FAR FROM COMMON LAW STUDENTS | |
LOUISIANA'S BEST AND BRIGHTEST | |
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With 92.2% of LSU Law graduates passing the Louisiana Bar Exam on their first attempt, the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center achieved the highest pass rate among all Louisiana law schools on the July 2023 exam.
Among all takers of the Louisiana Bar Exam in July, 87.8% of LSU Law graduates passed, which also ranks first among Louisiana law schools.
“The LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center has an extraordinary faculty who are experts in the civilian tradition, and we are committed to training exceptional lawyers,” said LSU Law Dean Alena Allen. “We are incredibly proud of the LSU Law Class of 2023 and know that they will make their mark locally and nationally.”
The pass rate among LSU Law graduates taking the exam for the first time in July (92.2%) is 17 percentage points higher than the average of all first-time takers (75.2%), and the pass rate among all LSU Law graduates (87.8%) is 18 percentage points higher than the average of all those who sat for the exam in July (69.7%).
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U.S. Army combat veteran and third-year LSU Law student Brock McKiness was recently invited by LSU President William F. Tate to share the inspiring story of how he helped create the William A. Brookshire Veterans Law Clinic with special guests of the 2022-23 LSU President’s Annual Celebration.
“It was an incredible honor, and something I couldn’t have ever imagined happening when I started law school just three years ago,” said McKiness, who not only helped bring the clinic to fruition but is among the first students to work in it on behalf U.S. military veterans.
Through his work in the clinic—which was created with $600,000 in generous support from the William A. Brookshire Foundation—McKiness helped his first client secure benefits that had been repeatedly denied for decades. His client, a Vietnam War veteran whose claim was related to the use of agent orange, choked back tears as he thanked McKiness at the conclusion of his hearing.
“It was very emotional, and that moment right there was what made all of the hard work to create the clinic worthwhile,” said McKiness, who plans to launch his own law firm after graduating next spring and passing the bar. “Through my work to help establish the clinic and my work in it, I have found even more problems in the arena of veterans law that I want to address, so now I’m planning on working exclusively on these issues as an attorney.”
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Two LSU Law students were elected to serve on the National Black Law Students Association Board of Directors, and two were selected to serve on the NBLSA Executive Board at the NBLSA Joint Board Retreat held in Washington D.C. in June.
Mekkah Husamadeen was elected to serve as attorney general on the NBLSA Board of Directors, and Sarah Scott was elected secretary. NBLSA appointed Tyrus Norcise as national director of alumni relations on the executive board, and Sylvia Aikhuele as national financial secretary.
"LSU Law now has as many students represented on the national board as Howard University School of Law, which is amazing given LSU’s history as a predominantly white institution,” said Husamadeen, who earned her undergraduate degree from Howard University. “LSU Law is on the national map for black law students, which provides our students with greater exposure to a national network of law students, mentors, and prospective employers. It has also helped us improve the programming that BLSA does at LSU Law."
With more than 200 chapters and 6,000 members, NBLSA is the largest law student organization in the country. The organization was founded in 1968 to articulate and promote the needs and goals of black law students, and effectuate change in the legal community.
The LSU Law Black Law Students Association was founded in the early 1970s and is one of more than 30 student organizations at the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center. Over five days in late January, LSU Law and the Southern University Law Center served as co-hosts of the 7th Annual Southwest Black Law Students Association Regional Convention, which brought more than 160 SWBLSA members to Baton Rouge for moot court and mock trial competitions, pre-law programming, panel discussions, a job fair, and more.
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Ten LSU Law students traveled with Professor Keith Hall to Lexington, Kentucky, to participate in the Energy & Mineral Law Foundation Fall Symposium on Oct. 10-12.
“LSU Law had more students on hand for the conference than any other law school represented, which is a testament to the dedication of our students and the strength of our energy law program at the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center,” said Hall, who presented on natural gas gathering agreements at the conference.
Professor Hall regularly takes LSU Law students with him to the many national conferences and symposia that he attends and presents at across the country each year. In Lexington, the 10 LSU Law students travelling with him were Erin Alpandinar, Brandon Andrews, Patrick Van Burkleo, Isabella Eakins, Logan Goodwin, Emma Irvin, John Lejeune, Patrick Raymond, Parker Smith, and Jaxon Todd.
“The lectures and programs were very timely and informative, so conferences like these allow our students to keep up with the latest legal developments in the energy law and natural resources field,” said Professor Hall, who serves as the Nesser Family Chair in Energy Law, and director of both the LSU John P. Laborde Energy Law Center and the LSU Mineral Law Institute. “As importantly, they get to meet with leading lawyers who are practicing in the field, providing them with insight into what the work is really like and helping them further build their professional networks as they prepare to launch their careers.”
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A WORLD CLASS LEGAL EDUCATION | |
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For nearly 30 years, LSU Law students have traveled to France each summer to learn from internationally distinguished professors and lecturers at the Université Jean Moulin-Lyon III as part of our six-week study abroad program.
This summer, more than 40 students participated in the program, which is open to all U.S. law students who have completed at least one year of law school as well as students from foreign law schools with comparable credentials.
Before beginning their studies in mid-June, the students participated in a brief orientation that included a tour of Lyon, a reception hosted by the university dean, a number of social events with French faculty and students, and a visit to the historic Court of Appeals, where students were able to meet with French judges to learn more about the judicial system.
The LSU Law students also traveled Geneva, Switzerland to visit the International Labour Office as part of the program. Along with meeting with learning more about the organization’s work, the students met American lawyers who are working in Europe, and participated in a mock labor dispute negotiation as it would be heard at the International Labour Office.
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