Mark Clark, assistant professor in the University of Florida’s department of Soil & Water Science, will deliver a presentation on “Low Impact Development” or LID, Tuesday, Dec. 5, at noon in room 285D. The presentation is hosted by the UF Conservation Clinic. LID offers an approach to development that minimizes land development impacts, and moves treatment technologies all the way up the watershed and to the individual house lot. The Conservation
Clinic has been looking at how this can be accomplished through homeowner associations as a matter of law, in a way that gives comfort to state regulators, who have been wary of some LID techniques.

Annual Poinsettia Sale Thursday, Dec. 7

The Environmental Horticulture Clubs of the University of Florida presents its annual Poinsettia Sale Thursday, Dec. 7, 8 a.m.-4 p.m., at the Fifield Hall Greenhouse Complex. Florist-quality poinsettias are available in a wide range of colors including red, white, pink, purple, marble and jingle. All plants were grown by the students. For a map, directions or more information go to http://hort.ifas.ufl. edu/floriculture/pointfieldday/ or contact loveall@ufl.edu.

UF Music Law Conference Committee Meeting Wednesday

Are you interested in helping with the 2007 UF Music Law Conference? If so, there will be a Music Law Conference committee meeting Wednesday, Dec. 6, at 5:45 p.m. in Room 360. Opportunities to get involved include promotions, operations, panel administration, music and band relations, keynote committee, and sponsorship task force. The 5th Annual Music Law Conference will be held on Feb. 10, 2007, and will focus on the music business beyond the traditional CD-release model. For more information, join the conference TWEN site on Westlaw or contact Brian Frankel at brianjd@ufl.edu.

Justice Java Coffee Beans On Sale in the Courtyard

Just in time for finals and holiday gift-giving, Entertainment Law Review is selling bags of delicious Sweetwater Organic Coffee. Sweetwater has created a special blend just for the law school that is unavailable anywhere else. Twelve-ounce bags of this custom blend, Justice Java, will be available for $10, or $12 for decaf. This blend is 100% Organic and Shade Grown, Fair Trade Certified, and Smithsonian Bird Friendly. Whole beans and ground coffee will be available.ELR members will be selling the coffee in the courtyard this week between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships

UF’s Center for European Studies anticipates awarding Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships for Summer 2007 and the upcoming 2007-2008 academic year. Fellowships are funded by the U.S. Department of Education under Title VI of the Higher Education Act and are awarded to students combining graduate work in an academic discipline with European area and language studies. Fellowships are offered for any one of the lesser and least commonly taught European languages (Czech, Hungarian, Italian, Modern Greek, Polish, Portuguese and Russian). In exceptional cases funding may also be available to support advanced language training in French, German or Spanish. Summer fellowships provide a stipend of $2,500 and cover the cost of tuition. The 2007-2008 Fellowships provide a stipend of $15,000 and cover the cost of tuition/fees (12 credit hours per semester). For more information, stop by Student Affairs, 164 Holland Hall. Application deadline is Feb. 12, 2007.

Congratulations! You’ve made it halfway through your legal education. To help you push through finals and to your first winter break, stop by Career Services on Tuesday, Dec. 5, from noon until 2 p.m. for some refreshments and a study break. Bring any career questions if you have them — otherwise, just come to reconnect with your classmates, enjoy some comfort food and relax for a few minutes to commemorate your mid-JD mark.

Reminders for Dec. 2006 Grads

• Pro Bono Certificates: If you completed pro bono or community service hours, please confirm with Career Services that your hours are correct in our database. We are completing final certificates for the semester. Hours turned in late will not be eligible for a certificate until April.
• CCS Exit Interviews: Please call or come by the Center for Career Services to sign up for your 10-minute Career Services Exit Interview or come in during Walk-In Exit Interview times Tuesday-Fridays, 9 a.m. 2 p.m., beginning Dec. 5 and running through graduation. December grads who have not yet accepted a position are strongly encouraged to schedule an appointment with a career counselor. We can help you.
• Cap & Gown Pick Up: Regalia will be available for pick up in the Center for Career Services on Tuesday, Dec. 5, beginning at 9 a.m. If you ordered late, you may need to check with the bookstore for information on when you can expect your cap and gown to arrive.

