Perspectives: Spring 2015

SPRING 2015

Perspectives

WESTERN NEW ENGLAND UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW

Balancing Act: Making the Most of Law’s New Digital Reality

Students Honored as Best Oral Advocates in National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition Western New England University law students Susan Stark 3L and Erica Bruno 3L advanced to the quarterfinal round of the 2015 Jeffrey G. Miller Pace National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition. Susan was recognized as the Best Oralist in the first two preliminary rounds and Erica was recognized as the Best Oralist in the third preliminary round. Judges and the other competitors repeatedly commended the students for their outstanding courtroom presence, command of the legal issues, argument organization, and ability to respond to intense questioning. Professor of Law Julie E. Steiner served as the team’s coach.

H O W T O C O N TA C T U S

Dean’s Office 413-782-1413 Eric Gouvin Email: eric.gouvin@law.wne.edu

Law Development 413-796-2316 Robert Ziomek Email: robert.ziomek@wne.edu

Career Services 413-782-1416 Paula Zimmer Email: pzimmer@law.wne.edu

Admissions 413-782-1406 Amy Mangione Email: amangione@law.wne.edu

Law Alumni Relations 413-782-1311 Kim Roeder Email: kim.roeder@wne.edu

Student Records 413-782-1402 Terese Chenier Email: terese.chenier@law.wne.edu Law Library 413-782-1616 Pat Newcombe Email: pnewcombe@law.wne.edu

Faculty Members Call 413-782-3111 and ask for specific faculty member.

Main Fax Number: 413-796-2067 Mailing Address: 1215 Wilbraham Road Springfield, MA 01119-2684

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WESTERN NEW ENGLAND UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW

PERSPECTIVES

CONTENTS

Mini-Law School Program a Resounding Success

ALUMNI PROFILE:

Begun in 1975, the Western New England University School of Law Basketball Invitational celebrated four decades as the nation’s largest and longest running law school-only basketball tournament.

This semester, the School of Law took community outreach to a new level by offering a five-week Mini-Law School program designed to help non-lawyers develop a deeper knowledge of legal topics that impact their everyday lives.

A former RN, Charlen Fallon ’95 is a partner in Linnan & Fallon, LLP. The firm has been inducted into the inaugural New York Law Journal Hall of Fame for Medical Malpractice by having the largest verdict in the State of New York in the past five years.

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FEATURE:

Balancing Act: Making the Most of Law’s New Digital Reality Technology has been a game changer in the legal field. Read how smart devices and new storage solutions are simplifying business functions while adding new layers of complexity to safeguard confidential client information.

Law Basketball Invitational Turns 40!

Charlene Fallon (Williamson) ’95

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Forever the Student After 34 years, Professor James Gordon will end his formal teaching career this spring—but his passion for learning continues.

NEWS DEAN’S MESSAGE

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Discovering Justice Program at Duggan Magnet School

DEVELOPMENT REPORT—Giving the Gift of Opportunity

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New Introduction to the Legal Profession Course

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15th Annual Dinner for Students and Alumni of Color

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ALUMNI NEWS

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Catherine Bean Street Memorial Scholarship Inspires Recipients

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CAMPUS UPDATE

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FALL SPEAKERS

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ALUMNI NOTES

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STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Lenore Montanaro 3L

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IN MEMORIAM

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Institute for Legislative and Governmental Affairs

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Heard Around the Common

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FACULTY AND STAFF NOTES

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Alumni Benefits

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Visit Perspectives alumni magazine online at www.law.wne.edu/alumni

From the Dean Dear Alumni/ae and Friends, Today’s law students have grown up with unprecedented access to knowledge through the technology readily available at their fingertips. While many of us in the older generations have become accustomed to using such technology in our personal lives, we may yet to take advantage of all that access can bring to the legal profession. In this issue of Perspectives, alumni Ryan McKeen ’05 and Kathy Porter ’90 give us insights into how small and large firms alike can tap this potential as they navigate the opportunities and new challenges of today’s Digital Age. We also share the ways we are educating our students to become accustomed to commonly used software products and access technology to improve their research and presentation skills as they prepare to launch their careers.

Our focus on cultivating practical lawyering skills continues in a piece about a dynamic program I was excited to roll out this past January. Called Introduction to the Legal Profession, this intensive and immersive week-long course put first-year students in mock legal firms facing off in negotiations. I am grateful to the members of the bar who played the roles of senior partners in these firms.

I am also pleased to report that the introduction of our Mini-Law School program, designed specifically to help non-lawyers develop a deeper knowledge of the law, has been a resounding success, even resulting in a wait list for future sessions.

As we educated new students and the community, we welcomed back many graduates at two milestone events. This year marked the fifteenth anniversary of the Dinner for Students and Alumni of Color. We were pleased to have the Hon. Tina S. Page ’82 serve as our guest speaker. In February, the School of Law welcomed competitors from throughout the Northeast to the 40th annual School of Law Invitational Basketball Tournament. During the event, we honored tournament founder Tom Connelly ’76 for helping us to develop one of our proudest non-academic traditions.

Our speaker series covered a range of topics this fall, including important dialogue on the issues of race, gender equality, and human rights. I remind you that these events are open to the public or can usually be viewed online through the Law Library’s Digital Commons portal (digitalcommons.law.wne.edu).

This issue also includes features on three women in our learning community who are forging paths in their own unique ways. Attorney Charlene Fallon ’95 turned a career as a nurse into a thriving health law practice. Cancer survivor Lenore Montanaro 3L has been inspired by her own challenges to use her law degree to advocate for others. Rose Colon, also a third-year student, shares her story of giving back to her community through her work in the Discovering Justice program at nearby Duggan Magnet School. We also celebrate the legacy and impact of the Catherine Bean Street Memorial Scholarship.

Today’s students represent the future of our alumni family. Yet it is members of our past who are helping to make their opportunities possible. Attorney Hyman Darling ’77, a longtime supporter and member of our adjunct faculty, reflects on why he has made the personal decision to establish a planned gift to the School of Law in this issue’s Development Report.

Through these many voices, we endeavor to keep the School of Law in your thoughts and in your social plans. I encourage you to find time in your schedules to attend our events and volunteer to mentor students, often such opportunities require just a few hours’ commitment.

I thank you for all that you do and all that you give to keep our learning community strong.

Sincerely,

Eric Gouvin Professor and Dean

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Development Report By Hyman G. Darling ’77

Giving the Gift of Opportunity “Giving back” was a way of life in my family, growing up in western Pennsylvania. My parents were involved in the Rotary Club, Women’s Club, volunteer fire department, religious organizations, and other civic endeavors and somehow my parents also had time to work on projects and make donations. This became a part of life for my sister and me since we merely thought this was how things were supposed to be. Therefore, as I got older, I always volunteered, even through high school and college, in contributing to civic and other local charities.

Shortly after graduating from law school, I became a husband and then later a father of three. When I was asked to make a donation to a capital campaign at Western New England University, my initial reaction was to write a check for $25.

At that time, we lived on a single income, and I was wondering how I would ever pay for college for the kids, the mortgage, and other necessities of life. At the same time, I thought that by making a contribution, I would be part of the process, and “every dollar helps.”

However, being on the Planned Giving Committee of the University, I realized that my initial check wouldn’t really go too far. So I sat with the committee and we developed a plan that would create a significantly larger gift to be made at a fairly reasonable cost.

As I was relatively young and healthy, I considered the purchase of life insurance, which would allow a relatively small annual contribution to parlay into a larger death benefit (hopefully not for a long time). The big advantage of this approach was that the full amount of the death benefit would count towards the campaign. Therefore, I purchased a $25,000 life insurance policy with Western New England as both the owner and beneficiary. In that manner, my annual contribution to the University became a tax-deductible gift, and the University received a guaranteed amount of future support.

Over time, I decided that I could make a larger premium payment (tax deductible) on the policy so that after only several years, the policy would be paid up and I would not have to make any additional payments. This was accomplished, and the policy is now fully paid and continues to earn additional benefits, all under the ownership of Western New England.

When I was asked to write this article, I reflected on why I made this gift.

I make lots of charitable contributions, but if it had not been for the Evening Division of the School of Law that accepted me (as I needed to work during the day), I would not have been given the opportunity to attend law school and proceed with a career in a profession that I desired. I felt that giving back was important, and my contribution was one that was motivated not for tax purposes, but rather, was a gift back for the benefit of the University and the students. Ironically, during the campaign, my firm, Bacon Wilson, P.C., also made a contribution to the University, which was recognized with a plaque.

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Hy Darling ’77 stands by the Bacon Wilson plaque, which recognizes the firm’s gifts to support the University’s Alumni Healthful Living Center.

Whenever entering the Alumni Healthful Living Center, I and other alumni and staff of Bacon Wilson are proud to see our plaque, and I am pleased that the School of Law has developed from my days (remembering that the gym was really the library) into a first class facility. Hopefully, all the other alums will also join in giving back in the form of current and future contributions. It really does feel good to make a gift! ◆

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To make a gift today, contact Elizabeth Simpson BA’02/L’07/LLM’09,assistant director of gift planning and stewardship at (413) 796-2108 or esimpson@wne.edu.

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“Technology has

enabled me to grow our practice in ways that are more profitable.

Now we have more time to focus on the tasks that matter.”

—Ryan McKeen ’05

Attorney Ryan McKeen ’05 and his wife and business partner Attorney Allison McKeen ’04

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FEATURE By Mary McLean Orszulak G’10

Balancing Act: Making the Most of Law’s New Digital Reality Technology has been a game changer in the legal field. While it has simplified many routine tasks from timekeeping to document generation, it has also created complex new layers for safeguarding sensitive client information.

Mobile devices have enabled owners of solo practices to run their offices from virtually anywhere. Yet how safe is the cloud and what new steps must firms large and small take to protect privileged data in an intentionally ambiguous, yet everchanging regulatory landscape?

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Small Practice—Smart Solutions With an award-winning blawg and two dynamic websites under his belt, Ryan McKeen ’05, a partner in McKeen Law Firm, LLC, is a master at leveraging the user-friendly digital technology all around us. But Ryan is the first to insist that he is no high-tech guru and has never been formally trained in website design. With just a little research into the devices he already owned, Ryan has learned to tap their capabilities through avenues many of us may never have imagined.

“Technology has enabled me to grow our practice in ways that are more profitable,” says Ryan. “Now we have more time to focus on the tasks that matter.”

Currently in practice with his wife and partner Allison McKeen ’04, Ryan points to four devices that have given him more time to devote to his clients and their cases: his cellphone, laptop, conference room television, and camcorder, along with the resulting mobility and connectivity of all these devices.

For him, moving away from the traditional Windows-based platform once standard in the legal field and into the highly intuitive Mac environment has been key to integrated media access.

Left to His Own Devices Through the connectivity of his cellphone and laptop, Ryan has eliminated the need for an accounting firm to handle payroll, payables, and receivables. Ryan says, “There’s no filing, everything is automated; I can get more administrative tasks done in a day than I used to in a week.”

Using mobile apps, he is able to copy documents and save them automatically as PDFs, and frequently uses Adobe Echosign for client approvals. He was an early adopter of the smart watch, which he uses to alert him to priority messages. He recently started using a service to answer the firm’s phones.

“It’s fantastic. Having a live person answer your phones can make the difference between being hired or losing a potential client,” he says.

Clean and sophisticated, the McKeen Law Firm URL is not your father’s law firm’s website. There are no gavels, Scales of Justice, or shelves of Rules of Civil Procedure; instead bold color and stark black and white photos help focus on a message of credibility and quality. This includes a blawg that helps to position Ryan as an expert in his field, testimonials from satisfied clients, videos, and an impressive list of results the firm has achieved for its clients in civil litigation and real estate.

Lights, Camera, Focus Group When he wanted to test the waters on potential juror bias of a highly publicized upcoming wrongful death case, Ryan didn’t hire out a marketing firm to run focus groups. Instead, he advertised for potential focus group participants through social media and on Craigslist.

He used the Apple TV in his conference room to focus test deposition testimony, exhibits, and video recorded statements of witnesses— the results of which helped develop the themes of the case and provided insight into case value for mediation.

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Techno Smarts in the Classroom Western New England’s focus on fostering practical lawyering skills includes educating students on how to integrate digital technology into their skills base.

“There has been steady commentary about the growing use of technology in law practice and the faculty and administration have all reflected on how to increase our students’ exposure to this technology in the classroom,” said Pat Newcombe ’01, associate dean for library and information resources, “The ABA’s 2012 revisions to the Model Rules of Professional Conduct added ‘understanding technology’ to a lawyer’s general duty of competence. In practice, technology plays a role in discovery, litigation tracking, trial preparation, and day-to-day management functions. This increased use of technology comes at the same time as an increased reluctance on the part of law firms to take on new associates who are lacking in technology skills.”

The Law Library has partnered with legal technology vendors to provide students with access to fully-functioning versions of commonly used software. Such products include CLIO, a practice management software; Allegory, a litigation support software; Trial Director, a trial preparation software; Timestream, a litigation support and trial presentation software; Clustify, an e-discovery software; and CaseMap, a litigation support software.

