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Stetson University College of Law inducts 10 members into Hall of Fame

Contact Frank Klim
Executive Director of Communications
727-562-7889

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law inducted 10 new alumni, faculty and friends into its Hall of Fame recently. The Hall of Fame now includes 28 members.

“All of these individuals have reached the pinnacle of their professions and have affected a profound positive influence on Stetson University College of Law,” said Dean Darby Dickerson.

This year’s inductees include:

William R. Eleazer
Professor William R. Eleazer served 25 years on the faculty of Stetson Law. During his tenure, he built Stetson’s nationally recognized, number one ranked trial advocacy program. The William R. Eleazer courtroom, the nation’s first elder friendly courtroom, was dedicated in his honor on Sept. 16.

E. Harris Drew
Justice Drew, class of 1923, served two decades as a member of the Florida Supreme Court, including two terms as chief justice. He was president of the Florida Bar and Stetson Lawyers Association and winner of Stetson’s Ben C. Willard Award. Justice Drew served on the college’s board of overseers and spearheaded construction projects at the law school.

Ruth Fleet Thurman
Over three decades of students at Stetson Law have worked with and learned from Professor Ruth Fleet Thurman. Thurman, class of 1963, holds the distinction of the being the first female tenured professor at Stetson University College of Law and she was the only woman in her spring 1963 graduating class. Thurman was also the first female assistant state attorney in Florida’s 6th Judicial Circuit.

William J. Clapp
In the early 1950s, William J. Clapp played a pivotal role in convincing Stetson University trustees and President Ollie Edmunds that St. Petersburg/Gulfport would be an ideal place to relocate the College of Law. Clapp helped organize a community fundraising campaign in the area to help make the move financially possible for Stetson.

Gardner W. Beckett Jr.
Gardner Beckett, class of 1957, was a celebrated civil rights attorney. During his legal career, he donated countless hours of legal representation through the American Civil Liberties Union and was recognized with the Nelson Poynter Award, Florida’s highest award in civil liberties. He won three cases for the ACLU before the U.S. Supreme Court. Beckett served on the Stetson Law board of overseers and as an adjunct professor of law. In 1967, Beckett became president of the board of directors for the Stetson University Law Center Foundation, later known as the Dana Law Center Foundation. He was a member of the Florida Board of Bar Examiners and the Pinellas County Committee of 100.

Murray Sams Jr.
During his career, Murray Sams Jr., class of 1949, was one of our nation’s finest trial lawyers. He was a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers, a board member of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers, president of the International Society of Barristers and the Florida Bar Board of Legal Specialization and Education, and a member of numerous other legal organizations.
Over the years, Sams was a generous donor to Stetson, sharing his time, energy and talents to help launch numerous education programs. He served as a member of the College of Law Board of Overseers and the Charles A. Dana Law Foundation.

Mary Stewart Howarth-Hewitt
Mary Stewart Howarth-Hewitt, class of 1908, was the first woman in Florida to attend law school and earn a law degree. She was admitted by the Florida Supreme Court to practice on June 20, 1908. She supported Stetson throughout her life and taught constitutional law at the school on a part-time basis.

James T. Russell
James T. Russell, class of 1954, was elected to the Florida Legislature in 1958 and served for six years. He also served as a judge for several municipalities and as Gulfport City Attorney. In 1965, Russell became an assistant state attorney. In 1969, the governor appointed him state attorney for the 6th Judicial Circuit, a position he held until January 1993. In the 1970s, Russell helped create a new prosecution clinic at the College of Law.

Robert E. Jagger
Robert E. Jagger, class of 1958, spent more than three decades as Public Defender for Pinellas-Pasco county. In 1963, Jagger, together with Stetson professor Paul Barnard and 6th Judicial Circuit Senior Judge John Bird, organized the state’s first clinical legal education program at Stetson University College of Law.

Walter Mann
For more than 25 years, Walter Mann was a moving force in the development and progress of Stetson University College of Law. He gave generously of time and resources. He was an organizer of the College of Law Board of Overseers and served as its first president from February 1961 until February 1967. He was later elected treasurer of the board and served from 1969 until his death in August 1981.

