Capital University Lawyer Winter 2013 by CityScene Media Group

WINTER 2013

The Capital University A

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Getting Real CapLaw clinics open studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; eyes, minds while serving the community PAGE 4

Features Support 7 Patriotic Military call center helping low-

and Leaders 18 Lawyers Hall of Honor inductees, Alumni Award recipients

income veterans, active service personnel

in Success 8 Profiles Capital alums find success

Back 22 Giving Thanks to the Law School’s Dean’s Circle

on the bench

and Opportunity 12 Access Capital Law Connect pairs alumni,

24 Milestones Esther H. Brocker was Law School’s first female graduate

students for networking

Foundations 14 Practical Professors say legal writing, research

the Record 26 For Alumni successes and milestones

are critical to student success

Journeys 16 Students’ Second-year students gain traction on their law school careers

Questions 27 8David D. White honoree Jerry O. Allen, L’84, CU’75

The Capital University Lawyer

Getting Real CapLaw clinics open students’ eyes, minds while serving community

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From the Dean First allow me to offer

a few words from Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen: “A thousand words will not leave so deep an impression as one deed.” Then, from Voltaire, a few words that have been paraphrased over time by many others: “With great power comes great responsibility.” The Ibsen quote reminds us that real change happens as a result of our actions, not merely our good “I submit that for lawyers, intentions. Voltaire’s famous observation and for those of us who reminds us not to take good fortune for granted. teach future lawyers, Together, they lead us to community betterment an important conclusion: As lawyers we can – and is a shared value that must – make our local and global communities lies at the very heart of better through personal service to humanity. our profession.” I submit that for lawyers, and for those of us who teach future lawyers, community betterment is a shared value that lies at the very heart of our profession. Moreover, our shared educational experience gives us the tools – substantive legal knowledge, analytical thinking skills, an understanding of legal systems – and our shared values give us the motivation to make positive changes happen in our communities. Students come to Capital University Law School believing a legal education can open the doors of opportunity to personal and professional rewards, including exciting, intrinsically satisfying, and socially useful careers. I believe they are correct in their thinking, but at Capital we strive to impart an additional lesson: Legal education gives them an opportunity – some would say a moral obligation – to improve the world. We teach this lesson through our many experiential learning programs, including THE

our legal clinics, where low-income people are able to obtain effective legal representation. In January, through a partnership with the Ohio Military/ Veterans Legal Assistance Program, we launched an important pilot project, a call center that helps connect lowincome veterans and active duty military personnel with attorneys willing to provide pro bono service. (Read more on Page 7.) Many of our alumni enter the public sector, working as prosecutors, public defenders, judges and legal representatives for governmental organizations. In fact, Capital was recognized in the Winter 2012 edition of preLaw Magazine as being one of the top 20 law schools in the country for placing its graduates in government positions and in the top 20 for having its alumni work as prosecutors and public defenders. Our students participate in many other activities that build skills while “giving back” to the community, including donating their time to a variety of pro bono efforts, and participating in the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program, the Foreclosure Mediation Project and at the National Center for Adoption Law and Policy. Why does Capital invest in these programs? They certainly help our students acquire real-world skills that will make them practice-ready when they enter the job market. Equally important, they help our students develop an understanding of the moral commitment to society that comes along with their law school degrees – and they will carry the lessons they learn by way of those experiences through a lifetime of service once they become CapLaw alums.

Rich Simpson, Dean

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EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING

Getting Real CapLaw clinics open students’ eyes, minds while serving community

he students work intently at their computers in the Capital University Law School Legal Clinic, their workstations framed by phone lists for courthouse employees, posters outlining crime victims’ rights and bookshelves supporting hundreds of legal texts. They confer with one another about their cases and their coursework, ask for guidance from the clinic’s licensed supervising attorneys, perform research and client interviews, and prepare an array of legal documents for clients and the courts.

It’s a typical day in the clinic, where for more than four decades aspiring lawyers have discovered firsthand the power they possess to change lives. It’s here that they learn to apply classroom theories and bookwork to real cases and

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Students such as Robert Johnson and Kristina Zonnevylle apply their skills and classroom knowledge to the needs of real-world clients in the Capital University Law School Legal Clinic. real people, with real consequences to their actions. Along the way, they increase their own professional skills, benefit society and ease the burden on the legal system by providing legal representation to clients who would otherwise be unable to afford it and would most likely go unrepresented. For many of them, the clinic becomes a pivotal experience of their law school experience. Clinic Director Danny W. Bank, L’90, Associate Director Lorie L. McCaughan, L’96, and small business section Staff Attorney Eric R. McLoughlin, L’07, closely supervise each of these third-year day students and fourth-year night students. Their coaching and mentoring help launch the students into the real legal world,

where they apply what they have learned in the classroom. On this day, McCaughan – who has worked in the clinic 15 years – discusses the best approach for a criminal defense case with one of the students. McCaughan carefully explains what will happen when they get to court and if they go to trial. The intern nods and smiles, leaving McCaughan’s office with work to finish and a firmer grasp of how the legal process works. In 1971, Capital became one of the country’s first law schools to establish a legal clinic for indigent clients. Today, the general litigation clinic operates much like a small, sometimes hectic, not-for-profit law firm. The clinic employs 12 attorneys. Four of its lawyers work out of the Franklin County Courthouse. Five other attorneys work in the Law School’s Family Advocacy Clinic, where victims of domestic violence have been able to receive legal assistance since 2000 thanks to a grant from the Center for Family Safety and Healing (formerly the Columbus Coalition Against Family Violence). “Students who sign up for the Legal Clinic are here because they want to apply the skills they have learned in the classroom to the real world, but they also want to learn how to help those who really need legal assistance,” said Bank, who has worked in the clinic for more than 22 years. And help they do. The litigation clinic handles up to 300 cases per year. The Family Advocacy Clinic serves nearly 1,000 clients annually. Unlike legal clinics that accept major cases that may take years to wind through the judicial system, Capital focuses on cases that can be started and finished within an academic year. The clinic’s clients typically meet specific income guidelines. Many of them have been turned away from the Legal Aid Society of Columbus because they don’t meet the government’s more rigid income or eligibility requirements. Other clients are

referred to Capital’s clinic by judges and magistrates in Franklin County’s courts. Without the clinic, these cases would add to the burden in the legal system, weighing down local court dockets. Depending on the number of credit hours students register for, they are each assigned five to seven cases, ranging from domestic relations (including divorce and adoptions) to criminal cases, tenant rights, wills and general civil matters. Interns also work on transactional matters through the small business section of the clinic, which assists upstart companies and non-profits. “It was scary at first, when I didn’t know what to file and when,” explains Michelle Askins, 2013 JD candidate. “Some things you can’t look up. You just have to know how to do them.” Working in the Legal Clinic has made Askins more confident of her skills – and will be a tremendous asset when applying for jobs. That’s because students leave the clinic with essential skills such as interviewing and counseling clients, negotiating with opposing counsel, conducting legal

research, conducting direct and crossexamination, performing case management, and drafting legal documents along with how to interact with judges, magistrates and opposing counsel. Some students even serve the roles of prosecutors of traffic violations and other misdemeanors in mayor’s courts in Central Ohio. Last fall, Daniel Swaisgood, 2013 JD candidate, was assigned to work in the Whitehall Mayor’s Court. He’s represented that city in cases ranging from petty theft and domestic violence to assaults and street racing. “The hardest part of it has been learning how to effectively negotiate, and to determine which charges to drop and which ones to press,” Swaisgood said. “I’ve heard a lot of sob stories from defendants.” In recent years, the Legal Clinic has expanded its services with the addition of a small business section. Entrepreneurs, small businesses and non-profits get the help they need to be in compliance with federal and state regulations. “This is the closest thing to a medical residency a law school can offer,” explains

Legal Clinic Director Danny W. Bank, L’90

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“Our students work under fire with real people, but have a licensed attorney to help guide them when needed.” McLoughlin. “Our interns work under fire with real people, but have a licensed attorney to help guide them when needed.” Transactional cases in the small business section may not have the drama of a criminal defense case, but they teach interns case planning and time management, issues new attorneys often struggle to understand, he said. The bulk of the cases pass through the Family Advocacy Clinic. Last year, approximately 2,000 petitions for protection orders were filed in Franklin County. The Family Advocacy Clinic filed one-third of them; Capital interns assisted with many of those filings.

Often, these are the cases that truly introduce the students to the realities clients face within society and the legal system. “These cases help open the students’ eyes,” Bank said. “Coming into law school, they may have thought they understood these issues, but for many this is their first exposure to these societal issues. These cases help teach them empathy and compassion. It makes them more mature professionally.” They also can be the most gratifying cases, because interns see they can affect change through the legal profession. “If it weren’t for the clinic, many of these people would never get legal assistance,” McCaughan said.