Liza Rosenof, research/emerging technologies librarian, introduces such products when offering research sessions demonstrating databases on WestlawNext and LexisAdvance. She also offers technology sessions to students in everything from using software to track billable hours to optimizing Microsoft Word’s presentation capabilities.

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Yet Ryan knows when to seek out the expertise of others. When recently expanding the website’s real estate section, he used Google Adwords to help drive traffic, but then contracted out to a vendor with more Wordpress website development skills for additional Search Engine Optimization (SEO).

Such behind the scenes tweaks will help elevate the firm’s site in search engines queries.

And while such tech-jargon may sound intimidating, smart technology has put learning more about it in the palm of your hand. “Everything you need is already right at your fingertips,” says Ryan. “My advice to anyone who wants to do what I do is simple: use the technology you have or is readily available to you.”

Safeguarding Confidentiality in the Digital Age An intellectual property and technology partner in the Business Transactions Group at Robinson & Cole LLP in Boston, Attorney Kathleen Porter ’90 has witnessed firsthand the increasing complexity technology has placed on firms as they seek to protect client data. And she says it is only just beginning.

“As everyone knows, attorneys are subject to ethical rules in all of their jurisdictions where they are admitted to keep client materials confidential,” says Kathy, a frequent lecturer and writer on cyber security. “The notion that we now need to keep client materials confidential because of privacy law I think is one that has in some sense surprised the legal community.

When Gramm–Leach–Bliley was adopted in 1999, the legal community, specifically the New York Bar Association, sued to say ‘this doesn’t apply to law firms’ and the courts agreed that it didn’t. But then when the Massachusetts Data Security Regulation came out, those did apply to law firms.

And law firms can be considered business associates under HIPAA. These are the beginnings of privacy laws applying to the legal community.”

Putting Policies in Place Since the introduction of HIPAA and the Massachusetts Data Security Regulation, firms have shifted from the tradition of simply keeping client information confidential to proactively creating policies and procedures to document security measures.

“Maybe the steps you’ve taken historically are fine, but you need to do some evaluation,” says Kathy. “The Massachusetts Data Security Regulation requires that you do an assessment of your physical premises, computer systems and administrative safeguards, as well as your contracts and documentation.

“You need to do it initially, and then on an ongoing basis, annually or any time you change a vendor or even swap out a copier machine that may have stored data,” she says.

Adding another layer, many regulated industries are now looking at law firms and other outside service providers or vendors. These companies assess the security of those that they hire. “Payroll providers, IT services, cleaning people, anyone who has access to a premises is being asked to provide information about their physical and/or system security,” she says.

Such requests are coming largely from the financial security and insurance sectors based on their own increased regulations.

Citing the Massachusetts Data Security Regulation, which covers only a defined set of “personal information,” Kathy explains, “The regulation applies to any business handling or storing personal information.

But measures you need to put in place may vary depending on the size of your firm, and the nature and size of your risk. So if you’re a small law firm who’s client is a bank, and deal with social security numbers and bank account information all day, you need to consider adopting measures to safeguard that personal information, despite your small business size.”

Increasingly, it is not just new clients looking for documentation of firm policies.

Often existing clients are becoming more vigilant about the dangers of hackers who are seeking personal data such as social security numbers, and also valuable business data that they may be able to use or trade on for financial gain.

Massachusetts, where 2,500 of Western New England University law alumni are in practice, has some of the strongest regulations on personal information in the country alongside California. Kathy says firms operating here or that have clients in the Commonwealth are best served by establishing their internal policies to comply with these regulations.

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FEATURE

Beyond being good business practice, Kathy says showing clients verification and now certification that you are protecting data and communications systems is fast becoming a market differentiator in a crowded legal marketplace. Citing recent articles from The American Lawyer to The New York Times, ISO 27001 has become the certification of choice of many top firms. The American Lawyer also reported in March that “at least five Am Law 100 and Magic Circle firms are working to form an alliance that would allow them to ultimately share information with each other about cyberthreats and vulnerability.”

“The reality is no one will find out what you

haven’t done until you have a problem and then you will have a big problem .”

—Kathleen Porter ’90

Playing It Safe with BYOD While convenient, mobile communication is a source of concern for many companies. Following suit with what has become common corporate practice, many law firms today have adopted a BYOD policy when it comes to cell phones, laptops, tablets, and other mobile devices. While attorneys may be encouraged to “Bring Your Own Device” to their workplace, such equipment is subject to the firm’s policies. Typically, it is a good practice, and even required, to encrypt any mobile device—from a cell to a flash drive—containing sensitive information.

While BYOD eliminates the inconvenience of juggling multiple devices, lost or stolen personal devices create new challenges when employees are reluctant to report them missing immediately.

“It’s a big issue. People put the organization at risk because they don’t want to report their phones lost or stolen for fear of losing those baby pictures and personal items,” says Kathy. “Some firms use device management providers that can help users classify data so that only the corporate data is wiped clean in the event the device can still be recovered.”

She cautions that start-up or small firms in particular need to be vigilant when selecting vendors for cloud-based data solutions. Choosing a low cost solution can often lead to greater risk.

Also, lapsed third party certifications are a red flag that vendors may be cutting corners or not paying attention.

Whether it is in the cloud or through the next big data storage solution, increasingly clients will be looking for firms to be able to show that they have taken reasonable steps to protect their information.

“The focus is really on assessing where your risks are,” says Kathy. “It is a moving target. There is definitely valuable information out there to help lawyers who are looking for assistance in responding to these issues.” ◆

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Kathleen Porter ’90 in her office overlooking Boston Harbor

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15th Annual Dinner for Students and Alumni of Color Inspires Community to Model Direction and Purpose Held on November 21, 2014 at the historic Barney Estate in Springfield’s Forest Park, the Dinner for Students and Alumni of Color celebrated its fifteenth year with a gathering that connected students past and present in a common bond of supporting their community and inspiring lives and careers of direction and purpose.

ABOVE (L to R) Professor Tina Cafaro, Amira Ridley 2L, Dean Eric Gouvin, David Guadeloupe 1L, Michelle Tsang 1L, Claudia Quintero 1L, Caroline Montiel 1L, Louis Canales 1L, and his wife, Mayori Canales

Student Speaker Randy Maduka-Okafor 3L

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Guest Speaker the Hon. Tina S. Page ’82

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By Mary McLean Orszulak G’10

R

PHOTO TOP (L to R) Jade Thornton 1L and Hasina Mungin-Bey 1L PHOTO MIDDLE (L to R) Caroline Pereira 2L, Hadiatou Barry 1L, and Professor of Law Bridgette Baldwin PHOTO BOTTOM (L to R) Tahirah Amatul-Wadud ’05 with Dean Emeritus and Professor of Law Arthur Gaudio

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ecognizing the important role members of the bench and bar can play in the nation’s dialogue about issues of race, class, and gender, student speaker Randy Maduka-Okafor 3L asked the attendees to be active participants in shaping a new era.

“The depiction of minorities in the national consciousness presently and throughout history has all too often been skewed by social and political actors seeking to perpetuate an antiquated hierarchical system,” said Randy. “Yet the narrative of minorities has always been that of strength and the ability to overcome adversity.

Events like this dinner seek to celebrate this fact by honoring the achievements of minorities who have made substantial contributions to society. I believe this dinner is important for individuals of all racial and ethnic backgrounds because it serves as validation of the premise that success is colorblind.”

He also encouraged students not to wait to use their legal educations to make an impact. With the passing of classmate Jay Lamanna still a fresh loss for the School community, Randy felt compelled to talk about the “the brevity of life and the importance of actively seeking to achieve your goals.”

He told those gathered: “Jay was an individual who actively sought to achieve his goals in public interest lawyering through his work with the ACLU, amongst other endeavors. Ultimately there is this realization in the wake of his untimely departure that the only certainty in life is that life is uncertain. With this in mind, one should strive to live their life with direction and purpose.”

The evening’s guest of distinction, the Hon. Tina S. Page ’82, associate justice in Hampden County Superior Court, spoke about the importance of the School of Law in maintaining a student body that reflects “not only the community it serves, but our country.”

“Attending the annual dinner underscores how far the student body has come from the days when I was the only African American woman in my class,” she said. “It is reassuring to know that Western New England University remains committed to maintaining a diverse student body. It is essential that we, lawyers of color, establish a relationship with these students and reassure them that they are not alone.”

Speaking to the alumni in the audience, she encouraged them to mentor the current students. “It is important that students know we are here and have successful careers,” she said. “No one’s path to success has been without a mentor or role model. It is our responsibility to remind them that we have confronted the same fear and angst that every law student faces, but at the end of the day we and they survive.”

Dean Eric Gouvin told the group: “When I look out at this audience I see a bunch of old friends and a bunch of new students, but what I mostly see is the future. We live in an incredibly diverse society and it is getting moreso every day. The legal profession is coming along, yet we still have a long way to go before the bar looks like the society as a whole. But on nights like tonight, I have hope we’ll get there.” ◆

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By Patricia Gagnon

“Silently, one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven, Blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the angels.”

—Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Catherine Bean Street Endowed Memorial Scholarship

Inspiring Recipients to Make the Most of Each Opportunity and Every Day For more than two decades, the Catherine Bean Street Endowed Memorial Scholarship has been assisting students at Western New England University School of Law with quiet and steadfast support along their academic journey. The scholarship is awarded to a woman in her last year at the School of Law who is a member of the Western New England Law Review.

Recipients must demonstrate a potential for professional excellence and have financial need. he scholarship was established in memory of Catherine Bean Street BA’87/L’90 by her parents, the late Robert Bean and Deborah Bean; her husband, David Street ’89; and other family and friends. Catherine graduated in 1987 from Western New England College as valedictorian and summa cum laude. She went on to graduate cum laude in 1990 from the School of Law, where she was an editor on Law Review. Catherine had been a judicial clerk for Associate Justice Elizabeth Porada in the Massachusetts Court of Appeals in Springfield when she passed away tragically as the result of a car accident at the age of 25. “Cathy set high standards in everything that she did, yet she had a generous nature and never lost sight of taking the time to do things for family and friends,” recalls Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Beth Cohen. “Cathy loved to cook and would often bring in treats for classmates during exam time. When her parents used to present the award, they also gave a cookbook filled with Cathy’s recipes. I have been honored to present the award on behalf the family for the past 10 years.”

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Since the scholarship’s establishment, there have been 25 recipients. Last year’s recipient was Laura Fisher 3L. Along with helping her financially, Laura says the scholarship and the legacy of Catherine Bean Street drives her to do more and give back. “It reminds me of the importance of sharing my successes by mentoring and supporting up and coming female law students and professionals. Women must support one another if we are to advance to positions of leadership and management,” says Laura.

Anna Levine ’07 was a single mother of two elementary school-aged children and she was coping with the financial cost of law school when she learned she was the 2006-2007 recipient of the memorial scholarship. “My need was considerable,” says Anna. “Because of the help I received from this and other scholarships, I was able to remain a full-time law student and complete the program in three years.

“Winning a named scholarship gave me a boost to my confidence as well,” she says. “Single moms are frequent targets of criticism and feel judged more often than acknowledged. Receiv-

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ing the scholarship made me feel that my efforts were not in vain, that my hard work, both as a mom and as a student, had not gone completely unnoticed.”

After graduating, Anna took the New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts bars and is licensed in all three jurisdictions. She is currently a managing partner, along with her husband, of a law firm in Springfield. She handles corporate, criminal, family law, appellate, personal injury, medical malpractice, estate planning, and a range of other types of cases. She has briefed and argued four cases before the Appeals Court of Massachusetts. “I love helping people in need. I work a number of pro bono and low-rate matters and try where I can to be helpful in my community,” she says.

Anna is grateful to the Bean and Street families for establishing the scholarship and feels humble to be one of the recipients. “When I met Catherine’s parents, I felt the weight of their grief,” Anna recalls. “Their award in their daughter’s name made me feel honored and special and tasked to make the best of my legal education.”

During her second year at Western New England School of Law, Rachael Rosenberg ’14 was working two part-time jobs to help finance her education so that she wouldn’t have to take out excessive loans. “Working five days a week can take its toll on a full-time student,” Rachael notes. She says receiving the scholarship in 20132014 “reduced my tuition bill and allowed me to save extra money for my post-graduation plans.

Any student facing his or her third year of law school knows that the following summer will bring extraordinary expense. Taking the bar exam is expensive, not to mention the addition of the bar preparation course and the cost of taking time off from work to study.”

When Rachael graduated from the School of Law, she received the Abraham Smith Award for excellence in the area of probate. She passed the Massachusetts and Connecticut Bar Exams in the summer of that same year, and is currently admitted to practice law in both states. Today, she works as an associate attorney with The Moriarty Law Firm in Springfield, a practice serving the population of western Massachusetts in areas including employment litigation, personal injury, housing disputes, social security, and veteran’s rights.

