Clear Admit Law Admissions Portal » Law School News

Yale Law Clinic Students Aid Veterans

Clear Admit — Fri, 18 May 2012 13:00:57 +0000

Four members of the Veterans Legal Services Clinic at Yale Law School helped write a bill that will aid state veterans that have been accused of low-level crimes avoid imprisonment. Students Eric Parrie ’13, Sofia Nelson ’13, Jon Fougner ’14 and Kate Cahoy ’12 composed the document for the Connecticut Veterans Legal Center. The students began composing the bill in the fall, consulting with experts in the field along the way. The bill has been approved by the Connecticut House and Senate and it will help create “jail diversion” programs. These projects will provide veterans with substance abuse and mental health treatment instead.

Executive director of the Connecticut Veterans Legal Center and a clinical visiting lecturer in law at Yale, Margaret Middleton stated: “We know that veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan have extremely high rates of post traumatic stress and traumatic brain injury, and that many cope with substance abuse. Those issues commonly contribute to impulsive and thrill-seeking behaviors that end up with low-level charges like disturbing the peace. This bill will help those veterans get into appropriate treatment with providers who are educated in the unique needs and experiences of combat veterans.”

For the full press release, go here.

University of Chicago Law Women’s Caucause Hosts Judges

Clear Admit — Mon, 14 May 2012 13:18:38 +0000

The Law Women’s Caucus at University of Chicago Law School hosted an Illinois Supreme Court justice and three federal district court judges on April 11^th, for a lunchtime discussion about the intersection of law and gender. Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis and Northern District of Illinois Judges Rebecca R. Pallmeyer ’79, Amy J. St. Eve and Virginia M. Kendall talked about their experiences as women in the judiciary and shared insights on how to balance their demanding positions with their family and home life. The women shared their own personal roads to their judiciary positions and reflected on the differences in the opportunities available to women then and now. The speakers also offered their own advice, such as Rebecca Pallmeyer who initially worked for a commercial law firm before securing a position as an administrative law judge for the Illinois Human Rights Commission. She stated “If you go to work for a big law firm, that’s fine. Do not live up to the salary you’re being paid. Put some of that money aside… That way, if you’re offered a terrific position in public service, you can afford to take it.” The other speakers shared insights and advice as well, sharing with law students bits of advice and wisdom.

For the full press release, go here.

Harvard Law School Selects Environmental Law and Policy Program Policy Director

Clear Admit — Fri, 11 May 2012 14:00:43 +0000

Harvard Law School has selected Kate Konschnik, current Chief Environmental Counsel to U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) as the Environmental Law and Policy Program’s Policy Director. As Director, Konschnik will work together with the Emmett Environmental Law & Policy Clinic to support a new environmental policy project. She will also contribute by working to develop existing projects and research initiatives. In her current role, Konschnik has worked with the Senator’s office on various important environmental policy issues and helped the Senator move closer towards establishing a National Endowment for the Oceans.

Archibald Cox Professor of Law and Director of Harvard Law School’s Environmental Law Program Jody Freeman stated: “As the new Policy Director, Kate will add a critical component to our burgeoning environmental law program—developing policy initiatives on issues like renewable energy, fracking, offshore drilling and carbon capture technology. Some of this work will build on projects initiated in our highly successful Environmental Law Clinic and some will be entirely new. Kate’s work will help to promote policy relevant faculty research and enlarge HLS’s footprint in important environmental, climate and energy debates.”

For the full press release, go here.

Stanford Law Students Work with Recently Released Women

Clear Admit — Mon, 07 May 2012 14:16:26 +0000

Stanford Law Student Angela McCray is the creator of Project ReMade, a 12 week program that is taught by students and conveys the essentials of starting a business. ReMade stands for Reentry: Making a Difference through Entrepreneurship and the program is funded by the Stanford Criminal Justice Center. The program pairs Stanford students and mentors with recently released women and together, the teams work on developing a business strategy. The women meet with mentors two hours a week and also spend two hours weekly completing courses that lay out business principles. The larger goal is to reduce the rate of recidivism among participating women.

