W&L Law Discovery - Winter 2022

Making Law School Affordable

THE COST OF higher education, including law school, is a recurrent headline in today’s papers. And it is easy to understand why.

Recent estimates put the total amount of student loan debt at well over a trillion dollars, with reports of individual students owing several hundred thousand dollars when their education is complete.

Luckily, the situation for W&L Law students today is not so dire. While the cost of a legal education remains a significant investment for most, W&L devotes substantial financial resources to help make law school more affordable. About 90% of W&L law students receive financial aid, with an average scholarship award of just over $28,000. This helps W&L Law rank highly on the list of best value law schools each year.

The law school’s commitment to providing this financial aid is a big reason W&L remains an affordable option for most students. In the last five years alone, alumni have contributed over $6 million dollars toward the school’s financial aid budget, many of these contributions coming in the form of endowed scholarships. It costs $100,000 to endow a scholarship, which provides approximately $5,000 for a student scholarship annually. Scholarships can be endowed all at once or over the course of five years.

Alumni may also establish a scholarship through a bequest or planned gift. Increasing resources available for student financial aid remains a top priority for the law school.

REMEMBERING A FRIEND

school every year, and he devoted some of his final months to serving as a member of the Law Council and as chair of the Law Annual Fund. To honor his memory and his affection for his alma mater, his class has created a scholarship endowment in his name.

Toby dreamed of getting his law degree from W&L. His parents saved enough for Toby to attend one year of W&L. An ROTC scholarship, combined with another scholarship, enabled Toby to graduate from the university and continue on for his law degree. He made a financial contribution to W&L every year after he graduated. When asked why, he stated, “I give because I know W&L is, and always will be, part of me. No matter how much I give back, there is no way I will ever repay all W&L gave to me. But maybe, I think, just maybe, I can help someone else get some of the same joy and pride I feel in my W&L connections.”

This fundraising effort is just getting underway.

HONORING A LEGEND

THOSE WHO WERE lucky enough to have Brian Murchison in their 1L year will remember it well. The door swings wide. A flourish of black robes. “All Rise!” And so begins their dramatic and enthralling introduction to law school, the Socratic method and one of the greatest teachers in the school’s long history. Whether in the classroom or in the hall outside his office for an exam review, Brian Murchison remains the consummate educator and embodies the faculty commitment to students that defines a W&L Law education.

So it was with some surprise that the Law Class of 1996, when considering how to focus its reunion gift, learned that a scholarship honoring Murchison did not already exist. Brian Howe ’96L says the decision to create the scholarship in his name was a “no-brainer” and remarked how Murchison always makes time to catch up with him whenever he comes to Lexington. Kristin Ray ’96L said she is always amazed at how much he remembers about his past students and where they are now.

The Brian C. Murchison Law Scholarship currently has over $100,000 in gifts and pledges.

LEAVING A LEGACY

JAMES NACCARATO ’45L, WHO DIED FEB. 3, 2020, at the age of 101, left W&L Law an estate gift of $1,179,000 to endow a student scholarship fund. After college in Iowa, he applied and was accepted to law school at Harvard and W&L, about which he had heard good things from hometown friends. That, combined with the fact that W&L’s tuition was $50 less than Harvard’s at the time, sealed the deal given that the less expensive school would make life easier financially for his father.

Due to the war, Naccarato left W&L for the Army Air Corps and was unable to return. Though he did finish law school elsewhere and spent his career working in the Pardon Office at the U.S. Department of Justice, he said not returning to W&L was one of the greatest regrets of his life. Naccarato’s affection and dedication to W&L Law will now live on in a way that was so important to him — lessening the financial burden law school presents to W&L Law students.

PAYING IT FORWARD AS A TRUSTEE, JESSINE

Monahan ’79L became keenly aware of the increasing debt burden experienced by law students across the country, including at W&L. She had been lucky to have received a bequest from a family member that enabled her to go to law school.

“Creating the Monaghan Family scholarship was a way for me to honor my relative and to address a growing need among W&L law students,” she said.

IN AUGUST, MEMBERS OF THE LAW CLASS of 1995 gathered in Lexington to celebrate belatedly their 25th reunion. They also dedicated time to remember and honor a friend and classmate, Toby McCoy ’92, 95L, who passed away in July from pancreatic cancer. Toby gave to the law

“Brian is a gift to W&L and so well loved by all of his students,” said Ray. “Starting Administrative Law by comparing the administrative state to Shakespeare and beginning Communications Law with a story about his time in the Peace Corps in Benin are lectures that are hard to forget — and make Brian a huge part of all of our law school memories.”

Knowing that there was more need than scholarship money, she also encouraged her law school class to fund a scholarship as a reunion gift. They named it in memory of their classmate Archibald Carter “Chip” Magee. Devoted to W&L, Chip served on Law Council for 11 years and also taught several courses in the law school, including the Business Bankruptcy Restructuring course, the Payment Systems course, and the Failing Business Practicum.

For information about endowing a scholarship, contact Elizabeth Outland Branner at brannere@ wlu.edu or 540-458-8191.

THE NEWSLETTER FROM WASHINGTON AND LEE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW

The Law Class of 1995

Brian Murchison

Jessine Monahan

A Message from the Law Council President

Dear Fellow Law Alumni,

Thank you for giving me a few moments of your time. My name is Michael Spencer and I am a 1996 graduate of our law school. I have the honor of serving as this academic year’s president of the Law Council, the governing board of the Law Alumni Association. As you probably already know, the Law Council advises the dean of W&L Law on matters related to career strategy, admissions, curriculum, alumni relations, reputation within the bar and fundraising. The Law Council has 40 members who serve staggered four-year terms, plus three officers. The Law Council meets twice a year in Lexington.

