Tulsa Lawyer Magazine November 2017
Veterans Appreciation Issue
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In this Issue
TULSA LAWYER
A Message from
Christina Vaughn
2017-2018 TCBA President
November 2017
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VP's Corner Kimberly K, Moore
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Lawyers Fighting Hunger
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Honoring Our Veterans
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A Tribute to William Patrick Schmitt Jennifer Struble
10 Children & the Law - Holiday Challenge 12 Winter CLE Schedule 14 Health & Wellness Suite - New Benefits 15 Committee & Section News
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Oklahoma Lawyers for America's Heroes Program By Darla Jackson, OBA Practice Management Advisor
16 Joseph M. Best, Esq. ~ A Lifetime of Service Michael Taubman
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Military Benefits to Reach the American Dream
Lorena Rivas
22 Bring Back the Mediation General Session! Joseph H. Paulk 23 Restaurant Ramblings Bill McMahon 24 ABA Approved Paralegal Education in Tulsa Michael W. Speck, M.A., J.D. 28 Santa Brings a Law Suit Grapevine
31 Classifieds
@tulsabar Tulsa Lawyer 1
A Message from the President
Christina M. Vaughn
How Do You Shower?
If you are like most people, you don’t think at all about the physical cleansing or drying process during and after a shower, but you follow, with exceedingly rare exception, the same steps each time. From the moment we turn on the water, or perhaps even before, until we are ready to dress, we progress each time just as we did each time before. If you are dubious about this assertion, when you next shower, try washing or toweling off in a different order. You can even start with something as simple as stepping out of the shower on the other foot. (I guarantee you that you always step out with the same foot.) We do this both because we are creatures of habit and because we have difficulty with focusing on the present moment. This is particularly true of attorneys--our minds are always racing to the next task or issue. So, our bodies go on auto-pilot and our minds wander. The near universality of wandering minds was noted by Alanis Morissette in her hit song “All I Really Want,” when, after proffering a moment of silence, she posits: Did you think about your bills, your ex, your deadlines Or when you think your gonna die Or did you long for the next distraction
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Staying in the present and minimizing mind-wandering takes practice. This practice is known as “mindfulness,” and is defined by Merriam-Webster as: “The practice of maintaining a nonjudgmental state of heightened or complete awareness of one’s thoughts, emotions or experiences on a moment-to-moment basis.” To some of you this may sound a bit hippy-dippy, and you may be asking why it matters if you allow your mind to wander. Quite simply, a wandering mind is an unhappy mind. According to Harvard University psychologists Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert, “A human mind is a wandering mind, and a wandering mind is an unhappy mind.” They go on to say that ruminating on what is not happening “is a cognitive achievement that comes at an emotional cost.” Through their research, they concluded that, on average, minds wander 46.9 percent of waking hours, and that typically this mindwandering makes people unhappy. They also determined that people’s feelings of happiness were much more strongly correlated with where their mind was than with what they were doing. In pursuit of our goal to have “bright, shiny, happy members,” the TCBA, kicked-off “Monday Meditation” on October 23. Monday Meditation will be offered each Monday at noon. It is a 30 minute guided meditation practice that will assist our members in learning and practicing mindfulness. Monday Meditation is FREE to TCBA members and staff of TCBA members, so please
extend this offer to the non-lawyers in your offices that work so hard to make us all look so good. The meditation will be led by an exceptional instructor, Megan Spears. Megan is a 500 hour certified yoga instructor with a deep love for linking movement to breath and sound. I have taken classes with Megan and can unequivocally state that she is one of the best yoga and meditation instructors in the Tulsa area. There will be chairs and a few blankets available to sit on, but attendees are welcome to bring a mat, blanket, cushion, etc. of their own as well. No special clothing or experience is needed. I will be there and hope to see many of you and your staff. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me. In terms of additional member benefits, we are continuing to add business partners to our Health & Wellness Benefit Suite. You can read more about these new additions in President-Elect Keele’s article on page 14. The Membership Committee has also started working on a Food & Entertainment Benefit Suite, as well as planning events for Membership Appreciation Month, which, in hopes of beating the heat, will take place in May this year. Just as we did last year, we expect to offer members a month chock-full of fun activities. Membership Appreciation Month is all about you, our members, so please let us know if you have any suggestions for events or offerings we can provide to show our appreciation. Finally, the TCBA Free Winter CLE is underway. There are over 60 hours of CLE available during November and December, and it is all free to our members. We hope to have provided a good mix of topics so that our members will enjoy taking advantage of this valuable benefit. Should you have any suggestions for topics for future CLE, please let us know. Best wishes for a productive, contented, and mindful fall season and Thanksgiving holiday! Sincerely, Christina M. Vaughn TCBA President, 2017-2018
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VP's Corner Kimberly K. Moore, 2017 – 2018 As we give thanks this month, let us not forget our • Nine of the top ten met needs were also the same for veterans. Veterans are important for all sorts of reasons male and female veterans: medical services, testing , but most important and often forgotten is that they are and treatment in three separate areas (TB, Hepatitis a population who has a unique first hand witness of our C, HIV/AIDS), case management, services for Nation’s wars. Veterans are also living reminders of emotional or psychiatric problems, medication duty to country. While we recognize our veterans, let management, substance abuse treatment, and food. us also not forget that behind each of those veterans, Personal hygiene and clothing were needs unique there is a family who has sacrificed as well. to the top 10 lists of male and female veterans respectively.
Top Homeless Veteran Needs Identified in • For male veterans, the nine of the top ten unmet 2016 CHALENG Survey • Eight of the top ten unmet needs were the same for male and female veterans: housing for registered sex offenders, child care, legal assistance in three separate areas (prevent eviction/foreclosure, child support issues, restore a driver’s license) family reconciliation assistance, credit counseling, and financial guardianship. Two needs in the top ten unmet for male veterans (but not female veterans) were legal assistance for outstanding warrants and fines, and family and marital counseling. Conversely, dental care and discharge upgrade were two needs on the female veterans’ top ten unmet list, but not on the male veterans’ needs list.
needs were the same in 2015 and 2016 (discharge upgrade in 2015 was replaced by family and marital counseling in 2016). Nine of the top ten unmet needs for female veterans were also the same (legal assistance for outstanding warrants and fines in 2015 was replaced by financial guardianship in 2016.)
Community Homelessness Assessment, Local Education and Networking Groups for Veterans, commonly referred to as Project CHALENG was launched in 1994 to bring together providers, advocates, veterans and other concerned citizens to identify the needs of homeless veterans and work to meet those needs through planning and cooperative action. U.S. Department of Veteran’s Affairs, Fact Sheet, June 2017.
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Did you know… • November 4 is called Mischief Night in some parts of the country where the main idea is to put things in the wrong place. • November birth flower is the chrysanthemum. • In Finland they call November ‘marraskuu’ which means ‘month of the dead’. • The US President issues pardons to two turkeys each year so they may live out the rest of their days on a farm or, since 2005 sent to Disneyland, where they serve as the honorary grand marshals of Disney’s Thanksgiving Parade.
• The 1st Thanksgiving took place in Dec 1621, the Pilgrim’s second year in the New World because they were nearly decimated by the cold winter the first year. • Americans raise 649 million pounds of cranberries, 1.6 billion pounds of sweet potatoes, 998 million pounds of pumpkin and in addition to domestically raised Thanksgiving food, imports $5.2 million worth of live turkeys.
from the TCBA Staff! Lawyers Fighting Hunger will again hold its event on Saturday November 18th.
If you are interested in donating, you can go to www.lawyersfightinghunger.com or mail a check made payable to Lawyers Fighting Hunger t 15 W. 6th St., Ste. 2112, Tulsa, OK 74119.
