2018

ERA Symposium 2018
Law School Hosts Equal Rights Amendment Symposium

William & Mary Law School was buzzing with law experts from across the country who gathered on Nov. 9th to discuss whether Virginia will become the 38th and final state to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment.

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William & Mary Law hosts Marshall-Wythe Lecture in Legal History

William & Mary Law School hosted its second Marshall-Wythe Lecture in Legal History on Nov. 6. Professor Catharine MacMillan of the Dickson Poon School of Law at King’s College London delivered the lecture titled “Personal Networks and the Transference of Legal Ideas: the Trans-Atlantic Career of Judah P. Benjamin.”

students host vigil for victims in Pittsburgh and Kentucky
Law Students Host Vigil for Those Slain in Pittsburgh and Kentucky

On Thursday evening, Nov. 2, about 200 students, faculty and staff gathered in a circle on the front lawn of William & Mary Law School to light candles in memory of the 13 people slain in Pittsburgh and in Jeffersontown, Kentucky, and to express hope in the power of unity to combat hate.

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Law School Celebrates Generosity of Class of 1983

As of June 30, the Class of 1983 added another record to its storied history. Members of the class contributed more than $5.2 million in gifts and pledges to the Law School on the occasion of their 35th Reunion—the highest amount ever raised by a reunion class. The class previously set giving records for 20th, 25th, and 30th reunions.

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"Ahead of the Curve"

Karen Sloan of the National Law Journal checked in with the Law School's Military Monday's program in honor of Veterans Day.

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Election Law Program's eBenchbook project adds Nevada and North Carolina election codes to its online database

In advance of the November 6, 2018 election, the Election Law Program, a joint project of William & Mary Law School and the National Center for State Courts, is proud to add to its collection of online state election "eBenchbooks" available at https://eBenchbook.wm.edu. The new update adds Nevada and North Carolina codes to the platform, as well as text-only codes from all remaining states.

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William & Mary Law Students to Host Election Day VOTEline on Nov. 6

On Nov. 6, students at William & Mary Law School are set to run the W&M VOTEline, (757) 742-3095, a voter assistance hotline aimed at responding to questions local citizens have about voting. This non-partisan voter assistance hotline will be operated from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day by student members of William & Mary Law School’s Election Law Society.

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Reading Groups Provide More Than Lively Discussion for New Students

Professor Adam Gershowitz was among 13 professors, including Dean Davison Douglas, who led reading groups for first-year students this fall. Topics in the faculty-selected books ranged from freedom of speech and terrorism, to poverty and profit. One professor, as an alternative to a book, chose a podcast about a man on death row.

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Building a Resilient Virginia Is Theme of November 2 VCPC Conference

State and local government officials, state legislators, environmental scientists and the Chief of the Pamunkey Tribe will gather on Friday, November 2, in Williamsburg for “Building a Resilient Virginia,” the Sixth Annual Conference presented by the Virginia Coastal Policy Center (VCPC) at William & Mary Law School. The conference will be held at the William & Mary School of Education, 301 Monticello Avenue, Williamsburg, VA 23185.

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“First Mondays” Podcast Travels to William & Mary Law School

On September 21st, William & Mary Law School kicked off its Supreme Court Preview with a live taping of the “First Mondays” podcast — becoming only the fourth law school in the country to host an on-site recording of the popular series.

BLSA Speaker Series
BLSA holds first speaker event of the year

Criminal Defense Attorney Adeola Ogunkeyede and W&M Law School’s new Dean of Student Services Laura Shepherd talked about their experiences working in the public sector during BLSA's first speaker series event of the Fall semester.

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Appellate Clinic wins case in Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals

On July 26, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit issued a published opinion in Ross v. City of Jackson, Missouri, in favor of Appellant James Ross, a client of the William & Mary Appellate and Supreme Court Clinic. The opinion was a unanimous decision, authored by Judge Jane Kelly and joined by Judges James B. Loken and Raymond W. Gruender.

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Experts converge at W&M for forum on preparing for a climate-changed future

The Center for Climate and Security, the Virginia Coastal Policy Center, and the Whole of Government Center of Excellence recently held a Joint Discussion Forum that saw experts discussing ways that Hampton Roads communities and military bases can address the impacts of a rising sea.