“Receiving the Catherine Bean Street Scholarship was an amazing experience and quite an honor,” Rachael says. “Catherine’s family has, in memory of their loss, created an amazing scholarship fund that has had such an impact on Western New England students every single year. I can’t express what it means to me to be a part of that legacy and that tradition. I know every parent out there with students in law school wants to be able to help out in their child’s education, and the fact that Catherine’s family is willing to share that with others is so fantastic.

“Being chosen to receive this scholarship inevitably pushes you to take full advantage of your situation because it reminds you of exactly how lucky you are,” says Rachael. “It reminds you that, by attending law school, as Catherine did, you are not only living a personal dream, but also participating in something far more profound. It reminds you that you have a responsibility to live up to the professional standards as a member of the bar, and as a member of the Western New England University community. All I can do is express my eternal gratitude to Catherine’s family for creating the scholarship and for helping me in such a generous way.” ◆

“Their award in their daughter's name made me feel honored and special and tasked to make the best of my legal education.” - Anna Levine ’07

CATHERINE BEAN STREET ENDOWED MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENTS 1991-1992 Lisa A. Rich-Conroy ’92 1992-1993 Kirsten Anderson Rappleyea ’93 1993-1994 Lisa Anne Bongiovi ’94 1994-1995 Carol Elizabeth Viehmann ’95 1995-1996 Ingrid C. Palermo ’96 1996-1997 Kelly Galica Peck L’97/LLM’07 1997-1998 Suellen L. Poll Deblasio ’98 1998-1999 Gina M. Barry ’99 1999-2000 Marie C. Kuban ’00 2000-2001 Debra D. Thurley ’01 2001-2002 Crescent A. Moran ’02 2002-2003 Barbara Mistishen ’03 2003-2004 Karen E. Eaton ’04 2004-2005 Pamela R. Green ’05 2005-2006 Aimee K. Bouchard ’06 2006-2007 Anna G. Levine ’07 2007-2008 Kendra L. Berardi ’08 2008-2009 Sarah T. Biolsi Vangel ’09 2009-2010 Andrea M. Momnie ’10 2010-2011 Robyn E. Gallagher ’11 2011-2012 Angelina Pargoff Stafford ’12 2012-2013 Kathleen D. Tetreault ’13 2013-2014 Rachael Rosenberg ’14 2014-2015 Laura A. Fisher 3L 2015-2016 Jennifer Weekly 3L

Laura Fisher 3L

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Anna Levine ’07

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Rachael Rosenberg ’14

If you would like to support the Catherine Bean Street Endowed Memorial Scholarship, contact Elizabeth Simpson ’02/L’07/LLM’09, assistant director of planned giving and stewardship at esimpson@wne.edu or 413-796-2108.

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Basketball Tourney

2015

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By Mary McLean Orszulak G’10

School of Law Basketball Invitational Turns 40!

Marking its 40th year this spring, the Law Basketball Invitational is the nation’s largest and longest-running law school-only basketball tournament. Western New England University celebrated this milestone with a special program on February 20-22, 2015. “We wanted to celebrate the many alumni players from the past who have made this event so successful through the years and a hallmark of our institution,” said School of Law Dean Eric Gouvin.

Established in 1975, the Law Basketball Invitational has become one of the most anticipated social events of the spring calendar for law students and alumni in the Northeast. The event is sponsored and organized by the Student Bar Association.

Games were held at the Alumni Healthful Living Center. The tournament drew 26 teams representing 14 law schools throughout the Northeast, and included both men’s and women’s divisions. The Rutgers student team took the men’s division over the Harvard Law alumni team with a score of 52-59. Three women’s teams from Western New England, Syracuse, and Suffolk played in a round-robin competition with Suffolk winning for the second year in a row.

As part of the weekend-long celebration, alumni, students, and competitors gathered Friday and Saturday evenings at Paddy’s Irish Pub across from campus and at favorite law alumni watering hole Theodore’s in downtown Springfield.

Alumni are an important part of the celebration with many past participants returning each year to compete or show their support. “I have enjoyed being a part of the tournament these past two years because of the great competition and sense of community it fosters,” said

Tournament Cochair Jordan Freeman 3L. “The alumni teams say that it’s a weekend away from their lives as lawyers, to have fun, see familiar faces, and meet new friends.

What is even more amazing about those who come back is that certain teams help us out and recruit teams that haven’t previously competed, as was the case with this year’s winner Rutgers-Camden School of Law.” At a recognition event on Saturday, the SBA presented a plaque to Tom Connelly ’76 for his dedication and vision that established the annual tournament. “Recognition really has to go to those who have kept the tournament going for the last 39 years,” Tom told the attendees.

He then recounted how the tournament was born. A member of the first full-time class, Tom initially tried to organize an intramural softball team to compete with undergraduates on campus. But the athletics director had reservations that they would have an unfair advantage. “Just because we’re older and more experienced doesn’t mean we’re more athletic,” Tom recalled telling him and the law students were allowed to compete.

However, when Tom assembled an intramural basketball team, “It just so happened that we had a lot of good athletes and a very winning

team. The undergraduates took exception to that so they thought maybe we should play some other law schools.”

Tom set up a home and away series of games against Yale. After Western New England beat them in the opener at home, “They never came to Springfield. So that was the end of the home and away series.”

Still undeterred, Tom reached out to UConn Law where he was taking some patent law classes. He also got Cornell, Villanova, Boston University, NYU, and even Yale onboard and the Western New England Law Invitational was born.

“The tournament is such a point of pride because it gives the law students and law alumni something to get behind,” said Tournament Cochair Steve LaMonica 3L. “It binds all of the students and alumni in a common rooting interest in seeing our teams compete against other law schools throughout the Northeast. Every law student over the last 40 years has had the chance to either play in, watch, or simply talk about the tournament during their time here at Western New England University School of Law. That is something special and the reason why both current students and alumni take great pride in one of the best law school traditions around.” ◆

(Above) Dean Gouvin with Founder Tom Connelly ’76 and Cochairs Jordan Freeman 3L and Steve LaMonica 3L. (Above) A happy crowd gathered for the reception on February 21.

(Photos facing page) The Teams: Western New England University men fielded a student and two alumni teams, and the Western New England women fielded a student/alumni team.

Professor of Law Bruce Miller (left) was recognized for his many years of service coaching the women’s teams.

View the photo album at www.law.wne.edu/alumni.

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Fall Speakers Showcase

By Alex Lyman BA’12

Civil rights discussions ruled the fall 2014 lectures. From the European interpretation on fundamental rights, to ending housing and education segregation, to immigrant’s rights, these lectures gave valuable insight on those still marginalized in 21st Century.

The Clason Speaker Series

The Clason Speaker Series (www.law.wne.edu/clason) provides a valuable forum for legal experts to present works in progress on current legal topics.

September 15, 2014

October 27, 2014

November 3, 2014

Federico Fabbrini Professor, Tilburg University Law School

Phil Tegeler Executive Director, PRRAC

“Fundamental Rights in Europe: A Comparative Discourse on Human Rights Standards”

“The Challenge of Ending Segregation in Housing and Education”

Judy Rabinovitz Deputy Director, ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project Law

“At the level of the European Union, fundamental rights have now acquired a prominent status. The charter of fundamental rights enacted in 2001 is now legally binding. That’s an amazing document. Not only because it is arguably one of the latest bills of rights adopted worldwide so its very updated, but also because it’s very precise and technical, and gives a lot of power to courts in reviewing action of the legislature as far as human rights are concerned.”

—Professor Federico Fabbrini

“There are many places in the U.S. that the magic potion of gentrification has passed by. The standard model in American cities is still a highly segregated, poor core; an inner ring suburban area surrounded by a wealth. It is this pattern of concentrated poverty which is imposed in city after city primarily on Black and Latino families. What’s most striking is that these patterns of concentrated poverty are not decreasing.

Our schools are becoming more segregated as well, which is extraordinary because as we experience increased diversity in our society, this pattern of segregation and poverty concentrations in our schools across the country is increasing.” —Phil Tegeler

Color of Law Roundtable The Color of Law Roundtable (www.law.wne.edu/coloroflaw) brings local professionals to speak candidly about their legal education and career, as well as inspire and encourage current students.

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“The Surge of Central American Migrants at the Border and the Politics of Immigration Reform: Reflections from 25 Years of Fighting for Immigrants’ Rights”

“Immigration is a very visible manifestation of global inequality. People don’t leave their countries because they want an adventure.

People are leaving their countries because they have to. They can’t survive because they are victims of political repression or because of the economic poverty.”

—Judy Rabinovitz

November 10, 2014 Hector Zavala ’12 Assistant District Attorney, Hampden County District Attorney's Office Springfield District Court

“I was the first in my family to go to college and graduate. I had no real guidance on what I needed to do, or how I needed to do it. My family was very supportive of me continuing my education because they wanted me to have opportunities that they didn’t have. They pushed me and said you can be a lawyer. They didn’t know how I was going do it, but the School of Law helped me figure it out.” —Hector Zavala ’12

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The Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship The Center for Innovation & Entrepreneurship (www.wne.edu/cie) is a resource for small businesses throughout the Pioneer Valley.

November 11, 2014

November 18, 2014

Paul Mancinone ’92 Trustee, Western New England University Founder and President, Paul L. Mancinone Company, P.C.

Eric Gouvin Dean, Western New England University School of Law Michele Feinstein ’84 Adjunct Professor, Western New England University School of Law Attorney, Shatz, Schwartz, and Fentin, P.C.

“How to Handle an IRS Audit”

Robert Statchen Assistant Clinical Professor of Law, Western New England University School of Law

“If you have to submit to an interview don’t ever do that by yourself. Have a representative present. If they’re asking questions, never answer a question right away. Count to ten and give your representative time to step in. If possible, get the questions in writing and then take your time coming up with an answer to make sure your answer is accurate”

“Common Legal Mistakes of Small Businesses” “I strongly encourage you to have a strong business team. You need a good accountant and a good lawyer. Make sure you talk to them and tell them what your plans are. They can help you set up right from the get-go and avoid a host of problems; things that can really sink a small business. It’s not hard to run afoul and dig a hole so deep that you can’t get out.” —Michele Feinstein ’84

—Paul Mancinone ’92

Center for Gender & Sexuality Studies The Center for Gender & Sexuality Studies (www.law.wne.edu/gendercenter) works to engage the legal community, the University, and members of the School of Law on core issues of gender and sexuality across a broad spectrum of law.

October 1, 2014

“Domestic Violence and the National Football League: A Public Discussion with Professor Michael McCann” Michael McCann Professor of Law and Director of Sports and Entertainment Law Institute, University of New Hampshire Erin Buzuvis Professor of Law, Western New England University School of Law

“I think it’s worthwhile to talk about [domestic violence] in the context of the NFL because we often don’t talk about it when it’s an accountant, or a lawyer. The reality is that 99% of the time, there is no attention paid towards domestic violence.

So when there are opportunities to create changes to the law because of a prominent person implicated in an offense, I think its worthwhile to take advantage of that.” —Professor Michael McCann S P R I N G

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By Alex Lyman BA’12

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Student Spotlight Lenore Montanaro 3L

Lenore Montanaro 3L has an impressive résumé filled with professional experiences, even before graduating from law school.

But her résumé tells only part of her story.

As a three-time cancer survivor and above-theknee amputee, Lenore has faced adversity. She has two younger brothers, one of whom passed away at the age of 19 from leukemia in 2011. “John passed away in my arms as I sang to him, and his passing continues to be the greatest of all of my trials. He and I were especially close. He was 14 months younger than me, but he taught me so much.” Lenore’s other brother, Jason, also attends Western New England University, and is majoring in Finance. “Jay grounds me,” she says. “He is smart, decent and kind...and a good baseball player!”

Lenore wants to use her experiences to help and encourage others. While she is interested in the areas of family law, employment law, and litigation, Lenore is particularly passionate about health law and bioethics and would like to practice defense litigation in medical malpractice suits. Because of her medical history and because of the lessons that she received in her law classes with Law Professor Barbara Noah, she feels that she can relate well to those who rely on federal, state, and local regulations for safe care and treatment.

“With all of the scientific advancements and innovations, I believe that health law is a growing area and I would like to be part of it,” she says.

Part of what drew Lenore to Western New England was how accommodated she felt on campus. “Dean Johnson showed me the layout of the school, and he made me feel that I was a part of the law school family. I am happy that the School of Law is contained in one building.”

There is a reason that Lenore is the only leg amputee to graduate from the College of the Holy Cross: Holy Cross is located on Mt. St. James, a location with uneven terrain and many staircases. “I joined the Women’s Varsity Rowing Team at Holy Cross because someone told me that Crew is a leg sport and that would be too difficult for me, so I had to do it.”

In 2014, Lenore was one of two recipients of a national scholarship competition sponsored by the Defense Research Institute (DRI). Her winning essay contained her detailed opinion of two of the Proposed Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

Additionally, Lenore was able to attend the DRI Diversity Committee event in Chicago last June.