Lawyers Fighting Hunger has a goal to provide Thanksgiving meals to 800 pre-selected families in the Tulsa area. We will be providing 800 turkeys and a bag of other Thanksgiving necessities. To feed a family of four, the cost is only $45. All donations are tax deductible and will help in a great way, whether it is $45, $450, or $4500. We will have a large festival handing out the food and celebrating the holidays with food trucks, music, kids stations, a coffee bar and much more.
If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Hugh Robert at hugh@sm-oklaw.com or 918-592-1144. Tulsa Lawyer 5
“But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.� ~ Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address
Veterans Day -November 11, 2017 The Tulsa County Bar Association thanks all veterans and especially our member veterans for their service. A special thank you and recognition to these two gentlemen. The last two Pearl Harbor survivors from the state of Oklahoma. Lonnie Cook from Morris, OK. Lonnie was stationed on the USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 when 1,177 of his shipmates died during the Japanese attack. Lonnie is one of the last five survivors of the USS Arizona and is one of the last two Pearl Harbor survivors from the state of Oklahoma.
Arles Cole from Tulsa, OK. Mr. Cole, at the age of 17, was stationed on the USS West Virginia based in Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941 when the Japanese attacked. He survived the attack and helped in the rescue of his fellow sailors. He went on to later serve on the USS Prichett, a destroyer.
Allen Pease
U.S. Army from 1961-1964
Thank you veterans in every rank & role! Starting off as a Private E-1 and leaving as a Sergeant E-5. Memory ~ " I spent most of my time at Fort Hood, Texas and in Germany. Fortunately, the Viet Nam War was only just starting in 1964 when I was discharged, so I was able to miss that conflict completely. However, I do vividly recall sitting on the tarmac of the Ft. Hood airport in a truck having a loaded M-1 rifle across my lap with a bunch of other scared looking GI’s waiting to fly to Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis. That was the closest I ever got to real combat, but trust me, that was close enough……."
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A Tribute to William Patrick Schmitt: The Strongest Man I Know By Jennifer Struble
William Patrick “Pat” Schmitt was just a kid from Oklahoma in the 1960’s. He graduated from McClain High School in 1965 and headed to Stillwater to attend Oklahoma State University. A lack of funds led him to join the Army and by the end of 1967 he was a medic with C Company, 3rd Battalion, 60th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division, based in Dong Tam, Vietnam. Never one to sit idle, he would grab a rifle and join his unit on patrol if he had free time. He was first injured just before the Tet Offensive in January 1968 by a bullet that hit his left shoulder blade. He was sent to Japan for treatment and should have been sent home. A disagreement with a doctor about him re-enlisting to take charge of the medical ward in Japan landed him back in country. It is a wicked and impressive scar across his back and I always wondered how much that must have hurt. A few months later, on June 8, 1968, he was still a kid two weeks away from his twenty-first birthday. On that day, during an evacuation of his unit under fire, a mine exploded beneath him taking both his legs, his left arm, the hearing in his left ear, and the ends of a finger or two on his right hand. He spent his twenty-first birthday unconscious in a hospital half way around the world from his home and family. He was sent to a hospital in Japan; then San Antonio, Texas; and Muskogee, Oklahoma. He finally ended up at Hines VA Hospital in Chicago. That's where he met my Mom. She was working as a social worker at the hospital. She never knew him before he was hurt. By Spring of 1970, he used his considerable charm to convince this city girl to marry him and move from Chicago to Yale, Oklahoma, to live on a 160 acre farm. He has always been independent and a bit stubborn. He re-enrolled at OSU and completed a degree in Political Science. While doing that, he ran for Oklahoma’s Sixth Congressional seat – the largest in the state. During the campaign he drove, mostly alone, to every county in the district, including all the way out to the panhandle. He often used his prosthetic legs. These were not the cool, sleek, titanium ones you see today. These were wood - clunky and heavy. He fell walking across campus one day and broke his hip. He primarily used his wheelchair after that. Undeterred, the campaign continued but he lost. After graduation, he attended the University of Tulsa College of Law. The Law School was not equipped for students with mobility issues, but accommodations were made. He worked for Legal Aid while in school, but after graduation, employment was difficult to find for
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someone in his condition. So in 1975, he opened his own law office. He played in a wheelchair basketball league in his free time. His compassion and efficiency contributed to his success. But he deeply disliked watching families falling apart and the effect it had on the children. Following his heart, and his desire to be a cowboy, we moved to a small town called Buena Vista, in the middle of the Colorado mountains. In 1978, he became the town judge; and had a small practice that made enough money to support the family and his expensive hobbies of horses and hunting. He and his friends rigged up saddles and slings and whatever else they needed to get him out and about. He was camp cook for extended hunting trips into the mountains. He was a cowboy moving cattle with a friend who owned a ranch. One night he showed up to court straight from a cattle drive. He rolled into the makeshift town court room, and much like something out of the old west, removed his dusty hat, dirt caked jacket and the .45 caliber handgun he always carried for emergencies. Everyone that night pled guilty! He and my mom built their house themselves after a dispute with the contractor; they still live there. He always reached out to others who might need a little help; inviting parents with special needs kids to bring them up to the house to meet and ride the horses, bartering for legal fees, and making sure the old veteran down the road had necessary medical
care. Dad taught me and my three younger sisters not only the importance of community and service, but also to ride, shoot, play basketball and softball, read a map, and to drive. In addition to being the town judge, he was a member of the school board, the American Legion Commander, the chair of the local PRCA rodeo committee, a hunter safety instructor, a 4-H leader, an NRA certified gun safety instructor, and a middle school girls basketball coach. He went back to school and acquired a teaching license and was a substitute teacher in the high school and middle school. He has long since retired as an attorney. He is no longer able to scrabble up on horseback. Years of pushing a manual chair one handed tore up his shoulder so he can no longer sink a free throw. Nearly 50 years of sitting in a chair has not been kind to his back. Arthritis and gout have twisted the hand that, even when I was in high school, could pick me up off the ground. Still, he is still the strongest man I know. He adores his daughters and his grandkids. His favorite thing is to have the whole family together. He will tell you he doesn’t want you to thank him for his service. He does not feel he did anything any of the other guys he served with would not have done. He would prefer simple respect; then do your part. Vote. Get involved in your community. Serve others. Do your part - don’t wait for someone else to do it.
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TCBA Children & the Law Natalie Sears, Chair
The Holiday Challenge is well under way, and the good news is is that there is still time to get involved! November is a great month to realize how thankful you are. We can often forget just how easy it is that we can come by the necessities such as underwear, socks, coats, shoes, and gloves. Unfortunately, the families that will be benefitted through the Holiday Challenge aren’t as blessed. Let’s try and give back to the community even more this year! You can either choose to donate money, or you can choose to be matched with a specific family in need. Here’s how it works:
2. Submit your team’s information (names and contact information) and size of family you wish to “adopt” via email to nsears@cordelllaw.com; 3. Once matched, you will be given a list of requested items from your “adopted” family. The items requested for your “adopted” family will need to be gift wrapped and dropped off to either TCBA or Family & Children’s Services in Tulsa by December 8, 2017;
“Adopt a Family” – please contact Natalie Sears by November 10th:
4. Family & Children’s Services will distribute the gifts to your “adopted” family! If you’d like to get involved in more than one way, please feel free to reach out to me at nsears@cordelllaw.com so I can give you information on how to get involved. All 2017 sponsors will be recognized in the Tulsa Lawyer Magazine as being totally awesome people with generous hearts (so let me know if you would prefer your donation to remain anonymous).