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Professor Stacy Kern-Scheerer Awarded Kelly Professorship for Excellence in Teaching

Professor Stacy Kern-Scheerer has been awarded the Kelly Professorship for Excellence in Teaching for a two-year term beginning in fall 2018. The professorship is named in honor of the late Herbert V. Kelly, Sr., B.A. '41, B.C.L. '43, who was the senior partner at Jones, Blechman, Woltz & Kelly in Newport News, Va., until his death in 2007.

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Class of 2018 Competition Team Successes

Dean Douglas provided an overview of the successes of the Moot Court Team, National Trial Team, and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Team during the J.D. Class of 2018 Awards Ceremony on May 12.

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Laura Bladow J.D. ’18 Receives I’Anson Award

Laura Bladow J.D. ’18 received the I’Anson Award on May 13. The award recognizes great professional promise as demonstrated through scholarship, character and leadership.

Kevin McCandlish, Wythe Award
Kevin McCandlish J.D. ’18 Receives George Wythe Award at Graduation

Kevin McCandlish J.D. ’18 received the George Wythe Award at the Law School's Diploma Ceremony on May 13. The award is named in honor of George Wythe—Wiliam & Mary's and the nation's first professor of law—and is given each year to a graduating student in recognition of his or her outstanding and selfless service.

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Samantha Forsyth Receives Law Diploma from a Special Person

Jody Forsyth, an adjunct professor at the Law School and a member of the William & Mary Foundation Board, was happy to present his daughter Sam with her diploma during this year's Graduation Ceremony at Lake Matoaka.

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Professor Jeffrey Bellin Receives McGlothlin Award for Exceptional Teaching

Professor Jeffrey Bellin was honored with the McGlothlin Award for Exceptional Teaching at the Law School’s May 13 Diploma Ceremony. The recognition includes a substantial prize, made possible through the generosity of James W. McGlothlin '62, J.D. '64, LL.D. '00 and Frances Gibson McGlothlin '66, L.H.D. '18.

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Beth Hopkins J.D. ’77 Receives Law School Alumni Association’s Citizen-Lawyer Award

The William & Mary Law School Alumni Association honored Beth Hopkins J.D. 77 with the 2018 Citizen-Lawyer Award during the Law School's Diploma Ceremony on May 13. The award is the association’s highest recognition and is given annually to a graduate or friend of the Law School who has made "a lifetime commitment to citizenship and leadership."

U.S. Attorneys Zach Terwilliger and Thomas Cullen
W&M Law Alumni Now at Helm of Both U.S. Attorney's Offices in Virginia

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has appointed William & Mary Law School alumnus Zachary Terwilliger J.D. ’07 as Interim U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia. Thomas T. Cullen J.D. ‘04 was formally sworn in earlier this month as the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Virginia.

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Law School Offers New Course: Artificial Intelligence, Emerging Technologies, and Their Effects on the Legal Landscape

Can a music score created by artificial intelligence (AI) be copyrighted – in the U.S., Canada, or the European Union? Will there be civil or criminal jurisdiction for an act based in part on data transmitted via the Internet-of-Things (IoT)? These questions are just a few of the issues discussed during the spring semester in a new course, “Artificial Intelligence, Emerging Technologies, and Their Effects on the Legal Landscape.”

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Artificial Intelligence Legal Issues International Paper Competition Results Announced

As part of its continuing work, the Center for Legal and Court Technology invited law students in the European Union, Canada, and the United States to submit papers setting forth novel legal issues posed by these rapidly expanding technologies. The winners, all of whom will receive cash rewards funded by the Silicon Valley Community Foundation grant, were announced in April 2018.

Professor Gershowitz Uses HBO's "The Wire" to Bring Criminal Law to Life

Professor Adam Gershowitz's students have had unusually pleasant homework this semester: watching the first two seasons of HBO’s The Wire. Gershowitz teaches a course of his own design that uses the hit series as a springboard to discuss some of the most pressing issues in criminal law.

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China 2018: Old Friends and New Friends

Professor Jennifer Stevenson traveled to Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, and Fuzhou in the People's Republic of China during spring 2018 semester. Professor Stevenson is Assistant Dean for Graduate Programs, Associate Director of the American Legal System Graduate Program, and Professor of the Practice of Law.

