News Archives - Page 38 of 138

Alumni and friends honored at Florida Bar Convention in Orlando

The Stetson Lawyers Alumni Association (SLAA) presented awards to six outstanding alumni and friends of Stetson University College of Law during the Florida Bar Annual Meeting in Orlando on June 14.

Jonathan “Boomer” Hart J.D. ’14 received the Outstanding Alumni Representative Award for dedication and service to the Stetson Lawyers Alumni Association.
(L-R): Boomer Hart with Interim Dean Adams.

Hart is a senior associate with Wood, Smith, Henning and Berman in Tampa. He is an active participant with the leadership committee of Stetson’s Tampa Bay alumni chapter, and has played an integral role in the growth of the group.

Keith Appleby J.D./M.B.A. ’04 received the Paul M. May Meritorious Service Award for continuously supporting Stetson Law and its alumni association.
(L-R): Interim Dean Adams with Keith Appleby.

Appleby came to Stetson Law following a successful career in finance, and is currently a shareholder with Banker Lopez Gassler in Tampa practicing in the areas of bankruptcy, creditors’ rights, foreclosures, and general business litigation. A member of the Stetson Lawyers Alumni Association board, Appleby and his wife Diana recently established the Kiana Lynne Appleby Scholarship Endowment.

Nathan Hatcher J.D. ’08 received the President’s Award in recognition of his leadership.
(L-R): Interim Dean Adams with Nathan Hatcher.

Hatcher is a shareholder in Hill Ward Henderson’s litigation group. Over the past two years, he has served as president of the board of the Stetson Lawyers Alumni Association, helping to propel the board and association to new heights.

Bronwyn Stanford J.D. ’03 received the Distinguished Alumni Award.
(L-R): Interim Dean Adams with Bronwyn Stanford.

Stanford is chief administrator of the southern region for the Department of Children and Families. She is responsible for approximately 1400 employees and an operating budget of more than $250 million. She has dedicated her career to making a difference in the lives of children and developing young leaders.

Professor Emeritus William “Bill” Eleazer received the Distinguished Service Award for his significant, meritorious and continuing contributions to Stetson Law.
(L-R): Professor Emeritus Bill Eleazer with Interim Dean Adams.

Eleazer helped develop Stetson’s nationally top-ranked program in trial advocacy. Joining the Stetson Law faculty in 1979, he taught trial practice, advanced trial practice, evidence, and served as the director of Stetson’s Prosecution Clinic. He worked countless hours during evenings and weekends guiding and assisting students in preparing for state, regional and national trial competitions

Professor Rebecca Morgan J.D. ’80 received the Ben C. Willard Award for humanitarian achievements bringing distinction to herself and Stetson Law.
(L-R): Professor Rebecca Morgan with Interim Dean Adams.

Morgan is a law professor at Stetson, where she teaches a variety of elder law courses in the J.D. and LL.M. programs and oversees the elder law concentration program. She has co-authored numerous books, and served as the president of the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, president of the board of directors for the National Senior Citizens Law Center, chair of the American Association of Law Schools Section on Aging and the Law, chair of the Florida Bar Elder Law Section, and on the faculty of the National Judicial College. She has served on multiple task forces and commissions and has won awards including the 2003 Faculty Award on Professionalism from the Florida Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism.

Stetson University Interim Dean and Professor of Law Kristen Adams presented the awards program.

Student wins Distinguished Achievement Award from Florida Bar for contributions to animal law

Jennifer Winn with plastic straws retrieved during a local cleanup. Photo courtesy Vanessa Moore. — Jennifer Winn with plastic straws retrieved during a local trash cleanup with Stetson Law students in March. Photo courtesy Vanessa Moore.

Student Jennifer Winn was presented with the Distinguished Achievement Award on June 15 in Orlando from the Florida Bar Animal Law Section for her contributions to animal law in Florida.

