A 1948 graduate of the UF law school, Chesterfield Smith was founder and chairman emeritus of the national law firm Holland & Knight and president of the American Bar Association in 1973. The classroom was funded through a leadership gift from the Holland & Knight Charitable Foundation Inc.Justice Ginsburg — along with UF President Bernie Machen, Levin College of Law Dean Robert Jerry, and dignitaries from Holland & Knight — will address lawyers from Holland & Knight, UF alumni, faculty and staff at the dedication Thursday at 11 a.m. Video of the private, invitation-only event will be streamed live over the Inter- net, and available through a link on the UF Law home page, www.law.ufl.edu.

Chesterfield S Hundreds of law students will have the chance to see Justice Ginsburg in person on Friday when she delivers a 9 a.m. lecture in the Marcia Schott Courtyard. Tickets were handed out last week and are required for admission to this event. This is a closed classroom event, and rules and policies for classroom conduct will apply.

Faculty and staff are encouraged to arrive at the law school before 8:30 a.m. to alleviate crowding. Everyone is asked to leave backpacks or umbrellas at home or in their cars. This will reduce the time needed for searches. Gates will open Friday between 8:30 a.m. and 8:40 a.m. Students with balcony seat tickets must enter through security gates via the south entrance. All others may enter there or via the west entrance. The east entrance will be closed. Everyone must have a cur- rent Gator1 ID card for admission to the law school campus Thursday and Friday. Morning classes will be canceled on Friday, and the library will be closed until noon.

The founder of Holland & Knight in 1968, Chesterfield Smith (1917-2003) was one of the country’s most prominent lawyers. Smith’s legendary act came in 1973 when he was president of the American Bar Association. In what was dubbed the Saturday Night Massacre, President Richard Nixon fired the special prosecutor investigating the Watergate scandal, prompting the nation’s attorney general and top assistant to resign.

Almost immediately, Smith spoke out, telling the nation and the president, “No man is above the law.” He went on to lead the ABA’s effort to call for an independent counsel to investigate Nixon. His early voice of leadership altered history by becoming a catalyst in Nixon’s ultimate resignation.

Smith first met Ginsburg in 1978 on an ABA trip to China. They became good friends. In 1993, Smith wrote a key U.S. senator to offer his support for her nomination to the court.

Expressing appreciation for Smith’s gesture, Ginsburg sent him a hand-writ-ten note: “All my life I will try to be the person you described. With so much appreciation, Ruth.”

During the Sept. 5, 2006, Federal Career Opportunities Panel, Professor Michael Seigel and 2L Lawrence Scheinert shared their insights with students regarding ob- taining positions with the federal govern- ment, as well as their experiences within the federal government.

Seigel, former judicial law clerk to the Honorable Edward R. Becker, United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, was a special attorney for four years with the United States Department of Justice, Organized Crime and Racketeering Section, before spending four years as first assistant United States attorney for the Middle District of Florida in Tampa. Scheinert was selected to participate in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Honors Law Program, in the Division of Enforcement in Washington, D.C. last summer.
Scheinert said one of the highlights of his position was an opportunity to have immediate involvement in major, front page cases as a law student. He was given a good deal of responsibility from the get go. He also had exposure to some of the best defense attorneys, as they were sitting across the table from him and defending their clients against SEC action.

As a U.S. Attorney, Seigel enjoyed having a true trial practice, and he was immediately given much responsibility. He thus gained a great deal of experience in a short amount of time. While sometimes daunting, the fact that he stood in court as the United States was an honor.

As far as obtaining jobs within the federal government, both speakers advised not to underestimate the importance of your cover letter. It is the initial way you can express your unique and dedicated interest in the federal position for which you are applying. Scheinert shared that his supervisor at the SEC told him that his cover letter was highly instrumental in his being offered his paid, summer position, as it clearly displayed his desire to work for the SEC and his commitment to the fields in which the SEC is primarily involved. Seigel said it’s critical to convey in your cover letter not only a demonstrated interest, but also an assurance that “this is what I want to do.”