Lenore’s dedication to making a positive impact on the world doesn’t begin with her career goals or recent scholastic achievements; instead she’s set her sights on

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making her mark at the Western New England University School of Law. Lenore is president of the Women’s Law Association and has also interned at the United States Attorney’s Office. She is currently gaining invaluable experience as a law clerk at Bacon Wilson, P.C., which she proclaims to be “the best law firm in western Massachusetts.”

Additionally, Lenore is a published poet and Mellon Foundation fellow. She has already taken her passion for poetry and writing to the next level. Her book of poetry, The Morning Within the Dark, is written and published in memory of her brother. All of the proceeds benefit The John F. Montanaro III Memorial Foundation.

These experiences have exemplified the three passions that lead her to a career in law: a strong interest in The Constitution, a love of the written word, and a commitment to justice.

“These three passions, when placed together, are exactly what I believe make a great attorney,” says Lenore.

“I truly want to make a difference in the lives of others.

What better way to make a positive contribution to the world than to help others through the legal system?”

Lenore’s perspective has transformed as the School of Law not only challenged her thought-process, but also taught her the craft of legal storytelling. As a first-year law student, Lenore won the “Best Brief” Award and the “Best Oral Argument” Award for her Legal Research and Writing Section.

“The law program here has allowed me to develop as a logical and intense thinker. I have grown as a writer, too. It is important that an attorney be able to tell a story,” she notes.

“As an undergraduate at Holy Cross, I was able to ponder life’s big questions: Who am I? Who am I for others? What is my purpose? In law school, the spiritual component does not exist. Approaching questions from the legal perspective provided me with an opportunity to grow.”

Having suffered and overcome so much at a young age, Lenore’s perspective on the future includes her knowledge of the law, as well as her aesthetic and deeprooted view of the world.

“I have a vision for how I can make a difference in society in many areas of law,” said Lenore. “Law school has given me the confidence in my abilities, in my voice.

I am grateful for my experience here.” ◆

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INSTITUTE FOR LEGISLATIVE AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS SUMMARY OF EVENTS FOR FALL 2014

During the fall 2014 term, the Institute for Legislative and Governmental Affairs presented several significant programs: Candidate debates for Hampden County District Attorney and for the senatorial district of the First Hampden and Hampshire District, the annual Constitution Day and Citizenship Day program, the 19th annual Supreme Court Review Conference, and the swearing in of new citizens. ‰

District Attorney Debate With the retirement of Hampden County District Attorney William Bennett after 20 years of dedicated service, the open position encouraged four candidates to enter the race. Three of them were graduates of our School of Law: Shawn Allyn ’99, Hal Etkin ’84, and Anthony Gulluni ’03/L’07. Brett Vottero was the fourth candidate.

The Institute sponsored a debate among the four Democratic candidates in advance of the primary on September 9, where Attorney Gulluni prevailed. Because no Republican or unenrolled candidate entered the race, Attorney Gulluni was elected District Attorney on November 4.

‰

Constitution Day On September 17, the Institute sponsored the University’s annual commemoration of “Constitution Day and Citizenship Day,” a congressionally declared celebration of the signing of the Constitution on September 17, 1787, and Congress’ recognition of the importance that citizenship plays in our constitutional democracy.

This year the Institute assembled a distinguished panel of faculty from the University to discuss “Ferguson and the Constitution.” Focusing on the shooting of an unarmed young black man by a white police officer in Ferguson, MO, the featured panelists: Professor of History John Baick, Professor of Law Bridgette Baldwin, and Professor of Law Matthew Charity, explored the historical and contemporary context of police

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misconduct against members of the African American community. Professor of Law Bruce Miller served as the moderator. This spring the School will conduct a follow-up conference to examine further this timely and important subject.

‰ Supreme Court Review For the first time in its 19-year history, the annual Supreme Court Review Conference was held over two days in mid-October. Professor Emeritus Leora Harpaz, who founded this conference in 1996, began by examining the Court’s “Conservatizing the First Amendment.” Among other cases, she discussed the Hobby Lobby decision which interpreted the Federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act to create an exception from the obligations of the Affordable Care Act so that closely held corporations cannot be required to provide their employees with insurance coverage for contraception if they object for religious reasons.

Professor Jennifer Levi followed with a discussion of the implications for same-gender marriage of the Supreme Court’s denying certiorari in cases presenting the constitutionality of state bans on such marriages. She suggested that because of the increasing number of lower court decisions invalidating such prohibitions, the Court would have to accept for review a same-gender marriage case.

True to Professor Levi’s prediction, the Court will hear four cases in April, with decisions expected in June, addressing the

P E R S P E C T I V E S

By Professor Arthur D. Wolf, Director

validity of such state laws. Despite the Court’s grant of review in these cases, it has refused to stay judgments in lower courts ordering state officials to grant marriage licenses to same-gender couples.

Professor Bruce Miller, a panelist at this Conference from its beginning in 1996, analyzed the recent racial discrimination cases involving affirmative action. In Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action , 2014, the Court upheld a Michigan ballot proposition, which amended the state’s constitution to make affirmative action illegal in public employment, public education, and public contracting.

Earlier precedents would seem to indicate, Professor Miller noted, that such singling out of racial minorities for special and disadvantageous treatment would violate the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The Court, however deferred in this decision to the Michigan electorate, which adopted the restriction through a voter initiative petition.

The Conference concluded with the audience and the panelists discussing a variety of topics relating to the work of the Court.

This included the important decisions of its 2013-2014 term, and the cases it might decide in the current term (2014-2015), including the same-gender marriage controversy.

‰ Naturalization Ceremony For the past several years, the Legislative Institute has worked with the immigration authorities in the Department of Homeland Security to arrange naturalization ceremonies in the Pellegrini Moot Court Room. On October 24, the Institute once again had the honor of conducting a swearing-in of new citizens here at the Blake Law Center. The School of Law was honored to have Judge Mark Mastroianni ’89, the newly installed

Federal jurist in Springfield, to preside over the ceremony; it was his first. The swearing-in is held in formal session before the Court. The intimacy of the moot court room gives the event a special meaning for the new members of the nation.

This year’s ceremony had several poignant speeches, including Judge Mastroianni and Dean Gouvin’s comments about citizenship and its importance for the survival and advancement of our democratic values. Senator Gale Candaras ’83 served as the keynote speaker, recalling her childhood as a first generation American. Her father had come to the United States from Greece, where he was not allowed to board the ship in Athens to the U.S. until he bought a pair of shoes. Practically every day of her life, Senator Candaras recalled, her father, who had been naturalized, reminded her what a privilege it is to be an American citizen.

‰ State Senate Debate The Institute rounded out its fall program with a debate, in the week preceding the election, between Democrat Eric Lesser (Longmeadow) and Republican Debra Boronski (East Longmeadow), candidates for the State Senate. The Senate seat for the First Hampden and Hampshire District was open because of the retirement of Senator Gale Candaras, who served for 18 years in the State Legislature, the last eight in the Senate. The University will honor Senator Candaras for her outstanding and dedicated public service by awarding her an honorary degree at the commencement on May 17, 2015.

Attorney Lesser won the election on November 4. ◆

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Read more about the Institute at www.law.wne.edu/ilga.

We were very pleased to welcome as a new citizen Mrs. Silvia Pickrell (center), an employee of the University, pictured here with Senator Gale Candaras ’83, and Professor Art Wolf.

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Professor James Gordon will end his formal teaching career this spring—but his passion for learning continues

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Faculty Profile Professor James Gordon

By Brendan Payne ’12

Forever the Student To be a great teacher, you must first be a great student.

“To keep your teaching fresh you have to keep learning,” explained Professor James Gordon. “I think trying to be a good teacher starts with a commitment to continue, yourself, as a serious student.”

That is something Professor Gordon has practiced during his 34-year tenure on the School of Law faculty and something he will continue into his retirement that begins following the conclusion of the spring semester.

“I have collected thousands of books over the years that I want to read,” he says when asked what he planned to do in retirement. “There are so many subjects about which I want to learn and possibly write. I also plan to play my guitar, try to lower my golf handicap, and mostly travel with my wife, Marlene, and see more of my children and (hoped-for) grandchildren.” In addition he plans to study the archive of hundreds of letters his father wrote during World War II when he served for three years overseas as a physician who commanded a hospital train in North Africa and Europe.

This longstanding love of history helped drive his interest in the areas of property law and constitutional history.

His student law review note opened a unique opportunity during his first year of practice. He took a leave of absence for the summer to work with Professor Richard Wellman, the chief reporter of the original UPC, coauthoring two articles comparing the first enacting states’ versions of the UPC with the uniform act itself and discussing the variations.

“After spending a summer on campus at the University of Georgia and returning to the law firm in September, I knew that I wanted to try for a teaching career,” he remembers.

Like many of the faculty’s old guard, the sense of community is what drew Professor Gordon to Western New England when he began his teaching career. “Dean Howard Kalodner had a vision of a student-centered law school with a faculty which would emphasize quality teaching and collegiality among faculty and students. The idea was to create a comfortable community in which to teach and to learn. In my 34 years, I have felt part of all of that and have enjoyed almost every day at work,” lauds Professor Gordon.

And his commitment to personal improvement and the betterment of faculty continued throughout his career at the School of Law. “During my first few years at the School of Law, I asked many questions of my more experienced colleagues, sat in their classes, and watched what they did,” he recalls. “I also had them sit in my classes and make suggestions about how I could improve my teaching. Mentoring new teachers was stressed when I began and it was very helpful.”

Over the course of the past three and a half decades, Professor Gordon quickly transitioned from mentee to mentor, for both his students and the new crop of younger professors who have come through the School of Law. The impact he has made on his students and the School of Law will be felt for years to come. ◆

LAST CLASS! Professor Bill Baker Anyone who has taken one of Professor Bill Baker’s courses is familiar with how he opens each class meeting: “Last class!” followed by a review of the previous lesson brings the bustling classroom to order. But this spring it will be the last class for Professor Baker as he is retiring from teaching in the JD program after a 40-year run. He will continue to teach in the LLM in Estate Planning and Elder Law program.

One of the foremost experts in the country on issues of property, trusts, estates, and real estate law, Professor Baker started teaching at the School of Law in 1975. He taught courses in those subjects as well as in our well-respected LLM program.

Professor Baker plans on playing golf daily at the Twin Eagles Country Club near his home in Naples, FL. “I give my best wishes to the students, staff, and faculty at Western New England,” he says.

The only thing larger than his vast knowledge of the subject matter is his personality that was unmatched by anyone else on the faculty and will be impossible to replace.

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FACULTY and STAFF NOTES

BUZUVIS

Erin Buzuvis, professor of law and Director of the Center for Gender & Sexuality Studies, published a chapter “Barriers to Leadership for Women in College Athletics,” in Introduction to Intercollegiate Athletics in American Higher Education (Eddie Comeaux, ed., 2014). She also published the article “Title IX Feminism, Social Justice and NCAA Reform,” in the Freedom Center Journal (2014: 5, pp. 101).

Lauren Carasik, clinical professor of law and Director of the International Human Rights Clinic, published a number of articles in the last seven months in Al Jazeera America: “Holder Assails Policing for Profit,” “The Real State of the Union: Justice,” “Venezuela Sanctions Highlight U.S. Hypocrisy on Human Rights,” “No Guarantee the US Won’t Torture Again,” “Federal Appeals Court Spares Mentally Ill Man from Execution– For Now,” “U.S. Policies in Mexico Have Made Bad Situation Worse,” “Release Senate Report on CIA Torture Program,” “UN Climate Change Report Warns of Severe and Irreversible Effects,” “Blackwater Guilty Verdict Long Overdue,” “Evo Morales’ Incomplete Legacy,” “Holder’s Inconsistent Constitutional Legacy,” “Exoneration of Death Row Convict Supports Abolitionists,” and “United Nations Watchdog Blasts U.S. for Persistent Racism.”

Other articles she has published include: “Undermined: The Case Against International Arbitration Tribunals,” “Executive Disor-

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CARASIK

FREEMAN ’93

der,” and “Deadly Deportations” in Foreign Affairs; “America’s Deportation Mill” in the Boston Review; and “There’s an Epidemic on Trial in New York—But It’s not Ebola” in the Vice News.

In October, Professor Carasik traveled to Bolivia to serve as a credentialed observer for the national elections on October 12, and met with government representatives and civil society groups to learn the context and background of the election.

Harris Freeman ’93, professor of legal research and writing, was reappointed by Governor Deval Patrick in December to serve a second term as an administrative law judge serving on the Commonwealth Employment Relations Board (CERB). The CERB is a three-person administrative board in the Department of Labor Relations that provides appellate oversight for public sector labor law in Massachusetts. He will serve through 2019.

On September 9, Professor Freeman testified before the U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions to address the National Labor Relations Board’s authority to issue unfair labor practice complaints against fastfood franchisors like McDonalds’, LLC under its joint-employer doctrine. Prior to testifying before the House subcommittee, he had submitted an amicus brief to the National Labor Relations Board on behalf of the University of Massachusetts Labor Relations and

GOUVIN

Research Center addressing the joint employer issue that was the subject of the House subcommittee hearing. The testimony was covered by many major media outlets including the Huffington Post and WBUR in Boston. He was also interviewed in October in this regard on local radio station, WHMP on the Bill Newman show.

