Advocate 2021 by University of Georgia School of Law

Vol. 55, 2021

PREPARE. CONNECT. LEAD.

• Navigating a global pandemic • Callaway Foundation and ABA help clinics reach rural areas • Distinguished Law Fellowships expand

From the law school’s leaders BOARD OF VISITORS “Your law school – having been named the #1 best value in legal education for an historic three-straight years – remains committed to providing a first-rate legal education at a reasonable cost, while emphasizing key outcomes like bar passage and employment. Let’s be generous with our resources so our nation’s future leaders can pursue career paths that develop their talents and passions to the fullest – undeterred by debt – and allow them to maximize their contributions to state and society.” — Marlan B. Wilbanks (J.D.’86), Board of Visitors Chair

LAW SCHOOL ASSOCIATION “The UGA School of Law fosters legal leaders with its unique blend of talented students, quality education, and meaningful support of our community members. Investing in student aid programs – like book stipends, bar prep grants, professional clothing support, and emergency assistance – is vital to ensuring every student’s wellbeing and success and allows them to focus on their future. Your gift to the Law School Fund will have a real and immediate impact on our fellow Law Dawgs.” — Kate Leanne Jensen (J.D.’10), Law School Association President

YOUNG ALUMNI/ALUMNAE COMMITTEE “One thing we have learned through the upheaval of this past year is to reevaluate and truly value how we spend our time. One way in which our graduates can give back and enhance the School of Law community is through the giving of their time to current students – whether that be through the school’s unique mentoring program, mock interviews, assisting with networking opportunities, and guest speaking. If you are looking for a way to give back in addition to providing financial support, please consider connecting in one of these ways. The willingness of our graduates to engage and enrich our students and community truly makes a difference.” — Nicholas H. “Nic” Howell (J.D.’13), Young Alumni/Alumnae Committee President

TOGETHER, WE ARE

WHEN 11,000+

GIVE THEIR

donors, alums, faculty & staff

time, expertise, and finances & share their networks

Transforming Lives.

THE RESULT IS: • 95%+ Ultimate Bar Passage rate • #8 national ranking for federal clerkships

• $6 million (approx.) reduction in student borrowing • $305,000 (approx.) in summer fellowships • 185 JCPenney gift cards for student professional attire

Learn more about contributing your resources by calling 706-542-7959 or emailing lawalum@uga.edu. You can make a gift today at law.uga.edu/gifts-advocate.

FROM THE DEAN

Persevering together Last year, I wrote about how

of our extended law school family, including custodian Carolyn Bradford

the pandemic forced us all to

Hubbard, Judge Horace Johnson (J.D.’82), Judge Gary Andrews (J.D.’71) and

draw on and to hone our grit

Justice George Carley (LL.B.’62) as well as legendary Professor Perry Sentell

and resilience. We learned new

(LL.B.’58) and former Dean Ned Spurgeon, among countless others.

ways of working, learning,

Those moments of tragedy provided occasions where our community

meeting and mourning.

showed the utmost care and compassion. During the first few days of the

Like you, our students had

fall 2020 semester, a first-year student lost two grandparents within the

to learn those same lessons

span of 24 hours. His classmates, though they had only met him on Zoom,

and, in doing so, became

spontaneously created a GoFundMe page to help defray some of the costs

stronger professionals and stronger people. They learned the power of

attendant to their passing. Similarly, when beloved law school custodian

perseverance. Together.

Carolyn passed away, many voluntarily contributed to a fund to aid her

Despite all the challenges over the past year, students, faculty and staff pulled together and shined in unimaginable ways. Just consider: • Law students logged approximately 94,000 uncompensated service hours through clinical and field placements over the past year. • 96.4% of our school’s first-time takers passed the Georgia bar exam in fall 2020. • Student advocates in our Appellate Litigation Clinic argued before four federal appellate courts and tallied five wins. • Our heralded moot court program was ranked the #2 program in the

family. Also, when a student was diagnosed with COVID-19, Student Bar Association leaders organized the delivery of care packages. That spirit inspired our 2021 graduates as well. As many of you know, in August 2020, the School of Law lost one of its most inspiring figures when Chester Davenport (LL.B.’66), our first Black graduate, suddenly passed away. After President Jere W. Morehead (J.D.’80) and I created the Chester C. Davenport Memorial Endowment Fund, members of the Class of 2021 chose to dedicate their class gift to that effort. This endowed scholarship will support law students who graduate from Georgia’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and I would like to personally

country following a great moot court/mock trial season that included

thank the 2021 graduates for that most thoughtful and touching way to

two national titles and three regional/state trophies.

honor, together, Chester and his great legacy.

• Faculty achieved international recognition, including the election

You, our alumni/alumnae and friends, have been an essential part of

of Woodruff Chair Diane Marie Amann to the Council on Foreign

our community’s perseverance. You spoke to our students in virtual Zooms.

Relations.

You applauded your fellow alums during virtual celebrations. Even in a

• Other faculty continued to publish in the nation’s premier law journals, including two forthcoming articles in the Yale Law Journal by Stembler Family Distinguished Professor Christopher Bruner and Assistant Professor Lindsey Simon. • Associate Dean Jason Cade and Clinical Assistant Professor Clare Norins received the Clinical Legal Education Association’s Award for Excellence in a Public Interest Case or Project. • The Office of Admissions recruited the most academically talented class in history and the most diverse class in roughly a decade, markers that the office looks to eclipse again this fall. • The Career Development Office again posted one of the nation’s top

period of economic uncertainty, you contributed generously to support students on matters like professional attire, bar preparations, emergency funds and true leaps of faith. All of that support helped the law school – for an unprecedented third straight year – to be named the nation’s #1 Best Value Law School, to become Georgia’s highest ranked law school in U.S. News and to achieve its second highest U.S. News ranking in history. Amid all that has happened in the last year, pre-pandemic life seems like a distant past. However, as I write these words, promising signs for new days ahead are on the horizon and all of us are cautiously hopeful about the prospect of a more “normal” upcoming academic year. Yet the lessons from and the bonds formed during the pandemic will endure. Among the strongest is the power of a community that

employment rates and the #8 national ranking for federal clerkship

perseveres together. That persistence defined this community long before

placements.

the pandemic, and it enabled us to achieve tremendous accomplishments

• We now have the capacity to award more than 20 Distinguished Law Fellowships and a portfolio of more than one dozen endowed funds

despite incredible challenges. May those qualities continue long after this global health crisis joins the last one in the archives of history.

supporting first-generation college graduates. All of this, and so much more, occurred during a global pandemic, and it speaks volumes about the power of our community. As we persevered together, we also mourned together. While our community did not lose any students, faculty or staff directly to COVID-19, we were not unaffected. Many of us lost loved ones in addition to members

Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge Dean and Herman E. Talmadge Chair of Law

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Advocate Table of contents

VOLUME 55, 2021 ISSN 1557-1025 Editor’s Note: The Advocate is published annually by the University of Georgia School of Law for alumni/alumnae, friends and members of the law school community. Please contact the Office of Communications and Public Relations at (706) 542-5172 or lawcomm@uga.edu if you have any comments or suggestions. Dean Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge

4 Navigating a global pandemic

6 Callaway Foundation & ABA help clinics reach rural areas

Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Kent Barnett Associate Dean for Clinical Programs & Experiential Learning Jason A. Cade Associate Dean for Faculty Development Andrea L. Dennis Associate Dean for International Programs Melissa J. “MJ” Durkee Assistant Dean for Admissions, Diversity and Inclusion & Strategic Initiatives Gregory L. “Greg” Roseboro (J.D.’87) Assistant Dean for Career Development Anthony E. “Tony” Waller (J.D.’93)

Distinguished Law

Appellate Litigation Clinic wins

Fellowships expand

5 cases in 4 federal courts

Email departmental inquiries to: Admissions – ugajd@uga.edu Alumni/Alumnae Relations – lawalum@uga.edu Communications – lawcomm@uga.edu Development – lawgifts@uga.edu Dean Rusk International Law Center – ruskintlaw@uga.edu Law Library – tstriepe@uga.edu Career Development – cdo@uga.edu Heidi Murphy, editor and writer; Lona Panter, principal writer; mPrint Design Studio, design; Kaptiv8, website design and hosting.

New associate deans to

Alumni remembered with

help to lead school

lecture/scholarships

© 2021 University of Georgia School of Law. The University of Georgia is a unit of the University System of Georgia. The University of Georgia does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, color, national or ethnic origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or military service in its administrations of educational policies, programs, or activities; its admissions policies; scholarship and loan programs; athletic or other University-administered programs; or employment. Inquiries or complaints should be directed to the Equal Opportunity Office, 119 Holmes-Hunter Academic Building, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602. Telephone 706-542-7912 (V/TDD). Fax 706-542-2822. https://eoo.uga.edu/ The University of Georgia Foundation is registered to solicit in every state and provides state specific registration information at www.ugafoundation.org/charity.

ABOUT THE COVER: Class of 2021 graduate Amelia Welch Ortiz is pictured with her husband Will Ortiz, who is a 2020 alumnus. They proudly represent the two graduating classes that experienced significant disruption to their legal education due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Photo by Dennis McDaniel.

CONNECT WITH US

Find us online at law.uga.edu

Find this issue online at advocate.law.uga.edu

COMMITTED TO

PREPARING THE NEXT GENERATION OF LEGAL LEADERS

95%+

Best Value Law School — National Jurist 2020, 2019 & 2018

Graduates who sat for the bar passed within one year of graduation (Class of 2019) — American Bar Association

First-ever three-peat

#27

— U.S. News & World Report, 2021/22

Second-highest ranking in school history

State Bar Exam Passage Fall 2020 results for first-time takers

#16

Seventh straight year to lead

Ultimate Bar Passage Rate

Moot Court for 2020–21 — University of Houston Law Center/Hunton Andrews Kurth Moot Court National Championship

$6 million Approximate Reduction in Annual Student Borrowing Since 2013

Federal Clerkships (Class of 2020) — Law.com, 2021

Bar Passage/J.D. Advantage Jobs

(Class of 2020) — Law.com, 2021

82% 22%

Receiving Financial Aid (Class of 2023)

Minority Student Population (2020–21)

#18 #24

International Law — U.S. News & World Report, 2021/22

Clinical Training — U.S. News & World Report, 2021/22

75+ 43%

First-gen College Grads and Veterans (Juris Doctor students during 2020–21)

Students Not Borrowing for Legal Education (2019–20)

ADVOCATE 2021

University of Georgia School of Law

PREPARE. CONNECT. LEAD.

Law school community navigates global pandemic

With a focus on the health and wellbeing of the law school community, the School of Law was able to navigate the coronavirus pandemic while ensuring its students received a high-quality legal education despite living in a world of unknowns. “I am so grateful to everyone in our community,” Dean Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge said. “Our students made the transition to virtual instruction and our faculty joined them in that transition. Our administrative team has done everything from training people on new technology to processing emergency fund applications, our staff worked tirelessly to keep operations seamless, and our alums and legal community offered support, financial assistance and words of wisdom as we all navigated these uncharted waters.” After the University System of Georgia institutions suspended inperson instruction in March 2020, the School of Law’s IT department

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Top: Dean Bo Rutledge speaks to Katie McMahon (J.D.’11) via the platform Airmeet during the law school’s virtual Alumni/Alumnae Week. McMahon received the Young Alumni/Alumnae of Excellence Award during a virtual ceremony. Middle: The law school community found creative ways to spend time together. Helmed by the Student Affairs team, the school’s Luncheon on the Grass gatherings allowed individuals to gather for socially distanced picnic lunches on North Campus. Bottom: Associate Dean and Martin Chair Andrea Dennis teaching a class.