Other tips from our speakers included:
• “Foot in the door” theory: Even though you might not land a position in the first agency or department of your choice, once you get your foot in the door with the federal government or a specific agency and gain experience and prove yourself, it will be easier to transition to other areas from the “inside.”
• Follow-up using “polite persistence”: Remember, typically for federal jobs you apply to a practicing attorney, not a recruiter whose sole job is to work with applicants. For these attorneys, resumes and hiring decisions can get buried beneath their caseload, so a polite reminder from you can get the ball rolling. This is also another way to express your dedication to a certain field, agency, position, etc.
• Seigel mentioned that a federal judicial clerkship also can be a springboard into a federal agency.

Wondering Why You Should Consider Legal Employment Within the Federal Government?

• Very large legal employer – over 22,500 federal agency attorneys, for example the Department of Justice employs almost 8,200 attorneys, the Department of Defense over 2,500 and the Department of the Treasury employs about 2,100 attorneys.
• Federal employees can receive up to $10,000 per year in student loan repayments, and up to $60,000 total.
• Increasing opportunities as federal workforce “ages out” into the “looming retirement boom.”
• Older workers make up over 50% of the federal government workforce and a substantial proportion are reaching retirement age.
• Of the older workers, a high percentage are employed in positions that require specialized education such as in the legal profession.
• Having work experience in a federal agency provides a solid career path toward future employment within law firms and the corporate world. For example, if you wish to be a corporate immigration lawyer, the experiences gained and contacts made working for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement would prove invaluable.
• Entry-level government lawyers typically are given greater responsibility in handling a case load and trying cases much earlier than a new associate in a private firm who could still be doing research and writing memos.
• Fulfills a desire to serve the public.
• Size-able number of positions are in Washington, D.C., but 88% of the positions are located outside of D.C. in other large cities with regional offices.
• A recognition that while the starting salaries tend to be less than in the private sector, attractive benefit packages that include retirement pensions, student loan repayment assistance plans, flextime, a more predictable work schedule and more, can outweigh the compensation difference.
• Job security. Even in an economic downturn, your job is protected.

Challenges to Finding Federal Jobs:
• Less likely to interview on campus – a number do participate in Equal Justice Works Conference and Job Fair (U.S. Department of Justice, Department of State, Department of Education, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Com- mission will be interviewing at Equal Justice Works. For application instructions go to www.equaljusticeworks.org then select job fair employers).
• De-centralized hiring means that each agency hires separately and lists openings in different places so it can be difficult to locate openings.
• Attorney positions in the Federal Government are in the “excepted service,” found under an appointment called Schedule A. By being in the excepted service, attorney positions are not covered by regular civil service hiring procedures. Agencies may hire for attorney positions directly, outside of the Office for Personnel Management.
• Rigid bureaucratic process requires strict adherence to completing appropriate forms and following deadlines.
• Agencies have early application deadlines such as TODAY (9/18) for the Department of Justice, Attorney General’s Honors Programs for 3Ls & LLM & Paid Summer Law Intern Program 2Ls & 3Ls. To access the application, please go to www.usdoj.gov/oarm/  and select “Opportunities for Attorneys” or “Opportunities for Law Students” for the appropriate links.

Associate Professor

• Presented “Takings, Version 2005: The Legal Process of Constitutional Property Rights” at Florida State University Law School on Sept. 7.

Jerold H. Israel

Ed Rood Eminent Scholar in Trial Avocacy and Procedure

• Published Criminal Procedure-Constitutional Limitations in a Nutshell, 7th edition, with Wayne Lafave (Thomson/West)

• Published Criminal Procedure and the Constitution, 2006 edition, with Yale Kamisar, Eayne LaFave, & Nancy King (Thomson/West)

• Published 2006 supplement to Modern Criminal Procedure (with Kamisar, LaFave, King anf Orin Kerr), the 2006 supplement to White Collar Crime (with Boman, Podgor, & Henning) and the 2006 Pocket part to Criminal Hombook (with LaFave & King).  

