Texas Wesleyan Lawyer Fall/Winter 2011 by Texas Wesleyan University

Texas Wesleyan

fall/winter 2011

a magazine for alumni and friends

Pham Returns

to Vietnam on Fulbright Award

Texas Wesleyan University School of Law 1515 Commerce Street Fort Worth, Texas 76102

Texas Wesleyan

817-212-4000 www.law.txwes.edu DEAN Frederic White

2011 | volume 11 | issue 2

ASSOCIATE DEAN FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS Aric Short

features

Associate Dean for Faculty Research & Development Michael Green Associate Dean for Evening Division Programs Stephen R. Alton DIRECTOR OF THE LAW LIBRARY Michelle Rigual ASSISTANT DEAN FOR CAREER SERVICES Arturo Errisuriz

Pham Returns to Vietnam on Fulbright Award

The Lone Prosecutor

Greenberg Shares Sports Successes at 2011 Luncheon

sections 18

Around Campus

Alumni News & Notes

Daniel Denton ʼ10 Posts Highest Bar Exam Score

Texas Wesleyan School of Law Welcomes New Faculty

ASSISTANT DEAN FOR STUDENT AFFAIRS Rosalind Jeffers ASSISTANT DEAN OF ADMISSIONS & SCHOLARSHIPS Sherolyn Hurst Director of Alumni Relations & EXTERNAL AFFAIRS Casey Dyer Oliver ’06 PRESIDENT Frederick G. Slabach PROVOST & Senior Vice President Dr. Allen Henderson

Editorial Staff EDITOR Dan Brothers Staff WriterS Amy Batheja Cristina Noriega

In Academia

Alumni Report

Career Services

on the cover:

Huyen Pham, professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law (on left in baseball cap), and her husband, Pham Hoang Van (front), an economics professor at Baylor University, both received Fulbright teaching grants in Vietnam for the 2010-2011 academic year. They were joined on their trip by their two young daughters and Huyen Pham’s mother-in-law (back left in green blouse). See article beginning on page 2. Photo courtesy of Huyen Pham.

COPY EDITOR Janna Franzwa Canard Please direct correspondence to: Dan Brothers, Editor Texas Wesleyan Lawyer 1515 Commerce Street Fort Worth, Texas 76102 dbrothers@law.txwes.edu Texas Wesleyan Lawyer is published twice a year for the benefit of Texas Wesleyan University School of Law graduates, faculty and friends. The views and opinions expressed in Texas Wesleyan Lawyer are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Texas Wesleyan University School of Law. The School of Law is fully accredited by the Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar of the American Bar Association, 321 N. Clark Street, Chicago, IL 60610, 800-2852221, www.abanet.org. Texas Wesleyan University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master’s, and doctoral level degrees. Contact the Commission on Colleges at 1866 Southern Lane, Decatur, Georgia 30033-4097 or call 404-679-4500 (Web site: www.sacscoc.org) only for questions, comments or issues related to the accreditation of Texas Wesleyan University. Texas Wesleyan University shall not discriminate against any individual because of race, color, religion, creed, national or ethnic origin, gender, age, disability, veteran’s status, sexual orientation or any other reason prohibited by applicable federal, state, or local laws.

message

from the dean

Dear Alumni and Friends, For three consecutive academic years, the law school has had Fulbright Scholars. Professor James McGrath is currently teaching at Beijing University of Chemical Technology in China. During the 2010-2011 academic year, Professor Huyen Pham taught in Vietnam, and Professor Cynthia Fountaine taught in Germany the preceding year. These three join Professors Malinda Seymore and Stephen Alton as the law school’s five Fulbright Scholars in our first 22 years. Professor Pham’s experience in Vietnam is the subject of this issue’s cover feature. It was her second trip to Vietnam since being evacuated as a youngster at the end of the Vietnam War in 1975. Kyson Johnson ’95 was recently named Prosecutor of the Year by the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud. He is a special assistant district attorney in the specialized crime division of the Dallas County district attorney’s office and was also honored as Prosecutor of the Year by A Texas Advisory Council on Arson in 2008. Johnson was featured in an article in the September issue of D Magazine. Daniel Denton ’10 earned the highest score on the February 2011 Texas Bar Examination, the first time a Texas Wesleyan School of Law graduate has ever received the top bar score. It was quite an extraordinary achievement. In celebration of Mr. Denton’s success, the law school has initiated the Daniel Denton Award, which will go to the law school’s first-time taker with the highest score on each bar examination. For the third year, the law school was again proud to be the presenting sponsor for the Fort Worth Business Press Power Attorneys Awards. Over the years, many of the award recipients have consistently supported the law school and university. These lawyers have attained a high degree of peer recognition, professional achievement and unparalleled success. In addition, Texas Wesleyan School of Law was honored to present its annual Excellence in Justice Award to 352nd District Court Judge Bonnie Sudderth at the Power Attorneys luncheon. We were delighted to recognize Judge Sudderth’s personal and professional contributions to the greater Fort Worth community. As an adjunct professor of law at Texas Wesleyan and as a municipal and state judge for more than 20 years, Judge Sudderth has influenced many lives. This fall, the law school welcomed three new faculty members for the 2011-2012 academic year. Our new professors are Associate Professor of Law Sahar F. Aziz, Associate Professor of Law Gina S. Warren and Visiting Associate Professor of Law Donna Tomlinson-Weyand. In addition, we congratulate our newly tenured faculty member Terri Helge who has been promoted to professor of law. Finally, I am extremely pleased to announce that pending a final vote from the AALS House of Representatives in January 2012, Texas Wesleyan School of Law will become a member of the Association of American Law Schools. This is great news and a significant milestone for our law school. You’ll be able to read more about the law school’s AALS membership in the next issue of Texas Wesleyan Lawyer. Sincerely,

Frederic White Dean and Professor of Law 1

Above: Over the Tet holiday, Pham (far left in first row of adults) and her family visited Mai Hoa Center, a home for terminally ill HIV/AIDS patients, including children. The Pham girls enjoyed exchanging songs with the children living there. Left: Pham and her family are shown en route to the hamlet of My H么i in the Mekong Delta. My H么i is a very poor area whose residents only recently received access to electricity. They visited social service projects designed to generate income for the residents (e.g., building chairs and umbrellas from locally available materials for sale in larger urban environments).

Professor Pham’s 2010-2011 Asian and Australian Presentations Aug. 23-27, 2010

Pham Returns

Presented on law firm practice and clinical education issues First Vietnam National Workshop on Continuing Legal Education Vinh University Faculty of Law Vinh, Vietnam

Nov. 22-27, 2010

Presented about administrative detention law The Rights of Women Living with HIV under Vietnamese Law Conference University of Economics and Law, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

to Vietnam

on Fulbright Award

March 3, 2011

Lectured on U.S. administrative law and relevance to U.S. trade law University of Economics and Law, Vietnam National University Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

by Dan Brothers Photos courtesy of Huyen Pham

March 18, 2011

Service was the focus of the Fulbright trip right from the start. “My primary concern was to help – to give back,” Huyen Pham, professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law, said. “If you’re a doctor, you can go and provide medical care for the poor. If you’re a law professor and what you do is teach – well, I wanted to go back to help advance legal education in Vietnam.”

Presented “Measuring the Climate for Immigrants: A State by State Analysis” Fulbright Regional Conference Bangkok, Thailand

March 23-24, 2011

Presented on U.S. law and legal education The National Economics University Hanoi, Vietnam

March 24, 2011

Talk about corporate governance U.S. Embassy, American Corner Program Hanoi, Vietnam

April 4, 2011

Presented research on “Empirical Analysis of Subfederal Immigration Regulation in the U.S.” The University of Newcastle Law School Newcastle, Australia

Pham and her husband, Pham Hoang Van, an associate professor of economics at Baylor University, both received Fulbright teaching grants in Vietnam for the 2010-2011 academic year. They were accompanied by their two young daughters and Pham’s mother-in-law. It was indeed a family affair.

June 1, 2011

This was Pham’s second trip to Vietnam since her escape as a 5 year old during the fall of Saigon in 1975.

July 8, 2011

Overview of the Vietnamese judicial system and legal education Fulbright Enrichment Seminar Dong Hoi, Vietnam

June 28, 2011

Presented seminar on U.S. administrative law and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act National Academy of Public Administration Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam

Keynote lecture on “Undocumented Immigrants in the United States” International Academic Symposium in Iwate 2011 Iwate University Morioka, Iwate, Japan

feature story

Pham gave a guest lecture in a first-year Property class. Pham Xuan Hoang, who invited her to guest lecture in his class, is a very innovative teacher who designs problems and otherwise makes his teaching as applied as possible. The students gave Pham flowers after the lecture.

Teaching in Vietnam

“I modified my Immigration Law class

“I appreciated the opportunity to learn

from what I teach at Texas Wesleyan,”

about how Vietnamese higher education

During her year in Vietnam, Pham taught

Pham continued. “Law in Vietnam is an

works and to be immersed in it,” Pham

Immigration Law, Law and Economics,

undergraduate major, so my students

and lectured on U.S. law at the University of Economics and Law, which is part of the

were younger, about 19 to 21 years old.”

City. Pham’s husband taught international trade and development courses at the University of Economics, a university in Ho Chi Minh City. According to Pham,

in Vietnam. The higher education system

“I wanted to go back to help advance legal education in Vietnam.”

gave reading assignments in English,”

is making progress, but it faces many obstacles. Scholars come from around the world to try to infuse new concepts into the Vietnamese system. However, curriculum is still controlled at the national level.

most folks still refer to the city as Saigon. “I taught in English, tested in English, and

challenging.” She sees instruction as the primary need

Vietnam National University system. The main campus is just north of Ho Chi Minh

said. “Parts of the experience were really

“It was great to be there for a year,” Pham Pham found it interesting and challenging work

different

adjustment period and was then able to

Pham said. “Many students were very

impressive in their mastery of English.”

environment. Because Vietnam is still a

Pham’s students came from all over

developing country there were not nearly

Vietnam, but most were from areas

as many resources available for students

substantive information, but also in ways

around Saigon.

or faculty as here in the U.S.

of teaching. Vietnamese education tends

educational

said, “because I got through the initial be more productive. Folks in Vietnamese higher education are interested in learning from outside systems, not just in terms of

feature story

to be sort of classical in some sense and very theoretical – so

“It’s a developing country and space is tight,” she said. “There

there is a lot of lecturing. My hosts, I think, were interested in

is a greater demand than there are qualified folks to teach. Those

learning other ways to teach – hands on, problem solving, engaging

who are qualified are on very low salaries and often work multiple

students in discussions and making things more applied.”

jobs to support their families and that creates its own challenges.”

These are the same things that are being pursued at Texas Wesleyan School of Law, but Vietnam is at a much earlier stage of

The Vietnamese Legal System

that model. “My sense is that the Vietnamese educational system is at the beginning stages of that conversation,” Pham observed.

“The role of lawyers in Vietnamese society is not nearly as important as it is in the U.S.,” Pham observed. “There is a

Change doesn’t come in a linear path. Pham introduced her students to problem solving. Her final exam was open book.

distinction between those who litigate and those who offer

“I told my students ‘I’m not interested in what you’ve memorized,’”

avenues for challenging the government – but they are limited.

legal advice. The judges are not independent. There are some

Pham said. “Some of my students did very well, but some struggled

There is also some concern about the ability of the legal system

because the emphasis has always been on memorization and then

to handle disputes.”

recitation. This was new to my students – to test their problem-

Vietnam’s is a civil law system that doesn’t use cases. Pham

solving ability and their creativity. Some students really excelled. These were new concepts and not

tried to introduce a little bit of case

readily accepted.”

analysis in her classes, but found that the students were not familiar

Teaching in a developing country proved to be very challenging. “One of the biggest challenges was that my students could not afford the texts that I would normally use,” Pham noted. “Our texts at Texas Wesleyan – and our

with that tradition.

“The role of lawyers in Vietnamese society is not nearly as important as it is in the U.S.”

“It’s hard for them to comprehend the significance of precedence, since it’s not part of their system,” she said. “Laws are written by the Vietnamese National Assembly.

students complain, as rightfully

When courts and other authorities

they should – are $100 to $150.

interpret a statute, they don’t look to

That’s the monthly salary for many

cases like we do.

people in Vietnam. So I had to think more carefully about resources.”

“The Supreme Court of Vietnam each year comes out with

With major assistance from her colleagues at Texas Wesleyan,

again, it’s not based on cases.”

interpretations of statutes and how they should be applied. But,

Pham was able to more than double the university’s collection of legal books. She hopes to go back to teach short courses in Saigon – and continue to build the library.

Social Services and Educational Programs

Classes are not taught on multiple days, as in the U.S. “I only

Pham and her family are longtime friends with a sister in a

taught on Wednesdays for three hours,” Pham said. “That’s the

Catholic order who runs educational and social services

way universities set up the teaching schedules, in part because

programs in Vietnam. Their time spent in poor communities

faculty often have multiple jobs and also because traffic and

observing these programs in action was a significant and

travel in Saigon is so difficult.”

meaningful part of Pham’s Vietnam experience. “We gained a

Other challenges are that there are no faculty office hours

deeper insight into the problems faced by poor people and the

and individual faculty members do not have their own offices.

disparity between the very rich and the very poor,” Pham said.

According to Pham, even the dean sits in one communal area.

“The gap is much larger than in the U.S. It was mind opening.” 5

Pham is shown with students in her Immigration Law class. The students were quite fluent in English.

The programs run by the Catholic sister are intended to not only provide services but to improve the position of the people – to develop their human dignity.

because of the year of training. The sister is very innovative and is a visionary in terms of what can be done to help people.” The order also runs schools at the primary level and gives a substantial number of scholarships so that poor students can continue their schooling. “Education in Vietnam is supposed to be free,” Pham said. “But there are a lot of fees that must be paid in order to get a complete education.”

Many people from the poorer northern and central regions, where economic opportunities are very limited, migrate to Saigon in hopes of a better future. “They are the equivalent of migrant Mexican workers in the U.S.,” Pham said, “except that they are “We gained a from the same country.” As an example, the Catholic order runs a yearlong school that trains young women from the northern and central regions in housekeeping.

deeper insight into the problems faced by poor people and the disparity between the very rich and the very poor.”

“They are taught how to use stoves, refrigerators and washing machines – how to prepare a meal and make it hygienic,” Pham explained. “The students are also taught about their rights as workers. Then the sister helps find them placements, often with foreigners living in Saigon. They earn much higher wages than they could on their own

Many students’ education is subsidized by the order. But a requirement of that subsidy is that parents must attend seminars. The parents are taught about important principles in child development, including proper methods of discipline.

The Fall of Saigon – 36 Years Later Pham and her family traveled throughout Vietnam – to Da Nang, Hue, Hanoi, Vinh and the Mekong Delta. Despite the extremely 6

Texas Wesleyan School of Law Fulbright Scholars James McGrath Professor of Law China: 2011-2012 As part of her trip to Japan and to Iwate University in July 2011, Pham participated in a service project where she joined other volunteers in cooking dinner for the residents of a shelter in Miyako City. Those families had lost their homes in the March 2011 tsunami that devastated parts of northern Japan. They were living on the gym floor in a community shelter when Pham visited.

tumultuous relations between the two Vietnams and the U.S. during the Vietnam War, Pham discovered that 36 years after the fall of Saigon, “no one cares.” Today, Da Nang’s China Beach is lined with international, luxury hotels, according to Pham. The area is booming. It was also booming 43 years ago – to the sound of bombs being dropped far inland from B-52s or fired from Navy ships offshore, and Viet Cong rockets. China Beach, where U.S. servicemen went for recreation, was lined with bunkers and armed sentries in towers. “Many of my students want to study in the U.S.,” Pham said. “They are very pragmatic. I don’t think people make a distinction based on the history between the two countries. The students want to advance themselves and have a degree from a U.S. or British or Australian school. They want to know ‘where can I get a good, affordable education?’”

The Fulbright Scholar Program The Phams were two of the approximately 1,100 U.S. faculty and professionals who travel annually through the Fulbright Scholar Program. America’s flagship international educational exchange program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The program was established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Sen. J. William Fulbright of Arkansas. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. They are among more than 40,000 individuals participating in U.S. Department of State exchange programs each year.