Top left: Third-year student Devin Mashman (third row, far right), a member of the Wilbanks Child Endangerment and Sexual Exploitation Clinic, virtually argued before the Georgia Supreme Court. Many traditional law school events and activities – academic and social – moved to the online world to maintain the health and safety of all individuals. Bottom left: Associate Professor Christian Turner taught a class outside during the fall semester. Oftentimes, members of the law school community took advantage of nice weather and moved classes and small gatherings outdoors. Below: Jim Henneberger, the law school’s director of information technology, worked with other members of his IT team – Chris Boston, Brad Grove, Leslie Grove, Victor Lawrence and Kui Wang – to move the law school to an online learning platform at the onset of the pandemic.

assisted faculty as classrooms moved into the virtual world. For the 2020 academic year, UGA moved to a hybrid model using a combination of in-person and online classes to ensure appropriate social distancing measures were in place. While the year was different from those in the past, the law school community worked together not only to ensure the safety of each other, but to create new ways to come together – through classes held outdoors, online events and gatherings, as well as some social activities held on North Campus. As a result of the efforts of the UGA community, in May the university was able to relax restrictions just in time for the School of Law’s Commencement ceremony. “While these have been hard times, the School of Law truly united to show that we are all in this together,” Rutledge said. “Our commitment to a culture of shared

Christine Scartz (J.D.’94), the director of the Jane W. Wilson Family Justice Clinic, taught a socially distanced class in Dean Rusk Hall. The law school’s experiential learning programs worked throughout the pandemic, hosting webinars and

responsibility has allowed us to look forward as we move

assisting clients who found themselves in need during the

toward more normal times for the 2021–22 academic year.”

turbulent times.

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

PREPARE. CONNECT. LEAD. Dalton DDa

Clinics expand reach to rural areas

GGa Gainesville AAt Athens ta Augusta Troup County Tr

THANKS TO THE ABA AND THE CALLAWAY FOUNDATION

M Macon Columbus Co

Savannahh

While the COVID-19 pandemic brought numerous challenges, it also provided opportunities. Historically, the reach of the law school’s 18 service learning opportunities has generally been limited to the Athens

Al Albany

area, with the exception of the Washington, D.C., and Atlanta semester

ck Brunswick

programs. However, key funding from the American Bar Association and the Callaway Foundation have led to the development of service delivery models taking advantage of everyone’s growing comfort with technology and virtual services. During the academic year, the school’s Veterans Legal Clinic partnered with the Georgia Legal Services Program/Military Legal Assistance Project – courtesy of an ABA grant – to deliver virtual legal

School of Law service learning opportunities are expanding their physical reach beyond Athens. This past year – courtesy of the ABA and the Callaway Foundation – clinics have been held in 10 Georgia cities/counties.

clinics for veterans relating to benefits and other civil legal matters in underserved parts of the Peach State. The Georgia Veterans Outreach

“This new funding to upgrade and expand technology will be pivotal

Project built on previous work of the clinic, which had some experience

in growing the provision of legal services and education,” Dean Peter B.

serving veterans in nearly 60 Georgia counties.

“Bo” Rutledge said. “The pandemic and new technologies are changing

With physical locations in Albany, Athens, Augusta, Brunswick,

the way legal services can be provided. I want to thank the Callaway

Columbus, Dalton, Gainesville, Macon and Savannah providing reliable

Foundation for this significant gift that will allow the School of Law to

telephone/internet connections as well as computers, printers and

more fully embrace these changes to benefit Georgia’s citizens, including

scanners, more than 100 former military members were able to connect

those in rural areas.”

with GVOP legal advisers remotely for brief service and referrals using

This past summer, several of the law school’s clinics began rolling

video conferencing software and telephones. During these meetings, clinic

out additional legal assistance events for the benefit of underserved

staff and students as well as clients followed CDC health and safety protocols.

areas throughout the state, including Troup County where the Callaway

Veterans Legal Clinic Director Alexander W. Scherr said the work of the GVOP was very successful and provided a wealth of information on how law school clinics can deliver services outside of the Athens area, whether in person or virtually. With a $200,000 grant from the Callaway Foundation, the move

Foundation is based. The Veterans Legal Clinic – which has helped approximately 150 veterans and their family members claim nearly $1,000,000 in benefits since it was established – is funded by a lead gift from renowned trial attorney and 1977 law school alumnus James E. “Jim” Butler Jr., who also supports the school’s Butler

to offer legal services to rural and legally underserved communities in

Commitment that guarantees financial aid to 100% of student veteran law school

Georgia was bolstered.

matriculants.

Wilbanks CEASE Clinic wins Georgia Supreme Court case The Wilbanks Child Endangerment and Sexual Exploitation Clinic received a favorable opinion in a case third-year student Devin Mashman argued before the Supreme Court of Georgia. The case Harvey v. Merchan involved the choice of law and the constitutionality of the state’s Hidden Predator Act. The court determined that the act’s retroactive window is constitutional and that claims can go forward regardless of where they were committed. Mashman and second-year students Maigan Jenkins and Annefloor De Groot assisted in writing the brief.

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Student summer fellowship funding grows exponentially School of Law students see the value in pursuing fellowships during the summer months as these positions provide essential hands-on learning and involve legal work in government, judicial and public interest positions. This year, the School of Law helped to distribute approximately $305,000 to roughly 95 students. This represents a 16% increase in summer fellowship dollars over last year’s record high of $263,000. Thanks to generous donations from graduates and friends, the School of Law has been able to increase support for summer fellowships by approximately 450% over the last five years. Dean Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge said he is grateful to the school’s alumni and alumnae and other supporters. “This funding is critical and it allows our students to supplement their first-rate legal training in the classroom with hands-on experience, bolstering the school’s vision of being the best return on investment in legal education today.”

$304,750

Fellowship funding has grown by approx. 450% since 2017.

$263,000

$132,300

$68,000 2017

$83,000 2018

2019

2020

2021

Best return on investment strategy fueled by giving The School of Law’s ranking as the #1 best value/return on investment in legal education for an historic third year was not an accident. The school’s leadership – guided by our alumni/alumnae boards – purposefully chartered a path to put the school’s students in the best possible position to seek legal employment based on their passions first and pay second. Every year, we are thankful to the graduates and friends who answer the call to take the quality of a UGA legal education to an even higher level.

Gregory A. “Greg” (J.D.’80) and Kay Garcia established the Garcia Scholarship Fund, which will give preference to students who have demonstrated a commitment to matters of diversity, equity and inclusion. The Michael Louis Goldberg Scholarship Fund, benefiting students who played sports in high school or college, was expanded. Neal J. (J.D.’87) and Elizabeth W. Quirk documented their planned gift to the law school.

Michael T. “Mike” Rafi (J.D.’11) created a scholarship named for his grandmother Annette McKean. The Stanton Foundation funded various scholarship/research grants in addition to its support for the First Amendment Clinic, a clinic post-graduate fellow and a Distinguished Law Fellowship. G. Sanders Griffith III (J.D.’77) and Nancy E. Rafuse (J.D.’91) provided resources for the school’s graduate assistant program. Launched two years ago and modeling similar initiatives in other academic disciplines, this effort

matches a student with a professor based on common professional interests and results in work and research experience, while offsetting tuition and other costs for the student. C. Andrew “Andy” Childers (J.D.’98) supported our students with funding for professional attire, which boosts students’ confidence when interviewing, appearing in court or going to the legal workplace. Several efforts have been announced this past year memorializing members of our law school community

including: Chester C. Davenport (LL.B.’66) with a scholarship/ fellowship fund, Judge Horace J. Johnson Jr. (J.D.’82) with a lecture and Rajesh “Raj” Mehta (J.D.’01) with a memorial endowment for family justice initiatives in addition to the conversion of the scholarship named for the late legendary professor R. Perry Sentell Jr. (LL.B.’58) into a Distinguished Law Fellowship. Others that are in process will honor the memories of Randall D. “Randy” Quintrell (J.D.’85) and Judge Steve Goss (J.D.’86).

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

PREPARE. CONNECT. LEAD.

Distinguished Law Fellowships expand The Distinguished Law Fellowship program gives some of the brightest students at the School of Law unparalleled offerings as they focus on their legal studies.

Distinguished Law Fellowship, which is funded by the Stanton Foundation, and the creation of a fellowship in memory of the late Carter Chair Emeritus R. Perry Sentell Jr. (LL.B.’58).

A gift from the John N. Goddard Foundation established the Distinguished Law Fellowship program in 2016, and today – thanks to the foundation and other donors – the law school has the ability to offer more than 20 full-tuition scholarships and professional development stipends to some of the most academically gifted students at the law school.

These new fellowships join previously created ones that are named for the following individuals, funds and foundations: Philip H. Alston, Jr., James E. “Jim” Butler Jr. (J.D.’77), Robert G. Edge, Kenneth M. Henson (J.D.’47), Edith M. and Frank G. Lumpkin Jr., Law School Association Professor Emeritus John B. Rees Jr. and Joel O. Wooten Jr. (J.D.’75) as well as the Dean & Virginia Rusk Fund, the Veterans Legal Services Clinic Fund, the AnBryce Foundation and the Richard B. Russell Foundation. (Russell was a 1918 graduate of the law school.)

In addition to financial aid, students receive an educational experience that may include domestic and international externships, guided research experiences and opportunities to meet some of the country’s top legal, business and government leaders. During the 2020–21 academic year, several new fellowships were established or were in the process of being finalized. These include the Frank Stanton

Alston Distinguished Law Fellow Michael Sloman (left) graduated in May. He is pictured with his father Jay Sloman (J.D.’94) (right) and University Professor & Caldwell Chair Dan Coenen, who taught both Slomans during their time at the School of Law.

First-generation students partner to achieve goals

The Distinguished Law Fellows program is modeled after the university’s prestigious Foundation Fellows program, which was established in 1972.

Additional scholarship funds available to firstgeneration law students include:

The School of Law supported its first-generation college graduates throughout the oftentimes difficult 2020–21 academic year through various programs and resources.

• The AnBryce Scholarship

One of First Start Coordinator Amanda J. Fox’s (J.D.’14) main programs over the past year was the creation of accountability groups.

• The Cox Law School Honors Scholarship Fund

Fox led two accountability cohorts during the fall semester – one for first-generation college graduates and one for first-generation law students. The groups met monthly to discuss different components of law school success. Each student was also matched with an accountability partner whose role was to ensure that the other was working toward meeting his/her academic goals around that particular focus. For example, in September, they discussed class preparation strategies. Afterward the students met individually with their partner to set goals and hold each other accountable for completing their reading and briefing their cases. Other monthly topics included outlining and test preparation.

• The Stacey Godfrey Evans Scholarship

The First-Start Scholars Program at the law school was created thanks to a $3 million gift – the largest outright donation in school history – from 1982 alumna Kathelen V. Amos and the Daniel P. Amos Family Foundation. The program offers first-generation college students partial tuition scholarships and professional development stipends.

• The Pin Point Scholarship

The school is also home to the First-Generation Students Association, which creates community for students who are the first in their families to attend college. This student-led organization serves as an organizing force around the social, academic, emotional and financial issues relevant to first-generation students both within and outside of the law school environment.

• The Harley Yancey Law School Honors

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

• The James M. Cagle Scholarship Fund

• The Judge B. Avant Edenfield Scholarship

• The First-Generation Scholarship Matching Fund • The First-Start Scholars Fund • The Judge Steve C. Jones Scholarship Fund • The Loudermilk Family First-Start Scholars Fund • The Parker Law School Honors Scholarship Fund

• The Michael N. and Risë J. Weathersby Family

Scholarship Scholarship Fund • The Waters Law School Honors

Scholarship Fund

Wilner/UGA Foundation Professor in International Law Harlan Cohen teaches Intro to Global Governance in 2019, when the School of Law began offering undergraduate classes. This fall, the school

Law school to offer undergraduate minor in law Starting this fall, the School of Law will begin offering an undergraduate minor. “The Minor in Law, Jurisprudence, and the State will help UGA undergraduate students understand how the law works, how the law matters and how it can be used to create a career that makes a difference whether they intend to become a lawyer or not,” Hosch Professor Logan E. Sawyer III, the school’s director of undergraduate studies, said. The minor’s flexible curriculum is specifically designed for UGA undergraduate students by allowing them to integrate their legal studies with other academic

will introduce its undergraduate minor for UGA students.

interests and courses of study. There are two required courses that will be taught by School of Law faculty – Foundations of American Law and Law, Justice, and the State – while the other three elective courses can be chosen from classes taught by faculty at the law school or other units across the university. This minor extends the School of Law’s commitment to educating not just the next generation of lawyers, but the next generation of leaders for state and society, according to Dean Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge.