Stetson Law presents program for prospective students Nov. 19 at the Gulfport campus

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. –   Stetson University College of Law will present Law School Information Day, a program for prospective students, from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. on Nov. 19 at 1401 61st St. S. in Gulfport.

The program will provide faculty-led seminars, a simulated law class, campus tours, and information about law school admissions and financial aid. Prospective students can also learn more about Stetson’s part-time program and award-winning trial team.

“Law Day is an opportunity for prospective law students to see if they are truly interested in law school and Stetson,” said Laura Zuppo Headley, acting director of admissions. “They can sit in on a mock class, participate in a student moderated panel, meet with deans, faculty and current students, and take tours of our beautiful campus.”

Last year’s event drew more than 350 people to Stetson’s Gulfport campus, including prospective students from as far away as California, Colorado, Connecticut and New Jersey.

To register for this free event, please visit Stetson online at
http://www.law.stetson.edu/admissions.
The deadline to register is Nov. 11.

Stetson Law’s Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy presents a history of restoration efforts in the Everglades on Oct. 4

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Allison DeFoor, who served as “Everglades Czar” to Gov. Jeb Bush, will discuss the history of the Everglades and current restoration efforts at noon on Oct. 4 at Stetson University College of Law, 1401 61st St. S., Gulfport, Fla.

The presentation, entitled “The Everglades Restoration: $13 Billion Reasons Why You Should Hear This Lecture,” is sponsored by the Stetson Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy. The public is welcome to attend.

DeFoor, a conservationist and environmentalist, is the state coordinator for EarthBalance, an environmental restoration company. DeFoor is former president of the Florida Keys Land & Sea Trust and a director of the Florida Audubon, where he received the “Chairman’s Award” in 1999. A seventh generation Floridian, DeFoor is a Florida historian and author of ten books, many journal articles, and a mid-19th century history of Florida.

DeFoor, who received his law degree from Stetson in 1979, is currently completing a doctorate in ministry at the South Florida Center for Theological Studies.

Stetson College of Law builds model courtroom for the elderly and disabled

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Tampa Bay, Fla. – National advocates for the rights of seniors and the disabled gathered at Stetson University College of Law on Sept. 16 for the dedication of the nation’s first “elder-friendly” courtroom.

“We can only hope that this courtroom inspires the creation of others,” said AARP CEO Bill Novelli. “You have created a place of law and justice that is accessible to anyone and everyone.”

The courtroom has touch screens, electronic gates that open automatically, hearing amplification devices, flat-panel monitors, refreshable Braille displays, a multi-lingual software speech synthesizer and translator and other features specially designed for people with reduced vision, limited hearing or other physical disabilities.

As U.S. Attorney General, Dick Thornburgh shepherded the American with Disabilities Act. He reminded the courtroom audience of landmark Supreme Court case Lane V. Tennessee, in which a disabled man was forced to climb out of his wheelchair and crawl up the steps of a courthouse to attend a judicial proceeding. “The Eleazer courtroom doesn’t simply accommodate wheelchair access, though that is monumental in its own right. It goes so much further. Its technology will enable people with various sensory impairments to participate fully in our judicial process,” Thornburgh said.

Lawrence Davidow, President of the National Academy for Elder Law Attorneys said construction of the new courtroom is the beginning of a movement to increase access, dignity, respect and involvement of all people with disabilities, regardless of age, in every courtroom in the United States. “This courtroom is all about enhancing the lives of people with special needs as they age. We intimately know what this courtroom means to them; access to justice with dignity, enhancing their ability to be a part of a process that directly impacts their lives, without barriers, seamlessly allowing their disabilities to be a non-issue,” Davidow said.

Stetson professors Rebecca Morgan and Roberta Flowers spearheaded courtroom construction. “This innovative courtroom combines cutting-edge technology while recognizing that our system of justice will always be about people,” said Flowers.
The courtroom will be used initially for Consumer Protection Program activities that educate the elderly community about various types of consumer fraud. In the spring, elder law and advocacy students will use the new facility, and Morgan and Flowers are working to make the courtroom available for actual court proceedings in the near future. Stetson dedicated the courtroom in honor of Distinguished Professor of Law Emeritus William R. Eleazer.