Huyen Pham Professor of Law Vietnam: 2010-2011

Cynthia Fountaine Formerly Professor of Law and currently Dean of the Southern Illinois University School of Law Germany: 2009-2010

Malinda Seymore Professor of Law China: 2006-2007

Stephen Alton Associate Dean for Evening Division Programs and Professor of Law China: 2000-2001

MAN ON A MISSION: As a reserve JAG officer, Kyson Johnson ’95 helped prosecute the first Abu Ghraib case in Iraq. — Photo by Dan Brothers

*Insurance Fraud

The Lone* Prosecutor It doesn’t quite have the ring of “ranger.” But KYSON JOHNSON is the only man in Texas who does what he does. BY MICHAEL J. MOONEY REPRINTED FROM THE SEPTEMBER 2011 ISSUE OF D MAGAZINE

s far as schemes go, it was quick and easy. They would start at auto auctions in Grand Prairie, where they bought cars that had been declared “totaled” by insurance companies. They’d bid on high-end models—Infiniti, Lexus, Acura—usually paying about $2,000 for each car. Then they’d do some cosmetic work and “wash” the titles, registering them in other states, then bringing them back to Texas with no evidence they had once been totaled. This group of men—three brothers aided by a small network of cousins and neighbors— would then simultaneously insure the cars with different agencies, targeting smaller mom-and-pop companies in South Dallas. They’d take out policies worth north of $25,000 each. Then they’d crash the cars. The insurance claims all looked the same. It was always a single car hitting a stationary object like a tree or a pole. There was always a lot of front-end damage. Within days, they’d collect fat checks from

each of the insuring agents, a ruse that, with at least 71 claims, pulled in nearly $600,000. Because the scam targeted smaller insurance companies, the kind that likely couldn’t afford access to the national databases shared by the largest firms, it went undetected for months, possibly years. But one day an insurance investigator happened to notice that the same Acura had been reported as being involved in two different incidents just days apart. He sent out a bulletin to the insurance companies in the area, asking if they had any incidents involving the same names. Hits came back from all over North Texas. This is where Kyson Johnson comes in. He’s the insurance fraud prosecutor in Dallas County. Now, insurance fraud prosecution might not sound like exciting party conversation—a lesson Johnson has learned more than once—but in a land fraught with all species of fraudster, this man is the only prosecutor in the entire state of Texas dedicated full time to insurance fraud cases. He unwinds the labyrinthine scams that constitute some of the most elaborate, 9

bizarre white-collar crimes. He protects consumers from unscrupulous agents, and he protects insurance companies against fraud-minded criminals. Policy holders pay, on average, more than $100 a year in higher premiums because of the bad guys that Johnson goes after. “Every dollar that these criminals get away with is money being taken out of a policy holder’s back pocket,” says Mark Hanna, spokesman for the Insurance Council of Texas, which represents 500 insurance companies across the state. “A lot of prosecutors won’t take many insurance fraud cases. Some think it’s not big enough. Some think it’s just too complicated.” Johnson’s background—former personal injury attorney, former reserve JAG officer who prosecuted one of the more famous military misconduct cases in U.S. history—makes him a perfect fit for the job. He grew up in Moore, Okla., the son of a Baptist minister. His brothers are both cops, and his sister is the head of training and development for Guidestone Financial

a series of stupid decisions,” Johnson says. “My goal as a prosecutor is to seek justice, to make sure the situation is made right. Oftentimes, that doesn’t mean sending someone away for 10 years.” His weapon of choice: court-ordered restitution. In the case of that organized ring in South Dallas, several of the key players were sentenced to prison, but even the guys who got probation were strapped with more than $50,000 each in restitution requirements.

Kyson Johnson ’95 was recently selected as the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud’s 2011 Prosecutor of the Year — the only national award focusing solely on achievements in prosecuting insurance fraud. — Photo by Dan Brothers

Resources. He worked his way first through Dallas Baptist University, then Texas Wesleyan School of Law, and started his career as a personal injury attorney. The money was good, but within a few years, he hated the work. In 2001, he was preparing a closing statement for a BMW-driving client who, after a minor fender bender, was suing for $5,000 in medical bills, plus lost wages and pain and suffering. “It just felt so sleazy,” Johnson says, looking back. “I told myself at that moment, ‘I will never do this again.’” He jokes that he “came over from the dark side.” He took a job as a prosecutor in Grayson County, commuting 60 miles each way to Sherman, mostly to see if he even wanted to be a lawyer anymore. “I decided I would rather have driven a tractor for a living than work in personal injury one more day,” he says. He wasn’t on the job long before the military called. He had joined the reserve JAG corps as a commissioned officer in early 2001. In 2004, his prosecutorial duties were needed in Iraq. There were some startling allegations out of a military prison most people had never heard of, a place called Abu Ghraib. Johnson was co-prosecutor in the first case against the prison guards accused of torturing Iraqi prisoners. His wasn’t the most famous case—that would be Lynndie “Thumbs Up” England—but Johnson was featured prominently in books about the ordeal. He says that most of the media got the deal all wrong. “This wasn’t

about intelligence gathering at all,” he says emphatically. It started with prisoners fighting in the yard, he says, and a few untrained prison guards getting retaliation later. “Some people got a little twisted, obviously. The entire situation was blown up by members of the defense and by members of the media.”

This fiscal year, Johnson has secured 52 indictments and has gotten 49 guilty pleas or dispositions (the one acquittal was a police officer accused of lying on workers’ comp claims). He has collected more than $70,000 in fines for Dallas County and millions more in restitution for both insurance companies and defrauded consumers. Dennis Pompa, the director of the Insurance Fraud Unit at the Texas Department of Insurance (Johnson’s boss in Austin), all but gushes over his employee of six years. “There’s no one in the state of Texas as competent when it comes to the ability to understand and pursue all aspects of insurance fraud,” Pompa says. Though he works exclusively out of the Dallas County district attorney’s office, Johnson is technically an employee of the Texas Department of Insurance. His salary

Not long after he came back to the States, Johnson saw a posting for his current job. This fiscal year, Johnson has Now he has seen all manner collected more than $70,000 of scam: from people who faked their own deaths to in fines for Dallas County and people who forged letters millions more in restitution from long-dead parents for both insurance companies so they could continue to cash annuity checks. He’s and defrauded consumers. had home-, car-, life- and commercial-insurance cases, workers’ comp fraud, and organized rings is paid not by taxpayers but by insurance that make as much as the most prolific bank policy holders. (A small fee from every robbers. He’s even seen a few crooked agents insurance policy goes to the state agency issuing fake policies and essentially pocketing that funds his office.) When he was hired the premiums. in 2005, there were plans to have similar Prosecutors who work murder and prosecutors in Houston and San Antonio, kidnapping cases deal with bloody knives, but those were brighter economic days. smoking guns, videotaped car chases. Still, if the cases he wins pay for his salary, But in Johnson’s cases, the weapons are it would seem to make sense that the state could all sheets of paper stained with ink, often afford more guys like Kyson Johnson. It’s an buried in mounds of other material. He has to interesting question. If you see Johnson at a sift through them and demonstrate to a jury party, be sure to ask him about it. how an often regular-seeming person was able to steal from a complex financial system.

“Most of the defendants in my cases are normal, everyday people who have made 10

Daniel Denton ʼ10 Posts Highest Bar Exam Score By Tasha Hayton

After spending 10 years working in a science lab, Daniel Denton ʼ10 decided to ditch his career in pharmaceutical research and head into the courtroom. The gamble paid off. He earned the highest score on the February 2011 Texas Bar Examination — a feat the former chemist hadn’t expected to accomplish. “When I walked out [of the exam], I wasn’t sure how well I did,” he said. The highest possible score is 1,000, and 675 is passing. “I got an 855, and I thought, ‘Well, that’s not that bad. That’s right in the middle,’” Denton said. He didn’t realize the “not bad” score was actually the best score of the February test takers when a Texas Supreme Court Justice called to congratulate him. The accomplishment isn’t just notable for Denton. He is the first Texas Wesleyan School of Law graduate to earn the top score. “The Texas Wesleyan School of Law community is proud of all our February bar passers. We are especially proud, however, of the achievements of Daniel Denton,” Frederic White, dean of Texas Wesleyan School of Law, wrote after learning of Denton’s score. “Obtaining the highest score in the state against 1,149 other test takers is quite an extraordinary achievement.”

University President Frederick Slabach, Daniel Denton ’10 and Dean Frederic White — Photo by Dan Brothers

It was an achievement Denton said he deserves. “I worked really hard in school, and I worked really hard on the bar exam,” he said. He was well prepared for the multiple choice portion of the exam because of his law school classes. Denton spent most of his time leading up to the bar exam studying Texas law, because he didn’t take that class at Wesleyan. Denton also believes his life experience helped him perform well in law school and on the bar exam. The 35-year-old was a chemistry major in college and worked 10 years in the field before deciding to change careers. “I was kind of burnt out on lab work and doing chemistry,” he said. Law just happened to be the course of study that caught Denton’s eye. “I didn’t really have that much experience with law besides Law & Order on television, but it attracted me for some reason,” he said. “I needed something that was going to be a challenge.” He started studying for the LSAT and filling out his applications in 2006. Denton started attending Wesleyan part time in 2007. It was nearly two years before he quit his job as a chemist to focus solely on law. He graduated in December 2010.

During the summer of 2009, Denton worked part time at a law office in Dallas. That practical experience led him to open his own general practice law office in June. He focuses most of his legal work on small businesses and estate planning, but he doesn’t want to be tied down to one area of law. “I actually prefer doing a variety of things as long as I can get them done and do them well,” Denton said. “I’m kind of in the ‘see where it takes me’ mode.” To build up business, Denton is taking pro bono work from the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program. He’s also received attention from other attorneys because of earning the best score on the bar exam. “They are really impressed with that,” he said. Now that he has passed the bar with flying colors and finished school, Denton said he is ready to focus more of his attention on family time and enjoys the flexibility of running his own practice. He tries to spend as much time visiting with his two daughters who live in Austin. And though it took him a while to realize how well he did on the bar exam, his wife never doubted him.

“She was much more confident that I would get a high result than I was.”

Greenberg Shares Sports Successes at 2011 Luncheon Story and photos by Dan Brothers

2011 Power Attorneys Neal W. Adams

Adams, Lynch & Loftin, P.C.

G. Thomas Boswell Winstead, P.C.

Melinda R. Burke

Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff & Miller, LLP

Robert L. Ginsburg

McDonald Sanders, P.C.

Charles B. Harris

Harris, Finley & Bogle, P.C.

Dee J. Kelly, Jr.

Kelly Hart & Hallman, LLP

Rob Kelly

Decker Jones, P.C.

Ray Oujesky

Chesapeake Energy Corporation

Jay Rutherford

Jackson Walker, LLP

Richard “Rocky” Schwartz Whitaker Chalk Swindle & Schwartz, PLLC

Elaine E. Witbeck

Alcon Laboratories, Inc.

Corporate and sports attorney Chuck Greenberg was the keynote speaker at the 2011 Power Attorneys luncheon at The Fort Worth Club.

Judge Dana Womack

huck Greenberg was the keynote speaker at the Power Attorneys luncheon held at The Fort Worth Club on Oct. 12, 2011. “Greenberg is well-known for helping to bring

the Texas Rangers out of bankruptcy,” Robert Francis, editor of the Fort Worth Business Press, said. “But Greenberg is also well-known for his involvement in sports law and in ownership of sports teams,” Francis continued. “He has done more than just provide legal services in his community. He has contributed to his community’s economic future. “That’s the very definition of a Power Attorney.” 12

348th District Court

Terri Helge, professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law (left), and Nick Karanges, publisher of the Fort Worth Business Press (right), present Judge Bonnie Sudderth of the 352nd District Court with the 2011 Texas Wesleyan University Excellence in Justice Award at the conclusion of the Power Attorneys luncheon.

ichard L. Connor recently began

Luther King Capital Management; McDonald

March of this year, Greenberg is proud of

his third stint as owner of the

Sanders, P.C.; Whitaker Chalk Swindle &

the team’s accomplishments.

Fort Worth Business Press.

Schwartz, PLLC; and Del Frisco’s Double Eagle Steakhouse.

“We changed the image of the brand

in business in Texas and in business with

“The sports industry is a very tight circle,”

virtually overnight,” he said. “This is the

Texans,” he said in his opening remarks at

Greenberg said, who is also an innovative

this year’s Power Attorneys luncheon. For

entrepreneur and expert on the business of

“I appreciate the opportunity to again be

the third year, Texas Wesleyan School of

and the perception of the franchise

major professional sports. In summarizing

beginning of a long, long reign for the Rangers as a major superpower in major league baseball.”

Law was the event’s presenting sponsor.

his successes during his keynote remarks, Greenberg noted that “luck is where

The presentation of the 2011 Power

Terri Helge, professor of law at Texas

preparation meets opportunity.”

Attorneys awards followed Greenberg’s

Wesleyan, represented the law school at the 2011 event. “We believe in our community and in the investment in our profession,” Helge said. “Many of the attorneys and judges here today at the luncheon have played critical roles in the training and development of our students. We are proud to be Fort Worth’s law school.” Other sponsors for the 2011 Power Attorneys luncheon included Kelly Hart & Hallman, LLP; Shannon, Gracey, Ratliff

His preparation in law laid the foundation of what was to follow. “A legal education helps to hone your analytical skills, your intellectual curiosity and problem solving,” Greenberg said. Given his love of sports law, Greenberg is recognized on and off the field as a tough negotiator on franchise acquisitions, advising on the purchase and rebuilding of more than two dozen franchises in baseball, football, basketball, hockey and lacrosse.

remarks. During the awards segment, Connor peppered his comments with anecdotes about many of the attorneys in attendance at the luncheon. One of his best stories involved longtime supporter of Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Dee J. Kelly, Sr. “When I first came to Fort Worth – I was 38 and had barely been here a couple of months – and had a beard in those days,” Connor reflected. “And Dee Kelly, Sr. took

& Miller, LLP; Jerry Durant Auto Group;

Despite having ended his tenure as the

me to lunch with one of his more important

Justin Boots; Coors Distributing Company;

Texas Rangers chief executive officer in

clients. We talked politics – and he [the

feature story

client] kept looking at my beard. When I got back to my office, Dee Kelly, Sr. called me on the phone and said, ‘Mr. Connor, I do not know you very well, but my client thinks you are a communist.’” “True story,” Connor added. The 2011 Power Attorneys were Neal W. Adams; G. Thomas Boswell; Melinda R. Burke; Robert L. Ginsburg; Charles B. Harris; Dee J. Kelly, Jr.; Rob Kelly; Ray Oujesky; Jay Rutherford; Richard “Rocky” Schwartz; Elaine E. Witbeck; and Judge Dana Womack. This year’s Texas Wesleyan University Excellence in Justice Award went to Judge Bonnie Sudderth, state district judge of the 352nd District Court. Sudderth has more than 20 years of judicial experience and for the past 13 years has been an adjunct professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law. Commenting on her award, Sudderth said, “It’s a tremendous honor and I have such affection for Texas Wesleyan because I’ve

gotten so close to the law school over the years. It’s especially

David Keltner, a partner at Kelly Hart & Hallman and a 2009 FWBP Power Attorney, and Judge Joe Spurlock II, professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law, were among the attendees at a reception held at Del Frisco’s on Oct. 11 to honor this year’s Power Attorneys, their guests and event sponsors.

poignant when an entity you have supported for many years honors you – it’s so fulfilling.”

Casey Dyer Oliver ’06, director of alumni relations and external affairs at Texas Wesleyan School of Law; Frederick Slabach, president of Texas Wesleyan University; and John Veilleux, vice president for marketing and communications at Texas Wesleyan University, shared a few moments with keynote speaker Chuck Greenberg (second from right) at the end of the luncheon.

Judge Bonnie Sudderth Receives Excellence in Justice Award By Lisa Logan, Fort Worth Business Press

Bonnie Sudderth never had any doubt that she was destined to be a lawyer. “My dad was a lawyer and I grew up around the law,” she said. “I just always knew that’s what I wanted to do.” Today, after more than 20 years of judicial experience, Sudderth enjoys what she does and looks forward to going to work every day as state district judge of the 352nd District Court. In 1996, Sudderth was appointed by then-Gov. George W. Bush to the 352nd Judicial District. She has been re-elected three times. Sudderth is also board-certified in both civil trial law and personal injury trial law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization. “I am at a point in my life when I knock on wood and say, ‘I am so content.’ It’s a wonderful place to be,” the judge said. Sudderth was the youngest person ever appointed as chief judge of the Fort Worth Municipal Courts at age 30. While presiding over this court, she was a faculty member at the Texas Municipal Courts Education Center and president of the Texas Municipal Courts Association. She has received Outstanding Mentor Awards from both the Texas and Tarrant County Young Lawyers Associations. She has also been named one of Tarrant County’s Most Influential Women by the Fort Worth Business Press and Outstanding Woman of Fort Worth by the Commission on the Status of Women. On the bench, Sudderth is known for being gentle and patient, having a commonsense approach to solving problems, and demonstrating a solid understanding of the law, evidence and procedure. “Despite what we see on TV and in the movies,” she explained, “the Texas Code of Judicial Conduct requires that judges be ‘patient, dignified and courteous’ while on the bench. I take my ethical obligations very seriously.” Photo courtesy of Glen E. Ellman, Fort Worth Business Press

For the past 13 years, Sudderth has been an adjunct professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law. During fall semesters she teaches an upper-division course, Texas Trials & Appeals, as well as an intensive one-week civil practice workshop. In 2008, she received the Distinguished Adjunct Faculty Award from the Texas Wesleyan School of Law Alumni Association. She goes to class after a long day at work on the bench. She admitted that she’s tired when she arrives at the university, but said that once there the students are energizing. “I try to give them as much as I can but receive so much more in return from the students and teaching. My life is very rich. Everything I’ve done has been part of a big journey and I’m delighted to be where I am now.” Although the road may not have always been smooth or straight, she tells her students that they can get anywhere they want to be, even if the path is circuitous. Sudderth graduated magna cum laude with a B.S. in public administration from the University of Southern California. She earned her law degree from the University of Texas School of Law. Aside from her daily judicial duties, she also lectures for the Tarrant County Bar Association and has received awards for numerous writing submissions from the State Bar of Texas.