It is always great to return to Lexington to not only reminisce about the past, but also to see how the law school is advancing as the global landscape changes. I encourage you to come back to Lexington and see what is happening. It is worth the trip. Personally, I have been on campus several times already this fall. This close-knit community is alive and well. The students are excited to be in Lexington and back to in-person classes. They are challenged by the learning opportunities in the classroom, clinics and externships. I truly enjoyed interacting with the students and hearing about their experiences and aspirations. I encourage you to return to Lexington for your reunion, an admitted student open-house reception or to just walk around campus and experience again the special nature of W&L Law.

As many of you are aware, we are the midst of searching for the next dean of our law school. I am serving on the search committee, along with five other law alumni. We are seeking a dean who will carry the law school forward following the tremendous success of Brant Hellwig’s tenure. We gathered a stellar list of candidates during the fall semester and hope to name the next dean by spring 2022, with that individual starting July 1, 2022. If you would like to learn more, you can visit the dean search website at law.wlu.edu/deansearch

I also want to encourage your support of the law school. We need you. Alumni are critical to the success of W&L Law. We talk to admitted students about our experience, assist students in their career search, support the school financially, mentor students throughout their time in Lewis Hall, and provide a strong alumni network that enhances our careers — and the school’s reputation. Alumni make the law school better and that serves all of us. Alumni have played such a critical role in my own legal career, not only as a student but as an attorney. You may be surprised as to whom you meet and connect with when you are back on campus. Just coming to the Law Council meetings opened doors for me that I did not know were possible. I would love to chat with you about my experiences when I see you in Lexington! One person once said to me, “I’m not certain we need more lawyers, but I do know we need more W&L lawyers!” Invest in W&L Law and the next generation of W&L lawyers. My investment in W&L Law has given me unexpected returns and I believe you too can have the same experience.

All the best, Michael

Spencer ’96L, Law Council President

Current and emeritus Law Council members gathered for the annual Benefactors Luncheon. Front Row (l. to r.): Andy Lee ’90L, Ali Wilson ’95L, Michael Spencer ’96L, Kristin Ray ’96L, Kyle McNew ’06L, Joanna Sutton ’13L and Nan Hannah ’93L. Middle Row: Reggie Wright ’83L, Peter Walsh ’86L, Calvin Awkward ’06, ’09L, Virginia Stitzer ’14L, Rae Mueller ’12L and Andrea Short ’00L. Back Row: Ashley Pearson ’06L, Anthony Briggs ’03L, Bill Mayberry ’91L, Neil Millhiser ’11L, Beth Yusi ’02L and Frank Duemmler ’76L.

Starting Up

W&L Law students help launch local businesses.

LICENSING. ZONING. TRADEMARKS. LIABILity. It can be a lot for individuals to manage when looking to start a new business. But thanks to a unique partnership between students at W&L Law, the law firm Vinson and Elkins and the Walker Program, aspiring business owners can access the legal support they need to build their dream on a strong base.

Launched in 2020, the Walker Program is a local community initiative that helps jumpstart businesses owned by people of color in Lexington, Buena Vista and Rockbridge County. The program provides free business training, grant funding and ongoing support to individuals who want to start or grow a business in the area.

Carliss Chatman, associate professor and corporate law expert, serves on the Walker Program advisory board and provides the legal component of the business training. She was also an associate with Vinson and Elkins (V&E) during her practice career and used those connections to turn her Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) class into an actual practice experience for her students.

Chatman’s class includes a practice simulation component where students follow the life of an M&A transaction, from client intake through initial transaction development, drafting and negotiating documents, researching and advising the client

on key issues that arise in the transaction, and post-closing dispute resolution. For the actual practice component, students work in teams and are assigned to assist Walker Program businesses at various stages of development.

“Students are working on foundation documents, researching liability and zoning issues, anything the business needs to be set up properly,” said Chatman.

Each student group is paired with a V&E attorney who advises them on legal issues. Students prepare memos for their attorney supervisor, who also reviews their work product before it goes out to a client. Among the supervising attorneys is Caroline Bailey ’11 who says it is a special privilege to work with law students to help businesses thrive in a place that holds so much meaning for her. She also thinks students in the class are getting excellent experience for their professional careers.

“The practical nature of the work the students are doing, and the human connection between the students and the business owners, cannot be replicated in a traditional classroom setting,” said Bailey. “There is no rubric identifying what issues the students should be flagging. They are required to think outside of the textbook, which is an experience that is truly hands-on from start to finish.”

This was echoed by Trey Smith ’22L, whose team is working with several entrepreneurs in the very

early stages of development, as well as a salon owner who is expanding her Lexington-based business to Buena Vista and Roanoke.

“With casebooks or exams, the facts are presented to you, but with real people you have to ask the right questions to extract the information you need to help solve their problem,” said Smith, who has also learned to adjust his expectations for how quickly things can be accomplished.

“As law students we are typically in a huge rush to get things done, but the tempo of working with real clients is different,” he said. “They have families and responsibilities, so you have to make good use of the limited time.”

In its short life, the Walker Program has helped open or expand seven businesses in Lexington, and all are still going strong today. The organization is now evaluating another round of business proposals for funding, and Chatman is looking for more ways to involve her students with the effort, including having them lead the legal component of the business training.

“The hard reality is that clients don’t behave the way we read in a casebook, and that’s why lawyers exist,” said Chatman. “Our students are learning that their expertise is important.”

Trevor Stores, a fixture of the Lexington restaurant scene, is opening a new speakeasy-style bar called Sidebar in the space beneath Blue Sky Bakery.

“As law students we are typically in a huge rush to get things done, but the tempo of working with real clients is different. They have families and responsibilities, so you have to make good use of the limited time.”

~ Trey Smith ’22L

A student team is advising Trevor Stores on his business-planning process.

Planning for the Future

W&L Law students offer free estate planning to area residents.

the necessary documents under the supervision of practicing lawyers. They meet clients in Lewis Hall, but also travel to Roanoke, Lynchburg or elsewhere to meet with those unable to travel.