1. Select the family size that you or your team want to “adopt” and Family & Children’s Services will match your team with a family in need;
Let’s show our Tulsa area children in need that they are not forgotten. Please join us and let’s make the 2017 Holiday Challenge a huge success!
Cash: Send your tax deductible donations payable to TCBF and note “Holiday Challenge” on your payment. Cash donations will be accepted through December 6, 2017. -or-
TCBA Holiday Challenge
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TCBA MEMBER BENEFITS: Health & Wellness Benefit Suite Happy Fall, everyone! I wanted to let you know about some cool new member benefits recently added exclusively for TCBA members. Adding to the health & wellness theme in the October issue of Tulsa Laywer there are four new businesses offering discounts on their services:
Citibike.Tours
is offering a unique experience for you and your friends/ colleaguesfriends. They have the only 7-person circular bike in Oklahoma (and probably the whole mid-west)! They offer a ride around Tulsa offering various tours of the city, ranging from 30 minutes to an hour. I’ve enjoyed a few rides with my co-workers at lunch time, and it is a wonderful mental break out to get out and enjoy the fresh air. Whether you want a leisure ride, or a team-building opportunity, this one-of-a-kind experience is a must-do. Citibike.Tours offer a $25 discount (reg.$45) and also a portion of their purchase will go to provide rides for the deaf/blind community and team-building for at risk schools. To book online go to: https://citibiketours.acuityscheduling.com/schedule. php?appointmentType=4205510
Stephen Lindsey of Legacy Fitness & Performance
is offering a variety in health and fitness services, including personal training and virtual coaching. He offers private and small group personal training, workout and performance programming, as well as nutrition services like meal planning. Whether you need some help getting started on a healthier lifestyle, or want to go to the next level, Stephen can help tailor a plan that is perfect for you. Pricing on private training is $40 for 30 minutes and $75 for 60 minutes. Small group training starts at $40 per person. Pricing on workout and nutrition programming is $159. Stephen is offering 10% off all services at this time for TCBA members. Contact Stephen at slfitpro@gmail.com or call him at (918) 8130121 for more information.
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~ Ann Keele T-Town Training & Fitness is offering
discounted membership to their gym. Their coaches are committed to help all individuals achieve their fitness goals. They offer a fun and encouraging environment – with challenging workouts – that support their member's health and wellness lifestyle. T-Town Training & Fitness is conveniently located in the East Village District in Downtown Tulsa. It's close to all major highways, which makes it easily accessible from anywhere in the Tulsa metro area. They have an indoor training area of more than 3,000 square feet and more than 3,500 square feet of outdoor functional workout space.
The Hungry Ninja is offering a convenient and customizable way to nourish yourself and your family. They offer a personal concierge service for you to order fully customized meals that can be delivered to your home or office or picked up from them. Your meals are prepared, packaged, delivered so all you have to do is refrigerate and heat when you are ready to enjoy them. They offer breakfast, lunch, and dinner options, so you may never have to cook again! Delivery is available in the greater Tulsa area either weekly or bi-weekly. Call Ryan or Maegan at (918) 9731963 to get started.
Thinking about getting more involved in the TCBA? Check out a section or committee!
The Litigation Section invites you to our monthly lunch meeting. Each month we feature a speaker/ panel discussion pertaining to litigation, preparation, and trial methods. Please join us for our next meeting on November 15, from noon to 1:00 p.m. at the TCBA Center. Registrations on the TCBA website are appreciated to assist us in ordering food.
Ryan Fulda Trevor Hughes
The Litigation Section was founded by trial lawyers for trial lawyers of all practice areas with a goal of improving as advocates.
TCBA Bankruptcy Section The TCBA Bankruptcy Section is a friendly, dynamic group that gathers every other month for lunch, poetry, and discussion of substantive topics in bankruptcy. We will be meeting on November 16th at noon at the TCBA Board of Director’s Room. Please join us. Paul Thomas Chair, TCBA Bankruptcy Section
Mentoring Committee Anyone interested in participating in the TCBA Mentoring Program or the Mentoring Committee may send an e-mail to kathleen@pencelawfirm.org.
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Joseph M. Best, Esq.
A lifetime of service in war, in law, to his faith and family By Michael P. Taubman
Are you familiar with the parable of the mustard seed? It speaks to a life lived well rooted in faith, as it goes "...and some seed fell on rich soil and produced fruit. It came up and grew and yielded thirty, sixty, and a hundred-fold." (Mk. 4:8) It’s aspirational for most, desired by many and realized by few. Recently, one of the few, a lion of the Bar, passed from our midst on August 25, 2017. Joseph Monroe Best was born on October 12, 1925 to Grover & Frana Best. He was one of eight children, with his brothers and sisters, Samuel, Mary, Ruth, Paul, Lois, Merle and Eunice. Following his graduation from Tiawah High School in 1943, Joe, only 17 years old, joined the Marines to serve in World War II.
During his service in WWII, Best took part in some of the most legendary battles of the Pacific Theater with the 3rd Marine Division as the United States began its campaign of island hopping incursions at Guam, Tarawa, Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal. Joseph Best would continue to serve his country for almost 2 years overseas, achieving the rank of Corporal before his honorable discharge in December 1945. His son, Tim Best, Esq., said his father spoke very humbly about his service, stating “I'm not a hero. I just did what they asked me to do.” Coming home from the war, this member of the Greatest Generation would meet the love of his life, Cleo Costiloe, while attending services at church. Joe and Cleo
Wayne Ross & Joe Best 16 Tulsa Lawyer
married on April 6, 1947. The GI Bill would get him through college and law school. Joe became a lawyer in 1949, practicing law for over 50 years with the same partner and his best friend, Joe Sharp. Joe [Best] was an avid University of Oklahoma fan, and he and [Joe] Sharp were football season ticket holders for many years, attending many amazing games over the years. No doubt, the pair of Best and Sharp were reunited and rooting on October 14th as they watched from their heavenly “skybox” when the Sooners beat Texas. Joe Best tried over 500 jury trials in the great span of his career. Also, he started two law firms, and mentored dozens of young lawyers before retiring from the law firm Best & Sharp. Remembering his own experience of learning the law while practicing with his father, Tim Best recalled “[a]fter one of the morning firm meetings, Dad and Joe [Sharp] were sitting in the room, and they began talking about their WWII experiences with some of us and the younger associates. He never really spoke about his time in the service, what he’d seen and done, and Mr. Sharp didn’t either.” For all their years together, these friends and colleagues had remained silent about WWII, until then “they did not realize that Joe [Sharp] was on the USS Bradford, providing cover to Dad’s Marine unit fighting on the beach” said Tim Best. During his legal career, Joe was a member, and later president of the Federation of Defense and Corporate Council from 1971-1972. As gifted a lawyer as he would become known for during his career, Joe Best would equally be known as a man who of character and integrity. Having been raised on a farm and knowing the value of a hard day’s work that farm life extolls, he continued the farm living with his own family, purchasing a farm in Skiatook for he and Cleo to raise their four boys, David, Jonathan, Timothy and Philip.
Tim recalled that “he loved working and maintaining the Best Angus Ranch, and he continued to be involved right up until his passing.” “He was tremendous father, a great mentor, law partner, and ranch partner” said Tim. “As great a lawyer as he was, he was a greater father, and he lived independently to the end.” Faith in Christ was a central tenant of Joseph Best’s life per Tim Best. For more than sixty years, he served as a deacon, Sunday school teacher and any other area the church needed. “He and I served as co-deacons at church” said Tim. Joe Best was appointed as a deacon emeritus in 2014. In his obituary in the Tulsa World, it remarked of Joseph Best that “[h]e was a warrior for the Lord, a warrior for his family and a warrior for his country.” The lawyers of Joseph Best’s generation and caliber practicing among us are fewer and further between these days. His life has clearly left an indelible mark on the profession of law, and his service to his family, his church and the many others his life touched planted seeds that will continue to blossom from his cultivation of a life well lived.
