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Welcome to the first issue of the e-Bulletin —a brief update of the happenings of the American College of Trial Lawyers. More in-depth coverage of College happenings and meetings will continue to arrive in printed form via the Journal. We look forward to growing our correspondence and relationships with Fellows through this digital newsletter and encourage your feedback.
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Soaking Up Sunshine and Aloha
Spring Meeting in Maui Draws Over 700 Fellows and Guests
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The fellowship and learning opportunities were plentiful for the attendees at the College’s Spring Meeting. Forty-nine new Fellows were inducted. The list is attached
here.
The speakers in Maui were thought-provoking and inspirational. The College has made four speaker presentations available on YouTube. Click the speaker name to be taken to the video.
- Justice Pate spoke on the power of the law to connect and make a difference in people's lives
- Judge Kozinski of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals spoke with humor about how to lose an appeal
- Documentary Filmmaker Steve Elkins spoke on discovering the Lost City of the Monkey God in the Honduran jungle
- Author Linda Hirshman discussed her book Sisters in Law: How Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg Changed the World
The Board of Regents undertook several important actions. President Mike Smith provided an oral report on the progress made on the recommendations presented during the strategic planning retreat held last summer. These included:
- The revised and expanded Mission Statement of the College
- The College's Diversity Statement that can now be found on page 468 of your Roster
- The Guidelines for Public Statements by the College and its Fellows, which includes the Guidelines for Amicus Briefs.
The Board also approved the following:
- To implement our communications plan to enhance and improve our internal and external communications.
The Regents’ actions included:
- Presentation of 99 candidates, of which 82 were approved for Fellowship
- Election of Trustees for the Foundation of the American College of Trial Lawyers whose terms will begin July 1, 2016
- Adoption of a 2017 fiscal year budget and approval of the recipients for the 2016 Emil Gumpert Award and Samuel E. Gates Litigation Award.
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12th Annual Emil Gumpert Award Expands Work of Loyola Immigrant Justice Clinic with $100,000 Foundation Grant
The Loyola Immigrant Justice Clinic at Loyola Law School, Los Angeles (LIJC) was selected as the recipient of the 2016 Emil Gumpert Award.
The LIJC is a community-based collaboration of Loyola Law School, Loyola Marymount University, Homeboy Industries Inc., and Dolores Mission Church. LIJC’s dual-pronged mission is to advance the right of the indigent immigrant population in East Los Angeles through direct legal services, education and community empowerment while teaching law students effective immigrants’ rights lawyering skills in a real world setting. A representative from LIJC will make a presentation about the clinic at the College’s Annual Meeting being held from September 15-18, 2016 in Philadelphia. Click to read more about the Emil Gumpert Award and to see a list of past recipients.
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Justice Rebecca Love Kourlis Selected for Samuel E. Gates Litigation Award
The Board approved the recommendation of the Samuel E. Gates Litigation Award Committee to present Rebecca Love Kourlis, Executive Director of the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System (IAALS), with the Samuel E. Gates Litigation Award. Under Justice Kourlis’ leadership, the IAALS has expanded its agenda into four categories, all of which seek to significantly improve the litigation process in different ways. Those four categories are:
- Quality of Judges Initiative
- Rule One Initiative
- Educating Tomorrow’s Lawyers Initiative
- Honoring Families Initiative
For more information on these initiatives, visit the IAALS website. Justice Kourlis has been invited to receive the award at the College's Annual Meeting in Philadelphia.
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Texas Tech Wins National Moot Court Competition (U.S.)