Second year law student and founder Angela McCray stated: “Working for yourself actually is a really good model for the formerly incarcerated. There are certain barriers to employment for those with a criminal record, not least of which is simple bias. So if they go it alone, they aren’t subjected to those judgments or the scrutiny they may get under a boss.”

Executive director of the Criminal Justice Center and co-author of Venturing Beyond the Gates: Facilitating Successful Reentry with Entrepreneurship Debbie Mukamal also pointed out that the women “are also building social capital.” She explained that “through mentor meetings and classes, they are creating a Rolodex that they never had…Stanford sits in the middle of Silicon Valley with myriad entrepreneurship programs, resources and connections. We’re giving them a pipeline to these connections, making them a little better resourced. It’s a natural fit.”

For the full press release, go here.

Two Georgetown Law Deans Receive David S. Stoner Uncommon Counselor Award

Clear Admit — Fri, 04 May 2012 13:26:44 +0000

Georgetown University Law Center Dean William M. Treanor and Dean of Students Mitchell Bailin have been awarded the David S. Stoner Uncommon Counselor Award in honor of their efforts to increase mental health awareness at law schools by the Dave Nee Foundation. The award honors David S. Stoner who passed away in 2010 and was the founder of the David Nee Foundation. The Award is given each year to one or several legal professionals “who exhibit extraordinary compassion and concern for their co-workers, family, friends and community.”

Dean Balin is the founder of Georgetown Law Center’s program Lawyers in Balance, which helps students develop wellness techniques. He is also the head of Search Before the Search, a program geared at helping first year law students develop “reflective and value-driven decision-making.”

Dean Treanor, formerly Dean of Fordham Law School, was instrumental in prioritizing mental health awareness and suicide prevention programs in the wake of Fordham Law student David Nee’s suicide in 2005. He also played a leading role in developing the David Nee Foundation.

President of the Dave Nee Foundation Wynne Kelly stated: “When we lost Dave Nee in 2005, Bill Treanor not only served as a rock on which we in the Fordham Law community could lean, he was incredibly supportive and compassionate to Dave’s friends and family. Dean Treanor continues to be invested in mental health issues among law students and encourages awareness and treatment. He brings a level of compassion and kindness that helps foster an atmosphere of mutual respect and concern.”

Kelly also remarked about Dean Bailin stating that: “Through creative and relentless efforts, Mitch Bailin has built an infrastructure of mental health resources, including on-site counseling services. Perhaps more importantly, Dean Bailin promotes these resources constantly and provides a safe environment for students to discuss stress, anxiety, depression and other issues common in every law school. He has established a ‘gold standard’ for mental health resources and programs for law schools.”

For the full press release, go here.

Students at Yale Law School Instrumental in Connecticut’s Repeal of Death Penalty

Clear Admit — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 13:00:47 +0000

Both former and current Yale Law students have been instrumental in the repeal of the death penalty in Connecticut. Many students contributed to a report by former Yale Law professor John Donohue. This report helped gain the support of many Connecticut legislators. Donohue’s report illustrated the death penalty from 1973 to 2007 in Connecticut and spoke to how the state’s rating system contributed to discrimination in the capital punishment system. Donohue started to work on the document in 2006, and has stressed that the work completed by Yale law students contributed greatly to the project. He stated: “It was an incredible effort, and without the collective talent of a couple of dozen law students, both volunteers and those taking my courses for credit, the report would not have been anywhere near as strong a product.”

Recently, the Connecticut State Senate voted 20-16 to repeal the death penalty in the state. Governor Daniel P. Malloy signed the repeal bill on April 25^th and it gained Senate approval in early April. The bill makes Connecticut the 17th state to abolish capital punishment.

Donohue expressed that: “It was a thrilling moment, hearing the head of the Connecticut Senate speak at 2 a.m. quoting my report, then Martin Luther King, as the final words in the debate before the repeal passed.”

For the full press release, go here.

