Scholarship established in honor of UF Law alum
Earlier this year, family and friends of Gerald A. Williams, Esq. (1950-2010) established The Gerald A. Williams Endowed Memorial Scholarship Fund to honor his legacy. Williams graduated from UF Law in 1975 and his two daughters, Monica Williams (JD 01) and Erica Williams (JD 05), also UF Law alumni. The first scholarship will be awarded from the fund in November. To see a complete description of the scholarship, click here.

Honor Committee congratulates new representatives
The UF Levin College of Law Honor Committee congratulates new representatives elected by the respective class peers. Representing the Class of 2013 are Anthony Jones, Tyler Hudson, Robin Lucas, David Sullivan and David Emas. Amanda Anderson was also elected to represent the Class of 2011. The Levin College of Law Honor Code represents a commitment by students to adhere to the highest degree of ethical integrity. The Honor Committee administers the Honor Code and is composed of law students, two faculty advisors and Dean Rachel Inman. If you have questions about the honor code or Honor Committee please contact Alexa Kwartin, Honor Committee Chairman, at akwartin@gmail.com.

Donate gently-used clothes to benefit PACE Center for Girls and Peaceful Paths Domestic Abuse Network
October is Domestic Violence Awareness month. Beginning Monday, Oct. 25, through Friday, Oct. 29, L.A.W. will be holding a clothes drive to collect donations of gently-used women and children’s clothing to benefit PACE Center for Girls and Peaceful Paths Domestic Abuse Network. Collection boxes will be located in the cafeteria and at the L.A.W. table in the courtyard throughout the week. If you stop by the L.A.W. table, you can also get an early peek at the list of items up for bid in our annual Professor Auction! The auction will take place the first week of November, so start planning with your friends on which professors you want to bid. If you have any questions about the clothes drive, the auction, or L.A.W. in general, please e-mail L.A.W. Secretary Lauren Millcarek at lmillcar@gmail.com.

Family Law Society holding cell phone drive for domestic abuse victims
Family Law Society will be having a Cell Phone Drive Oct. 4-28 to collect cell phones and chargers to donate to Peaceful Paths Domestic Abuse Network. The cell phones and chargers can be dropped off at any time in the Lawton Chiles Information Center lobby and will be collected to give to victims of domestic violence. Please collect the old cell phones lying around your house for victims who truly need them.

ASIL Career Fair/Mentoring Session
The American Society of International Law will be holding its annual meeting this Nov. 12-13 at the University of Miami School of Law. On Friday, Nov. 12, from 2:30–5 p.m., law students may attend a career fair/mentoring session. The fair is open to any and all law students, but will be targeted to those interested in international law. The goal of this annual meeting is to provide Florida law students who are interested and engaged in international law, whether in the classroom, or by participating on student organizations and journals, an opportunity to spend quality networking time with professionals from Florida firms and public interest organizations whose practice areas include international litigation, arbitration and advocacy. For information and to RSVP, contact Emily Holland at 646-660-2099 or e-mail her at emilybholland@gmail.com. Please note that there may be a registration deadline in October. The Center for Career Development will e-mail an update via the Career Hotline with more information.

Elizabeth Dale
Affiliated Associate Professor of Law
Dale presented a paper to the American Bar Foundation/Illinois Legal History Seminar Oct. 18. The paper is “Putting ‘Liberty’ in its Place: Discussions of ziyou, Slavery, and Sovereignty in Turn-of-the-Century China.”

Robert Jerry
Dean, UF Law and Levin Mabie & Levin Professor of Law “UF-sponsored health plan costs $300 more this year” (Oct. 15, 2010, The Independent Florida Alligator)

Because of a change in providers this fall, UF students saw an increase of almost $300 in the cost of their school-sponsored insurance plans, with a very similar plan to what was already in place. The director of the Student Health Care Center said they changed providers to avoid an even bigger increase in rates.

From the article:
Robert Jerry, dean of the Levin College of Law, said he is not surprised that student plans are increasingly expensive. The student population is healthier than most demographics, so student insurance is priced to make more profit than other insurance products, he said.

Jerry believes the new health care legislation passed by Congress may also have an effect on student health care plans. The new law states that full-time students can be covered by their parents’ insurance up until age 26.

There are ways to bring insurance costs down for students, but it’s not in the hands of the university, Jerry said. If the state and federal governments team up to regulate insurance and provide everyone with some degree of health care, costs would go down.

“We ought to have a system where everybody has some kind of access to basic health care,” he said.

