The Veterans Legal Clinic has helped approximately 370 veterans and their family members claim over $1 million in additional benefits since its establishment. This impact is expected to grow exponentially with the expansion of services later this year. Thanks to additional financial support from renowned Georgia trial lawyer James E. “Jim” Butler Jr., the Athens-based clinic will soon be able to offer: a permanent virtual remote outreach program, psychological and medical evaluations, and self-advocacy webinars.
Hosch Professor & Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Lori A. Ringhand was featured in The Christian Science Monitor regarding the U.S. Supreme Court's jurisprudence patterns. The article titled "Minority report: How justices from Harlan to Breyer shaped legal opinion" was written by Henry Gass and Noah Robertson and was published 1/27/22.
Clinical Assistant Professor & First Amendment Clinic Director Clare R. Norins was featured in the Georgia Recorder regarding a bill being considered by Georgia lawmakers about free speech zones on college campuses. The article titled "House bill to extend 'free speech' areas campus-wide spurs First Amendment debate" was written by Ross Williams and published 1/27/22. It was republished by Georgia Public Broadcasting and other media outlets.
Hosch Professor & Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Lori A. Ringhand published "Justice Breyer announced he will retire. Here's what happens next." in The Washington Post on 1/27/22.
Assistant Professor Thomas E. Kadri presented "Platform Federalism" at the Media Law and Policy Scholars Conference during January.
Distinguished Research Professor & Shackelford Distinguished Professor in Taxation Law Emeritus Walter Hellerstein presented on the panel on “taxable persons” at the Vienna University of Economics and Business virtual conference titled “Court of Justice of the European Union: Recent VAT Case Law” during January.
Brumby Distinguished Professor in First Amendment Law Sonja R. West presented "The Disappearing Freedom of the Press" at the Media Law and Policy Scholars Conference during January. She also served as a discussant for a paper titled "The Ideology of Press Freedom."
Stembler Family Distinguished Professor in Business Law Christopher M. Bruner presented as part of a panel discussion titled “Where Does New York Stand in the Competition Among States and Regions for Business?” The online panel was a part of the New York State Bar Association Business Law Section’s 2022 Annual Meeting.
Callaway Chair of Law Emeritus Ronald L. Carlson's book Carlson on Evidence (with M. Carlson) was recently cited by the Georgia Court of Appeals in the case Parrish v. State regarding the question of whether the statement by a defendant’s attorney can be held against the defendant in a criminal trial. This citation brings the total to 61 times that this text has been used by Georgia appellate courts to resolve evidentiary issues.
The University of Georgia School of Law has won back-to-back championship trophies in the National Online Moot Court Competition. This year's team was comprised of second-year students Lindsey K. Adams, Rachel L. Byers and Molly N. Laughlin. Adams was named Top Advocate of the tournament. Notably, this is only the second year of the competition and UGA is the tournament's only winner. Third-year student Hannah Sbaity, who was a member of last year's winning team, served as a coach in 2022.
Clinical Assistant Professor & Prosecutorial Justice Program Director Melissa D. Redmon was featured in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution regarding special purpose grand juries. The article titled "Fulton DA requests special grand jury for Trump probe" was written by Tamar Hallerman and published 1/20/22.
University Professor & Kilpatrick Chair of Corporate Finance and Securities Law Usha Rodrigues was featured in The New York Times regarding investors and private investment in public equity deals. The article titled "Trump Deal Faced Widespread Investor Doubt Before Raising $1Billion" was written by Matthew Goldstein, Kate Kelly, Kenneth P. Vogel and Maureen Farrell and was published 1/20/22.
The Appellate Litigation Clinic recently won its case before the Georgia Supreme Court. In Ricky J. Johnson v. The State, the clinic’s client had been convicted of multiple theft-by-taking counts for stealing trucks and other property from a construction company. The court ultimately vacated a lower court’s order after finding that its merger analysis was flawed. Third-year students Courtney Hogan and Kirstiana Perryman wrote the brief.
Cleveland Distinguished Chair of Legal Ethics and Professionalism & Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Lonnie T. Brown Jr. has been named dean of the University of Tennessee College of Law, starting July 1. The UT media release was published 1/19/22.
Associate Dean and Martin Chair of Law Andrea L. Dennis was featured on Fox 5 New York regarding a proposed New York state law aimed at stopping the use of rap lyrics as purported blueprints for alleged crimes. The article was titled "Rap Music on Trial: Jay-Z, Meek Mill want rap lyrics blocked from being used in court" was written by Mike Sacks and published 1/19/22.
The School of Law was featured in Bulldawg Illustrated regarding the namesake of its primary building, Harold Hirsch, who was an attorney that helped protect Coca-Cola's signature contour bottle design and help provide summer employment for UGA football players. The article titled "Contour Coke and Charley Trippi" was written by Loran Smith and published 1/19/22.
Associate Dean and Martin Chair of Law Andrea L. Dennis' book Rap on Trial was mentioned in Rolling Stone magazine regarding a proposed New York state law aimed at stopping the use of rap lyrics as purported blueprints for alleged crimes. The article titled "Jay-Z and Meek Mill Team Up to Block Rap Lyrics From Being Used in Court" was written by Nancy Dillon and published 1/18/22.
Eleven grants totaling $1.5 million were recently awarded to recipients of the third round of UGA Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grants. Overall the awards went to faculty from 13 UGA units and target significant challenges at the local, national or global level. Associate Professor Alexander W. Scherr and Associate Dean Jason A. Cade were among the recipients and will work on projects relating to a cognitive aging research and education center and an interdisciplinary school-based health center, respectively.
Summer public interest fellowships provide important hands-on learning opportunities for law students. At the School of Law, financial support for these experiences has been on an upward trajectory since 2017. In fact, over the last five years, there has been a roughly 450% increase in support. This growth continues with the establishment of the Bool Simkins Summer Fellowship for Public Interest Fund. Created by married 2010 graduates Kevin Murphy and Elizabeth (Freeman) Murphy, the fellowship will be the law school’s largest annual public interest fellowship award and will support a top performing student with a full summer public interest/pro bono placement after completing his or her second year of law school.
Due to anticipated inclement weather and as a state of emergency will be in effect for Clarke County, the Alexander Campbell King Law Library will remain closed through Sunday (1/16). Please note this is a complete closure and includes the 24/7 card swipe access. Current plans are for the library to re-open at 1 p.m. on Monday (1/17). At this time, the law school buildings will remain open. Further updates will be sent as they become available.