Ideas for Winter Break

Who will you meet over Winter Break?

Did you know that most jobs are obtained by word of mouth, or who you know? Don’t worry if you don’t know any lawyers personally, they are all around you. While at family events for holiday functions, let everyone know that you are in law school and are looking for a summer or permanent job. Getting a haircut or going to the dentist? Let them know too. There are many stories that we can tell you about students who received job offers through these means. Seek out the local bar association to see if there will be any luncheons or holiday receptions while you are in the area. Take control of your future, go out there and network, yes, network. You will continue to network throughout your entire professional career, so start now.

Complete Your Bar Application

Winter break is ideal to set aside some time to prepare your bar application for submission. While you are home, track down that missing information. We all know how daunting a task it is and finding time to put this information together while keeping up with class work is close to impossible. So, now’s the time.

Volunteer

Whether you are at home or in Gainesville, ’tis the season to volunteer to help others and gain hours toward your Community Service or Pro Bono Certificate.

Informational Interview

Conduct an informational interview of a lawyer or professional in your area to learn about their career path, how they prepared and to seek their recommendations.

Prepare for Next Semester’s Recruiting

Prepare your resume and cover letter. Application deadlines begin right after the first of the year for many opportunities, including government positions, externships, fellowships and OCI. Sample resumes and cover letters are available on the CCS website, and you can email your drafts to a counselor for review. Please note, however, that emailed resumes and letters are still subject to the 48 hour turn around. We will certainly try to get them back to you sooner if at all possible.

Check Out a Non-Law School Textbook from the CCS and Read for Fun

• Kimm Walton’s Guerilla Tactics for Getting the Legal Job of your Dreams, or What Law School Doesn’t Teach You…But You Really Need to Know, or America’s Greatest Places to Work with a Law Degree are good bets.
• Try Never Eat Alone or How to Work a Room: The Ultimate Guide to Savvy Socializing in Person and Online or Choosing Small – Choosing Smart: Job Search Strategies for Lawyers in the Small Firm Market, or
• Thinking of becoming a judicial law clerk? Courtiers of the Marble Palace: The Rise and Influence of the Supreme Court Law Clerk or Behind the Bench are essentials.
• How about Women-at-Law: Lessons Learned Along the Pathways to Success or Should you Marry a Lawyer: A Couple’s Guide to Balancing Work, Love & Ambition, or Dear Sisters, Dear Daughters: Words of Wisdom from Multicultural Women Attorneys Who’ve Been There and Done That, or The Lawyer’s Guide to Balancing Life and Work: Taking the Stress out of Success
• Close to Graduating? Pick up The Legal Career Guide: From Law Student to Lawyer

CCS’ Holiday Hours

The Center for Career Services will be open during regular hours, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. except for the week that the university is closed — Monday, Dec. 25, 2006 – Monday, Jan. 1, 2007. Regular hours will resume on Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2007.

South Florida Bound?

If you are interested in doing a judicial clerkship or practicing in the South Florida area and can be in Miami on Thursday evening, Jan. 18, 2007, you will want to watch for information upon return from the winter break regarding the Gator Alumni Association Reception at the Florida Bar Mid-year Meeting at Hyatt Regency Miami. Career Services will be able to invite 10 students to attend this event with Gator practitioners and judges.

Externships for Summer/Fall ‘07

The list of Summer/Fall 2007 externship offerings will be available on the web by mid-January before the externship informational meetings. Watch for announcements from Associate Dean George Dawson after the first of the year about externships as Career Services will no longer be administering the externship program. The faculty recently approved revisions to the externship program that have ended the availability of student-created externships. Therefore, no student-created externships will be approved effective summer or fall 2007.