Clifford A Jones 

Visiting Assistant Professor in Law Research 

• Presented a paper in Munich, Germany Sept. 12-13, “Patent Power and Market Power: Rethinking the Relationship between Intellectual Property Rights and Market Power in Antitrust Analysis,” to the Conference on Intellectual Property and Competition Law, sponsored by Max Planck Institute for Intellectual Property, Competition, and Tax Law.

 Elizabeth T. Lear

 Professor

 • Published “Congress, the Federal Courts, and Forum Non Conveniens: Friction on the Frontier of the Inherent Power,” 91 Iowa Law Review 1147 (May 2006).

 Lyrissa Barnett Lidsky 

Professor; UF Research Foundation Professor 

• Her article, “Authorship, Audiences & Anony- mous Speech” (co-authored with Tom Cotter) was published on the Social Science Research Network Web site. 

Diane H. Mazur 

Professor 

• Published “A Blueprint for Law School Engage- ment with the Military,” 1 Journal of National Security & Policy 473 (2005). 

Lars Noah 

Professor

 • Published “Treat Yourself: Is Self-Medication the Prescription for What Ails American Health Care?” 19 Harvard Journal of Law & Technology. 359 (2006); “Managing Biotechnology’s [R]evolution: Has Guarded Enthusiasm Become Benign Neglect?” 11 Virginia Journal of Law & Technology 4 (2006; “A DRug by Any Other Name…?: Paradoxes in Dietary Supplement Risk Regulation, ” 17 Standford Law & Policy Review. 165 (2006). 

Michael L. Seigel 

Professor 

• Published a law review article, “The Effective Use of War Stories in Teaching Evidence,” 50 St. Louis Journal 1191 (Summer 2006). 

Christopher Slobogin

 Stephen C. O’Connell Chair; Affiliate Professor of Psychiatry; Adjunct Professor, University of South Florida Mental Health Institute ; Associate Directore, Center in Children and Families 

• Published “Competency in the Criminal Context: An Analysis of Robert’s Schopp’s View,” in Behavioral Sciences and the Law.

• Participated in a conference Sept. 8 at the University of California Boalt School of Law on “Governing and Living in a Time of Terror: Law Beyond 9/11.”

 In the News

 Mark Fenster

 Associate Professor

 • Quoted in U.S. News & World Report, The Australian (a newspapeR), the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, and the Toronto Star on the 9/11 Commission Report and conspiracies surrounding 9/11. 

Christopher L. Peterson

Associate Professor

• Albuquerque News Journal, July 17, 2006 Research on payday lending was used in an article about sensational efforts to put a cap on payday lending interest rates.

• Center for American Progress, July 19, 2006. Reprinted the article that ran two days earlier in the Albuquerque News Journal. 

Michael Allan Wolf

Richard E. Nelson Chair in Local Government Law; Professor

 • Hearald Tribune,August 31, 2006. Quoted in a stroy about an adult club Sarasota County fighting the Bert J. Harris Jr. Private Property Rights Protection Act and that could end setting a stage legal precedent in the process.

Since it can be difficult for Florida grads to break into big cities in the Northeast and the West Coast right out of law school, the attorneys suggested students interested in practicing in a big city should target firms that have a presence in larger cities such as New York and Los Angeles as well as many smaller cities throughout the country. Baumgaertner,  a William and Lee graduate, initially joined LeBoeuf Lamb’s Jacksonville office. Like Fawbush, his work with major clients gave him the opportunity to join the New York City office, a transition he is happy to have made. Fawbush, who earned his undergrad and law degrees at UF, chose to stay in Florida, but frequents New York City as needed.

The key is to network. The best way to land a job in the city you desire is to find Florida law grads or alumni from your undergraduate institution, let them know you want to practice in their city, and try to set up an informational  interview.  Even if their firm is  not hiring, they might know who is hiring, and they can open roads for you that otherwise  might seem unavailable.

Baumgaertner encouraged students to do research and attend career fairs where the firms with offices in major cities recruit. This requires extra effort  and expense on your part, but it provides you with the requisite exposure and access to those who practice in cities such as New York.