UChicago Law Holds Mobile Foods Law Symposium

Clear Admit — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 15:02:20 +0000

On April 14^th, 2012, UChicago Law’s the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship hosted a clinic entitled “My Streets, My Eats” attended by students, vendors and others involved in the Chicago food scene. The event sought to bring the public and vendors together in support of reforming mobile food laws. Students presented current laws concerning food trucks, which are viewed by many as the most restrictive among other larger U.S. cities, save for Memphis, Tennessee. For example, currently, mobile food is restricted within 200 feet of any food-selling establishment. Some city officials also claim that only uncut fruit and vegetables may be sold from food carts. For all other food, Chicago vendors would need a mobile food dispenser license. In order to possess this license, vendors would need a motorized vehicle.

Richard Myrick of the website Mobile Cuisine Magazine stated: “The fact that a larger spotlight can be brought on the industry will bring more attention .” Furthermore, the Director of the the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship, Beth Kregor, said that “These laws are not connected to health and safety. They’re not constitutional. Chicago should do better.”

For the full press release, go here.

Yale Law Latin American Legal Studies Program Begins Speaker Series

Clear Admit — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:43:03 +0000

On April 2nd, 2012, the Latin American Legal Studies Program started its first series of breakfast roundtable discussions for Latin American law practice. This inaugural event featured a panel discussion on international investment arbitration and had over one hundred attendees. In attendance were lawyers from the offices of Simpson Thacher and Cleary Gottlieb, as well as other experts in the field of international arbitration law. Panelists included Emma Lindsay of Simpson Thatcher, Yale law professor Michael Reisman ’64 LLM, University of Chile law professor Santiago Montt ’04 LLM, Claudia Annacker of Cleary Gottlieb and Carolyn Lamm of White & Case.

The panelists each spoke to the importance of investment arbitration law and hypothesized its paths for development. Yale Law Professor Michael Reisman outlined five potential directions for the field. Emma Lindsey pointed out the Latin American region is also of importance, as half of the pending cases at the International Centre for Settlement of Investments Disputes involve Latin American countries. In addition, Claudia Annacker brought up that another facet to consider will be how national governments react to foreign investor claims.

For the full press release, go here.

Harvard Law School Shareholder Rights Project Makes Impact

Clear Admit — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 19:20:39 +0000

The Harvard Law School Shareholder Rights Project, a new clinic in its first year had helped make an impact in governance reforms in S&P 500 companies. The program focuses on helping charities and public pension funds with corporate governance at the publicly traded companies for which they are shareholders. The project has helped and represented different investors, mainly with the composition of proposals to S&P 500 companies that outline the need for annual elections. Annual elections are generally seen as the best practice in corporate governance. The Shareholder Rights Project has helped forty four companies this way and these organizations are entering or have reached agreements. Furthermore, the program has helped negotiate declassification proposals. Examples of organizations that the project has worked with are the Nathan Cummings Foundation, the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System, the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association and the Illinois Board of Investment. Thirty five organizations have already reached agreements. Given that the program is in its first year, this is a positive indicator of the effect that the program can have in the future.

For the full press release, go here.

Duke Law Hosts First Annual North Carolina Law and Policy Symposium

Clear Admit — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 16:05:04 +0000

On April 12-13 2012, Duke University hosted the first annual North Carolina Law and Policy Symposium entitled “Realizing Criminal Justice Reform Together.” The event will center on how both law and policy will shape criminal justice reform and will examine promising legislative advocacy methods, pre-conviction reforms, the pardons system and resolving wrongful convictions. The symposium will begin with opening remarks from Senator Floyd McKissick Jr. and a preview of a new film recorded by Ryan Richards. The documentary showcases the experience of two individuals who were exonerated through the help of the Duke Law Wrongful Convictions Clinic in 2010.

The student director of the Duke Law Innocence Project, Caitlin Swain remarked: “North Carolina has been a successful laboratory for meaningful change in criminal justice in the past. We all share an optimistic view about the kind of change that can be created here in the future. The symposium aims to provide a space for expanding our current conversation about how to achieve a more fair, more effective justice system in North Carolina.”

For the full press release, go here.