Greetings,

In a blatant ploy to reel you into this issue of Wildcat Wednesday -- Letter of the Law, may we present one of our newest future Wildcats, Skyler Honigman, son of Bradley Honigman ('12) and his wife Angeline.

This week we shower the love on our victorious Jenckes Cup team, our students and alumni who serve the Volunteer Lawyers Program, and several alumni and faculty with new successes under their belts.

Until the footnotes,

Marc

Arizona Law Earns Another Jenckes Cup Win!

The winning Arizona Law team in action on November 18 against ASU.

Seven years in a row! (But who is counting?)

Please join me in congratulating Elizabeth Smiley and Matt Ashton for their November 18 victory in the Jenckes Cup Competition. The annual competition against ASU is sponsored and judged by the Arizona Fellows of the American College of Trial Lawyers, an honorary society of trial lawyers whose membership is limited to one percent of the practicing bar. (See related  Arizona Law news story.)
 
I'm sure Elizabeth and Matt would be the first to acknowledge their fabulous team of coaches led by Tom Mauet, and with guidance from Barbara Bergman, Brian Chase ('11), and other members of the Arizona Law advocacy community.

Prof. Barbara Bergman (far left) and Prof. Tom Mauet (far right), with the top five Arizona Law students in preliminary rounds of competition: Jean Paul Barnard, Elizabeth Smiley, Mario Gonzalez, Sara Levine, and Matt Ashton (l-r). Matt and Elizabeth successfully represented Arizona Law against ASU on November 18.
 
Barry Davis

The Jenckes competition is a great example of our strong advocacy program, led for many years by Tom and now by Barbara. A world class advocacy program requires the support of the legal community and the Arizona Law community has answered that call in spades, with many lawyers volunteering time to teach and coach.
 
This year we owe special thanks to Ted Schmidt ('77) and the Tucson legal community for leading the effort to create the Barry Davis National Trial Team Endowment (PDF flyer). We are grateful for your leadership and generosity. 

Read more about the Arizona Law advocacy program in an earlier newsletter, here.

Volunteer Lawyers Program Awards

In its award ceremony last month, Southern Arizona Legal Aid recognized numerous Arizona Law students and alumni for their dedication and service to the Volunteer Lawyers Program (VLP) during 2015 and 2016.

The VLP was formed in 1999 as a partnership between SALA and the James E. Rogers College of Law to deliver legal services to those Pima County residents most in need of civil legal help. To date, more than 1,300 law students have volunteered with SALA, and, under the supervision of volunteer lawyers, have assisted more than 16,000 people. In 2016, 80 law students volunteered on nearly 1,000 cases.
 
We are extremely proud of our students and alumni who serve in the program. Through their hard work, they make an indelible mark on this program and its clients. 

This year, Arizona Law 3L Lindsey Huang was named 2016 Stacy Rupprecht Butler Law Student Volunteer of the Year. She is pictured here with Arizona Supreme Court Justice John Pelander ('76, left) and keynote speaker Robert J. Grey, Jr., president of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity and former ABA president (right):


Arizona Law alumnus Rudy Valenzuela ('86) was named 2016 Volunteer Attorney of the Year. He was also congratulated by Justice Pelander and Mr. Grey:


Also at the ceremony, seven Arizona Law alumni were recognized as 2015 VLP Attorneys of the Month

Merle Turchik ('86), Spencer Smith ('81), Patrick Lacroix ('07), Hon. Karen Nygaard ('82), Kathleen McCarthy ('76), and Stacy Rupprecht Butler ('02).

Ten alums were named 2016 VLP Attorneys of the Month

Randi Burnett ('07), Pete Akmajian ('84), Rob Charles ('82), John Richardson ('78), Anna Ceder ('07), Gary Kraft ('96), George Carroll ('99), Tom Niemeir ('80), Jeff Wohlford ('14), and Shannon Giles ('97).

The 2016 VLP Students of the Month were: 

Glaucia Brannock, Per LeRoy, Matt Mittelstadt, Russ Johnson, Javier Gherna, Mia Hammersley, Armend Hetemi, Claudia Ionescu, Amanda Rutherford, Josh Messick, Hannah McGuire, and Esther Sanchez-Gomez.

Footnotes

Rob Charles ('82) Recognized as Litigation Star and Pro Bono Volunteer

The 2017 edition of Benchmark Litigation has identified Rob Charles ('82), partner at Lewis Roca Rothgerber Christie, as a Local Litigation Star (read article). 

As noted above, Rob was also recognized for his service to the Volunteer Lawyer's Program. Here he is pictured receiving his VLP award:




Benjamin Taylor ('04) Named to MCBA Board

The Maricopa County Bar Association (MCBA) recently named alumnus Benjamin Taylor ('04) to its board of directors for 2017. Ben is in private practice in Phoenix.

Please join me in congratulating Ben on his new role.



Prof. Melissa Tatum Receives Teaching Award

Prof. Tatum is second from the right. 
Also pictured are Professor Irène d'Almeida (Dept. of French and Italian), Professor Paul Ivey (School of Art), and Professor Steve Martinson (Dept. of German Studies).

Arizona Law Professor Melissa Tatum  was one of four UA professors honored with the Humanities Seminars Program's Superior Teaching Award at a recent ceremony. Melissa received recognition for her course "Manifest Destiny: Four U.S. Army Generals and the Modern Face of Native America."  These outstanding teachers are selected by HSP students. The HSP has been existence since 1984, and offers courses in letters, arts, and sciences. All courses are taught by present and former University of Arizona professors selected for their scholarly accomplishments and exceptional teaching abilities.

Negar Katirai Selected for Tucson Public Voices Fellowship

Arizona Law Professor Negar Katirai has been selected as a 2017 Tucson Public Voices Fellow. 

The fellowship is sponsored by local philanthropists and is a partnership of the University of Arizona College of Social and Behavioral Science, the Women's Foundation of Southern Arizona and The OpEd Project. This national program first came to Tucson in the fall of 2013. 

Negar is one of twenty local women selected for this year's fellowship -- ten community leaders and ten leaders from the University of Arizona.  Professor Kristine Huskey was one of the 2015-16 fellowship recipients.




As students move toward finals we enter a season of reflection. I hope the pleasure of the long-term knowledge and skills gained, the friendships made, and the respect of faculty, staff, and classmates overwhelms any short term stress, which will pass.
 
In our never-ending pursuit of a deep and challenging education that is also engaging and supportive, the library will again provide therapy dogs during exams. 

The cold dog nose that greets me every morning around 5 a.m. certainly makes me smile (at least when I combine the cold nose with the first cup of coffee).

Warmly,




 
Shaping the next century of legal education 
 
Arizona NOW campaign button

 

 
   Like us on Facebook    Follow us on Twitter    Find us on Pinterest    View our profile on LinkedIn     View our videos on YouTube


Copyright © 2016. All Rights Reserved.

Join Our Mailing List button