A team of Stetson University College of Law students were finalists at the Southern Regional of the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition, on March 8 in New Orleans, Louisiana, and earned the right to advance to the international rounds in Washington, D.C., April 5-11.
(L-R): Ryan Hedstrom, Sunai Edwards, Lauren Fernandez, Lauren Eliopoulos, and Nicole Santamaria.
“We are thrilled that our Jessup team will have an opportunity to advocate on the world stage,” said Professor Brooke Bowman, Stetson’s moot court adviser. “This is a priceless educational opportunity for our advocates.”
Jessup is the largest moot court competition in the world. Every eligible law school around the world is permitted to send one team to the regionals. This year, more than 550 schools are competing in 55 qualifying rounds January through March in order to advance to the international rounds.
Stetson Law professor Jason Palmer and alumni Caitlein Jammo and Bradley Muhs coached the team.
Stetson law school’s advocacy record includes five world titles, 67 national championships, and 111 best advocate/oralist awards.
Brian Tannebaum J.D. ’94 visited Stetson’s Gulfport campus on Feb. 26 to meet with the Stetson community and discuss his new book, The Practice: Brutal Truths About Lawyers and Lawyering.
The book offers advice on how to operate a law practice and develop into a top professional lawyer.
Tannebaum is a criminal and bar defense lawyer in Miami and managing partner at Tannebaum Weiss. He practices in state and federal court and lectures frequently at statewide and local seminars. Tannebaum is past president of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and its Miami Chapter. He was appointed by the president of The Florida Bar to the Criminal Procedure Rules Committee. Tannebaum was also appointed to a three-year term on a Florida Bar Grievance Committee.
Tannebaum’s legal career began in 1995 working as a trial lawyer in the largest public defender’s office in Florida before entering into private practice. He was elected to the Board of Directors of the Florida Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and is one of only two members of the association to have received all three Presidential Service Awards.
Tannebaum met with students, discussed his new book, at Stetson Law.
Tannebaum was voted “Best of the Bar” by the South Florida Business Journal and was named the top 1.6% of all Florida criminal defense attorneys by Florida Trend magazine. He has also been named one of South Florida’s “Top Lawyers” in the South Florida Legal Guide, and named a “SuperLawyer” in every edition of the nationally published SuperLawyers magazine.
Equality Florida CEO Nadine Smith spoke at Stetson University College of Law in Gulfport on March 2. The Stetson Lambda Legal Society sponsored the event.
Nadine Smith. Photo by Amadu Wiltshire.
Smith founded Equality Florida in 1997, and led its work to end discrimination including the ban on gay adoption and gay marriage. She is an award-winning journalist turned organizer who was one of four national co-chairs of the 1993 March on Washington. Smith was part of the historic oval office meeting between then-President Bill Clinton and gay community leaders. She has met with President Barack Obama and Michelle to discuss LGBT issues. Smith also served on the founding board of the International Gay and Lesbian Youth Organization. Smith has spoken frequently in Professor Joseph Morrissey’s constitutional law class at Stetson.
Smith’s talk kicks off Diversity Week at Stetson. Her talk explored how Equality Florida has shaped the law.
“There is change,” Smith told the students gathered to hear her talk. “Over time, I know we’ve had an impact.”
Equality Florida is the largest civil rights organization dedicated to securing full equality for Florida’s lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community.
“It is a profound act to stand up for yourself and live your life authentically,” said Smith.
On Feb. 28, Stetson University College of Law is hosting Raising the Bar: Florida’s Legal Community Service Day, on the Gulfport campus. The initiative collects donations from the local legal community for American Red Cross care packages and holiday cards for active military service members and veterans.
WHO: The initiative is part of an annual statewide service day led by the legal community and co-sponsored by Stetson, the Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division, and the American Red Cross.
WHAT: Members of the legal community, including lawyers, law students, law firms, judges and friends, are encouraged to donate unused holiday cards as well as toiletries: including shampoo, soap, toothpaste and toothbrushes. Volunteers are invited to assemble comfort kits and write out holiday cards for active service members and veterans. The American Red Cross will deliver the comfort kits to disaster victims and send cards to active duty service members and military veterans during the holiday season.
WHERE: Classroom D, Stetson University College of Law, 1401 61st St. S., Gulfport.
WHEN: Saturday, Feb. 28, between 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
For more information about this event or to schedule a time to make a donation at an alternative time, please contact Natalie Yello at 321-278-7313 or [email protected].
Stetson University College of Law was presented with a bronze key for the greatest raw membership and a bronze key for the most improved membership during the American Bar Association Law Student Division meeting on Feb. 7 on the Gulfport campus. Law students from Florida, Georgia and Puerto Rico were invited to attend the meeting hosted by Stetson Law school.
Chris Sprowls J.D. ’09 provided the keynote. Photo by Brittany Brochard.