On October 24, Professor Freeman participated in the 40th Annual Fuchs Labor Law Conference at Suffolk University Law School in Boston. And in November he moderated and spoke on a panel on developments in U.S. labor law that was part of a conference titled “Reimagining Labor’s Promise” at the University of Massachusetts that marked the 50th anniversary of Labor Relations and Research Center where he was a visiting professor for more than 10 years. In December, Professor Freeman participated in a national conference at Duquesne Law School, Pittsburgh, titled “How to Teach the Underprepared Law Student.”

Eric Gouvin, dean and professor of law, published “Forward: Firm Foundations: Managing the Small Firm and the Individual Practitioner” in the Western New England Law Review (2014).

Dean Gouvin made a presentation about common legal mistakes of entrepreneurs and small businesses at the Massachusetts Small Business Development Center at the Scibelli Enterprise Center in Springfield on November 18. He also presented comments to a group of new

NOAH

citizens at the naturalization ceremony held in the J. Gerard Pellegrini Moot Court Room at the School of Law on October 24.

Hon. Mark Mastroianni ’89 presided at the event, which was an official session of the United States District Court.

Barbara Noah, professor of law, published “A Role for Law in Preparing for Death” in Trusts & Estates (Sept. 2014). She gave a presentation on end of life communication and advance directives at Mercy Medical Center, Continuing Education: Risk Update for Physicians, on November 8.

Professor Noah was also an instructor at the Smith College Program for Social Workers Specializing in the Needs of Dialysis Patients full-day training program in Springfield, on September 6 and at Smith College, End of Life Certificate Program, Complex Legal and Public Policy Issues in Springfield, on October 24.

René Reich-Graefe, professor of law, on sabbatical leave during the spring term 2015, has been accorded honorary faculty status as a research associate at the University of Bristol, England, where he will research current aspects of U.K. company law and corporate governance from March through May 2015. He has also been invited as a Visiting Researcher by the Institute of German and European Company and Business Law of the Faculty of Law at the University of Heidelberg, Germany, and by that University’s Centre

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Faculty and Staff

REICH-GRAEFE

SETTY

STEINER

for Social Investment, where, from May to July 2015, he will study various aspects of German and European company law, corporate governance, and hybrid organizations relevant to his current works in progress.

Sudha Setty, professor of law and associate dean for faculty development & intellectual life, was a Fulbright Senior Specialist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong in October 2014. In addition to meeting with groups of faculty and students, she presented a seminar for the Faculty of Law, Centre for Rights and Justice, titled “Surveillance, Secrecy and the Search for Meaningful Accountability” on October 9.

On January 5, she presented a paper titled “Obama’s National Security Exceptionalism” at the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) Annual Meeting, Academic Symposium on Congressional Dysfunction and Executive Lawmaking During the Obama Administration. Also at this AALS Annual Meeting, she was elected chair of the Section on Comparative Law and chair-elect of the Section on National Security Law. Julie E. Steiner, associate professor of law, was an invited participant in the “1st Annual Future Environmental Law Professors Workshop” held at Pace Law School in September.

The workshop is designed to provide information, mentoring, and mock job talks for aspiring environmental law professors. In December Professor Steiner was granted tenure, effective as of September 2015.

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Faculty&Staff in the Media Erin Buzuvis 10/1/14 10/16/1 11/4/14 11/14/14 11/19/14 12/4/14 12/5/14 12/8/14 12/12/14 12/12/14 12/17/14 1/8/15 1/8/15 1/15/15 1/15/15 1/27/15 2/2/15 1/29/15

Domestic Violence Controversy Jameis Winston Case a Game Changer for all Schools Looking the Other Way? Winston Under Legal Cloud as he Leads Seminoles Farewell to Transgender Activist Leslie Feinberg Widening the Spotlight on Assault of Women Spotlight Widens on Sex Assaults After Rolling Stone Southern Methodist University Violated Title IX When the Victim is Male Law School Trigger Warnings?

Jameis Winston’s Accuser Files Lawsuit Against FSU Winston’s Accuser Sues FSU over Title IX Title IX Title IX Hostesses Student’s Comment on Female Professor’s Clothes Brains, Not Clothes

WGGB-TV.com USA TODAY InsideHigherEd.com Miami Herald Gomag.com New York Times Bendbulletin InsideHigherEd.com Huffington Post InsideHigherEd.com Inside Higher Ed RocketNews Athletic Business InsideHigherEd.com PennNews Inside Higher Ed TimesHigherEducation.com InsideHigherEd.com

Eric Gouvin 10/1/14

Coping with a New Reality

12/15/14

Tuition Freeze

BusinessWest InsuranceNews.net Pre-Law Magazine

Arthur Leavens 1/5/15

Boston Bombing Trial

CBS 3

William Metzger 1/26/15 Students Compete in Tax Challenge

MassLive

Robert Statchen 11/11/14

U.S. NEWS

What Consumers Should Know Before Signing a Contract

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Rose Colon 3L addresses students in the Discovering Justice Program.

Discovering Justice: Law Students Help Duggan Expeditionary Learning Magnet School Build Bridges to Understanding the Legal System Until recently, students gazing out the window from Duggan Expeditionary Learning Magnet School may often have wondered what took place behind the doors of Blake Law Center just across the street on Bradley Road. The gap between their own experiences and aspirations may have seemed so wide the building could easily have felt a million miles away.

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By Mary McLean Orszulak G’10

Students argued their case before U.S. District Court Judge Mark Mastroianni ’89, who is pictured below, and a jury as part of an 11-week program.

Today, thanks to the efforts of Duggan alumna Rose Colon 3L and other Western New England School of Law student volunteers, there is a direct route for Duggan students to learn about the legal system and what takes place in the Blake Law Center. Through the Discovering Justice program, Rose and her colleagues are helping to bridge the gap between the two schools.

Duggan has been designated as the City of Springfield’s social justice magnet school and is transitioning from a middle school to one that educates students from grades 6-12. Its close proximately to the Blake Law Center presents exciting opportunities for students from both institutions to enhance their educational experiences.

“Discovering Justice is a nonprofit organization that offers a new approach to students learning about the justice system and the role of attorneys within that system,” says Rose. “The program originated in the Boston area. Retired Chief Justice Ireland, a native of Springfield, really pushed to have a program right here in western Mass.”

This year the program has attracted 12-15 students ranging between 6th and 9th grade who participated in an 11-week program that culminated in a mock trial before U.S. District Court Judge Mark Mastroianni ’89. With the school’s focus on social justice, organizers expect interest to grow.

“We have a great group of law students participating in the program,” says Rose. “Everyone from

1L students who are excited about entering into the legal field, to 2L students eager and determined to teach the students all they have learned, to confident 3L students, who want to leave a well rounded understanding to the students of how the justice system may affect them even now in their young lives.”

Looking back at her time as a Duggan middle school student, Rose remembers all too well her own experiences and observations when programs like Discovering Justice did not exist.

“I’ve seen how easy it is to crush a child’s spirit and dissuade them from pursuing their dreams when all these factors are working together against them,” she recalls. “It almost happened to me and it happens too many times in this community. In some small way I want to quietly share my story with these students. My story is about success, law school, hopefully future lawyer, yes. But it’s also

about failure. It’s about not allowing failure and poor choices to overcome your dreams. It’s about dealing with the consequences of your poor choices—taking full responsibility for them and working hard at negating the poor choices you’ve made. It’s about pursuing your dreams no matter what happens to you or around you in life. That’s what success is about. If some of these students can see some of themselves in me and if I can then convince them that if I did it they can do it, then it was worthwhile.”

As the program grows, Rose sees great potential for students and members of the bench and bar to become further involved. “Imagine if the local legal community had an opportunity to do their part in changing the lives of local students. Imagine the impact it may have on those students who have never been exposed to or thought of participating in the justice system as a professional,” she says.

Rose recognizes that these very students in Springfield Public Schools today are the future leaders of her community. “The law is a timehonored tool of social engineering,” she says.

“They need to be empowered with this tool so that they can create a better future here in Springfield for themselves, their families, and the city at large, so that they can create a better more prosperous and more productive future for all of us. I want to be a part of that.” ◆

“I attended this school. I walked these same halls. I grew up in the same neighborhoods and saw the same things these kids are seeing: poverty, crime, poor choices and limited opportunities. All of these things relate to and impact the law as a whole and more specifically the criminal justice system.” —Rose Colon 3L S P R I N G

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Intensive Introduction to the Legal Profession Course Provides Immersive Experience in the Art of Lawyering Western New England University’s commitment to practical lawyering skills-building turned up the heat this spring with an intensive and immersive week-long course for first-year students offered January 5-8. Introduction to the Legal Profession was a simulation course that put students center stage in mock legal firms deciding how to handle a legal matter.

To add to the authenticity of the experience, the firms included real-life legal professionals, including alumni, who played the roles of senior partners.

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The course was developed by Dean Eric Gouvin to provide a hands-on simulation experience for students as early as the start of their second semester. Students met twice a day over the four days: in the morning session to discuss readings and participate in excercises with Dean Gouvin, and in later sessions when they met with their “senior partners” and other students in their law firm.

“The response from the bar was very enthusiastic,” said Dean Gouvin, “We had enough volunteers to have two partners per firm, which gave the students a better perspective.”

In the law firm sessions, the students applied Dean Gouvin’s lecture material to a hypothetical case. Representing two fictitious parties: the Kingmans and Dubois Lumber, the students were given fact patterns about a possible breach of contract and each firm was divided into four two-person teams. Their final case file included

reports, a contract, a letter, and a statute and a case, among other elements.

In this real-world scenario, students gained experience in interviewing, counseling and negotiation skills, intake of clients, developing a theory of the case, and navigating ethical issues and other unexpected challenges.

With the help of the senior partners, who also played the role of the clients, the students discussed ethical rules about matters such as multiple representation and giving non-legal advice as they developed the attorney-client relationship. They also learned nuts and bolts skills such as client communication and tracking billable hours Developing a strategy was critical to the experience as the student teams debated how to accomplish their clients’ goals—should they litigate or negotiate and what would be the costs of each alternative?

P E R S P E C T I V E S

By Mary McLean Orszulak G’10

For Casey Miller 1L the most surprising observation from the exercise was “how many different sources or branches of law an attorney has to draw information from in order to help your client. It also was an eye-opening experience to see how much time and effort really goes into helping each client,” she said.

By midweek, each of the two-person teams were in intensive 20-minute negotiations to address their clients’ concerns. Senior partners judged these sessions, providing feedback on the sessions.

First-year student Harry Francois represented Dubois Lumber in his case and used his financial skills to compute the important bottom line numbers to convince his opponent to settle. Harry gained insight into the legal process and also about the subtle nuances of people skills in the art of negotiation. “I learned a few things from the senior partners,” he said. “But attorney Chad Greiner gave me and my associate the most valuable advice when he emphasized that the tone can make all the difference in a negotiation setting.”

Thursday was a return to the classroom where Dean Gouvin and guest lecurers the Hon. John Greaney and the Hon. Michael Ponsor spoke to students about professionalism.

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Attorney Sarah Wiley ’96 of Nelson Kinder Mosseau PC was inspired to serve in the role of a senior partner because of this realistic approach to teaching lawyering skills.

“This course allows students to practice and experiment with the soft skills, the (often) awkward skills, such as, how to respond to a client that asks a question you don’t know the answer to,” she explained. “Or how to disarm or soothe an anxious or angry client, how to address conflicts of interests, and how much it costs to resolve a dispute and the impact that cost has on resolution strategy.”

She described the students as focused, enthusiastic, and eagerly “embracing the letter and spirit of the course. They took negotiation very seriously,” she said. “They were well prepared and thoughtful. Instead of simply horse trading and arriving at a number the students came up with a variety of non-monetary remedies and solutions. They had a dialogue. They fleshed out the issues and impediments to proposed solutions. The students were also very cognizant of the relationship between the parties (family members) and explored ways to preserve or facilitate the repair of the damaged relationship.”

Edward Pikula ’83, Springfield city solicitor, also played one of the senior partners. Following the course, he contacted Dean Gouvin to express how impressed he was with the Legal Profession course and the students regarding the case intake, client interview, case evaluation, and negotiation exercise. “The materials provided a very realistic scenario, similar to those faced by legal practitioners every day,” he said. “It was an honor to participate in this very innovative and interesting learning experience.” He described the students he worked with as “attentive, respectful, intelligent, and charming. It was great to see that the next generation of lawyers being prepared at Western New England University are being offered the tools necessary to become successful practitioners as advocates and as problem solvers.”

Ed even went a step further, encouraging Dean Gouvin to share his remarks with the students to provide them with information about opportunities available to them in the City’s Law Department.