The clinic can be an epiphany for some students. It’s not unusual for clinical experiences to steer students toward the kind of law they want to practice – or to teach them that they might not be interested in another type of work. There also are intrinsic rewards for Bank and McCaughan, who find great personal satisfaction mentoring the students in their quest to become effective lawyers. “It’s satisfying to watch them develop, to see their eyes get opened to the realities of legal practice through their work in the clinic,” Bank said. “This is a unique kind of experiential learning. This builds their skills, and it builds their confidence.” n

Clinic Director Danny W. Bank, L’90, and Associate Director Lorie L. McCaughan, L’96, supervise dozens of student legal interns handling hundreds of client cases each year.

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Patriotic Support

Call center links low-income vets, active duty military with legal aid

he Ohio Military/Veterans Legal Assistance Project (OMVLAP) and Capital University Law School are partnering to make it easier for Central Ohio’s low-income veterans and active military personnel to get legal assistance they might not otherwise be able to afford. The Military/Veterans Legal Assistance Call Center at Capital University Law School opened in January as a partnership between the two organizations. The call center will provide referral information and brief legal advice and counseling when possible to low-income veterans and active duty military personnel in Franklin, Delaware, Fairfield, Licking, Madison, Pickaway and Union counties. OMVLAP was launched in June 2012 thanks to funding from the WalMart Foundation and the Ohio State Bar Foundation. It arose out of the Ohio Veterans WrapAround Project, created by former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Evelyn Lundberg Stratton, H’99. The launch of Capital’s call center was made possible in part through a $25,000

grant from the William C. and Naoma W. Denison, Robert Bartels, Virginia Hall Beale and Robert B. Hurst funds of the Columbus Foundation. The grant funds a part-time position for a CapLaw 3L student with a limited legal intern license who staffs the call center and who tries to find an appropriate pro bono attorney to represent the caller. Efforts to find funding for the call center began when Stratton, Judge Advocate for

the Ohio National Guard Colonel Duncan D. Aukland (L’82), and OMVLAP Director Michael J. Renner presented Capital with information about the existing need among veterans and service personnel. “These are men and women who have willingly joined America’s armed forces on our behalf, and during their service to our country they have encountered situations at home that require legal assistance,” Stratton said. “For many of these service members, there is a significant unmet need.” The center will screen phone calls from veterans and military personnel, assess their legal issues and determine whether the callers are financially eligible for OMVLAP assistance. OMVLAP will then attempt to pair specially trained pro bono attorneys with qualified lowincome veterans and active duty military. “The need for financially accessible legal assistance exists for many veterans, military personnel and their families,” said Rich Simpson, Capital University Law School’s dean. “Fortunately, Capital University Law School is in a position to work with OMVLAP and the Columbus Foundation to help these men and women find legal assistance with licensed, volunteer Ohio attorneys.” The call center also will refer some matters each semester to Capital University Law School’s Legal Clinic, which has provided a variety of legal assistance services to low-income individuals since 1971. In the clinic, Capital students who hold intern licenses and applicable legal skills work under the direct supervision of licensed practicing attorneys, including those who manage the clinic. The Legal Clinic staff anticipates being able to help up to 25 veterans and active duty military personnel per semester beginning in January. n

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PROFILES IN SUCCESS

Views from the Bench Four Ohio judges discuss how Capital prepared them for their careers

or many law school graduates, few career options hold more cachet than donning a judge’s robe. In this article, four Capital University Law School graduates whose careers led them to the bench discuss how Capital prepared them for their life in public service. How did Capital University Law School prepare you for your career? Judge Taylor: The biggest things were the clinical programs and having teachers who were real practicing lawyers. This was during a time when clinical programs were not as highly regarded as they are now. The common thought was, “They should be reading appellate cases and discerning what the rule of law is from those cases, but they shouldn’t be taught how to write a motion.” But Capital did that better than anybody in its day and it still does. Judge Hummer: I was working full-time nights at the Columbus Citizen Journal; my career hinged on whether the job would allow me to be a part-time day student. I had to persuade Capital to let me be a part-time day student. With help from Cleve Ricksecker and Josiah Blackmore, one other student (Mary Jo Foreman) and I were permitted to be part-time day students. We became their pilot project in the fall of 1982. They didn’t have to do that, but if they didn’t, I don’t know if I ever would have gone to law school.

What are the biggest misunderstandings lawyers have about the work of a judge? Judge Taylor: Sometimes, I think lawyers hold on to the idea that the better person or nicer client or more-deserving side wins. I always start my case analysis with the burden of proof, work out those facts that I believe to be true and apply the law to those facts, and that tells me who wins. I’ve decided cases for sides I don’t particularly like that much, and I find myself wrestling with the notion of advocacy. I’m impressed with the arguments being made; that’s a perfectly acceptable part of the process. The better advocate can often win the day. Judge Sheward: A big misunderstanding (for judges in Franklin County) is that we have very little to do, that we are people of leisure and it’s much like our jobs are portrayed in movies and on TV. They think we only have one case, that the judge is someone who is very wealthy, and so on. None of those things are true in the real world. In common pleas court, we all have about 800 cases constantly, with 10 to 15

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set for trial every day. It’s very hard work and very long hours. Judge McFarland: I think at the appellate level perhaps lawyers misunderstand the amount of time judges devote to reading the briefs, researching and reviewing the record. And, maybe there is a misunderstanding that the type and tone of questions during oral arguments are a window into how a judge may be thinking about ruling in that case. I really enjoy oral arguments and the opportunity to ask questions of the attorneys on a case. What are the unique challenges you face as a judge? Judge Taylor: In municipal court we deal with so many different types of cases – traffic, criminal, civil – and we’re expected to know enough about all of those topics. I am fortunate to have made choices over the years to receive continuing legal education in a way that, each year, I get a little bankruptcy, damages assessment, construction law, etc. A little bit can really help me work through and understand the complexities of various cases. Taxes are a good example. Clockwise from top left: Judge Anne Taylor, L’79, Judge Richard Sheward, L’74, Judge Mark Hummer, L’86, and Judge Matt McFarland, L’92, CU’89

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“The biggest things were the clinical programs and having teachers who were real practicing lawyers.” I’ve spent late nights trying to figure out the city income tax code. Judge Sheward: The toughest thing is that I have to be fair and honest with people who are not fair and honest with me. We also have to make numerous decisions every day. We think of being a judge as a deliberative process where you have a great deal of time. In the trial court, I sometimes think I’m viewed as a Coke machine; lawyers think they can put a quarter in and get a decision. You have to make decisions with very little time to make them. We have guidelines on everything we do, and it moves at a much faster pace than anyone realizes. Judge Hummer: Every time you have to decide a contested matter, those people want your best effort. You aren’t always going to be correct, but you always have to give your best. Judge McFarland: For me, it would have to be the budget process and the challenge to do more with less. Also, being able to attract and retain quality employees within our salary structure. I am proud that my current staff attorneys are Capital grads. What intrinsic rewards come from your work? Judge Taylor: I get to interact with some wonderful people: my staff, the employees of the court, the lawyers, the litigants. I love that. I love the fact that I can usually feel at the end of the day like most people have received some benefit from coming to court, such as finally resolving a contested legal matter, knowing the answer. For a victim, it might be an order of protection that’s a good thing. For a criminal defendant, it’s finding out whether they are found guilty or not guilty. There are many potential results that flow from a civil case or criminal case, and it’s good for people to have final resolution. Judge Sheward: I enjoy researching cases and solving problems and taking the people involved into consideration. There is an academic side to what we do, but it’s also a people job. If a judge has no desire to deal with the emotions of victims, he or she won’t be much of a judge, in my opinion. 10

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Judge McFarland: To date, I’ve had the honor of sitting on the Supreme Court of Ohio three times as a visiting judge, and being a part of that process was interesting and educational. Also, the professional relationships I have developed with judges all over the state has been rewarding. I continue to learn much from many judges around Ohio, especially from U.S. District Court Judge Greg Frost and the current judges on the 4th District. These relationships are very valuable and important to me. Also, our court has a great staff and I look forward to working with them every day. What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the legal profession and legal education today? How has that changed from 20 or 30 years ago? Judge Taylor: I really applaud Capital for focusing on bar passage. It was important to me when I was applying to law school, and Capital had a wonderful reputation for the number of its students passing the bar. Capital has been the leader in that. Its programs have been copied by law schools around the country. It’s so important that legal education prepares students for that big step. Capital’s curriculum prepares you for the real practice of law. Judge Sheward: In the legal community the biggest challenge we face is we’re pricing ourselves out of the market. We have lawyers now who make $1,000 an hour, $500 an hour, what have you. That may be well and good if you’re representing GM, but if I walk in off the street and have a legal problem, I probably can’t afford most lawyers. I cannot afford to pay most of the lawyers who work before me. That is a problem on the horizon that I don’t think a lot of firms see coming. Judge McFarland: Probably the biggest challenge I see is finding good jobs for all law graduates and the hope that they find satisfaction beyond a paycheck. The economy has certainly changed the legal profession in the last 10-20 years. L AW YER

