News Archives - Page 67 of 138

Stetson Lawyers Association honors eight law alumni and friends

The Stetson Lawyers Association presented awards to eight outstanding alumni and friends of Stetson University College of Law during the Florida Bar Annual Meeting in Orlando on June 26.

Nestor M. de Armas B.B.A. ’73 and Congressman David W. Jolly received the Distinguished Service Award for their significant, meritorious and continuing contributions to Stetson Law.

Former president of the Stetson University Alumni Association, de Armas has served as trustee emeritus, chair and member of Stetson’s Board of Trustees. He and his wife Donna created the Nestor M. and Donna Hunt de Armas Scholarship to assist Stetson University students with financial need.

Congressman David W. Jolly, who represents Florida’s 13th Congressional District, serves on Stetson Law’s Center for Excellence in Elder Law Advisory Board. Jolly also serves on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Veterans’ Affairs Committee, and was the former senior advisor and general counsel to the late Congressman Bill Young.

Judge David Demers B.A. ’68, JD ’72 and Judge Irene Sullivan JD ’77 received this year’s Distinguished Alumni Award.

Demers, elected chief judge of the Pinellas County Circuit Court in 2001, implemented policies and procedures during his six-year tenure that guide the circuit court today. Judge Demers is a 2009 Stetson University College of Law Hall of Fame inductee who has served as an adjunct professor at Stetson, a member of the prestigious Stetson College of Law Skills Training Committee, and a frequent presenter at Stetson University’s Professionalism seminars.

Sullivan is a 2011 Stetson University College of Law Hall of Fame inductee and adjunct professor teaching juvenile law at Stetson. Shepracticed trial law in St. Petersburg for 22 years before she was elected circuit court judge in 1998. Judge Sullivan served on the juvenile and family law bench until 2011 and authored the popular book, Raised by the Courts: One Judge’s Insight into Juvenile Justice.

Lawrence P. Ingram JD ’90 received the Paul M. May Meritorious Service Award for continuously supporting Stetson Law and its alumni association.

Ingram, managing partner of the Tampa office of the international law firm Phelps Dunbar, currently serves as vice chair of the executive committee of the Stetson University College of Law Board of Overseers.

Brian Tannebaum JD ’94 received the Outstanding Alumni Representative Award for dedication and service to the Stetson Lawyers Association.

Tannebaum is an American Bar Association National Trial Champion and a former member of Stetson’s Trial Team. Tannebaum is a member of the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers where he is one of only two members of the association to have received all three presidential service awards.

Gregory Coleman B.B.A.’85,JD ’89, incoming president of the Florida Bar, received the Ben C. Willard Award for humanitarian achievements bringing distinction to himself and Stetson Law.

Coleman has served on and chaired nearly every significant standing and special committee in the Florida Bar and is an unprecedented three-time winner of the Florida Bar’s prestigious President’s Award of Merit. Coleman is also a member of the House of Delegates for the American Bar Association and a director of the Florida Bar Foundation.

Stetson Lawyers Association president Jenay Iurato JD/MBA ’00 received the President’s Award in recognition of her leadership.

Iurato works with the Tampa Hispanic Bar Association, the Junior League of Tampa, and advocates for ending human trafficking around the world.

Marc Levine JD ’06 was named incoming president of the Stetson Lawyers Association. Stetson University President Wendy Libby, Stetson University College of Law Dean Christopher Pietruszkiewicz, and Stetson Law alumnus Luis Prats B.A.’78, JD ’81 spoke at the awards program.

Stetson Law hosts open house and part-time info sessions in July, August

Stetson University College of Law will host two open house and information sessions in July and August about the admissions process for part-time law school applicants. Students interested in the full-time program are also invited to attend.

“The part-time program granted me the flexibility to continue to work full-time while attending classes at night,” said part-time Stetson University law student Kevin Lonzo. “This allowed me to gain valuable work experience and build a network of contacts in the Tampa Bay area, while earning my degree.”

“I will be graduating soon and am incredibly grateful for the opportunity the part-time program provided me,” said Stetson Law student Amanda Ortega. “The evening class schedule allowed me to keep working to support my family while still getting a valuable Stetson education.”

Prospective law students interested in attending should RSVP for one of the sessions:

Thursday, July 31, at the Tampa Law Center, 1700 N. Tampa St.
Thursday, Aug. 28, at the Gulfport campus, 1401 61st St. S.

All programs will start at 6:30 p.m. Registration begins at 6 p.m.

Stetson enrolls new law students every fall.

