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Free CLE webinar on Crime Scene Essentials launches in March

Stetson University College of Law’s National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law has partnered with the Law Enforcement Innovation Center at the University of Tennessee’s Institute for Public Service to launch a new webinar series as part of the “Capital Litigation Initiative: Crime Scene to Courtroom Forensics Training.” Attendees who complete the series will be eligible for free CLE credits.

The first in a series of eight webinars, “Crime Scene Essentials,” launches on March 2, and covers identifying, documenting, processing, preserving and collecting of evidence.

The eight webinars, funded by the US Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance’s Capital Case Litigation Initiative, are designed for prosecutors and defense attorneys working on capital cases and will offer step-by-step forensic science training from evaluating the crime scene to defending or prosecuting death penalty cases in court.

“In an era in which the Supreme Court has scrutinized the death penalty, this course will educate lawyers about how forensic science plays a crucial role in the most serious of crimes,” said Stetson Professor of Law Carol Henderson, the course leader.

Professor Henderson, recognized as an international authority on forensic science and law, co-chairs the Life & Physical Sciences Division of the American Bar Association’s Science & Technology Law Section and is the former president of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences. She is the founding director of the National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law at Stetson.

For more information, contact Stetson’s Office of Professional Education at 727-562-7898 or email [email protected].

Visit https://stetsonuniversitycollegeo.regfox.com/crime-scene-webinar-1-bja to register for the free webinar.

Choosing expert witnesses: New online course developed by Stetson, University of Tennessee

Stetson University College of Law’s National Clearinghouse for Science, Technology and the Law has partnered with the Law Enforcement Innovation Center at the University of Tennessee’s Institute for Public Service to launch a new online legal course, available now, on how to select and evaluate expert witnesses.

The three-hour course, designed for lawyers, judges and law enforcement, will offer training on interviewing and selecting expert witnesses, assessing expert credibility, challenging expert credentials, and evaluating board-certifying organizations.

“Expert testimony can make or break a case,” said Professor of Law Carol Henderson, founding director of the National Clearinghouse for Science Technology and the Law at Stetson University. “This course provides a roadmap for evaluating an expert’s credentials and outlines the new policies and standards that impact expert testimony in the courtroom today.”

Professor Henderson is recognized as an international authority on forensic science and law. She co-chairs the Life & Physical Sciences Division of the American Bar Association’s Science & Technology Law Section and is the former president of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences.

Participants who complete the full three-hour course will receive either 3.5 general CLE credits and .5 CLE ethics credits, or 3.5 Peace Officer Standards and Training credits (P.O.S.T.) or one American Board of Criminalistics reaccreditation credit. They will also be trained to use National Clearinghouse’s free NCSTL.org scientific evidence research database.

Special rates for the course are available for law enforcement, non-profit and government employees.

For more information, contact Stetson’s Office of Professional Education at 727-562-7898 or visit NCSTL.org or http://leic.tennessee.edu/expertwitness to register.

Stetson hosts 20 teams at National Trial Competition

Stetson University College of Law hosted 20 student teams from 11 law schools for the National Trial Competition, Region 6 regional, on Feb. 5-7.

Stetson's advocacy teams bring home multiple accolades.
Stetson’s advocacy teams bring home multiple accolades.

Teams from Alabama, Florida and Mississippi competed in the regional round of the NTC at the Pinellas County Justice Center in Clearwater, Florida.

The team of Elliott Smith and Haley Steelman from Faulkner Law, Thomas Goode Jones School of Law placed first and the team of Stewart Alvis, Collin Hatcher, and Andrew Panella from Cumberland School of Law, Samford University placed second in the competition.

The team of Brandon Breslow, Joshua Harris, and Zachariah Wade from Stetson law school placed third, and the team of Joseph Lee Taylor Jr. and Brittany Watson from Faulkner Law, Cumberland School of Law placed fourth.

The NTC mock trial competition, co-sponsored by the Texas Young Lawyers Association and the American College of Trial Lawyers, was established to increase law student interest in developing trial advocacy skills. The top two teams from each of the 14 regional rounds advance to the national finals in Dallas, Texas, March 30-April 3.

 

Have the Stetson experience: attend an open house at the law school

Students, faculty gather at the Dolly & Homer Hand Law Library.
Students, faculty gather at the Dolly & Homer Hand Law Library on the Gulfport campus.

Stetson University College of Law invites future law students to attend an open house, “The Stetson Experience,” on Saturday, Feb. 27 from 10 a.m.- 2p.m. at 1401 61st St. S. in Gulfport.

“If you ever wondered what law school is like, visit us for a few hours on a Saturday and don’t miss this open house,” said Assistant Dean of Admissions and Student Financial Planning Laura Zuppo. Dean Zuppo added that attendees can learn about the increasing number of scholarship opportunities at Stetson and the benefits of applying to law school early.

Future law students may enjoy lunch and tour Stetson’s Gulfport campus, meet with Stetson law school professors, and learn more about studying abroad or specializing their studies in advocacy, environmental law, or elder law.