To view images of the courtroom, please visit http://www.law.stetson.edu/tour. For more info, please click  here.

Photo # 2 , Pictured (L to R): Fred Schaub (Stetson grad ’84), Hon. Dick Thornburgh (keynote speaker and former U.S. Attorney General), Hon. David Demers (Stetson grad ’72), William D. Novelli (CEO of AARP), William R. Eleazer (Professor Emeritus and courtroom namesake), Charlie Canerday (architect), Jan Eleazer (William Eleazer’s wife), Professor Rebecca Morgan (Professor of Law), Darby Dickerson (Dean and Vice President, Stetson University College of Law), Roberta Flowers (Professor of Law and Chair, Center for Excellence in Advocacy), Linda Parker (wife of late Judge Jerry Parker, chamber namesake), Ron Marvin (portrait artist), Shrin Vesely (Stetson grad ’94 and SLA President)

Photo # 4 , Pictured (L to R): Lawrence Davidow (President of NAELA), Rebecca Morgan (Professor of Law and Stetson’s Boston Asset Management Faculty Chair in Elder Law), William Novelli (CEO of AARP), Hon. Dick Thornburgh (keynote speaker and former U.S. Attorney General), H. Douglas Lee (President, Stetson University), Darby Dickerson (Dean and Vice President, Stetson University College of Law), William R. Eleazer (Professor Emeritus and courtroom namesake), Roberta Flowers (Professor of Law and Chair, Center for Excellence in Advocacy), Shirin Vesely (Stetson grad ’94 and Stetson Lawyers Association President), Charles A. Samarkos (Stetson grad ’89 and Shareholder; Johnson, Pope, Bokor, Ruppel & Burns LLP)

Stetson Law forum educates Florida seniors about price gouging that targets victims of hurricanes

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law’s Elder Consumer Protection Program will present a consumer fraud prevention forum for seniors on Sept. 29.

Elder Consumer Protection Fellow Bronwyn Stanford will speak to seniors about how to avoid being victimized by price gouging that takes advantage of people impacted by hurricanes on Stetson’s Gulfport campus at 1401 61st St. S. in the Great Hall at 1:30 p.m.
Information about consumer fraud will be provided at information booths staffed by volunteers on hand to answer questions.
Tours of Stetson’s new elder-friendly Eleazer Courtroom, a state-of-the-art facility constructed specifically to meet the needs of an aging population, will be available.

“Elder consumers need to learn more about various scams and how to protect themselves from being victims of a scam,” said Rebecca Morgan, head of the program. “Good advice to remember is ‘if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.'”

The Elder Consumer Protection Program presents programs throughout the state of Florida about different frauds and scams.

Funding for the program was provided in part by the U.S. Administration on Aging, and the presentations are part of Stetson’s work under a federal grant to educate the elderly on consumer fraud prevention. Stetson, a national leader in the field of elder law, has partnered with the Florida Attorney General’s Office, AARP and the legal community to increase public awareness of consumer fraud against senior citizens.

For more information, call Stetson’s Consumer Protection Program at (727) 562-7800 ext. 7235.
Click  here  to visit the Eleazer Courtroom online.

Stetson and Brigham Young present debate on gay adoption issues

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Tampa Bay, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law and the J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University will present a symposium on the future of lesbian and gay adoption, Oct. 28 at the Tampa Law Center, 1700 N. Tampa St.

The program is titled, “Lofton and the future of lesbian and gay adoption.” Last year, in Lofton v. Secretary of the Department of Children and Family Services, an appellate court ruled that a prohibition on such adoptions does not violate the U.S. Constitution. The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear an appeal.

“Some people see a rejection of gay and lesbian adoption as a violation of basic rights. Others view the issue as one of protecting traditional values. This tension of fundamental values makes the issue so important to discuss at this time,” said Stetson Professor Michael Allen, who is co-chair of the symposium.

The day-long program will review constitutional implications, psychological and sociological issues and the implications in other areas of the law.