Pulliam to lead law school advancement office

Waller named assistant dean for career development

Lara Pulliam has been named the interim senior director of law school advancement, overseeing the school’s efforts for growing private support that will ensure a strong future for the law school.

In May, the School of Law announced that Anthony E. “Tony” Waller (J.D.’93) would become its assistant dean for career development. He most recently joined the School of Law in 2015 as the school’s director of public sector career advising and bar exam success programming, and he has been responsible for advising students and graduates on public interest and governmental employment as well as ensuring employers in those practices have access to School of Law students. Additionally, he was, and continues to be, responsible for the school’s bar exam success programing.

She will also continue to serve as Dean Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge’s chief of staff, a post she has held for four years. In this position, she has played an integral role in the development of key capital campaign initiatives like the Distinguished Law Fellows and First-Start Scholars programs in addition to working closely with the school’s Board of Visitors and senior administrative team. Pulliam came to the law school in 2011 as its director of stewardship. Her duties included fostering relationships between scholarship recipients, donors and the law school; managing the gift acknowledgement process for all donations to the law school; and working closely with the dean on special initiatives benefitting the internal and external law communities. Anne Moser, who previously led the law school’s advancement team, recently accepted a position in the office of UGA’s Vice President for Public Service and Outreach.

Waller has more than 17 years of experience in the area of law school career development, having been a part of the School of Law’s career staff for a combined total of 11 years and serving as assistant dean at the University of Illinois College of Law from 2006 to 2011. Waller is actively involved in the National Association of Law Placement, and he has served as a member of its Board of Directors as well as on various committees. Waller earned his law degree from UGA, and he replaced Kenny Tatum, the previous holder of the assistant deanship. During the 2020–21 academic year, the law school’s Career Development Office also saw the departure of Elizabeth “Beth” Shackelford, the director of student professional development. Shackelford retired after 25 years of service to the university. ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

PREPARE. CONNECT. LEAD.

Appellate Litigation Clinic claims victory in multiple cases Throughout the 2020–21 academic year, the Appellate Litigation Clinic continued its work advocating for its clients, with students often arguing before the courts virtually. Led by Director Thomas V. Burch and Counselor in Residence Anna White Howard (J.D.’10), students and recent graduates recorded several victories for their clients. The clinic won two cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit – Naranjo Garcia v. Barr and Arellano Herrera v. Barr. The cases were argued by third-year student Sarah A. Nelson and third-year student Jason N. Sigalos, respectively. Nelson and 2020 graduates Jonathan Kaufman and Joe Scarborough wrote the briefs for Naranjo Garcia, while third-year student Madison “Maddie” Conkel assisted with oral argument preparations. In Arellano

Third-year student Maddie Conkel (bottom

Herrera, Sigalos co-wrote the briefs with fellow third-year student Mollie M. Fiero and

right) virtually argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals

2020 graduate John Lex Kenerly IV.

for the 11th Circuit in the case Denis Aguilera

The clinic, in partnership with 2011 alumnus Benjamin J. “Ben” Osorio, also won remand for a client before the Board of Immigration Appeals in the case Gutierrez-Flores v. Barr. Then-clinic students – who graduated in 2020 – Adeline Kenerly Lambert, Mandi E. Goodman, Miranda S. Bidinger, Amy E. Shehan and Georgia L. Turner briefed the case.

Fernandez, Petitioner v. U.S. Attorney General. Pictured in the table of contents: Third-year student Mollie Fiero after her U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit oral argument.

It also won a Section 1983 exhaustion appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in the case McIlwain v. Burnside. Students were victorious in Webb v. U.S. Veterans Institute, a case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Fiero presented oral argument and Sigalos helped write the brief. Additionally, the clinic was successful in getting a client who was at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 released from detention after 19 months of being held without a bond hearing. Efforts to have him released included a bond motion and hearing at the Immigration Court, multiple parole requests to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a habeas petition to the District Court and an opening brief and motion to expedite before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Graduates Addison Smith (J.D.’20) and Spencer D. Woody (J.D.’20), along with third-year student Steven L. Miller and second-year students Christopher O. Brock, Destiny J. Burch and Maria C. “Mia” Hughes, all worked on the case. School of Law students also argued before the courts in other cases, including: • Fiero argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in the case United States v. Palacios. • Conkel argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in the case Denis Aguilera Fernandez, Petitioner v. U.S. Attorney General.

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Negotiation team brings home Best Draft Award Third-year students Elizabeth J. Poland and Megan R. “Meggie” Willinger won the Best Draft Award at the Transactional LawMeet hosted by the University of Missouri at Kansas City in March. They represented the buyer in a complex stock purchase transaction and spent over two months drafting an amendment to the stock purchase agreement, interviewing their client and marking up the other side’s draft.

Advocacy teams bring home two national titles and other honors OTHER KEY WINS: UGA sweeps regional round of the National Moot Court Competition, finishes as national semifinalists

National title: National Online Moot Court Competition UGA dominated in the inaugural National Online Moot Court Competition. The school’s two teams finished as one and two. Second-year students Haley K. Kairab (front center), Hannah Sbaity (front left) and Victoria K. Thornton (front right) captured the championship title, while third-year students Alexa L. Dato (back center), Justin D. Edge (back right) and Cameron P. Keen (back left) were named finalists. Additionally, Kairab was named the best oralist of the final round.

After dominating at the regional round of the National Moot Court Competition by capturing first place and earning the Best Brief Award and best oralist of the final round honors, third-year students Tyler D. Fabbri, Mollie M. Fiero and Devin Mashman completed this prestigious tournament as national semifinalists. Fiero received the Best Oralist Award.

Hunton Andrews Kurth Moot Court National Championship Third-year students Jared R. Allen, Ian L. Kecskes and Sarah A. Nelson were national finalists in this invitationonly tournament. The top 16 moot court programs from law schools across the country are selected to compete based on performances from the previous academic year. Notably, UGA has been invited back to this tournament next year by ranking second in the nation for its moot court performances during the 2020–21 academic year.

Intrastate Moot Court Competition Second-year law students Cole M. Harper, Destiny J. Burch and Cameron N. Kemp brought home the top trophy, capturing this coveted bragging right for UGA for the third straight year and for seven of the last 10 contests.

Florida/Georgia-Hulsey/Gambrell Moot Court Competition National title: South Texas Mock Trial Challenge Third-year students Amelia Welch Ortiz (right), Charles W. Hoffman (left) and Ian L. Kecskes (second from right) and second-year student Haley K. Kairab brought home the top trophy in the Tenth Annual South Texas Mock Trial Challenge. Kairab also received the Best Advocate Award for the final round. Notably, UGA has won this national mock trial competition four times in the tournament’s history.

Third-year law students Jason N. Sigalos and Anre D. Washington defeated the University of Florida School of Law. This year’s win adds to UGA’s outstanding performances, bringing its overall competition record to 25-11-2.

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

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Jurists lead classes and discussions on timely topics Connecting students with sitting jurists in a

Constitutional Issues in the Military Justice

classroom atmosphere provides an incredible

System. This course was co-taught with Dean

learning experience for future lawyers.

Peter. B. “Bo” Rutledge.

This past year, School of Law students had the

Visiting Instructor Anna White Howard’s

opportunity to learn from U.S. Court of Appeals for

(J.D.’10) Writing for Judicial Clerkships class in

the Eleventh Circuit Senior Judge Gerald B. Tjoflat

February was U.S. Magistrate Judge Benjamin W.

who co-taught a mini-course on federal civil

Cheesbro (J.D.’10). He was joined in the classroom

practice. Notably, Tjoflat served as the school’s B.

by his judicial clerk Gretchen Edelman (J.D.’20),

Avant Edenfield Jurist in Residence, which is named

while his other clerk Brooke Carrington (J.D.’20)

in memory of the longtime U.S. District Court judge

participated in the discussions virtually.

for the Southern District of Georgia who was also a 1958 graduate of the law school.

Based at the law school’s facility in Atlanta, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces

Georgia Chief Judge Timothy C. Batten Sr. (J.D.’84)

Senior Judge Margaret A. “Meg” Ryan came to

led Master in the Study of Law students in the

campus in the spring to teach the mini-course

course titled Legal Systems of the United States.

Left: U.S. Court of Appeals Senior Judge Gerald Tjoflat (right) discussed federal civil procedure in a class co-taught with Brock Associate Professor in Professional Responsibility Nathan Chapman. Middle: U.S. Court of Appeals Senior Judge Meg Ryan led a class on constitutional issues in the military justice system. Right: U.S. Magistrate Judge Ben Cheesbro (J.D.’10) (middle) visited Instructor Anna White Howard’s (J.D.’10) class along with his judicial clerk Gretchen Edelman (J.D.’20) (left).

UGA President and alumnus honored by naming of college A $10 million fundraising campaign, led by the UGA Foundation and its emeriti trustees to strengthen UGA’s Honors Program, culminated in the naming of the Jere W. Morehead Honors College. Morehead (J.D.’80) has served as president of the University of Georgia since 2013.

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Law School Life

Women to lead law school journals next year The School of Law is proud to share that three women and rising thirdyear students will serve as editors-in-chief for the 2021–22 academic year – Courtney Marie Hogan (left), Georgia Law Review; Hannah Elias Sbaity (center), Journal of Intellectual Property Law; and Kimberlee Styple, Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law.

Students raise more than $12,000 for Legal Food Frenzy Members of the Student Bar Association spearheaded the donation of $12,901.51 to the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia – the most the School of Law has ever raised – as part of the annual Legal Food Frenzy Fundraiser. The funding represents the equivalent of 51,606 meals. Second-year Class President Sam West (left) and Second-year Class Vice President EllenAnn Curcio present checks to Food Bank of Northeast Georgia Executive Director Richard Boone.

Desegregation of law school discussed in virtual panel In February, the School of Law hosted “The Legacy of Desegregation in the Law School, 1963–2021.” Rick Deane (J.D.’77), of counsel with Jones Day; Greg Roseboro (J.D.’87), the law school’s assistant dean for admissions, diversity and inclusion & strategic initiatives; and Sherida Mabon (J.D.’12), senior legal counsel at Kapsch TrafficCom North America; joined Assistant Director of Admissions and Diversity Programs Jenna Jackson (J.D.’14) in a conversation about the realities of being Black in law school and beyond. Clockwise from top left: Mabon, Roseboro, Jackson and Deane.