Stetson law school professors and admissions staff will lead workshops and presentations on “The First Year Experience,” “Awakening the Advocate Within,” and “Applying to Stetson.”

To register for this free event, visit http://lawadmissions.law.stetson.edu/attend-the-stetson-experience or contact admissions and student financial planning at 727-562-7802 or [email protected].

Stetson Law is consistently ranked no. 1 in the nation by U.S. News for trial advocacy and is designated as a military friendly law school.

Stetson’s moot court wins best oralist award at national championship

(L-R): Students Kasey Feltner, Sterling Lovelady and Adriana Foreman.
(L-R): Students Kasey Feltner, Sterling Lovelady and Adriana Foreman.

Stetson University College of Law’s moot court team of Kasey Feltner, Adriana Foreman and Sterling Lovelady won a best oralist award at the Andrews Kurth Moot Court National Championship this past weekend in Houston, Texas. It is the third best oralist award that Stetson’s advocacy teams have won in three months.

The students participating in the national championship argued an issue related to terrorism before assistant U.S. attorneys, state and federal judges and prominent attorneys from around the country. Sixteen teams compete in this invitation-only challenge. Feltner tied for the best oralist.

Foreman Biodiversity Fellow Erin Okuno co-coached the team with professor Brooke Bowman, associate director of the Center for Excellence in Advocacy and moot court advisor at Stetson.

Stetson’s trial advocacy program is nationally ranked no.1 in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

 

Graduate honored for helping children with Florida Bar Pro Bono Award

Alumna Jennifer Anderson J.D. ’02 was among 21 lawyers who received a Florida Bar Pro Bono Award during an awards ceremony on Jan. 28 at the Florida Supreme Court. 1982 Stetson Law graduate and U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Catherine Peek McEwen was also honored at the Florida Supreme Court as the first recipient of the Chief Justice’s Distinguished Federal Judicial Service Award.

Jennifer Anderson. Photo courtesy the Florida Bar.
Jennifer Anderson. Photo courtesy the Florida Bar.

Anderson, who was recognized in the Seventh Judicial Circuit for working on behalf of poor and indigent clients, is an attorney with AndersonGlenn LLP in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

She represents children who have been abused or neglected. Anderson dedicated hundreds of hours to the case of a child who was abused by her father. Today, with Anderson’s help, that child has grown into a talented musician at a school for the arts in Jacksonville, Florida.

The Florida Bar President’s Pro Bono Service Awards were established in 1981 to encourage lawyers to volunteer free legal services to the poor by recognizing lawyers who make public service commitments.

The awards recognize pro bono service in each of Florida’s 20 judicial circuits as well as service by a Florida Bar member practicing outside the state.

The Florida Supreme Court ceremony also recognized the winners of the Tobias Simon Pro Bono Award, as well as awards in the categories of Distinguished Judicial Service, Distinguished Federal Judicial Service, Law Firm Commendation, Voluntary Bar Association and Young Lawyers Division.

According to a news release from the Florida Bar, in the most recent 12 months reported, Florida lawyers dedicated more than 1.7 million hours of pro bono service to people in need.

 

Stetson’s Inns of Court honors disability champion

(L-R): Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz, Maryellen McDonald and Professor Judith Scully.
(L-R): Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz, Maryellen McDonald and Professor Judith Scully.

Maryellen McDonald, the executive director of Disability Rights Florida who has improved the conditions of institutionalized disabled Floridians, was presented with Stetson University College of Law’s prestigious William Reece Smith Jr. Public Service Award during the annual Inns of Court banquet on Jan. 26 in St. Petersburg.

Michael Perlin, an internationally recognized expert in mental health law who has spent his career championing the rights of people with mental disabilities, presented the William Reece Smith Jr. Distinguished Lecture. Perlin is Professor of Law, Emeritus at New York Law School.

Stetson established the William Reece Smith Jr. Award in 1990 to honor outstanding contributions to public service, the justice system and the community. The late legendary Florida lawyer William Reece Smith Jr., a member of Stetson’s Hall of Fame who served Stetson for decades as a distinguished professorial lecturer, member of the Board of Overseers and university trustee, was the award’s first recipient and its namesake.

The Inns of Court banquet has its roots in the English mentoring program for barristers. Today’s Inns of Court program presents students at Stetson law school with an opportunity to interact with prominent lawyers on current topics in the law and ethics.

Want to learn more about earning your law degree while keeping your day job? Stetson hosts open house in February

December 2015 graduate Tammy Schweinsberg attended Stetson's part-time law program.
December 2015 graduate Tammy Schweinsberg attended Stetson’s part-time law program.

Stetson University College of Law will host an open house on Feb. 11 from 6-7:30 p.m. at the Gulfport campus, 1401 61st St. S., for future students to learn more about its part-time law program designed for busy people with daytime commitments.

By taking evening classes at Stetson’s Tampa Law Center and the Gulfport campus, students can earn a law degree in as little as four years from the top-ranked law school in the U.S. for trial advocacy (No. 1) and legal writing (No. 2).