The winning team from Texas Tech University School of Law with the judges. Left to right, back row: Shelby Hall, Hon. Nicholas Garaufis; Hon. Susan L. Carney; Hon. Michael Sonberg; Hon. Rolando Acosta; Hon. Judith Gische; President Mike Smith; C.J. Baker. Front row, left to right: Debra L. Raskin, Fellow and President New York City Bar Association; Kristen Vanderplas
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This year’s competition was won by Harvard Law School. Harvard Law School coach John James “J.J.” Snidow; Harvard team member Amanda Mundell; President Mike Smith; Harvard team member Joe Resnek; Texas Young Lawyers Association President C. Barrett Thomas
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NATIONAL MEETING 2016 Annual Meeting Philadelphia, Pennsylvania September 15-18, 2016
REGIONAL MEETINGS Region 13 Third Circuit Regional Meeting Princeton, New Jersey June 10-12, 2016
Regions 1 and 2 Southwest Regional Meeting Laguna Niguel, CA July 15-17, 2016
STATE MEETINGS Texas Fellows Summer Luncheon Fort Worth, TX June 17, 2016
Idaho Fellows Dinner Boise, ID July 15, 2016
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Mark your calendar now to attend one of the College’s upcoming gatherings.
More events can be viewed on the College website. Click here for the Events Calendar.
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District of Columbia and Maryland, April 30: About 160 Fellows and guests gathered for a splendid reception and dinner in a special venue – the Supreme Court of the United States. The keynote speaker, former Deputy Solicitor General Neal Katyal, provided insight into the workings of the Court. President Mike Smith presented Kyle Crawford, a Georgetown law student, with a framed certificate for his selection Best Oral Advocate at the National Moot Court Competition – Kyle was thrilled to receive the award at the Court.
New York Downstate, April 18: The Yale Club in New York City was the venue for a dinner gathering of 80-90 attendees. Elkan Abramowitz gave a fascinating account of his defense of Dewey LeBoeuff Chairman Steven Davis in a six-month, 100+ count indictment stemming out of allegations of criminal fraud. All in all a delightful evening in the Big Apple.
Regional in Austin, Texas, April 15-17: Over 100 Fellows enjoyed Saturday’s speaker lineup....Mike Perrin, a Fellow and former King & Spalding partner in Houston who now serves as the Athletic Director at the University of Texas; the Hon. Ken Starr, then President of Baylor University; Robert M. Chesney, current Associate Dean for Academic Affairs at the University of Texas Law School and serves as Director of the Robert S. Strauss Center of International Security and Law; and Henry W.“Bill” Brands, historian, Professor of History at the University of Texas, author of 25 books, the latest of which is Reagan: The Life (2015).
Virginia, April 8-10: Thomas Jefferson’s Charlottesville and UVA were host to a CLE weekend featuring UVA law professor Kent Sinclair on dealing with Virginia trial and pre-trial procedure. A second session featured a panel of three Virginia Judges, two Federal and a State Court. Involved were U.S. District Court Judges James R. Spencer (Governor McDonnell prosecution), Michael F. Urbanski (federal murder case with death penalty overtone), and State Circuit Court Judge Edward Hogshire (UVA Men’s Lacrosse player convicted of killing his girlfriend who was a member of the UVA Women’s Lacrosse team). Also, Chief Justice of Virginia Don Lemons discussed the issue of governmental interference with judicial independence.
Montreal, Canada, March 23-27: The Quebec Fellows Annual Dinner at Accords Restaurant in Old Montreal welcomed around 50 Fellows to celebrate the presentation of the plaque to Greg Elder commemorating the Gale Cup victory. Speaker Richard Pound, a practicing tax attorney, and current member of the International Olympic Committee and Former Chairman of the World Anti-Doping Agency spoke to blowing the whistle on the Russian Federation.
North Carolina, March 17-20: The fabulous Pinehurst Resort provided a wonderful setting for a three-day meeting of 50-60 Fellows and guests. Sessions included interesting presentations, provocative discussions, CLE opportunities and College business. Topics ranged from recent decisions, to what’s happening in the legal field to those engaged in the unauthorized practice of law and what to do about them. Of course, golf was on the agenda for some.
South Carolina, March 10-13: President Smith returned to his home state for a memorable meeting (be sure to ask him about the snake in his room). The business session included reporting by Fellows on their outreach work, as well as a presentation by Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Alex Jones. There was lots of Southern hospitality served, including an annual Bloody Mary Party and black–tie dinner.
