The School of Law hosts the 2024 Back to School Fiesta

On August 23, 2024, the UNM School of Law hosted its annual Back to School Fiesta.

The event was held on the School of Law back patio and welcomed over 400 attendees in celebration of the new semester.

A big thank you to the School of Law Alumni Association, the State Bar of New Mexico Lawyer Assistance Program, Moondogs band, Special Touch Catering, and event sponsors Sheehan Winery and Rio Bravo Brewing.

Professor Sarah Steadman Appointed to Serve as the Inaugural F. Michael Hart Chair in Children’s Law

David B. Martinez, Kelly Stout Sanchez, and Julio C. Romero, partners at Martinez, Hart, Sanchez & Romero P.C., contributed $2.5 million to the University of New Mexico School of Law. Their gift established an endowed chair, the F. Michael Hart Chair in Children’s Law, created in recognition of Mike Hart, partner of Martinez, Stout Sanchez, and Romero.

The School of Law is pleased to announce the appointment of Professor Sarah Steadman as the inaugural F. Michael Hart Chair. Professor Steadman graduated with her J.D. in 2005 from the UNM School of Law and began her teaching career with the School in 2013. She has been instrumental in developing the Child and Family Justice Clinic, launched in 2017, which focuses on providing essential legal assistance to low-income, at-risk children and their families.

In addition to her legal expertise, Professor Steadman has a background as a child and family therapist, which influences her teaching students a trauma-informed approach to lawyering. She is enthusiastic about designing and teaching a children’s law curriculum that emphasizes practical application. The course will have a practice focus, inspiring students to engage in advocacy, practice, and pro bono work focused on children’s needs. Professor Steadman remarked, “The children we serve, and so many of our New Mexico kids, have had adverse childhood experiences. I'm truly grateful and excited to explore how we can expand the ways we serve these youth through the Chair's focus on children's law.”

The School of Law Hires Associate Director of Career Services

The School of Law is excited to introduce Rachel O. Woods as the new Associate Director of Career Services. In this role, she will provide career guidance, lead professional development workshops, and serve as a liaison to employers across the state.

Woods, born and raised in Albuquerque, earned her J.D. from the UNM School of Law in 2016. Her diverse legal practice includes family law, estate planning, adoption, and assisted reproduction technology law. Additionally, she has substantial experience in civil defense law, especially foreclosure defense. Throughout her time in law school and practicing law, she worked with a very diverse group of students, professionals, attorneys and clients.

Woods shared, “I am thrilled and honored to join the University of New Mexico School of Law’s brilliant, compassionate team. As Associate Director of Career Services, I will provide encouragement, support, and guidance to our students and alumni. The Career Services team helped me thrive throughout my time studying at UNM School of Law and beyond, and I am fortunate that I have the opportunity to serve our legal community in the same way.”

Remembering Professor Emeritus Willis (Bill) Ellis

Willis (Bill) Ellis, esteemed Professor Emeritus of the School of Law, passed away on August 20, 2024, at the age of 96.

In 1945, Professor Emeritus Ellis enlisted in the Navy and served as a Hospital Corpsman. After his military service, he pursued higher education at Wabash College, where he earned his A.B. degree in 1951. He continued his academic journey at Harvard University and Indiana University, receiving his J.D. from Indiana University in 1954. Following his graduation, Professor Emeritus Ellis clerked for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit from 1954 to 1956.

Before joining the faculty at the University of New Mexico School of Law, Professor Emeritus Ellis held positions as a Teaching Fellow at Harvard University and as an Associate Professor at Denver University. He began his tenure at the University of New Mexico in 1965 as an Associate Professor and was promoted to Professor in 1968.

Former Dean Ted Parnall reflected on his relationship with Professor Emeritus Ellis and said, “He was a quiet, fair, and dedicated teacher when I was his student in the mid-1960s, and a fine colleague when I joined him later on the faculty. Always pleasant and unassuming, it wasn’t unusual for Bill to show an adventurous side. He loved flying small planes, and once took me up in his airplane when he flew down and visited us at my parents’ house down in San Carlos, Mexico.”

Memories and tributes to Professor Emeritus Ellis can be shared at willis.ellis.memories@gmail.com.