New Titles in CCS

• Law Firm Diversity Programs 2007 by MCCA and Vault
• Empowerment & Leadership: Tried and True Methods for Women Lawyers, ABA Commission on Women in the Profession
• The FBI Career Guide
• Vault Guide to the Top 100 Law Firms, 2007 Edition
• View from the Top: Q&A with Legal Women Leaders
• Vault’s 2007 Law Firm Pro Bono Programs
• Letters to a Young Lawyer by Alan Dershowitz

 So why is sleep important and why do we need so much of it? Many students cut back on sleep to finish ever mounting piles of homework, but it could be a self-defeating strategy. Harvard Medical School researchers have found that people who stay up all night after learning and practicing a new task show little improvement in their performance. The study also suggests that no amount of sleep on the follow ing two nights can make up for the toll taken by the initial all-nighter.

 Lack of sleep has also been linked to poor school performance, difficulty consolidating memories, a shorter life span, and even increased weight gain. Sleep deprivation causes hormonal changes that can lead to an increase in weight and a slower metabolism. Researchers have also found that adults need at least eight hours of sleep to function at their highest potential. Even if you feel that you can get less sleep and still have high levels of performance, this is not the case.

Although we are not sure why we need sleep, multiple studies have shown the importance of a good night’s rest, especially for students. An interesting fact is that in dream sleep the brain is actually very active. No one is sure exactly what dreams accomplish, but some experts believe that dreaming is actually some kind of “cleansing” process. Other sleep researchers think that dreams serve the function of helping to reorganize and store psychological information taken in during the day.

Lack of sleep clearly affects our thinking. For example, we can per- form calculations, but not as quickly. We’re much more likely to make errors. Sleep deprivation also affects us physically. Our coordination suffers and we lose our ability to do things with agility. Additionally, sleep improves muscle tone and skin appearance. Consider sleep as part of your overall wellness. Don’t feel guilty, you are doing yourself a favor.

Some tips to try to promote restful sleep:

• No reading or watching TV in bed. These are waking activities. Go to bed when you’re sleepy-tired, not when it’s time to go to bed by habit.

• Start slowing down during the second half of the evening before bedtime. Ninety minutes before bed, don’t get involved in any kind of anxiety provoking activities or thoughts.

• Do some breathing exercises or try to relax major muscle groups, starting with the toes and ending with your forehead.

• Your bed is for sleeping; if you can’t sleep after 15-20 minutes, get up and do something relaxing.

• Have your room cool rather than warm.

• Don’t count sheep, counting is stimulating.

• Exercise in the afternoon or early evening, but no later than three hours before bedtime.

• Don’t over-eat, and eat 2-3 hours before bedtime.

• Don’t nap during the day.

• If you awake in the middle of the night and can’t get back to sleep within 30 minutes, get up and do something else.

• Listen to calming music

Governmental law offers its best rewards when one wins cases against the state that improve things for citizens, said Uhlfelder, citing as examples his legal successes securing for a large technology company the right to start online registration for driver’s licenses and with helping to secure the contract for the Florida Comprehensive  Assessment Test (FCAT), part of the state’s plan to increase student achievement.

But the downside with governmental law is that there’s not enough time for everyone to gain access, leaving those with less power and influence at a disadvantage. “That’s part of the process that troubles me,” he said. ”So I use my influence with both big businesses and pro-bono work. I think every lawyer should strike a balance between the two.” Of particular interest to Uhlfelder are at-risk children. He chairs the Governor’s Mentoring Initiative for at-risk children, and he received the national Daily Point of Light Award in October for his commitment to public service. His goal is to increase his pro bono work to 50 percent or more of his practice within a few years.

Though he encourages people to get involved in governmental law, Uhlfelder advises them to have a realistic attitude. “You aren’t always going to be representing a client with whom you totally agree, but they must be reputable and well-respected to associate with them in the governmental process,” he said. “Remember, in government things are gray rather than black and white. You learn this with experience. We must always remember that no matter who we represent you must respect the integrity of the political process.”