Stetson Law student Brandy Pikus, the ABA Law Student Division 5th Circuit Governor, introduced the meeting program. Stetson’s Director for Student Life Tammy Briant J.D. ’06 presented the welcome address.
“Receiving two bronze keys was very rewarding for the Stetson ABA. They are a symbol of our leadership team’s passion and dedication, who spent countless hours informing students and creating excitement about the many benefits of the ABA. I’m proud that we were able to carry on Stetson’s superior legacy in the ABA,” said Pikus.
Florida State Representative Chris Sprowls J.D. ’09 provided the keynote. The program included a panel of hiring partners and associates, lunch with local law professionals, as well as the election of the new circuit governor.
“The greatest reward of being the 5th Circuit Governor was being able to work with the Board of Governors to create positive change for law students across the country for many years to come while also being able to work closely with the students of 5th Circuit to help promote their programs, activities and effect change at individual campuses,” said Pikus.
The 5th Circuit encompasses the 19 law schools in Florida, Georgia and Puerto Rico. The new 5th Circuit Governor, Marcus Sandifer, is a student at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School. He will be sworn in during the Spring Board of Governors Meeting in Las Vegas on March 14.
Students in Stetson University’s J.D./M.B.A. program recently placed among the Global Top 25 in the GLO-BUS global simulation competition. Stetson J.D./M.B.A. students participated in GLO-BUS as part of their capstone management course.
“Through the use of tools like the GLO-BUS simulation in our capstone course, students are able not only to integrate the functional expertise in business and law they have acquired during their tenure at Stetson University but also to experience the dynamic effect of their recommendations,” said Stetson Associate Dean for Graduate Programs in the Stetson School of Business Administration Yiorgos Bakamitsos, Ph.D.
Two teams of Stetson students made the GLO-BUS Global Top 25 list for the week of Jan. 19-25. Each week, the best-performing GLO-BUS companies are recognized in the Global Top 25. A total of 309 teams from 30 colleges and universities participated in the GLO-BUS simulation world-wide.
Stetson students Daniele Amico, Alex Simser and Jocelyn Skipper made the Global Top 25 list by achieving a 35.6 Return of Equity. Stetson students Christine Krohn and Andrew Pardun made the Global Top 25 list by achieving an overall score of 107.
“The J.D./M.B.A. program demonstrates that students are becoming prepared for both the practice of law and the business of the practice of law,” said Stetson Law Dean Christopher M. Pietruszkiewicz.
Students who complete theJ.D./M.B.A. program at Stetson receive both an M.B.A. degree from the Stetson University School of Business Administration and a J.D. degree from the College of Law. Both degrees can be completed within three years, including one summer.
Stetson Law school students clerking in the Gassman Law Associates firm in Clearwater were recently published in Bloomberg BNA. Travis Arango and Dena Daniels co-authored an article with attorney Alan S. Gassman.
Travis Arango.
“We were recently given the opportunity to write an article about the Bifani case. This case was chosen because our office focuses primarily on estate law and this set of facts was somewhat new and exciting in this area,” said Arango.
Dena Daniels.
“Mr. Gassman has provided opportunities for us to publish several articles for his firm’s publications as well as other journals,” Daniels explained. The students have also been published in Leimberg Information Services.
The article explores Florida rulings regarding the fraudulent transfer of homestead to avoid repaying debt.
“It is exciting to be considered published and I look forward to having other opportunities to collaborate with Dena and Mr. Gassman,” said Arango, who wants to start a career in federal law enforcement. “The clerkship has helped with my communication skills, the ability to work with a team to accomplish a goal, and my ability to handle multiple tasks at once.”
Stetson University College of Law hosted a Study Abroad Fair on the Gulfport campus on Feb. 4.
Students learned more about options to study abroad on Feb. 4 in Gulfport. Photo by Amadu Wiltshire.
Stetson offers summer study abroad programs in Argentina, China, England, Spain and The Netherlands. Stetson also offers an Autumn in London, fall intersession in the Cayman Islands, and spring break in Cuba.
Aaron Pitts, an LL.M. student at Stetson who is from Australia, said, “International education has truly broadened my horizons.”
The deadline for students to apply for summer programs in March 1. The applications deadline for the Autumn in London program is June 1.
Stetson University College of Law’s Social Justice Luncheon Feb. 4 on the Gulfport campus asked “What is Equal Justice?”
Judge Michelle T. Morley J.D. ’86, circuit judge for the Fifth Judicial Circuit of Florida, led a discussion for Stetson Law students about the meaning of equal justice within the modern judiciary.
(L-R): Professor Judith Scully, Judge Michelle T. Morley and Professor Robert Bickel. Photo by Brittany Brochard.
The William Reece Smith Jr. Fund and the Social Justice Advocacy Program co-sponsor Stetson Law’s Social Justice Luncheon Series. Lectures in the series are designed to encourage participants to think critically about the historical context of social justice issues while focusing on current social and economic justice challenges and the interdisciplinary thought and leadership skills necessary for meeting such challenges.
