickers welcomed daughter Maya Elizabeth Marie in August 2008.
David C. Kresin, L’97, and Edmundo Robaina started a new firm in Phoenix, Robaina & Kresin PLLC, in January 2009. The firm represents employees in labor and employment matters. Kresin and his wife, Molly, live in Phoenix with their three children.
Shawn Stogsdill, L’97, has joined Van Osdol & Magruder PC as of counsel. Stogsdill has practiced extensively in the areas of business, tax, real estate and real estate planning law for the past 10 years. He serves as an adjunct professor of constitutional law at William Jewell College.
Kevin Fulk, L’98, earned his Ph.D. from the University of Houston’s C.T. Bauer College of Business in December 2008. His dissertation is titled “The Involvement of Multiple Information and Communication Technologies in Complex Information System Project Control: A Longitudinal, Interpretive Study.” Fulk also received the Dean’s Award for Academic Excellence upon graduating.
Wesley F. Smith, L’98, was selected for repeat inclusion in the 2009 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. Smith practices with Stevens & Brand LLP in Lawrence. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a peer-review survey, with more than 2.5 million lawyers confidentially evaluating other lawyers.
Sarah Deer, L’99, has accepted a tenure-track position and will join the law faculty at William Mitchell in the fall of 2009. Sarah is one of the first recipients of the KU School of Law’s Tribal Lawyer Certificate, and she will become the seventh female law professor in the United States who is also a citizen of a federally recognized Indian tribe. Deer delivered the keynote address at KU Law's 14th Annual Diversity in Law Banquet in March.
Kyle N. Roehler, L’99, has become a shareholder in the Kansas City law firm of Foland, Wickens, Eisfelder, Roper & Hofer PC, where he practices in the area of civil litigation and insurance law.
2000s
Jacqueline M. Sexton, L’00, has become a shareholder in the Kansas City law firm of Foland, Wickens, Eisfelder, Roper & Hofer PC, where she practices in the area of civil litigation, with an emphasis on employment, banking and insurance law matters.
Dawn (Cook) Blunda, L’01, St. Louis, Mo., is pleased to announce the birth of daughter Izabelle Taylor in February 2008, and the impending graduation from high school of her daughter Krystol in May 2009.
Jason H. Klein, L’01, is practicing with Latham, Shuker, Eden & Beaudine LLP in Orlando, Fla.
Stefan Padfield, L’01, assistant professor at the University of Akron, C. Blake McDowell Law Center, had his article,” Is Puffery Material to Investors? Maybe We Should Ask Them,” 10 U. Penn. J. Bus. & Emp. L. 339 (2008) selected by the Law Alumni Association for the Thomas G. Byers Memorial Award for Outstanding Faculty Publication.
Travis L. Salmon, L’01, has become a shareholder in the Kansas City, Mo., office of Polsinelli Shughart PC. Salmon practices in business litigation with an emphasis in complex commercial litigation.
Christopher P. Sobba, L’01, has become a shareholder in the Kansas City, Mo., office of Polsinelli Shughart PC. Sobba practices in construction and business litigation.
Elizabeth A. Srp, L’01, and her husband, Dan, welcomed their daughter, Josephine Julia, in February 2009.
Crystal Nesheim Johnson, L’02, and husband Chad welcomed daughter, Sydney Marie, in October 2008. Johnson is a deputy state’s attorney for Minnehaha County in Sioux Falls, S.D.
Bradley C. Friesen, L’02, an attorney at Bell, Davis & Pitt PA, has been named a director of the Winston-Salem based law firm. His practice concentrates in bank litigation, commercial litigation, uniform commercial code, business litigation, condemnation/eminent domain, civil litigation, landlord/tenant-commercial, and landlord/tenant-residential disputes.
Maria Macoubrie, L’02, and her husband, Brad, are pleased to announce the birth of their daughter, Brynna Claire Macoubrie, in September 2008. Brynna joins big brother Brody (3). Macoubrie is an associate in the Kansas City office of Bryan Cave LLP.
Jamie Huffman Jones, L’03, was named a 2008 Mid-South Rising Star by Super Lawyer Magazine. She is practicing with Friday, Eldredge & Clark LLP in Little Rock, Ark.
Barbara Privat, L’03, joined the Wisconsin State Public Defender’s Office in February 2008. Barbara and husband, Todd, are expecting their second child in April 2009. They have a son, Kyle (2).
Jeffrey M. Schwartz, L’03, has started the law firm of Schwartz & Waible LLC in Fort Collins, Colo. It is a general practice specializing in criminal defense representation. Schwartz previously practiced as a Colorado Public Defender for more than five years.
Carly Farrell, L’06, is practicing with Edward C. Gillette in Mission in the area of domestic relations.
Ben Reed, L’06, has joined the Wichita office of Joseph & Hollander PA. His practice will focus primarily on domestic law.
Ambriel Renn-Scanlan, L’06, recently concluded her two-year clerkship with U.S. Magistrate Judge K. Gary Sebelius and is now an attorney in the Honors Program for the U.S. Department of Labor’s Kansas City Regional Solicitor’s Office.
Michael Payne, L’07, has joined the Greeley, Colo., law firm of Otis, Coan & Peters LLC. His practice emphasizes all areas of real estate, business and commercial law, both litigation and transactional matters.
Bobby Pineda, L’07, has opened his own practice, The Law Office of Bobby W. Pineda, in Rock Springs, Wyo.
Christi Pribula, L’07, is a trust officer at The Commerce Trust Company in Leawood.
Ashley K. (Schellpeper) Adrianse, L’08, is an associate at Cramer, Alissi & Fontaine PC in Hartford, Conn., specializing in insurance and business litigation defense.
Katie Cheney, L’08, joined the firm of Frasier & Johnson LLP in Beloit in January 2009.
Abigail Grantstein, L’08, Indianapolis, accepted a position as assistant director of enforcement at the National Collegiate Athletic Association.
Tyler Hibler, L’08, has joined the Overland Park office of Wallace Saunders Austin Brown & Enochs Chartered. His practice focuses on insurance defense litigation.
Lisa (Brown) Nieman, L’08, has been working as counsel for the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in Washington, D.C., since May 2008.
Wakil Oyedemi, L’08, became the newest assistant Reno County district attorney on March 2, 2009.
In Memoriam
Frederick G. Apt Jr., L’56, Iola, Kan., December 11, 2008
Judith Emick DuChateau, L’85, St. Louis, Mo., November 25, 2008
Jason B. Harper Sr., L’86, Germantown, Md./New York, February 16, 2009
Bill House, L’39, Arkansas City/Cedar Vale, Kan., March 8, 2009
Ervin G. Johnston, L’51, Overland Park, Kan., February 16, 2009
Robert B. Lester, L’77, Rocklin, Calif., January 7, 2009
Howard L. Lydick, L’56, Richardson, Texas, August 5, 2008
Donald E. Schrag, L’78, Wichita, Kan., December 14, 2008
Robert C. Wooton, L’66, Kansas City, Kan., February 13, 2009