Fredric Levin, left, and Dean Robert Jerry listen as former ABC News President David Westin delivers keynote remarks at the Martin H. Levin Advocacy Center coutroom opening celebration last Thursday. (Photo by Amanda Adams)

“I’m very privileged and honored to do this for Allen and to live the legacy of this incredible family,” Teri Levin told a crowd of about 150 in the courtroom, her voice breaking. “And I will say, and I will continue to say: Go Gators!”

Teri Levin’s $1 million donation in the name of her late husband, Allen Levin, a Pensacola developer, will allow the second floor of the 19,500-square-foot center to be completed. She was named an honorary alumna Thursday in recognition for her philanthropy to UF and numerous other causes, an honor for which she said she was grateful.

Teri Levin noted that she gave the money for the advocacy center at the guidance and encouragement of her brother-in-law Fredric G. Levin (JD 61). The law school bears Fredric Levin’s name, and he donated $2 million for construction of the advocacy center.

“I hope with the facility here, the advocacy center, that it will become the go-to place for young law students who want to become trial lawyers and they certainly have the facility to do it,” said Fredric Levin, a renowned trial lawyer. “I have tried cases all over the country. I’ve never seen a more beautiful courtroom or a more well-equipped courtroom.”

Architect Sol J. Fleischman Jr., A.I.A., CEO of Tampa-based FleischmanGarcia, said the courtroom is geared to its teaching function through monitors, data, phone and Internet connections, and especially the tiered seating giving students a clear view of the proceedings.

“It’s certainly a nice upgrade from Bailey courtroom,” noted James Baley (3L), a member of the UF Law Trial Team.

Fredric and Teri Levin spoke before the nearly 150 guests who filled the courtroom, including students, faculty, alumni and administrators.

Among the administrators was University of Florida President J. Bernard Machen. Machen noted that Fredric G. Levin donated $10 million to the law school in 1999. At the time it was the largest gift ever given to UF.

“When the history of this law school is recounted 50 or 100 years from now, Fred Levin will be known as a transformative force,” Machen said.

The center is named after Fredric’s son, Martin Levin (JD 88).

“It’s obviously an incredible honor to have this building bear my name. But the reality is I’ve done nothing to have my name up here. My name’s up here because my father gave $2 million,” Martin Levin told the guests, who responded with laughter.

Martin Levin, who serves as general counsel for the Washington, D.C.-based Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, further illuminated what has driven his father to become the prime benefactor of UF Law in general and the advocacy center in particular.

He said his father believes that advocacy is a way of arriving at conclusions that instill confidence in the advocate to speak even if the point of view is unpopular. The meticulous research and critical thinking upon which advocacy relies allows conclusions based on reality rather than self-interest, Martin Levin said.

“It’s very simple. Dad honestly believes that advocacy is the single-most important action that can sustain this country’s greatness and, certainly, sustain justice,” said Martin Levin, who finished first in his class at UF Law and holds two advanced degrees from Harvard as well as an undergraduate degree from Stanford.

Martin Levin said his father has done this regularly during his 50-year career. “He spoke out no matter what the consequences were going to be to him. He never backed down.”

David Westin, the former president of ABC News who delivered the keynote address, amplified the theme of advocacy as a vehicle for social good.

Westin, a University of Michigan graduate who once litigated in the federal courts, said he used to think televising federal court proceedings was a bad idea.

He now believes Supreme Court and other federal proceedings should be broadcast to show people the shared commitment to the rules of procedure and common principles. He said it is instructive the way “all of the arguments get resolved on the merits.”

Westin said the media could learn from how the court system settles disputes as the media turns to ever-more rancorous commentary and opinion to generate audiences.

For example, he said the contentiousness of news programs could be moderated if hosts question political adversaries about how they agree as well as how they disagree.

For more photos from the courtroom opening celebration, view the gallery on our Facebook page.

The new Advocacy Center courtroom – as part of the Martin H. Levin Advocacy Center — will serve as a key component in placing UF Law at the forefront of legal advocacy education. The fully functional trial and appellate courtroom contains a 98-seat gallery, a bench for seven judges, a jury box, attorneys’ tables, judge’s chambers and a jury deliberation room.

Before serving as the president of ABC News from 1997 to 2010, Westin graduated from the University of Michigan Law School, was a partner in the Washington law firm Wilmer, Cutler & Pickering and worked as an adjunct professor at Harvard and Georgetown universities, where he taught international civil litigation.

While at ABC News, Westin oversaw all editorial and business aspects of the news division, supervised coverage of President Bill Clinton’s impeachment, the 9/11 attacks, the Afghanistan and Iraq wars and the recent economic crisis. While Westin was president, ABC News was awarded 11 George Foster Peabody Awards, 13 Alfred I. duPont Awards, five George Polk Awards, more than 40 News and Documentary Emmys and more than 40 Edward R. Murrow Awards.

The courtroom opening is by ticket or invitation only. Media are welcome to attend, but space is limited. Please contact Matt Walker in the UF Law Communications office for further information (352-273-0653 or mlwalker@law.ufl.edu).

Tickets will be available to UF Law students on a first-come, first-served basis and will be available in the Office of Student Affairs until they are gone. Students must present a Gator 1 card when picking up tickets. Faculty and staff interested in tickets should see Doris Perron in the Dean’s Office.

Although the courtroom opening ceremony is limited to those who received invitations or obtained tickets, everyone is cordially invited to attend the UF Law Trial Team Exhibition at 2 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 24, in the courtroom and the 27th annual Maguire Appellate Advocacy Competition at 10 a.m. on Feb. 25, also in the new courtroom. The Maguire Competition will feature all seven Florida Supreme Court justices judging the competition. Both events are free and open to the public and will be a good opportunity to view UF Law’s new facilities and see students showcase their advocacy skills.

The Martin H. Levin Advocacy Center and courtroom was made possible by a number of donors including Fredric Levin and his sister-in-law, Teri Levin. Fredric Levin contributed $2 million to the center as the lead gift to this project and Teri Levin contributed a $1 million gift in honor of her late husband, Allen Richard Levin. Teri Levin’s contribution brought the total of Levin family gifts to the law school to almost $30 million, including state matching funds. Other donors who helped make the Advocacy Center possible include the Baynard Trust, the late Robert M. Montgomery, of West Palm Beach and Robert Kerrigan of Kerrigan, Estess, McLeod & Thompson in Pensacola.