The conference is $25 for general attendees and $125 for CLE participants. To register, please call Professor Michael Allen at Stetson, 727-562-7360, or email him at [email protected].

National legal leaders gather to dedicate Stetson Law’s elder-friendly courtroom

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Dick Thornburgh, two-time former U.S. attorney general and governor of Pennsylvania, Bill Novelli, CEO of the AARP, Lawrence Davidow, president of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, and other prominent leaders will gather to dedicate the nation’s first elder-friendly high-tech courtroom on Stetson University College of Law’s Gulfport campus Sept. 16 at 4 p.m.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony and tours of the courtroom will immediately follow the dedication.

The barrier-free courtroom, dedicated in honor of Stetson Distinguished Professor Emeritus William R. Eleazer, is a joint effort of Stetson’s Centers for Excellence in Advocacy and Elder Law. The courtroom is designed as a national model to increase courtroom access to the elderly and disabled. It uses cutting-edge technology including flat-panel monitors, hearing amplification devices, and a multi-lingual software speech synthesizer that will read aloud words displayed on a computer screen, translate them into multiple languages, and even output words to refreshable Braille displays.

As U.S. attorney general, Thornburgh played a leading role in the Americans with Disabilities Act. In 2002, he was recognized for his “commitment to the civil rights of people with disabilities” with the Wiley E. Branton Award of the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs.

Prior to joining the AARP in January 2000, Novelli was president of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids and executive vice president of CARE, a private relief organization that helps impoverished people in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Davidow is vice president of the New York State Bar Elder Law Section, a member of the board of directors of the National Elder Law Foundation and belongs to many elder law organizations.

For more information,  visit the courtroom online.

Editor’s Note: Interviews with Mr. Thornburgh, Mr. Novelli, and Mr. Davidow will be available prior to the dedication between 3:40 p.m. and 3:55 p.m. Please contact Brandi Palmer to schedule an interview time at (727) 562-7381 or (727) 430-1580.

Stephanie Vaughan appointed director of Stetson University Tampa Law Center

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Professor Stephanie Vaughan, acting director of legal research and writing at Stetson University College of Law, has been appointed director of the Tampa Law Center.

“This is an exciting new opportunity for me,” said Vaughan. “I look forward to working with the students in Stetson’s part-time program, the Second District Court of Appeal and the Tampa legal and business community.”

Vaughan’s new administrative role in Tampa adds to her work with Stetson’s award-winning moot court board. In March, Vaughan co-coached the Stetson team to win the world championship at the Willem C. Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot competition in Vienna, Austria. Stetson became the first American law school since 1996 to win the competition. Teams from 150 law schools in 47 countries competed.

Vaughan received her law degree with honors from Stetson in 1991, and her bachelor’s degree from the University of Alabama in 1988. After graduating from Stetson, Vaughan practiced law in the Tampa Bay area for almost five years, in the areas of local government law and employment discrimination litigation. Vaughan taught as an adjunct professor before joining the Stetson law faculty in 1996 as a full-time instructor of legal research and writing.

Stetson Law dean elected to board of legal writing society

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Tampa Bay, Fla. – Darby Dickerson, dean and vice president of Stetson University College of Law, has been elected to the board of Scribes, the prestigious national society for legal writers.

Dean Dickerson is nationally recognized for her legal research and writing. Dickerson has written dozens of academic articles and penned the popular ALWD Citation Manual, which is used by more than 50 percent of first-year law students in the United States.

In June, Dickerson won the 2005 Burton Award for Outstanding Contributions to Legal Writing Education. In August, she was named Tampa Bay Business Woman of the Year in the nonprofit category by the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

In 2003, she was named managing editor of Legal Writing: The Journal of the Legal Writing Institute and was invited to serve on the panel of academic contributors for the eighth edition of Black’s Law Dictionary. She has worked with Scribes for many years, and from 1992 –1994 served as managing editor of the Scribes Journal of Legal Writing.

Scribes was established in 1953 to promote better writing across the legal community. The organization brings together lawyers, judges, academics, publishers and editors and advocates accessible, interesting and informative legal writing.