“I am at a point in my life when I knock on wood and say, ‘I am so content.’ It’s a wonderful place to be.”

Texas Wesleyan School of Law Welcomes New Faculty

or the past 22 years, the Texas Wesleyan School of Law faculty has continued to provide an exceptional legal education experience for our students, to pursue outstanding scholarship and dedicate themselves to community service. The law school continues to attract and maintain a

highly productive and diverse faculty, exhibiting a wide range of academic and professional experience. “I am pleased to announce that the school of law has added three new faculty members for the 2011-2012 academic year,” Dean Frederic White said. “These individuals are welcome additions to our current pool of faculty members whose reputations are becoming known at a national and international level.”

Sahar F. Aziz Sahar F. Aziz joined the faculty of Texas Wesleyan School of Law in 2011 as an associate professor of law. Prior to joining Texas Wesleyan, Aziz was an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center where she taught national security and civil rights law. Aziz served as a senior policy advisor for the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security where she worked on law and policy at the intersection of national security and civil rights. Prior to joining DHS, Aziz was an associate at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC in Washington, D.C., where she litigated class action civil rights lawsuits alleging a nationwide pattern and practice of gender discrimination in pay and promotion. Aziz began her legal career as an associate at WilmerHale in Washington, D.C., conducting internal white collar crime investigations and an independent investigation on child trafficking in the Persian Gulf. She also clerked for the Hon. Andre M. Davis on the United States District Court for the District of Maryland. Aziz’s scholarship focuses on the intersection of national security and civil rights law with a focus on the post-9/11 era. She incorporates critical race theory, feminist theory and constitutional law into her examination of the disparate impact of post-9/11 laws and public policy on ethnic, racial and religious minority groups in the United States. Aziz analyzes these issues in various contexts including immigration, counterterrorism, criminal justice and civil rights litigation. She applies her scholarship in the American context toward her scholarship on rule of law and democracy promotion in post-revolution Egypt.

Aziz has been featured on C-SPAN and published numerous commentaries on national security and civil rights issues on CNN.com, the Houston Chronicle, The Huffington Post, t ru t hou t.com, al t m uslim.com, the American Constitution Society’s blog, and jurist. com. She has presented her work in various Photo by Dan Brothers forums including at U.S. Congressional Briefings, the Aspen Institute, the National Endowment for Democracy, the American Bar Association, the National Employment Lawyers Association and the Texas Bar Association. Aziz earned her J.D. and M.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Texas. She received her B.S. from the University of Texas at Arlington. She is a board member of the Egyptian American Rule of Law Association. Aziz teaches National Security, Civil Rights Litigation, National Security & Race in a Post-9/11 America, Torts, and Advanced Torts at Texas Wesleyan.

Gina S. Warren Associate Professor of Law Gina S. Warren became a member of the faculty of Texas Wesleyan School of Law in 2011. Prior to joining Texas Wesleyan, Warren taught Civil Procedure and Energy Law as a visiting professor at Duquesne University School of Law and taught a summer seminar on U.S. energy law at the University of Cologne in Cologne, Germany. While in Germany, Warren also gave two presentations to the German-American Lawyers’ Association on climate change regulations in the U.S., including one presentation at the U.S. Embassy in Berlin. Before entering academia, Warren was at Perkins Coie LLP, a prominent international law firm based in Seattle, Wash. She was a litigator in practice, with an emphasis in energy law. Prior to entering private practice, Warren clerked for the Hon. Michael Winkelstein on the New Jersey Court of Appeals. Warren writes and publishes in the area of energy law. She has two forthcoming publications: one in the Duquesne Business Law Journal on Pennsylvania’s struggle to protect its state lands and parks from natural gas drilling given the explosion of drilling in the Marcellus Shale; and one in the Cologne Business

Law Review on public disclosure of hydraulic fracturing fluid that is used during the drilling process to facilitate the extraction of natural gas from shale deposits. Warren received her B.S. in psychology from the University of Arizona followed by her J.D. from Rutgers School of Law – Photo by Dan Brothers Camden. While at Rutgers, Warren served on the moot court team, was an editor of the Rutgers Law Review, and received an award for her work with the Domestic Violence Clinic. She is admitted to practice in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, the Virgin Islands and Washington. Warren teaches Civil Procedure, Oil & Gas, and Energy Law at Texas Wesleyan.

Donna Tomlinson-Weyand

Law, where she graduated

Donna Tomlinson-Weyand joined the faculty at Texas Wesleyan

management information

School of Law in August 2011 as a visiting associate professor

systems editor for the

of law. Prior to teaching, Tomlinson-Weyand practiced law at

South Texas Law Review,

Tomlinson Weyand Law Group PLLC in Dallas and at Bracewell

was a competition winner

& Giuliani LLP in Houston and Dallas. During her practice,

on the moot court team,

Tomlinson-Weyand concentrated on international tax and

and was awarded the Order

corporate and securities with a focus on private equity groups

of the Lytae. Tomlinson-

in the areas of international tax planning, reorganizations, cross-

Weyand earned her BBA

border transactions, and mergers and acquisitions.

in marketing from Prairie

Tomlinson-Weyand’s research examines the development of legal systems and individual rights in developing countries. Through an international and comparative lens, her work seeks to use the law as a tool for protecting and advancing the status

cum laude and served as

View

A&M

University

Photo by Dan Brothers

where she was a Benjamin Banneker Honors College scholar and graduated cum laude.

Tomlinson-Weyand teaches Advanced Torts at Texas Wesleyan.

of underrepresented groups throughout the world. Tomlinson-Weyand holds an LL.M. in taxation from the University of Florida where she served as graduate editor for the Florida Tax Review. She earned her J.D. from South Texas College of 17

AROUND

campus

notes of interest about campus events

Law symposium held for local artists The Center for Law and Intellectual Property at Texas Wesleyan School of Law sponsored a day-long symposium, “Art Law – Everything You Wanted to Know but Were Afraid to Ask,” on Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011. The event was held at the law school in downtown Fort Worth in collaboration with the Arts Council of Fort Worth and Tarrant County, and Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts based in New York City. More than 50 artists, students and lawyers attended. The symposium was an outgrowth of a series of four, 90-minute workshops conducted in 2009 and 2010 through a partnership between CLIP and the Arts Council. “Today’s symposium is intended to provide a more expanded opportunity for in-depth dialogue and discussion on topics facing the local arts community,” Katherine Ware, the Arts Council’s vice president of community programs, said in her opening remarks.

Law school hosts annual Teen Court competition Teen Court teams from across North Texas participated in the fifth annual Teen Court competition held at Texas Wesleyan School of Law on Saturday, April 2, 2011. A total of 18 teams competed from 10 different Teen Courts, which resulted in more than 50 middle school and high school students participating in Saturday’s event. Three rounds of competitions were held during the day with the Plano Teen Court and Collin County Teen Court teams competing in the fourth and final round. At the end of the day, the Plano team took the top spot. “The competition has continued to improve year after year, and this year was the best yet. All of the competitors worked very hard and it showed. It is

In the symposium’s introductory session, Megan Carpenter, director of CLIP and associate professor of law, and Brian Holland, also an associate professor of law at Texas Wesleyan, gave an overview of the art law legal landscape to provide a backdrop for the workshop, as well as familiarize attendees with the language, breadth and depth of intellectual property law. “The two core requirements of copyright law are originality and fixation,” Holland said. “The U.S. Constitution’s intellectual property clause is not self-executing so Congress had to come up with laws to determine what those copyrights would be.” Susan Bruning, assistant professor of arts and law in the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University, discussed employment issues and the arts in the second segment of the morning session. Her topics included work for hire doctrines, independent contractor agreements, and establishing long-term relationships.

The symposium’s afternoon session started with Terri Helge, associate professor of law at Texas Wesleyan, looking at the legal issues surrounding donations of artwork to museums. She also discussed how to work with nonprofits, and taxation rules and pitfalls. Artist and associate director of Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts Sergio Sarmiento, a leading expert in art law, was the symposium’s final speaker. “Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts is a 42-year-old art nonprofit that deals primarily with legal services, education and advocacy in the tristate region, primarily in New York state, but increasingly across the U.S. and internationally,” Sarmiento said. Two of the main areas in which VLA gets legal questions are contracts and copyright. Sarmiento focused on contracts during his symposium presentation, outlining what artists should look for in standard consignment agreements and sales contracts.

impressive to see the caliber, skill and public speaking ability of the competitors at such a young age,” 3L Misty James, P.L.A.Y. Teen Court chair, said. Texas Wesleyan School of Law students worked with the teens before Saturday’s competition to help them prepare for the event. Law school students also observed the competitors during the four rounds on Saturday and provided feedback to the students afterwards. “In addition to the competition, some of the teens were also able to attend different training sessions held during the day, including sessions on ethics and improving listening skills,” James said. P.L.A.Y. hosted approximately 250 people at this year’s competition, including parents and other teen observers. The law school provided 36 volunteer students who served as judges, jury foremen and bailiffs. 18

Eighteen Teen Court teams from across North Texas competed in the annual Teen Court competition held at the law school on Saturday, April 2, 2011. After four rounds, the Plano Teen Court team won the competition. — Photo by Dan Brothers

The 10 Teen Courts that participated in Saturday’s event included Allen, Burleson, Collin County, Coppell, Fort Worth, Hurst Euless Bedford (HEB), Lewisville/Flower Mound, Longview, Plano and Wichita County.

Another year has come and gone in the office of admissions. This year brought some new challenges as we moved through the application cycle, but it also brought with it some new successes. I am very pleased that we were able to bring in another class of great students and future alumni. The fall 2011 entering class statistical profile reflects: Total applications = 1,915 Students enrolled = 236 25th LSAT/GPA = 151/2.94 Median LSAT/GPA = 153/3.22 75th LSAT/GPA = 155/3.48 Women make up approximately 40 percent of our entering class, and 26 percent of the class consists of ethnically diverse students. The average age for the entering class student body is 27, and 75 different colleges and universities are represented amongst the entering student body. Of course, we look forward to challenging ourselves again this year to bring in another strong class while facing the constantly changing admissions environment both regionally and nationally. As you know, law schools nationally are taking many hits as the legal education and job marketplaces continue to evolve. As the assistant dean of admissions and scholarships, I am working with Dean Frederic White and others here at the law school as we pay close attention to: • The ever-changing pool of applications, and expect to see another decrease in the regional and national pools that will impact our law school applicant pool as well. However, I remain confident that we will still have applications from strong students who want to pursue their legal education here at Texas Wesleyan School of Law. • Concerns about sufficient disclosure of consumer information for prospective students to make educated decisions about law school. In response to these concerns, our J.D. Profile now includes increased information on scholarship awards and job placement statistics; in the future, we will likely include information on bar passage rates. • Changes in the financial aid packages and availability for law students (graduate students, generally) and their debt levels upon graduation. As a result, we will continue to work with the office of financial aid to use scholarship and Tuition Equalization Grant (TEG) monies strategically to broadly assist students reduce their out-of-pocket expenses for law school tuition. In the meantime, we will continue to work on the things that are within our control to ensure that the office of admissions succeeds in bringing in a new class for the fall 2012 academic year. As we have been out recruiting this fall, I am confident that there are still future law students who are excited about becoming part of our growing community. Finally, I invite you to visit the law school website to review the newest addition to our group of bloggers. We’ve added a few faces that represent the recent graduates as alumni bloggers. Sincerely,

Sherolyn Hurst, J.D. Assistant Dean of Admissions & Scholarships 19

ADMISSIONS

Dear Alumni:

Justice Bob McCoy, Chief Justice Terrie Livingston and Justice Lee Gabriel heard oral arguments at the law school on March 8, 2011. — Photo by Cristina Noriega

Second Court of Appeals visits law school A panel of the Second Court of Appeals, Chief Justice Terrie Livingston, Justice Bob McCoy and Justice Lee Gabriel, heard oral arguments at the law school on Tuesday, March 8, 2011. The court heard arguments in one civil case, National Western Life Insurance Company v. Newman and one criminal case, Morris v. State, in the Amon G. Carter Lecture Hall in front of law school students, faculty and staff. “The Second Court has been hearing oral arguments at our law school since 2005,” Roger Simon, legal writing professor and the event organizer, said. “The court’s visits give our students an opportunity to see and hear justices and lawyers in action.” The Second Court of Appeals serves 12 counties in north central Texas and consists of seven justices. The court hears all types of civil and criminal appeals. According to Chelcie Howley, the court’s deputy clerk, the court will travel to an average of four out of the 12 counties on any given year. Texas Wesleyan School of Law is the only law school the court visits, as it is the only law school in those 12 counties. Jennifer Ellis ’05, director of advocacy programs, said it’s important for law school students to see a court in action and the Second Court of Appeals visits are a great opportunity to do that. “The court’s visits are a great way for our students to see proceedings in action,” Ellis said. “They give our students an insight into what a court does and how cases are argued.”

Texas Wesleyan Law Review hosts energy symposium The Texas Wesleyan Law Review and the Energy Section of the Tarrant County Bar Association hosted an energy symposium March 3-4, 2011, at Texas Wesleyan School of Law. The symposium, the third annual energy symposium hosted by the law review, addressed energy-related issues, especially those surrounding the Barnett Shale and the oil and gas industry in general. Twenty-three presenters from area law firms and energy companies spoke about a variety of topics, ranging from regulatory and leasing issues to BP and post-spill litigation issues, cases before the Second Court of Appeals, and operator/surfaceowner disputes. More than 60 people attended the symposium. Howard L. Gilberg and Michael R. Goldman, with Guida, Slavich & Flores, P.C., gave a joint presentation on environmental strategies in the Barnett Shale. Gilberg spoke about the North Texas efforts to meet federally mandated ozone-related air quality standards. “Like everything in life, the last few steps in a marathon are a lot more difficult than the first few steps,” Gilberg said. On Friday, an in-house panel discussion included attorneys from EOG Resources Inc., Tenaska Power Services Co., XTO Energy Inc., and Devon Energy Corporation. The attorneys answered

Professor James McGrath receives Fulbright award James McGrath, professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law, has been offered a Fulbright Scholar grant to teach in the department of humanities and law at Beijing University of Chemical Technology during the 2011-2012 academic year. McGrath joined the faculty at Texas Wesleyan School of Law as an associate professor of law in 2006. He was previously a visiting associate professor of law for the 2005-2006 academic year. Prior to joining the faculty at Texas Wesleyan, McGrath worked as an associate professor at Appalachian School of Law. He has additional teaching experience at the University of San Diego and Temple University Beasley School of Law. McGrath’s scholarship echoes his interest in health and gender law issues. His study of public health within the law emphasizes the law’s effect on the health of groups

Law Review Editor-in-Chief 3L Jillian Munoz (third from left) and Symposia Editor 3L Jeanette Walston (far right) with members of Friday’s noon panel: Norma Rosner Iacovo, associate general counsel with Tenaska, Inc.; Philip A. Lamsens, division counsel for EOG Resources, Inc.; Kelly Cope, counsel for Devon Energy; moderator Daniel B. Mathis, associate attorney with Curnutt & Hafer, LLP; and Frank McDonald, vice president and general counsel for XTO Energy. — Photo by Dan Brothers

prepared questions as well as questions from the audience. The panel was moderated by Daniel B. Mathis, with Curnutt & Hafer, LLP. Norma Rosner Iacovo, with Tenaska, addressed the challenges facing the oil and gas industry, especially as the practice of hydraulic fracturing spreads to shales in other parts of the U.S. “I would say our biggest challenge facing the oil and gas group within Tenaska is public perception,” she said, “trying to convey to people in areas that have never really seen oil and gas production that we can be a safe, reliable member of their community, producing oil and gas with minimal environmental destruction.”

of people with little or no political power, while his study of the law and human sexuality includes lesbian, gay, transgender and intersexual legal issues. McGrath holds an LL.M. in graduate legal studies from Temple University Beasley School of Law. He earned his M.P.H. from Harvard School of Public Health, and he earned his J.D. cum laude from Howard University School of Law. He also holds a B.A. in psychology, which he received cum laude, from San Jose State University. The Fulbright Scholar Program, America’s flagship international educational exchange program, is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Since its establishment in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Sen. J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the Fulbright Scholar Program has provided approximately 294,000 people (108,160 Americans who have studied, taught or researched abroad and 178,340 students, scholars 20

Kelly Cope, with Devon Energy, briefly described the history of how companies figured out how to get the gas out of the Barnett Shale. “Over a period of several steps they eventually got [the shale gas] … there’s a saying at Devon that it was not one silver bullet, but a thousand silver BBs,” Cope said. “This year’s energy symposium was a huge success,” 3L Jeanette Walston, symposium editor for the Texas Wesleyan Law Review, said. “For the first time, we were able to provide continuing education credit for landmen, and as a result had a number of landmen attend this year’s event.”

and teachers from other countries who have engaged in similar activities in the United States) with the opportunity to observe each other’s political, economic, educational and cultural institutions, to exchange ideas, and to embark on joint ventures of importance to the general welfare of the world’s inhabitants. The program operates in more than 155 countries worldwide. Recipients of Fulbright awards are selected on the basis of academic or professional achievement, as well as demonstrated leadership potential in their fields. They are among more than 40,000 individuals participating in U.S. Department of State exchange programs each year. For more than 60 years, the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs has supported programs that seek to promote mutual understanding and respect between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. The Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program is administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars.