Oklahoma Lawyers for America's Heroes Program: Actions Speak Louder Than Words By Darla Jackson, OBA Practice Management Advisor As we prepare to observe Veterans Day, I would like to suggest that you consider that the best way to express your appreciation for our veterans and military members is through action. Volunteering to assist servicemembers and veterans with their legal needs is that action. The OBA Oklahoma Lawyers for America's Heroes Program assists qualifying servicemembers and veterans by connecting them to bar members who are willing to provide legal services without charge. You can volunteer to participate in the program! In 2016, it was reported that since the program was started in 2010, more than 4,000 military heroes had been helped by 712 volunteer lawyers, who have donated over $2.8 million in free legal services.1 We are grateful for the volunteer attorneys who have stepped up to represent our profession in expressing our gratitude to the defenders of our nation, but the need continues to be great. According to Margaret Travis, the Heroes Program Coordinator,2 connecting servicemembers and veterans with lawyers in their geographic area who have experience in the area of need may be particularly difficult if the individual lives in a more rural area where there are a limited number of attorneys. Notwithstanding, “it may also be difficult to match qualifying individuals with attorneys in metro areas. For example, in Tulsa County, some qualifying individuals are forced to wait because current attorney volunteers may not have the time or are hesitant to accept a case in an area of law with which they have 1 Carol Manning, Oklahoma Lawyers for America’s Heroes Program Tops $2.8 Million in Free Legal Services, 87 Okla. B.J. 2355 (Nov. 2016), http://ow.ly/SrN930fYtvZ 2 Margaret Travis Joins OBA as Heroes Program Coordinator, 88 OBJ 780, http://ow.ly/wTMY30fYtCj 18 Tulsa Lawyer
limited experience … The greatest need is in the area of family law.” On occasion, when attorneys are not available or when there is an eligibility issue, Margaret Travis will make a referral to the Oklahoma Free Legal Answers website, 3 which she also helps coordinate. Oklahoma Free Legal Answers is a service provided through the joint efforts of the Oklahoma Access to Justice Commission, the Oklahoma Bar Association, and the American Bar Association. This online system allows qualifying lowincome Oklahoma citizens to submit three law-related questions each year and to have the questions answered by volunteer attorneys. However, many attorney volunteers for the Oklahoma Free Legal Answers Program may not have training or experience handling specific issues that have a military service component. Service members and veterans often have legal needs in their personal lives and specific to their military service. They also face financial issues and other legal matters resulting from the sacrifices made in military life. Yet, they often do not have the financial means to afford legal help. In fact, according to a Profile of Post-9/11 veterans prepared by the National Center for Veterans Analysis and Statistics of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Post-9/11 veterans have lower median earnings and personal income than all other veterans.4 Because many in the U.S. do not have a connection
3 Oklahoma Free Legal Answers, https://oklahoma. freelegalanswers.org/. 4 U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Profile of Post-9/11 Veterans: 2015, Nat’l Ctr. for Veterans Analysis and Statistics 11 (Mar. 2017), http://ow.ly/xeTI30fYtHi
to the military,5 it is often mistakenly believed that military members and veterans can have all their legal needs met though legal assistance services provided under the authority of 10 U.S.C. §1044. However, this is not the case. 6 First, legal assistance is subject to the availability of legal staff resources. As such legal assistance attorneys, with very limited exception, are not made available to provide in-court representation. Additionally, many Judge Advocates are not licensed in the states in which they are assigned and are not able to provide in-court representation. Second, not all veterans are entitled to legal assistance. Only veterans who are retired from military service or who are members of the reserve components under specific circumstances may receive legal assistance. Third, legal assistance is limited to civil legal matters. Criminal matters are beyond the scope of such assistance. Finally, military legal assistance attorneys are not permitted to provide assistance regarding interest that are adverse to the interest of the United States. For example, military legal assistance attorneys may not provide help in making a claim against the government. And additional limitations may be imposed by the service secretaries.7 It quickly becomes apparent that military legal assistance alone cannot meet the needs of many who have served our nation. It is clear that if the Oklahoma legal community wants to express our thanks to those who have and continue to fight to protect our freedom, we must renew our commitment to meet their legal needs. Because of the extensive nature of the need, to ensure that those with the greatest need receive assistance, 5 Sabrina Tavernise, As Fewer Americans Serve, Growing Gap is Found Between Civilians and Military, N.Y. Times, Nov. 25, 2011, at A22, (citing Pew Research Center findings), http://ow.ly/wzxO30fYtKD 6 Military.com, Free Legal Assistance, http://ow.ly/ adhm30fYtRU (last visited Sept. 29, 2017) and ABA, Military Legal Assistance and Civil Matters, http://ow.ly/nevQ30fYtVw (last visited Sept. 29, 2017) provide an overview of the offered military legal assistance services.
limitations have been placed on who may qualify for the services. Only those who are currently serving in the enlisted ranks of E-1 thru E-6 or those veterans or reservist who have an earned income of less than $40,000 are eligible. Additionally, only those with past service that resulted in an honorable discharge meet eligibility requirements.8 Even with these limitations, we need additional volunteers to help meet the need. Those who would like to volunteer but have limited experience with issues arising incident to military service may anticipate that there may be opportunities for training. In the past, the OBA Military and Veterans Law Section has offered free CLE for volunteers. For more information or to volunteer contact Margaret Travis at (405) 416-7086 or by email at MargaretT@OKBar.Org or heroes@okbar.org. About the author: Darla Jackson is the Practice Management Advisor for the Oklahoma Bar Association. She earned her J.D. from the University of Oklahoma College of Law and an LL.M. in International Law from the University of Georgia School of Law. From 1989 – 2003, she served as an active duty Judge Advocate in the U.S. Air Force. In addition to her other duties at the OBA, she provides additional support to the Heroes coordinator. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the Dale K. Graham Veterans Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to sharing its collective knowledge and experience to help with the Veterans Administration claims process. 8 Currently, those receiving an entry level separation or a general (under honorable conditions) discharge are not eligible to receive assistance.
Contact: Margaret Travis at (405) 416-7086 or by email at MargaretT@OKBar.Org or heroes@okbar.org.