Lyrissa Lidsky
Stephen C. O’Connell Chair, Professor of Law
“Wannabe warriors an ‘insult’ to their bravery” (Oct. 17, 2010, Pensacola News Journal)

The Stolen Valor Act of 2005 has been gaining some attention lately with two cases involving the act in federal appeals courts. The act made it a federal offense to wear a military medal or for a person to say he or she earned a military medal if the person did not in fact earn a medal. Opponents of the act say it violates the First Amendment and is unconstitutional, but admit the speech it would protect in this case is reprehensible.

From the article:
Lidsky said it is constitutional to punish people for making false statements in certain contexts — such as fraud, defamation, lying under oath or shouting “Fire!” in a crowded theater — but the Stolen Valor Act is tricky because it doesn’t show clear damages to a victim.

“It’s making it a crime to tell a lie, but it’s making it a crime to tell a relatively harmless lie,” Lidsky The authors of the law contend that the lies erode the true value of military honors, but Lidsky asked, “Is there any evidence that that has had any effect on the morale of the troops?”

Joseph Little
Emeritus Professor
“Elect or appoint judges?” (Oct. 17, 2010, Orlando Sentinel)

Little commented on the benefits of having a system where voters can elect trial judges.

From the article:
Those who favor election, including Professor Joseph W. Little of the Levin College of Law at the University of Florida, say it protects the public by making judges more accountable.

Diane Mazur
Professor of Law
“How Does the Military Prove That Someone is Gay?” (Oct. 13, 2010, Slate)

Mazur is thanked as a source at the end of this article, which looks at the various methods the military has used to determine if a member of the military is gay. The determination and discharge proceedings usually focus on the actions of the person under scrutiny, rather than his or her actual sexual preferences.

“There is no legal reason to appeal DADT ruling” (Oct. 18, 2010, San Marcos Mercury)

The column looks at the recent ruling that found the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy unconstitutional and presents an argument about why there is no legal obligation to appeal the ruling. The article references a memorandum Mazur wrote on the topic.

From the article:
Diane Mazur, a professor of law at the University of Florida College of Law, has laid out in a legal memorandum the basics about executive discretion to decline to appeal laws held to be unconstitutional. Mazur’s primary areas of research include civil-military relations and military law generally. In her memorandum, she explains that the usual expectation is that the Justice department “will defend federal laws from constitutional challenge.” However, the usual practice is not mandatory: “There are well-recognized, standard exceptions that give the executive branch discretion in deciding whether or not to defend a law in some circumstances, and they would apply in deciding whether to appeal a court ruling finding that (DADT) is unconstitutional.”

Michael Seigel
Professor of Law
“Should authorities need a warrant to put a GPS tracking device on your car?” (Oct. 17, 2010, St. Petersburg Times)

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that law enforcement can use Global Positioning System (GPS) technology to track suspected criminals – without obtaining a warrant. The court also indicated that police could also go onto private property in order to install a GPS device. Seigel commented on Florida’s laws pertaining to the use of GPS.

From the article:
To use GPS tracking, they simply must convince a judge that it’s “relevant” to their investigation, said University of Florida law professor Michael L. Seigel.

“It’s a much lower standard,” he said. “It’s not requiring them to show any suspicion about an individual’s guilt.”

There’s also an easy way around state law. Local agencies could just ask the federal government for help. Federal agents don’t need a warrant to use GPS tracking devices in Florida, Seigel said.

Christina Vilaseca and Frank Fischer represented the prosecution team at the Trial Team Final Four on Oct. 15. (Photo by Andres Farfan)

While most of campus was on holiday for Homecoming, Tiana Beaudouin, Frank Fischer, Tara Tedrow and Christina Vilaseca were competing in the Trial Team Final Four on Friday, Oct. 15, in front of a judge, jury and other guests and Trial Team members.

The students, all 2Ls, argued the case, which involved criminal charges of embezzlement, use of a computer to commit a crime, and exceeding valid computer authorization, before the Honorable Charlene Honeywell, United States District Judge for the Middle District of Florida. J. Scott Kirk, LaShawnda K. Jackson and Mary A. Cox, attorneys from Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell, P.A., comprised the jury.

The jury returned a verdict for the defendant, represented by Tara Tedrow and Tiana Beaudouin, finding him not guilty on all charges. Tedrow and Beaudouin won the Best Team Award. Tedrow also received the Best Advocate Award.

“Participating in the competition was a great experience,” Tedrow said. She believes the Trial Team is one of the greatest opportunities at the law school to prepare for future practice.

“Even if full trials are rare, the communication, persuasion and writing skills necessary to succeed will benefit you outside of the courtroom. Interacting with clients, other attorneys and judges at pre-trial hearings, mediations and depositions all require the skills that Trial Team will instill.”