Notable UNM Digital Repository Downloads

Migrating the School of Law’s three Law Journals to the UNM Digital Repository has not only made the work of UNM’s legal scholars more accessible to users worldwide, but it has also created an opportunity to assess which articles have the greatest impact based on their download numbers.

Among over 140,000 articles in the repository, one of the most downloaded is School of Law alumna Heidi Todacheene's (’15) article, “She Saves Us from Monsters: The Navajo Creation Story and Modern Tribal Justice.” This article has been downloaded over 170,000 times, highlighting the substantial demand for tribal law scholarship. Professor Emerita Sherri Burr holds the record for the most downloaded article, with over 5,000 downloads of her piece “The Free Blacks of Virginia: A Personal Narrative, A Legal Construct.” Among active professors, Professor Joshua Kastenberg’s article, “Tactical Level PSYOP and MILDEC Information Operations: How to Smartly and Lawfully Prime the Battlefield,” has received over 2,000 downloads.

School of Law Students Take the Oath of Office for Clinical Law Program

The 2024 Clinic swearing-in ceremony marks another successful beginning for the School of Law’s experiential learning program. On Monday, August 15, 2024, School of Law students took the oath of office led by Judge Zachary Ives (’00) from the New Mexico Court of Appeals.

Associate Dean of Experiential Learning Serge Martinez explained, “This year marks the 163rd set of students to come through the Clinic since we started in 1970. It’s such a thrill every time we do this ceremony to see our new clinicians take on the privileges and responsibilities of representing clients in the Clinic and to anticipate all the learning experiences they will have during their time in the Clinic. My colleagues and I are so fortunate to have the opportunity to watch the transformation that Clinic students go through every semester, starting with taking the Oath on the first day.”

The clinicial program at the School of Law offers collaborative clinical teaching methods that integrate classroom instruction with community practice, providing students with essential real-world experience. The School of Law is proud to welcome a new semester of students who will be participating in the program.

3L Alicia Ulibarri Selected to the Community Governance Attorney Program

The Community Governance Attorney Program (CGAP) was established by the New Mexico Legislature in 2019 to provide legal services for land grant, acequia, and colonias Communities. When these communities require legal help, CGAP connects them with law students participating in the program who can offer support. Participants agree to work for two years after graduation for an organization that serves these communities.

Alicia Ulibarri, a third-year law student at the School of Law, has been selected for the Community Governance Attorney Program. Ulibarri, the program’s third participant, describes her selection as a great honor and expressed her enthusiasm for contributing to her community through this opportunity. As a native New Mexican, she is particularly motivated to support her local community. Ulibarri also highlighted the crucial role of the School of Law in her preparation for this role and explained that “the UNM School of Law has been instrumental in preparing me for this path, with its emphasis on public service and hands-on learning.”

CGAP Director Arturo Archuleta explained, “The New Mexico Land Grant Council played a key role in its passage and continues to support and monitor the Program’s development. The Council is pleased that the Program has had three participants to date, and that one of those participants is already in practice, at New Mexico Legal Aid, serving land grant, acequia, and colonias communities.”

The two other program participants include Elisabeth Gutierrez (’23) who is in her second year at New Mexico Legal Aid through the program and Victoria Lovato (’23 ) who deferred for a second year because she is clerking at the New Mexico Supreme Court. 

Learn more about the CGAP Program here.

Class of 2004 Celebrates 20th Reunion

The class of 2004 celebrated its 20th reunion on September 6, 2024. Ninety-two students graduated in 2004, and 29 were in attendance at the reunion.

The event was organized by School of Law alumnae Elege Simons Harwood, Katie Terry, and Veronica Dorato. They described the reunion as “an absolute blast to gather with our classmates for the class of 2004 reunion. Sharing lots of laughs and stories from our law school days reminded us of the strong bonds and lasting friendships we formed. Some of us have the small State pleasure of working together and seeing each other often, while for others, this reunion was a joyful first encounter in nearly 20 years. And, we were honored and delighted to be joined by the Dean and former faculty members Leo Romero and Norman Bay. We’re thankful for these moments of reconnection and eagerly anticipate our next gathering.”

The class of 2004 hopes to host their next event in 2029, in celebration of their 25th reunion.