To attend, RSVP  https://www.stetson.edu/law/admissions/jd/open-house.php or e-mail [email protected]. Students interested in the full-time law program at Stetson are also welcome to attend.

Stetson’s National Conference on Law and Higher Education discusses the constitutional challenges raised by compliance mandates

The challenging legal landscape in higher education law and policy is the focus of Stetson University’s 37th annual National Conference on Law and Higher Education Feb. 11-15, 2016, at the Hilton Orlando. Title IX, constitutional law and compliance issues are the topics of a series of training workshops.

Higher education institutions are facing some of the greatest legal challenges since the civil rights movement with the courts and constitutional issues impacting compliance work at colleges and universities.

“Our conference participants will come away with the tools they need to adapt to the shifting legal landscape of colleges and universities,” said conference chair and Professor of Law Peter F. Lake. Professor Lake is the Charles A. Dana chair and director of Stetson’s Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy.

Stetson’s national conference, now approaching its 40th year, provides sessions for college attorneys including in house counsel and private counsel, higher education administrators and presidents. The sessions will cover a variety of topics from updates from Washington, Title IX, FERPA and disability law to investigator training.

Conference attendees will participate in boot camps, workshops, and plenary sessions. Attendees will collaborate with presenters and peers throughout the five days in Orlando, Florida.

To register, visit https://www.stetson.edu/law/conferences/highered/home/index.php.

For more information, call 727-562-7793 or email [email protected].

For more information about the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at Stetson, visit https://www.stetson.edu/law/academics/highered/home/.

 

 

Professor Gardner speaks at U.N. on water and sanitation

Professor Royal Gardner, director of the Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy at Stetson University, was invited  to speak on behalf of the Ramsar Convention at a meeting of the United Nations Secretary-General’s Advisory Board on Water and Sanitation in New York.

Professor Gardner appeared on UN Web TV.
Professor Gardner appeared on UN Web TV.

The meeting on Nov. 20 marked the conclusion of 11 years of work by the board, which offered recommendations to accelerate the progress of the 2030 Water Agenda. The board’s final report is available here.

Professor Gardner spoke on the role that wetlands play in the water cycle at a meeting of world leaders that included the Crown Prince Naruhito of Japan, King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands and others.

“The range of wetlands is only surpassed by the ecosystem services that these resources provide the people,” Professor Gardner said at the U.N. meeting. “By definition, the wetlands are part of the water cycle. Wetlands replenish aquifers and are the source of drinking water. Wetlands improve water quality by filtering out pollutants, and wetlands can promote protection from water-related disasters such as floods or storm surges.”

Professor Gardner is chair of the Scientific and Technical Review Panel for the Ramsar Convention, an intergovernmental wetland treaty with 169 countries. 

Graduate appointed federal judge

Mac R. McCoy, who graduated from Stetson University with a dual B.A. in 1998 and J.D. in 2001, was appointed a U.S. magistrate judge for the Fort Myers Division of the Middle District of Florida this summer. The longtime shareholder with Carlton Fields Jorden Burt celebrated his investiture on Nov. 13.

(L-R): Judge McCoy with Stetson Law Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz.
(L-R): Judge Mac R. McCoy at the investiture with Stetson Law Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz.

Judge McCoy was born in Fort Myers. He has donated hundreds of hours of pro bono service as an attorney. McCoy received numerous accolades for service including the Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division Pro Bono Award and the Wm. Reece Smith Pro Bono Award. He was recognized by the Supreme Court of Florida, the Young Lawyers Division of the Florida Bar, the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit’s Pro Bono Committee, and the Florida Pro Bono Coordinators Association in collaboration with Bay Area Legal Services’ Volunteer Lawyer Referral Program for exceptional pro bono service.

McCoy has also served in a number of leadership roles in the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section and is a member of the ABA’s Standing Committee on Technology and Information Systems. He is also a member of the Technology Committee of the Florida Bar’s Vision 2016 Commission and an ad hoc member of the Technology Subcommittee of the Florida Commission on Access to Civil Justice.

As an attorney, McCoy focused his practice on class action defense, business litigation, consumer financial services litigation, and real property litigation in federal and state courts.

 

 

 

Stetson Law offers free will service for veterans aged 60 or older

Stetson University College of Law is again partnering with the Community Law Program and the St. Petersburg Bar Foundation during the month of February to prepare free simple wills and advance directives for low income veterans and their spouses aged 60 or older though the Wills for Warriors Program.

Walk-in appointments are not available. Veterans or their spouses must schedule individual appointments in advance by calling 727-562-7393. The deadline to schedule an appointment is Jan. 22, 2016.

The Wills for Warriors program is designed to assist veterans and their spouses aged 60 or older who have low incomes and limited assets. Individuals owning real estate outside the state of Florida are not eligible to participate.

Stetson students and volunteer attorneys from the Community Law Program will assist Stetson’s Center for Excellence in Elder Law and Veterans Law Institute with this program.