What advice would you have for current CapLaw students? Judge Taylor: Take as many clinical programs as you can. Take an opportunity to participate in an externship. With an externship, consider that you may want to choose something that has slightly less prestige but offers more hands-on personal contact with the people and the work itself. The Supreme Court offers externships, but you don’t get to sit there with the judges and decide cases. If you have real confidence about your career path, consider doing an externship that puts you on the other side of those cases. Judge Sheward: The first thing they have to understand is that law school isn’t the end; it’s the very beginning. You don’t come out knowing it all. You don’t know anything except the fundamental tools to research the law. I run into a lot of lawyers in court who probably haven’t read up on a case since they got out of law school. You’ve got to work to be successful. I see a lot of lawyers who think they shouldn’t have to work that hard. Show me the guy who is super successful and I’ll show you a guy working more than 40 hours a week. This profession gives back as much as you’re willing to give. Judge Hummer: I think they need to ask themselves, “Am I prepared to meet every day with people who are unhappy about whatever problem they have?” Nobody is going to come to you and say, “I’m happy, I want to see a lawyer.” You won’t be meeting face to face with people who have good news to report to you. Are you OK with that career? If you can say, “Yes,” then I think you will find over the long haul it is a noble calling and that you can do many good things. Judge McFarland: I had the pleasure of meeting Jack Nicklaus this summer, and one of my favorite quotes of his is, “People only do their best at things they truly enjoy.” I would encourage current law students to find what they truly enjoy in the law and seek employment there. n

Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Anne Taylor, L’79, was first elected to the bench in 1991. She was elected to her current term in 2009. Previously, she worked for the Ohio Legal Services Association, was a staff attorney for Reginald Heber Smith and worked in private practice.

Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Richard Sheward, L’74, attended law school after a stint in the U.S. Army, where he served in Vietnam and rose to the rank of captain. Before becoming a judge, he served as Assistant Franklin County Prosecuting Attorney and as co-founder of the firm Sheward & Weiner. He was elected to the Municipal Court bench in 1987 and as Common Pleas Court judge in 1990. His peers elected him presiding judge and administrative judge.

Franklin County Municipal Court Judge Mark Hummer, L’86, had a previous career as a reporter and editor for the Columbus Citizen Journal. Judge Hummer served as a bailiff and magistrate in the Municipal Court before being elected to a six-year term as judge in 2010. Judge Matt McFarland, L’92, CU’89, serves as the 4th District Court of Appeals in Portsmouth. He previously was magistrate in Scioto County Common Pleas Court’s probate/juvenile division. He also was a Scioto County assistant prosecutor and served as special counsel for the Ohio Attorney General. He had his own private practice, and worked as Licking County assistant county prosecutor.

CapLaw grad elected to W.Va. Supreme Court of Appeals Allen H. Loughry, L’98, has been elected as the newest justice for the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals. The position is a 12-year term. Loughry has practiced law as a Senior Assistant Attorney General in the West Virginia Attorney General’s Office and has argued more than 20 cases before the West Virginia Supreme Court. He also argued or filed legal pleadings in the Supreme Court of the United States, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, the United States District courts for the Southern and Northern Districts of West Virginia and Southern District of Florida, as well as various other legal forums. He served as a special assistant to a U.S. congressman and as a direct aide to a West Virginia governor. He has worked for the Ohio Supreme Court, served as a personal assistant to a county prosecutor, was appointed as a special prosecuting attorney, wrote for two newspapers and the Associated Press, and assisted with and ran various political campaigns at the local, state, and national levels. In 2006, he published “Don’t Buy Another Vote. I Won’t Pay for a Landslide,” in which he outlined political corruption in West Virginia and provided ideas to reform the state’s political system in positive ways. Loughry also has taught political science at the University of Charleston. In addition to his Capital University Law School J.D., Loughry received a doctor of juridical science (S.J.D.) from The American University, Washington College of Law; a master of laws in criminology and criminal justice (LL.M.) from the University of London; and a master of laws in law and government (LL.M.) from The American University, Washington College of Law. He also has studied at the University of Oxford and received his bachelor’s degree in journalism from West Virginia University.

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ACCESS AND OPPORTUNITY

Capital Connections

Alumni connecting with students through new program

Alumni like Nita Hanson, P’85, L’08, and Michael Bonasera, L’02, are participating in the Capital Law Connect program, which is coordinated by Shawn Beem, L’02, Director of the Office of Professional Development. The program helps students such as 2013 JD candidates Robert Dove and Lakshmi Satyanarayana connect with alumni in the legal profession. (L-R: Hanson, Dove, Beem, Satyanarayana and Bonasera.)

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“Programs like this one give alumni an opportunity to give back to the Law School and its community.”

apital University Law School is recruiting its graduates to participate in a program connecting alumni with current students for informal mentorship, career advice and insights into the legal profession. Capital Law Connect is an informal professional network launched in 2012. The program is designed to help students build and maintain relationships with alumni. The intent is to help students hone their professional networking skills and develop a stronger understanding of the legal profession. The program allows students to connect online with active alumni who have expressed a willingness to offer advice, connections within the legal community and student skill-building activities such as informational interviews. The Law School currently is building a core group of alumni willing to serve as informal mentors to these current students. “The expectations for participating alumni are very manageable,” said Shawn Beem, a 2002 CapLaw alumnus and Director of the Office of Professional Development at the Law School. “They can agree to work with just one student or as many as five. Most of the requested commitment is limited to online interactions with current students.” Beem emphasized that Capital Law Connect is not a hiring program or a formal mentorship program. It’s intended to be informal – an opportunity for making professional connections and gaining insights into the legal profession. “Programs like this one give alumni an opportunity to give back to the Law School and its community,” said alumna and program participant Nita Hanson, P’85, L’08. “Opportunities for service and leadership make students better people and better lawyers.”

Second-year student Robert Dove was an early participant in the program. “There is tremendous value for students who take advantage of Office of Professional Development programs in general, but especially programs that offer direct interaction with attorneys, such as Capital Law Connect,” Dove said. “Capital Law Connect offers students a chance to reach out to Capital alumni to build relationships and get the advice and wisdom of people who have been where we are now.” Dove said the program helps students begin to develop a legal network, which in the current job market is a vital asset. “I would really like to develop at least one relationship with a current attorney whom I could turn to for advice as I begin my legal career,” Dove said. Lakshmi Satyanarayana, another secondyear student, said she enrolled at Capital because of the reputation of the Law School’s alumni. “I hope to be able to meet more alumni and broaden my network,” she said. “Being able to network is almost as important as

having good grades in law school, and Capital Law Connect is a free resource to link with former students who may be able to share some of the same experiences I have had so far in my legal career and help guide me toward future opportunities.” The program also will be helpful to students who wish to move out of state after graduation, Satyanarayana said. “Capital Law Connect will link students with attorneys in all areas of the legal profession and will give us a first-hand experience in the legal field,” she said. “This program will help us on the way to developing our own reputations in the legal community.” Alumni interested in serving as professional connections to current students can either contact Beem in the Office of Professional Development at 614-236-6889 or fill out the online form at www.law.capital.edu/ CapitalLawConnect/. On the form, alumni can indicate the number of students they are willing to partner with, how they prefer to be contacted and some basic biographic information. n

CapLaw alum Michael Bonasera, L’02, of Dinsmore & Shohl LLP says it is critical to help future attorneys like Lakshmi Satyanarayana connect with working attorneys through efforts such as the Capital Law Connect program.

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PRACTICAL FOUNDATIONS

Letters of the Law Writing and research program a foundation of CapLaw education

Thanks to the Law School’s Legal Writing courses, first-year students like Michael Short, left, get significant one-on-one time with the program’s faculty, including Professor Risa Lazaroff, right.

tudents expect challenges at law school. Few expect those challenges to include their writing and research skills. Capital University Law School’s legal writing and research professors know that with today’s hiring market, the importance of graduating with a rock-solid arsenal of these foundational abilities has never been more critical. Some students don’t understand why writing and research are so critical – or why they are required to take these courses when they expected law school to be all about torts, contracts and criminal procedure, said Professor Scott Anderson. For Capital’s legal writing professors, the response is simple: Students who want to compete in today’s tight job market must be armed with the writing skills future 14

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employers say are critical to being practiceAt Capital, the emphasis changed in the ready attorneys. mid-1990s, when the school realized how Legal writing and research traditionally critical these foundational skills are – and have been viewed as a necessity of legal that the traditional approach to teaching education, but not a priority. Often, these research and writing was ineffective. At skills were taught by a librarian in large the time, Capital taught legal writing and groups rather than by professors with realresearch in large-section classes of 90 world legal experience. Professor Scott Anderson, right, says the Legal Writing “The attitude toward faculty is committed to ensuring students like Daniel Sell teaching research and and Crystal Moncada have the critical writing, research writing has changed draand legal drafting skills employers demand. matically over time,” said Professor Risa Lazaroff. “Years ago, many schools did not teach research and writing. The attitude was that if these students are smart enough to pass their doctrinal courses, they are smart enough to figure out research and writing when they get into practice.”