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Attorney Robert H. Thomas to Teach Course at William & Mary Law School as Joseph T. Waldo Visiting Chair in Property Rights Law

Robert H. Thomas of Damon Key Leong Kupchak Hastert in Honolulu will teach during the fall semester as William & Mary Law School’s inaugural Joseph T. Waldo Visiting Chair in Property Rights Law, the school announced today. The chair is named in honor of alumnus Joseph T. Waldo (’78), founder of Waldo & Lyle in Norfolk, who served as Co-Chair of the school’s annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference from 2004-2017.

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In The Atlantic: Brief by Professor Oman and Other Scholars Offers Mormon Experience as Cautionary Tale in Travel Ban Case

Garrett Epps writing in The Atlantic on April 16, highlights three briefs filed in Trump v. Hawaii in an article titled ‘The Travel Ban's Ignominious Precedents.” Among them, a brief filed in March by religious studies scholars that was written by William & Mary Law Professor Nathan B. Oman that recounts the effort to exclude nineteenth century Mormon immigrants.

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Students in Law and Public Policy Aid Virginia's Battle Against Flooding

Commissioned by Sea Grant Virginia and Wetlands Watch, Taylor Goelz, Lauren Pudvah and Peter Quinn-Jacobs prepared reports on 16 communities, from Barnstable, Massachusetts, to Miles City, Montana. They wanted to know how those communities worked at producing their Community Rating System, thus saving money for residents with government issued flood insurance.

Jim Penney & LauraLeigh Young
Jim Penney J.D. '83 and LauraLeigh Young Give $1 Million Gift Toward Scholarships

When Jim Penney J.D. ’83 attended law school, he needed to take out loans to pay for his degree and to make ends meet. Thirty-five years later, Penney and his wife, LauraLeigh Young, have chosen to help reduce the financial burden for future William & Mary law students with a $1 million gift toward scholarships, the top priority of the university’s For the Bold campaign.

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Law School Hosts SEC Commissioner Michael S. Piwowar

The Law School’s Center for the Study of Law and Markets recently hosted Securities and Exchange Commissioner Michael S. Piwowar, who gave a detailed overview of the SEC and answered student and faculty questions about the agency’s current focuses.

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Students from Saudi Arabia Join Law School Community for LL.M. Studies

The Law School has been fortunate to have students from multiple continents take part in the LL.M. program and offer a wealth of experience and knowledge. In particular, the Law School has enjoyed having multiple students from Saudi Arabia.

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Professor Stewart E. Sterk to be honored with Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize in October

Professor Stewart E. Sterk of the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law will receive the 2018 Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Prize in October from the William & Mary Property Rights Project. Sterk will be honored during the project’s 15th annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference to be held at William & Mary Law School in Williamsburg, Va., on October 4-5.

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On Office Hours: The Real Taylor Reveley

Today’s guest is William & Mary President Taylor Reveley. Finishing out the last year of his ten-year term, President Reveley looks back over his career, discusses the state of higher education and William & Mary, and reveals his plans for the future.

Dean Jackson
In Memoriam: Dean Lizbeth Jackson

Dean Jackson passed away on February 27. This is the text of her obituary. It also includes a link to the message sent by the Provost to the campus community on March 2.

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William & Mary Announces Katherine Rowe as 28th President

William & Mary’s Board of Visitors today unanimously elected Katherine A. Rowe, currently provost of Smith College and a leader in digital innovation of the liberal arts, as the 28th president of the university. She will begin on July 1.

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Paul Rowley on Law and Basketball (National Law Journal)

First-year law student Paul Rowley is a member of a select group: he is one of three first-year law students in the country playing Division 1 basketball. Read his Q&A in the National Law Journal.

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Insight Grant to Support Professors’ Research on “Seismic Shift” in International Law

Professor Evan J. Criddle of William & Mary Law School and Professor Evan Fox-Decent of McGill University Faculty of Law are among the scholars who recently received Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) Insight Grants from the government of Canada. The grant will support a five-year research project on the cosmopolitan justice of international law.

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Clinic Victory in Fifth Circuit Appeals Court

On January 12, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a published opinion in Peña v. City of Rio Grande City, Texas in favor of Appellant Maria Peña, a client of the William & Mary Appellate and Supreme Court Clinic.

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Carpenter v. United States

Following oral arguments, "Concurring Opinions," the "Volokh Conspiracy," and Reason magazine took note of a Harvard Law Review article by Professor James Y. Stern and Professor William Baude (Chicago).