P.L.A.Y. gives high school students a firsthand look at the field of law More than 30 students from North Side High School attended High School Law Day at Texas Wesleyan School of Law on Friday, Feb. 18, 2011. The students, all members of an AP government class, got a firsthand look at what law school and the legal profession are like thanks to Presenting Legal Activities to Youth, which sponsored the event. In the morning, the high school students participated in classes with Lynne Rambo, professor of law, and Peter Reilly, associate professor of law. Reilly, who teaches dispute resolution and negotiation classes at the law school, introduced students to the concept of negotiation by giving them a short exercise in which they paired up for “contract negotiations.” One student acted as a prospective employer

looking to hire a singer, and the other acted as the professional singer. “These students are the future leaders of Fort Worth and Texas, and it was clear just by their questions and comments that they are creative and smart,” Reilly said.

During lunch, the students heard from a panel of law students and faculty members. The day concluded with a short mock trial experience in which the students were divided up to play the different roles in a legal trial (prosecution and defense) and then analyzed and discussed a hypothetical legal case. The first High School Law Day was held in 2006. The event is a pipeline initiative at Texas Wesleyan geared toward bringing minority and underprivileged students to the law school in order to promote higher education.

High school students listen as Peter Reilly, associate professor of law, gives a lesson on negotiation. — Photo by Amy Batheja

“It’s important for the law school to have interactions like this with the larger community,” Reilly said.

“I enjoy teaching people about negotiation tools and strategies because I know they are useful in every aspect of life – from friends and family to classmates and colleagues at school and work.”

“It gets young people focused on their futures and helps them think of possibilities for work and training that perhaps they otherwise wouldn’t think of on their own.”

Lively panel discussion examines real-world implications of property law

support of defendant Jerry Patterson, Texas land commissioner, were often at odds during the discussion as each argued passionately about the legal and ethical issues involved in the case.

A panel discussion at Texas Wesleyan School of Law on March 25, 2011, examined the Texas Supreme Court case of Severance v. Patterson and the property law questions the case brings into focus. The event was co-hosted by the Environmental Law Society and the Federalist Society at the law school.

“I want to start out by talking about what this dispute is not about,” Breemer said. “This is not about whether public beach access is good or if we should have public beaches. ... Everybody wants that, including myself. But, it is about how we’re going to do that in Texas and everywhere else.”

“That’s what property and land use law are about: it’s this clash between individual rights, which are enshrined in the Constitution, and the public good, which is the police power objective of what the state does,” Festa said.

A divided Texas Supreme Court declared in November 2010 in Severance v. Patterson that state law does not recognize an independent public beachfront easement that allows access to and use of all beaches along the Gulf of Mexico. Earlier this spring, the court took the rare step of agreeing to rehear the case. Timothy Mulvaney, associate professor of law at Texas Wesleyan School of Law, served as the moderator for the discussion. The panelists represented views from all sides of the case: J. David Breemer, lead counsel for plaintiff Carol Severance and principal attorney at the Pacific Legal Foundation, and Ellis Pickett, former chairman of the Texas Upper Coast Chapter of the Surfrider Foundation, who filed an amicus brief in

Pickett took issue with the plaintiff’s purchase of the property. “This is not about public access, it’s about public safety, it’s about best management of the coast,” he said. “Do we have a rolling easement? Does the beach roll? Heck yes! Is there avulsion and is there erosion? Heck yes! Shouldn’t you realize, as you’re buying property on an eroding coast and it washes away, it’s not my fault, it’s not the government’s fault, you purchased property?” Matthew Festa, associate professor of law at South Texas College of Law, filed an amicus brief in support of the plaintiff and provided a somewhat academic view of the issue during the panel discussion. In wrapping up the discussion, he offered a big-picture view of the case. 21

“It’s a complex case … [that] illuminates, as Justice Holmes said, [the question of] when can an individual member of the public be asked to bear the burden of the public good? It’s not whether we have beaches or not, but who bears the burden of it? Should it be the taxpayers, should it be the individual? “That really is what property law is all about and, to me, what makes it exciting. … It’s real, and it matters.” After the panel discussion, the participants answered several questions from the audience, which included many property law students. “This diverse panel proved a wonderful opportunity for both the students of Texas Wesleyan and members of the public to engage with some of the key participants in the litigation,” Mulvaney said.

The Texas Wesleyan Law Review will publish articles authored by the panelists on the topic of Severance v. Patterson in a 2011-2012 volume.

Stephen Brodie and Michelle Moore (center) address the luncheon attendees. Julie Doucet (in purple) acted as translator. — Photo by Amy Batheja

WIP Exoneree Luncheon welcomes Stephen Brodie as guest speaker The Wesleyan Innocence Project held its semiannual exoneree luncheon on Monday, April 11, 2011, at Texas Wesleyan School of Law. Each semester, WIP invites exonerees to the school to share their stories with students, faculty and staff. This semester’s guest speaker was Stephen Brodie, who was exonerated in September 2010 after pleading guilty in 1993 to burglary and sexual assault. Several other people with the Dallas County district attorney’s office who were involved with the case also spoke during the lunch, including Mike Ware, special fields bureau chief; Terri Moore, first assistant district attorney; Jena Parker, paralegal with the Conviction Integrity Unit; Michelle Moore, public defender; Cynthia Garza, assistant district attorney; and Jim Hammond, investigator. “This panel was especially unique because the students could see how the case was worked on from the very beginning to the exoneration,” 2L Julpa Davé, vice president and external communications director for WIP, said. “Having an exoneree come speak is always an uplifting experience that inspires students and puts a face to the work WIP does.”

tried to scare me. ‘If the jury finds you guilty you could get 5 to 99 years, could be 99 or life.’” Michelle Moore noted the difficulties the CIU encountered while reinvestigating the case. “This is the one case where we did not have police cooperation in reinvestigating the case, so it was very difficult and there were a lot of hoops to jump through because of that,” she said. “Just because you think things are getting better, it’s not always as easy. Every case is so different and it’s just not easy all of the time.” Investigator Jim Hammonds drew chuckles from the audience as he pointed out just how famous the Dallas County CIU had become. “When we arrived [at suspect Robert Warterfield’s home], he was excited to see us,” Hammonds said.

Approximately 100 people attended the event, including Chris Scott, who was exonerated in October 2009.

“He was star-struck with Mr. [Mike] Ware, introducing Mr. Ware to the Stephenville police officer who was there with us, and said he’d been expecting us. He had seen that TV show, ‘Dallas DNA,’ he knew that we investigated cases. We told him we wanted the truth about the Brodie case, and he told us it wasn’t in his best interest to tell us the truth.”

In his early 20s when he began his prison sentence, Brodie worked on his education while incarcerated.

First ADA Terri Moore pointed out the importance of student involvement with the CIU.

“I was the first deaf person in Texas prisons to get my GED,” he said. “I took college classes to try to keep my mind on positive things and not on the negative part of being in prison.”

“[When we started the CIU] we very much wanted to have the participation of students, because you are tomorrow’s prosecutor; you are tomorrow’s defense attorney; you are tomorrow’s set of eyes looking through this.

Brodie addressed the audience with the help of a translator, Dallas County Public Defender Julie Doucet. He pled guilty because, Brodie explained, “I was confused. My old lawyer

“It is very important that you learn now how to do justice, and how to do it properly and with integrity.” 22

Texas Supreme Court Justice Debra Lehrmann addresses class of 2011 Graduates, family and friends enjoyed a sunny spring afternoon during Texas Wesleyan School of Law’s May hooding ceremony. The ceremony was held at 1 p.m. Friday, May 13, 2011, in the Fort Worth Convention Center in downtown Fort Worth. After an invocation by Dr. Robert Kenji Flowers, chaplain of Texas Wesleyan, Dean Frederic White offered opening remarks and presented two student awards. Ryan Sorrells received the Equal Justice Award, which recognized the more than 440 hours of pro bono legal service he donated at the Dallas County district attorney’s office.

by a full-time Texas Wesleyan School of Law faculty member. Professors Gabriel Eckstein and Terri Helge were given the inaugural award. Larry Mike, elected by his classmates to be the student speaker, honored the family and friends, as well as Texas Wesleyan faculty and staff, who supported the students during their time in law school. “Although this journey has been long and difficult, by believing in us, you have allowed us to achieve above and beyond anything we could have possibly achieved on our own.”

For the first time, the MacLean & Boulware Endowed Scholarship was given to two graduates: Lisa Waters and Kenneth Newell. The award is given to a graduate selected by the faculty who demonstrated high moral character during his or her law school career, and exhibits the potential and desire to become a successful, ethically conscious attorney.

rule of law and justice in our society,” Lehrmann said. Her address focused on two pieces of advice for the graduates: to love what you do and to know that you are the latest in a long line of lawyers and judges in the law profession. “You’re part of a greater whole,” she said. “You are the newest young leaves on the vast tree of the legal profession.” Lehrmann spoke at length about the legacy of Louise Raggio, who passed away at 91 in January 2011. Raggio was a trailblazer for women’s rights inside and outside the courtroom. She pushed for the Texas Marital Property Act of 1967, and, as Lehrmann recounted, was instrumental in getting women’s restrooms installed in the Texas Supreme Court. “Now imagine that,” Lehrmann said. “This is a stately building, a beautiful building, a symbol of justice in our society, and there’s no women’s restroom. … So she went up to thenJustice [Joe] Greenhill, and said, ‘You’ve got to do something about this.’”

Five graduating students earned certificates in addition to the J.D. degree. White acknowledged Marlaina Whitsitt for a certificate in She asked Greenhill to think about estate planning, and Robert his own daughter, Lehrmann Dean Frederic White and Justice Debra Lehrmann — Photo by Dan Brothers Bunker, Kathryn Murphy, Aaron said. Women’s restrooms were Slough and Maureen Welch installed shortly thereafter. for certificates in intellectual property. These distinctions indicate Mike singled out particular classmates, that a student has completed rigorous noting that he’d point out every member “Choose a path that will inspire you,” curricular requirements with outstanding of the class if he had time, for their hard Lehrmann said to the class of 2011, “that grades and has attained significant work with student organizations and in the will give you a reason to wake up in the expertise and experience in the relevant community. morning and use your knowledge and areas of law. skills for good works.” “Our success is directly related to our White also noted the five students ability to help those in need,” he said. “… One hundred and sixty-four students whom the faculty selected for inclusion I believe this class can continue to make participated in the ceremony. Short in the National Order of Scribes, which a difference, in this city, in this state, in presented each graduate with a purple recognizes excellence in legal writing: this nation, the same way we have at this academic hood, the color of which Lorein Campbell, Riley Massey, John law school.” represents the discipline of law. Shaw, Jeanette Walston and Lisa Waters. Justice Debra H. Lehrmann with the Texas Degrees were presented by White and Aric Short, associate dean for academic Supreme Court was the keynote speaker. conferred by Frederick G. Slabach, affairs and professor of law, presented a new award this semester, the Frederic “Law school is neither easy, nor is it president of Texas Wesleyan University, White Faculty Scholarship Award. The always pleasant. But your presence here and Kenneth H. Jones, Jr., chairman of award acknowledges the commitment is a testament to your commitment not the Texas Wesleyan University Board of and contribution to legal scholarship only to your education, but also to the Trustees.

Conference speakers discuss role of law in entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship and innovation can be key factors as economies in the U.S. transition from “old” resources, such as manufacturing and industry, to “new” resources, such as information and content. What role does the law play in developing new economies? Does it play any role at all? Co-authors of a forthcoming book from Edward Elgar Publishing on innovation and the law examined these questions and presented their research at a conference at Texas Wesleyan School of Law on Friday, April 1, 2011. “Evolving Economies: The Role of Law in Entrepreneurship” featured 10 speakers on topics ranging from the economic renaissance and redevelopment of Pittsburgh, Penn., to legislative efforts to foster entrepreneurship to the role of clinical programs on entrepreneurship. The conference, sponsored by Kelly Hart & Hallman, was hosted by the Center for Law and Intellectual Property at the law school. Megan Carpenter, director of CLIP and associate professor of law, and Aric Short, associate dean of academic affairs and professor of law, welcomed the nearly 40 conference attendees.

“We’re in this fascinating time of transition from traditional economies to something else – new media, content focus, ideas focus,” Short said.

more jobs – the startup firms. The key attribute is firm age, not firm size. … Just because a firm is small doesn’t mean it’s entrepreneurial.

“It’s important, I think, to step back and ask, what’s the role of the law in that transition? What’s the role of lawyers in helping to guide and facilitate that transition?”

“I love the florist on Main Street in my town. It’s been there for 50 years. It has employed four people for those 50 years.”

Eric Gouvin, professor of law at Western New England College and director of the Law and Business Center for Advancing Entrepreneurship, spoke about the realities of starting and maintaining a small business. “Everybody on both sides of the aisle says, ‘Small businesses, they’re the engine of job growth,’ but it turns out that this folkloric popular perception is a little bit off the mark,” he said. “When you control for factors [such as industry and year effects], big firms and small firms create new jobs roughly in proportion to the overall percentage of the job market those firms control. “But, there is some truth to this small firm idea. … In terms of net job creation, a subset of small firms does produce

Other speakers at the conference included Shubha Ghosh (University of WisconsinMadison), Steven D. Jamar (Howard University School of Law), Andrea L. Johnson (California Western School of Law), Brian Krumm (The University of Tennessee College of Law), Patricia H. Lee (West Virginia University College of Law), Michael Madison (University of Pittsburgh School of Law), Sean M. O’Connor (University of Washington School of Law), Michael Risch (Villanova Law School), and Darlene Ryan (TECH Fort Worth). “Our attendees ranged from scholars to legal practitioners to entrepreneurs,” Carpenter, conference organizer, said. “The conference was a great success and served as an excellent gathering of perspectives on what is one of the key issues in modern entrepreneurship.”

International visitors learn about alternative dispute resolution A distinguished group of visitors from Central Asia met with educators, mediators, judges and other dispute resolution professionals from Texas Wesleyan School of Law on Wednesday, May 18, 2011, at the law school in downtown Fort Worth. The visit to the United States was sponsored by the International Visitor Leadership Program of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and locally by the North Texas Council for International Visitors. IVLP promotes international mutual understanding through a wide range of academic, cultural, professional and sports exchange programs. The international visitors who come to Texas each year through the National Council for International Visitors number among the approximately 30,000 participants in exchanges managed and sponsored by the State Department’s ECA. The goal of the leadership program, as with all people-to-people exchanges of the U.S Department of State, is to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and people of other countries. The particular emphasis of this exchange was to promote dialogue between and among peacemakers, arbitrators, mediators, judges and educators from the two countries. Texas is considered a leader in alternative dispute resolution usage and education. Texas Wesleyan School of Law has taken a leadership role in educating law students to be effective advocates, problem solvers, mediators, client counselors and settlement specialists in addition to successfully coaching them to win national and international law school competitions in all forms of advocacy,

Peter Reilly, associate professor of law; Cynthia Alkon, associate professor of law; Frederic White, dean of the law school; Kay Elliott, adjunct professor and advocacy coach; Frank Elliott, dean emeritus and professor of law; Joe Spurlock II, professor of law; and Quentin McGown ’00 — Photo by Dan Brothers

including trials, appeals, negotiation, mediation and arbitration. The program presenters used the book The Third Side, by William Ury, as the unifying theme for the day and the program presenters included Dean Frederic White, Dean Emeritus Frank Elliott, Judge and Professor Joe Spurlock II, Judge Quentin McGown ’00, Dr. Linda Galindo, and Professors Everett Chambers ’03, Peter Reilly, Cynthia Alkon and Kay Elliott. Topics covered included conflict resolution in domestic and international affairs, federal programs geared toward peacemaking within community conflicts, utilization of ADR to promote compliance in coalition building, causes of conflict, and the roles of religion and ethnicity in conflict. The colorful history of Fort Worth was explained by McGown and the meeting adjourned to the Historic Stockyards for the trail ride and dinner.