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“I tell my drafting students all the time, ‘This is the class where you take one step out of the study of law and put one foot into the practice of law.’” students. As faculty realized the importance of these skills to employers, the number of legal writing professors increased and the size of the classes became smaller. Today, the classes hover around 25 students – which allows professors to invest the level of personal attention and relationship-building necessary to teach writing effectively. “The most important thing is one-onone, individualized face time, and we do so much of that in our classes,” Lazaroff said. “That’s really how you make people better writers. Our writing faculty is incredibly invested in what we do.” The students appreciate that personalized attention, she said. “We give negative feedback to students all year long, yet our faculty has some of the highest student evaluations in the building. Why is that? I think students appreciate the one-on-one time. They see the progress they’re making, as painful as it may be.” This focus on foundational skills – writing, research and drafting – pays dividends for students after graduation. It also aligns with Capital University Law School’s emphasis on producing practice-ready lawyers. “Have you ever seen one ad for an attorney position that does not have as one of its first requirements legal research and writing skills? Those skills are critical,” Lazaroff said. Where employers were once willing to take new graduates on and teach them these basic skills, today’s legal profession expects new hires to come armed with these abilities. Employers don’t want to invest in an apprenticeship program for newly minted lawyers. With today’s tight hiring market, recent graduates must have these skills when they graduate or they won’t be competitive. Another important innovation from the Law School was development of the legal drafting program in 2004. The program was created as a bar-passage initiative, but has developed into something much bigger.

The focus on legal writing has increased over the years to where law schools are making it a priority in legal education. At Capital, that means plenty of individualized attention from faculty for students like Crystal Moncada. “Capital was on the cusp of this trend,” Anderson said. “Before schools had required third-year upper-level classes, we had a drafting class. Before there were different forms of drafting – civil, contract and criminal – we were offering those classes. This school realized early on that there is a need for that kind of writing expertise integrated across the curriculum.” Today, Capital has drafting courses in civil litigation, transactional law and criminal law – an unusually wide breadth of offerings for a law school. The courses focus on the kinds of real-world writing attorneys do for their clients. “I tell my drafting students all the time, ‘This is the class where you take one step out of the study of law and put one foot into the practice of law,’” Anderson said. “We’re not talking about how to interpret cases. We’re talking about how to represent clients. I think the reason our students are ready to hit the ground running is because, in that respect, we THE

have shifted from a casebook to a client orientation.” In the end, the legal writing professors are far more than grouchy grammarians. They are instrumental in teaching students how to think – and work – like attorneys. “There are really two components to writing: thinking and writing,” Lazaroff said. “We always tell our drafting students that good thinking equals good writing.” At the end of the day, the students are not only more prepared, but they’re more appreciative of the individualized efforts the legal writing professors have invested in them. “Students appreciate us long after they are no longer our students,” Lazaroff said. “They don’t like legal writing when they’re in it, because it’s so demanding and it’s so much work. After the fact, when they’re in their first jobs, they appreciate how much they’ve learned from us and how much they know. I think we do a really good job of training them.” n

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STUDENTS’ JOURNEYS

Midterm Review

Year two opens door to real-world experiences

here comes a point in every journey where the finish line is closer than the starting block. That point is fast arriving for four Capital University Law School students.

Accustomed to pushing herself, Woods tackled a challenging summer schedule that she admits in retrospect was “a little much.” It included an eight-week externship at Ohio’s State Employment Relations Board (SERB) and two demanding courses. At SERB, she explored her interest in employment law, attending administrative hearings and writing reports, which she tackled with relish. “These weren’t just hypothetical problems; they were real. It makes a big difference.” Woods’ interest in employment law stems from personal as well as classroom experience. “As a person with a disability, I’ve faced discrimination and seen friends face it as well, so that’s where my interest started. I took a class in employment law in undergrad and it got me hooked.” She also plans to explore laws regarding gender discrimination through coursework, a second externship and involvement in the school’s Labor and Employment Law Association. She’s confident she’s on the right path. “This was the right decision for me, and I’m beginning to see that, yeah, I’m really going to be an attorney. It’s a great feeling.”

Second-year students Joe Arnold, Jessica Doogan, Demi Johnson and Jennifer Woods have begun diversifying their experience through externships, part-time jobs and student organizations. “At around the halfway point, after a few semesters, students generally begin to see that their dreams of becoming attorneys really are within reach,” said Rachel Janutis, Associate Dean of Academic Affairs. “It’s exciting to see that shift in their thinking, from ‘Can I do this?’ to ‘I’m doing this!’”

•••••

“My confidence in myself has really grown,” said Jennifer Woods. “I came in thinking maybe I can do this, but not being really sure. Now I am sure; I know it’s for me.” With her guide dog, Beacon, supplementing her limited vision, Woods has learned her away around a new school and a city she’d visited only once, having relocated from Florida. A few obstacles notwithstanding – including Ohio’s icy winter sidewalks – both Woods and Beacon have found their way.

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Instead of an externship, Demi Johnson opted to clerk with the Legal Aid Society of Columbus. In the volunteer resource center, attorneys are matched with cases on a pro bono basis. “I wore a lot of hats,” she said. Johnson performed intake interviews and wrote Demi Johnson summaries of cases that came in, then matched attorneys with clients. “Usually, the turnaround time on cases was very quick,” she said, noting that many of the cases involved eviction. “We’d get a call the day of the hearing or a few days in advance, so I had to find someone very quickly who’d take the case.”

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Working with the volunteer attorneys gave Johnson many networking opportunities. “We did a lot of brown bag lunches where we’d have lunch with the in-house counsel or one of the actual volunteers in the volunteer resource center,” she said. “My position was very advantageous because it gave me the opportunity to have one-on-one contact with them.” In fact, Johnson found the experience so enjoyable that she continues to work there, putting in as many hours as possible while balancing her course load and other interests. One of those interests, the law fraternity Phi Alpha Delta, turned into a leadership opportunity when she assumed the role of Vice Justice this year. She’s also a peer advisor to a group of first-year students and was appointed communication chair for the Student Bar Association. “I’m very intentional about exposing myself to all kinds of things,” she said. “I’ve definitely found out a lot about myself in terms of what works for me and what doesn’t. I’m excited to see what happens next.”

•••••

For Jessica Doogan, law school is flying by. “I’ve been crazy busy; maybe that’s why.” No stranger to being “crazy busy,” Doogan routinely pushes herself to achieve. In addition to summer coursework, she externed with Franklin County Commissioner Paula Brooks, which resulted in a paid position. “I did mostly policy research,” she said, “researching the powers the county government has, what it can do and can’t do. It was all new to me, and I really enjoyed it.” Commissioner Brooks, a 1983 CapLaw graduate herself, nurtured Doogan’s interest in the office’s work, and also made sure she had plenty of networking opportunities during the busy campaign season. “Commissioner Brooks made sure that if she was going to an event with lawyers, I was with her. She was fantastic. I don’t think I could’ve had a better first experience.”

Doogan also worked as a site coordinator for the Law and Leadership Institute, a statewide non-profit that promotes diversity in the legal field by providing programming for underserved high school students. Her group included 27 rising high school freshmen, for whom she helped facilitate five classroom hours a day and field trips to the Ohio Supreme Court, the Statehouse and the Attorney General’s office. The students’ culminating event was a mock trial competition. “I’m amazed that they have an idea that they want to be lawyers at such a young age,” Doogan said. “Some of them say they’ve known since they were five, and they tell you why they’d be good at it. They’re just incredible. ” Having worked as a paralegal in a family law firm before law school, Doogan assumed she’d focus on family law but, with experience, she’s weighing other options. “I see myself in public service more than I would have a year ago. I had the impression that the only thing you could do in the public sector was criminal law, in legal aid or the public defender’s office. But there’s a civil division in each of those places; you don’t get those nuances until you see it in action.” Halfway through law school, Doogan is beginning to see the reality on the horizon. “Thinking about what I’ll be doing this summer, looking for a clerkship, I realized this is the last summer before I’ll be a licensed attorney. “It’s like, wow, this is going to happen.”

