Brumby Distinguished Professor in First Amendment Law Sonja R. West presented on "Zoom Justice and the Future of Court Access" as part of the Yale Law School Information Society Project conference titled "Access and Accountability 2020: Lessons of the Current Moment" during October.
Post Professor Melissa J. "MJ" Durkee presented on "Business Engagement in Global Governance: Boon or Peril?" as part of an expert roundtable at International Law Weekend 2020. Organized by the International Law Association, the conference's theme was "International Law in Challenging Times."
Second-year student Ashleigh Rasheed-Britt was featured on UGA Today regarding the strengths and challenges of in-person and hybrid classes this semester. The article titled "Students adjust to classes during COVID-19, Hybrid schedules provide flexibility in class and at home" was written by Krista Richmond and published 10/22/20.
Second-year student Hannah Sbaity was featured on UGA Today regarding her participation in the UGA Idea Accelerator Demo Day, which seeks to help students take the next step with their business ideas. She pitched her business Peachy Pockets. The article titled "Thryftship lands $2500 UGA Idea Accelerator prize" was written by J. Merritt Melancon and published 10/23/20.
Callaway Chair Elizabeth Chamblee Burch presented on how to improve the multidistrict litigation system as part of the New York University Center on Civil Justice's "MDLs and Class Actions" program during October.
Cleveland Distinguished Chair of Legal Ethics and Professionalism & Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Lonnie T. Brown Jr. has been elected to the American Law Institute. The ALI is "the leading independent organization in the United States producing scholarly work to clarify, modernize and otherwise improve the law." The ALI's members work to "influence the development of the law in both existing and emerging areas," collaborate with other "eminent lawyers, judges and academics," give back to the legal profession and "contribute to the public good."
Associate Professor Laura Phillips Sawyer was featured on Wall Street Journal Video regarding an antitrust lawsuit against Google. The segment titled "Justice Department to Sue Google for Alleged Anticompetitive Conduct" was published 10/20/20.
Dr. Monica Bell, who serves as an associate professor of law and sociology at Yale University, will serve as the 118th Sibley Lecturer on Nov. 11. Bell specializes in criminal justice, welfare law, housing, race and the law, qualitative research methods, and law and sociology. The title of her talk is "The Case for Racism Response Funds: A Collective Response to Racist Acts" and is based on an op-ed she published this summer. Please be sure to RSVP to Nikko.Terry@uga.edu by November 9 to receive a Zoom link prior to the event.
Cleveland Distinguished Chair of Legal Ethics and Professionalism & Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Lonnie T. Brown Jr. presented "Civil Unrest and the Role of the Attorney General: A Comparison of Ramsey Clark to William Barr" as a part of a virtual symposium hosted by the Mercer Law Review titled "Ethics, Professionalism, and the Role of the Attorney General of the United States: Lessons from History."
Ian L. Kecskes was named Best Overall Advocate and Amelia Welch Ortiz received an Outstanding Advocate Award at The 2020 All Star Bracket Challenge. The pair teamed up with fellow third-year students Janay S. Alexander and Ayman Tartir to compete in the virtual mock trial tournament featuring 64 law schools from across the country. As a group, the students finished fifth in their region. Alumnus Jeremy B. Dailey (J.D.'14) served as the volunteer alumni coach.
Through the Mediation Practicum, third-year law student Allison "Allie" Evans and second-year students Hiance M. Castro Guerrero and Marissa G. Hill are helping to create an online mediation program for the State Court of Athens-Clarke County. Judge Charles E. Auslander III (J.D.'97) asked the Mediation Practicum to assist Georgia's 10th Judicial District ADR Program with the virtual delivery of services. Since practicum students receive training to become approved mediators with the Georgia Office of Dispute Resolution and have had success with remote dispute resolutions in the Savannah area, they were ideal candidates to assist the local court, according to practicum supervisor Rob McNiff. "Many parties are finding that virtual mediations provide greater and safer access to an important process for resolving their cases," McNiff said.
As the month celebrating Latinx heritage draws to a close, the University of Georgia School of Law recently held a virtual portrait unveiling for Luis Aguilar, a 1979 graduate of the law school whose service on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission helped lead the country out of the economic upheaval of the 2008 recession. Aguilar immigrated to the United States as a child refugee from Cuba and describes himself as "the product of the generosity of the American people and the opportunities offered by the United States." He served as a commissioner with the Securities and Exchange Commission from 2008 to 2015 - making Aguilar the eighth longest-serving commissioner in SEC history as well as only the third individual to have been nominated by two U.S. presidents from different political parties.
Dean Rusk International Law Center Interim Director & Hosch Professor Lori A. Ringhand was featured in the Business Insider regarding U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation hearings. The article titled "Amy Coney Barrett avoided answering questions from senators by citing the 'Ginsburg rule,' but legal scholars say it's not a valid excuse" was written by John Haltiwanger and published 10/13/20.
The First Amendment Clinic is training student journalists at universities across the state. Consistent with the clinic's mission to educate the public about free speech and press rights, the clinic provided media law training to the Cluster newspaper staff at Mercer University, Grady Newsource staff at UGA and communications department students and faculty at East Georgia State College. Third-year law student Anish Patel, second-year law student Davis M. Wright and First Amendment Clinic Legal Fellow Samantha Hamilton covered tops such as defamation, privacy, copyright fair use and access rights under Georgia's Open Meetings and Open Records Acts.
Dean Rusk International Law Center Interim Director & Hosch Professor Lori A. Ringhand was featured in the Los Angeles Times regarding U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation hearings. The article titled "Not Since Bork Has A Supreme Court Pick Had Such A Public Record On Issues. Will It Matter For Barrett?" was written by David G. Savage and published 10/13/20.
Dean Rusk International Law Center Interim Director & Hosch Professor Lori A. Ringhand was featured on Wisconsin Public Radio regarding U.S. Supreme Court nominee Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation hearings. The segment titled "Scrutinizing The Supreme Court Confirmation Hearings" aired as part of "The Morning Show" on 10/13/20.
The Appellate Litigation Clinic recently won its argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in the case McIlwain v. Burnside. The clinic's client filed five grievances after not receiving proper medical care for stab wounds, and the District Court claimed the client failed to exhaust his administrative remedies under the Prison Litigation Reform Act. The Eleventh Circuit judges agreed that the District Court dismissed the case prematurely and instructed the District Court to conduct an evidentiary hearing on the first grievance and make fact findings on the rest that respond to the client's exhaustion-related arguments. This ruling was featured on Bloomberg Law in the article titled "Georgia Prisoner's Indifference Complaints Revived On Appeal," which was authored by Porter Wells and published 10/9/20.
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 Jernigan v. State in relation to determining when prosecution evidence is unduly prejudicial. This text has now been cited 55 times by Georgia appellate courts to resolve evidentiary issues.
The School of Law was featured in U.S. News & World Report regarding the establishment of the Chester C. Davenport Memorial Endowment Fund honoring the school's first Black graduate. The fund, supported by discretionary allocations from UGA President Jere W. Morehead and Dean Peter B. "Bo" Rutledge, will be a source of scholarships and fellowships for incoming students graduating from Georgia-based historically Black colleges and universities. Recipients also will be chosen for reflecting Davenport's legacy of academic excellence, courage, determination and trailblazing spirit. The article titled "Fund Created in Memory of UGA Law School's First Black Grad" was published 10/10/20.
The School of Law regrets to announce former employee Karen "Kay" Hardeman (Bramlett) Kirk passed away October 2, 2020, at the age of 64. Kirk served as an administrative assistant at the law school and retired in June 2008. She will be missed by law school faculty, staff and students.