With the start of our fiscal year, we are pleased to welcome our 2020-21 Fellows Officers. Please see below for a conversation with Judge Eileen A. Kato, 2020-21 Fellows Chair. This issue also includes Faculty and Fellows News, upcoming Fellows event details, and information regarding the 2021 Fellows Awards Nominations.
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Introducing the 2020-21 ABF Fellows Chair:
Honorable Eileen A. Kato (Ret.)
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We are pleased to introduce Honorable Eileen A. Kato (Ret.) as the 2020-2021 Fellows Chair. Judge Kato is a Seattle Life Fellow and a past Chair of the Washington Fellows. She was appointed to the King County District Court (Seattle) in June of 1994, and recently retired from the bench in March of 2016. Judge Kato joined the Fellows in March of 2011.
Q: What does being a Fellow mean to you?
A: Being a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation has been and continues to be such an honor and privilege to support this distinguished international society of attorneys, judges, law faculty, legal scholars, and others in the legal community. I am continually learning from the amazing and timely research of our ABF faculty, and inspired by the commitment of the ABF Board, Fellows, Faculty, and staff to the ABF mission to expand knowledge and advance justice by supporting innovative, interdisciplinary, and rigorous empirical research on law, legal processes, and legal institutions.
Q: Where were you born and raised?
A: I was born in Ogden, Utah, and raised in two smaller Utah communities.
Q: Why did you decide to pursue a career in law?
A: While pursuing my M.B.A., I was fortunate to be in a business law class taught by a dynamic young lawyer, who encouraged us to consider a career in the law. I was particularly inspired to pursue law as profession as a way to pursue justice in our society, having witnessed the impact of so many instances of injustice personal to me, such as the incarceration of Japanese Americans during World War II, the civil rights movement of the 1960’s, the women’s movement of the 70’s, and the many challenges I perceived facing so many women and people of color.
Q: If you hadn’t pursued a career in law, what would you have done?
A: I applied for both a doctorate in business to teach at the college level and to law school; then left to fate which application was accepted first. Fortunately, as a faculty member of the National Judicial College for 20 years, I have had the opportunity to pursue both passions.
Q: What do you do in your free time?
A: I enjoy our local sports teams - being an avid Seahawk fan - Go Hawks! and a long-suffering Mariners fan. I love international travel, where I try to observe various court proceedings, take cooking classes, and meet and connect with local citizens. I also enjoy hosting dinner parties, gardening, golfing, skiing, and volunteering at the local legal clinic.
Q: Anything else you'd like to share with us?
A: I welcome any questions or concerns Fellows may have about the Fellows and the incredible research being done. I also encourage Fellows to join us at the Fellows Events at the ABA Midyear and Annual Meetings.
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ABF Researchers in the News |
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A property law addressing partition action abuses and drafted by former ABF Visiting Research Fellow
Professor Thomas Mitchell has gone into effect in 17 states and the Virgin Islands. The Uniform Partition of Heirs Property Act (UPHPA) addresses partition action abuses that have led to significant property loss. Mitchell has devoted his life to mitigating these issues, which have disproportionately affected poor and minority communities nationwide. He is recognized as a national expert on African American land loss.
Mitchell has interviewed extensively on property loss issues and the legal mechanisms that sustain and facilitate the phenomenon. In 2001, he participated in a three-part, award-winning series by the Associated Press (AP) entitled “Torn from the Land,” which put the issue of black land loss on a national stage.
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ABF Faculty Fellow Rebecca Sandefur contributed to an article by Law360 on attorneys' efforts to provide access to justice amid recent natural disasters. The article describes the particular difficulties of providing legal services to those affected by natural disasters during the age of COVID-19. It also details the ways in which attorneys attempt to reach clients in need of legal support, when clients may not recognize that legal support will help them meet their needs.
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The American Bar Foundation Mourns the Loss of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg
The American Bar Foundation (ABF) is mourning the loss of District of Columbia Patron Fellow and Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a dedicated public servant and a trailblazer for gender equality. In addition to her longstanding service to the American public and the legal profession, Justice Ginsburg was a decades-long supporter of the ABF. Prior to her nomination to the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsburg served on the ABF Board of Directors from 1979 to 1989. She was on the Executive Committee of the ABF Board of Directors from 1986 to 1988 and served as Secretary for the ABF from 1986 to 1989.