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STUDENT PROFILES

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Africa Buggs WANTING TO HELP PEOPLE

LOOKING OUT FOR OTHERS

Rising second-year student Africa A. Buggs remembers first wanting to become a lawyer after she met an attorney when she was young. That desire was perpetuated in her middle and high school years by watching law-related TV shows and further confirmed as a UGA undergraduate studying political science. She said her decision to earn her law degree from the School of Law was simple. “UGA felt like home already, and I had my community here,” she said. “I really loved [the School of Public and International Affairs] and my professors. I also knew of the law school’s reputation, so it made it really easy to stay in Athens.” Starting law school in a pandemic would not have been Buggs’ first choice, since she had never taken any online classes. She said the experience has “definitely been an adjustment” and has required her to lean heavily on her time management skills. “I am a big fan of writing every single thing down,” she said. “I also keep a schedule for everything in law school. I write down that I am going to study for this many hours, and I take breaks between class work.” Her biggest role models are the women in her family – especially her mother and her Aunt Gina. “They have always been right by my side, helping me,” she said. “Life has not always been easy, and they are really strong and resilient women. They are people who do not give up and they have taught me not to give up.” Buggs, who is a Lanigan Leadership Annual Scholar, spent this past summer working for Morris, Manning & Martin. This coming year, she will have leadership roles with the Student Bar Association and the Business Law Society. She will also serve on the Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law and participate in the Capital Assistance Project. Although she is still contemplating her future career plans, she knows she wants to make an impact in her community. “I am not sure what that looks like yet, but my goal has always been to help people and being able to help my family.” Buggs also has a strong desire to be a mentor for others. She wants those who are younger than her to know that a lot of things are possible. “Even if you do not think that they are and

Sarah A. Nelson For 2021 graduate Sarah A. Nelson identifying her most memorable law school experience was easy. Last November, she argued before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on behalf of an Appellate Litigation Clinic client. With issues of asylum, “the stakes were high,” according to Nelson. “It was an immigration case where it really was life or death. … This is why you want to be a lawyer so you can help other people with problems,” she said. Nelson described it as “the ultimate advocacy moment,” and when she learned the clinic won its case she said it was “the icing on the cake.” Her dream of becoming a lawyer took shape as a teenager in St. Simons, Georgia, where she frequently babysat for School of Law graduates – R. Stan and Crystal Chastain Baker. “Being in their home, I got to see that they worked really hard and were really smart, but they were also awesome people, parents and friends. … They were community minded and were instilling those values in their kids, and I thought I would really love to do that one day too.” Another influence was 2003 alumna Hillary A. Stringfellow, who helped Nelson and her sister with some legal matters after her father died while she was an undergraduate at UGA. “She is another reason why I came to law school. I want to treat my clients the way she treated us.” With plans to join King & Spalding after graduation for one year and then serve in a judicial clerkship with U.S. District Court Judge William M. “Billy” Ray II (J.D.’90) (who she worked for during her third-year Civil Externship), Nelson said she feels like “the world is her oyster” even though she had to complete law school during a pandemic. She said the challenging period made her more selfdisciplined. She also thinks it evened the playing field and provided the opportunity for “community building in a different way” as everyone was dealing with new circumstances. Nelson said she has been impressed by the law school offering free counseling, asking students to reach out and sending messages saying students are not alone during stressful times. “It is important to be able to say ‘I feel stressed’ or ‘do you mind just listening or if I take a walk?’” she added. “My past has influenced how I want to look out for people in this profession and how I appreciate how the law school has done that too. That is the kind of impact I am looking to have [as a lawyer].”

even if you have every obstacle in the world that is against, you

While in law school, Nelson benefitted from Beerman, Sentell and

should try anyway,” she said. “It is so important to try.”

Georgia Civil Justice Foundation Trial Advocacy scholarships.

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Emina Sadic Herzberger LEARNING FROM EVERY EXPERIENCE

Michael O’Brien MAKING HIS MARK THROUGH PUBLIC SERVICE After five years serving in the U.S.

While pursuing her undergraduate degree

Army, 2021 graduate Michael O’Brien

at the University of Houston, rising third-

decided he wanted to continue helping

year student Emina Sadic Herzberger

others – but in a different way.

participated in a study abroad program

“I thought the legal field was the

in Geneva, where she was exposed to the

best way to continue doing public

United Nations, the European Union and

service for me,” he said, “and UGA

other international institutions.

was a great option. I applied all over

“That, coupled with my background,

the country, but my sister had gone

really got me interested in the law,” she

here for undergrad and my dad

said.

worked [at the university] back in the

Originally from Bosnia, Herzberger spent three years living in a refugee camp in Germany before emigrating to the United States and settling in Texas. After graduating from college, she seized the opportunity to move to France, where she earned a master’s degree in human rights. In the years that followed, Herzberger began seriously considering law school – including UGA. “I was looking at schools and I was actually attracted to UGA for two reasons,” she said. “It’s close to Atlanta, which has a really good job market and it’s an international city. Also, Professor [Diane Marie] Amann and the Dean Rusk International Law Center really drew me in because I wanted to maintain an international focus in my career.” She applied to the School of Law without ever setting foot on the UGA campus and, once in Athens, Herzberger was able to blend her love of international affairs with a burgeoning interest in the private sector, which she hopes she will be able to further explore after graduation. “I would like to work at a bigger firm to get the expertise and network with people since I am pivoting more to the private sector,” she said. “I think for the next five years I would like to really put my head down and get some experience with sophisticated concepts while working with a firm that has an international presence.” While at UGA, Herzberger has been active in several organizations, including the Georgia Law Review, moot court, the International Law Society and the Middle Eastern Law Students Association. She is also a Woodruff Scholar. However, when the coronavirus pandemic hit in the summer of 2020, she found herself at home – which she, in some ways, relished because “I was able to maximize my time,” she said. During lockdown, Herzberger completed her Corporate Externship virtually with Orange/ Atlas Services Belgium and helped co-author the Guide to Listing in

’80s. … It’s kind of always felt like coming home, back to Athens.” As a military veteran, O’Brien received Butler Commitment scholarship funds to attend the School of Law and, in his three years as a student, he participated in clinical offerings and work that furthered his passion for a legal career. “I appreciate the puzzle that the law presents, especially with public interest,” he said. O’Brien enrolled in the law school’s Veterans Legal Clinic and Criminal Defense Practicum, and had summer employment with New Hampshire Legal Assistance and a fall externship with the Federal Legal Defender in Atlanta. These experiences led him to accept a post-graduation position in Boston with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, about which he expressed excitement. “I really appreciate what the organization does,” O’Brien said. “I saw firsthand their effect on the community in New Hampshire – helping people get housing – and if I can make that a more efficient organization, that would be great.” Like his fellow members of the Class of 2021, half of O’Brien’s law school career has taken place during the coronavirus pandemic – something he acknowledges was difficult, especially the shift to virtual learning. “The school did the best that it could for the situation and you can’t really ask for more than that,” he said. “There was no plan for this.” He also noted that he had been lucky to receive a job offer during these uncertain times, when many organizations – both private and public – have been unsure about their futures. Despite the unexpected challenges, O’Brien said his law school experience has overall been a positive one. “I’ve really appreciated the experience here at Georgia,” he said. “I

Belgium, which is a book that focuses on specific issues and continuing

was under the impression there was a culture of people undercutting

obligations that a Belgian public company may encounter.

each other in law schools. It sounds like maybe that happens in other

“I think coming from my background where my childhood was

law schools. I have experienced none of that. Everyone’s been so nice

really difficult, I’m really flexible,” she said. “When you’re in a pretty

and so friendly – from the faculty to the students – everyone’s helpful

bad situation, just make the best of it. You’ll learn something from it.”

and everyone has the same goal of ‘let’s do well, let’s succeed.’”

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Yale professor and California justice deliver Sibley lectures Dr. Monica Bell, who serves as an associate

Liu’s March 2021 lecture was titled

professor of law and sociology at Yale

“Who’s Going to Law School? Trends in

University, and California Supreme Court

Law School Enrollment Since the Great

Justice Goodwin Liu presented the 118th and

Recession.”

119th Sibley Lectures virtually during the

Lui joined California’s highest court in

2020–21 academic year.

2011. Previously, he was an associate dean

In October, Bell presented “The Case

and professor at the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law

for Racism Response Funds: A Collective

specializing in constitutional law, education law and policy, and diversity

Response to Racist Acts,” which was based

in the legal profession. He continues to teach constitutional law as a

on an op-ed she published during the

visiting professor at both Harvard and Stanford universities.

summer of 2020.

He obtained his bachelor’s degree from Stanford and attended Oxford

Bell specializes in criminal justice,

University on a Rhodes Scholarship earning his master’s degree. Liu

welfare law, housing, race and the law, qualitative research methods, and

graduated from Yale Law School in 1998, becoming the first in his family

law and sociology. Her recent work has been published in the Yale Law

to earn a law degree.

Journal, the Law & Society Review, the Social Service Review and the Annual

A former judicial clerk for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader

Review of Law & Social Science. Before joining the Yale Law School faculty,

Ginsburg and U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit Judge David S.

she was a Climenko Fellow and Lecturer on Law at Harvard Law School.

Tatel, he also worked as special assistant to the deputy secretary of the

She previously served as a Liman Fellow at the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia and as a judicial clerk for Judge Cameron McGowan Currie of the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. A first-generation college graduate, Bell earned her bachelor’s degree from Furman University, her master’s from University College Dublin, her Juris Doctor from Yale Law School and her Ph.D. from Harvard University.

U.S. Department of Education and practiced law in the Washington, D.C., office of O’Melveny & Myers. The Sibley Lecture Series, established in 1964 by the Charles Loridans Foundation of Atlanta in tribute to the late John A. Sibley, is designed to attract outstanding legal scholars of national prominence to the School of Law. Sibley was a 1911 graduate of the law school.

Georgia Supreme Court justices present Edith House Lecture Georgia Supreme Court Justices Carla Wong McMillian (J.D.’98) and Sarah Hawkins Warren served as the School of Law’s 2021 Edith House Lecturers. Presented in a virtual format, the webinar – set up as a “fireside chat” – gave the two justices an opportunity to discuss their backgrounds, experiences as women in the legal profession and their pathways to Georgia’s highest court. McMillian was appointed to the Georgia Supreme Court in 2020. She is the first Asian Pacific American to serve on a state’s highest court in the southern United States. She is also the first Asian American to be elected to statewide office in Georgia. Prior to 16

joining the court, McMillian was a jurist on the state’s Court of Appeals. Before joining the bench she was a partner at Sutherland Asbill & Brennan and clerked for Judge William C. O’Kelley of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Warren was appointed to the court in 2018. She previously served as solicitor general for the state of Georgia. Following her graduation from the Duke University School of Law, she served as a law clerk for then-Chief Judge J.L. Edmondson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and for Judge Richard J. Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Carla Wong McMillian (J.D.’98)

Sarah Hawkins Warren

She also practiced as a litigation partner in Washington, D.C. The Edith House Lecture is sponsored by the Women Law Students Association in honor of one of the first female graduates of the School of Law. House, a native of Winder, Georgia, was co-valedictorian of the law class of 1925, the first to graduate women.

Yale scholar delivers inaugural Judge Horace J. Johnson, Jr. Lecture Rusk Center anchors law school’s top 20 international law ranking For the seventh time in recent years, U.S. News & World Report has counted the School of Law’s international law program among the top 20 or so in the country. (Earlier this spring, the school was ranked 18th.) This achievement is due in no small part to the support and hard work of everyone affiliated with the approximately 45-year-old Dean Rusk International Law Center, including its leadership team of Interim Director Lori A. Ringhand (who also has a Hosch Professorship and a Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorship) and Faculty Co-directors Diane Marie Amann (the holder of the Woodruff Chair in International Law and a Regents’ Professorship) and Harlan G. Cohen (the Wilner/UGA Foundation Professor in International Law). The work of the Dean Rusk Center also depends on talented students pursuing J.D., M.S.L. and LL.M. degrees. Student editors of the Georgia Journal of International and Comparative Law led the 2021 conference titled “The Future of Global Healthcare Governance.” The advocates on the school’s Vis International Commercial Arbitration Moot and Jessup International Law Moot Court teams posted strong performances. Appellate Litigation Clinic students argued asylum cases before the U.S. Courts of Appeals. Additionally, students participated in the center’s full-semester NATO Externship and Global Externships, while the student-led International Law Society helped with creating community. As the pandemic stopped most international travel, the center transitioned to virtual formats, hosting academics, practitioners and policymakers from all over the world for forums like “The Law and Logics of Attribution: Constructing the Identity and Responsibility of States and Firms” Conference (organized by Post Professor Melissa J. “MJ” Durkee), workshops and lectures as well as the International Law Colloquium and Consular Series. The law school’s graduates – who excel as partners in international commercial law firms, as heads of nongovernmental organizations and international organizations, as in-house counsel at leading multinational enterprises and as diplomats and public servants – have tremendously given back through mentoring and other support. The Dean Rusk International Law Center looks forward to strengthening its initiatives in international, comparative, transnational and foreign relations law and preparing School of Law students to practice in a 21st century globalized legal profession under the direction of its new leader MJ Durkee, who will serve as associate dean for international programs.