2L Martin Garcia, ABA junior representative and SBA treasurer; Trevor Hall, 13 th Circuit governor; Kevin Johnson, ABA-LSD national chair; and 2L Jason Wright, 13 th Circuit executive lieutenant governor and SBA vice president — Photo by Desmonde Bennett

Texas Wesleyan sweeps annual awards at ABA circuit meeting Earlier this spring, members of the Student Bar Association

Keys acknowledging our excellence in ABA membership and our

attended the annual spring circuit meeting for the 13 th

contributions to the circuit. Outgoing Gov. Trevor Hall called

Circuit of the ABA-Law Student Division. The 13 Circuit is

Texas Wesleyan the ABA staple to the 13th Circuit.”

comprised of the 13 law schools from Texas and Louisiana. This year’s annual meeting was held at Loyola University College of Law in New Orleans. At the meeting, the circuit presented the Bronze Key Award to Texas Wesleyan School of Law in three categories: highest

In addition to the Bronze Keys, 2L Jason Wright, 13th Circuit executive lieutenant governor and SBA vice president, was the sole student awarded the Silver Key Award by Gov. Trevor Hall. The Silver Key is the highest award that can be awarded by a circuit.

overall ABA membership, highest percentage increase in ABA

The meeting included panel discussions from young attorneys

membership, and best membership of the circuit. This was the

on the value of combining your practice with personally enriching

second straight year that Texas Wesleyan School of Law swept

pursuits and combining your personal interests with your law

the Bronze Key awards.

practice and extra-practice activities. Dr. Laura Cardon, a New

2L Martin Garcia, junior ABA representative and Student Bar

Orleans image consultant, gave a presentation on how attendees

Association treasurer, accepted the awards on behalf of Texas

can make the best impression as aspiring attorneys furthering

Wesleyan. Garcia is the president of SBA for the 2011-2012

their own employment interests, as future attorneys furthering

school year.

their client’s interests, and future community leaders furthering

“Loyola University New Orleans College of Law did a tremendous

their leadership interests.

job in hosting the 13th Circuit’s spring meeting and governor

A panel of officers in local, state and national bar associations

election,” Garcia said.

shared their experience in those leadership posts with

“The city’s energy was matched by all of the meeting’s

attendees. The panel discussed how leadership skills that

participants, and the Wesleyan community should be proud that,

student-leaders are developing now transfer into post-

for a second straight year, we brought home the three Bronze

graduate bar association leadership.

ACADEMIA Cynthia Alkon

notes about Texas Wesleyan law faculty and administrators

Presented a paper, “The Game is Afoot!: The Significance of Donative Transfers in the Sherlock Holmes Canon,” at the 14th Annual Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities Conference, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, March 12, 2011.

Associate Professor of Law Activities: Presented “Dispute

Resolution in Criminal Cases” to a group of visitors from Central Asia under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department and the North Texas Council for International Visitors, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, May 18, 2011.

Received the Texas Wesleyan University Board of Trustees Faculty Service Award, April 15, 2011. Chaired the annual symposium presented by the Center for Advancement & Study of Early Texas Art, Dallas, Texas, April 16-17, 2011. Alton is also the chair of the board of trustees for this center.

Presented two papers and chaired two panels at the Law and Society Association annual meeting. She chaired the session Alternatives to Litigation: Theory and Practice and presented “Lost in Translation: Can Exporting ADR Harm Rule of Law Development? ” during the panel. She also chaired the session Confronting Changes in Law and Development and, during that panel, presented “Rearranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic: Rule of Law Development Assistance to Weak, Warring and Troubled Countries,” San Francisco, Calif., June 2-3, 2011.

Quoted in an article by P.A. Humphrey, “Lawsuits continue over condo construction,” Fort Worth Business Press, July 12, 2011, at 1. Presented a paper, “The Game is Afoot!: The Significance of Donative Transfers in the Sherlock Holmes Canon,” on the panel Images of Law in Popular Culture at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 26, 2011.

Presented on a panel about teaching multiparty negotiation at the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution Conference on Teaching Law School ADR Courses: Mediation, Negotiation, Arbitration, and the ADR Overview Course, Pepperdine University School of Law, Malibu, Calif., June 21, 2011.

Susan Ayres

Professor of Law Activities: Presented her paper, “The Monster

in the House: Vulnerability and Agency When Women Kill Newborns,” at the Creating Change Conference, University College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland, March 12, 2011.

Presented on the panel Legal Education and the Emotional Lives of Law Students: Preparing Our Students for Happy Professional Lives; and moderated the panel Cultural Economy, Representation, and the Law at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 24-30, 2011.

Presented, with two students, “An International Comparative Approach: Responding to the Global Problem of Neonaticide,” University College Day, Texas Wesleyan University, Fort Worth, Texas, April 5, 2011. Acted as a reviewer for a law and literature book manuscript under consideration at Ashgate Press.

Stephen Alton

Presented a paper, “Monster in the House: Vulnerability and Agency When Women Kill Newborns” at the AALS 2011 Workshop on Women Rethinking Equality, Washington, D.C., June 21, 2011.

Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Evening Division Programs Publications: “The Game is Afoot!:

The Significance of Donative Transfers in the Sherlock Holmes Canon,” 46 ABA Real Property, Trust & Estate L.J. 125 (2011).

Presented on the panel Contemporary Issues in Law and Literature at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 24, 2011.

Activities: Moderated and presented on the panel Law and Literature Across the Big Pond.

Sahar Aziz

With Kathryn Murphy ’11, “Calling Bulls**t on the Lanham Act: The 2(a) Bar for Immoral, Scandalous, and Disparaging Marks,” 49 U. Louisville L. Rev. 465 (2010-2011).

Associate Professor of Law Publications: Op-ed, “What’s

Behind the Egyptian Military’s Attacks on Civil Society?” Foreign Policy (online), Aug. 18, 2011, http://mideast.foreignpolicy.com.

Activities: Presented at the NX35 Music Conferette, Denton, Texas, March 10, 2011.

Wayne Barnes

Presented her paper, “Drawing a Line in the Sand: When a Curator Becomes a Creator,” at the 14th Annual Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities Conference, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, March 11-12, 2011.

76 U. Cin. L. Rev. 1119 (2008), was cited in David G. Epstein, Bruce A. Markell, and Lawrence Ponoroff, Cases and Materials on Contracts: Making and Doing Deals (3rd ed. West 2011).

Planned and administered a conference on behalf of the Center for Law and Intellectual Property, Evolving Economies: The Role of Law in Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, April 1, 2011.

Professor of Law Publications: “The Objective Theory of Contracts,”

Activities: Moderated the panel Law of Disaster Response at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 24, 2011.

Coordinated a panel, Functionality: Not Just for Plaintiffs Anymore? for the International Trademark Association’s annual meeting, San Francisco, Calif., May 16, 2011. Presented her research on scandalous, immoral, and disparaging trademarks at the Third Annual Conference on Innovation and Communications Law, co-sponsored by La Trobe University and Drake Law School, University of Melbourne, Australia, May 31, 2011.

Mark Edwin Burge

Associate Professor of Law Activities: Presented “We the

Muggles: On Wizardry and Legislative Process” on the panel Law and Literature Across the Big Pond at the 14th Annual Association for the Study of Law, Culture and the Humanities Conference, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, March 12, 2011.

Celestina Contreras

Law Clinic Professor Activities: Presented to local Child Protective

Interviewed on the 6 p.m. newscast, KDFW Fox 4, regarding an unusual recent opinion from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals that criticized the grammar, spelling and lack of professionalism in a briefing by the attorneys in a high-profile case, July 20, 2011.

Services caseworkers on the problems faced by non-parents when they try to obtain custody of children abandoned by the parents or placed in the non-parents’ care by CPS, Fort Worth, Texas, Aug. 19, 2011.

Gabriel Eckstein

Megan Carpenter

Professor of Law Publications: With George William Sherk, “Alternative

Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Center for Law and Intellectual Property Publications: “Space Age Love Song: The Mix

Strategies for Managing Pharmaceutical and Personal Care Products in Water Resources,” a report prepared under a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, available at http://bit.ly/rnANlW and featured in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and on a number of blogs, including WaterWired.

Tape in a Digital Universe,” 11 Nev. L.J. 44 (2010).

“Drawing a Line in the Sand: Copyright Law and New Museums,” 13 Vand. J. Ent. & Tech. L. 463 (2010-2011). 27

academia Michael Green

“Buried Treasure or Buried Hopes? The Status of Mexico-U.S. Transboundary Aquifers and International Law,” 13 Int’l Community L. Rev. 273 (2011).

Professor of Law and Associate Dean for Faculty Research & Development Activities: Presented on the panel Ethical Issues

Activities: One of two inaugural recipients of the annual Frederic White Faculty Scholarship Award, May 13, 2011.

in Cyberspace: Using Social Networking Sites Without Getting Disbarred at the ABA Labor and Employment Law Section’s Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility Midwinter Meeting, San Juan, Puerto Rico, March 25, 2011.

Presented “Cooperation Over Transboundary Waters and the 1997 UN Watercourses Convention” at the International Conference: Towards the 6th World Water Forum – Cooperative Actions for Water Security, held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, May 13, 2011.

Presented “Employee Expectations of Privacy in Electronically Stored Information on EmployerProvided Equipment” at the Honoring Jim Jones: A Hastie Fellow Reunion and Workshop, University of Wisconsin School of Law, Madison, Wis., April 15, 2011.

Participated as a member of the executive board at a meeting of the International Water Resources Association, Montpellier, France, May 24-25, 2011. Eckstein currently serves as IWRA treasurer. Presented “The Greening of Water Law” and participated in the roundtable on water governance at Hydrogaia: International Water Exhibition, Montpellier, France, May 25, 2011.

Spoke on the panel Technology Tools and Ethics at the ABA Labor and Employment Section’s Technology Committee Midwinter Meeting, New York University School of Law, New York, N.Y., April 29, 2011.

Presented “Managing and Regulating PPCPs in Our Fresh Water Systems: A Legal Remedy?” at the conference, Disruption – New Pollutants in the Potomac and Beyond, Potomac Conservancy, Silver Spring, Md., June 3, 2011 (via Skype).

Presented “The Negotiation of Collective Bargaining Agreements” at the 49th Annual Course on Labor Law and Labor Arbitration, Center for American and International Law, Plano, Texas, May 4, 2011. Presented “Employer-Provided Mobile Communication Devices: Keeping the Employees’ Expectation of Privacy Realistic?” on the panel Looming Crises in U.S. Employment Law at the Law and Society Association annual meeting, San Francisco, Calif., June 4, 2011.

Frank Elliott

Dean Emeritus and Professor of Law Publications: West’s Texas Forms: Civil Trial and

Appellate Practice, v. 9-10 (West 4th ed. 2011).

Activities: Presented “A Short History of ADR in Texas” to a group of visitors from Central Asia under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department and the North Texas Council for International Visitors, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, May 18, 2011.

Presented “Choice and Balance in Arbitration Courses” at the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution Conference on Teaching Law School ADR Courses: Mediation, Negotiation, Arbitration, and the ADR Overview Course, Pepperdine University School of Law, Malibu, Calif., June 22, 2011. Presented “Employee Expectations of Privacy Under the Lens of Attorney-Client Privilege” at the Second Annual John Mercer Langston Scholarly Writing Workshop, DePaul College of Law, Chicago, Ill., June 25, 2011.

James P. George

Professor of Law Activities: As the lead nominator, worked with

Fifth Circuit Judge Tom Reavley and other judges and lawyers to elect a candidate to membership in the American Law Institute in April 2011. Presented a CLE, “Discovery of Electronically Stored Information” at Whitaker Chalk Swindle & Sawyer, LLP, Fort Worth, Texas, April 5, 2011.

Presented “Dismantling the Labor and Employment Arbitration Merger” at the discussion group Should Employment Claims Continue to be Arbitrated? at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 29, 2011.

Presented a CLE on treaties to the Dallas Bar Association, Dallas, Texas, April 19, 2011.

Appointed to serve on the Finance and Legal Affairs Committee of the Law School Admissions Council. 28

academia Terri Helge

Professor of Law Publications: With David M. Rosenberg, “Nonprofit

Administration News Cecily A. Becker

Executive Compensation,” Texas Tax Lawyer, spring 2011, at 36.

Director, Externship Program With Lisa Cannon of Valparaiso University School of Law, presented “Exploring Internship and Externship Programs for Law Students: Investigating Concerns and Advantages of These Programs” at the Association for Legal Career Professionals’ 2011 Annual Education Conference in Palm Desert, Calif., April 28, 2011.

Activities: Presented “Conduct Based Disinheritance

Statutes: Lessons Learned From the Past and a Paradigm for Future Legislation” at the Southwest/ West Junior Law Faculty Scholars Conference, Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Tempe, Ariz., March 14, 2011. With David M. Rosenberg, presented “Executive Compensation” to the Dallas Chapter of the Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants Not-ForProfit Study Group, Dallas, Texas, April 21, 2011. One of two inaugural recipients of the annual Frederic White Facult y Scholarship Award, May 13, 2011.

Karon Rowden ʼ01

With David M. Rosenberg, presented “Executive Compensation” to the Dallas Bar Association Nonprofit Study Group, Dallas, Texas, May 18, 2011.

Staff Attorney, Law Clinic Presented “Preparing for a Jury Trial on a Shoestring (OMG I have my first jury trial – NOW WHAT?)” at the 2011 Family Law Seminar, Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, July 22, 2011.

With David M. Rosenberg, presented “Legal & Regulatory Update: Form 990, Corporate Governance, Fiduciary Investment Duties, and Internal Fraud” at the Texas Presbyterian Foundation CFO Financial Workshop, Dallas, Texas, June 21, 2011. Presented “Of Slayers, Sex Offenders, and Swindlers: Conduct-Based Disinheritance Statutes and a Paradigm for New Legislation” at the New Scholars Workshop at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 29, 2011.

Gary Lucas

Appointed to serve as chairperson of the TaxExempt Organizations Committee of the State Bar of Texas Tax Section.

Associate Professor of Law Activities: Presented his working paper, “The

H. Brian Holland

Paternalistic Use of Cigarette Taxes,” as part of the Faculty Enrichment Series at the Florida State College of Law, Tallahassee, Fla., April 8, 2011.

in the Fair Use Analysis,” Harvard Journal of Law and Technology 24 Harvard J. L. & Tech. 335 (2011).

Presented his working paper, “The Paternalistic Use of Cigarette Taxes,” at the Law and Society Association annual meeting, San Francisco, Calif., June 2, 2011.

Associate Professor of Law Publications: “Social Semiotics

Activities: Presented his work in progress, “Social Semiotics in the Infringement Analysis: Excluding Unprotected Elements,” at the New Scholars Workshop at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 25, 2011. 29

academia James McGrath

Exaction Takings Jurisprudence on Development Approvals.” Mulvaney will serve as the principal investigator for this grant project, and he will work in collaboration with Daniel Jorgensen at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.

Professor of Law Activities: Presented on the panel Building

Bridges: Realizing Our Common Goals Across Faculty Roles While Understanding Our Differences at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 25, 2011.

John F. Murphy

Associate Professor of Law Activities: Presented “YouTube

Received a grant from the Fulbright Scholar Program to teach in the department of humanities and law at Beijing University of Chemical Technology during the 2011-2012 academic year.

Pedagogy: A Practical Guide,” Mercer University School of Law, Macon, Ga., April 15, 2011. Presented “YouTube Pedagogy: A Practical Guide” at the conference Engaging and Assessing Our Students, Institute for Law Teaching and Learning, New York Law School, New York, N.Y., June 3, 2011.

Timothy Mulvaney

Associate Professor of Law Publications: “Proposed Exactions” 26 J. Land

Neal Newman

Use & Envtl. L. 277 (2010-2011).

Professor of Law Activities: Presented his current work in progress,

“Proposed Exactions” appeared on SSRN’s Top Ten download list for Environmental Law & Policy scholarship in May 2011, and on the Top Ten download list for Property, Land Use & Real Estate Law in June 2011.

“One Worldwide Set of Global Accounting Standards? – hmmm,” at the Midwest Corporate Law Scholars Conference, The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, Columbus, Ohio, June 15, 2011.

“Waterlocked: Public Access to New Jersey’s Coastline,” 34 U.C. Berkeley Ecology L.Q. 579 (2007), is cited in the new edition of James E. Krier, Michael H. Schill and Gregory S. Alexander’s Property (Dukeminier, ed., 7th ed. Aspen Publishers 2011).

Mary Margaret “Meg” Penrose Professor of Law Publications: “Entertaining

Activities: Presented his paper, “Proposed Exactions,” at the Association for Law, Property and Society 2nd Annual Meeting, Georgetown University Law Center, Washington, D.C., March 4-5, 2011.

Education: Teaching Lawyers in the Digital Era,” Texas Lawyer, May 23, 2011, at 21. “Conventional Wisdom: Acknowledging Uncertainty in the Unknown,” 78 Tenn. L. Rev. 789 (2011).

Activities: Argued a federal death penalty case before the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on June 9, 2011.

Presented his paper, “Proposed Exactions,” at the Southwest/West Junior Law Faculty Scholars Conference, Arizona State University Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Tempe, Ariz., March 14, 2011.

Huyen Pham

Organized and moderated a panel discussion on the Texas Supreme Court’s heavily debated decision in Severance v. Patterson, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, March 25, 2011.

Professor of Law Activities: Gave a

guest lecture about U.S. administrative law and its relevance to U.S. trade law, University of Economics and Law, Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, March 3, 2011.

Presented a work-in-progress, tentatively titled “Delayed Cure,” on the Land Use Law panel at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools annual meeting, Hilton Head Island, S.C., July 28, 2011.

Gave a talk to French students participating in a foreign exchange program on the United States’ common law system, University of Economics and

Received a grant from the Northern Gulf Institute for a proposal, “Surveying the Impact of 30

academia Law, Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, March 9, 2011.