Destiny Kosloske ’22L worried that the conversations with clients would be uncomfortable or too morbid, but she found just the opposite.

“It was surprising to me how willing people are to talk about these matters,” she said, recalling some clients — a young couple expecting their first child. “They reached out because they want to plan for the future, and they were relieved to have something in place.”

Like other upper-level students participating in the law school’s legal clinics or similar actual practice experiences, Kosloske is also learning to work with people with different schedules and busy lives.

“We don’t have a lot of time with them,” she said. “But it is important we make them feel as comfortable as possible when discussing something so important.”

What happens when we die?

While that question may seem suited to the halls of the philosophy and religion departments, you can also find answers in the law school, especially when dealing with the practical matters that surround the end of life. This is just what law students in Professor Bob Danforth’s Trusts and Estates Practicum are doing by offering free estate planning throughout the region.

Danforth has been teaching the class for many of years and introduced a live-client component three years ago. Initially offered to cancer patients and first responders, the free legal assistance was

Part of the Plan

expanded this year to all persons of modest wealth, specifically persons whose wealth falls well below the thresholds at which estate and gift taxes apply.

“There are no income or age limitations, but the service is not unlimited,” said Danforth. “The class has only 12 students, and they have a finite amount of time.” He estimates students will put in between 10-15 hours of work with each client.

Danforth teaches the class with alumna and Roanoke attorney Jennifer Crook ’14L. The students, working in teams of two, interview and counsel estate planning clients on wills, advance medical directives and powers of attorney. Students draft

Charisma Hunter ’23L Becomes first Black Woman on Law Review.

CHARISMA HUNTER ’23L MADE HISTORY this year when she was selected as a staff writer for the Law Review, becoming the first Black woman to serve on the journal.

And while Hunter is still grappling with the significance of this milestone, her path to this point has been in the works for many years, part of a plan she launched some 15 years ago while growing up in the small southwestern Virginia town of Norton.

Hunter said she decided to become a lawyer in the third grade, motivated by a desire to help people. She recalled dressing in business attire for a career day and being met with skepticism about her career objective.

“They thought ‘this Black girl isn’t going to make it out of this small town,’ and I decided I would prove them wrong one day.”

She was accepted to Virginia Tech early decision, and because she began taking college courses during her sophomore year of high school, she was able graduate from Virginia Tech in three years, becoming the first person in her immediate family to earn a college degree. Despite her accelerated time frame, she was very involved in the university community, working for a student group that raises funds for the childhood cancer charity Special Love and as vice president for membership and recruitment chair for her college sorority.

“At Virginia Tech I was extremely involved because I knew that it would be the people I met that would shape my undergraduate career into what I wanted to be; a learning experience full of growth in many facets of life.” A major in political science with a focus on legal studies, she also served as an admissions ambassador for the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences.

After graduating, she interned in Washington, D.C., for the United States Fashion Industry Asso -

ciation and earned the George Peabody Award in an ethics and leadership course from a summer program she participated in. She fell in love with the heterogeneity and diversity of D.C. and sought employment in the nation’s capital. She spent a year working as a legal assistant before applying to law schools around D.C. and in Virginia.

When deciding on whether to attend W&L Law she said, “I wasn’t sure if I wanted to return to a small town in Virginia, especially one without the family history I have in Norton.” While her first year in Lexington was not without its struggles, Hunter is grateful for the “phenomenal community in the law school that made her feel accepted and welcome.”

Like most students, Hunter’s 1L year was in hybrid format due to COVID, with some classes in person and others online. As demanding as the first year of law school is, she knew the Write On process for selecting new staff writers was waiting for her

The savings offered to clients utilizing the student assistance can be significant. It is not unusual for similar work from a practicing attorney to reach into the thousands of dollars. And of course, the students are getting invaluable experience in exchange.

“The students find the work with real clients especially gratifying,” said Danforth.

Kosloske agreed, and sees her work in the class, including working with cancer patients in hospice on funeral directives, as among the most important she has taken on in law school.

“I really feel like I am helping the community.”

just two days after final exams. She learned while working as a legal assistant how important experience on a law journal can be for developing legal writing and research skills and also helping with job searches.

“Completing my Write On submission was one of the hardest things I have done in law school,” she said. “But I just stuck to my plan. I wanted to be part of something big, to get the chance to work with people from all over the country, even internationally.”

Hunter was in Brooklyn for her summer job as a judicial intern for the chief judge of the Eastern District of New York when she learned she had been selected as a staff writer for Law Review.

“I was in shock,” she said. “It was an incredible feeling to say the least.”

With the accademic year now underway, Hunter is busy cite checking articles and also developing her Note topic, which will examine the intersection of fashion and the law as it relates to the Fourth Amendment, reasonable suspicion and probable cause standards — and its impact on marginalized communities. Next summer will find her in Charlotte as a summer associate for McGuireWoods.

History is important to Hunter. Her greatgrandmother was born in former slave housing on a plantation in southwest Virginia and spent her life cleaning houses — the only work available to her. This is one of several ways systemic racism affected her family. As Hunter considered her own place in the law school’s history, she marveled at how far she has come.

“I am euphoric. Shattering glass ceilings and paving the way for other Black students at the law school means so much to me.”

Staats Smith ’23L and Robert Stahl ’23L interview clients for their Trusts and Estates class.

Charisma Hunter ’23L

Graduation Redo • Sept. 11, 2021

The Law Class of 2020 got a chance to return to campus, experience a traditional in-person ceremony, and celebrate graduation with friends and family at an event that had been postponed for more than a year amid a pandemic.

Scene on Campus

1. After a year hiatus due to COVID, LSFL returned to the law lawn.

2. Christina Fallon ’23L and Grant McClernon ’23L were the winners of this year’s Robert J. Grey, Jr. Negotiations Competition.