To RSVP and for more information and directions to Stetson’s Tampa Law Center or Gulfport campuses, visit http://www.law.stetson.edu/parttime or e-mail [email protected].

Student Todd Hoover: Advocating for literary equality

When he is not busy commuting from his home in Palm Harbor, Florida, to Stetson Law school or working full-time at his job of 16 years at Nebraska Printing Company, Todd Hoover is a literacy advocate for at-risk youth.

The 45-year-old third-year student at Stetson University College of Law balances raising a family with a full-time job, part-time law school, and his work with a nonprofit literacy program. Hoover recently created the nonprofit, First 25, Inc., to help boost literacy among underprivileged youth in Pinellas County, Florida.

“The time for ineffective measures and impotent bureaucracies is over,” Hoover said. “We will teach these kids to read child by child, until we have fixed the problem.”

First 25 promotes what Hoover calls racial literary equality. Through First 25, Hoover helped grow a community literacy program in an at-risk area of Largo, Florida, which lead to a pilot program at John Hopkins Middle School in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Hoover is also the author of several children’s and young adult fiction books.

Taking center stage: Stetson alumna, staffer co-author play about adapting to change

“It started with three writers talking out a concept around the dining room table,” Stetson University College of Law staffer Julie Saffan shared.

Saffan is the co-author of a new play, “Baggage,” with Stetson Law alumna Jaye Ann Terry, and University of Central Florida cinema studies student Amanda Dodge.

The play portrays two women who help their friend to let go of obstacles and adapt to change.

Terry, an attorney who recently moved to Tallahassee, was a longtime resident of St. Petersburg. She coordinated the Journeys in Journalism Program for elementary, middle and high school students in Pinellas County and worked at the Tampa Bay Times.

Saffan, a native New Yorker, has lived in St. Petersburg for two decades and works in Stetson University’s business office on the Gulfport campus.

“Baggage” will be presented on June 26 at 7 p.m. at the Studio@620 in St. Petersburg. An audience discussion with the playwrights will follow the performance.

103 alumni voted among Florida Trend’s Legal Elite

A total of 103 Stetson University College of Law alumni have been selected for Florida’s Legal Elite in the July 2014 Florida Trend magazine.

Stetson Law graduates walk at a recent commencement.

The Legal Elite Hall of Fame includes two Stetson Law alumni, Mark A. Hanley JD ’80 and Rhea F. Law JD ’79. The Hall of Fame honors attorneys who have consistently ranked in the top tier in Legal Elite voting for several years.

This year, 20 Stetson Law alumni listed among Florida’s Legal Elite were also selected by their peers as “up and coming” attorneys and three Stetson Law alumni were voted outstanding attorneys working in the government and non-profit sectors.

Florida’s Legal Elite, now in its 11th edition, showcases attorneys chosen by their peers who exemplify a standard of excellence in their profession. All in-state members of the Florida Bar are asked to vote. The resulting list of Florida’s Legal Elite represents fewer than 2% of the active Florida Bar members who practice in the state.

Stetson University tops Florida Super Lawyers list again

Stetson University College of Law alumni again top the list of Florida Super Lawyers. Stetson Law is among the top 10 law schools in the state producing the highest number of Florida Super Lawyers this year.

Graduates walk at Stetson Law commencement.

This year, 298 Stetson Law alumni are among the Florida Super Lawyers and 181 Stetson Law alumni are honored among the Florida Super Lawyers Rising Stars.

Stetson Law alumnus Christian D. Searcy is listed among the Top 10 2014 Florida Super Lawyers. Five Stetson Law alumnae are listed among the Top 50 Women Florida Super Lawyers : Tae Kelley Bronner, Tracy Raffles Gunn, Lorena Hart Ludovici, Marian P. McCulloch, and Lynn Welter Sherman. Five Stetson Law alumni are included in the Top 100 Florida Super Lawyers: Stephen A. Barnes, Stephen D. Busey, Mac Richard McCoy, Luis Prats and Searcy.

Super Lawyers magazine rates lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement through independent research, peer nominations and evaluations.

No more than 5 percent of attorneys in the state are included in the Florida Super Lawyers list and no more than 2.5 percent are named to Rising Stars.

Course at Stetson explores sea turtle conservation

Stetson University College of Law students are participating in a special course from May 27-June 6 to learn about the threats facing endangered sea turtles and the legal and policy initiatives in place to protect them.

Sea turtle experts from Latin America and the Caribbean gathered at Stetson Law in Gulfport.