Barristers’ Ball Honorees

Presented her most recent research on immigration, “Measuring the Climate for Immigrants: A State by State Analysis,” at the Fulbright Regional Conference, Bangkok, Thailand, March 18, 2011.

At the end of each school year, the student body honors outstanding faculty members at the annual Barristers’ Ball, which was held on April 8, 2011, at The Fort Worth Club.

Presented on various aspects of U.S. law and legal education, including corporate governance and federalism, The National Economics University, Hanoi, Vietnam, March 23-24, 2011.

Outstanding Legal Writing Professors

Spoke about corporate governance as part of the American Corner Program, U.S. Embassy, Hanoi, Vietnam, March 24, 2011. Presented her research, “Empirical Analysis of Subfederal Immigration Regulation in the U.S.,” at the University of Newcastle Law School, Newcastle, Australia, April 4, 2011.

Jim Hambleton Professor of Law

John Murphy Associate Professor of Law

Presented an overview of the Vietnamese judicial system and legal education at the Fulbright Enrichment Seminar, Dong Hoi, Vietnam, June 1, 2011.

Outstanding First Year Professor

Outstanding Upper Level Professor

Meg Penrose Professor of Law

Lynne Rambo Professor of Law

Presented a seminar, How to Publish in International Journals, to the faculty at the University of Economics and Law, Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, June 23, 2011. Presented seminars on U.S. administrative law and the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to the National Academy of Public Administration, Ho Chi Minh City, June 28, 2011. The academy is the institution that trains government workers in Vietnam.

Frederic White Faculty Scholarship Award

Susan Phillips

The award acknowledges the commitment and contribution to legal scholarship by a full-time Texas Wesleyan School of Law faculty member.

Professor of Law Publications:

Legal Research Exercises: Following the Bluebook (11th ed. West 2011) and Instructor’s Manual Legal Research Exercises: Following the Bluebook (11th ed. West 2011).

Lynne Rambo Professor of Law

Gabriel Eckstein Professor of Law

Activities: Interviewed on the 9 p.m. news of KDFW Fox 4 (Dallas/Fort Worth) and KFXK (Tyler) about the ramifications of videotaping executions, July 26, 2011. 31

Terri Helge Professor of Law

academia Peter Reilly

Charities, Fort Worth, Texas, May 11, 2011. Seymore’s remarks drew on her article, “The Presidency & the Meaning of Citizenship,” 2005 B.Y.U. L. Rev. 927 (2005).

Associate Professor of Law Activities: Presented “Good Lawyers Must Be Good Negotiators” at a luncheon program sponsored by the Fort Worth-Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association, Fort Worth, Texas, March 15, 2011.

Neil Sobol

Presented “Persuasion: The Art of Getting What You Want” to a group of visitors from Central Asia under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department and the North Texas Council for International Visitors, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, May 18, 2011.

Associate Professor of Law and Director of the Legal Analysis, Research, and Writing Program Activities:

Presented “Introduction to Legal Writing” as part of the Diversity University Program sponsored by the Dallas Area Paralegal Association and the North Texas Paralegal Association, Belo Mansion, Dallas, Texas, May 6, 2011.

Taught a negotiation class for the Nonprofit Management Executive Certificate Program at Georgetown University Center for Public & Nonprofit Leadership, Washington, D.C., March 5, 2011, and June 16, 2011.

Joe Spurlock II

Professor of Law and Director of the Asian Judicial Institute

Michelle Rigual

Director of the Law Library and Associate Professor of Law

Activities:

Presented “Democracy and the Judiciary/Rule of Law-ADR Concerns” to a group of visitors from Central Asia under the sponsorship of the U.S. State Department and the North Texas Council for International Visitors, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, May 18, 2011.

Activities:

Presented “QR Codes and Library Applications” and spoke on a panel, Research Skills for New Associates: a Dialogue between Town and Gown, at a joint meeting of the Houston Association of Law Librarians and Southwestern Association of Law Libraries, University of Houston Law Center, Houston, Texas, March 11-12, 2011.

Presented “Developing Life and Democracy in Modern Mongolia” as the July featured speaker at the Khan Lecture Series, Irving Arts Center, Irving, Texas, July 23, 2011.

Organized the Legal Reference Skills for Non-Law Librarians Workshop, Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Fort Worth, Texas, April 8, 2011. Presented to the Dallas Association of Law Librarians on the topic of lessons learned from the annual meeting of the American Association of Law Libraries, Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, Aug. 17, 2011.

Frederic White

Dean and Professor of Law Activities:

Delivered the keynote address based on his new book, Tenure Blues: A Soap Opera, at the Southeast/Southwest and the Midwest People of Color Legal Scholarship Conference, Nova Southeastern University Shepard Broad Law Center, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., April 2, 2011.

Became chair of the Latino Law Librarians Caucus of the American Association of Law Libraries after serving the previous year as vice chair.

Malinda Seymore Professor of Law

Selected to serve a two-year term as a member of the American Bar Association Accreditation Committee.

Activities:

Served as the keynote speaker at a Naturalization Ceremony sponsored by Catholic 32

ALUMNI

report

news from the office of alumni relations & advancement

I am honored and excited to have the opportunity to serve as president of the Texas Wesleyan School of Law Alumni Association. I am extremely proud of the accomplishments that Wesleyan graduates have attained over the last 20-plus years. Our law school has made great strides within the legal community on a local, state and national level. I am also encouraged by the increased recognition that Wesleyan has achieved. We are all essential in contributing to the success of our law school. I would like to take the time to personally thank each of you who has given back to Texas Wesleyan both financially and with your time. I know we are all busy with work, families and our many other commitments, which is why it means so much that you have given to Wesleyan. This year I had the privilege of presenting scholarships to the very deserving recipients at the annual Barristers Society Dinner. It was very rewarding to see how the funds we as alumni raise positively affect the lives of law students.

ALUMNI

Dear Fellow Alumni,

Meet the New Alumni and Advancement Team Casey Dyer Oliver ʼ06 Director of Alumni Relations and Advancement BBA, Texas A&M J.D., Texas Wesleyan School of Law

Kirsten Evans

Advancement Services Coordinator B.A., University of Colorado

Regan McDonald

Alumni Coordinator BBA, University of Georgia MBA, Texas Christian University

I would like to encourage those of you who have not been involved with the alumni association to get involved with one of our many committees. Our committee members work hard to plan our great events such as the crawfish boil, golf tournament, CLEs and happy hours. We have a lot of great events planned for spring. You can view the full calendar of events as well as news and updates online at www.alumni.law.txwes.edu. The entire board works hard to better our alumni community. We value and appreciate your input and ideas. Please feel free to contact myself, or any of the other board members, directly.

The office of alumni relations and advancement has expanded to meet the needs of our dynamic community! In the fall, we welcomed Regan McDonald to our office to serve as our alumni coordinator. Kirsten Evans has moved to a new position within our department, advancement services coordinator, allowing her to focus on various development projects. With these changes, we aim to better serve your individual needs and to keep you connected to your law school. As you read through the Alumni Report you will see the great progress we have made over the years. We thank you for your continued support, and we ask that you stay in touch with us, as we value our relationship with you, our alumni. We look forward to seeing you in the spring!

I am thankful for all of the alumni that I have had an opportunity to meet through my involvement with the alumni association. I look forward to getting to know so many more of you throughout the next year. Sincerely,

Susan Schambacher Ross ’05, president Texas Wesleyan School of Law Alumni Association 33

Sincerely,

Casey Dyer Oliver ʼ06

2011-2012 Alumni Association Board of Directors Executive Committee Susan Schambacher Ross ’05 president

Scott Lindsey ’02

New Alumni Association Board Members The Texas Wesleyan School of Law Alumni Association is proud to introduce our newly elected board members. These individuals were elected at the annual meeting this spring to serve a three-year term.

vice president

Katey Powell Stimek ’07 secretary

Alma Hernández-Blackwell ’04 treasurer

Lara Aman ’06

Nikki Chriesman ’09

DeShun Eubanks ’04

Judith Mattern Hearn ’95

Rachel Davis ’07 parliamentarian

Board Members Beth Adcock ’07 Lara Aman ’06 Cheyenne Robertson Bell ’06 Mark Bohon ’06 Tiffany Burns ’00 Nikki Chriesman ’09 Jeff Crook ’05 DeShun Eubanks ’04 Judith Mattern Hearn ’95 Michael Huebner ’10, alternate Dr. Robert Leone ’93 J.D. Milks ’07 Hunter Parrish ’09, alternate Caroline Akers Peterson ’04 Karon Rowden ’01

Michael Huebner ’10, alternate

Dr. Robert Leone ’93

Hunter Parrish ’09, alternate

Alumni Association Committee Chairs These committee chairs will oversee the various activities of the alumni association throughout the 2011-2012 academic year. If you’re interested in joining any of these committees – all alumni are welcome to participate, not just board members – contact the committee chair or the alumni office.

Alumni Weekend: Scott Lindsey ’02 Alumni Community Crawfish & Shrimp Boil: Lara Aman ’06 The Greenhill Golf Tournament: Mary-Margaret Lemons ’07 Awards & Nominations: Rachel Davis ’07 & Karon Rowden ’01 Constitution & Bylaws: Tiffany Burns ’00 Fundraising: Susan Schambacher Ross ’05 Social: Alma Hernández-Blackwell ’04

alumni

report

Alumni sworn in before United States Supreme Court Forty-three graduates of Texas Wesleyan School of Law were sworn in before the United States Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., on Monday, May 16, 2011. Chief Justice John Roberts approved the nomination of each

Alumni and their families pose for a photo in front of the Supreme Court building. — Photo by Kirsten Evans

alumnus and welcomed them to the U.S. Supreme Court Bar. Several members of the law school community were in attendance, including Dean Frederic White, who presented the names of each nominee before the justices of the Supreme Court. The office of alumni relations and advancement hosted a happy hour at the Hawk ‘n’ Dove on Sunday evening for those who were to be sworn in and D.C.-area law alumni. After the swearingin ceremony on Monday, some alumni and their families took

advantage of the U.S. Capitol tour tickets and House gallery passes made available by the office of U.S. Rep. Kay Granger and

John Swanson ’03, Loretta Stone ’97, Rik Sehgal ’07 and JoAnne Saberre ’98 — Photo by Kirsten Evans

arranged by the office of alumni relations and advancement.

Texas Wesleyan School of Law alumni admitted to the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States, May 16, 2011, Washington, D.C.: Rodney Adams ’94

Nancy Gordon ’04

John Medlock ’07

Susan Schambacher Ross ’05

Lara Aman ’06

Denine Graham ’03

Marta Miller ’06

Stephanie Russ ’06

Sonya Bible ’06

Barbara Hale ’99

Rachel Holland Moore ’03

JoAnne Saberre ’98

Patricia Cole ’00

Patrick Hancock, Jr. ’06

Amanda Murphy ’05

Theresa Copeland ’04

Judith Mattern Hearn ’95

Patricia Nugent ’95

Mary Judy Cureton ’07

Deborah E. Johnson ’05

James Patrick O’Sullivan ’07

Billii Jo “B.J.” Demery ’07

Joe Kimball II ’05

Peggy Clements Pasquini ’97

Michelle Galaviz ’07

Ronald Kovach ’06

Mariella Pechero ’94

Brian Garlitz ’04

Stephen Lee ’94

Florentino “Tino” Ramirez ’95

Stephen Viña ’02

Stephanie Gilmore ’06

Carole Runnels Lein ’06

Heather Ridenour ’04

Mark Wiser ’04

Vincent Gonzalez, Jr. ’96

Eric Maskell ’03

John “Tony” A. Ross, Jr. ’05

Elisse Woelfel ’06

Rik Sehgal ’07 Loretta Stone ’97 John Swanson III ’03 Lurese Terrell ’98

alumni report

Alumni Events

Casey Dyer Oliver ’06, director of alumni relations and external affairs; Susan Schambacher Ross ’05, president of the alumni association; and Caroline Akers Peterson ’04, immediate past president of the alumni association — Photo by Kirsten Evans

Alumni Association Board of Directors End of Year Dinner May 19, 2011, Reata Restaurant, Fort Worth

Tony Ross ’05; Alma Hernández-Blackwell ’04; and Ronnie Blackwell ’04, adjunct professor — Photo by Kirsten Evans

Austin Alumni Happy Hour

May 22, 2011, The Driskill, Austin

Stacie Hill, David Blakeley ’11, John Medlock ’07 and Michelle Galaviz ’07 — Photo by Deborah Barnett

Stephen Alton, associate dean for evening division programs and professor of law; Audrey Moorehead ’06; Courtney Leaverton ’11; and Judy Alton ’94 — Photo by Deborah Barnett

Texas Wesleyan School of Law Reception at the SBOT Annual Meeting June 23, 2011, Grand Hyatt, San Antonio

Jac Schuster ’08, Robyn McWilliams ’07 and Norma Bázan ’07 — Photo by Deborah Barnett

Wesleyan Law Night at Rangers Ballpark

August 26, 2011, Rangers Ballpark in Arlington

Matthew Schoenberger ’10 and his son, William — Photo by Deborah Barnett

Dean Frederic White and Judge Ralph Swearingin, Jr. ’94 — Photo by Deborah Barnett

Stephen Mosher ’95 and Dr. Gary Edd Fish ’95 — Photo by Deborah Barnett

Ethics CLE Alumni Luncheon Featuring University President Frederick G. Slabach September 14, 2011 City Club, Fort Worth

Sherolyn Hurst, assistant dean of admissions and scholarships; 1L Camesha Ethley; Frederick G. Slabach, president of Texas Wesleyan University; and Patti Gearhart Turner ’94, chief of staff to President Slabach — Photo by Deborah Barnett

alumni report

The Texas Wesleyan School of Law Alumni Association congr atulates the following alumni and 3L students who passed the February 2011 State Bar of Texas Exam:

Maria Ahmed

Leah Jacobs

Gordon Penny

Jason Amon

Austin Jarvis

Megan Piechowiak

Edwin Arita

Sha’Branddon Johnson

Meagan Polk

Dustin Banks

Matthew Jones

Erum Poonawala

David Blakeley

Karen Judd

Amy Reaves

Teresa Boone

Ashley Jumpp

Chelsi Reichenstein

Bonnie Bundens

Michael Kurmes

Shannon Riley

John Callison

Brandon Lavery

Amanda Sarp

Ashley Clapper

Courtney Leaverton

Doran Sauer

Henry Cook

Natalia Lopez

David Sayabouasy

Jeffrey Crownover

Paul Lopez

Crystal Sieber

Sara D’Abreo

Roddy Lopez

Justin Smith

Jackson Davis

Amy McLaughlin

Crystal Strickland

Ashlea Deener

Mireille Milfort

Suzanne Suarez

Daniel Denton

Caitlin Milmo

Adron Temple

Sylvia Duarte

Stevenson Moore V

Robert Torrey

Christopher Edwards

Venkateswara Mummalaneni

Bonita Tribble

Taryn Fallon

Raymond Napolitan

Brant Webb

Garrick Farria

John Nation

Katy West

Katherine Feigin

Peter Nguyen

Andrew Williams

Jonathan Frederick

Martin Oketch

Jeffrey Williams

James Gifford

Melinda Owens

Lindsay Williams

Paul Hess

Marilyn Parks

Raven Willis

Damon Hickman

David Patin, Jr.

Reena Zakhary

Michael Huebner

Walter Richard Peck, Jr.

Joshua Jacobs

Leah Pence 38

Barristers Society Annual Dinner Recognizes Scholarship Recipients, Donors Texas Wesleyan School of Law students, faculty, staff and friends celebrated student excellence and the school’s donors at the annual Barristers Society Donor and Scholarship Recognition Dinner, held at The Ashton Depot on Thursday, Aug. 25, 2011.

Justin Huston; Rick Kubes; Zach Ferguson; Amy Kubes; Casey Dyer Oliver ’06, director of alumni relations and external affairs; 3L Justin Lewis; Mary Kubes; and Greg and Rebeca Kubes — Photo by Amy Batheja

as a whole, is the commitment of its faculty to individualized attention and commitment to student success,” Slabach said. Susan Schambacher Ross ’05, president of the alumni association, presented two scholarships. 3L Justin Lewis received the Jeff Kubes ’03 Memorial Endowed Scholarship and 3L Grace Espinosa received the Chief Justice Joe Greenhill Scholarship.

“These qualities did not come to me by accident,” Espinosa said. “In reality, I owe my success, my sense of professional etiquette, and integrity to the alumni, faculty and administration of Texas Wesleyan.”