3. Incoming 1Ls work at the Rockbridge Area Relief Association during Orientation Service Day.

4. Third-year law students take part in the Transactional Immersion class at the beginning of the academic year.

5. L aw students venture out for some paddle boarding on Lake Robertson.

6. L aw librarian Franklin Runge takes advantage of the stellar fall weather for his research methods class.

Brant Hellwig to Lead Tax Program at NYU

AND FORMER DEAN BRANT

PROFESSOR

Hellwig has been named faculty director of the Graduate Tax Program at New York University School of Law. Hellwig will take a leave of absence from W&L to lead the program, which is considered the premier graduate tax program in the country.

“I began my teaching career at NYU, and so it will always be a special place to me,” said Hellwig, who received his LL.M. in tax from NYU in 2000. “I am grateful to have the opportunity to return as faculty director and help the program continue to thrive.”

Hellwig joined W&L Law in 2012 and was named dean in 2015. During his tenure, Hellwig helped navigate the law school through a difficult financial period and oversaw significant improvements in applications and entering class credentials. Under his leadership, the school also achieved record highs in postgraduate employment outcomes for students, exceeded annual fundraising goals and stabilized its position as a top-tier law school.

An expert in the field of federal taxation, Hellwig has taught a variety of tax courses, including Federal Income Taxation of Individuals, Partnership Taxation, Corporate Taxation and Estate and Gift Taxation. His scholarship in the tax field is similarly varied, ranging from the income tax treatment of deferred compensation arrangements of corporate executives to the estate tax treatment of closely held business entities employed as trust

substitutes. He is a co-author of a casebook on “Estate and Gift Taxation” (with W&L Law colleague Robert Danforth) and a co-author of casebooks on “Partnership Taxation and Business Enterprise Taxation.” He recently was commissioned by the U.S. Tax Court to update and expand a treatise on that court’s history and expanding jurisdiction.

Hellwig received his B.S. summa cum laude and J.D. magna cum laude from Wake Forest University. After practicing with the firm of Bell, Davis & Pitt, P.A. in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, he pursued his LL.M. in taxation at NYU Law, where he received the Harry J. Rudick Memorial Award for distinction in the graduate tax program.

After serving as law clerk to the Hon. Juan F. Vasquez of the U.S. Tax Court, Hellwig began his academic career at NYU as an acting assistant professor. He then accepted a permanent appointment to the University of South Carolina School of Law, where he was a member of the faculty for 10 years. During his tenure at South Carolina and W&L, Hellwig received a number of institutional awards recognizing both his teaching and his scholarship.

The Graduate Tax Program at NYU Law is the top-ranked LL.M. program in the nation, and destination for many W&L Law graduates pursuing a career in tax law. Interim Dean and Tax Clinic Director Michelle Drumbl also is a graduate of the program.

Meet the Professor: Heather Kolinsky

HEATHER KOLINSKY JOINED WASHINGTON

and Lee University School of Law as a professor of practice in 2021. She teaches legal writing and professional responsibility. Previously, Kolinsky served as a law clerk to Magistrate Judge Gregory J. Kelly in the United States Middle District Court of Florida from 2018 to 2021. She also practiced appellate law, representing clients in civil and family law appeals in Florida. Her scholarship focuses on the intersection of gender and the law, as well as the relationship between the individual, institutions and the state, particularly as it relates to corporate personhood.

What do you like about teaching

Legal Writing?

I really like breaking down the process of writing and teaching students the mechanics of how to convey their legal analysis to a specific audience. However, the best part of teaching is watching the students make tangible progress and transform into legal writers as the year progresses. I especially love the transition from predictive to persuasive writing as it gives the students license to have their own voice in their writing.

How did you develop an interest in Vulnerability Theory?

I had been writing on issues of gender and law, but I was also addressing more discrete topics related to equality in immigration and privacy. I wanted a wider lens to examine these issues, as well as a more coherent way to consider theoretical and practi-

cal solutions for larger social issues. Vulnerability Theory gave me that lens. It moves beyond a focus on identities to examine how our shared dependence and resilience as embodied beings shapes — and is shaped by — our relationship with the state. It builds on existing antidiscrimination and equality approaches to social issues and seeks to examine commonalities in societal roles and how we all interact with the state and other institutions while in these roles. It has even expanded my interests to include corporate personhood. All of this has helped me move toward a new way of considering how the law may adapt to address social problems and offer resilience to a broader range of subjects.

What are your impressions of teaching at W&L Law thus far?

The entire school community has been extremely welcoming. I am grateful we are teaching in person this year and that I arrived at W&L as it returns to the activities and engagement that help make the law school unique.

What do you like to do outside of work?

I love to be outdoors, particularly on the water. I think I discovered the Chessie Trail my first week in Lexington. I am a runner, and I also like to kayak and hike. I just learned to scuba dive last year. My other passion is travel. That has been put on hold obviously, but my family and I have managed to make the most of traveling closer to home this past year. I am looking forward to a long-planned trip to Japan and South Korea next summer.

Professor Brant Hellwig

Professor Heather Kolinsky

Intersectionality and Human Rights

A new book from W&L Law professor Johanna Bond pulls together decades of research to address identity discrimination.

JOHANNA BOND, THE SYDNEY AND FRANCES Lewis Professor of Law, published a book drawing on decades of research and on-the-ground experience with the application of feminist legal theory in international human rights work.

The book, “Global Intersectionality and Contemporary Human Rights” (Oxford University Press), argues for an expansive definition of human rights, one that encompasses the harm caused by multiple, intersecting forms of subordination. Bond was honored with the 2021 Lewis Prize for Excellence in Legal Scholarship for her book.

Bond’s analysis draws on intersectionality theory, a term coined by Kimberly Crenshaw in the late 1980s and that grew out of Black feminist voices dating back to Sojourner Truth in the 1850s.

“Intersectionality theory posits that aspects of identity, such as race and gender, are mutually constitutive and intersect to create unique experiences of discrimination and subordination,” Bond said. “The notion that forms of subordination and privilege

intersect in people’s lives in complex and mutually reinforcing ways has replaced outdated, simplistic conceptualizations of discrimination.”