For Casey Miller, the course was an opportunity to synthesize and apply what she had just been taught in the fall semester. “It helped solidify everything that we have been learning and allowed us to apply it in a way that was beneficial to the ‘clients’ that we were representing,” she said. ◆

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Mini-Law School Program Opens Doors to Community with Resounding Success

By Mary McLean Orszulak G’10

As the only law school in the region, Western New England has long played an important role in its surrounding community. From hosting Appellate Court sessions each year to naturalization ceremonies for new citizens, the School of Law provides a platform for residents to observe the legal process.

This semester, the School took community outreach and civic engagement efforts to a new level by offering a five-week Mini-Law School program designed specifically to help non-lawyers develop a deeper knowledge of the law and key legal topics that impact their everyday lives. Interest in the program was a resounding success.

“We had a huge response from the community,” said Pat Newcombe ’01, associate dean for library and information resources, who cochairs the program with Beth Cohen, associate dean for academic affairs. “We originally hoped to have a class of about 60 people, but due to the demand we arranged to move to a larger classroom to accommodate the larger class size. We filled the larger classroom and now have a waitlist for the fall program.”

Held at the University’s Lyman and Leslie Wood Auditorium, each Tuesday evening from February 10-March 10, the classes were taught by Western New England

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University law faculty and moderated by the Hon. Kenneth Neiman, magistrate judge, U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts. The costs were $35 for all five sessions and $10 for each individual session. Attendance was free for any high school, college, or graduate student with a valid student ID. “We view our connections with the community as a vital part of the School’s mission and we are always looking for ways to increase our connections with and service to the community,” said Dean Cohen. “The School of Law is an important community resource. For example, some of our other outreach programs include the School’s pro bono requirement, student participation in clinics and externships, and partnerships with local schools. We also have many speaker programs that are open to the public.”

A key objective of the program was the demystification of law for ordinary citizens.

“We live in an increasingly complex world with law impacting our daily lives; law is critical in our lives,” said Dean Newcombe.

“People want to understand our laws, how they work, and their purpose. They want to be better informed in order to make better decisions.”

She points to the widespread use of the Internet that has accustomed consumers to accessing information to expand their knowledge base. “However,” she explained, “the law is so fundamental and requires that you understand the legal framework on which our society is built in order to best navigate our legal system. Even the well informed may feel law is inscrutable. This series of classes provides participants with a better

understanding of critical legal principles in various areas of the law.”

In addition to general education, organizers hope the program will provide community members with a better understanding of the law school environment and legal education in general. For young and old, the program may also serve to pique interest in pursuing a law degree.

With the success of the inaugural program, Deans Cohen and Newcombe plan to offer it each semester and present topics based on feedback from this spring’s participants. ◆ MINI-LAW SCHOOL TOPICS Welcome to Mini-Law School: An Inside View of Law School and the Courts Dean Eric Gouvin Family Law: What Defines a Family?

Professor of Law Jennifer Levi Health Law: End of Life Choices Professor of Law Barbara Noah Constitutional Law: Real Law or Just Another Kind of Politics?

Professor of Law Bruce Miller Environmental Law: Legal Solutions to Pollution Challenges Professor of Law Julie Steiner FALL SCHEDULE October 20 October 27 November 3 November 10 November 17

P E R S P E C T I V E S

“The public is interested in lifelong learning opportunities, and there are limited opportunities to learn about the legal system in a continuing education setting.

This program fills an important need.” — Beth Cohen, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

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*

Learn more about this and future programs at www.law.wne.edu/minilaw.

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By Patricia Gagnon

30 â—†

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P E R S P E C T I V E S

Alumni Profile Charlene Fallon (Williamson) ’95

“My first love has always been medicine,” says Charlene Fallon ’95. Born in Anaheim, CA, she moved to the Albany, NY area in 1985.

After obtaining her degree in Registered Nursing, she worked in the labor and delivery unit of a local hospital for 13 years.

“I loved the personal interaction with the patients and the miracle of helping to bring a new life into the world,” she says.

Charlene had a healthcare career, a marriage, and a family with four small children. That would have been more than enough for most people, but Charlene was thinking how else she might utilize what she knew about medicine with another profession that had long held an interest for her. “My sister was an attorney and the legal profession had always fascinated me,” she recalls. “Being a mother of four, I was not a ‘traditional’ student.

Western New England offered me the opportunity to attend law school in the evening.”

For her classes, Charlene carpooled from Albany to Western New England (about an hour and 45 minute drive one way) with four or five other students from Albany. “It was great to be able to prep for class or exams on the way out and talk about classes on the way back,” she remembers. She especially liked the fact

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that her fellow students were also not “traditional” students and came with unique backgrounds and life experience. Charlene says fellow student Dave Layden ’96 was her law school soulmate. “I couldn’t have made it through without him,” she says.

One of the highlights of Charlene’s career was being sworn in to the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, DC, and meeting Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. Several years later, she sponsored a group through her local Bar Association and stood before present Chief Justice Roberts to swear that group in for admission.

As a partner of Linnan & Fallon, LLP in Albany, Charlene combines her medical and legal experience and concentrates her practice in the field of serious personal injury, medical malpractice, and health related class action claims. Her medical background gives her a unique perspective on injuries claimed in all aspects of medically related litigation.

“I have been able to take the art of caring for patients as a nurse and move it over to being an advocate for and taking care of my clients. I pore over medical charts daily in assessing cases. I am in the unique position of being able to quickly and efficiently ascertain if there has been a medical error and determine if the case should be taken to the next step of litigation,” Charlene says.

She and her law partner, James Linnan, try all of their cases together as a team. “My medical background and his extensive trial experience afford our clients the best possible representation. I take great satisfaction in knowing we have helped clients have positive outcomes.”

Charlene has defended healthcare professionals against charges brought by the New York State Department of Health. She is a member of the New York State Academy of Trial Lawyers, Albany County Bar Association, Capital District Trial Lawyers

Association, and the American Association of Nurse Attorneys. Charlene has been named in “The Best Lawyers in America” for multiple years. In November of 2014, her law firm was inducted into the inaugural New York Law Journal Hall of Fame for Medical Malpractice for having the number one largest verdict in the State of New York over the past five years.

Charlene’s four children are grown, she has two grandchildren, and she is engaged to be married to an attorney. In her free time she enjoys watching sports (especially her NY Giants), traveling, and spending time with family and friends. “I’ve run into several people who will say to me ‘I thought about going to law school…’ and then they give me all the reasons they did not,” she says. “I always encourage them to go, it’s never too late! I did not graduate from law school until I was 37. If not for Western New England University’s evening program I would never have been afforded the opportunity to complete my education and I will always be grateful for that.” ◆

BAR ADMISSIONS New York, 1995 U.S. District Court Northern District of New York • U.S. Supreme Court, 2005 • •

EDUCATION •

Western New England University School of Law J.D. 1995

•

State University of New York Albany, New York B.A., Sociology 1991

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Reception Roundup and Alumni Events Alumni reunited and made new connections at alumni gatherings near and far.

Keep informed of upcoming events on campus or in your area, and about the Law Alumni Association by bookmarking www.law.wne.edu/alumni.

WASHINGTON, DC October 16, 2014 Hosting the Washington, DC, University Alumni Reception at the Dupont Circle Hotel was Scott Lessne ’83.

BOCA RATON February 10, 2015

Alumni News

WASHINGTON, DC: (Photo left) Scott Lessne ’83 and Dean Eric Gouvin; (Photo right) Michael Belarmino ’08/G’09, Dean Eric Gouvin, Matthew Madara ’09, and Kate Morcom

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NAPLES: (L to R) Robert Adamski ’78, Cynthia Safford BSBA’94, Sandra E. Delbridge, Trustee Chairman Kevin S. Delbridge BSBA’77, host John Breck III ’83, Trustee Donald G. Campbell BSBA’73/G’79, and Barbara Burke ’99

The Addison in Boca Raton, FL, was the setting for a University President’s Alumni Reception. The host was Trustee Peter Steingraber ’84.

TAMPA February 11, 2015 A University President’s Alumni Reception was held at the Tampa Palms Golf & Country Club in Tampa, FL. The event was hosted by John. J. Iwanicki BSBA ’84.

NAPLES February 12, 2015 This University President’s Alumni Dinner was hosted by John Breck III ’83 at The Club Pelican Bay in Naples, FL.

BOSTON February 26, 2015 BOSTON: (Photo Left) President Anthony S. Caprio and Gustavo Mayen ’13; (Photo middle) William Mansfield ’09, Matthew Amann’13, and Yvonne Medina; (Photo right) Dean Eric Gouvin and David Scott ’82

A University President’s Alumni Reception was held at the Ritz-Carlton in Boston, hosted by Roger Wade ’82.

First Tuesdays DECEMBER 2, 2014 The First Tuesdays event at 350 Grill in Springfield was hosted by Alumni Board member Bob Ward ’82.

JANUARY 13, 2015 This gathering was actually held on a “second Tuesday” and was hosted by Cristina Ianello ’02 at Pic’s Pub in Holyoke, MA.

FEBRUARY 3, 2015 At the First Tuesdays alumni gathering in Springfield on December 2: (L-R) Dean Eric Gouvin, Cristina Ianello ’02, Chris Todd ’00, Danielle Williams ’02, and Ellie Rosenbaum ’04

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Zach Ryan ’09 hosted this First Tuesdays Event at the Boston Beer Works on Canal Street in Boston.

P E R S P E C T I V E S

Broaden

FAREWELL RECEPTION FOR PROFESSOR ART LEAVENS

Your

Professor Art Leavens at his retirement reception celebrating his 31 years of teaching and service to the School of Law. The event was held on November 18, 2014 in the Law School Common.

Horizons

DIAL-A-LAWYER MAY 19, 2015 Western Massachusetts residents will be able to receive free legal advice from volunteers— including Western New England University School of Law alumni—on Tuesday, May 19, through the Massachusetts Bar Association’s semiannual Dial-a-Lawyer call-in program at the Blake Law Center. To volunteer, contact: Patricia Olier, Bar Association liaison, at 617-338-0596 or email polier@massbar.org.

save the date It’s Game Time!

Join fellow law alumni and families for a trip to Fenway Park on Saturday, June 13 to see the Boston Red Sox host the Toronto Blue Jays.

Game time is 1:35 p.m. For more information, contact Kim Roeder, associate director for alumni relations, professional programs, at 413-782-1311 or kim.roeder@wne.edu.

Student Tejal Patel keeps up with her Wealth Planning with Life Insurance class during a trip to Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India.

Live, Online LLM Program in Estate Planning and Elder Law 24 credit hours Can be completed in 2 years part-time

Accepting applications for September 2015 For more information visit: www.law.wne.edu/llm.

Professor Frederick D. Royal Program Director 413-782-1422 or 413-782-1426 froyal@law.wne.edu

Keep informed about speakers, events, and other news from the School of Law by visiting www.law.wne.edu. For news about the Law Alumni Association, visit

www.law.wne.edu/alumni S P R I N G

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CampusUPDATE

By Judy Curran

Sleith Hall Rededication Celebrates Creativity, Innovation, and a Passion for Discovery!

After more than two years of renovation and expansion the College of Engineering was ready to show off the $12.8 million investments in Sleith Hall with a Rededication Celebration held on December 9, 2014.

From the Board of Trustees to retired faculty, members of the University community came out to show their support of the latest modernization project to elevate the University’s learning environment. In the past three years, more than $60 million have been invested in improvements to academic buildings.

The event began with a formal ribbon cutting ceremony in the newly renamed Lyman and Leslie Wood Auditorium.

Guests were then invited to tour the new labs, studio classrooms, and offices.

“Our success would not be possible were it not for the generosity of the many benefactors to this project,” said University President Anthony S. Caprio. “In fact, over the last two years, 403 donors gave $2.6 million in support of the College of Engineering, its students, and this endeavor.”

Breathalyzer Technology Shows Promise in Monitoring of Diabetics Researchers at Western New England University are working on a breathalyzer device that could one day replace regular blood testing in diabetics. The new product uses multilayer nanotechnology to detect acetone in the breath of diabetics, which has been shown to correlate with blood-glucose levels.

“Breathalyzers are a growing field of study because of their potential to have a significant positive impact on patients’ quality of life and compliance with diabetes monitoring,” says Ronny Priefer, a professor of medicinal chem-

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istry at the University’s College of Pharmacy, who developed the device.

Professor Priefer has applied for a patent on the technology, which uses nanometer-thick films consisting of two polymers that react with acetone. “What makes our technology different is that it only accounts for acetone and doesn’t react with other components in the breath,” said Professor Priefer, who presented the results of his research at the 2013 American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists Annual Meeting and Exposition in November.

P E R S P E C T I V E S

ALUMNI Notes SPRING 2015

Koczot ’82

1975 40 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers

1976 Class Agent Gary Thomas gary@wealthtechnology.com Joseph Rallo was appointed Louisiana’s commissioner of Higher Education. He most recently served as special adviser for global engagement at Texas Tech University.

1977 Class Agent Marty Martin marty_martin@martinlegalhelp.com Stephen A. Unsworth was selected for the 2014 Super Lawyers List. He has been on this list since its creation in 2007.