Finding employment with  a federal govern- ment agency is an excellent way into New York City firms, Baumgartner  said. For example, if you would like to be an attorney working on large mergers and acquisitions, a stint  with  the SEC will  provide you with specialized knowledge and an insider’s point of view that  New York firms covet. Consider the fields in which you want to practice, and research which federal agency might be a logical stepping stone for that field.

While work in a New York firm typically requires an immense time commitment,  the payoff is working with the kinds of high-pro- file clients, deals, and cases that are on the front pages of major newspapers. A New York practice can be extremely exciting and cutting edge.

CEJA was chartered in 1999 by the General Assembly of the Organiza- tion of American States. CEJA’s mission is to study judicial systems in the Americas and to develop innovative plans for justice sector modernization.

“Chile is a modern country that is often overlooked as a place to study, live and do business,” said Suárez. “The opportunity to collaborate with attorneys, law students and other professionals from around the word helped me to broaden my global perspectives and hone my ability to communicate in legal Spanish.”

Suárez received a UF International Center (UFIC) Coca-Cola World Citizenship Program award, a fellowship designed to support graduate students working and conducting research in the developing world.

While in Chile, Suárez performed research for the legal component to the Latin American Business Environment report and presented a report surveying the role of the private sector, international arbitration and judicial reform in Chile.

Similar exchanges are available through the Law & Policy in the Americas Program in San Jose, Costa rica; Santiago, Chile; Lima, Peru; and Curitiba, Brazil, in the areas of human rights, property rights, trade, and judicial reform. Interested students are encouraged to contact Program Director Meredith Fensom at fensom@law.ufl.edu.

Inman was previously assistant director for student conduct at UT (1994-97),  and she also served as assistant general counsel for the Tennessee Department of  Health during 1993-94.

At UT, Inman oversaw student registration, scheduling of classes, administration of examinations, grade reports, class rankings, transcripts, grading policies, interpretation of academic policies, and rules and guidelines regarding matriculation at the College of Law.

A 1990 graduate of Carson- Newman College with a B.S. in Business Management, Inman is a member of  the National Association of College and University Attorneys and the Association for Student Judicial Affairs.

Inman’s arrival allows Gail Sasnett to focus on special projects and assist with the transition in the year before her retirement.

Many students have expressed concerns about seeking assistance from the resource counselor based on a fear that confidentiality will be breached. Services rendered by the resource counselor are not shared to any member of the staff unless permission has been given or an extreme circumstance arises (i.e., harm to self or others).

I encourage you to seek help for any situation that you are having difficulty managing, no matter how great or small. No instance of anxiety, depression, or like problems will be disclosed to anyone. These discussions will have no bearing on one’s ability to gain employment or insurance based on what is discussed within the law school or particularly with the resource counselor.

Mental health professionals practice in a variety of settings, including independent practice, community agencies, managed behavioral health care organizations, integrated delivery systems, hospitals, employee assistance programs, and substance abuse treatment centers. Mental health counselors provide a full range of services including crisis management, psychotherapy, alcoholism, and substance abuse treatment, in addition to many others.

However, counselors, such as a resource counselor, have no formal training in curriculum management, advising on school related issues, or career services. There is staff in place to assist you in these matters, namely the assistant deans and career services office.

Counseling professionals abide by a strict code of ethics and laws that regulate their practice. At any time, you have the right to access your records or refuse services. Additionally, the law states that, “Mental health counselors have a primary obligation to safeguard information about individuals obtained in the course of practice, teaching, or research.

“Personal information is communicated to others only with the person’s written consent or in those circumstances where there is clear and imminent danger to the client, to others or to society. Disclosure of counseling information is restricted to what is necessary, relevant and verifiable.” Therefore, by law, your rights as a client are protected.

I hope that this clarifies any misgivings of the work that is done with the resource counselor or any recommending staff. Please feel free to email me at noblesw@law.ufl.edu with any questions that you might have to set up an appointment. I look forward to meeting and talking with you soon.