•••••

Joe Arnold spent his summer at a paid internship at Nationwide Insurance in Columbus, immersing himself in corporate law, his major area of interest. “I really like the advisory role the attorneys are in, doing research, becoming educated on different subjects and areas of the law, then making recommendations to mitigate risks.” He’s secured a second internship with the Nationwide team for

L-R: Jessica Doogan, Joseph Arnold and Jennifer Woods. summer 2013, and hopes to home in on several specific areas of interest. Upcoming coursework in corporate tax, business associations and privacy also will deepen his understanding of corporate law. Arnold also has externed with Justice Robert Cupp at the Ohio Supreme Court, a completely different environment from that at Nationwide. “I wrote a lot of briefs, summarized different filings of the court, drafted opinions. It was a great opportunity, especially because the feedback I got was individualized. Here, and at Nationwide, I got to sit down with practicing attorneys and get their feedback one-on-one. It’s real world.” Writing a note for law review is consuming Arnold’s extra time right now, a process that’s demanding but that offers him the research opportunities he enjoys. Using a recently decided case, students who write notes perform exhaustive research, check citations, write, and re-write to analyze how

the issue affects the body of the law going forward. At the same time, Arnold is working at the public defender’s office, focusing on a research project examining the way capital punishment is administered in Ohio. He examines capital indictments, pulling out demographic information on offenders and victims, as well as aggravating circumstances around the crime, assembling a database of information for use in future policy making. Arnold averages 10 hours a week with both the public defender and the Ohio Supreme Court. “It’s a lot,” he agreed, but he remains committed to “setting aside school” in the evenings so he can spend time with his wife, Katie. “I just try to get in to the library around 4:30 or 5 in the morning to work.” Looking forward, he’s happy with his progress. “I’m getting good experience, building good contacts, networking and really enjoying the work. “I’m thrilled with where I’m at right now.” n

“This was the right decision for me, and I’m beginning to see that, yeah, I’m really going to be an attorney.” THE

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LAWYERS AND LEADERS

Alumni Awards

Capital University Law School to honor alumni Editor’s note: Complete biographies of this year’s winners can be found at www.law.capital.edu/AlumniAwards.

ive Capital University Law School alumni and a program critical to Capital’s bar passage success will be honored at the Law Alumni Association’s Eighth Annual Alumni Recognition Luncheon. The event will be at noon Friday, April 12, at the Sheraton Columbus Hotel at Capitol Square, 75 E. State St. Tickets are $45 per person or $450 for a table of 10. More than 300 alumni and friends of the Law School are expected to attend.

James R. Havens, a 1981 Capital University Law School graduate and 1978 Capital University alumnus, will receive the Josiah H. Blackmore II Dean’s Award, which recognizes outstanding service to the Law School and the Dean’s Office. Havens, a member of the Capital University Board of Trustees, founded Havens Limited in 1981. He represents and litigates for title companies, developers, management companies, construction firms, sellers, buyers and lenders involved in real estate. In 1984 he founded Cardinal Title Insurance Agency and remains the company’s president and owner. Havens is a managing general partner of various real estate development, construction and management entities, which own and operate numerous Central Ohio commercial real estate investments. His contributions to Capital University Law School are extensive. He and his wife created and funded the James R. & Maureen K. Havens Professor of Law Fund in support of the Sullivan Professorship. He is a former member of the Law School’s Board 18

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of Counselors; has been a proponent of a recently approved course at Capital in shale, oil and gas law; and has been an active supporter of initiatives in the organization.

ate, will receive the Distinguished Alumnus of the Year Award. The award recognizes alumni for significant achievements in the legal field and notable contributions to the profession, community and Capital University Law School. Mote is executive director of the Ohio Lawyers’ Assistance Program, a non-profit organization that educates members of the legal profession about substance abuse, chemical dependency and mental illness. OLAP also provides advice about treatment alternatives, performs interventions, provides support and monitors recovery. Mote, who struggled with alcoholism earlier in his career, began volunteering with the Ohio State Bar Association’s Lawyer’s Assistance Committee in 1985. OLAP evolved from that committee. Mote became OLAP’s first associate director in 1995 and

became executive director in 1999. In 2006, Mote received OSBA’s highest award to the legal profession, the Ohio Bar Medal. In 2010, OSBA presented him with the Eugene R. Weir Award for Ethics and Professionalism. He received the Columbus Bar Association’s Award of Merit in 2005. The Hon. Anne Taylor, a 1979 Capital University Law School graduate, will receive the Alumni Outstanding Service Award. The award is presented to a graduate who has performed significant voluntary service, beyond the call of business or professional duty, to the community and/or Capital University Law School. Taylor is a board member of the Capital University Law School Alumni Association and is the longest-serving judge on the Franklin County Municipal Court, where she was elected in 1991, 1997, 2003 and 2009. She is chair of the Court Appointed Counsel Committee. She has served as a member of the Civil Law and Procedure Committee for the Ohio Judicial Conference; the Colum-

James R. Havens

Scott R. Mote

Scott R. Mote, a 1977 Law School gradu-

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The Hon. Anne Taylor

Sandra R. McIntosh

Lindsay Ford Ellis

bus Bar Association Professional Ethics and Grievance Committee; the Columbus Zoo Board; Friends of the Homeless; and Special Ties. She was president of the Franklin Inns of Court from 1995-97, was included in “Who’s Who of American Women 1997-98” and was one of the Columbus Jaycees’ Ten Outstanding Young Citizens in 1992. She received her bachelor’s degree from The Ohio State University.

at Bricker & Eckler LLP, and a judicial extern for the Hon. James L. Graham, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Ohio. She received her bachelor’s degree in business administration from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, in 1999, graduating with a double major in human resource management and organizational behavior.

and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. Ellis also is active in the community, serving on the Eldon and Elsie Ward YMCA Advisory Board, on the CATCO board, and as an African American Leadership Academy Fellow, Cycle 6. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan in 2003.

Sandra R. McIntosh, a 2004 Capital University Law School graduate cum laude and member of the Capital University Law School Alumni Board since 2006, will receive The Young Alumnus of the Year Award. The award recognizes a CapLaw graduate born after July 1, 1972, who has made significant achievements in his or her legal occupation and has made notable contributions to the legal profession and community. McIntosh has been with the firm of Freund, Freeze & Arnold, LPA, since graduating from Capital in 2004. She was promoted to shareholder in 2009. McIntosh focuses on school law, business and commercial litigation, and the defense of employment, medical malpractice and personal injury claims. Prior to joining Freund, Freeze & Arnold, she was a law clerk in the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel, a law clerk

Lindsay Ford Ellis, a 2007 Capital University Law School graduate, will receive the Graduate of the Last Decade Award. The award is presented to CapLaw alumni who have made significant achievements in their occupation and have made notable contributions to the legal profession and/or the Law School. Ellis is a judicial attorney to Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor and currently serves as president of the Capital University Law School African American Law Alumni Association, where she actively mentors current students. She also is membership chair of the John Mercer Langston Bar Association’s Board of Directors and a member of the Ohio State Bar Association and Columbus Bar Association. Before her current position, Ellis was an associate attorney at Crabbe, Brown & James LLP, focusing on civil litigation, insurance defense and contracts. She is authorized to practice in all courts in the state, including the Ohio Supreme Court THE

The Capital University Law School Advanced Bar Studies program will receive the second annual Impact Award. The award will be accepted by the program’s creator, Professor Yvonne Twiss. The Impact Award is given annually to the Capital University Law School program or person that contributed most to the legal development and career of the person making the nomination. The ABS program has played an integral role in Capital University Law School’s successful bar performance in recent years. The Law School consistently ranks near the top of the list of Ohio’s nine law schools for the percentage of its graduates who pass the Ohio Bar on their first attempt. During the past five years, 90 percent of Capital’s students have passed on their first attempt. The program’s design has been so effective that it has served as a model for similar programs at other law schools across the country. n

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LAWYERS AND LEADERS

Hall of Honor

Law School honors three with 2012 induction

apital University Law School inducted three alumni who have had a significant impact on the school and the legal profession into its Hall of Honor Oct. 18. This year’s honorees were a former dean, the Hon. John W. McCormac; Professor Emerita Jean A. Mortland; and the Law School’s first female graduate, Esther H. Brocker. The Hall of Honor is the highest level of recognition awarded by the Law School. It is housed in a prominent location on the second floor of the building. Those selected for the Capital University Law School Hall of Honor are individuals who have profoundly influenced the Law School and reached and remained at the pinnacle of their fields for a period of time that demonstrates perseverance and maturation.