White ended the evening by recognizing The dinner recognizes alumni, some of the loyal donors who give to friends, law firms, corporations and foundations who have made generous the law school. These donors include gifts to the law school and, in so Bernie Schuchmann ’07; Celestina doing, make the scholarships possible. L. Contreras, law clinic In conjunction with the professor; Maudi Fleming Kubes family and the with the Mt. Roe Foundation; Fort Worth-Tarrant County Schneider Law Firm, P.C. Young Lawyers Association, (Micheal Schneider ’06); the Jeff Kubes ’03 Memorial Endowed Scholarship was and the Tarrant County started in 2009 to honor Criminal Defense Lawyers the memory of Kubes, who Association. passed away in 2008. The “It is through the generosity Chief Justice Joe Greenhill Scholarship was started of these and other donors in 2008 to honor Texas that we are able to reward Supreme Court Justice the excellence in our Joe Greenhill, his lifelong student body,” White said. commitment to the ethical Ann and Bill Greenhill, 3L Grace Espinosa, Dean Frederic White, Melany Neilson and University President Frederick Slabach — Photo by Doug Thurman and professional practice Funds for the Jeff Kubes of law, and his dedication ’03 Memorial Endowed to the advancement of the Scholarship are raised legal profession. Later, White recognized 3L Matthew during the Cowtown Double Down Chad Richwine as the Oil & Gas Scholar, Attendees for the event included Texas Casino Night, held this year on Wesleyan University trustees, senior an award given to the student with the Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011, at Billy Bob’s staff, the Kubes family, donors to the highest grade in Professor Ronnie Texas. Funds for the Chief Justice Joe law school and scholarship recipients. Blackwell’s Oil & Gas class. The award Greenhill Scholarship are raised at is made possible by Charles Gordon Dean Frederic White provided the The Greenhill Golf Tournament, held and Marie Porter of Porter, Rogers, opening remarks for the dinner. Dahlman & Gordon, P.C. annually each spring. For information University President Frederick Slabach also welcomed the attendees and Espinosa noted the personal qualities on donating to these or any other spoke about what sets Texas Wesleyan of Chief Justice Joe Greenhill that are endowment, contact Casey Dyer Oliver ’06, apart from other schools. embodied in the Greenhill scholarship director of alumni relations and “One of the things that impresses me awardees: professionalism, integrity external affairs, at 817-212-4145 or cdyer@ law.txwes.edu. about the law school, and the university and humility.

Honor Roll of Donors Our annual Honor Roll of Donors celebrates and acknowledges the wonderful community within which Texas Wesleyan School of Law operates. It is your generosity that enables us to live up to our commitment to excellence year after year. The law school sincerely thanks the following alumni, friends, faculty and staff, law firms, corporations and foundations who have made generous gifts or pledge payments to the school during our 2011 fiscal year.

- Barristers Club Dean’s Council

League of Scholars

Chris ’04 and Cliff Long

$10,000+

$1,000-$2,499

*Sharon K. Lowry ’09

*Bernie Schuchmann ’07

Partner’s Circle $5,000-$9,999 Celestina L. Contreras Maudi Fleming, Mt. Roe Foundation Schneider Law Firm, P.C., *Mike Schneider ’06 Tarrant County Criminal Defense Lawyers Association

Judy ’94 and Stephen Alton

Anh Luong ’04

Debra G. Bawcom-Roberson ’94

A. James Lynn ’94

Cantey Hanger LLP Catherine Terrell McCartney Foundation Richard De Los Santos ’94 Dr. and Mrs. Charles E. Dyer III Kay and Frank Elliott Falcon Document Solutions

McDonald Sanders, P.C. Nancy and Stephen ’95 Mosher *Casey Dyer Oliver ’06 OmniAmerican Bank Caroline Akers Peterson ’04 and Ben Peterson Jack Rochelle ’94

Society of Advocates

Harris Cook, LLP

$2,500-$4,999

Sisemore, Childress & Associates, PLLC, *Mark Childress ’06, *Justin Sisemore ’06

Haynes and Boone, LLP

Bracewell & Giuliani LLP Dr. Gary ’95 and Nancy Fish Godsey Law Firm, P.C., David L. Godsey ’04 Frank Snyder Phyllis and Frederic White

Tarrant County Probate Bar Association

Charlotte Hughart

Lurese A. Terrell ’98

Cynthia and Roland Johnson

Michael Wallach

H. Dennis Kelly

Winstead PC

Law, Snakard & Gambill, P.C.

Andy and *Matthew ’08 Wright

Gold Donors

Silver Donors

$500 - $999 Wayne Barnes Jim Bearden ’01 Judge Nancy L. Berger ’94 Jennifer ’05 and Matt Ellis Gardner Aldrich, LLP Julie and Paul George Jessica Sharma Graham ’04 and *Nathan Graham ’08 Michael Green Maxine Harrington Kelly Hart & Hallman, LLP MacGolf Greater Dallas District John H. Maddux Jason Mills ’00 Lynne Rambo Ross & Matthews, P.C., Brian Ross ’05 Dan Settle Judge Joe Spurlock II Tarrant County College District Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Alumni Association Events Committee Patti Gearhart Turner ’94

$100 - $499 *Elizabeth Adcock ’07 *Derek Glen Akin ’07 Cynthia Alkon *Lara Aman ’06 Susan Ayres and David Orr Deborah Barnett The Bassett Firm *Norma A. Bazán ’07 *Cheyenne Robertson Bell ’06 Robert Blankenship ’95 *Adam Blythe ’07 *Mark Bohon ’06 *Catherine Borum ’06 Donna Bowers ’94 Brackett & Ellis, P.C. Dan Brothers Mark Burge Tiffany Burns ’00 *Zach Burt ’09 *Barrett Campbell ’10 Joan Canty *Member of the Counselors Club

Tawanna Lynn Cesare ’03 Jerry P. Chism David Clem ’05 Theresa Copeland ’04 *Christina Davis ’07 *Rachel ’07 and *Rob ’07 Davis *Donald DeDitius ’07 Luis R. De Luna ’97 Thomas DeNapoli ’98 The Depot, Jake Werner Amar S. Dhillon ’98 Angela Adkins Downes ’98 *T. Bently Durant ’08 Gabriel Eckstein Raul Elizondo ’97 Kirsten Evans and Peter Briggs *Jonathan Finke ’07 *Wendy Flanigan ’06 Fort Worth-Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association Brian Gaddy ’94 *Angela Doskocil Gaither ’09 Atticus Gill ’04 Nancy Gordon ’04

*A. Clay Graham ’07 Martha Greenhill Harris, Finley & Bogle, P.C. *John Haugen ’06 Terri Lynn Helge Alma Hernández-Blackwell ’04 and Ronnie Blackwell ’04 *Ronald Hicks ’06 *Susan Hudson ’06 *Michael Huebner ’10 Daniel Hunt ’97 Sherolyn Hurst *Christina Jimenez ’07 Lori Kaspar ’05 KP Custom Homes, Mary Alice and Michael Kindred Amy Kubes Rebeca and Greg Kubes Law Office of Ganoza & Rodriguez, Laura Ganoza ’04, Lynn Rodriguez ’04 Law Office of Steven K. Hayes Katie L. Lewis ’05 Christie B. Lindsey ’03 Scott E. Lindsey ’02 Looper Reed & McGraw, P.C. Stephen Mack ’03 Edwin Mackert J. Terry and Ruth P. Macnamara *Michael Maxvill ’08 *Adrienne Hamil McKemie ’09 *Michelle ’07 and *John ’07 Medlock Merit Court Reporters *J.D. Milks ’07 *Michael Moan ’08 Ed Moore ’04 Martha Moran ’01 Timothy M. Mulvaney John F. Murphy Catherine Murray ’01 *Amanda Buffington Niles ’10 Neal Newman *James O’Sullivan ’07 Jenny Parks ’97 *Donald Payne ’08 Mary Margaret “Meg” Penrose The Perry Law Firm, PLLC, Nancy Perry *Scott Petty ’06 Huyen Pham Phi Alpha Delta Susan T. Phillips and Mike Corey Tanya Pierce Pope, Hardwicke, Christie, Schell, Kelly & Ray, LLP Bradley Poulos James Charles Powell, Bank of Texas *David Pratt ’07 *Connie Pyatt-Dryden ’06

Vickie Newman Sara Rashti Christopher M. Reese ’05 Peter Reilly Michelle Rigual Christina Rodriguez Susan Schambacher Ross ’05 and Tony Ross ’05 Schateaux 2000 Properties, LLC, Kay Schambacher *Wesley Schmidt ’07 *Rik Sehgal ’07 Aric Short Kate Smith ’04 Ruth Smith Samuel Smith ’03 Neil Sobol Lori A. Spearman ’97 *Katey Powell Stimek ’07 *Evan Stone ’09 Storm Master, Inc., Frank Brooks Judge Bonnie Sudderth Judge Ralph Swearingin, Jr. ’94 Dwight Thompson ’94 Catherine Holt Toledo Sandy Tomlinson Touchstone Business Services, *Amber Altemose ’10 Barbara Tsirigotis Texas Wesleyan School of Law, Alumni Assoc. Board of Directors Texas Wesleyan School of Law, The Greenhill Golf Committee Texas Wesleyan Sports and Entertainment Law Society Lillian Velez Martha Via ’95 Stephen Viña ’02 William D. Wallace *Jack Liang-Fu Wang ’11 Khayan Williams ’96 Joseph B. Wills, Sr. Brian Yost, Decker Jones McMackin McClane Hall & Bates, P.C.

Bronze Donors $99 And Below Linda Aleckner ’10 Jason Amon ’10 Nicholas Anagnostis ’05 Debra Atchison ’98 Brittany Baine ’10 Keyashia Barkins ’07 Amanda Barlow ’07 Rhonda Bartlett ’03 Amy Batheja Cecily Becker *Member of the Counselors Club

Allison Bedore ’10 Jodi Bender ’10 Shannon Berquist ’01 Cort Bethmann ’10 Charles Beveridge ’06 Sonya Bible ’06 Lindsey Birdwell ’06 William Bleibdrey Kristen Boorman ’07 Martin Boyd ’03 Kellie Brady ’09 Joshua Brinkley ’08 Barry Brown ’94 Cassie Bruner Reneè Budden ’09 Monty Buhrow ’03 Michelle Burks ’09 Anne Burns ’07 Ryan Burton Lynnda Caballero ’99 Carrie Carbone Cristine Carlson ’06 Bradley Carpenter Megan Carpenter Ethan Cartwright ’08 John H. Cayce, Jr. C. Steven Chen ’09 Nikki Chriesman ’09 Randall Clark ’94 Ryan Allen Clay Eboney Cobb ’04 Patricia Cole ’00 Candace Collins ’02 Frank Cowan Jeffrey Crook ’05 Stanley Curbo Jennifer Daigle ’09 Emily Daniell ’08 Cynthia Dashiell ’03 Kevin W. DaVee Laura Davis ’09 Margaret Demers Lené Alley DeRudder ’09 Lindsay DeVos ’03 Jennifer DiFonso ’03 Jaime Duggan ’10 Jeanne Duke ’08 Rebecca Eaton ’07 Christianne Edlund ’09 Erika Erikson ’02 DeShun Eubanks ’04 Emily Finbow Nathan Fish ’09 Lee Ford Christina Fox Ed Funda ’00 Atalia A. Garcia ’09 Terry Gardner Kimberly Gilkinson ’09

Honor Roll of Donors Julie Glover ’94 John M. Gonzales Stacie Gonzales Lisa Goodman Rebecca Greenman Amy Guthrie Adam Hahn ’07 Connie Hall ’10 Ronnie Hall ’07 Gloria Hallan Ann ’97 and James Hambleton Patrick Hancock ’06 Courtney S. Hanson ’10 Frank Harber Brenda Hard-Wilson ’07 Susan Hensley Kevin Henson ’10 Dora Herran ’09 Mario Herrera ’09 Stephanie Bostwick Hess ’09 Suzanne Hickey ’05 Terry Bentley Hill ’08 Amy Hochberger ’09 H. Brian Holland Bryce Hopson Karla Howes Fred Howey ’09 Justin Huston Geoffrey Neil Irwin ’10 Christi Hufford Jackson ’04 Maya Jadhav ’06 Sean Jain ’10 Sharon Jefferson David Fowler Johnson Deborah E. Johnson ’05 Kara Johnson ’11 Christopher Jones ’09 James Jones Matt Jones ’10 Jason Kathman ’09 Sandi Keeney ’08 Tara Kersh ’06 Courtney Key Richard M. Kilgore ’99 Ray King ’09 Sandra Leigh King ’02 Judge Ed Kinkeade J. Lyndell Kirkley Jodi Klockenga ’09 Sharon Kolbet ’09 Ron Kovach ’06 Autumn Kraus ’05 Rachel Kulhavy Jacob LaCombe ’09

Courtney Richards Leaverton ’11 Jeff Leaverton ’11 Melanie Lee Mary-Margaret Spikes Lemons ’07 LexisNexis Alexis Logan Lori Logan James London Lisa Lovett ’04 Gary Lucas Peter Malouf ’99 Trent Marshall ’07 Sarah R. Martin ’09 Claudia Martinez ’98 Tyler Maxey John McCall ’02 Jana McGowen ’10 James McGrath Laura McKinnon Brent McMullen Sara Mehaffy Donnie Miller ’09 James Ryland Miller ’10 Marta Miller ’06 Nathan Miller ’08 Lisa N. Millman ’05 Constance Mims ’07 Brooke Mixon ’08 Riann Moore Judge Lin Morrisett ’94 Amanda Murphy ’05 Shivani Naicker ’10 Eunice Kim Nakamura ’05 Katherine Nguyen ’10 Michael Noordsy Cristina Noriega Warren Norred ’07 James Nuttall ’05 Judy Oliver Daniel Ortega Matthew Parr ’08 John Hunter Parrish ’09 Matt Pellegrino Gordon Penny ’10 Sminu Peter ’09 Brenda Pfeiff ’05 Thomas H. Pifer ’05 Guillermo Ramos ’09 Ryan Ray ’08 Lester Reed ’08 Barbara Reese Louis Rosales ’94 David Routzon ’01 Karon Rowden ’01 *Member of the Counselors Club

James R. “Rick” Russell, Jr. ’96 Jessica Sangsvang ’08 Roman Sarabia ’10 Tracey Schlake ’07 Cary Schroeder ’07 Harmony Schuerman ’07 Hardeep K. Sehgal ’03 Malinda Seymore Christina Sherwood ’09 Elizabeth Smith ’06 Lisa Smith G. Alan Steele ’06 Lindsay Steele ’09 Jeff Stewart ’08 Joan Stringfellow Karin Strohbeck Melissa Swan ’08 Joe Kenneth Taylor ’95 Chrissy Tefera ’07 Carmen Thayer ’97 John Douglas Thurman DJ Tillery ’04 Andrea Timmons ’00 Mireya Torres Christofer Tracy ’09 Becky Tran ’06 Michael Upshaw ’08 Ross Vitek ’03 Brian Von Hatten ’10 Roberta Walker ’06 Kathleen Walsh Jackie Edwards Ward ’03 Jordan Watson ’07 Judge Judith Wells Vickey Wiley ’09 Traci D. Wilkinson ’00 Melissa Anne Wilks ’11 Christie Cook Williams ’10 Elisse Woelfel ’06 Darren Wolf ’09 Alexander Wolfe ’07 Doug Wood ’96 Craig Woodcook ’05 Katie Woods ’10 Geri Wyatt ’10 Ginger Young ’95 Amy Youngblood ’06 Julia Zanutto Sherry Zimmerman-Bittle

ALUMNI 1994 Donald J. Griffin is teaching Healthcare

news & notes

and Canada” at the American Bar

Fort Worth honoree for business. She is

Association 2011 Annual Meeting held in

a board member of Clark Educational

Toronto, Canada, Aug. 4-9. The session

Services Inc., and a volunteer for Fort

was selected as one of the showcased

Worth Habitat for Humanity, Lena Pope

Law, Employment Law, and Governance

presentations of the conference. Angela

Home, Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas,

of Long-Term Care Facilities at Texas

is a senior attorney with the National

Big Brothers Big Sisters and the Greater

State University. He recently published

District Attorneys Association.

Fort Worth Humane Society. This year,

his third textbook, Hospitals: What They

Gov. Rick Perry appointed her to a six-

Are and How They Work (4th ed. Jones

year term on the Family and Protective

and Bartlett) and is working on another textbook, A Legal Guide for the Medical Practice Administrator.

Julya Billhymer

Services Council to help develop rules and policies that help protect children has launched a new

company, CMyLawyer.com. CMyLawyer.

1995 Kyson Johnson

1999 com is a progressive company providing legal services for an exclusive group – college students. The company is

was profiled in D

geared toward Millennials, where with

Magazine for his work as an insurance

the tap of a forefinger, a wealth of

fraud prosecutor. [Editor’s note: The

information and services is provided.

profile is reprinted on page 8 of this

Attorneys are available to text or Skype

magazine.]

initial consults, exchange emails and review scanned documents in the

1998

paperless office.

Dan B. Chern opened his own practice

at Law, at 99 Trophy Club Drive in Trophy

Doug Johnson

has opened the law

practice Douglas R. Johnson, Attorney Club, Texas. Doug’s practice focuses on

his office, Dan was a partner in the Dallas

employment, business/corporate, and

firm of Sullivan & Holston. Dan also

aviation law, as well as basic estate

served as an associate municipal judge

planning and probate matters. His

and teen court judge for the city of

website is www.drjlaw.com, and he is

Allen for five years. Dan’s areas of

on Facebook at Douglas R. Johnson,

practice include commercial litigation,

Attorney at Law.

Plano, Texas 75074; phone: 972-5169911; website: www.dchern.com.

Angela Adkins Downes

exploitation.