With support from the UGA’s Presidential Task Force on Race, Ethnicity and Community, the School of Law and the School of Public and International Affairs established the Judge Horace J. Johnson, Jr. Lecture on Race, Law and Policy in memory of the late jurist, who was a trailblazer for the Black community in Georgia. The inaugural lecture was held virtually in April, with Stephen L. Carter, the Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale Law School, speaking. Carter is the author of 15 books, a New York Times bestselling writer and a longtime columnist. UGA’s Presidential Task Force on Race, Ethnicity and Community was created to develop initiatives and actions to foster a more welcoming and supportive learning environment on campus. This lecture was one of the first initiatives approved for funding by UGA President Jere W. Morehead (J.D.’80), who has committed $1 million to fund recommendations from the task force.

Stephen Carter, the Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale Law School, presented the inaugural Judge Horace J. Johnson, Jr. Lecture on Race, Law and Policy. Johnson (J.D.’82) is pictured in the table of contents.

Johnson was a pioneer throughout his life. He was one of five students who helped desegregate Newton County, Georgia, schools in the 1960s. He graduated from the UGA School of Law in 1982. After briefly working in Atlanta, Johnson became the first Black attorney to practice in his home county. In 2002, he became the first Black Superior Court judge to serve in the Alcovy Judicial Circuit when then-Gov. Roy Barnes (J.D.’72) appointed him to the post. He remained in this role until his death in July 2020. Johnson modeled the School of Law’s mission of service to state and society, according to Dean Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge. “Throughout his career, Judge Johnson was known for his fairness, compassion and respect for the law. He also was involved in his community and deeply loved his family. This lecture is an opportunity for the university to honor a great individual and jurist while offering the community a chance to learn from pathbreaking Black leaders and legal thought leaders,” Rutledge said. Of note: When the lecture fund meets its endowment threshold, it has the capacity to support scholarships, fellowships and/or Distinguished Law Fellowships in honor of the late jurist. ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

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FACULTY PROMOTIONS Barnett assumes associate deanship On July 1, Kent Barnett became the law school’s associate dean for academic affairs, a post previously held by Marshall Chair of Constitutional Law Randy Beck from 2018 to 2021.

Melissa J. “MJ” Durkee has become the law school’s associate dean for international programs. She also holds a Post Professorship and serves as the director of the Dean Rusk International Law Center, which Hosch Professor & Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor Lori A. Ringhand has led on an interim basis since January 2020.

Barnett’s work has been selected for presentation at the YaleStanford-Harvard Junior Faculty Forum and the Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Conference as one of the winners of a call for papers from law faculty.

Durkee’s research and teaching focus on international law and corporate governance, including international economic and environmental law, global governance, democratic participation, public-private partnerships and legal theory. Her scholarship has been published in prestigious journals such as the Yale Law Journal, the Stanford Law Review, the Virginia Law Review, the UCLA Law Review, the Washington University Law Review and the American Journal of International Law.

He currently serves as an appointed public member of the Administrative Conference of the United States, an independent federal agency that provides research and recommendations to agencies and Congress to improve the federal bureaucracy. Previously, he was the reporter for the Model Adjudication Rules by ACUS for use in all federal agency evidentiary hearings, and he served as chair of the Administrative Law Section of the Association of American Law Schools.

She is on the Board of Editors of the American Journal of International Law and serves as supervising editor of AJIL Unbound. She is a member of the American Society of International Law’s Executive Council and serves as vice-chair of its International Legal Theory interest group. Additionally, she has delivered invited lectures and spoken to academic and professional audiences throughout the United States and internationally.

Barnett joined the law school faculty in 2012 and received the school’s 2021 Ellington Award for Excellence in Teaching. Before entering the legal academy, he practiced at Weil, Gotshal & Manges and clerked for Judge John Rogers of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

Durkee, who joined the School of Law faculty in 2018, is a graduate of Yale Law School. Prior to her academic career she clerked on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and in the Second District of New York as well as practiced international litigation and arbitration at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton in New York. She also holds a courtesy appointment in UGA’s Terry College of Business.

Recently promoted to full professor, Barnett also holds a Hosch Professorship, and his scholarship focuses on administrative law. His recent publications include: Administrative Law, 5th ed.; “How Chevron Deference Fits Into Article III” forthcoming in the George Washington Law Review; and “Regulating Impartiality in Agency Adjudication” in the Duke Law Journal.

Durkee accepts associate deanship/directorship

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Miller appointed to Rogers Chair Specializing in intellectual property law and competition law, Joseph S. Miller has been named the new holder of the Rogers Chair of Intellectual Property and Unfair Competition Law.

Striepe serves as law library director Thomas “T.J.” Striepe took over the helm of the Alexander Campbell King Law Library at the beginning of 2021 after the retirement Carol A. Watson (J.D.’87). Striepe joined the library’s faculty 10 years ago, initially serving as the faculty services librarian and then as the associate director for research services. Over the years, he has taught 1L Legal Research, Advanced Legal Research, Business Law Research, Legal Research and Writing for LL.M.s, and Legal Aspects of Entrepreneurship. He co-wrote chapters for two books – “Special Considerations in Transfers to Minor Beneficiaries Born as a Result of Reproductive Technologies” in Tax, Estate, and Lifetime Planning for Minors, 2d ed., and “Embedded Librarianship” in Law Librarianship in the Digital Age, which was awarded the American Association of Law Libraries Andrews Legal Literature Award. He is currently co-authoring a book titled Georgia Legal Research and the chapter “Faculty Services” in Introduction to Law Librarianship, which will both be published later this year. Striepe is a regular presenter at conferences, speaking on topics such as digitizing special collections, maximizing scholarly impact, open access legal scholarship, managing projects and legal research instruction. He is an active member of the American Association of Law Libraries and the Southeastern Chapter of AALL.

Miller’s scholarship focuses on intellectual property law and the larger legal frameworks that structure competition in a market economy. His work has appeared in the Catholic University Law Review, the Illinois Law Review, the University of Pittsburgh Law Review, the Stanford Technology Law Review, the Administrative Law Review and the Cardozo Law Review. He is also the co-author of the casebook Intellectual Property Law: Cases & Materials, 7th ed. (2021). His current research examines judicial citation practices using mathematical tools of network analysis – which is part of a broader methodological practice known as computational analysis of law – and relates to his recently published article “Two Centuries of Trademark and Copyright Law: A Citation-Network-Analysis Approach” in the Chicago-Kent Journal of Intellectual Property. Miller joined the School of Law faculty in 2011.

Sawyer becomes Hosch Professor/director Logan E. Sawyer III – who teaches American Legal History, The Law and Ethics of Lawyering, Corporations and Constitutional Law – has been promoted to the rank of full professor and was awarded a Hosch Professorship. Also, during the 2020–21 academic year, he was named the director of the law school’s undergraduate studies program, overseeing the launch of a minor in law for UGA undergraduates this fall. Sawyer’s academic interests focus on the relationship between law and political institutions in American history. He is currently working on a history of originalism and party politics from the 1950s to the 1990s. Some of Sawyer’s recent scholarship includes: “Originalism from the Soft Southern Strategy to the New Right: Constitutional Politics of Sam Ervin Jr.” in the Journal of Policy History and “Method and Dialogue in History and Originalism” in the Law and History Review. He is also active in the American Society for Legal History. Sawyer came to UGA in 2010 and was invited to join UGA’s prestigious Teaching Academy in 2021. Previously, he served as a UGA Center for Teaching and Learning Senior Teaching Fellow in 2020–21 and was selected for the inaugural class of UGA’s Teaching Academy Fellows in 2011. Before coming to Athens, Sawyer served as a visiting professor at Harvard Law School and a Law Research Fellow at the Georgetown University Law Center as well as taught courses at the University of Virginia.

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Librarians earn new titles

THE LAW

Steven M. Wolfson has been named the Alexander Campbell King Law Library’s associate director for research and copyright services, while Rachel S. Evans and Geraldine Kalim have been promoted to Librarian II. As associate director, Wolfson will be the primary liaison between the law library and the law school’s faculty. He will also supervise the library’s Research Assistant Program and teach legal research and the courses Legal Aspects of Entrepreneurship and Pirates, Spies & Speech: Exploring the Intersection of Law & Technology in the Information Age. A copyright specialist, Wolfson will continue to handle issues relating to copyright, scholarly communication and research-related information policy matters. Wolfson, who joined the library’s team in 2018, recently co-authored “Undergraduate Law Courses: A New Opportunity for Law Librarians” in the AALL Spectrum and “A Practical Workflow for OCR Telework” in Computers in Libraries. He also presented on digitizing special collections at the Society of Georgia Archivists Annual Meeting and on the Second Circuit’s recent decision in Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts v. Goldsmith at the University Information Policy Officers Annual Meeting. Evans, who serves as the metadata services and special collections librarian, ensures the discoverability of library resources and maintains the library’s information platforms, including the online catalog. She also oversees the management of the archives and other special collections, such as the school’s institutional repository. She is a frequent presenter at library, technology and web-related conferences and is chair of the Georgia Library Association’s Technical Services Interest Group. She also serves on the Education and Publications Committee of the Southeastern Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries as handbook editor. Active in the AALL, Evans is a member of the Legal Innovation and Technology, Technical Services, and Library Systems and Resource Discovery special interest sections. She is also a member of AALL’s First Generation Caucus and Law Repositories Caucus. Evans has published in nationally recognized professional magazines and journals, including Computers in Libraries, Library Journal, The Journal of New Librarianship, AALL Spectrum and The Georgia Library Quarterly. Kalim joined the library in 2019 as the student services librarian. She is responsible for the development and implementation of library activities and programs for law students that are designed to enhance learning. She also serves as the primary liaison between the law library and the student body, teaches Legal Research and Advanced Legal Research, provides reference services and coordinates information instruction opportunities such as class presentations, library tours and continuing legal education seminars. Kalim is a member of the Atlanta Law Libraries Association, the Southeastern Chapter of the American Association of Law Libraries and serves on the Government Relations Committee for the AALL. She has presented on technology and resources to audiences such as the Atlanta Law Libraries Association, the Georgia Association for Women in Higher Education and SEAALL as well as at the Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction’s Conference for Law School Computing. 20

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Zohra Ahmed joined the law school’s faculty this fall as an assistant professor teaching Criminal Procedure, Criminal Law and a seminar titled Crime and Punishment. She comes to UGA from Cornell Law School, where she has been a clinical teaching fellow in its Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide since 2018. She co-taught and co-supervised law students in the school’s International Human Rights Clinic, where she and her students represented individuals on death row in Tanzania and the United States and collaborated with groups in both countries challenging life and death sentences. Ahmed also developed a seminar titled Struggles for Liberation and Equality: Human Rights in the 21st Century. In 2020, she received Cornell’s Anne Lukingbeal Award for Service to Women Students. Her scholarship includes “The Right to Counsel in a Neoliberal Age” in the UCLA Law Review (forthcoming) and “The Sanctuary of Prosecutorial Nullification” in the Albany Law Review. Before joining the legal academy, Ahmed worked for the Legal Aid Society in New York City as part of their criminal defense practice group for four years. She earned her B.A. cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania, her M.Phil. from the University of Cambridge and her J.D. cum laude from Fordham University.