“Justice Ginsburg will forever be remembered for her incomparable legacy of public service and her lifelong commitment to justice and equality,” said ABF Executive Director Ajay K. Mehrotra. “This is a great loss for the American Bar Foundation, the justice system, and the entire country. As a former board member and Patron Fellow, Justice Ginsburg played a key role in making the ABF the institution that it is today. We send out deepest condolences to Justice Ginsburg’s family.”
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E. Thomas Sullivan, President Emeritus of the University of Vermont, elected President of the American Bar Foundation
E. Thomas Sullivan, Vermont Benefactor Fellow, has become the new president of the American Bar Foundation (ABF) for the 2020-2022 term. For the past two years, Sullivan served as the vice president of the ABF Board of Directors.
As President of the ABF, Sullivan will supervise efforts in fundraising and, in conjunction with the ABF Board of Directors, provide oversight to the foundation’s empirical and interdisciplinary research and programing.
Sullivan is President Emeritus and Professor of Law and Political Science at the University of Vermont. He has authored 13 books and over 50 articles and is a nationally recognized authority on antitrust law, complex litigation, and constitutional law. Sullivan has been an elected member of the American Law Institute (ALI) since 1984 and a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation since 1994. He is also a Life Fellow member of the Cambridge University Clare Hall College (UK).
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Twelve ABF Fellows Among Crain's Chicago 2020 Notable Women in Law
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Top row (L-R): Shannon M. McNulty, Gail H. Morse, Erin Schrantz, Teresa Snider, Anna Wermuth, and Margo Wolf O'Donnell. Bottom row (L-R): Laurel G. Bellows, Kara E. Cenar, Pamela L. Cox, Beth J. Dickstein, Sharon A. Hwang, and Christina L. Martini. |
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Congratulations to the following twelve ABF Fellows, who are listed among Crain's Chicago 2020 Notable Women in Law. The listing highlights senior-level private practice women attorneys who have shown the ability to effect change in their roles or practice areas. The Fellows included are:
Kara E. Cenar, Fellow
Beth J. Dickstein, Fellow
Gail H. Morse, Fellow
Teresa Snider, Fellow
Anna Wermuth, Fellow
Pamela L. Cox, Life Fellow
Sharon A. Hwang, Life Fellow
Christina L. Martini, Life Fellow
Shannon M. McNulty, Life Fellow
Margo Wolf O'Donnell, Life Fellow
Erin Schrantz, Life Fellow
Laurel G. Bellows, Patron Fellow
To qualify for the list, attorneys must be nominated and then selected from an editorial board based on their credentials and accomplishments. The selected attorneys have served as role models at their firms and have assumed leadership positions in professional or civic organizations.
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Register Now: Virtual Event with Professor Chris Schmidt |
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On Wednesday, October 28 from 12:00pm - 1:00pm PT, the Oregon Fellows of the ABF will host a virtual event featuring ABF Research Professor Christopher Schmidt. The event will feature a lecture by Schmidt entitled The Sit-Ins: Protest and Legal Change in the Civil Rights Era, which is also the title of his book on the topic, published by the University of Chicago Press in 2018. He will discuss the origins of the sit-in demonstrations of the 1960s, and the development of the demonstrations into a transformative protest movement.
Individuals will receive a link to purchase The Sit-Ins: Protest and Legal Change in the Civil Rights Era at a discount upon registering. However, neither purchasing nor reading the book is required in order to participate in the event.
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Call for Fellows Awards Nominations |
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The Fellows of the American Bar Foundation are currently accepting nominations for the 2021 Fellows Awards. Since 1957, The Fellows have presented annual awards for Outstanding Service and Outstanding Scholarship.
We cordially invite you, as a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, to nominate a deserving mentor, colleague, friend or professional hero. Whom would you like to see honored by the Fellows for thirty years or more of outstanding service to the legal profession and the public? Who deserves an award for exceptional scholarship in law and government?
The nomination submission deadline is October 1, 2020. The 2021 Fellows Awards will be presented at the 65th Annual Fellows Awards Banquet in February 2021.
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The American Bar Foundation is an independent 501(c)(3) organization. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in publications or presentations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the American Bar Foundation, nor the policy positions of the American Bar Association or its affiliates. The AMERICAN BAR FOUNDATION, ABF and related seal trademarks as used by the American Bar Foundation are owned by the American Bar Association and used under license.
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