Winn spearheaded a proposed ordinance to ban disposable plastic straws in restaurants in Gulfport, Florida, as part of a class project for Stetson law professor Lance Long’s environmental advocacy class. Plastic straws that wash into the ocean as trash harm marine life and the initiative to ban plastic straws is gaining momentum in Florida and across the country. In July, the St. Petersburg City Council will examine how to deal with disposable plastics including straws, bags and polystyrene containers.

Winn is a member of the Environmental Law Society and the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund at Stetson, and will be studying abroad in Cape Town, South Africa, this summer.

Learn more about Winn’s advocacy work in the Tampa Bay Times and WMNF News.

Dean Emeritus and Professor of Law Bruce Jacob honored by Florida Supreme Court

(L-R): Jacob and Florida Supreme Court Justice Labarga. Photo by Joann Grages Burnett. — (L-R): Jacob and Florida Supreme Court Chief Justice Jorge Labarga. Photo by Joann Grages Burnett J.D. ’08.

Dean Emeritus and Professor of Law Bruce Jacob was honored by the Florida Bar on June 14 with the Florida Bar’s Standing Committee on Professionalism 2018 Law Faculty Professionalism Award. The award, which recognizes a Florida law school faculty member who exemplifies the bar’s mission through teaching, scholarship, and service to the profession, was presented to Jacob during the Judicial Luncheon at the Florida Bar’s annual convention in Orlando on Thursday afternoon.

Jacob retired in May after 13 years as dean, from 1981-1994, and 20 years as a faculty member at Stetson Law. He graduated in 1959 with his law degree from Stetson, and went on to become assistant attorney general of Florida and argue his first case before the U.S. Supreme Court, the historic Gideon v. Wainwright, at age 27. Shortly after the ruling in Gideon, Jacob signed up to become a public defender in Florida’s 10th Judicial Circuit. For more than 50 years, Jacob has represented hundreds of defendants in pro bono criminal and post-conviction cases.

Jacob started a legal assistance program for inmates in Atlanta in 1965 as a member of the faculty at Emory University, and launched a legal assistance program for inmates in Massachusetts while working on his S.J.D. at Harvard. Jacob served as law professor and director of clinical education at Ohio State University, then as dean of the law school at Mercer University, and became dean of Stetson Law in 1981. At Stetson, Jacob promoted Stetson’s participation in moot court competitions and taught more than 20 different law school courses, including constitutional law, administrative law, criminal law and criminal procedure.

He has been featured in the Washington Post, Esquire, the Atlantic, CBS News, NBC News, the National Law Journal and the ABA Journal.

Law alumnus again honored with Tampa Bay Business Journal Business of Pride award

Law alumnus Nathan Bruemmer J.D. ’17 is being honored with a 2018 Tampa Bay Business Journal Business of Pride award on June 18 at the Palladium in St. Petersburg, Florida, for being a voice in the community. It is the second year in a row that Bruemmer is receiving the award.

Bruemmer is executive director of the nonprofit Advocacy Leadership Support Outreach Youth, or ALSO Youth, an LGBT organization based in Sarasota. At Stetson, Bruemmer was an award-winning member of the Trial Team. He worked as a teacher before pursuing his law degree at Stetson.

Last year, he was named among the “Most Remarkable People 2017” by Watermark magazine. Also in 2017, Bruemmer launched the tradition of kicking off the St Pete Pride Parade with a transgender march in downtown St. Petersburg.

The Tampa Bay Business Journal Business of Pride award honorees include companies, organizations and individuals working to advance lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in the workplace.

Students attend ACS National Convention, network in Washington D.C.

(L-R): Bianca Lopez, Julie McHaffie, and Ana Leonart. Photo courtesy Bianca Lopez. — (L-R): Bianca Lopez, Julie McHaffie, and Ana Leonart in Washington, D.C. Photo courtesy Bianca Lopez.

By Bianca Lopez

This June, three Stetson students – myself included – attended the American Constitution Society National Convention. ACS held this year’s event in the nation’s capital, Washington D.C., allowing us to discuss political events surrounded by the “room(s) where it happens.” (Pardon the Hamilton reference.)