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Smith ’83

Feinstein ’84

1978

1981

William L. Bernstein was presented with the Rhode Island Bar Association’s 2014 Ralph P. Semonoff award for professionalism.

Class Agent Bill Stevens wmstevens@snet.net

1980 35 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers William O’Grady was appointed as an associate justice of the Chicopee (MA) District Court. Prior to the appointment, he has practiced civil and criminal law at Parker & O’Grady.

Robert M. Taylor III was recognized in Chambers USA, America’s Leading Lawyers for Business as a leading corporate attorney, as well as selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 and named 2015 “Lawyers of the Year.” He is a partner in the Day Pitney, LLP Hartford office, as well as chair of the Financial Services Regulation practice group.

1982 Class Agent Tina S. Page tina.page@comcast.net Geoffrey E. Hunt was appointed president of Ringler Associates, a structured settlement company in Aliso Viejo, CA. He most recently served as vice president of mergers, acquisitions, and business development at Risk Placement Services in Boston.

Walt Koczot joined the Glenview Trust Company in Louisville, KY as a trust professional focusing on the areas of personal trust administration and estate planning.

1983 Class Agents: Maureen Burns meb@pellegrinolawfirm.com Ellen Teller eteller@frac.org Cheryl Smith, general counsel at Western New England University,

has been selected to participate in the 2014-2015 Executive Leadership Academy through The Council of Independent Colleges. She is one of only 22 nominees who were competitively selected for participation in this yearlong program.

1984 Class Agent Ina Forman aliforman@aol.com Michele J. Feinstein, a shareholder at Shatz, Schwartz & Fentin in Springfield, was named to the 2014 Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers lists. She was also named to the 2014 Top Women of Law list by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. Her practice is split roughly down the middle between corporate and business planning, estate planning, and elder law.

Irve J. Goldman was named to the 2014 Connecticut Super Lawyers list in the areas of bankruptcy and creditor/debtor rights. He practices in the areas bankruptcy law and commercial litigation for the law firm of Pullman & Comley, LLP in its Bridgeport, CT office.

(Continued next page)

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ALUMNI Notes

SPRING 2015 Become a Class Agent If you are interested in serving as a Class Agent, please contact Kim Roeder at kim.roeder@wne.edu or visit the School of Law Alumni Class Agent webpage in the “Get Involved” section.

Hon. Robyn Stewart-Johnson ’90 Judge, Connecticut Superior Court Glastonbury, CT

Where are they now?

You were a prosecutor in housing, drug, and domestic violence courts.

How did you get into those areas of law, and what do you feel your impact has been?

“I began my legal career at the District Attorney’s Office in Springfield, MA. That office provided advanced training and resources for dealing with domestic violence cases.

“Upon my joining the State Attorney Office in New Haven, I was recruited to work with a team of court personnel to implement a new domestic violence pilot program. Once that docket was in place, a drug court pilot project was announced and I joined that team to implement, plan, and manage the docket.

“Unlike the domestic violence project, the drug court collaborated with many community resources from education, employment, and housing, to support networks, to assist the participants in eliminating criminal activity and maintaining sobriety.

“I took a one-year sabbatical to work for the Department of Justice, Drug Court Program Office in Washington, DC. Next I became a community prosecutor in the Housing Division of the Superior Court. There, I continued to fine-tune my trial skills, along with my community collaboration and mediation skills, while working with 44 towns to address fire, safety, and health code regulations and violations in their neighborhoods. I also handled criminal disputes between landlords and tenants.

“I truly enjoyed my service as a community prosecutor. I had the chance to participate in and watch new programs being implemented, based upon the drug court and domestic violence court foundations. The collaborative, problem-solving method brings many diverse assets together for the benefit of the participants. Most members of the public I initially met viewed the judicial system as always us against them. These specialized dockets often changed this perspective by focusing on developing lasting solutions.”

What has your experience been like as a judge in Superior Court?

“My experience as a judge so far has been very enriching. I am mindful of the growth in diversity in the Connecticut courts and access to the court for self-represented litigants has improved greatly.”

What lessons have you taken from your education at the School of Law and applied to your law career?

“My education at the School of Law provided me with the sense of community responsibility lawyers have to their professional ethics and their clients to uphold the law. As a former prosecutor and now a judge, I am required to do the right thing without emotion or sympathy in making my decision. The sense of fairness is a great lesson I have carried with me from Western New England. They also instilled in me the awareness that the law is never stagnant.

It is forever changing and the courts must be willing to meet those changes by embracing technology, continuing education, and being open-minded.”

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Katherine E. Perrelli was named to the 2014 Top Women of Law list

by Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.

She is a partner at Seyfarth Shaw in Boston. She chairs the firm’s national litigation group.

Richard Sullivan Jr. was named CEO of the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts. Prior to this appointment, he served as secretary of energy and environmental affairs, and more recently chief of staff for the Gov. Deval Patrick Administration.

1985 30 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers

1986 Class Agent Judith Jones jonesjh@aetna.com Scott H. Cupp was appointed to the Hendry County Court in Florida. Scott, president of the Law Office of Scott H. Cupp, LLC, served as Assistant State Attorney in the Twentieth Judicial Circuit from 2003 to 2006 as chief of the Felony Division.

Elizabeth J. Locario was special guest facilitator of the “Book Discussions through the Decades” series conclusion as part of The Pearl Street Branch Library’s 100th Anniversary in Enfield, CT. Donna Reinbolt is an active member of the Houston Bar Association. She is also a member of the board of directors of The Lymphoma Research Foundation. Donna was nominated for a Shorty Award as part of the 7th Annual Shorty Awards, honoring the people and organizations producing real-time short form content across the social web.

1988 Class Agent Michael Borg mborg@SRBLLP.com Leo V. Diana was appointed to serve as a Superior Court judge in Connecticut. He is the current mayor of the Manchester, CT, as well as a partner with Diana, Conti & Tunila, LLP in Manchester.

Deborah L. Purrington was welcomed as counsel to the Bulkley Richardson law firm, and she will practice from its Springfield office. She manages a new trustee support services program initiated at the firm to help individuals serving as trustees to fulfill their duties by delivering advice and practical help throughout the life of a trust.

John R. Skelton joined the litigation department for the law firm of Seyfarth Shaw LLP, in Boston. He will continue to counsel clients on antitrust compliance issues and antitrust aspects of mergers and acquisitions. John was also selected as the 2014 Lawyer of the Year for Franchise Law in Boston; and named a Best Lawyer in Franchise Law for 2013-2015, and included in Super Lawyers for Litigation.

1990 25 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers Class Agent Kathleen Porter kporter@rc.com Bonnie D. Kumiega joined Updike, Kelly & Spellacy, P.C. as a shareholder/principal.

Previously she was founder and principal of Bonnie D. Kumiega & Associates, LLC, a general practice law firm in Somers, CT. Bonnie will be the office leader for the Storrs office of UKS and will continue to serve clients from her office in Somers.

P E R S P E C T I V E S

Become a fan on

facebook Western New England University School of Law

Sampsonn ’92

Klyman ’96

Timothy Murphy was listed in the 2015 edition of Best Lawyers in America. He was also named the Best Lawyers litigation, labor and employment Lawyer of the Year in Springfield. Timothy has been selected by his peers for inclusion in Best Lawyers every year since 2013.

1993

1996

Class Agents: Katie Stone-Harrington bharrington5207@comcast.net Holly Lemieux hlemieux@lynchlynch.com

Katherine A. Robertson has been selected by the U.S. District Court for Massachusetts to be the magistrate judge in Springfield. She was an assistant district attorney in the Appellate Division.

Brad Mondschein was presented with the 2014 Volunteer of the Year Award from the Jewish Federation of Greater Hartford for his work on the CT-Israel Technology Initiative. He continues to be a leader of the CT-Israel Technology conference and plays an important role in making the annual conference a premiere Connecticut business event. Brad is a partner at Pullman & Comley, LLC.

Carol Cioe Klyman was selected to the 2014 Massachusetts Super Lawyers and Best Lawyers lists. She is a partner at Shatz, Schwartz & Fentin, P.C. in Springfield.

1991 Joshua A. Hawks-Ladds was named to the Connecticut Super Lawyers list for 2014 in the area of employment and labor.

He is the chair for the Labor, Employment Law and Employee Benefits Department in the Hartford, CT office for the law firm of Pullman & Comley, LLP. Bill Hunt joined Wilkinson Barker Knauer, LLP as a partner in the firm’s Denver, CO office. He most recently served as director of regulatory at DISH Network.

Kevin S. Russo was nominated to serve as a Superior Court Judge in Connecticut.

He is a Supervisory Assistant State’s Attorney.

1992 Richard L. Sampson joined the Boston law firm of Davis, Malm & D’Agostine, P.C. as a shareholder in the intellectual property law area. He is also a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association, the Intellectual Property Owners Association, and the Boston Bar Association. Prior to joining Davis Malm, he was founder and principal of Sampson & Associates, P.C. in Boston.

Chrysler R. Szarlan released her debut novel, The Hawley Book of the Dead on September 23 from Ballantine Books.

She formerly worked with horses, and was a managing attorney with Connecticut Legal Rights Project.

1994 Kenneth C. Baldwin was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers 2015 in the area of energy law, a distinction received since 2008. He is a partner for the law firm of Robinson & Cole in Hartford, CT. Kenneth practices utilities, energy and telecommunications law.

Marwan Zubi was listed in the 2015 edition of The Best Lawyers in America in labor and employment litigation. He is an attorney with the Nicolai Law Group, P.C. in Springfield, focusing primarily on civil litigation of business and employment disputes.

1995 20 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers Cheryl Coakley-Rivera resigned from her position as state representative in the Massachusetts Legislature on March 12, 2014 to take a job as assistant clerk of the Hampden County Superior Court.

Dorian R. Famiglietti was appointed the town attorney for Ellington, CT. Susan Fentin was elected to a three-year term as director of both Greenfield (MA) Co operative Bank and Greenfield Bancorp, MHC. She continues to be a labor lawyer with the firm of Skoler, Abbott & Presser, P.C. in Springfield.

1997 Class Agent Michael Blanchard michael.blanchard@bingham.com

1998 Michael J. Richard was selected to be superintendent of schools in West Springfield, MA. He previously served as principal of West Springfield High School.

1999 Class Agent Rebecca Mitchell proakisbeck28@yahoo.com Cecilia Guzman has been appointed as a municipal judge in Paterson, NJ. Prior to that, she had a private practice law firm and worked in the Morris County (NJ) Prosecutor’s Office.

C. Scott Rybny joined the law firm of Timoney Knox, LLP. He will be a part of the firm’s new Insurance Industry Group.

Dion ’00

2000 15 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers Class Agent Jim Winston james@jameswinstonlaw.com Justin Dion was unanimously selected as the Western Division recipient of the 2014 Pro Bono Award from the United States Bankruptcy Court.

2001 Class Agent Jenny Desch Jenny.desch@yorkcountygov.com

2003 Class Agent Karen Romano karen161@msn.com Jessica King joined Blank Rome LLP as an associate in the Real Estate group, and she is based in the firm’s Philadelphia office. She most recently served as an associate at White and Williams LLP. Jessica concentrates her practice on a wide range of complex commercial real estate financing matters.

Keeana Serene Saxon has been appointed to a six-year term for the City of Boston’s Licensing Board, which regulates several licensing entities, including alcohol, food, lodging houses, fraternities/dormitories.

She has also served as deputy general counsel to the Executive Office of Housing & Economic Development.

2004 Class Agent Linda Fakhoury ldfakhoury@gmail.com Evan Coppola is currently assistant general counsel for Phoenix (AZ) Children’s Hospital, one of the ten largest children’s

(Continued next page)

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ALUMNI Notes

SPRING 2015

Hogan ’08

Webber ’08

hospitals in the United States. Formerly he was assistant general counsel for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont.

Barry F. Manna joined the law firm Hiscock & Barclay, LLP in the Syracuse, NY office. He will serve as a member of the firm’s patents and prosecution practice area.

Di Wu ’11 (center)

Where are they now?

What have you been working on professionally since graduating from the School of Law? “I went back to China and started working for an angel investment fund. My job consisted of looking at start-up projects and talking to entrepreneurs to decide if we should consider investing in them. Shortly afterwards, I worked for a movie production company as a producer.”

What has it been like to take time off from work recently to simply travel to places such as New Zealand and Israel, and enjoy your passions?

“I worked hard in a very demanding job for two years and I felt that I needed a vacation, as well as reflection time for my next step. The trip has been wonderful and deeply relaxing for my soul. It gave me perspective to figure out what I really want in life.”

How did Western New England have an impact on your life and career?

Jennifer A. Rymarski was elected a partner at Morrison Mahoney LLP. She practices in the firm’s Springfield, MA office, and serves a wide base of clients in the areas of medical malpractice litigation, as well as employment, business and corporate law.

2005 10 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

WANTED:

Reunion Volunteers Class Agent Kelley Cooper Miller kelleycoopermiller@mac.com

David K. Webber, an associate at Shatz, Schwartz and Fentin, P.C. in Springfield, was selected to the 2014 Rising Stars list.