7 U.S. Navy Judge Advocate General’s Corps, Legal Assistance Services FAQ, http://www.jag.navy.mil/legal_ services/legal_services_faq.htm#lq8 (last visited Sept. 29, 2017). Tulsa Lawyer 19
Military Benefits to Reach the American Dream
By Lorena Rivas
Nothing speaks more about patriotism than the desire of immigrants and foreigners to be a part of the American Dream. While the ability to gain lawful status in the United States and gain U.S. citizenship can be complex, being part of the U.S. military or having a family member who is in the military provide some shortcuts towards those goals. Citizenship Benefits for Military Personnel and their Family Members Unlike the regular naturalization process, military personnel and their family members may be eligible to naturalize more rapidly than civilians (3-5 years of legal permanent resident status to apply for citizenship). Their ability to naturalize more rapidly depends on whether they qualify for “wartime” or “peacetime” naturalization. While slightly different, both “wartime” and “peacetime” naturalization provide a means to expedite the naturalization process. Under the wartime statute, the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) allows any noncitizen who served honorably during specified periods of conflict to naturalize even if they are not lawful permanent residents. Under the peacetime naturalization law, the INA allows lawful permanent residents who have served at least one year in the military to naturalize. These naturalization benefits, thanks to an executive order by President George W. Bush in 2002, can also be extended posthumously to a military personnel if they served honorably and died as a result of an injury or a disease aggravated by military service. Military family members may also benefit from overseas naturalization if they are accompanying spouses or parents on overseas tours of duties. Parole in Place for Family Members of Military Personnel Most family members of military personnel must apply for lawful permanent resident status just like the family members of any other U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident. While for some it is a smooth process of “adjusting” their status to a lawful one, for many, the procedure is more difficult and lengthy because of their unlawful entry into the United States. If an individual entered the United States unlawfully and does not qualify for an exception, they must leave the country and process their immigrant visa application through the U.S. consulate in their home country. 20 Tulsa Lawyer
Normally, these family members would face a ground of inadmissibility of three or ten years as soon as they leave the United States and begin consular processing. In other words, these individuals would have to remain outside of the United States for three or ten years before being able to immigrate to the United States lawfully. There is a waiver to these bars but they require a showing of extreme hardship to a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or parent. This is no easy task and, many times, impossible to accomplish. There is a way around triggering these inadmissibility bars for family members of military personnel. It can be done by requesting parole-in-place for these family members. Parole-in-place prevents the family members from needing to leave the country and do consular processing. This is done by submitting a parole application to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) district director. Once this application is approved, the family members can adjust their status to lawful permanent residence without having to leave the United States and triggering the three and ten year bars for unlawful presence. While information about these benefits is available on the USCIS website (www.uscis.gov), there are possible complications that might arise, especially in the parole-in-place request. Immigration laws and procedures are complicated in general. Before embarking on these applications, please consult an immigration attorney that is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) (www.aila.org) for proper guidance.
Lorena Rivas is with Fry & Elder
Tulsa Lawyer 21
Bring Back the Mediation General Session!
By Joseph H. Paulk, President, Dispute Resolution Consultants Parties to mediations have gotten lazy. The “show up and offer/counter offer” negotiation process sidesteps an excellent opportunity to undertake advocacy for your position in the mediation process. It deprives the parties who are most invested and most knowledgeable about the dispute the chance to meet. This is unfortunate.Opportunities for face-to-face civil advocacy are powerfully influential if done properly. The joint session provides an opportunity for parties to open-up, be candid, and deliver their message to everyone in the room. For some clients, it is as close as they will get to their “day in court.” The joint session also provides an important opportunity for the lawyer to state his/her position unfiltered through the interpretation of opposing counsel and to showcase a particularly effective client. In addition, the joint session provides a vehicle for airing factual disputes. Facts are almost always in controversy in any dispute. Having the mediator shuttle back and forth to establish agreement of the facts is inefficient and wasteful. Finally, the session allows a party to set a general, cooperative tone (i.e., a chance to demonstrate a willingness to compromise and even some empathy to the opposing party). A proper tone goes a long way in encouraging concessions that might ultimately lead to settlement.
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Sometimes a mediator will encounter lawyer resistance to a joint session. Often, it is based on the belief that it will exacerbate hostility between the parties and the resulting alienation will push the parties further apart. In the majority of mediated cases, this is not a genuine concern. In those that it are, potential volatility can be managed by a good mediator by setting ground rules controlling the course of the discussions and insisting on a level of civility. Sometimes resistance to a joint session is also based on a lawyer’s reluctance to disclose information that he/she feels the other side does not possess. This “lie behind the log” approach is counterproductive. If the case does not settle, the opposing party will ultimately secure this information through the discovery process. Experiences from thousands of cases I have mediated proves that the number of times one side has a true surprise is rare. When a mediator uses a joint session, parties should not pass on this valuable tool. At best, remaining silent will be construed ambiguously by the opposing party. At worst, it will be viewed as a sign of weakness. Remember, a joint session is a valuable source of information. It often confirms to clients what opposing counsel will utilize to advocate in support of their case. Often counsel wants the opposing position to be adequately presented to their client to prove their risk analysis is accurate. Settlement advocacy and trial advocacy are different. There is a 98% chance of attending a mediation in your case and a 2% chance of trial. As a mediator I know for certain, after witnessing many examples of strong objective advocacy, it works both in resolving a matter and often for a better outcome. Beginning and finishing a mediation in separate rooms eliminates opportunities for your hard work to shine and to persuade the opposing party to seriously reflect on the likely success of their position. Don’t waste your hard work. Stand up and prove it. Remember, there is no judge/jury, and accusations and indignation are not necessary. Be prepared…be persuasive with the evidence and close with a factually justified belief of the outcome.
Join us at a Tulsa Lawyer Meeting! UPCOMING MEETING DATES
Nov. 30, Dec. 28 & Jan. 25th
All meetings on a Thursday 11:30am-1:00pm - TCBA Small Conf. Room
Let us know you plan to attend so we can plan for lunch... email juliec@tulsabar.com the day before. 22 Tulsa Lawyer
Restaurant Ramblings
Scary Thoughts… Halloween at The Restaurant at Gilcrease
Alert: It has come to my attention that of late Tulsa Lawyer has been bereft of split infinitives, dangling participles, involuted syntax and little if any political incorrectness and with that in mind… attend. ~Bill
“What do you want to be this year?”
“Something scary.”
“No, you can’t be Trump.”
“He’s not scary… he’s…”
“Okay, maybe not to you, but I’m afraid to meet him, he might grab the wrong appendage.” She leaned back in her chair as if she had just delivered the best line.
“Okay, let’s not do political costumes this year.”
“Just cause you can’t think of anything, let’s not be political, is that it?”
We’ve been married too long, I’ll show her.
“Well, I was going to come as Mueller.”
“What’s so scary about him?”
God, she walked right into this one.
By Bill McMahon
“Why not Putin, that fits you better, just don’t
wear a shirt.”
“Where the hell am I gonna get a horse?”
abs?”
“The horse is easy, where are you gonna get the
Now she’s proud of herself, if I don’t best her now, I’ll never hear the end of it. “Let’s see you pull off Melania.”
“I can do Melania better than you can do Putin.”
She’s striking below the belt or should it be above the belt? I have wounded her, this might be on a winning streak, just another push or two. “I am going as Trump.”
“That one you can pull off.”
“What does that mean?” I had forgotten what a mean-spirited woman she is. “Well, you have a few extra pounds on you, we can pad you up a bit and spray paint you orange.” Holy Moley, that doesn’t sound that bad. “Yeah, but how are you gonna make a Melania? “I’ll come as your mother-in-law.”
“We live in the reddest of the red states, what would be scarier than someone checking the facts?”
“He doesn’t have a mother-in-law.”
Her face twisted all the wrinkles shifted to one side, she’s thinking. I can see her little brain beating at the walls of her skull. “Nobody’s gonna know who you are.”
“What did he do have her deported?”
“It doesn’t matter, he doesn’t have one. Have you ever heard anyone bring her up, they talk about all his kids, his ex-wives are writing books and his son-in-law is fixing the world… no mother-in-law.” I have her this time and it feels good. Time to relax, I have won. I should consider feeding the old gal, maybe something special, but something I like too, vegetables for her, red meat for me. With a win under by belt, I can be magnanimous and get romantic. Some place with a view, rolling hills with trees sprouting on top, fields of green flowing up the side. Now where the hell in Tulsa am I going to find all of that?
“I’ll bring a subpoena.”