Students Julie McHaffie, Ana Lleonart and I received scholarships from the ACS national organization to travel to and participate in the convention. McHaffie will serve as the Stetson ACS chapter’s secretary this coming fall, Lleonart will serve as outreach chair, and I will serve as president.

The convention featured notable speakers such as Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor and former United States Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates. Justice Sotomayor walked through the audience, graciously shaking hands and sharing hugs. She spoke about the importance of representation – as she is the only woman of color on the Supreme Court, and about the plight of Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria. Yates, as keynote speaker for the first night of the convention, kicked off a popular theme of the weekend: legal issues within the current administration.

“Part of the American Constitution Society’s mission is to raise awareness within our nation about important issues that risk being silenced,” Lleonart said. “ACS provides its members with a platform to start those necessary conversations that will ultimately aid in creating the positive change our country needs. I am a part of ACS because I want to contribute to that conversation, in an effort to create the positive change our country calls for.”

Students experienced valuable networking opportunities, paired for coffee meetings by ACS with professional members with experience in their fields of interest. ACS also offered group dinners and speed networking where students could meet attorneys and judges.

“These conventions allow you to connect with hundreds of legal minds throughout the United States,” McHaffie said. “As a law student, it is beneficial to meet students from different law schools and a diverse group of legal professionals. It is impossible to go to one of these conventions and not come away with a new perspective on a legal issue or profession.”

Student attendees came from all around the country – from Harvard to Emory to Berkeley. Some students had just finished their first year of law school, while others balanced the convention festivities with studying for their impending bar exams.

The convention offered many panels throughout the weekend, including the topics of voting rights, immigration, big tech, religious-freedom, and the #metoo movement. To close out the event, attendees acted as the live studio audience for a taping of the Versus Trump podcast and then heard an empowering speech from Karla Perez, a DACA Dreamer who has just graduated from law school.

“After a challenging and demanding first year of law school, attending the ACS national convention reaffirmed my decision to become a lawyer,” McHaffie said. “I realized the impact my legal education can have on the world around me and that I have an ability to make a difference.”

Professor Royal Gardner receives Society of Wetland Scientists President’s Service Award

Stetson's biodiversity institute director Royal Gardner visited the Okavango Delta, Botswana in May. — Stetson’s Biodiversity Institute director Royal Gardner visited the Okavango Delta, Botswana.

Stetson University College of Law Professor Royal Gardner, director of the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy, received the Society of Wetland Scientists President’s Service Award on May 31.

The award recognizes members of the SWS who have made significant contributions by serving the society and its members, and who have promoted the goals of the society in their efforts that extend above and beyond their duties as teachers, researchers and administrators.

Professor Gardner was selected for his work on behalf of the SWS on Clean Water Act policy issues and litigation.

Gardner and Erin Okuno J.D. ’13 of Stetson’s Biodiversity Institute co-authored an amicus brief filed on behalf of the Society of Wetland Scientists asking a federal district court in New York to require federal agencies to consider the scientific and economic record before suspending the 2015 Clean Water Rule, which defines which waters are protected under the Clean Water Act.

Read the brief from Stetson’s Biodiversity Institute here.

Stetson hosts webinar on Title IX Compliance Issues in the Trump Era on June 12

Stetson University College of Law is hosting a webinar on June 12 from 1-2:30 p.m. on Title IX Compliance Issues in the Trump Era: Updates on Title IX Policy and OCR Enforcement.

The webinar for attorneys and Title IX coordinators features Debbie Osgood, a longtime former official with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and current partner with the education practice group at Hogan Marren Babbo & Rose, Ltd.

Topics cover issues related to sexual harassment and sexual violence impacting colleges and universities, recent case letters and resolution agreements issued by the Office of Civil Rights, as well as practical guidance on steps to reaffirm and bolster Title IX compliance at educational institutions.