Jake Rush represents the local bar assocation at a recent Florida Bar Young Lawyer Division discussion. (Photo by Joey Springer)

If you conducted a word association test on law students and prompted them with ‘The Florida Bar,’ many students would likely come back with responses such as ‘exam,’ ‘character fitness,’ or ‘discipline.’ However, were the same test done on practicing attorneys, one might hear things like ‘networking,’ ‘professional development’ and ‘opportunities.’

On Tuesday, Oct. 19, Renee Thompson, a UF Law grad and current president of the Florida Bar Young Lawyers Division (YLD), came to campus to let students know that the Bar is much more than a disciplinary group.

The Bar, and the YLD in particular, offers young lawyers the opportunity to network amongst each other and provides opportunities for continuing education, with a long list of other services.

While this makes it clear that the Bar can be useful to attorneys, there didn’t used to be a way for law students to get integrated into this community while they were still in school. A few years ago, that changed. The Board of Governors of the YLD decided to create the Law Student Division, which now has chapters at each of the 11 law schools in Florida.

Thompson noted that one of the main reasons why Law Student Division was created was to bring students into the fold even before they started practicing law.

“We decided that we wanted to forge better networks with law students,” she said, “since you are the future of our profession.”

While the three years of law school may seem long for students pulling all-nighters and surviving on caffeine, the gap between being a law student and being a practicing professional is quite short. “In a few years,” Thompson said, “you’ll be the people sitting across from us at depositions and trials, and we wanted to get to know you better before that.”

The Florida Bar YLD acts as an umbrella group, with each circuit’s local bar association also having a YLD group. Representing the local bar association on Tuesday was Jake Rush, an attorney with the Gainesville firm of Rush and Glassman, and a member of the 8th Circuit YLD Board of Governors.

Rush spoke of the demands and difficulties of being a young lawyer, when you are often surrounded by those who have years or decades more experience. Even still, reaching out within the YLD will show that, whatever you are dealing with, you are probably not alone. “One advantage of the Young Lawyers Division is that we’re all in the same boat,” Rush said.

“The practice of law is a big network,” Rush said, mentioning the frequency of lawyers referring other lawyers to client who have a particular need. When that time comes, it shouldn’t be a surprise who lawyers refer their clients to. “People are going to go to people they know,” Rush said, “people they’ve heard of, people whose face they’ve seen.”

Students will soon have another opportunity to network as the 8th Judicial Circuit YLD begins a mentoring program that matches up students with area lawyers. The local YLD has also created a student division at UF, meaning that between the Florida Bar YLD Law Student Division and the 8th Judicial Circuit YLD, students have an immediate opportunity to get involved with their local and state bar associations.

A view of the beach in Marineland, Fla. (Photo courtesy of State of Florida Archives)

A group of six current and former UF Law students recently won the Student Planning Award from the Florida chapter of the American Planning Association (FAPA) for their Unified Land Development Code for the town of Marineland, Fla.

Law students J.B. Bricklemyer, Allison Fischman, Andrew Hand, Kathryn Hurd, Kalanit Oded and Patrick Wheeler worked on the project for nearly two years under the guidance of Tom Ankersen, UF Conservation Clinic Director, and Gail Easley, planner and adjunct faculty member at UF’s College of Design, Construction and Planning. The merit-based award was given to the proposal that demonstrated the highest level of innovation, transferability, quality and comprehensiveness.

The project’s goal was to create a land-development code for the town of Marineland that focused on sustainable development and was consistent with the town’s ambiguous comprehensive plan. Through the duration of the project, the group repeatedly met with the Town Council and interested stakeholders in public meetings and workshops to ensure the code reflected community priorities. “It was a steady process of drafting, meeting and revising,” said Kathryn Hurd, a graduate of UF’s joint Law and Urban and Regional Planning degree program.

The town adopted the plan in June, which included stringent storm water management requirements and landscaping provisions focused on water conservation. It is the group’s hope that the plan will serve as a model for other communities looking to make their own codes more “green.”

The FAPA also invited Hurd to present her thesis – which focused on the role of litigation by environmental advocates in local government growth management in Florida – in the student works session at FAPA. Her thesis, written for her master’s in Urban and Regional Planning, analyzed the role of litigation by environmental advocates in local government growth management in Florida.

“This was a challenging project and an enriching experience,” said Hurd, currently in the U.S. Department of Transportation Honors Attorney program. “It was an honor for our team to receive the award, and I felt privileged to participate in representing UF Law and the Conservation Clinic as part of this team.”