2009 Class Agent John Bandeian jbandeian@gmail.com

2010 5 Years CLASS REUNION YEAR

Class Agent Julia Lentini Marquis juliaklentini@gmail.com

Lauramarie Sirois was hired as an assistant Hampden Superior Court Clerk.

She has been working as a private practice civil lawyer in Connecticut.

2007 Class Agents: Kelly Koch kellykoch32@gmail.com Stephanie Schlatter sschlatter@hotmail.com

What do you hope to do in the future when you return to the workplace?

Class Agents: Kendra Berardi Kendra.berardi@gmail.com Michelle Hummer mhummer@ofalaw.com

w w w . l a w . w n e . e d u

L. Alexandra Hogan was appointed as the new vice-chair of the New England division of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation. She was also named to the 2014 Rising Stars list.

WANTED:

Tetyana Buescher became general counsel for CompuGroup Medical USA in Irvine, CA, where she was formerly associate general counsel.

38 ◆

operations, and collaborates with community leaders to implement crime reduction initiatives and improve resident relations. Michael also completed the 2014 New York City Marathon.

2006

“Western New England was truly an important phase in my life. I have learned so much academically and as a person. I had never been out of China prior to law school. The school really took care of me, and the friends I made there are for life. A few professors also made such a big difference in my life and I feel grateful for that every day.”

“I will be going to Sydney once I finish traveling and be there for the foreseeable future. I want to be in the education field in one form or another, so we will see how that works out.”

Sirois ’10

2008

Reunion Volunteers

Marianna W. Said was named assistant general counsel for the Electric Boat Corporation in Groton, CT.

2011 Class Agents: Julie McKenna Julie.mckejd2@gmail.com Maren Law maren.law@gmail.com Seunghee Cha was welcomed as counsel to the Bulkley Richardson law firm, and she will practice from its Amherst, MA office.

She most recently had a successful solo practice in Amherst, and will continue to provide comprehensive estate planning services.

Michael J. Gilligan was appointed as a police officer with the New York City Police Department. He is currently assigned to Manhattan’s 28th Precinct, wherein he conducts patrol

P E R S P E C T I V E S

We are always interested in hearing from you. If you have news of career advancement or change, professional accomplishments or activities, marriages, births, changes in address, or any other news, please share it with us.

Email: kim.roeder@wne.edu

Karina Schrengohst became a partner of Royal LLP, a woman-owned, boutique, management-side labor and employment law firm in Northampton, MA. She will continue representing employers in management-side labor and employment-law matters as the firm’s managing attorney.

Danielle Wisniowski joined the Law Offices of Carter Mario Injury Lawyers as a Pre-Litigation Attorney in the firm’s New Britain, CT office. Prior to being named an attorney, she was a pre-litigation case manager in the firm’s Hartford office.

2012 Connor Fallon is now legal counsel at Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. He most recently served as a law clerk at the Massachusetts Superior Court.

Brendan Froehlich joined Powers, LLC Attorneys at Law in Newtown, CT, as an attorney. He most recently served as an associate at Rucci Law Group, LLC in Darien, CT. Melissa A. Lussier was appointed as a civil litigation associate for the law firm of Libbos Law, P.C. Her work will focus on personal injury in the firm’s Lawrence, MA, Pittsfield, MA, and Springfield based offices.

2013 Class Agent Amber Gould amber.m.gould@gmail.com Shiona Heru presented her Trans CEA Model at the society for Medical Decision Making on October 20, 2014. The model was entitled Societal and Policy Implications for Medically Necessary Services and Preventive Care in the U.S. Transgender Population: a Cost-effectiveness Analysis. She was a candidate for the Lee B. Lusted Student Prize Competition.

S P R I N G

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Heard Around the Common Professor Robert Statchen spoke on the importance of using trademarks during the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship panel “Common Legal Mistakes of Small Businesses” held at Springfield Technical Community College on November 18, 2014.

2014 John P. Callahan joined the law firm of Reid and Riege, P.C. in Hartford, CT. He will be a member of the firm’s business law and nonprofit organizations practice area; focusing on general corporate and nonprofit governance, and business transactions, including mergers and acquisitions.

Rochelle C. Duyan joined a family law firm in New London, CT as an associate.

Benjamin Marcus has joined the Cantor Colburn, LLP law firm in Hartford, CT. He is assisting with patent applications for clients in the European and Korean markets. Benjamin has also been admitted to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office as an agent.

Colleen A. Monroe joined Bacon Wilson, P.C. in Springfield as an associate attorney.

Joshua S. Talcovitz was appointed an Assistant District Attorney in the Bronx (NY) County District Attorney’s Office.

In Memoriam The magazine has received notice of the deaths of the following members of the School of Law family.

Sidney M. Cooley ’41 Mary (Sambor) Swords ’76 Bradley Miller ’77 Geraldine Mortell ’77 James Hayes III ’77 Dorothy Carlo ’78 John Galvin ’78 Joan S. Nolan-Morneau BA’75/’81 Rich Klein ’83 William A. Volk ’85 Kazimieras V. Stasiukevicius ’89 Paulette Henderson-Brooks ’05

“

If you trademarked your business’ name, you would be able to restrict other people from using it. It’s a very important thing to think of. If you have a specific name and spend money getting going, and then six months later you find out in there’s a company in Boston with a federally registered trademark that you could have searched and found, they could send you a letter saying ‘cease and desist.’ That is why it is crucial at the start of your business to spend a little money up front to do a search to find out if there is something that conflicts with your proposed name. The cost for filing an application when you have done it correctly is arbitrary. The value is astronomical; it’s the ability to create an asset out of nothing.”

*

Watch recordings of School of Law speakers at digitalcommons.law.wne.edu.

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LAW ALUMNI

Benefits & Services

As an alumnus/a of Western New England University School of Law, the following benefits and services are available to you: The Alumni Healthful Living Center (AHLC) Law alumni are welcome to use the facilities of the AHLC free of charge.

Popular amenities include the fitness center, pool, and track. For details, call 413-782-1518.

Alumni Association ID Card The Alumni Association ID allows alumni to use the resources on campus, including the Law Library and the Alumni Healthful Living Center.

For details, call 413-782-1311 or email kim.roeder@wne.edu.

Alumni Finder and Alumni Website Use our website to receive news from the School, access library resources, or find other Western New England University School of Law alums through our “Alumni Finder” feature. Once you have created an account and logged in, you can use the Alumni Finder online tool to search for fellow alums by different criteria such as state, grad year, or area of practice. Visit www.law.wne.edu/alumni.

Continuing Legal Education Programs Our highly successful CLE programs in conjunction with the Massachusetts Bar Association have covered topics ranging from probating an estate to trying OUI cases. All alums get a discounted rate of $80. For details, visit www.law.wne.edu.

Career Services Alumni seeking career advice or offering employment can take advantage of the services of the Office of Career Services. The office assists with résumé writing, employment correspondence, interviewing preparation, career decision-making, and job search strategy. Through the online Intercollegiate Job Bank, alums have access to job listings from law schools across the country.

The office can also coordinate reciprocity of job postings with over 50 law schools. Contact Career Services at jobpost@law.wne.edu or 413-782-1416.

Networking and Referrals Networking opportunities for alumni include many area receptions, “First Tuesdays,” and other events such as Reunion. These events allow you to network and reconnect with classmates and faculty. In addition, the alumni finder feature on the website is a great resource when looking for a colleague to refer a case to. Visit www.law.alumni.edu/alumni.

Alumni Publications

JD Course Auditing For a nominal

Alumni of the School of Law receive the full-color Perspectives magazine twice a year, the Law School Digest newsletter two times a year, and The Law School Minute, the Dean’s email, throughout the year.

fee, JD courses in the School of Law may be audited on a space-available basis with the permission of the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs by an alumnus/a who has completed the JD degree at Western New England University School of Law. Call 413-782-1402 or visit www.law.wne.edu/alumni.

Transcript Requests Law transcripts are issued by the Student Records Office at the School of Law. For more information, call the Student Records Office at 413-782-1402 or fax your request to 413-796-2067.

Replacing a Diploma If your diploma is lost or damaged, you can replace it by calling Student Administrative Services at 800-325-1122 ext. 2080.

(A $50 service fee is required.)

School of Law Library Free access to western Massachusetts’ only academic law library is an outstanding alumni resource. For hours or information, call 413-782-1457 or visit the School of Law website at www.law.wne.edu/library.

Law alums are allowed immediate access to the Law Library (after presentation of Alumni Association ID at the Security Desk) on weekdays until 7:00 p.m. For library use on the weekend or after 7:00 p.m. on weekdays, alums must have an Access Card to enter the building. To obtain an Access Card, free of charge, complete the Library Access Form (available online at www.law.wne.edu/alumni or at the Public Safety Office) and bring it to the Public Safety Office, along with an Alumni Association ID Card and a photo ID, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. Once obtained, the Access Card will provide access to the building on subsequent visits.

40 ◆

w w w . l a w . w n e . e d u

There’s no better way to proudly display your law school connection than with a shirt or memento from the University Bookstore. For more information, call 413-782-1284 or visit www.wne.bkstr.com.

Insurance Discounts As a graduate of Western New England University, you may qualify for a special group discount on your auto, home, and renter’s insurance. For details, call 413-782-1311 or visit www.law.wne.edu/alumni.

Western New England Law Review

D’Amour Library The D’Amour Library serves as a valuable resource for alumni undertaking professional research or expanding their personal reading enjoyment. Alumni I.D. card required. Call 413-782-1535 or visit http://libraries.wne.edu.

The University Bookstore

Law Review is now electronic!

Volume 37, Issue 1 was published in spring 2015.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

WESTERN NEW ENGLAND LAW REVIEW 1215 Wilbraham Road Springfield MA 01119-2684

or call 413-782-1463

Learn more about alumni benefits and services.

www.law.wne.edu/alumni The Office of Law Alumni Relations serves as a resource to our members, committees, and regional chapters. Feel free to contact Kim Roeder at 413-782-1311 with questions about benefits, events, or volunteer opportunities.

P E R S P E C T I V E S

SPRING 2015

PERSPECTIVES Perspectives is a publication of Western New England University School of Law. ERIC GOUVIN Dean and Professor of Law BARBARA MOFFAT Vice President for Marketing and External Affairs MARY MCLEAN ORSZULAK G’10 Editor JUDY CURRAN PAT GAGNON ALEXANDRA L. LYMAN BA’12 MARY MCLEAN ORSZULAK G’10 BRENDAN PAYNE ’12 DIEDRE SWORDS BA’05 VARIOUS FACULTY/STUDENT CONTRIBUTORS Writers

Invest in the Future of Your Law School Law Schools around the country face enormous challenges: enrollment, student debt, and funding. At Western New England University School of Law, we are meeting these challenges head on with: • A Strategic Plan focusing on student-centered professional education • Freezing tuition rates through the 2017-2018 academic year to keep our high quality, private legal education affordable for students.

• Broad clinical programs and externship opportunities to give students hands-on, practical experience.

We are doing our part, but there is much more to accomplish —you can help.

Alumni donations support scholarship. Your gift and the funds it provides could help us retain a quality student or persuade a prospective student to enroll.

Our Annual Giving deadline is June 30. Invest now in the future of your law school and profession. Alumni support makes a difference at Western New England University School of Law.

To make a gift today, contact Deidre Swords, associate director of annual giving, (413) 782-1335 or deidre.swords@wne.edu.

BARBARA MOFFAT KATHERINE PAPPAS G’98 DEBORAH PORTER SAVOIE KIM ROEDER Editing BRIAN FITZGERALD Alumni Notes Editor and Faculty Notes Editor DEBORAH CHAPPELL Creative Director LENARD DESIGN GROUP Design & Production AM LITHOGRAPHY Printing PAUL SCHNAITTACHER Principal Photography BRIAN ZELASKO Additional Photography

Nonprofit Organization U.S. Postage

PA I D Springfield, MA Permit No. 896

Office of Alumni Relations 1215 Wilbraham Road Springfield, MA 01119-2684 www.law.wne.edu

CALENDAR of EVENTS

MAY 2015

JUNE 2015

SEPTEMBER 2015

OCTOBER 2015

17

Law, Pharmacy, PhD, and Master’s Commencement Ceremony, 2:00 p.m.

Alumni Healthful Living Center Speaker: former State Senator Gale Canderas ’83

13

12

2-4

19

Dial-A-Lawyer Mass Bar Association 4:00 p.m.-7:00 p.m.

Blake Law Center

22

47th Annual Alumni Golf Tournament Ludlow Country Club 9:00 a.m. shotgun start

Law Alumni Trip to Fenway Park Red Sox vs. Toronto Blue Jays 1:35 p.m.

Law Alumni Trip to Yankee Stadium Yankees vs. Toronto Blue Jays 4:05 p.m.

visit www.law.wne.edu

Homecoming Weekend

For more information, visit www.law.wne.edu/alumni or contact Kim Roeder at kim.roeder@wne.edu or 413-782-1311.