SCHOOL WELCOMES FOUR Adam D. Orford became a member of the law school’s faculty this fall and will lead classes as an assistant professor in environmental law, climate law, and renewable energy law and policy. Having recently completed his Ph.D. at the University of California, Berkeley, Orford’s research interests include environmental law and policy, climate change law and policy, renewable energy law and policy, and U.S. political history. While at Berkeley, he conducted research for the California Public Utilities Commission and the California Energy Commission. His recent scholarship has appeared or is forthcoming in the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences, the Hastings Environmental Law Journal and the Georgetown Environmental Law Review. After law school, Orford practiced in New York City and Portland, Oregon, specializing in environmental litigation. Orford holds a B.A. from Arizona State University, a J.D. from Columbia University, and a M.P.P. and Ph.D. from Berkeley. While in law school, he served as editor-in-chief of the Columbia Journal of Environmental Law.

Clinical Assistant Professor Elizabeth C. Taxel (J.D.’09) began working at the law school in August 2020 with the Criminal Defense Practicum. She became its director in July 2021, upon the retirement of Russell C. Gabriel (J.D.’85). Previously, Taxel was a staff attorney with the Law Office of the DeKalb County Public Defender. She served as both a trial attorney and supervisor, defending clients charged with offenses ranging from misdemeanors to complex felonies. In 2015, Taxel was selected as a faculty member for the Georgia Public Defender Council’s Transition into Law Practice Program, where she trained new public defenders across the state. Taxel has also served as a facilitator for the National Association for Public Defense Team Mitigation Practice Institute. Taxel is a member of Gideon’s Promise, a national public defender organization, and the Georgia Association for Criminal Defense Lawyers, where she serves on the Indigent Defense Committee. A native of Athens, Taxel earned her bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from McGill University and her J.D. from UGA. While in law school, she received the Ellen Jordan Award for outstanding work in public interest law and was active in the school’s criminal defense, public interest and family justice clinics.

Savanna Nolan (J.D.’13) joined the Alexander Campbell King Law Library as its instruction and faculty services librarian in July 2020. In this position, she promotes and coordinates research service for the faculty and also teaches legal research courses. Nolan began her professional career in libraries in the Washington, D.C., area working at the Library of Congress, Catholic University’s DuFour Law Library, the University of Baltimore Law Library and the E.B. Williams Law Library at Georgetown University. She is an active member of the American Association of Law Libraries and the Southeastern Chapter of the AALL. She also serves as the member at large for the Professional Engagement, Growth, and Advancement Special Interest Section of AALL. She recently published “On the Ground: Real-World Solutions/Writing Winning Personal Statements for Scholarship Applications” in the AALL Spectrum and “Inside Baseball: Justice Blackmun and the Summer of ’72” in The Green Bag Almanac. Nolan earned her B.A. from the University of Southern California, her J.D. from UGA and her M.S.L.I.S. from the Catholic University of America.

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FACULTY HONORS Amann named Regents’ Professor and elected to Council on Foreign Relations Woodruff Chair in International Law Diane Marie Amann received one of the University System of Georgia’s highest faculty honors earlier this year – a Regents’ Professorship. This designation is bestowed by the Board of Regents and is reserved for faculty whose scholarship or creative activity is recognized both nationally and internationally as innovative and pace-setting. In recognition of her receipt of this honor, she was invited to deliver the university’s 2021 Charter Lecture. Amann’s scholarship addresses issues related to international criminal justice, human and child rights, constitutional law and security governance. Her expertise was further recognized through her election this year to the Council on Foreign Relations, a nonpartisan organization composed of some of the world’s most prominent foreign policy leaders. Her current research will produce the first-ever book, which is under contract with the Oxford University Press, on the roles of women lawyers and other professionals at the 1945–46 war crimes trial before the International Military Tribunal at Nuremberg. Additionally, she has over 80 print publications in English, French and Italian. Since joining the law faculty in 2011, Amann has enhanced the School of Law’s global reputation through her prior service as associate dean for international programs and strategic initiatives and her current service as faculty co-director of the Dean Rusk International Law Center, and by advancing diversity, equality and inclusion throughout the law school. Amann holds a courtesy professorship in UGA’s School of Public and International Affairs and, from 2012 to 2021, she served as the International Criminal Court prosecutor’s special adviser on children in and affected by armed conflict.

Ringhand awarded Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorship Hosch Professor Lori A. Ringhand was recently awarded the University of Georgia’s highest honor for excellence in teaching – a Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professorship. Ringhand, who recently served as the interim director of the Dean Rusk International Law Center for 18 months, leads courses in constitutional law, election law, and state and local government law. She is a multiple recipient of the law school’s highest teaching recognition – the Ellington Award for Excellence in Teaching – and she has also received the O’Byrne Memorial Award for Significant Contributions Furthering Student-Faculty Relations. Her impact on her students is evidenced by this quote from a former student included in her Meigs nomination dossier: “Professor Ringhand provides students with an incredible model to aspire to, especially for female-identifying students. Women entering the legal profession are often sent conflicting messages about who they should be. … Professor Ringhand is the role model that I and many students need to validate our hopes about our own future identities … .” Specializing in constitutional law, election law and the U.S. Supreme Court, Ringhand is the co-author of The Supreme Court Confirmation Process and Constitutional Change and Constitutional Law: A Context and Practices Casebook. She received a Fulbright Distinguished Chair Award that allowed her to explore the different approaches to campaign finance regulation taken by the United States and the United Kingdom at the University of Aberdeen. More recently, she was awarded a grant from the Stanton Foundation to develop and teach an undergraduate course titled Democracy and the Constitution. Ringhand joined the law school faculty in 2008 and served as its associate dean for academic affairs from 2015 to 2018.

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Burch expands influence in multidistrict litigation Peters honored with Russell Award Jonathan Peters, who holds a courtesy faculty appointment at the School of Law teaching media law, has received a 2021 Richard B. Russell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, which recognizes outstanding instruction by faculty members early in their academic careers. An associate professor of journalism in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, Peters is an internationally recognized expert in mass communication law who encourages, guides and challenges his students to think critically and creatively about legal problems and their solutions. In support of his nomination a colleague wrote: “Dr. Peters earns students’ attention and trust through a combination of approachability, dedication and mutual respect. While his deep knowledge of the issues is always evident, he is a relaxed teacher who frequently finds ways to connect with students through casual exchanges such as good-natured sports rivalries or self-deprecating humor.” Peters is a co-author of The Law of Public Communication, a widely adopted textbook, and he has published articles in the Berkeley Technology Law Journal, the Harvard Law and Policy Review and the Federal Communications Law Journal. The Grady College recognized Peters as its 2019 Journalism Teacher of the Year. Outside the university, he recently served as the elected teaching chair of the Law and Policy Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.

Portions of the Amann, Ringhand and Peters articles were sourced from UGA Marketing and Communications announcements.

Elizabeth Chamblee Burch, the holder of the Callaway Chair of Law, continues to be one of the most influential voices in the field of class actions and mass torts. Adding to the more than 80 presentations she has already delivered to academic and professional audiences, this past year she presented at the Academy of Court Appointed Masters’ Annual Meeting, the National Lawyers Convention, the New York University Center on Civil Justice and the 6th Annual Civil Procedure Workshop hosted by the Northwestern Pritzker School of Law. She also published “Judicial Adjuncts in Multidistrict Litigation” in the Columbia Law Review and the third edition of her casebook The Law of Class Actions and Other Aggregate Litigation (with the late Richard Nagareda and others). Burch frequently provides expert media commentary for national and international media outlets. In the last year, she was featured in Reuters and Bloomberg articles as well as quoted in The Washington Post, U.S. News & World Report, The Economist, Law360, the Insurance Journal and Legal Newsline, among others. Additionally, her book Mass Tort Deals: Backroom Bargaining in Multidistrict Litigation was reviewed by The New York Review of Books.

Dennis’ book gains national recognitions Andrea L. Dennis’ book Rap on Trial: Race, Lyrics, and Guilt in America was recently named a finalist in the nonfiction category in the Library of Virginia’s 23rd Annual Literary Awards and earned a First Amendment Award in the book publishing category from the Hefner Foundation. In the 2019 book published by The New Press, Dennis and her co-author, University of Richmond Professor Erik Nielson, examine the use of “rap lyrics as criminal evidence to convict and incarcerate young men of color” based on hundreds of court cases from across the country. They also highlight the problems raised by this practice and propose solutions to achieve meaningful change. Dennis currently serves as the law school’s associate dean for faculty development and holds its Martin Chair of Law. Leading courses in criminal law, evidence and family law, her scholarship explores criminal defense lawyering, race and criminal justice, and the cradle-to-prison pipeline. Dennis was selected as the recipient of the O’Byrne Memorial Award for Significant Contributions Furthering Student-Faculty Relations and as a graduation faculty marshal by the school’s 2021 graduates.

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Simon’s article receives AALS honor Assistant Professor Lindsey Simon’s article “Bankruptcy Grifters” was selected by the Association of American Law Schools as an honorable mention in its 2021 Scholarly Papers Competition. The article, which will be published in a forthcoming issue of the Yale Law Journal, was one of more than 60 submitted for consideration. In “Bankruptcy Grifters,” Simon calls attention to the growing prevalence of unintended beneficiaries in mass tort related bankruptcies. By examining “the progression of nondebtor relief from asbestos and product liability bankruptcies to cases arising out of the opioid epidemic and sex abuse scandals,” her article explains how courts have allowed “piecemeal expansion to fundamentally change the scope of bankruptcy protections.” She concludes her article by proposing “specific procedural and substantive safeguards that would deter bankruptcy grifter opportunism and increase transparency, thereby protecting victims as well as the bankruptcy process.” Simon joined the law school’s faculty in 2018 teaching in the areas of bankruptcy and secured transactions. She has been quoted in nationally prominent media outlets such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal and on National Public Radio.

Community HeLP and First Amendment clinics earn national award The law school’s Community Health Law Partnership Clinic and First Amendment Clinic – together with four other clinics from Harvard, Columbia, Texas A&M and Boston universities – were recognized for their work representing women who allegedly endured abusive gynecological treatments and medical neglect while in the custody of U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement as well as retaliation for speaking out about that and other abuse. The Clinical Legal Education Association established the Award for Excellence in a Public Interest Case or Project to “honor and recognize a case or project that truly contributes to the public good.” The combined group’s advocacy includes a federal class action on behalf of 14 women and others similarly situated, immigration proceedings, administrative complaints and legislative advocacy. The clinics won stays of deportation for most of the plaintiffs, and the project’s efforts resulted in the release of nearly all 80 women in the Irwin County Detention Center in Georgia as well as over 200 men. Associate Dean for Clinical Programs and Experiential Learning Jason A. Cade and staff attorney Kristen Shepherd supervised the Community HeLP Clinic team, while Clinical Assistant Professor Clare R. Norins and law fellow Samantha Hamilton supervised the First Amendment Clinic team. The First Amendment Clinic is supported by the Stanton Foundation.

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Davenport remembered with scholarship/fellowship and UGA alumni award Chester C. Davenport, the law school’s first African-American graduate who passed away in August 2020, was memorialized with the establishment of a scholarship/fellowship fund and was posthumously awarded the UGA Alumni Association’s oldest and highest honor. The Chester C. Davenport Memorial Endowment Fund was created to further his legacy with scholarships and fellowships that give priority to students who have graduated from Georgia-based Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Recipients also will be selected for reflecting Davenport’s reputation for academic excellence, courage, determination and trailblazing spirit. The Alumni Merit Award is reserved for individuals who bring recognition and honor back to UGA through outstanding leadership and service to the university, the community and his profession. An Athens native and Morehouse College graduate, Davenport was a monumental figure in the School of Law’s history. He was the law school’s first Black student and remained its only Black student during his law school career. He earned his law degree in 1966, finishing in the top 5% of his class. As a student, he also served as a founding member of the editorial board for the Georgia Law Review. After law school, Davenport became an attorney in the tax division of the U.S. Department of Justice and subsequently served as a legislative assistant for California Sen. Alan Cranston. Following a position on President Jimmy Carter’s transition team and an appointment as assistant secretary at the U.S. Department of Transportation, Davenport co-founded a law practice based in Washington, D.C. He later started Georgetown Partners, a private equity firm. Davenport’s service to UGA includes positions on the law school’s Board of Visitors and the UGA Arch Foundation. He delivered the law school’s 97th Sibley Lecture and participated in the school’s 50th anniversary commemoration of the landmark Brown v. Topeka Board of Education case. In 2006, he made a transformational gift to the law school to support student scholarships. The UGA chapter of the Black Law Students Association bears his name and, in 2016, he received the law school alumni association’s highest honor, the Distinguished Service Scroll Award.