2002 Sandra Leigh King’s law review article, “While You Were Sleeping,” (11 SMU Sci. & Tech. L. Rev. 291 (2008)) is being quoted in its entirety in the casebook Cyber Crime and Digital Evidence: Materials and Cases, and research professor for the National Center for Justice and the Rule of Law at the University of Mississippi School of Law.

Stephen Viña has been named counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

Subcommittee

Chair

Stephen handles all homeland security border,

2000

under

Tom Carper (D-Del.). In his new role, issues

employment law, estate planning, and 660 N. Central Expressway, Suite 200,

disabilities from abuse, neglect or

authored by Thomas K. Clancy, director

in December 2010. Prior to opening

bankruptcy. His office is located at

and individuals who are elderly or have

for

the

senator,

transportation,

including

and

cyber

security, infrastructure protection, counterterrorism,

Patricia B. Cole, a partner at Decker

and

emergency

management. Prior to this appointment, Stephen served for more than four

presented

Jones, was recognized with a Legacy

years as a counsel and subcommittee

“Justice for All: A Comparison of

of Women Award on Oct. 14, 2011,

staff director at the House Committee

the Crime Victims’ Rights in the U.S.

by SafeHaven of Tarrant County as the

on Homeland Security.

ALUMNI PROFILE

Laura Amick Gadness ’06

really need help understanding and navigating their claims. The Social Security Disability process can take months or years, and, as much as I dislike that my clients have to wait such a long time for their claims to proceed, I enjoy developing

Laura earned a B.A. in biology

a relationship with them over time. In addition to helping my

from Texas State University

clients with their claims, they help me by motivating me to do

in 2003 and a J.D. from

the best possible job I can for them and to truly appreciate

Texas Wesleyan School of

my family, my friends, my health and my career.

Law in 2006. Laura recently became a partner at Amick, Stevens & Gadness, where she has worked since law school. Her practice is primarily focused on Social Security Disability representation. She assists clients through the Social Security Disability process from applications through the third appellate stage. Laura has attended numerous continuing legal education courses on Social Security Disability advocacy, as well as taught several legal seminars about Social Security Disability claims. In addition, her experience includes advocating for clients in divorce and family law issues, as well as representing clients in mediations and settlement negotiations. Laura is the current vice president of the Dallas Area Social Security Claimants Attorneys, a former president of DASSCA, a participating member of the Texas Bar Association, the

What makes you proud to be a Wesleyan law school alumna? I am extremely proud to be a Texas Wesleyan graduate. I have three very close wonderful girlfriends that I met at Wesleyan. Five years since graduating, we still meet for dinner once a month. My education at Wesleyan, along with the friendships I made in law school, provided me with a strong support network that has carried me through attending law school, studying for the bar exam, entering into practicing, balancing my career with motherhood, and now taking on the responsibility of becoming a partner at my firm. The foundation of this friendship started at Texas Wesleyan. Our friendship is very representative of the law school, because Texas Wesleyan’s students, professors and staff provide a supportive environment for the students and each other. Why do you choose to stay involved with the law school?

Plano Bar Association, the Collin County Bar Association, an

I enjoy attending alumni events and staying involved with the

inaugural member of the Curtis B. Henderson Inn of Court,

law school because I enjoy knowing and meeting other Texas

and a sustaining member of the National Organization of

Wesleyan alumni. As attorneys, we often deal with or need

Social Security Claimants Representatives.

advice from other attorneys about other practice areas, and

Laura currently serves on the board of directors for two local nonprofit organizations, My Possibilities and the Healthcare Committee of Collin County. Laura also founded, as well as regularly serves on, a legal assistance and referral clinic for

Texas Wesleyan alumni are a diverse group of attorneys with positive, supportive attitudes. Networking and maintaining relationships with other alumni is critical for a successful legal career.

Collin County’s largest homeless shelter, The Samaritan Inn,

What do you like to do in your spare time? Tell us an interesting

working in conjunction with Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas.

fact about yourself.

What is your favorite law school memory?

My favorite thing to do in my spare time is spend time with

My favorite memory of law school is Professor [Neal] Newman’s sports slides. As an avid sports fan, I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to take a mental break from law school mid-day to discuss sports for a minute or two! What do you like best about being a lawyer? Your job?

my husband, my daughter and our dogs. Being a mom is the most wonderful thing in the world! A random fact about me is that I worked as a professional cake decorator before I went to law school, and I still enjoy baking and cake-decorating as much as possible. I’m called upon often by friends and family for birthdays, baby showers, etc.

The best thing about being a lawyer and my job is the opportunities I have to help others. I am a natural born bleeding-heart type of person, and I very much enjoy helping my clients who are in poor mental and/or physical health and

alumni

news & notes

2003 Kimberly Butler

2006 opened her own

2007

Laura Amick Gadness

became a

office on Sept. 1, 2011, located at 902

partner at Amick, Stevens & Gadness in

S. Jennings Ave., Fort Worth, Texas

Plano, Texas. [Editor’s note: Read more

76104; phone: 817-716-6734.

about Laura on page 44.]

Casey Dyer Oliver and Mark Oliver are

2004 Ronnie Blackwell’s

pleased to announce the arrival of their baby boy, Jake Henry Oliver. Born on June 20, 2011, at 8:33 a.m., Henry was 6 lbs., Texas Wesleyan

13 ozs., and 18.5 inches long.

Law Review article, “Forced Pooling

to shareholder at Law, Snakard & Gambill, P.C., 777 Main Street, Suite 3500, Fort Worth, Texas 76102. His practice is devoted to commercial real estate, development, and banking transactions. Greg can be reached at 817-878-6307 or gmonroe@lawsnakard.com. He also currently serves as president-elect of the Fort Worth-Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association.

Tracey Schlake

and her husband, Steve, welcomed their son Robert Steven who was born on July 27, 2011.

within the Barnett Shale: How Should the Texas Mineral Interest Pooling Act Apply to Units with Horizontal Wells?” has been cited and discussed in the

Alexander Wolfe recently accepted a position as a bankruptcy research and compliance attorney at Brice, Vander Linden and Wernick, P.C., in Dallas. He was previously employed with Perdue, Brandon, Fielder, Collins & Mott, LLP, in Arlington.

recent update of Texas Law of Oil and Gas, authored by Ernest E. Smith and Jacqueline Lang Weaver.

Alma Hernández-Blackwell

Gregory W. Monroe has been promoted

now assistant regional counsel for FEMA. Previously, she worked for the

2008

Department of Housing and Urban Development. Jake Henry Oliver

2005 Brooke Ulrickson Allen,

an attorney

Chris Baumann

Ami Sanchez has been named counsel to the U.S. Senate Committee on

with Brown, Dean, Wiseman, Proctor,

Small Business and Entrepreneurship

Hart & Howell, LLP, received the

under Chair Mary Landrieu (D-La.)

President’s Award of Merit from the Texas

in Washington, D.C. In her role, Ami

Young Lawyers Association on June 24,

handles a number of legislative issues

2011, at the TYLA Annual Meeting. The

and

award honors exceptional service to the

care,

public and legal profession.

entrepreneurial development, and small

Lori Kaspar is running for Hood County

policy

areas

federal

including

regulatory

health reform,

business technical assistance. Prior to this appointment, Ami served as

Attorney in 2012. Her daughter, Annie,

professional staff for the committee for

is a 1L at UC Irvine Law School this fall.

nearly two years. 45

currently serves as chief legal officer for Responsive Education Solutions, overseeing and directing ResponsiveEd’s legal activities and providing operational oversight to its human resources and risk management departments. ResponsiveEd is a Texas nonprofit corporation that operates one of the largest charter school systems in Texas. Chris is pursuing his LL.M. in employment law from Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School. He also presented “Avoiding the Pitfalls of AtWill Employment at the 15th Annual Texas Charter Schools Conference, Nov. 7-9, 2011, in Galveston, Texas. [See Alumni Note on next page.]

alumni

news & notes

Alumni Note Chris Baumann ’08 tells Texas Wesleyan Lawyer, “[Working for a charter school system] is an absolutely fascinating practice. Charter school law touches so many areas, including contract, property, employment, constitutional, school, family, corporate, and intellectual property. What makes it so unique is the constant tension between private and public. Private nonprofit corporations that operate charter schools are just that – private organizations – but they are considered to be public entities for certain limited purposes under statute. Determining when a charter school operator should be treated as a private entity and when it should be treated as a public entity is always a topic of debate (e.g., First Amendment, Texas Whistleblower Act, etc.).”

2011

2009 Jessica Mines Dumitru

Terry Bentley Hill ʼ08 (left) receives a Presidential Citation from Terry Tottenham.

Terry Bentley Hill received a Presidential

Citation from then-State Bar of Texas President Terry Tottenham at the State Bar Convention awards luncheon on June 23, 2011. Terry, who practices criminal law in Dallas, is involved with the State Bar’s Texas Lawyers’ Assistance Program, which provides confidential assistance to attorneys experiencing depression, addiction and anxiety. The Presidential Citation recognizes Terry’s participation in the TLAP–produced video, “Practicing Law and Wellness.”

Matthew Wright

has been named Outstanding Young Lawyer for 2011 by the Nonprofit Organizations Committee of the American Bar Association, Business Law Section. He is currently the vice president for development at Scott & White Healthcare Foundation, headquartered in Temple, Texas.

Brant Webb won first place in the ABA Commission on Domestic Violence: Eighth Annual Law Student Writing Competition. His paper, “Unsportsmanlike Conduct: Curbing the Trend of Domestic Violence in the National Football League and Major League Baseball,” will be published in the American University Journal of Gender, Social Policy & the Law and on the ABA Commission on Domestic Violence website. He currently works as an attorney at The Webb Family Law Firm, P.C., in Dallas.

recently moved to Chattanooga, Tenn. She began working on July 15, 2011, for the Tennessee attorney general’s office prosecuting child support cases in Hamilton County, Tenn. Jessica is a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution and Habitat for Humanity, and is on the board of Generation Iraq. She lives with her husband, Michael, a commercial litigation attorney with Miller & Martin, and dog, Gus.

Keith F. Houston recently published his first novel, The Next Amendment. See www.keithhouston.com for detailed information.

2010 Amber Altemose

was elected to the Fort Worth-Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association Board of Directors.

Michael R. Kurmes

is working as a family law lawyer in Burleson with F. Steven McClure and Associates, PLLC, as an associate attorney. He practices in Johnson and Tarrant counties.

Brian von Hatten has joined the firm of Hoover Kernell LLP in Houston. 46

Courtney Richards Leaverton

started her new job as career services coordinator at Texas Wesleyan School of Law in September. Alumni are encouraged to contact Courtney to discuss their job searches or postings on Symplicity.

In Memoriam The Texas Wesleyan School of Law community expresses deepest sympathy to the family, friends and classmates of our alumni who have recently passed away. James “Jim” L. Bearden ’01 Jacob Jones ’09

Please send obituary notices to Casey Dyer Oliver ’06, Texas Wesleyan School of Law 1515 Commerce Street Fort Worth, Texas 76102 or via email to cdyer@law.txwes.edu.

Lee Ann graduated with honors from the University of Texas of the Permian Basin with a B.A. in political science in 2000 and graduated from Texas Wesleyan School of Law in 2004. As a law student, she interned with the Hon. Judge James R. Wilson, 371st Judicial District Court, and the Tarrant County district attorney’s office.

When I first started law school, most people I spoke with were not familiar with the school. That is definitely not the case any longer and it is now known in the legal community as a rising star out of Texas law schools. The faculty and administration at Texas Wesleyan were (and I am certain remain) exceptional. They were always approachable, available and very helpful. What do you like best about being a lawyer? About your job? I consider myself to be somewhat of a “rescuer,” so I love being able to help others. My position with the city has provided me with many opportunities to help fellow city employees, the taxpayers of Odessa, and privately with pro bono work. What is your favorite memory of Texas Wesleyan School of Law?

Lee Ann is a former president of the Ector County Young Lawyers; and former president, vice president and secretary/ treasurer of the Ector County Bar Association. She is currently serving as a Grievance Committee member of the State Bar of Texas for District 15-5 from 2010 to 2013.

I honestly cannot say it’s a favorite memory, but the memory that sticks out the most was from when I was a 1L in Professor Earl Martin’s Torts class. It was the first couple of weeks of school; I remember him calling my name and asking me about a case we were to read the night before. I purposely sat near the back of the room and avoided eye contact at all costs with him, but somehow he still managed to select me first out of my group of friends. I remember him saying, “Ms. Rimer,” and then all I remember after that was my heart beating extremely loud in my ears, then calling my dad after class and crying to him about how dumb I must have sounded. Of course, all my friends said I did well but I thought surely they must have just felt sorry for me.

Why did you choose to go to law school? Why Texas Wesleyan?

What do you like to do in your spare time?

That’s a funny story. When I was a little girl my father started what I like to call “brainwashing me” and telling me as well as everyone I knew that I was going to be a lawyer when I grew up and was going to buy him a ranch some day. Not wanting to disappoint Daddy, there was no question in my mind that becoming a lawyer was exactly what I would do; although, I’m not sure if he will ever get the ranch he wanted. Everyone who knew me thought becoming a lawyer was a perfect fit for me because I loved to argue. I was often told that I would argue with a stop sign if it would argue back, to which I quickly replied “I would not” and then proceeded to tell them the reasons why I wouldn’t.

Working full time and being a single parent allows little free time but in what spare time I do have, I enjoy traveling, sports of all kinds, and most importantly spending time with my three children (of which I have already started “brainwashing” about what they will be when they grow up, just like my dad did me).

Currently, she is the senior assistant city attorney for the city of Odessa, Texas. She began her law career with the city of Odessa in 2004 as a municipal court prosecutor with a focus on truancy prosecution. Lee Ann transitioned into a civil city attorney for the city of Odessa in 2006, serving as a legal representative and legal advisor for various city departments, boards and commissions.

I chose Texas Wesleyan primarily because of its location but also because it was a newer law school and being such I hoped that it had a faculty and administration that had a sincere interest in seeing its students succeed; I was definitely right!

What are you most proud of? Regardless of any professional accomplishments, I would have to say that I am most proud of my children. I always dreamed of becoming a lawyer and a professional basketball player but never a mother. Now that I am a mother, however, there is absolutely nothing more rewarding. I strive to raise my children to know the importance of education, hard work, determination and having a saving faith.

What makes you proud about graduating from Texas Wesleyan? I think just the success the school has had in establishing a good name for itself and the high quality lawyers it has produced. 47

ALUMNI PROFILE

Lee Ann Bowen Rimer ’04

CAREER

services

New Faces

attorney’s office and is admitted to practice in Texas. Courtney

I would like to take this opportunity

active in the local legal community.

to tell you about some recent changes in the office of career services. On Sept. 1, Cecily Becker, our assistant director of career services and director of

externship

programs,

was

promoted to serve as the full-time director of externships. As you may know, Cecily served in career services part time and was

earned a B.A. in English from the University of Texas at Austin and is

Last, but certainly not least, we welcomed Amy Schroer in the fall as our new administrative assistant. Amy came to us from the private sector and earned her undergraduate degree from Texas Wesleyan University. Please join me in congratulating Cecily and Courtney and in welcoming Courtney Leaverton and Amy Schroer.

the director of externships part time for seven years. Many of you

Sincerely,

took her externship class, attended her career services seminars, received job search advice, or had your cover letter or resumé reviewed by Cecily. We congratulate Cecily and wish her the best in her new position.

Arturo Errisuriz Assistant Dean for Career Services

With Cecily’s promotion, Courtney Key was appointed as the

aerrisuriz@law.txwes.edu

assistant director of career services. Courtney served as the office’s career services coordinator for six years. She is a May 2004 graduate of the University of Texas School of Law. As a law student, Courtney was the associate editor of the Texas Hispanic Journal of Law and Policy and served as secretary of the Student Bar Association. She earned a B.A. in Latin American Studies from the University of Texas with highest honors and was Phi Beta Kappa. She is admitted to practice in Texas and has experience in insurance defense, personal injury, housing law and DTPA cases. Courtney is active with the Tarrant County

Cecily Becker

Courtney Key

Courtney Leaverton ʼ11

Amy Schroer

Bar Association, serving as the chair-elect of the Canned Food Drive Committee, the Fort Worth-Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association, the Dallas Bar Association and the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers. She was also very involved in the inaugural production of Tarrant County Tortfeasors. With these changes, we were excited to welcome one of our very own to the office. Courtney Leaverton joined the office as the career services coordinator. Courtney is a May 2011 graduate of Texas Wesleyan School of Law. As a student, Courtney served as president of the SBA for two years, as the lieutenant governor for the American Bar Association’s SBA for the 13th Circuit, and was a member of the Eldon B. Mahon Inn of Court. She interned with the Tarrant County district attorney’s office and the Fort Worth city

Texas Wesleyan School of Law Office of Career Services 1515 Commerce Street | Fort Worth, Texas 76102 817-212-4050 | 817-212-4059 fax | www.law.txwes.edu

Join your fellow alumni at

2012 Alumni Weekend

April 20 – The Greenhill Golf Tournament Sky Creek Ranch Golf Club

April 21 – Alumni Community Crawfish & Shrimp Boil Law School Parking Lot

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