To register, visit Stetson’s Conferences and Workshops or contact the Office of Professional Education at [email protected] for more information.

Stetson hosts complimentary webinar on Forensic Psychology Essentials on June 1

Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, Florida, is hosting a complimentary webinar on Forensic Psychology Essentials on June 1, from 12:30-2:30 p.m., as part of its forensic science webinar series funded by the U.S. Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Assistance.

The webinar for criminal litigators explores the essentials of forensic psychology and the legal considerations when utilizing forensic psychology evidence and experts in litigation.

Stetson professor and founder of the National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law Carol Henderson moderates the webinar, featuring Dan Martell and Randy Otto.

To register, visit Stetson Law’s Conferences and Workshops or contact the Office of Professional Education at [email protected] for more information.

Stetson University College of Law is the first American Bar Association Competitions Champion

Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport, Florida, has been named the first American Bar Association Competitions Champion. The ABA Law Student Division hosts four practical skills competitions—the arbitration, negotiation, client counseling and national appellate advocacy competitions. The Competitions Champion Award is presented to the law school that accrues the most points through team achievements and participation in the ABA Law Student Division’s four practical skills competitions. In 2018, more than 1,300 students from 156 law schools participated in one or more of these competitions.

For the first time in its 17-year history, Stetson’s Dispute Resolution Board achieved a perfect four-for-four record of advancing to nationals in all four dispute resolution competitions sponsored by the ABA—arbitration, client counseling, mediation, and negotiation—competitions that represent all the areas in which the Dispute Resolution Board competes. Stetson University College of Law is the first school to achieve this distinction. Stetson teams advanced to nationals from regional ABA championships in arbitration and negotiation in November of 2017, client counseling and mediation in February of 2018.

Stetson Law students Jahanna Azarian and Vanessa Denk finished as national semifinalists at the national client counseling competition and placed first at the regional competition. Students Allison Belanger and Christina Huckfeldt finished as national semifinalists in the national negotiation competition after being finalists at the regional competition. Students Max Brown, Caroline Garrity, Olivia Mejido and Meghan Sullivan placed first at the regional arbitration competition. Students Julia Alley and Mark Joseph finished first at the regional mediation competition.

“We are delighted to be recognized by the preeminent organization of our nation’s lawyers. Importantly, these skills are the foundation on which our students will build their professional careers to effectively represent clients and advocate for our communities,” Stetson Law Dean and Professor of Law Christopher M. Pietruszkiewicz told the ABA.

Legal scholars with Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at Stetson Law, NYU School of Law’s Institute for Policy Integrity, highlight flaws in Clean Water Rule suspension

Two new amicus briefs written by the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University School of Law and the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at Stetson University College of Law are asking the federal district court in New York to consider the scientific and economic damage of suspending the 2015 Clean Water Rule.

The Clean Water Rule was designed to protect the streams and wetlands on which Americans’ health and economy depend. The Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are now considering repealing that rule. While no repeal has been finalized, the agencies added an “applicability date” to the Clean Water Rule in February of 2018, suspending it for two years.

Several states and organizations have filed suit against the Trump administration for the suspension. Professor Royal Gardner and Erin Okuno of Stetson’s Biodiversity Institute co-authored an amicus brief filed on behalf of the Society of Wetland Scientists. The Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University School of Law also filed a brief in opposition to the suspension of the Clean Water Rule.

“Every aspect of the Clean Water Act’s implementation requires the use of science,” said Stetson Law professor Royal Gardner. “When the agencies disregard science, their judgments deserve no deference.”

Bethany Davis Noll, litigation director at the Institute for Policy Integrity, explained that “the benefits of protecting wetlands under the Clean Water Rule outweigh the costs by a substantial amount. In ignoring those benefits now, the agency has violated longstanding principles of administrative law.”

Read the brief from Stetson’s Biodiversity Institute here.

Read the brief from NYU’s Institute for Policy Integrity here.