Bond explains that in rejecting the idea that individuals experience neatly compartmentalized forms of discrimination based alternately on, for example, race and gender, intersectionality recognizes the complex interplay between systems of oppression and power structures.

“Intersectional human rights analysis allows us to see how subordination based on ethnicity and disability, for example, combine to produce human rights violations targeting people with disabilities in marginalized ethnic communities,” she said. “They may experience discrimination based on ethnicity within disability communities and discrimination based on disability within their ethnic communities.”

Bond argues that human rights remedies that fail to capture the intersectional nature of human rights violations do not offer comprehensive redress to victims and that the United Nations, the central

intergovernmental organization charged with the protection of human rights, has been slow to embrace the insights gained from intersectionality theory.

“The U.N. system is set up so that one often has to choose to pursue a claim based on one kind of discrimination,” she explained. This, among other factors, has led to “a lot of missed opportunities to apply intersectionality theory in the context of human rights.”

She noted that the UN treaty bodies are now embracing intersectionality more regularly in their human rights work and is hopeful that the treaty bodies move toward a more consistent application of intersectionality theory in adjudicating human rights complaints.

“The UN should implement structural changes that will facilitate more consistent intersectional analysis in the work of the human rights treaty bodies, making human rights remedies more comprehensive and more satisfying for victims.”

Parella Wins Scholarship Award

PROFESSOR KISH PARELLA RECEIVED THE Ralph Hoeber Award for Excellence in Research for her article, “Protecting Third Parties in Contracts,” published in the American Business Law Journal (ABLJ).

The Hoeber Award, given annually by the ABLJ’s faculty board of reviewers and advisors, is granted every year to recognize scholarly excellence among two peer-reviewed articles published in the ABLJ during the year.

Parella’s article looks at the impacts that corporations have on non-shareholders and argues that corporate misconduct towards non-shareholders arises from a fundamental inconsistency within contract law regarding the status of third parties.

“Contracts are the primary means through which corporations interact in the world; revising our views about the duties that contracting parties owe third parties has significant implications for our views of how corporations should treat non-shareholders,” she wrote.

Parella teaches courses at the intersection of law and business. Her research examines transnational regulation of corporate conduct and negligent contracts” and the responsibilities of contracting parties to consider negative externalities to third parties.

Professor Joanna Bond

Professor Kish Parella

CLASS UPDATES AND SUCCESS STORIES

Leaders in the Law

Four law alumni have been named to Virginia Lawyers Weekly’s annual recognition of leaders among Virginia’s legal professionals who are setting the standard for other lawyers across the commonwealth. The honorees are chosen for their outstanding contributions to the practice of law, significant achievements through the practice of law, leadership in improving the justice system and important contributions to Virginia’s legal community and/or the community at large.

D. CAMERON BECK JR. ’95L

Beck serves as a director of McCandlish Holton. He practices civil litigation, with a focus on trucking defense, retail and products liability and commercial disputes. He also has experience in numerous construction matters. His extensive jury trial experience includes over 60 jury trials throughout the commonwealth, in both state and federal court. He is a member of the Virginia Bar, the Defense Research Institute and Richmond Bar Association.

80s

1980L

Dwight Arneson joined Castle Lanterra Properties as senior managing director/head of acquisitions. He will be making real estate investments throughout North America.

The Hon. John Eklund was appointed to the 11th District Court of Appeals in Warren, Ohio, by Gov. Mike DeWine.

1981L

Jeffrey H. Gray joined Pender & Coward in Virginia Beach as a litigator.

1983L

Linda Klein joined Alterity Resolution Services L.L.C., a new Atlanta-based dispute resolution firm focused on diversity, human-centered design and data. Unique among alternative dispute resolution firms, Alterity’s panel of neutrals operates under the conviction that

MITCHELL K. MORRIS ’05L

Morris is a member of Butler Snow’s litigation department and practices within the products, catastrophic and industrial litigation and commercial litigation groups. He represents clients in high-exposure traumatic injury, wrongful death, intentional tort, environmental, pharmaceutical and complex commercial matters and has served as national punitive damages counsel to a Fortune 250 transportation company. Morris also devotes a significant part of his practice to combatting fraud and abuse in mass and class actions.

more diverse teams contribute to an inclusive environment and produce superior results.

90s

1991L

John C. Johnson started The Johnson Law Group in Roanoke. The firm’s areas of practice include family law, traffic and criminal and workers’ compensation.

1992L

Jefferson E. Howeth joined AmTrust Title Insurance Company in Dallas as senior vice president and senior corporate counsel.

The Hon. Chong J. Kim joined Alterity Resolution Services L.L.C., a new Atlanta-based dispute resolution firm focused on diversity, human-centered design and data. Unique among alternative dispute resolution firms, Alterity’s panel of neutrals operates under the

BRYAN SLAUGHTER ’97L

Slaughter is a partner at MichieHamlett in Charlottesville, where he represents clients who have suffered a life-altering catastrophic personal injury or the wrongful death of a loved one. He is a former president of the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association and the current president of the Charlottesville Albemarle Bar Association. He has been recognized by many prestigious organizations, including the American College of Trial Lawyers.

conviction that more diverse teams contribute to an inclusive environment and produce superior results.

1995L

M. Lavan Green Jr. joined the Sumter County Public Defender office in Sumter, South Carolina, as assistant public defender.

1997L

Tina Clark Beamon was named chief compliance officer for MEI Pharma in San Diego.

Tracy Taylor Hague, an attorney with Vandeventer Black in Richmond, was selected as a member of the Influential Women of Law Class of 2021 by Virginia Lawyers Weekly for her dedication to the profession and her community.

Christopher J. Yianilos, who has served Virginia Tech as its lead government relations officer since 2013, has been promoted to vice president for government and community relations.