Got her. She’ll be engulfed for at least ten minutes trying to better me. That brain of hers ricocheting to the point of exhaustion, it feels good to be the man. “You know you’ve shrunk over the years, why don’t you pick someone shorter, like Rachael Maddow. They’ll know who you are, just give a twenty-minute monologue about parking our car, just don’t forget to define the difference between auto, car and mobile transportation.” I can’t remember why I married her? She thinks she knows what I am thinking. Thinks she sees that masculine glow shining out and wants to drown it. Gotta think of something, quick, maybe not the cleverest, but it’s the best I got right now. “You can be Rachael and I’ll be Mueller.”
The Restaurant at Gilcrease Museum, that’s where, Sunday brunch. “Come on, you can do Rachel, we’ll be a hit at any party. Think about it Trump dating Rachel. It’s settled. I’ll feed you now, stuff you with all the green matter you can eat and like Rachel you can drive over to the party in your Subaru and we’ll both float in on our hot air.” Tulsa Lawyer 23
ABA Approved Paralegal Education in Tulsa By Michael W. Speck, M.A., J.D.
The April 2017 issue of Tulsa Lawyer included an article by Pam Mitchel, the University of Tulsa (“TU”) Paralegal Program Director, entitled Paralegals, The Indispensable Profession. If you’ve ever been curious about what the indispensable 1 paralegal(s) in your Tulsa firm or organization studied at college, this is the article for you.2 Tulsa is now home to not one (1), but two (2) American Bar Association Approved (“ABA”) paralegal education programs: Tulsa Community College (“TCC”) and TU. TCC and TU are regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, one of the six (6) regional accreditors in the country.3 While institutions providing paralegal education may be regionally, or nationally, accredited, there is no accreditation of paralegal programs. The ABA, through its Standing Committee on Paralegals (“Standing Committee”), sets standards for paralegal education. The Standing Committee “recommends for approval and re-approval to the House of Delegates (the ABA's policy-making body) those paralegal training programs” which have sought approval, and “have met the standards and guidelines set by the ABA for quality paralegal education.”4 Whereas accreditation is subject to review by the Secretary of Education pursuant to 29 O.S. 1099(b) and 34 CFR 62, the approval of paralegal programs by 1 The American Bar Association has defined the term “paralegal” as follows: “A legal assistant or paralegal is a person, qualified by education, training or work experience who is employed or retained by a lawyer, law office, corporation, governmental agency or other entity and who performs specifically delegated substantive legal work for which a lawyer is responsible.” http://ow.ly/i5rY30fYkOO The terms “paralegal” and “legal assistant” are treated as synonyms by the ABA and, therefore, in this article. 2 For a discussion of how to utilize paralegals, and make them indispensable to your practice, see: http://ow.ly/qfx530fYlCz http://ow.ly/wF7Y30fYm0L http://ow.ly/1Y0T30fYmzU 3 You can find a brief explanation of accreditation see the Department of Education’s website: http://ow.ly/cFJ130fYnIk and the detailed discussion of accreditation, with links to accrediting bodies, and accredited schools, see: https://www.ed.gov/accreditation 4 See https://www.americanbar.org/groups/paralegals/ about_us.html
the ABA (“ABA Approval”) is not subject to Department of Education review.5 The ABA Approval process of paralegal education programs begins with the submission of a lengthy selfevaluation report and exhibits to the Standing Committee on Paralegals, demonstrating compliance with the ABA Guidelines for the Approval of Paralegal Education (“Guidelines”).6 These reports typically run several hundred pages, covering four (4) or more years of records documenting compliance with the Guidelines. An ABA Approval Process Manager and an educational consultant review the reports and exhibits, and then seek additional information as needed. Once the selfevaluation report is complete, a process which can take many months, an on-site evaluation of the program and institution is scheduled. The on-site visit takes one (1) to two days (2), and includes review of the program and institution facilities and documentation, as well as meetings with college or university leadership, the program director, students, alumni, and an advisory committee of community volunteers. The two (2) to three (3) person site team includes a “representative of the Standing Committee or Approval Commission, an experienced paralegal, and the director of an ABA approved paralegal education program.” 7 Occasionally a follow up visit may be required. The reports of the site visit teams are submitted to the Approval Commission, which then submits recommendations to the Standing Committee on Paralegals. If the program is found to have complied with the Guidelines, the Standing Committee will submit its recommendations to the ABA's House of Delegates, for final action on approval. Once a program is approved, it is required to submit interim reports applying for re-approval every seven (7) years. ABA Approval is designed to “foster high quality paralegal education and training”, and “the development of educational standards”.8 Seeking and securing ABA Approval demonstrates compliance with the rigorous Guidelines and exhaustive processes. That being said, there are many accredited paralegal and undergraduate legal studies program in the country which provide their communities with quality 5 The same is not true of ABA Approval of Law Schools, as the ABA is a national accrediting agency approved by the Department of Education. See: https://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/agencies. aspx The terms “approval” and “accreditation” are used interchangeably in reference to the accreditation of law schools by the ABA. 6
See: http://ow.ly/o9Tk30fYv6Q
7
See: http://ow.ly/JTpM30fYv9p
8
See: http://ow.ly/Y6dn30fYvbG
paralegal education. The Guidelines set standards for faculty, facilities, admission of students, curriculum, record keeping, etc. Whether offering a post-degree certificate, or an undergraduate degree in paralegal studies, an ABA approved program must include at least eighteen semester credits or equivalent of general education courses and at least eighteen semester credits or equivalent must consist of “legal specialty courses.” Under the ABA Guidelines for the Approval of Paralegal Education, the “legal specialty course” has been developed for paralegals, covering substantive law or legal procedures or process while emphasizing practical paralegal skills. These typically include courses such as legal research, legal writing, litigation, probate, real estate, and other courses in specific areas of law practice. A Paralegal Certificate is offered by TU to the student who has previously secured an associate’s degree or higher.9 Fourteen (14) courses, are offered in both day and night courses, which include courses in: real estate & mortgages; computers in the law; family law; criminal law; business organization; contract; torts; research and writing; debtor and creditor law; litigation; legal ethics; and wills, trust & estates. TCC offers two (2) degrees in its Paralegal Studies Program, an Associate of Arts Degree (AA) and an Associate of Applied Science. Each degree is designed to prepare a graduate to enter the workforce and become a certified paralegal. The university transfer (AA) degree also prepares students for the last two (2) years at a four (4) year institution. All TCC Paralegal Studies students will take courses in civil procedure, contracts, real property, legal research and writing with applied lessons in drafting documents and pleadings and providing litigation support. Legal ethics, law office systems and management, and the use of computers in the legal environment are taught across the entire curriculum. Instruction includes at least ten (10) semester credits of legal specialty courses through traditional classroom instruction.10 TCC Paralegal Studies courses are taught at the Metro Campus in the evenings, allowing the student to work while completing a degree. As an example of the detailed education and training paralegal studies students must complete, consider TCC’s two (2) research and writing courses. These begin with an introduction to legal research, analysis, citation, and writing. TCC Paralegal Studies students learn how to use hard copy research tools so as to gain a deep understanding of the taxonomy used in the electronic resources. Meanwhile they begin learning the tedious, and necessary, skill of writing accurate citations, and spotting errors in same. Of course no 9 Under Guideline G302(F), “[t]he writing proficiency, oral communication competency, general education, and total credit requirements are assumed to have been satisfied if a student has earned a baccalaureate degree or an associate of arts or science degree from an accredited postsecondary institution. This assumption does not apply to an associate of applied science degree or equivalent occupational or vocational degree.” 10 See: http://www.tulsacc.edu/programs-courses/academic-schools/business-information-technology/paralegal-studies