Last week we had an incident on our campus involving comments written on a classroom whiteboard. Although neither the identity nor the intent of the writer is known, the comments could be and were interpreted by some members of our community as reflecting negatively on their ethnic  and cultural heritage. Communications intended to show disrespect to or degrade other persons or groups are inappropriate and not to be tolerated. Beyond the question of intent, however, we must be aware that  our words and actions can have a negative impact on others, and each of us must be careful to reflect upon how our words and actions will be understood by others. Hurtful language and actions do not become appropriate and acceptable in our community — or in our profession — by virtue of the absence of a specific intent to hurt others.

Within our community, we do not practice and we do not tolerate harassing or threatening behavior, intimidation, abuse of authority, the use of degrading language toward any person or group, impeding any community member’s right to communicate his or her ideas simply because of disagreement with the content, or lack of civility toward those with opposing views.

As members of the legal profession, we have a special obligation to assist our society in dealing with injustice and unfair treatment of individuals and groups. As members of our law school community, we are expected to fulfill this obligation in our interactions with others in the college and the university.

Presented every semester, Book Awards recognize the top performers in each class, and give alumni a chance to support academic excellence at the Levin College of Law.

More than 100 students were honored for their performance in classes over the past two semesters. Joseph S. Tro- endle, above left, took home the most awards with four, followed closely by Adam D. Mait, above right, who earned three. Other multiple award winners include Seldon J. Childers, Jonathan Huels, Joshua R. Levenson, Caroline McKinney, John Rains, Kevin Shuler, and George Wright.

If you have received a Book Award, but weren’t able to attend the Nov. 17 ceremony, you can pick up your plaque in the Office of Development and Alumni Affairs at 267 Holland Hall. The office is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Richardson

Twenty-two years ago Professor David Richardson came to the University of Florida tax program on a whim. In a telephone conversation with Professor Jack Freeland, Richardson not only learned of an opening for the position as director of the Graduate Tax Program, he realized applications were due the next day. He met the deadline and got the job. He served in that position for the next four years and remained a professor for the next 18.

During his time at UF, Richardson has been at the forefront of the Graduate Tax Program, now one of the most highly rated in the country. He helped found the law review that publishes articles dealing with significant issues of tax law and policy, and served as the faculty editor for two years after its inception. In 2005, Richardson co-authored a textbook on civil tax procedure that was published in the LexisNexis Graduate Tax Series. Richardson also serves on the board of directors of the Graduate Tax Series and expects there will be eight books in the series published by next August. Richardson, who is retiring this month, is fulfilled by the success of the LL.M. students.

“The thing that gives me the most satisfaction is that our students are in demand across the country, in private practice, as corporate counsel and in the government. Our graduates carry the college’s banner proudly and enhance the college’s reputation.”

]]> http://www.law.ufl.edu/flalaw/2006/12/professor-richardson-bids-farewell-after-22-years-at-grad-tax-program/feed/ 0 http://www.law.ufl.edu/flalaw/2006/12/scholarship-activities-2/ http://www.law.ufl.edu/flalaw/2006/12/scholarship-activities-2/#comments Mon, 04 Dec 2006 00:00:12 +0000 wsmitty@ufl.edu http://www.law.ufl.edu/wpflalaw/?p=3981  Mary Jane Angelo

Assistant Professor

• Presented “Rapanos, Carabell and Beyond” (an analysis of recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions addressing jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act) at the Florida Wetlands Conference in Tampa, Nov. 17.

Lars Noah

Professor

• Published the 2nd edition of his casebook Law, Medicine, and Medical Technology with Foundation Press.

Barbara Bennett Woodhouse

David H. Levin Chair in Family Law; Professor; Director, Center on Children and Families and Family Law Certificate Program; Co-Director, Institute for Child and Adolescent Research and Evaluation (ICARE)

• Advised Fordham University in developing its multidisciplinary center on child advocacy. • Presented the keynote speech at St. John’s University’s Nov. 17 conference on “Race, Class, Culture and the Child Welfare Crisis.”