Stetson University College of Law’s Jewish Law Student Association took time to plant a tree and help clean up Boyd Hill Nature Preserve in St. Petersburg on Feb. 4. The students spent four hours volunteering at the park. The event honored the Jewish holiday of Tu B’shevat, or the “New Year of the Trees.” Traditionally, the holiday celebrates ecological awareness and trees are planted in celebration.
Stetson’s Jewish Law Society students Patrick Iyampillai, Danielle Breiter, Evan Sidman, Scott Hayden, Diana Lott, Mitchell Levine and Sarah Gottlieb volunteered at Boyd Hill. Photo by Scott Hayden.
“Student Evan Sidman did most of the planning for the event with the park rangers,” said Jewish Law Student Association president Scott Hayden. “We would like to go out and do it again.”
Students in Professor Royal Gardner’s winter break course took a walk through a cypress swamp and camped in the Western Everglades earlier this month. Stetson offered the intersessional course, “Topics in Biodiversity Law: The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands,” Jan. 5-9.
Stetson Law students walked through wetlands in Big Cypress National Preserve as part of a winter break course on biodiversity law. Photo by 3L Joshua Moses.
Students in the course learned about the international efforts to protect wetlands, including the swamps, bogs, marshes and other aquatic ecosystems that provide habitat to endangered species and multiple benefits to people.
“Very few law school classes can actually take you outside of the classroom to get your feet dirty in a place existing largely due to the laws working to protect it,” said student Joshua Moses.
Professor Royal Gardner, director of Stetson’s Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy and an expert in wetlands policy, taught the class.
Professor Gardner is presently chair of the Ramsar Convention’s scientific advisory body. He has participated in Ramsar meetings across the globe: in Canada, Korea, Mexico, Oman, Romania, Spain, Switzerland, Uganda and the United States. The Ramsar Convention is an environmental treaty with 168 countries that promotes the conservation of wetlands worldwide.
Stetson’s Institute for Biodiversity Law and Policy serves as an interdisciplinary focal point for education, research and service activities related to global, regional and local biodiversity issues. The institute coordinates courses, seminars and internships on a variety of topics, including wetland law and policy, environmental law, natural resources and international environmental law.
On Saturday, Jan. 17, 30-year-old Pensacola attorney Aaron Watson JD ’09 will be honored for Living the Dream.
Aaron Watson.
The special honor is for individuals exemplifying Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Dream. Eight of Pensacola’s rain-makers will accept the honor, named for the incomparable Martin Luther King Jr., Aaron among them.
“This award inspires me to continue to push forward,” said Aaron. “I know that the eyes of the younger generation of lawyers are watching. If I can inspire them to dream big dreams, it makes my hard work worthwhile.”
Aaron, who recently made partner at his firm, Levin, Papantonio, Thomas, Mitchell, Rafferty & Proctor, P.A., said that his dream has always been to become a lawyer, and to move back home to help the people who helped him.
“The fact that my hometown selected me for this prestigious award, lets me know that I made the right decision,” said Aaron.
Aaron is today a top advocate who gives back by mentoring students at Pine Forest High School, where he himself went to school. He talks with students about possibilities.
Aaron grew up in a modest home with five children. His father Larry Watson was a dedicated pastor who started off as a sharecropper and is today the senior pastor of Englewood Baptist Church in Pensacola. Aaron is the second person in his family to earn a college degree.
Aaron said, “Remember this, every one of us has a spaceship. Our spaceships are fueled by our dreams. As long as you can dream, you can go travel as high as you want to go. One thing is for sure, nobody is going to stand in the way of a spaceship. If you want to be a lawyer, be a lawyer. You can do it.”
When Aaron Watson first tried out for Stetson’s legendary Trial Team in 2008, he did not make the cut. He had yet to find his voice as an advocate. An internship and working with two first-class mentors, Willie Gary and Fred Levin, helped Aaron to hone his individual voice. The next time he tried out for Stetson’s Trial Team, Aaron made it on the first pass. He went on to win regional, then national competitions with the team.
After graduating from Stetson with his law degree in 2009, Aaron immediately started making a name for himself in Pensacola.
His first high-profile case with the Levin Papantonio law firm was the case of Victor Steen, a young African-American teenager killed by a policeman. The case resulted in one of the largest civil rights settlements to date against the city of Pensacola. Aaron subsequently won a 12.6 million dollar verdict for his client last year, making it his second million dollar verdict in two years.
“I am still dreaming,” Aaron said. “I still have goals. I am only 30 years old. My definition of success is setting a goal, accomplishing it, and showing others how you did it.”
Watch a video of Aaron practicing his closing argument while still a law student at Stetson, days before winning the AAJ national championship with Stetson’s Trial Team.