HUGH

B. WELLONS ’87L

Wellons is a partner at Spilman Thomas & Battle in Roanoke. His practice areas are corporate law, banking and finance law, securities and biotechnology law. He also chairs the community banking practice group. He is a frequent lecturer on corporate matters, including corporate governance, securities law, strategic transactions, business formation, exit strategies, venture capital and other funding concerns, and biotechnology.

1998L

Robert H. Buchanan joined Comerica Bank in Dallas as a senior vice president and national practice leader, business transition planning. He lives in Greenville, South Carolina.

1999L

Stephanie Smith Maxwell joined Wesley Financial Group L.L.C. in Nashville as president and general counsel.

2002L

Sarah M. R. Cravens joined University of Tulsa College of Law as a visiting professor, where she teaches torts and professional responsibility and pursues scholarly projects on the role of the judiciary.

2004L

Joshua D. Jones was appointed to serve for a third year as co-chair of the American Bar Association Litigation Section’s Audio Content Committee.

2006L

Taryn Kobal Williams joined Intel in Portland, Oregon, as senior counsel, sales and marketing legal.

2007L

Amanda L. Thrash joined Williams in Tulsa as senior counsel and assistant corporate secretary.

2008L

Chace W. Daley joined Sage Natural Resources in Tulsa, Oklahoma, as general counsel.

Michael P. Gaetani joined the Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General in Pittsburgh as the deputy attorney general in the civil litigation division.

Oren Griffin ’96L Named Dean of Tulsa College of Law

OREN GRIFFIN ’96L has been named dean of the University of Tulsa College of Law and began his new role Jan. 1, 2022. Griffin was the associate dean for strategic initiatives and a professor of law at Mercer University.

Griffin began his academic career as an assistant professor of law at Mercer in 2006. Before that, he served as a labor and employment attorney

with law firms based in Atlanta and Kalamazoo, Michigan. Prior to attending W&L Law, Griffin earned a Ph.D. from the University of Iowa. He received his bachelor’s degree from Southern University at New Orleans and his master’s degree from the University of Northern Iowa.

Griffin’s scholarship and teaching focuses on civil procedure, education law,

employment law and alternative dispute resolution. He has authored numerous articles and manuscripts regarding employment law, risk management, disability and higher education policy. He wrote “Investigating College Student Misconduct” (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2018).

Jeffery T. Mauzy joined Berkeley County Council in Oak Hill, West Virginia, as deputy legal director.

2009L

Alexis S. Hawley was promoted to senior counsel at Grant Thornton L.L.P. in Chicago.

Nainesh Ramjee joined HouseCanary in San Francisco as assistant general counsel.

Jessica Piltch Taylor joined Greenfire Law in Novato, California, as a senior associate.

2015L

Lauren A. Brown joined Bass Berry & Sims in Nashville as an associate.

Joshua M. Deal joined Greenspoon Marder L.L.P. in New York as an associate.

2011L

Ryan R. Au joined Coinbase in Washington, D.C., as senior tax counsel.

2012L

Jonathan R. Little was promoted to partner at Lightfoot in Birmingham. He maintains a varied litigation practice, which includes representing media and communications companies, journalists and broadcasters in defamation and First Amendment matters.

Ashley Bowen MacNamara joined Clark Hill Law in Dallas as a senior attorney.

Rae D. Mueller joined Turner Construction Co. in Reston, Virginia, as senior corporate counsel.

2013L

Ernest B. Hammond III joined Facebook in San Francisco as lead counsel, product.

2014L

Darby E. Gooding was promoted to senior counsel at Shaw Industries in Atlanta.

Karissa Thomas Kaseorg joined Sands Anderson in Richmond as counsel, where she focuses on civil litigation with an emphasis in products liability defense, insurance coverage litigation, suretyship litigation, trucking defense and civil appellate matters.

Randall W. Miller joined Kirkland & Ellis in Dallas.

Rachel G. Schwartz joined Seyfarth Shaw in Chicago as a real estate associate.

Anjelica N. Hendricks joined the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School as a Quattrone Center Research Fellow. Her research and writing focuses on the fields of policing, criminal law, and criminal procedure.

Laura A. Iheanachor joined Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, D.C, as staff counsel.

Brittany Kanter Love joined Farmers Insurance in Jacksonville, Florida, as an associate trial attorney.

Zara A. Wallace joined Mayer Brown in Charlotte as an associate attorney in the banking and finance practice group.

2017L

Maressa Momoye Cuenca joined the Seventh Circuit Solicitor’s Office in Spartanburg, South Carolina, as assistant solicitor.

Atanasio “Tacho” Fernandez joined Henneman Rau Kirklin & Smith in Houston as an associate. He focuses on complex, high-profile commercial litigation across multiple industries.

Jessica A. Winn joined the Anchorage office of the Alaska Public Defender Agency as assistant public defender.

2018L

Meredith Toole Brenton joined Simpson Thacher and Bartlett in Washington, D.C., as an associate.

Taylor W. Davison joined Davis Wright Tremaine in Seattle as an associate.

Colt W. Justice joined Apple in Denver as a global supply manager.

Taylor D. Rafaly joined the 1st Infantry Division at Fort Riley, Kansas, as a brigade trial counsel.

Erica L. Sieg left the public sector and works for a boutique corporate law firm, Midtown GC, in Richmond specializing in M&A.

Starleigh Smith joined Jeffers Danielson Sonn Alward in Wenatchee, Washington, as an attorney.

Jacob E. Thayer was promoted to senior intelligence counsel for the Coast Guard and is working at Coast Guard Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Devin C. White joined Thomas Moore Lawson P.C. in Harrisonburg, Virginia, as an associate.

Danielle A. Wise joined Moore & Van Allen in Charlotte, North Carolina, as an associate.

Mark X. Zhuang joined Mayer Brown in New York as an associate.

2019L

Cole Bollman (’16) joined King & Spalding in Atlanta as an associate.