Students enrolled in the course are invited to join sea turtle experts on campus for the Consultative Committee Meeting of the Inter-American Convention for the Protection and Conservation of Sea Turtles.

Sea turtle experts from Latin America and the Caribbean traveled to Stetson’s Gulfport campus for the meeting.

For more information about Stetson’s new summer course on sea turtles, visit www.stetson.edu/turtles.

Stetson students respond to President Obama’s new clemency initiative

The U.S. Department of Justice recently announced a new clemency initiative, designed to prioritize clemency applications for certain non-violent offenders who would likely receive lesser sentences if they were sentenced today. To date, more than 35 Stetson Law students have signed on to assist the Office of the Federal Defender for the Middle District of Florida in identifying former clients who may qualify for the new clemency initiative. The Stetson Law students will help gather information relevant to the clemency criteria as part of a new pro bono project on campus.

“I had heard about this on the news and was ecstatic, but didn’t imagine Stetson students would have the opportunity to help,” said student Kathryn Hamilton, who signed on to assist the pro bono project.

“I am interested in the clemency project because it is such a rare and unique opportunity to apply some of the skills I have learned in law school for a cause that can drastically change people’s lives,” said student Kevin Lonzo.

Donna Elm, the Federal Defender for the Middle District of Florida, stated, “We are delighted to expand our internship program to include students working pro bono on this important project. The students will be instrumental in helping us collect the information we need to assess which former clients may be eligible for relief under the new clemency initiative.”

Stetson Law professors Ellen Podgor, Judith Scully, James Sheehan and Dean Emeritus and Professor of Law Bruce Jacob are spearheading the pro bono project with the Federal Defender’s Office.

“This is an exciting project that will be ongoing, allowing students to learn more about federal criminal law while assisting the Federal Defender’s Office in the Middle District of Florida,” said Professor Podgor, the Gary R. Trombley Family White-Collar Crime Research Professor at Stetson Law.

Book launch benefits Frederick B. Karl Scholarship for Veterans at Stetson

A book launch at the John F. Germany Public Library in downtown Tampa on May 22 benefited the Frederick B. Karl Scholarship for Veterans at Stetson University College of Law.

A group gathered at the Frederick B. Karl book launch in Tampa.

The Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County, Inc., celebrated the publication of Karl’s book, “Python Tales: World War II Memories of a Young Soldier,” which chronicles Karl’s experiences as a young soldier in World War II.

Karl, a 1949 Stetson Law alumnus and 2004 Stetson Law Hall of Fame inductee who died last March, participated in the dedication of Stetson’s Veterans Law Institute on May 31, 2012, on the Gulfport campus.

Karl was a dedicated public servant, former Florida Supreme Court justice, member of the Florida House of Representatives and state senate, who served with numerous community organizations, as well as the Stetson University College of Law Board of Overseers. He served in the U.S. Army and fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and was awarded a Silver Star, Bronze Star, and Purple Heart medal. READ MORE ABOUT KARL IN THE OBSERVER NEWS HERE>>

Frederick B. Karl attended the dedication of Stetson's Veterans Law Institute. — Frederick B. Karl attended the dedication of Stetson’s Veterans Law Institute.

The May 22 book launch celebration drew local leaders including former Tampa Mayor Pam Iorio and members of the Stetson Law faculty.

For more information about the Frederick B. Karl Scholarship for Veterans at Stetson University, visit Development and Alumni Relations, call 727-562-7818 or email [email protected].

Stetson mourns the death of Professor Emeritus James J. Brown

Stetson University College of Law mourns the death of James J. Brown, Attorneys’ Title Insurance Fund Professor Emeritus, who died at his home on May 26 in London, England.

Attorneys' Title Insurance Fund Professor Emeritus James J. Brown — Attorneys’ Title Insurance Fund Professor Emeritus James J. Brown

Professor Brown was the first Attorneys’ Title Insurance Fund Professor at Stetson University, where he taught property, real estate law, land use planning and local government for more than three decades. He began teaching law in 1970, following five years of practice in Cleveland, Ohio. He retired from Stetson in 2010.

A leader in serving his profession, Professor Brown served on the executive councils of the Florida Bar sections for Environmental and Land Use Law; City, County and Local Government Law; and the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law. In 1980, he was appointed to the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Secret Land Trusts. In 2006, the Florida Bar City, County and Local Government Law Section presented him with the prestigious Ralph A. Marsicano Award, for his significant contributions to the development of local government law in Florida. Professor Brown also received the section’s Paul S. Buchman Award for outstanding legal contributions to the field at the municipal level.