Esther H. Brocker, L’26 Principal in Lancaster, Ohio, law firm Attended Ohio University; LL.B., Columbus School of Law, 1926

The Hon. John W. McCormac, Jean A. Mortland, L’64 L’61, H’86

Professor Emerita

Professor and Dean

B.S., The Ohio State University, 1952; LL.B., Franklin University Law School, 1964; LL.M., New York University, 1969

B.S., Muskingum College, 1951; LL.B., Franklin University Law School, 1961 Professor of Law (1965-1971) Administrative Dean (1965-66) Dean, (1966-71) Served as Administrative Dean when the Law School moved from Franklin University’s YMCA location to Capital University in Bexley (1966) • Earned approval for Law School to offer juris doctor degrees (1967) • Earned ABA approval to launch full-time day program (1969) • Created Capital University’s paralegal program (1972) • Created Night Prosecutor Program, the foundation of the Center for Dispute Resolution (1971) • Implemented Capital’s first Law Review (1972) • Served as Judge of 10th District Court of Appeals (1975-93) • Received Outstanding Service in Law and Government Award, the highest honor from Ohio State Bar Association (1984) • Received Bar Service Medal, the highest honor from the Columbus Bar Association (1992)

Professor, 1965-98 First female tenured professor at the Law School (1965) • Served as the Law School’s first librarian (1965) • Published extensively in the areas of real property, insurance, land transactions and conflicts of laws • Editor of the ABA’s Real Property, Probate and Trust Journal (1982-87) • Received the Nettie Cronise Lutes Award from the Ohio State Bar Association (1998) • Chaired the OSBA’s Uniform State Laws Committee and the Capital Significant Probate Trust Decisions Committee • Vice chaired the ABA’s Brokers and Brokerage Committee

Trail Blazer Community Servant and Leader Role Model First female graduate of the Law School (1926) • Served two terms as Solicitor for City of Lancaster, Ohio (1932-36) • Started her own law firm in Lancaster (1926), practicing as an attorney until age 83 in 1972 • Served as director of the Fairfield County YWCA (1930s) • Served on numerous community boards, including Salvation Army Advisory Board, Franklin County Board of Visitors and Quota Club • Elected vice president of Fairfield County Bar Association (1960) • Honored by Capital University with scholarship created in her name (2012) 20

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Esther H. Brocker

The Hon. John W. McCormac

Jean A. Mortland

Read the Hall of Honor inductees’ whole stories at www.law.capital.edu/HallofHonorPastRecipients/ L AW YER

Similar Paths

Teacher, student join forces for election campaign

obert “Shawn” Stratton was a smart, likeable teenager in the early 1990s when he took a calculus class that would result in a close friendship, parallel experiences and a surprising role reversal with his teacher. Years later, Stratton would be a vital force for his teacher and mentor, Jerry Buckler, L’96, in winning a difficult election for the Scioto County Court of Common Pleas, Domestic Relations Court Judge. The paths Buckler and Stratton took from a small high school to a successful judicial election involved both men overcoming the challenges of juggling family, full-time employment and school – with the added pressure of driving 90 miles from Portsmouth three nights a week to attend Capital University Law School’s evening program. Their story began when, as a teacher of advanced mathematics, Buckler decided to attend law school and achieve his dream of working in politics. “The law school bug hit me hard,” he recalls. “I chose to attend the evening program at Capital because I had to support my young, growing family.” After four years of travel, study and commitment, Buckler received his JD in 1996. Through the years, Stratton and Buckler remained close friends. Stratton’s own plans of attending law school after college didn’t seriously materialize until after he was diagnosed with cancer. The stunning news motivated him to enroll at Capital. Now 32 years old, with a young family and his cancer in remission, Stratton is following in the footsteps of his teacher and mentor, making the long drive along the same route Buckler once took to Columbus – and Capital. Stratton is a 4L evening

Robert Stratton

Hon. Jerry L. Buckler

student who anticipates graduating in May 2013. With all that in common, it might not be surprising that the two members of the CapLaw family joined forces last year to help Buckler attain his political aspirations. After 16 years in private practice, he decided to run for election as the Domestic Relations Judge in Scioto County’s Court of Common Pleas. He knew he didn’t have the name recognition to win on his own – and looked to Stratton for help in managing his campaign. The two men attended every event they could find in Scioto County, stumping tirelessly to promote Buckler for judge. “Shawn was invaluable to the campaign, going door-to-door and even bringing along

his little boy on the campaign trail. Who could say no to a small, cute child with those big eyes?” Buckler said. With his former student managing his campaign, Buckler carried a healthy election win for a six-year term. Notably, he is the first Democrat to win the seat in more than 20 years. What’s next for Stratton? Graduate, pass the bar, hang out his shingle, build a custom-made house for his family – and maybe follow once again in Buckler’s footsteps. “Maybe I’ll run for county prosecutor,” he says, laughing. “There are so many similarities between what Jerry’s done and what I’ve done, I can only hope they continue!” n

“I chose to attend the evening program at Capital because I had to support my young, growing family.” THE

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GIVING BACK

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he Dean’s Circle recognizes donors whose annual charitable support of Capital University Law School totals $1,000 or more. On behalf of the students, faculty and staff, Dean Richard C. Simpson gratefully acknowledges the extraordinary generosity of these 109 donors who collectively contributed $1,077,945 from July 1, 2011, through June 30, 2012. The recognition societies of the Dean’s Circle and cumulative Dean’s Council are named in honor of those who served as permanent deans during the Law School’s first 100 years.

Dean John W. McCormac Society $50,000 and up Anthem Foundation of Ohio The Center for Family Safety and Health Dr. Robert J., Sr. (L’83, H’05)* & Mrs. Missy Weiler

Dean John Elbert Sater Society $25,000 - $49,999 Mr. Thomas R. Baruch (L’67) Porter Wright Morris & Arthur / Hubert A. & Gladys C. Estabrook Charitable Trust Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption

Dean Rodney K. Smith Society $10,000 - $24,999 Mr. David P. (L’95, T’96) & Mrs. Melora L. (CU’94) Meyer Mr. Sanford Shkolnik (L’65) Mr. Ronald F. (L’77) & Mrs. Janet B. Shuff Mr. R. Scott Spriggs (L’81) Mr. Robert J., Jr. (CU’63, L’71) & Mrs. Constance Woodward

Dean Waymon B. McLeskey Society $5,000 - $9,999 Mrs. Joyce A. Blackmore (H’88) Mrs. Mary C. Frutchey (in memoriam) Mr. Gary W. (L’80) & Mrs. Terry Hammond Mr. James R. (CU’78, L’81) & Mrs. Maureen K. Havens Kegler, Brown, Hill & Ritter Co, LPA Mr. Robert W. Karpsack (L’87) Ms. Georgeann G. Peters (L’83) Mr. Stephen L. Peterson (L’74) Mr. Samuel B. (L’73) & Mrs. Frances M. Weiner (CU’94) Mrs. Jo Ellen Diehl Yeary (L’80) Mr. Fred P. (L’58) & Mrs. Nancy K. Zimmer

Dean John E. Sullivan Society $2,500 - $4,999 Baker & Hostetler LLP Mr. Douglas B. Brown (L’85)

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Mr. J. Miles (L’78) & Mrs. Ronna Gibson Professor Susan M. Gilles* & Mr. Kent R. Markus Honda of America Mfg., Inc. Ms. Barbara J. Lucks (L’76) Ms. Jane L. Miller (L’76) Ms. Kathy A. Olson (L’77) Mr. Harley E. Rouda, Jr. (L’87) & Ms. Kaira Sturdivant-Rouda Dean Richard C.* & Mrs. Susan A. Simpson Professor Floyd D. Weatherspoon* & Mrs. Stephanie V. Jones-Weatherspoon

1903 Dean William Dustin Corn Founders Society $1,903 - $2,499

Bricker & Eckler LLP Mr. Lawrence J. Hotchkiss (CU’75, L’79) Mr. Nicholas A. (L’70, H’01) & Mrs. Susan E. Pittner

Dean’s Circle $1,000 - $1,902 Mr. James D. Abrams (L’03) Mr. Andrew J. (L’90) & Mrs. Julia H. Art AT&T Ohio Bailey Cavalieri LLC Mr. John E. Ballow (L’84) Barnes & Thornburg LLP Professor James R. Beattie, Jr.* Mr. Shawn M. Beem (L’02)* & Mr. Michael E. Jones Benchmark Bank Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP Assistant Dean Teresa J. Black* Mrs. Terri T. (L’91)* & Mr. Thomas S. Botsko Mr. Bruce H. Burkholder (L’80) Carpenter Lipps & Leland LLP Mr. John J., Jr. (L’89) & Mrs. Judy H. Chester Columbus Bar Foundation Professor Stanton G., II* & Mrs. Julie A. Carroll Darling (P’87, L’96) Mr. William G. Deadman (L’77)

