Stetson Law Reflects on Legacy of Dean Emerita Lizabeth A. Moody
As the Stetson Law community mourns the loss of former Dean Lizabeth A. Moody, who passed away on May 19, former colleagues say her impact on the College of Law – and the legal profession itself – was nothing short of transformative.
Moody, who was the school’s first female dean, served in that role from 1994 through 1999. Thereafter, she was named Dean Emeritus and remained involved at the College of Law. She was inducted into the Stetson Law Hall of Fame in 2009. During her deanship, Moody championed advocacy education initiatives, was critical in the planning of and fundraising for the Dolly & Homer Hand Law Library, and supported growth in International Programs and Elder Law.
“Stetson Law is a better place because of Dean Lizabeth Moody – as is the world,” said Stetson Law Interim Dean Theresa Pulley Radwan. “She didn’t just shatter a glass ceiling by being the first woman to serve as dean. She inspired and encouraged other women lawyers to lead – and she saw Stetson Law’s potential as a national leader in multiple areas. We are all saddened by the loss of such an important changemaker, and we invite our community to learn about Dean Moody and celebrate her legacy.”
A celebration of her life is currently being planned, the details of which will be made public when they are available.
A lifelong love of law
Born in Johnson City, Tennessee, Moody knew her path very early in life.
When she was six, she asked her father if she could be a lawyer – he said “yes.” By the time she was in the seventh grade, Moody had a large collection of law school catalogues. Her family moved to Ohio, where she was valedictorian of her high school class. Thanks to a Junior Achievement Scholarship, she attended Columbia University.
Moody then attended law school at Yale, where she was one of just seven women out of her 1959 graduating class of 160.
She continued to break the glass ceiling when she became a member of a major Cleveland law firm, was one of the first women to obtain an AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell, and was the first female president of the Cleveland Bar Association.
Giving back through service to the profession
In 1971, she left private practice to teach at Cleveland State University College of Law, but remained tirelessly active within the greater legal community.
While serving on the Women’s Law Fund together in the 1970s, Moody befriended Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who ultimately became a U.S. Supreme Court Justice. After working on a case challenging the Cleveland Public Schools’ policy regarding pregnant people, the two friends stayed in touch.
In 1990, Moody signed on as president and CEO of Law School Admissions Services, the organization behind the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT). She was instrumental in developing the Law Access Loan Program, which made billions of dollars available to students pursuing law.
Breaking barriers at Stetson Law
In 1994, she joined Stetson Law as Vice President and Dean. She was the first woman to serve in this role at the college. Over her five years as dean, she helped grow Stetson Law’s national presence through substantive initiatives.
“Dean Moody played a pivotal role in the College of Law’s emergence into national prominence in the 1990s,” said Law Professor Peter Lake, Director of Stetson Law’s Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy. “Our first female law dean recognized Stetson’s distinctive prowess in Trial Advocacy, and created the foundation for extraordinary success and recognition in training great trial lawyers.”
Under her leadership, the College of Law broke the U.S. News and World Report barrier and was ranked in the top 100 law schools in the nation. She helped plan and fundraise for a new law library, which is now the Dolly & Homer Hand Law Library. Her friend, Justice Ginsburg, spoke at the library’s opening ceremony.
In 2015, Stetson Law dedicated a seminar room to her on the second floor of the law library. It was the room where she taught her nonprofit corporations class. She was an early champion of the now-popular practice of teaching class in small seminar groups.
Moody was also instrumental in helping establish Stetson Law as a national leader in the area of elder law.
“Dean Moody understood the importance of elder law,” said Law Professor Rebecca Morgan, who pioneered Stetson Law’s elder law program. “The Elder Law Center, the first Center for Excellence at the College of Law, was established during her deanship. Additionally, she was active in the ABA Senior Lawyers Division, serving as Vice-Chair.”
Moody also helped lay the foundation for the college’s part-time and international programs – and encouraged Stetson Law’s moot teams to compete on the international level.
“Dean Emeritus Liz Moody and her loving husband Alan Buchman were instrumental in promoting and encouraging Stetson Law to become involved in the Willem C. Vis International Arbitration Moot, which began Stetson’s 20-year successful run in the competition,” said Law Professor Stephanie Vaughan, who has co-coached Stetson Law’s championship-winning teams for the prestigious annual moot in Vienna, Austria, and Hong Kong. “Dean Moody understood the importance of advocacy and international law, and her commitment to both put us on the global map. She was a dear friend and will be truly missed.”
Slideshow: Dean Emerita Lizabeth A. Moody
A nationally recognized legal professional
She won dozens of awards over the course of her career, including the Ohio State Bar Association’s Bar Medal, the highest award for unusually meritorious service to the community, the profession, and humanity. In 1997, the American Bar Association gave her the Glass Cutter Award for her tireless work helping other women in the legal profession. She received the ABA Business Law Section’s Author Award for her work on the revised Model Nonprofit Corporation Act and Martindale-Hubbell’s Highest Rating in Legal Ability & Ethical Standards.
The city of Cleveland declared May 8, 1990 as Lizabeth A. Moody Day.
In 2012, the ABA included Moody as part of its Women Trailblazers Law Project, which featured her oral history of her career at Library of Congress and the Arthur and Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America at Harvard University.
She was heavily involved in the ABA, the American Law Institute (which named her a Life Member, a prestigious designation), and the American Association of Law Schools and served her community through philanthropic efforts and by serving on nonprofit boards like those of Tampa General Hospital and Academy Prep.
Through the years, she set standards not just for women lawyers, but for the legal community to follow. The Stetson Law will continue to celebrate Moody’s legacy. Many of her awards are on display in the Dean Lizbeth A. Moody Seminar Room on the second floor of the Dolly & Homer Hand Law Library.
See Dean Moody’s Hall of Fame induction video
Post date: May 24, 2023
Media contact: Kate Bradshaw
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