Frank N. Bozzi joined Cooley in New York as an associate.

Pierce E. Rigney joined King & Spalding in Atlanta as an associate.

20sWEDDINGS

2020L

Whitney A. Davis is clerking for The Hon. Mary Grace O’Brien ’83L with the Virginia Court of Appeals in Manassas, Virginia.

Georgianna Pisano Goetz joined the chambers of The Hon. George Cannon with the U.S. District Court in St. Croix, Virgin Islands, as a law clerk.

Karen D. Vallejos joined The Dream Project in Washington, D.C., as executive director. The organization empowers students whose immigration status creates barriers to higher education by creating a strong network of mentoring, scholarships and family engagement and encouraging the students to use education as a vehicle to pursue their dreams and achieve their fullest potential. She lives in Arlington.

2021L

Erin R. Hayes joined the Maricopa County Office of the Public Defender in Waco, Texas, as a law clerk.

Robert H. Buchanan ’98L to Pam Milford Rozelsky on June 5, 2021. The couple reside in Greenville, South Carolina.

Jessica Girvan ’15L and Bret Marfut ’15L were married on Jan. 9, 2021, in front of Lee Chapel.

BIRTHS

John M. Power ’02, ’08L and his wife, Molly, a son, Luke Grant, on July 19, 2021. He joins sister Claire. The family are all doing well.

Lauren Meehan Keefe ’12L and Stuart A. Keefe ’12L , a son, Connor Stuart on March 9, 2021.

Jonathan R. Little ’12L and his wife Katie, a son, Shepherd “Shep,” on July 8, 2021. He joins brothers Jack, 9, Sam, 7, and George, 5.

Paul Fletcher ’85L Named Executive Director of Virginia Bar Association

The Virginia Bar Association named PAUL E. FLETCHER ’85L as its new executive director and chief executive officer. He began the new position in September, leading Virginia’s largest voluntary professional association of 4,000 lawyers, judges and law students.

Prior to his appointment with the VBA, Fletcher was

publisher and editor-in-chief of Virginia Lawyers Weekly, a role he has held since 1989. He also served as president of the Virginia Press Foundation and of the Society of Professional Journalists. After law school, he practiced with White, Elliott & Bundy in southwest Virginia for three years before beginning his career in journalism.

Claire Hagan Eller ’13L and John Eller ’11L , a daughter, Katherine Hagan, in February 2021. She joins sister Virginia.

OBITS

The Hon. William W. Vogel ’53L , of Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, died on Aug. 30, 2019. He served in the Navy. He was a judge for four decades.

Elias Richards III ’54L , of Lynchburg, Virginia, died on Aug. 4, 2021. He served in the Army. He was corporate counsel for Craddock Terry Shoe Corp. and held several additional executive positions. He and his son founded Richards Insurance in 1988. He was father to Alex Richards ’81, brother to John Richards ’59L, and father-in-law to Richard Silberstein ’81.

Marvin H. Anderson ’53, ’55L , of Gambrills, Maryland, died on July 4, 2021. He served in the Army. He was a partner with Anderson & Anderson and later practiced with his daughter, Julia Reinhart. He belonged to Pi Kappa Phi.

Charles L. Harrington ’55L of Marion, Virginia, died on July 4, 2021. He served in the Army during World War II. He had a private law practice before his appointment as a special justice for the Virginia Mental Health System. He served in that capacity for over 26 years. He belonged to Phi Kappa Sigma.

Richard W. Hudgins ’55L , of Newport News, Virginia, died on July 7, 2021. He served in

the Army. He was a practicing lawyer for 50 years. He belonged to Phi Delta Theta.

John Morton Blume ’54, ’56L , of Longboat Key, Florida, died Sept. 20, 2020. He built a plaintiff personal injury practice, Blume Forte Fried Zerres & Molinari.

Reno S. Harp III ’54, ’56L , of Richmond, died on June 16, 2021. He was deputy attorney general of Virginia, Criminal Division, until 1978. He then became chief counsel to the Judicial Inquiry and Review Commission, retiring in 1997. He was a dedicated, active alumnus who served W&L as a law class agent for 25 years, among other duties. He belonged to Delta Upsilon.

Kingswood Sprott Jr. ’56 ’58L , of Lakeland, Florida, died on Oct. 1, 2021. He belonged to Sigma Nu.

Richard Ray Duncan ’68L , of Winchester, Virginia, died Oct. 12, 2020. He held a number of teaching positions, most recently Georgetown University. He was also editor for the Maryland Historical Magazine and wrote several books about the Civil War.

William T. King Jr. ’62L , of Sarasota, Florida, died on Aug. 22, 2021. He served in the Marine Corps. He practiced at Smith, King and Murphy Law Firm in Warsaw, Virginia, and later served as the commonwealth’s attorney for Richmond County, Virginia, until his retirement.

Charles M. Conway Jr. ’62, 64L of Fernandina Beach, Florida, died on Sept. 18, 2021. He served in the Marine Corps. He worked for Aetna Steel Co.

and then operated and sold several enterprises. He was father to Charlie Conway III ’87 and belonged to Phi Delta Theta.

Mifflin George Fisher IV ’65, ’68L , of Camden Wyoming, Delaware, died Jan. 1, 2021. He spent three years in Army Intelligence during the Vietnam War. He worked for Delaware Trust, retiring as senior vice president.

Jeffrey G. Haverson ’66L , of Virginia Beach died on Sept. 29, 2019.

Michael P. Watkins ’66L , of Rockport, Texas, died on July 19, 2021. He was brother to Storm Watkins ’67L and belonged to Kappa Sigma.

Robert H. Gray Jr. ’67L , of Lynchburg, Virginia, died on Oct. 18, 2021. He served in the military. As an attorney, he practiced throughout central Virginia, primarily in Appomattox.