Professor Michael (CU’71, L’76)* & Mrs. Barbara A. (CU’71) Distelhorst Mr. Mark A. Engel (L’79, T’90) Ms. Lisa L. (L’87)* & Mr. Stephen L. Eschleman Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. Mr. Qiangguo Fu (T’94) Mr. Philip J. Fulton (L’80)* Mr. Michael A. (L’85) & Mrs. Ellen T. Goldstein Professor Myron C.* & Mrs. Grazyna Grauer Professor Jack A. Guttenberg* & Stephanie L. Cartwright Mr. David W. (L’76) & Mrs. Monica E. (L’78) Hardymon Mr. Daniel G. (L’86) & Mrs. Joan H. Hilson Mr. James M. Hughes (L’94) Mr. James K. Hunter III (L’73) Mr. Michael C. (CU’74, L’79) & Mrs. Randi C. (CU’75) Jones Mr. Michael S. (L’97) & Mrs. Suzanne L. (L’97) Jordan Mr. Eric R. Keller (L’95) Mr. Jon F. (L’76) & Mrs. Lynn A. Kelly Mrs. Sylvia Y. Kravitz Mr. Edward L. Kropp (L’78) Hon. Teresa L. Liston (L’81) Professor Susan E.* & Mr. David Looper-Friedman Mr. Jonathan W. Marshall (L’70) Mr. J. Thomas Mason (L’84) Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Dennis M. (L’75) & Mrs. Rosemary McCarthy Professor Lorie L. McCaughan (L’96)* Mr. Arthur G. Meyer (L’82) Ms. Anne L. Meyers (L’77) Assistant Dean Linda J.* & Mr. Kim A. Mihely Professor Emeritus Roberta S. Mitchell (L’72) Mr. Scott R. (L’77) & Mrs. Gretchen K. (CU’75, L’78) Mote Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co. Mr. Steven S. Nolder (L’87) Ohio State Bar Association Mr. David K. Rudov (L’81)

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Mr. Scott W. Schiff (L’82) Mr. Christopher R. Schraff* Mr. Merlyn D. Shiverdecker (L’72) Mr. Bradley K. Sinnott (L’86) Ms. Cynthia R. Snyder (L’84) Mr. Jeffrey S. Standley (L’88) Mr. Robert B. Stein (L’81) Assistant Dean John H.* & Mrs. Deborah M. Strick Mr. Mark A. & Mrs. Victoria B. Tanaka Mr. David H. (L’66) & Mrs. Mary C. Tannenbaum Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP Tax Executives Institute, Inc. Thompson Hine LLP Wiles, Boyle, Burkholder & Bringardner Co. LPA Mr. John C. (L’80) & Mrs. Diane Vorys Vorys, Sater, Seymour & Pease LLP

Gold Society (Graduates of the last decade) $500 - $999 Mrs. Debra L. Auten-Schrader (L’06) & Mr. Matthew L. Schrader* Ms. Christine L. (L’10) & William T. Liberto Ms. LeeAnn M. Massucci (L’02) & Ms. Lori J. Brown Mr. Shane M. Powell (L’03) & Mrs. Jaime T. Landrum Powell (L’03) Mr. Dennis V. Yacobozzi, II (CU’99, L’03) & Ms. Eleana Drakatos (L’03)

Notes: * Represents a member of the Capital University Law School Faculty, Adjunct Faculty or Administration. L: Law School graduate H: Honorary degree recipient U: Recipient of an undergraduate degree from C Capital University. P: Paralegal certificate from Capital University Law School T: LL.M. graduate

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MILESTONES

True Grit

Brocker was Law School’s first female graduate

or every road that exists today, someone was the first to pave the way.

The path Esther H. Brocker, L’26, created while working to become the Law School’s first female graduate started in Lancaster, Ohio, in the 1920s and was built traveling back and forth to Columbus, three nights a week, over a four-year period. It was followed by a lengthy legal career that extended well into her 80s. It could not have been an easy road. Brocker was born April 21, 1883, in Lancaster, Ohio. By age 17, she was making money as a dressmaker. She was married in 1902, and her first child, Mary, was born and died in 1909. Her only living child, John W. Brocker, was born in 1911. By 1916, Brocker was a single mother, working as secretary of the Hermann Manufacturing Company in Lancaster and assistant treasurer of the Hermann Tire Building and Machine Co. She then worked as secretary in the Deffenbaugh Law Offices in Lancaster. She also worked for the Department of Defense in Cleveland during World War I.

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In the early 1920s, Brocker made a bold choice for a woman and single mother of that time: She decided to go to law school. So, from 1922 to 1926, she made a 30-mile journey on the interurban trolley to attend classes at Columbus School of Law, a predecessor of Capital University Law School. After 664 trips and nearly 40,000 miles, “through all kinds of weather and all degrees of darkness,” she became the Law School’s first female graduate on June 9, 1926, at age 42. “Perseverance brings its reward,” a 1926 article from the Columbus Dispatch article read. “At least that’s what Mrs. Esther (Brocker) of Lancaster, Ohio, believes. She will be graduated from the college of law of the Columbus Y.M.C.A. schools at the annual commencement of the Y.M.C.A. college, scheduled for Wednesday night.” All accounts reflect she was a woman who possessed true grit. “She was a really strong-willed woman,” said Anne Brocker, Esther Brocker’s granddaughter-in-law. “She was ahead of her time.” Esther Brocker had attended St. Mary’s High School in Lancaster and for some

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time attended Ohio University in Athens. She enrolled in law school at a time when the American Bar Association’s recommended minimum standards for admission were two years of college work and three years of law studies. Brocker excelled, despite being the only woman in the all-male law school. “When a touchy subject came up during class, something they felt a woman should not hear, Esther was made to leave the classroom and the class would discuss it without her,” her great-granddaughter, Amy Brocker, said in a December 1998 newspaper article. “Then, afterwards, a classmate would have to explain to her what they talked about.” Esther Brocker’s trips between Lancaster and Columbus were filled with their own challenges. Anne Brocker recalls hearing the story that on one evening trip home Esther, a Catholic, saw a cross burning near the interurban tracks. The trolley was boarded by members of the Ku Klux Klan, looking for Catholics. Another passenger rose to her defense, and the Klansmen left her alone. Another night she was on her way home when she saw a fire at The Hermann Manufacturing building. Esther rushed home, got her keys, and went into the burning building to save important documents from her office. After graduating, Brocker stayed in Lancaster and opened a successful private law practice, handling criminal cases and probate work. Her first office was above a bank in Lancaster; later, she would move her law offices to one-half of the house in which she had lived with her parents. She served two terms as Lancaster’s city solicitor, and was elected vice president of the Fairfield County Bar Association in 1960. Anne Brocker described Esther as a short woman who – with her business suits, purse over her arm and penchant for hats – reminder her of England’s Queen Elizabeth II.

“To me, she was always a business woman. I never saw her in anything but a suit,” Anne Brocker said. “She was always a woman people respected. You never thought of her as a housewife. You always thought of her as a lawyer.” Brocker was not the first woman to attend Columbus School of Law. Other women had taken classes starting in 1918, 15 years after the YMCA opened the school in 1903 with a mission of making a legal education available to everyone, regardless of race, gender or background. But Brocker was the first woman to finish her classes and earn a law school diploma, along with nine male classmates. During the next 30 years, women would represent about 10 percent of the law school graduates. She worked as an attorney until age 83, and died in 1972 at age 88 at a nursing home near Lancaster. “When she died, at the funeral, I think every attorney in town was there,” Anne Brocker said. Esther Brocker’s legacy lives on at Capital University Law School in the form of a new endowed fund, the Esther H. Brocker Scholarship Fund. The goal for the fund, started with a $4,660 initial donation from Jane L. Miller, L’76, is to raise $25,000 by 2017 to fund scholarships for upper-class female students based on merit and demonstrated need. Until then, the school’s Women’s Law Association plans to provide funding to award modest scholarships. In addition, Law School graduate and member of the Board of Counselors Georgeann G. Peters, L’83, has approved the creation of a significant scholarship fund in support of the Brocker Fund. The Georgann G. Peters Women’s Law Scholarship was established with the commitment of a $5,000 contribution during each of the next five years. In addition to the scholarship fund, leaders at the Law School are working

“She was a really strong-willed woman. She was ahead of her time.” with the Women’s Law Association to flesh out details on a possible annual program and reception in Brocker’s name to honor female CapLaw graduates and those who have had a significant impact on the legal profession. The program would be similar in nature to the tremendously successful David D. White Scholarship, which supTHE

ports CapLaw’s African-American students. That program was named for White, L’31, the first African-American graduate of the Law School and the first African-American licensed to practice law in Columbus. The endowment for the White Scholarship represents the largest current named endowment for the Law School. n

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FOR THE RECORD

Capital University Law School alumni are leaders in local and national law firms, Fortune

500 companies, government and public interest, and countless other professions. Here’s an update of what your classmates have been doing. Send us your own updates by emailing us at alumni@law.capital.edu.

Darren Sudman, L’95, was appointed Executive Director of Simon’s Fund, a non-profit organization dedicated to preventing childhood death by sudden cardiac arrest. Kimberly J. Brown, L’95, was elected Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge.

Richard S. Gerber

Sherri Bevan Walsh

Jeff Cantanzarite

Jerry L. Buckler, L’96, was elected Judge of the Scioto County Common Pleas Court, Domestic Relations Division, in November 2012. He and his wife, Lisa, live in Lucasville and are the parents of two college students. Allen H. Loughry, L’98, was elected Justice for the West Virginia Supreme Court.

2000s Terri Jamison, L’04, was elected Franklin County Domestic Relations and Juvenile Court Judge.