legal writing and research course would be complete without issue spotting, (F)IRAC, and briefing cases, time honored exercises in developing the critical thinking skills required to undertake the proofreading, client and witness interviews, and document review assigned to paralegals. In the second semester of legal research and writing, TCC Paralegal students are introduced to advanced research and writing techniques, analysis, and strategies. Emphasis is placed on development of legal argument, format, and use of legal citations. Competency in WESTLAW and/or LEXIS, and the Internet as research tools is achieved through a series of increasingly complex practical assignments. Students will perform legal research and prepare case briefs and memoranda. 11 And in the final weeks of their two (2) semesters of study of research and writing, the students will prepare a dispositive motion. The women and men who complete the programs are encouraged to seek further education and/or certification. Professional organizations of paralegals and other legal professionals offer voluntary certification programs.12 These time limited credentials demonstrates not only the satisfaction of standards set by leaders in the profession, but a commitment to ongoing education and adherence to the ethical obligations applicable to legal professionals. The two (2) oldest, and largest such organizations, the National Association of Legal Professionals (http://www.nals.org) and the NALA, the Paralegal Association (https://www.nala.org) are headquartered in Tulsa. Members of Tulsa’s paralegal community are among the national leaders in their profession. Carl Morrison, an Adjunct Instructor at TCC is a former president and current board member of NALS. NALA’s President Cassandra Oliver is a graduate of TCC’s Paralegal Studies Program, and a TU Alumnus. The April 2017 issue of Tulsa Lawyer mentioned in the opening paragraph includes an interview with Elizabeth H. Nellis, ACP, who among her many contributions to the paralegal profession, is a member of TCC’s Paralegal Advisory Committee. And that’s to name a few. Tulsa’s ABA Approved paralegal studies programs are designed to prepare graduates to undertake substantive legal work under the supervision of attorneys, demonstrating a commitment to the legal profession and their communities while adhering to the ethical standards of their profession. These professionals can make Tulsa attorneys more efficient and effective in their efforts to provide legal services to the community. The legal professionals educated by Tulsa’s ABA Approved paralegal education programs are, indeed, the indispensable professionals. 11 See http://catalog.tulsacc.edu 12 This is not to be confused with the Paralegal Certificate offered by programs like those at TU, or the University of Oklahoma. For a more detailed explanation of the differences between certified, certificate, and certification see: http://ow.ly/esXP30fYvh4
Tulsa Lawyer 25
26 Tulsa Lawyer
Santa Brings a Law Suit Th e Tulsa County Bar F o u n d a t i o n , i n conjunction with the TCBA, is gearing up for its ever-popular “Santa Brings a Law Suit” clothing drive. The drive annually provides business attire to men anda women in need so they may make the best possible impression during a critical job interview or their first day of work. The legal community is particularly well “suited” for this task as so many of us wear professional attire every day. If you have professional or business casual clothes for men or women – suits, dresses, skirts, blouses, dress pants and shirts, ties, belts, shoes, etc. – please begin to put them aside for the benefit of needy and deserving Tulsans. MONDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2017 THROUGH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2017 All items should be clean, on hangers and ready to wear. At the conclusion of this year’s drive, the TCBF’s Community Outreach Committee will deliver the clothing to Tulsa area charitable organizations. Past organizations include the Salvation Army, John 3:16 Mission, and Women in Recovery, who truly appreciate and utilize your donation of professional attire to better our community. Your generosity is greatly appreciated (and tax deductible.) Tax receipts will be made available if you leave your name, mailing address, and a general description of the items donated at the time you drop off your donations. Let’s have a wonderful holiday season, and build on the past success of this drive by cleaning out our closets and helping Tulsans get back to work! Ashley R. Webb, Community Outreach Committee Chair, Tulsa County Bar Foundation Riggs, Abney, Neal, Turpen, Orbison & Lewis, Inc. Drop-off during regular business hours: TULSA COUNTY BAR 1446 South Boston, Tulsa, OK 74119
28 Tulsa Lawyer
G r a p e v i n e N e w s
Hall Estill announces the addition of Matthew S. Campbell as a shareholder in the firm’s Tulsa office. Joining the firm as a 20-year attorney with experience in private practice and in a Fortune 500 Corporate Tax department, Campbell’s practice at Hall Estill will concentrate on tax and international tax law, as well as corporate services, specifically in the mergers and acquisitions area, serving clients nationwide. Prior to joining the firm, Campbell was a Tax Director for TechnipFMC plc in Houston and previously worked at professional services firms Ernst & Young, BKD LLP, Aronson & Company, and KPMG LLP. Campbell earned his J.D, with distinction, from the University of Iowa College of Law and received his LL.M in Taxation from the Georgetown University Law Center. In addition, Campbell is on the advisory board for Arts for Healing, a 501(c)3 entity. Atkinson, Haskins, Nellis, Brittingham, Gladd & Fiasco announces that Kristopher K. McVay has joined the firm as an associate. Kristopher McVay graduated with highest honors from the University of Tulsa College of Law in 2017. He earned a bachelor of arts in Sociology with a focus on law and legal institutions from Oklahoma State University in 2011. While in law school, Mr. McVay served as Articles Research Editor of the Tulsa Law Review. He received a CALI Award in Torts and was awarded the Order of the Curule Chair. He completed internships with the Honorable Gregory Frizzell, Chief Judge of the Northern District of Oklahoma, and with the Honorable Stephanie K. Seymour, senior judge of the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. McVay is a member of the Oklahoma Bar Association and currently practices as a civil litigator.
McAfee & Taft attorneys Mary Quinn Cooper and Kathy R. Neal were honored with the Oklahoma Bar Association’s 2017 Mona Salyer Lambird Spotlight Award at a special luncheon sponsored by the OBA Women in Law Committee on September 29, 2017. The award, which is named after the OBA’s first woman president, is given annually to five women who have distinguished themselves in the legal profession and who have lighted the way for other women. Mary Quinn Cooper is an accomplished litigator who serves as national trial counsel for major corporations and regularly defends product liability claims and class actions across the country. In addition to serving as co-leader of the firm’s Litigation Group, she is an appointed member of the OBA’s Professional Responsibility Tribunal.