Professor Brown was past president of Scribes, the American Society of Writers on Legal Subjects. He wrote and edited several treatises and publications on land use law, real property and environmental law.

Professor Brown received his LL.M. from Washington University, his J.D. from Cleveland State University and his B.S. from the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Finance. He was a member of the Florida and Ohio Bar Associations.

In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that donations in memory of James J. Brown be directed to the Professor James J. Brown Merit Retention Scholarship Fund at Stetson University College of Law.

Professor Emeritus William Eleazer receives Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Teaching Advocacy

Stetson University College of Law presented its Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Teaching Advocacy to Professor Emeritus William Eleazer on May 21. The award was presented during Stetson’s Educating Advocates: Teaching Advocacy Skills conference, May 20-22 on the Gulfport campus.

(L-R): Director of the Center for Excellence in Advocacy Professor Charles Rose and Professor Emeritus William Eleazer. Photo by Barry Lively.

Professor Eleazer helped to establish Stetson’s reputation for excellence in ethical and effective trial advocacy. He challenged his students to maintain the highest standards of both professionalism and competency in the art of advocacy and the ethical practice of law. Professor Eleazer was inducted into Stetson Law’s Hall of Fame in 2005. He is the author of the 2010 Gold Medal-winning novel Savannah Law and The Indictments.

Stetson’s trial advocacy program has consistently ranked at or near the top nationally by U.S. News & World Report since 1995. Stetson has been named the best school in the U.S. for trial advocacy 16 times by U.S. News.

This year’s three-day intensive Educating Advocates: Teaching Advocacy Skills conference, presenting the Stetson method for teaching advocacy, drew law professors and legal practitioners from across the U.S.

Retired Illinois district justice David A. Erickson, director of the Trial Advocacy Program and Program in Criminal Litigation at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law, has attended more than a half-dozen EATS conferences. He described Stetson’s annual EATS conference as a gathering of people from around the country who care about ethical advocacy.

Professor Ciara Torres-Spelliscy receives Dickerson-Brown Award for Excellence in Faculty Scholarship

Stetson University College of Law awarded professor Ciara Torres-Spelliscy the Dickerson-Brown Award for Excellence in Faculty Scholarship during the evening Honors & Awards ceremony on May 16 on the Gulfport campus. Professor Torres-Spelliscy writes about the intersection of corporate law and election law.

“The issue of corporate political spending continues to be a hot topic for voters and investors alike in the aftermath of Citizens United v. FEC, the 2010 Supreme Court decision which allows unlimited corporate spending in American elections,” said Professor Torres-Spelliscy. “Unfortunately, this spending suffers from a lack of transparency, a lack of shareholder consent and a lack of internal controls. This is why research in this idea is necessary—so that policy makers responding to the new campaign finance landscape have the facts to make informed decisions.”

Since joining the Stetson faculty in 2011, she has published a book chapter, “Corporate Political Spending & Shareholders’ Rights: Why the US Should Adopt the British Approach” in the 2011 Risk Management and Corporate Governance, Jalilvand & Malliaris, eds., Routledge.

She has published four law review articles: “Safeguarding Markets from Pernicious Pay to Play: A Model Explaining Why the SEC Regulates Money in Politics” in the 2012-2013 Connecticut Public Interest Law Journal, “Taking Opt-In Rights Seriously: What Knox v. SEIU Could Mean for Post-Citizens United Shareholder Rights” in the 2013 Montana Law Review, “How Much Is an Ambassadorship? And the Tale of How Watergate Led to a Strong Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and a Weak Federal Election Campaign Act” in the 2012 Chapman Law Review, and “The $500 Million Question: Are the Democratic and Republican Governors Associations Really State PACs Under Buckley’s Major Purpose Test?” in the Spring 2012 NYU Journal of Legislation & Public Policy.

She co-authored with Dr. Kathy Fogel “Shareholder-Authorized Corporate Political Spending in the United Kingdom” in the Spring 2012 University of San Francisco Law Review and the policy report “The SEC and Dark Political Money: An Historical Argument for Requiring Disclosure” for the Corporate Reform Coalition 2013.

Professor Torres-Spelliscy also writes frequently for policy blogs and the popular press including the New York Times, L.A. Times, Slate, USA Today, Tampa Bay Times and Huffington Post.

A graduate of Harvard (AB) and Columbia Law School (JD), Torres-Spelliscy is a member of the board of directors of the National Institute on Money in State Politics and a Brennan Center fellow. She has been promoted from assistant professor of law to associate professor of law at Stetson University, effective August of 2014.