Jerry L. Buckler

Allen H. Loughry

David M. Plesich

Mike Schaffner, L’05, has joined Chicago’s Lincoln Park Zoo as Institutional Grants Manager. He manages all foundation and government giving activities and serves as the zoo’s primary liaison with the public and private foundation community. David M. Plesich, L’06, was promoted to lieutenant by the Hilliard Division of Police. Plesich also has a private practice that focuses on family law and criminal defense and teaches constitutional law classes at the Ohio Peace Officer Training Academy. Curtis L. Baker, L’06, was promoted to sergeant by the Hilliard Division of Police. Heather Mann, L’08, who has served as Deputy Legal Counsel since 2011 at the Ohio House of Representatives, also has been appointed to serve as Deputy Policy Director.

Curtis L. Baker

J. Bradley Leach

1980s Susan Hayden, L’81, and James Liekar, L’82, were awarded Second Place People’s Choice in “Dancing with the Celebrities of Pittsburgh.” The event benefitted Catholic Charities Free Health Care Center and Kiwanis Club of Pittsburgh. Richard S. Gerber, L’84, recently joined Carlile Patchen & Murphy LLP as a partner. Sherri Bevan Walsh, L’85, was re-elected Summit County Prosecutor in November 2012. 26

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Genevieve Anderson

Dale Black-Pennington, L’89, was recently appointed Administrative Law Judge with the U.S. Social Security Administration.

1990s Patricia Marino-Pedraza, L’90, was re-elected in August to a second term as a County Court Judge in Miami, Fla. She is assigned to the Civil Division in Coral Gables. Jeff Cantanzarite, L’94, who currently practices in Franklin Park, Pa., recently became a Sport Clips Inc. franchise co-owner with his wife, Lisa.

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Brian Mannal, L’08, was elected State Representative of the 2nd Barnstable District in the Massachusetts House of Representatives. Gina Prescott, L’11, and her husband, Jeff, welcomed their first child, Theodore. They live in Durham, N.C. Jared Erb, L’11, joined the Washington County (Ohio) Prosecuting Attorney’s Office as Assistant Prosecutor. J. Bradley Leach, L’12, joined Luper Neidenthal & Logan, LPA, to practice primarily in real estate, foreclosure and business litigation. Genevieve Anderson, L’12, has joined Freund, Freeze & Arnold, LPA, as an associate.

8 QUESTIONS WITH...

JERRY O. ALLEN, a 1984 Capital University Law School graduate, 1975 Capital University graduate and partner at Bricker & Eckler LLP, has been selected to be the 2013 David D. White Award recipient. Given your other professional achievements, what significance would you place on receiving the David D. White Award? I view the honor of receiving the David D. White Award as one of my most prized accomplishments. No one knows you better than your family and your colleagues, and when they determine that you’ve done some good things that deserve recognition, it is very special. I can’t say enough how appreciative I am that my colleagues saw fit to present me with this wonderful award. As the Law School’s first African-American graduate and first African-American licensed to practice in Columbus, David D. White overcame many challenges. What do you see as the primary challenges facing African-American lawyers in 2012? We face challenges on many fronts. Professionally, we see challenges in filling the pipeline for African-American law students, as well as having adequate job opportunities for law school graduates. In addition, the debt that is associated with law school today is incredible. We also continue to be underrepresented in the legal profession. We have made some significant strides since I began practicing, but there is still a lot of work to do, especially in law firms and in corporate law offices, to provide the opportunities needed to make the profession reflective of the diverse composition of our society. What do you see as the unique challenges facing African-American law school students today? As I mentioned, the cost of law school and the debt burden being borne by law students is staggering. It has never been inexpensive, but the expense is almost prohibitive today. In addition, because our economy has been sputtering, employment opportunities are a huge challenge. You have continued to support the Law School since your graduation, including serving on the AALAA board and being a financial contributor. Why is such continued engagement by alumni so important? Capital University Law School provided me with not only a great legal education but

also with many great friends who have helped me along the way. It is important for alumni to try to help those who come after us to be successful. Part of this responsibility includes remaining engaged so that we can have a positive impact on the Law School and the students who have followed us. What was the most important lesson you learned while at Capital University Law School? The first is that perseverance pays off. Law school is tough, but you have to continue to work hard every day and never give up. Take advantage of all the resources you have at your disposal, both in law school and when preparing for the bar exam. Although Capital University Law School prepares its students exceptionally well for the bar exam, it is absolutely essential to take the best bar review courses that are available. The other lesson I learned was to really engage with my classmates. We worked hard but we had a great time together and many of my classmates are still close friends to this day. What is the main difference between your perceptions of the law as a student and the realities you see on a daily basis in your job? In law school, I enjoyed reading the wonderful writings of great judges and justices and I was able to reflect on the contributions lawyers have made to society. The practice of law is a noble profession. In private practice, the reality of life is that law is also a business. However, we should never stop trying to contribute to advancing society in the traditions of the great lawyers who have gone before us. What is the best advice you would give someone considering attending law school today? There has been much publicity about the current difficulty in finding jobs in the legal profession. This is a temporary situation, as there will always be a need for good lawyers. Three years from now we may very well have a deficiency in lawyers and there may be a great employment market. So, I guess my advice is not to let the current economic situation dissuade you from attending law school. THE

Allen named 2013 David D. White Award recipient The reception will be 5-7 p.m. Thursday, March 7, at host Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP, in the Huntington Center, 41 S. High St., in Columbus. The event will be sponsored by the Capital University Law School African American Law Alumni Association and Porter Wright Morris & Arthur LLP. The reception is $50 per person; $40 of that cost is a tax-deductible contribution to the David D. White Scholarship Endowment. To register and for more information, go to www.law.capital.edu/ DDW/ or call 614-236-6601 by Friday, Feb. 22.

If you could summarize what you’ve learned about the legal profession in the nearly 30 years since you graduated, what would you say? The legal profession, probably more than any other, provides the opportunity to advance society. You see this occurring on so many fronts, both domestically and internationally. It also affords individual lawyers an opportunity to do good things no matter where they practice by, for example, taking on pro bono cases or volunteering their services in the political realm or in the nonprofit sector. I feel very fortunate to have pursued the practice of law, and I look forward to continuing for a long time to come. n

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NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE

PAID COLUMBUS, OH PERMIT NO. 944

Capital University Capital University Law School 303 East Broad Street // Columbus, Ohio 43215-3200 P 614.236.6500 // www.law.capital.edu

Contributing Writers / Rebecca Hamilton, Christine Ramsey, Jeff Robinson, Carey Sullivan

The Capital University

Photography / Matt Sullivan Design / CityScene Media Group

Winter 2013: Volume 2, Issue 1 The Capital University Lawyer is published semiannually by the Office of Law School Communication at Capital University Law School, under the auspices of Capital University and Capital University Law School. Send comments and story ideas: communications@law.capital or 614.236.6377 Editor and Director of Law School Communication / David B. Ball

EVENTS CALENDAR Thursday, March 7 , 5 p.m. 24TH ANNUAL DAVID D. WHITE RECEPTION Alumni and friends event This year’s event recognizes Jerry O. Allen, L’84, CU’75, as the 24th recipient of the David D. White Award recipient. The presentation ceremony will be at Porter, Wright, Morris and Arthur at the Huntington Center, 41 South High Street, Columbus. Register at www.law.capital.edu/DDW/ Thursday, March 14 WELLS CONFERENCE ON ADOPTION LAW Continuing legal education event Nationally recognized professors and practitioners present on timely and compelling

Viewpoints expressed in this publication reflect a diversity of opinions, backgrounds and beliefs – foundations upon which Capital University Law School was founded in 1903. These opinions do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Law School or Capital University. Copyright 2013, Capital University Law School. All rights reserved. The Capital University Lawyer is printed on paper consisting of partially recycled content. Send address changes to: Office of Law School Communication Capital University Law School 303 East Broad Street Columbus, OH 43215-3200

issues related to adoption, child and family law at this event, hosted by the National Center for Adoption Law & Policy at Capital University Law School. www.law.capital.edu/Wells/ Thursday, April 4, 2-5 p.m. 34TH ANNUAL JOHN E. SULLIVAN LECTURE Continuing legal education event Chief Judge Alex Kozinski of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit is our 2012-13 Sullivan Lecturer. The Sullivan Lecture is scheduled for Thursday, April 4, 2013. Judge Kozinski is one of the most influential jurists and dynamic speakers in the federal judiciary.

Friday, April 12, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. 8TH ANNUAL ALUMNI RECOGNITION LUNCH Alumni and friends event This annual event recognizes Capital University Law School alumni who have made an impact on the Law School, the field of law or the community. More than 300 alumni and friends of the Law School attend this annual gathering at the Sheraton Columbus Hotel on Capital Square. www.law.capital.edu/ AlumniRecognitionLuncheon/

Go to www.law.capital.edu/lawcalendar.aspx for more for a complete listing of upcoming events.