Cooper is a 1986 graduate of the University of Tulsa College of Law and was inducted in the TU College of Law Hall of Fame in 2014. Kathy Neal represents employers exclusively in all aspects of labor and employment law and litigation and devotes a portion of her practice to commercial litigation. She currently serves as an adjunct settlement judge for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma and previously served as an administrative law judge for the Oklahoma Department of Labor. Neal is a 1982 graduate of the University of Tulsa College of Law and was inducted in the TU College of Law Hall of Fame in 2015. The OBA Women in Law Conference is an annual event highlighting the challenges and achievements of Oklahoma’s women lawyers. Past winners of the Mona Salyer Lambird Spotlight Award include McAfee & Taft tax attorney Susan Shields, a 2011 honoree. Aston, Mathis, Jacobson, Campbell, Tiger, PLLC is pleased to announce that Amy (Basler) Newton has recently joined the firm as an associate attorney. The firm maintains a diverse general civil litigation practice and handles estate planning, corporate transactional matters, construction, family law, probate matters and criminal defense. Amy is a graduate of Oklahoma State University and a 2017 graduate of the University of Tulsa College of Law where she received a J.D. as well as an LL.M. in Natural Resources law. She was awarded Cali awards in Property Law, Decedents Estates and Trusts, Selling and Leasing of Goods, and Health law. She served as a notes and comments editor of the Energy Law Journal, and President of the Public Interest Board. Amy was named to the Order of the Curule Chair, graduated with highest honors, and recently passed the Oklahoma Bar Exam. She is admitted to practice before all state district courts in Oklahoma. Their offices are located at 2642 E. 21st Street, Suite 250, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74114. They can be contacted at (918) 949-9966. GableGotwals welcomes a new shareholder and two new associates. Steve Lake has over 26 years of legal expaerience in the energy industry in both law firm and corporate settings. Steve started his career at GableGotwals where he practiced for 17 years in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, corporate and securities matters and corporate finance. He then served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel for McJunkin Red Man Corporation for about four years before joining ONEOK, Inc. and ONEOK Partners in 2011. During his tenure with ONEOK, Steve led the in-house legal team as Senior Vice President and General Counsel. Steve joins the Tulsa office as a Shareholder where he will focus his practice on mergers and acquisitions, corporate and securities law, and corporate finance. Ashley E. Quinn joins GableGotwals as an associate attorney in the firm’s Oklahoma City office. Quinn primary practice will focus on state and federal litigation. Quinn graduated from the University of Oklahoma College of Law and was named Order of the Coif. She also earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Oklahoma,
where she graduated summa cum laude. She also attended the Oxford Summer Program at Oxford University and traveled to Guatemala to research and draft a shadow report on International Human Rights conditions in Guatemala. Andrew R. Polly joins GableGotwals as an associate attorney in the firm’s Tulsa office. Andrew’s primary practice will focus on Commercial Law. Andrew obtained his Juris Doctorate with highest honors from the University of Tulsa College of Law and earned his bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from Emporia State University. While in law school, Andrew served as Judicial Extern for the Honorable Gregory K. Frizzell, Chief Judge in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma. He also worked as a Summer Associate for Jones, Gotcher & Bogan. Hall Estill, announces the addition of Leslie D. Gile, Kayla M. Kuri, Aaron C. Tifft and Katie N. Wagner as associates to the firm. Leslie D. Gile will serve as part of Hall Estill’s Family Law practice in Oklahoma City. Gile is a graduate of the University of Oklahoma College of Law where she was a participant of the William B. Spong Moot Court Competition and an Elite Eight Finalist. She received her undergraduate degree in Vocal Performance from the University of Oklahoma. Gile also served as a judicial intern for The Honorable Robert L. Hudson at the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. Kayla M. Kuri joins Hall Estill’s Tulsa office, where she will primarily practice in the firm’s Corporate Law practice area with an emphasis on Tax and Real Estate Law. Kuri received her J.D., with highest honors, from the University of Oklahoma College of Law and her undergraduate degree in Accounting from Arkansas State University. While in law school, she was Assistant Managing Editor of the Oklahoma Law Review. Kuri also served as a Judicial Extern for The Honorable Robert Bacharach of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. Aaron C. Tifft will practice in Hall Estill’s Litigation section in the firm’s Tulsa office. Tifft graduated, with highest honors, from the University of Tulsa College of Law, and graduated summa cum laude with his degree in Media from Oral Roberts University. While in law school, he was Editor-in-Chief of the Tulsa Law Review and a member of the Phi Delta Phi Legal Honors Society. In addition, Tifft was named Most Outstanding Law Student of his graduating class. Katie N. Wagner will serve as part of Hall Estill’s Litigation practice in Oklahoma City. Wagner graduated from Oklahoma City University School of Law and received her undergraduate degree in Philosophy from the University of Central Oklahoma. Wagner also served as a judicial intern for The Honorable Brian Goree at the Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals and received a pro bono service award in recognition of her work with OCU’s Public Interest Fellowship. She is a member of
Contact Us the Phi Delta Phi International Legal Honor Society as well as the civic leadership organization Junior League OKC. While completing her law degree, Wagner studied abroad at Oxford, with emphasis in European Union law and English common law. Crowe & Dunlevy recently announced four attorneys have joined the firm’s Oklahoma City office. New associates Micah Adkison, Hayley Scott, Evan Way and Ryan K. Wilson will provide legal counsel to clients across diverse industries, including administrative and regulatory law, bankruptcy and creditor’s rights, Indian law and gaming, energy and litigation, among others. Prior to becoming an attorney, Adkison served as a major in the United States Marine Corps. He received his bachelor’s degree from Tarleton State University and graduated with distinction from the University of Oklahoma College of Law. As a law student, he served as editor-in-chief of the Oil and Gas, Natural Resources and Energy Journal. Adkison also received the 1L Moot Court Distinguished Speaker Award and the American Jurisprudence Award in Mineral Title Examination, participated in multiple honor societies and clubs and accumulated more than 65 hours of pro bono service preparing income tax documents for low-income individuals. He will serve in the firm’s Energy, Environment & Natural Resources Practice Group. Scott will join the firm’s Administrative & Regulatory, Bankruptcy & Creditor’s Rights and Litigation & Trial Practice Groups. After receiving a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Oklahoma, she graduated with highest honors and the top ranking in her class from the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Scott was a member of Order of the Coif, Order of the Barristers, Order of the Solicitors and Law Review. During law school, she was awarded the James F. Hawes Memorial Cup Award and the Judge Wayne Alley Advocacy Writing Award, in addition to other distinctions. She has also served as a volunteer for Legal Aid of Oklahoma. Another distinguished University of Oklahoma College of Law graduate, Way also holds a Master of Business Administration from Oklahoma City University. During law school, he was inducted into the Order of the Solicitors and was a member of Law Review. He was a director on the Board of Advocates and a member of the American Bar Association Negotiation Team, among other notable distinctions. Way is a 14-year member of the Oklahoma Air National Guard and worked for the U.S. Department of Defense for more than a decade. He has also served as an adjunct professor at Mid-America Christian University. He will serve in the firm’s Administrative & Regulatory and Litigation & Trial Practice Groups. Wilson is a member of the firm’s Administrative & Regulatory, Indian Law & Gaming and Litigation & Trial Practice Groups. He attended the University of Oklahoma College of Law after receiving a bachelor’s degree in political science from Yale University. During law school, he was inducted into the Order of the Coif, Order of the Barristers and National Order of Scribes. Wilson was named National Best Advocate and was a member of the national finalist team in the American Bar Association National Appellate Advocacy Competition, in addition to other distinctions, particularly in the area of legal writing. He previously served as a consultant in Washington, D.C. and as an intern at the Chickasaw Nation Judicial Department. 30 Tulsa Lawyer
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Titus Hillis Reynolds Love is a mid-size downtown Tulsa AV-rated law firm seeking a general civil litigation attorney with 1-7 years’ experience. Applicants must be proficient at legal research, writing, analysis, and practical litigation strategies, and must be able to work in a fast-paced team environment. Salary commensurate with experience. Firm provides excellent benefits. Please send resume to Hiring Manager, 15 E. 5 Street, Suite 3700, Tulsa, Oklahoma 74103. th
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STEIDLEY & NEAL, PLLC, is searching for an associate attorney with 1-5 years’ experiencefor its Tulsa office. Competitive salary and other benefits commensurate with level of experience. Looking for a motivated candidate interested in providing assistance to a litigation partner. Applications with be kept in strict confidence. Send resume to Steidley & Neal, located in CityPlex Towers, 53rd Floor, 2448 E. 81st St., Tulsa, OK, 74137, attention Dwain Witt, Legal Administrator.
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Send advertising inquiries to Jody
jodyg@tulsabar.com
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Tulsa Lawyer Cover Photo Contest
Not a writer but love the lens? Submit your photos for a chance to be featured on the cover of a future Tulsa Lawyer Magazine. The deadline is always the first of the month prior to the month of publication. Example: Dec. 1st to be considered for the January issue. Send to jodyg@tulsabar.com. Winner for each month will be awarded a $25.00 gift card. Photo must be your work and you must own the rights to it.
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