New Jersey, February 20: A dinner meeting of the New Jersey Fellows was held at the Forsgate Country Club in Monroe Township and attended by 23 people. Remarks focused on the College’s Diversity Sub-Committee, emphasizing that all inductees would meet the very high standards that have always characterized the Fellows.
Utah, February 6-7: The natural beauty of Salt Lake City and the Grande American Hotel served as the backdrop for a productive state meeting with over 50+ in attendance.
Northeast, in Boston, January 29: The Northeast Fellows Black Tie Dinner at the Four Seasons Hotel is about as elegant as it gets. A Fellows Only event, it was attended by 108 members. Past President Joan Lukey presented retired Federal District Judge Rya W. Zobel with an award recognizing her exemplary civility in the courtroom. Jackie MacMullan, a former college basketball player and sports journalist, was the keynote speaker, the perfect and entertaining choice for diehard Boston sports fans.
California – Northern, January 22: 80 Fellows and guests gathered at the City Club of San Francisco for the Northern California Fellows Annual Dinner. Guest speaker Linda Starr, who runs the Northern California Innocence Project at Santa Clara University, discussed the terrific and difficult work of the Project in a most interesting and informative way.
Alabama, Florida and Georgia Tri-State, January 21-24: Fellows converged in New Orleans for a meeting that featured committee updates in between collegiality at the Windsor Hotel, Galatoire’s and the World War II Museum....all the while President Smith had a taste of bi-coastal living as he had to be in San Francisco for a Fellows Meeting. He has mastered being in two places at once.
Oklahoma, January 14-17: The Oklahoma State Fellows had their annual meeting in San Pancho, Mexico, 30 miles north of Puerto Vallarta. A much needed weekend of R&R and collegiality was enjoyed by the 11 couples in the Pacific Coast casas, with some flamenco dancing.
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The following Fellows have been elevated to the bench in their respective jurisdictions.
Peter K. Doody
Ottawa, Ontario
Effective February 24, 2016
Judge
Ontario Court of Justice
Robert A. Richardson
Hartford, Connecticut
Effective January 2016
Magistrate Judge
U.S. District Court District of Connecticut
Harry C. Storm
Rockville, Maryland
Effective January 8, 2016
Associate Judge
Montgomery County Circuit Court
The College extends congratulations to these Judicial Fellows.
Judicial Fellow
Benjamin Lerner of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania was appointed as the city’s Deputy Managing Director for Criminal Justice.
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The College has been notified of the passing of the following Fellows. The date following the name of each deceased Fellow represents the year in which he or she was inducted into the College.
Hon. Frederic Walter Allen,’72, Judicial Fellow, Shelburne, Vermont
Jerry S. Alvis, Sr., ’92, Raleigh, North Carolina
Joseph Hodell Foster, ’89, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Hal Gerber,’80, a Fellow Emeritus, Memphis, Tennessee
Thomas B. High,’14, Twin Falls, Idaho
Alan Edward Kraus,’00, Newark, New Jersey
David M Lascell,’85, Rochester, New York
Ronald E. McKinstry,’71, a Fellow Emeritus, Bainbridge Island, Washington
Hon. Walter Ward Reynoldson,’71, a Fellow Emeritus, Des Moines, Iowa
J. Thomas Rosch,’92, a Fellow Emeritus, Washington, District of Columbia
Robert J. Roth,’79, a Fellow Emeritus, Wichita, Kansas
Lindsay Carter Warren, Jr.,’77, a Fellow Emeritus, Goldsboro, North Carolina
A tribute to each will appear in the In Memoriam section of a subsequent issue of the Journal.
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19900 MacArthur Boulevard, Suite 530 Irvine, California 92612
Phone: (949) 752-1801 • Fax: (949) 752-1674 Email: nationaloffice@actl.com
Copyright © 2016 American College of Trial Lawyers, All rights reserved.
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