W. Starke Mundy III ’68L , of Amherst, Virginia, died on Aug. 7, 2021. He served in the Army and Naval Reserves. He was in private law practice for many years before joining the Commonwealth Attorney’s Office in Amherst County.

W. Jay Tims ’68L , of Kilmarnock, Virginia, died on May 12, 2021. He served in the Army. He retired from the practice in 2000. He belonged to Beta Theta Pi.

Peter K. Kintz ’66, 69L , of Fernandina Beach, Florida, died on May 16, 2021. He served in the Marine Corps. He practiced defense law. He was father to Andrew Kintz

’98 and belonged to Beta Theta Pi.

David C. Oliver ’69L , of West Orange, New Jersey, died on Oct. 10, 2021. He was an attorney for the U.S. Dept. of Transportation in Washington, D.C., for 30 years. He belonged to Pi Kappa Alpha.

Harley W. Duane III ’70L , of Richmond died on Aug. 23, 2021. He practiced with Duane, Hauck, Davis, Gravatt, and Campbell P.C. until his retirement.

Michael T. Thornton ’70, ’78L , of Marietta, Georgia, died on June 7, 2021. He was a middle school history teacher and coach at Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School. He belonged to Phi Gamma Delta.

Richard L. Greenberg ’79L , of Roanoke, died on June 28, 2021. He had a private law practice until his death. He was father to Leah Greenberg Katz ’05.

Louis P. McFadden ’79L , of Phoenix, Arizona, died on June 7, 2021. He served in the Army for 22 years. He served as director of labor relations/ human resources at the Tropicana Hotel Casino. He was father to Lou McFadden Jr. ’76, ’79L, Kevin McFadden ’79 and Mike McFadden ’82.

Bruce A. Hahn ’82L , of Kalamazoo, Michigan, died on Oct. 2, 2021. He retired in 2015 after 31 years as a contract administrator for Parker Aerospace.

Paul Griffiths ’86L , of Lantana, Florida, died in October 2021.

Lenard Garrett ’88L of Forest Park, Georgia, died on Dec. 12, 2020.

Sharron Lamoreaux ’93L , of Mesa, Arizona, died on May 20, 2021. She owned and operated a small Italian grocery in Chicago and prior to that was a corporate lawyer.

Col (ret.) Toby D. McCoy ’92, ’95L , of Tomah, Wisconsin, died on July 31, 2021. He served in the Army. He was the deputy director at Fort McCoy, Wisconsin, in the Civilian Personnel Advisor Center for the Civilian Human Resources Agency.

Jonathan G. Newell ’98L , of Henderson, Maryland, died on Sept. 10, 2021. He was a Caroline County circuit court judge.

Christian E. Sandefur ’06L died on Aug. 7, 2021. He was a certified financial planner at New York Life.

Michael R. Walsh Jr. ’08L , of Tewksbury, Massachusetts, died on May 15, 2021. He served in the Air Force. He worked as the in-house counsel for NER Construction in Wilmington.

ISAAC “IKE” NOYES SMITH IV ’57, ’60L, trustee emeritus of Washington and Lee University, died June 22, 2021. He was 89.

Smith grew up in Kanawha City, West Virginia, and graduated from Charleston High School. He earned his B.A. in political science from W&L in 1957 and received his law degree from W&L in 1960. He was active in student government, serving as vice president of both his student body and his law class. He also served as captain of the W&L football team and played basketball. He was a member of Omicron Delta Kappa, Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity and Phi Delta Theta social fraternity.

After graduation, Smith joined Kanawha Banking & Trust Co. (KB&T) in 1960, specializing in trust, marketing and commercial lending. He became president & CEO of KB&T and Intermountain Bankshares Inc. in 1982 and remained in those positions when the firm merged into United Bankshares Inc. and became an office of United Bank.

Smith was also president and CEO of Kanawha-Roxalana Co. until his retirement in 2017.

Smith was a member of W&L’s Board of Trustees from 1980 to 1991. Over the years, he was actively involved with his alma mater. He co-chaired the On the Shoulders of Giants capital campaign for the Charleston, West Virginia, area, was a Law class agent and president of the Charleston, West Virginia, Alumni Chapter. He was also a member of the George Washington Society, the Commission of the 250th Observance, his 50th reunion class committee and the Alumni Athletic Council.

He served in a variety of public and business positions, including district governor for Rotary International, chair of the Charleston Area Chamber of Commerce, vice chairman of the Charleston Urban Renewal Authority, board member of the West Virginia Humanities Council, West Virginia Education Alliance, College Summit of West Virginia, Yeager Airport, Charleston Renaissance

Corp., Business and Industrial Development Council, and the West Virginia Foundation of Independent Colleges & Universities. Other former board memberships include Diamond Ice and Coal Co., the West Virginia Roundtable, Goodwill Industries, Fund for the Arts, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and the Salvation Army. He was trustee emeritus of the Booker T. Washington Institute and a member of the Stratford Hall Endowment Fund Investment Committee. He also served on the Advisory Council of the Carnegie Hall Foundation in Lewisburg.

Additionally, Smith was a trustee emeritus of the University of Charleston and a founding member and treasurer of the Faculty Merit Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the recognition of outstanding university and college teachers in West Virginia.

Smith is survived by his wife, Stuart; sons, Quintie, Botts and Lyle ’93, and daughter, Lisa; 10 grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

ISAAC “IKE” NOYES SMITH IV ’57, ’60L, TRUSTEE EMERITUS

Law Reunion • August 27 – 29

W&L Law welcomed back the 2020 and 2021 reunion classes.

1. Interim Dean Michelle Drumbl with Katie Waibler ’15L, Christina Tacoronti ’16L and Raissa Grant ‘16L.

2. The Class of ’81L won the participation award for the greatest number of class members to attend.

3. L aw Council member Ali Wilson ’95L with (back to camera) his wife Kim Maxwell Wilson ’95L talking to Eone Moore Beck ’95L.

4. Courtney Townes Good ’96L enjoying time with her classmates.