Contact: Brandi Palmer

Stetson University College of Law

(727) 562-7381

Contact: Derek Sylvan

New York University School of Law

(212) 998-6085

Professor of Law Luz Nagle appointed co-chair of the Crimes Against Women Subcommittee

Stetson University Professor of Law Luz Nagle has been appointed co-chair of the Crimes Against Women Subcommittee of the International Bar Association, serving through December 2019. The IBA is the largest lawyer association in the world.

“This is a fantastic organization for disseminating information and educating tens of thousands of lawyers about issues impacting women worldwide,” said Professor Nagle. “It is an honor to become part of the IBA’s efforts to support women and women’s rights around the globe, and to address so many social, political and economic factors that impact not only women, but their families, their professions, and the communities in which they live and work.”

Professor Nagle is the author of numerous book chapters, articles, and the 2017 book Understanding Human Trafficking, Corruption, and Optics of Misconduct in the Public, Private, and NGO Sectors: Causes, Actors and Solutions. She specializes in international law, international criminal law, and national security law and has been a visiting professor and lecturer in the U.S., Argentina, Colombia, Denmark, Mexico, Panama, and Spain. Her scholarship has appeared in three languages on four continents, addressing topics of international law, international criminal law, judicial reform, and regional security. She is sought internationally as a voice in the fight against human trafficking and modern day slavery.

Professor Nagle currently serves as a trustee of the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute Trust after serving on the IBA’s Human Rights Institute Council and holding other significant leadership appointments with the IBA’s Legal Practice Division Council and the Criminal Law Section. She has served on several IBA task forces involving terrorism, corruption, criminal justice reform, and combating human trafficking.

To learn more about the IBA, visit https://www.ibanet.org.

Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic honored for feature video depicting its work to help a Marine veteran and spouse obtain long-awaited benefits

Stetson University College of Law’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic has won a national 2018 Hermes Creative Award for its feature video about law student Kyle Short’s work through the Clinic to help a Tampa Bay area veteran named Joe and his spouse Karla obtain long-awaited benefits.

The video, Stetson University’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic: The Story of Karla and Joe, filmed by Stetson’s manager of video production Stan Arthur, has won a gold award from Hermes in the video: nonprofit category.

The Story of Karla and Joe relates the story of a couple who fought for years to receive veterans benefits for Joe, a Marine who served at Camp Lejeune. When Karla and Joe came to Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic for help, Stetson Law student and Marine Kyle Short assisted with their benefits claim. Joe was very ill, and succumbed to his illness and died, but through the work of Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic, his surviving spouse Karla received the benefits he was owed.

Stetson’s Veterans Advocacy Clinic, located on Stetson University’s Gulfport, Florida, campus, was dedicated as part of the Veterans Law Institute in 2012 to help the growing population of Tampa Bay veterans obtain denied Veterans Administration disability benefits.

Professor Stacey-Rae Simcox, director of the Veterans Law Institute and Veterans Advocacy Clinic, oversees Stetson Law students providing free legal assistance to veterans seeking denied disability benefits.

“Stetson’s law students are at the heart of the Clinic’s mission to serve our nation’s disabled veterans by providing them top notch legal help to receive the benefits they have earned,” said Professor Simcox. “Without their passion and energy, the unique partnership that Stetson created with the University of South Florida’s medical school, which helps us to seek medical evidence to support veterans’ disability claims, would not have been possible. They also work diligently to support Stetson, Bay Area Legal Services, and the local Veterans Affairs Medical Center to provide legal services to veterans in need at the local VA hospital. It is gratifying to see the hard work of law students who have the opportunity to learn and give back through this clinical experience, highlighted in this video.”

Visit the Veterans Law Institute at Stetson to learn more. Veterans who need free legal help with VA disability benefits appeals should reach out to the Veterans Advocacy Clinic at Stetson at 727-562-7324 or visit https://www.stetson.edu/law/veterans/legal-help-for-veterans.php.