Stetson Law honored with ABA Law Student Division School of the Year Award

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Tampa Bay, Fla. – Stetson University College of Law was honored with the American Bar Association Law Student Division School of the Year Award.

The award, the highest honor given by the ABA Law Student Division, is given to the law school with the highest percentage of student members. Stetson is one of the most active schools nationwide in the ABA LSD, with 68 percent of the student body belonging to the organization.

“Stetson’s chapter of the ABA plans numerous activities throughout the year, ranging from volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity to Diversity Day,” said former ABA fifth circuit governor and recent graduate Ashley Gay.

Andrew Chiang, a Stetson graduate and vice-chair of the ABA Law Student Division and former ABA campus representative, was one of four national officers in charge of the division.

“Stetson’s achievement as a winner of the 2004-2005 ABA School of the Year Award has a lot to do with our students, our administration and their support,” Chiang said.

Stetson students have been elected as national officers to the ABA Law Student Division and hold various leadership positions within the organization. In addition to advocating the interests of Stetson students, the ABA Stetson Chapter is dedicated to diversity, public interest and professional programming on campus and in the community.

The ABA is the largest voluntary professional membership association in the world, with more than 400,000 members. The association provides accreditation, continuing legal education, information about the law, programs for lawyers and judges and initiatives to improve the legal system for the public.

Rutgers Law professor to deliver distinguished lecture at Stetson Law

Contact Brandi Palmer
Communications Specialist
727-562-7381

Gulfport, Fla. – Rutgers law professor Jay M. Feinman will deliver the Nichols Foundation Prominent Speaker Lecture at 12 p.m. on Sept. 12 at Stetson University College of Law.

Feinman will discuss his recent book, “Un-Making Law: The Conservative Campaign to Roll Back the Common Law,” at noon in the Great Hall on the Gulfport campus.

“Professor Feinman continues the tradition of excellence as this year’s prominent speaker,” said Darby Dickerson, Stetson Law dean.

Feinman has served as associate dean and acting dean of the Rutgers School of Law where he teaches contracts, torts and insurance law. Feinman is a member of the American Law Institute, and he has chaired the Association of American Law Schools, sections on contracts and teaching methods. He has received numerous awards for excellence in teaching, including the Lindback Foundation Award for Distinguished Teaching in 2005 and the Warren I. Susman Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2004. In addition, Feinman has published five books and more than 50 scholarly articles.

The Nichols Foundation Prominent Speakers Series was established in 1995 to enrich academic life at Stetson Law. Previous lectures have included prominent business leaders, government officials, legal scholars and practitioners.

Dean Dickerson chosen as a Tampa Bay Nonprofit Business Woman of The Year

Contact Frank Klim
Executive Director of Communications
727-562-7889

Tampa Bay, Fla. – Darby Dickerson, dean and vice president of Stetson University College of Law was named “Business Woman of the Year” in the Nonprofit/Social Services category by the Tampa Bay Business Journal.

Dean Dickerson was one of forty female Tampa Bay leaders honored at the 2005 Business Woman of the Year awards ceremony on Friday, Aug. 19.

Dr. Pallavi Patel won the top award for her work through her and her husband’s Foundation for Global Understanding. Her organization has supplied HIV/AIDS testing for thousands of college students in her native India.

Under Darby Dickerson’s leadership, Stetson has earned a No. 1 ranking in trial advocacy and a No. 3 ranking in legal writing by U.S. News & World Report in its recent rankings of the nation’s best graduate schools. In March, Stetson became the first American law school since 1996 to win the world championship at the Willem C. Vis International Arbitration Moot competition. In addition, the College recently completed an extraordinarily successful fund-raising campaign.

Darby Dickerson’s reputation is unmatched in her profession. She authored the ALWD Citation Manual, which is used by more than 50 percent of first-year law students in the United States. She has received a wide range of professional, institutional and community recognitions. She has written dozens of academic articles and frequently speaks to national audiences. Dickerson also serves many local and national boards.

For more information about the awards presentations, please visit the Tampa Bay Business Journal