• Spoke at a ceremony in Phoenix in connection with the renaming of Arizona State’s law school in honor of retired Justice Sandra Day O’Connor. 

Michael Allan Wolf

Richard E. Nelson Chair in Local Government Law; Professor

• Spoke at the “Preservation 101” seminar sponsored by the Florida Trust for Historic Preservation, Nov. 16, in Jacksonville on “Who’s Afraid of Property Rights?, Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Constitution.”

Steven J. Willis

Professor

• Published “People in Glass Houses” in 113 Tax Notes 477 (2006).

• Presented on the topic of “Family Law Economics: Ruminations on Property,” to Family Law Section of the Collier County Bar Association at its annual Family Law Conference

Joseph W. Little

Professor, Alumni Research Scholar

• Independent Florida Alligator, Nov. 14. Little will be representing Charles Grapski, who has been charged with felony wiretapping.

• High Springs Herald, Nov. 17.  Successfully defended Charles Grapski and had the case against Grapski dismissed by the judge.

• University Wire, Nov. 17. Mentioned in an article about Charles Grapski’s victory against wiretapping charges. He acted as Grapski’s attorney.

Katheryn Russell-Brown

Professor; Director of Center for Study of Race and Race Relations

• C-Span, Nov. 19. Interviewed about her book Protecting Our Own:Race, Crime, and African Americans, following her appearance on a panel at the Miami Book Fai International

Michael L. Seigel

Professor

• Polish National television, Nov. 29. Interviewed regarding the extradition of Edward Mazur, a dual U.S. and Polish citizen who has been charged in Poland with hiring a hit man in connection with the June 1998 killing of the former Polish National Police Chief. Seigel was asked about the US-Poland Extradition Treaty and his views on whether Mazur will be extradicted given his U.S. citizenship.

Justice Wells

Florida Supreme Court Justice Charles T. Wells still remembers the words of the commencement speaker when he graduated from law school at the University of Florida in 1964. The speaker was Chesterfield Smith, a prominent UF Law alumnus who was then president of The Florida Bar.

“I remember that his theme was ‘I love being a lawyer,’” he said. “And he described the ingredients of someone growing to love being a lawyer, that it’s not something that comes naturally.”

Justice Wells, who will address Fall 2006 graduates at the Levin College of Law’s commencement Dec. 22, said that even 42 years after he graduated from law school, the thing that he has come to recognize with each passing year “is just how much there is to continue to learn about the law and the practice of law.” Justice Wells had practiced law for 30 years when he assumed his duties as Justice of the Florida Supreme Court on June 16, 1994, after being appointed by Governor Lawton Chiles. He served the Court as Chief Justice from June 2000 through June 2002.

A proud “Double-Gator,” Justice Wells received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida in 1961 and his juris doctor degree from UF Law in 1964. He is a veteran, having served in the United States Army. He was honored by being awarded recognition as a Distinguished Alumnus of UF in 2001.

Justice Wells is perhaps most noted for presiding over election cases brought to the Court as part of the dispute over Florida’s electoral votes in the 2000 U.S. presidential election, which were broadcast live to a world-wide audience.

“The election process doesn’t work very well when the election’s a tie,” Wells said with a laugh. Justice Wells, who has lectured throughout the United States on the Florida Court’s processing and administration of the election cases, wrote a dissent on the court’s second case in the 2000 election, a position which was affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court as to the limitations of the role of courts in election controversies. History tells us, he said, that virtual ties in elections and the controversies that follow are inevitable.

“There have been reforms that have been made and changes of machines and still there are controversies and still courts are thrust into a position of making election decisions,” he said. “But I think that the courts have to again recognize the limitations on the role that they can play in deciding who are going to be the political leaders. Because ultimately that has to be a decision by the people in the community and not by the judges in the community.”