IN MEMORIAM Carter Chair Emeritus R. Perry Sentell Jr. (LL.B.’58) On Jan. 28, 2021, Carter Chair Emeritus R. Perry Sentell Jr. passed away at the age of 86. A 1958 law school alumnus, he retired in 2004 after 46 years of teaching and service at UGA. Sentell was a titan in the legal academy and a demanding instructor who set high expectations, but with a warm heart, for his students. Many of his students have added to his legacy by holding leadership roles in the bar, the bench and government. The author of nearly 30 books, Sentell taught Torts, Municipal Corporations and Law of Legislative Government. When he retired, he said the hardest aspect of his job was attracting a student’s interest in the subject matter and holding that interest day after day for 14 weeks per semester. Two of his renowned torts tactics were the naming of the Oliver Wendell Holmes Scholar and the Palsgraf Person, both of which are titles of great pride for his former students. Among his law school honors are a bust in the Alexander Campbell King Law Library, the law school’s Distinguished Service Scroll Award and an endowed scholarship fund named in his honor. He is survived by his son, Robert Perry Sentell III; six grandchildren and four great-grandchildren. Sadly, his wife, Jeannette, passed away eight days prior to his death.

Dean Edward D. “Ned” Spurgeon Former Dean Edward D. “Ned” Spurgeon passed away on January 2, 2021, at the age of 81, after battling cancer for several years. He served as dean of the School of Law from 1993 to 1998 and was a member of the faculty for another five years specializing in law, public policy and aging; taxation of gifts, estates and trusts; and estate planning. When he retired from UGA, he said the high points of his deanship were: the creation of the civil clinical program, the increase in student body diversity, the expansion of the faculty, the construction and dedication of Dean Rusk Hall, the participation in new international advocacy and educational programs as well as the winning of several national advocacy championships. After leaving UGA, his connection to the law school remained constant through his support of the Spurgeon Fellowship, which continues to provide funding for law students working in summer public interest positions. He is survived by his wife, Carol; his sons, Michael and Stephen; and four grandchildren.

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Three longtime faculty retire Russell C. Gabriel’s name has been

For more than 30 years, Rogers Chair Emerita Camilla E. Watson

associated with the law school’s Criminal

called the School of Law home, where her course load included:

Defense Practicum for three decades. In

Federal Income Tax, Timing Aspects of Federal Income Tax, Civil

1988, he joined the school’s Legal Aid and

Tax Practice and Procedure, Tax Crimes and Criminal Law. She also

Defender Clinic (as it was referred to then) as

held a courtesy appointment in UGA’s Terry College of Business.

a staff attorney, and in 1996 he was named

Watson is widely published in the area of federal taxation, and

the director (after a three-year stint with the

she is the co-author of one of the leading casebooks Federal Tax

Federal Defender Program in Atlanta).

Practice and Procedure as well as the author of the nutshell Federal

The 1985

Income Tax Procedure and Tax Fraud.

School of Law

Although her official retirement was January 1, she was busy

alumnus said

completing various academic projects during the spring semester.

some of the

She said she found it “strange” to no longer be an active part of

highlights during

the law school community, and that she missed “looking at those

his time with the

eager young faces, representing different backgrounds and experiences that can contribute in such

clinic, which for a

unexpected ways to the class discussion.”

time served as the

She said her greatest memory was the day when former students Morgan L. Klinzing (J.D.’14) and

public defender

Benjamin “Ben” Newell (J.D.’15) won first place in the national ABA Tax Challenge in Phoenix, Arizona.

office for the

Watson was their faculty coach. “I was so proud of their wonderful performance” and “the way they

Western Judicial

befriended a team from Florida who had no faculty coach. … All in all, it was an experience that not only

Circuit, included:

I but also the University of Georgia School of Law could be proud.”

nearly tripling

Watson added that it is tremendously rewarding when she hears from former students who are

the size of the

“making their mark in the world.” She said these communications have made all the lengthy faculty

attorney staff,

meetings and arduous exam grading “worthwhile.”

hiring the office’s first investigator, going

In retirement, she will maintain her primary residence in Athens, although she plans to spend

to court with law students as they cross-

more time at her family farm in South Carolina. She also anticipates doing some volunteer work and

examined their first police officer and trying

traveling.

cases himself, including capital cases. Most of all, he said he enjoyed meeting clients and working in “an office of dedicated,

Director of the Law Library Carol A. Watson (J.D.’87) retired on

enthusiastic and fierce advocates.”

January 1.

While he taught Criminal Procedure

She had been a member of the Alexander Campbell King Law

and Capital Punishment, he counts the

Library team since 1987 and led the nationally ranked library for

Race and the Law course as among his

more than one decade.

most memorable “podium” classes, saying

Watson said her biggest challenge, which also resulted in her

he learned more than his students. “Their

biggest accomplishment, was “successfully navigating the COVID

insights – whether tentative or confident

crisis,” adding that she cannot take credit for it alone. “Every

in voice, personal and concrete or abstract

member of the library’s team pulled together to overcome the

and philosophical, spontaneous or reflective

challenges.”

– are always real, profound, eye-opening

She counts the law school’s people among its greatest assets.

and cast from a multitude of perspectives.

“When I think of the School of Law, I think of the people I have

The students bring authenticity into the

known over the years ... classmates, students, colleagues,” and that

classroom – a precious element that can be missing from other sources.”

the law school community includes the most diverse and talented individuals. “I am grateful to have had the opportunity to make lifelong friends.”

Among Gabriel’s accolades are the 2018

Earlier this year, the law school named its outstanding legal research/writing professor award in

Indigent Defense Award from the Georgia

her honor. In 2020, she was presented with the American Association of Law Libraries’ Hall of Fame

Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers

Award for making “significant, substantial and long-standing contributions to the profession of

and the 2021 Eleanor C. Lanier Award for

legal information management.” Her work in the area of institutional repositories also earned her an

Excellence in Clinical Education.

AALL Academic Libraries SIS Outstanding Article Award and her recognition as a bepress Institutional

Regarding his retirement on July 1,

Repository All-Star.

Gabriel said he had “lots of ideas and very

Watson said she would like to be remembered as a “caring, thoughtful individual” by her colleagues.

few plans,” though practicing law, rebuilding

In retirement, she finds it “exhilarating” to have the freedom to choose how she spends her time,

his pottery studio and “hanging out” with his

which will include travelling extensively with her husband. She will also make time for reading and

family in Athens; Minneapolis, Minnesota;

gardening with the company of her recently adopted poodles – Bonnie and Clyde – and her two cats –

and Wooster, Ohio, are on the list.

Bootsie and Tootsie.

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Law School Life

Portrait of the late Chief Justice Hines added to courtroom In April, the School of Law held a virtual portrait unveiling for the late Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice P. Harris Hines. While he did not attend UGA, the justice often joked he was a “Bulldog by proxy.” Hines was a constant supporter of the law school’s students and faculty, regularly attended School of Law events and served as a member of its Board of Visitors. The portrait, seen here with members of the Hines family, now hangs in the Hatton Lovejoy Courtroom in Hirsch Hall.

Artist alumnus makes gift to school’s collection

Fund honoring late alumnus meets endowment threshold The law school is pleased to share that the Rajesh “Raj”

Accomplished artist, Atlanta attorney and law school alumnus William Elliott

Mehta Memorial Endowment for Family Justice has met

Stiles Jr. (J.D.’06) presented a painting to the School of Law to add to his Concept

its endowment-establishing threshold. Mehta, a 2001

Collection, which has been housed in Hirsch Hall since 2018. Titled “1961,” the

alumnus who worked as a staff attorney for the Cobb

piece (far right) reflects various historic elements relating to the desegregation of

County Magistrate Court, was killed as he intervened to

UGA and the Georgia public school system.

help a victim of domestic violence. The fund will provide support for scholarships, fellowships and various family justice initiatives in honor of Mehta’s legacy of kindness, thoughtfulness and service.

Former SEC Commissioner’s portrait unveiled During a virtual celebration in October, the portrait of 1979 graduate Luis Aguilar was unveiled at the School of Law. Aguilar, whose service on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission helped lead the country out of the economic upheaval of the 2008 recession, immigrated to the United States as a child refugee from Cuba. He describes himself as “the product of the generosity of the American people and the opportunities offered by the United States.” UGA President Jere Morehead (J.D.’80) (left) and Dean Bo Rutledge pose with the portrait. ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Hannah Patton anticipates the ceremony start.

Lawson Turner (left), Jace Williams (center) and William Gaskins were the first three graduates to arrive at Stegeman Coliseum the morning of Commencement.

2021 COMMENCEMENT

Awaiting the ceremony were: (l. to r.) Chris Bertrand, Jared Allen, John Taylor, Sarah Nelson, Sean O’Donovan, Jackson Nock, Drew Richardson, Anish Patel and Branden Homan.

Matthew Caudell (left) and Jared Allen congratulate each other during the ceremony.

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Adeola Sokunbi and Sharod McClendon (right) smile for the camera.

Chief Justice Melton encourages graduates to get involved in their communities After a most unusual school year, approximately 215 students – including Juris Doctor, Master of Laws and Master in the Study of Law candidates – were eligible to participate in the School of Law’s Commencement ceremony on May 15. Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Harold D. Melton (J.D.’91) delivered the keynote address and stressed the need to “sit at the table” and be involved in one’s communities. His tips included: • Don’t

be a “jangler” or creator of discord.

• Pick

up the phone or “PUTP” to talk about issues.

• “Get

past the talking points” and find solutions.

• Employ

“linguistic precision” as we “need to know what we are talking about.”

Melton said he is optimistic about the future adding that “getting to the next level requires the kind of soul searching that only comes through adversity.” Celebrating their day were: (l. to r.) Kailyn Coots, Sloane Kyrazis, Amelia Cooksey Parker, Grace Callanan, Paige Finley and Maribeth Portier.

He closed by reiterating the importance of “sitting at the table” and granting “grace” when things are not said correctly and knowing that people “grow in [their] evolution and in the depth of [their] understanding” over time. “The one thing we cannot do is undervalue the table,” he said. “I need you there. We need you there.”

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Four women receive top law school awards VIRTUAL ALUMNI/ALUMNAE WEEK The School of Law honored four women for their service during the school’s virtual Alumni/Alumnae Week, which gave law school graduates an opportunity to “visit” their alma mater from the comfort and safety of their homes. During the weeklong series of events, Valerie Caproni, B. Lynn Chastain and Santhia L. Curtis received the Law School Association’s highest honor – the Distinguished Service Scroll Award – for their outstanding dedication and service to the legal profession and the law school. Additionally, Catherine T. “Katie” McMahon was presented with the Young Alumni/Alumnae of Excellence Award. Caproni, a 1979 summa cum laude School of Law graduate, is a U.S. District

(J.D.’79), Lynn Chastain (J.D.’84), Santhia Curtis

Court Judge for the Southern District of New York. Prior to becoming a judge,

(J.D.’91) and Katie

she held a variety of positions in the private and public sectors. She was

McMahon (J.D.’11).

recognized via a virtual celebration by Associate Dean and Professor Emeritus Paul M. Kurtz. A 1984 graduate of the law school, Chastain recently retired from her post as senior vice president and general counsel of Chick-fil-A, which she also served as secretary for its Board of Directors. She worked for the company for 29 years and was the first female to serve on its executive committee. Chastain was recognized at the online luncheon event by her daughter, Dr. Taylor Chastain. Curtis graduated from the School of Law in 1991. In 2014, she began working with family offices to manage diversified investment portfolios and holdings for domestic and international opportunities. Additionally, she has been a member of the Law School Association Council for more than one decade and was president of the LSA in 2012. She was honored by Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Harold D. Melton (J.D.’91). Additionally, McMahon, a 2011 graduate of the law school, is currently a civil litigation attorney in Washington, D.C. She has held several positions in service to our country such as installation staff judge advocate general, trial counsel and victim’s legal counsel. McMahon was recognized by Texys Morris Wheelock (J.D.’11), who is a division leader with the Jefferson County Public Defender’s Office in Alabama.

(From top) Valerie Caproni

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GRADUATE PROFILES

Harold D. Melton A TRUE PUBLIC SERVANT

With approximately 30 years of public

court system relied heavily on the pandemic

service – and over half of those serving

bench book that Melton spearheaded the

on the state’s highest court – Harold

development of as a junior member of the

D. Melton (J.D.’91) is embarking on a

court. The 15-member committee he chaired

new chapter. His retirement from the

created a resource that included a survey of

Supreme Court of Georgia earlier this

all of the applicable statutes, court rules and

summer came with “no regrets” and a

model orders that could be used. He said the bench book “gave us a great

few insights.

deal of comfort” knowing it was “prepared

Melton shared that one of the biggest misconceptions of the court

in the coolness of thought” and would “help

is “the notion that it is where old

kind of guide us and get us started in the right

lawyers go to retire. … Every judge

direction as we got used to the new normals.”

who has come onto the court has been

He added that it also helped set the “tone”

impressed, and often overwhelmed, by

on how to think through all the other issues

how much work we have and how hard

that were not identified when drafting the

we work.”

materials. Melton expressed a true sense of pride

Acknowledging the fact the most people feel they work hard, Melton wanted to emphasize “just

about “the way the courts and the bar held together” during the

how hard the judges on [the] court work to get the answers

height of the pandemic. “That above all else was probably the

right,” adding there is a lot of attention to detail, back-and-forth

secret sauce of our success.”

conversation and editing, in addition to a plethora of drafts for each opinion. Secondly, Melton said that every now and then there are

Among the most interesting cases he has come across during his entire legal career is Georgia’s water litigation with Florida and Alabama. He said he found it “absolutely fascinating” to see

cases brought before the court based on the notion that “the

the ways that governors interacted with their state constituents as

requested path is the desired path” and it is up to the Supreme

well as their agency heads who were central players in the water

Court to make the ruling. “We really do not operate that way at

negotiations. Melton also noted how private stakeholders had

all,” Melton stated. “We will take the path that the law drives us

varying degrees of strength within the states. “It was just a huge

toward and if any lawyer wants us to get there then they have to

study in not just litigation but in state and local politics.”

tell us the nice clean path to get there.” He added that at times the role of the court system is to “be

He said his biggest stress reliever over the years has been going to lunch, adding “lunch is my hobby.” He said he enjoys just

the heavy” for “making the state do what [it] otherwise might

getting together and laughing with the other judges, attorneys

not want to do but need[s] to do. [The court is] supposed to be

and his assistant – even if it is just out in the hallway. “There is

unphased by public opinion – and at times that can be hard to do

just nothing better than that.”

– but that is the role we are assigned to do.” Melton said he has always enjoyed the work of the court,

Melton’s next chapter will involve capitalizing on his strengths. Chief among those he counts is his passion for working

especially his service as chief justice since 2018. His role of leading

for the state of Georgia and for serving the state. This will be a

the state’s justice system gave him “variety” and allowed him

“very important factor” for him going forward. “I want to go to a

to get more involved in some of the administrative issues he felt

place that will value continued service to the state,” he said.

really mattered. “I really enjoyed working with the leadership of the various classes of court,” he said. “They were just really good professional soldiers who ended up being really good friends in the end.” The whole world experienced significant change over the past 18 months due to the coronavirus pandemic. During this time the

Earlier this summer, it was announced that Melton would join the law firm Troutman Pepper as a partner in its litigation practice. The firm noted in particular it will benefit from Melton’s experience and expertise, particularly in appellate litigation and state attorneys general matters.

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

GRADUATE PROFILES

PREPARE. CONNECT. LEAD.

Michael L. Goldberg FINDING SUCCESS IN HARD WORK

Michael L. Goldberg, a 1997 graduate of the School of Law, always knew he would work in the legal field, noting that when he was a child, his father told him he argued so much that he was going to be a lawyer. Now a partner specializing in personal injuries with the Atlanta firm Fried Goldberg, he said as soon as he was accepted into the UGA School of Law he knew it was where he would be attending.

began his career at an insurance defense firm where he defended

“[The University of] Georgia law school was the best deal out there – the best academic school and the best cost,” he said. “I was lucky enough to get into Georgia and, once that happened, that was definitely where I was going.” Goldberg – who earned his undergraduate degree from

trucking companies. After a few years, though, he realized that he wanted to help people, not companies, and switched sides. “I started realizing that what I wanted to do was be the lawyer who helped the injured person be on the same footing as the insurance defense lawyers were, because it always seemed the

Mercer University and also played basketball for the school – said

scales were tipped in the favor of the insurance companies and

that after years of working with competitive and sharp-tongued

their lawyers,” he added. “I wanted to be the one who tipped the

coaches that he was prepared for the rigors of law school and

scales back so everyone was on fair footing.”

stern-faced professors, and found his years in Athens “amazing.” Goldberg said he particularly enjoyed classes led by

Goldberg’s first case as a plaintiff’s attorney remains one of his most memorable. He had previously defended a truck driver

University Professor & Caldwell Chair Dan T. Coenen as well as

who rear-ended another car at a light. After he won that case

the late Carter Chair Emeritus R. Perry Sentell Jr. (LL.B.’58) and

at trial for the truck driver and the trucking company, the same

added that he learned lifelong lessons from both men.

truck driver injured his knee stepping in a pothole at a delivery

“[Sentell] was someone who was larger than life but also

facility. The truck driver became Goldberg’s first client as a

outside the classroom – if you ever went by to talk to him – he

plaintiff’s lawyer. That case taught him that it was never easy to

would do anything for you,” Goldberg said. “When you go out

pursue a plaintiff’s case.

into the profession you want to be a tough person who litigates

As the truck driver’s trial was winding down, Goldberg

but at the same time have a soft side when you’re out of the

became worried about the outcome and whether he had made a

litigation context. He taught me that.”

mistake working as a plaintiff’s attorney. However, when the jury

Goldberg also remembered Coenen telling his class to make sure and “take the time to enjoy the things that matter.” It was Coenen’s “idea of balancing hard work and at the same time

decided in favor of his client, he knew he was in the right place. Goldberg remains in contact with the truck driver to this day. “That trial still stands out to me,” he said. “His case was

taking the time out to enjoy the people around you and what’s

really the case that gave me the confidence to keep doing it and

going on around you” that resonated.

also taught me the lesson that this isn’t going to be easy. You

Now, years later, Goldberg – the father of three – tries to offer similar lessons to those he comes across and who are beginning their legal careers. “One of the things I’ve told many younger lawyers is there

really have to work hard.” Since then, Goldberg has tried numerous cases but still takes the time to mentor and teach young lawyers about practicing in his field. This outreach includes breakfast meetings, webinars

is a position in the law that is right for you,” he said. “The right

and sharing practice pointers relating to the lessons he has

place is out there for you. You can’t just accept what everyone

learned over the course of his legal career. He also established the

tells you is right for you. You have to get out there and search

Michael Louis Goldberg Scholarship at the law school.

for it. It might not be the type of job you thought you wanted …

Having the courage to change course is something that Goldberg knows well. After graduating from law school, he

“There’s nothing better than putting in a hard day’s work

[but] you have to have the willingness and the courage to take the

and winning something and doing it well,” Goldberg said. “You

step.”

realize you only get there from doing the hard work.”

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

Ryan Schneider & Jennifer Tourial BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS He ended up going to a small boutique

For Ryan Schneider and Jennifer Tourial, strong mentors have made huge impacts throughout their

firm and asked if he could come aboard

legal careers and lives.

just to learn – and when the firm said

Schneider, a 1995 alumnus, and Tourial, who

yes, Schneider fell in love with what they

graduated in 1994, met in Athens at the School of

did. “They were kind and they were great

Law after Tourial – a Georgia native – finished

mentors,” he said. “They were giving in

her undergraduate degree at the University of

training and … after six months they offered

Pennsylvania and Schneider – who grew up just

me a job.” Meanwhile, Tourial was making her

outside Philadelphia – finished his undergraduate

mark in the Atlanta legal community.

degree at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

She was working as a litigation associate

The couple now resides in Atlanta with their three children and have spent the years since

with Branch, Pike & Ganz (which merged

law school graduation finding success in their

into Holland & Knight) in a position

respective fields.

she described as “awesome” and full of “mentors and people who would spend the

For Tourial, who majored in history, her

time to teach me what was going on. They

interest in the law came from the first job she had

did not hire any other associates my year so

after graduation from Penn. “I came back to Atlanta and worked at a law firm for a year and I loved it,” she said. “I worked at a really small firm where there was one lawyer, one secretary, one paralegal and me.” After a year with the firm, she decided she would enroll in law school. At the same time, Schneider was working as an engineer with

I did everything … all kinds of cases.” Tourial’s mentors were also “forward about understanding” what it was like for women in the workplace. After the couple had their first child, Tourial successfully advocated for extended maternity leave and reduced hours upon her return. The firm also gave her opportunities to do other work – including

Colonial Pipeline, where his job was to find and repair fails and leaks.

a months-long stint at the Atlanta Legal Aid Society and teaching a

After a few years of working on the pipeline and having to explain to

class at Emory University.

local people that leaks were causing potential water contamination,

After 12 years Tourial left Holland & Knight and began working

he said he decided he wanted to go to law school with intentions

with solo practitioners, which gave her the opportunity to practice

of working in environmental law. He felt that it would be better to

law as well as spend more time with her family. Then, in 2018 she

prevent the leaks than to have to tell people living along the pipeline

was appointed as an administrative law judge with the Office of State

about them.

Administrative Hearings – but the pandemic “kind of put that on

However, once in law school, Schneider’s passion for the environment grew to include a passion for helping others, due to a

hold,” she said. Schneider is now a partner with Troutman Pepper, and he also

class taught by the late Caldwell Chair in Constitutional Law Milner S.

has seen the pandemic affect the legal world, noting that “it’s very

Ball (J.D.’71), which was “transformative to me,” he said.

difficult” in the less-personal virtual world, especially when it comes

“I’d never had a person like that in my life,” he continued. “I saw this person who had passion … passion about the community

to interviewing students and young graduates for positions at the firm. “Law is all about relationships,” he said. “Relationships with your

and what he did, and leadership in the way that he started programs

clients, relationships with your colleagues and, if you’re learning, you

because he saw needs. He changed some of my views.”

need people to bleed on your work and come in your office and talk

In fact, Ball’s impact on the pair was so great that the couple established, and continues to support, the Milner S. Ball Fellowship Fund at the law school. After graduation, Schneider stayed in Athens and practiced a

about law.” Despite these temporary hardships, Tourial offered advice for those navigating tough or unclear times. “Take the option that works for you right now,” she said. “It doesn’t have to be the best option

little bit of everything before he moved to Atlanta to be closer to

for you forever because who knows what’s going to come down the

Tourial. He decided to use his engineering background and look into

path? Every great position has the potential to lead to an even greater

IP law, in which he had no experience.

opportunity.”

ADVOCATE 2021 University of Georgia School of Law

“The lessons from and the bonds formed during the pandemic will endure. Among the strongest is the power of a community that perseveres together. That persistence defined this community long before the pandemic, and it enabled us to achieve tremendous accomplishments despite incredible challenges. May those qualities continue long after this global health crisis joins the last one in the archives of history.” —Peter B. “Bo” Rutledge, Dean and Herman E. Talmadge Chair of Law