Fredric G. Levin College of Law

October 15, 2007 | Vol. XI, Issue 9

Kailey Evans and Nicole Mouakar Take Best Team Honors at UF Trial Team Final Four Competition

Nicole Mouakar and Kailey Evans were named Best Team in the University of Florida Trial Team's bi-annual Final Four Competition Oct. 5. This year's case was the State of Lone Star v. Tony Grubb. The defendant in the case was charged with the burglary of an elderly woman's home. Mouakar and Evans were named Best Team as they represented the defendant Tony Grubb. Evans (pictured above) was also named Best Advocate. Other members of the team included Maulik Sharma and Kerri McGovern as witnesses and researchers. The team was coached by Molly Cox and Jim Clements. Elvis Santiago and Jason Pill represented the State of Lone Star. Elizabeth Manno and Connie Jones served as witnesses and researchers for the competition. The team was coached by Roger Hatfield and Lori Lustrin. This semester's competition was sponsored by Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell, a litigation firm with offices in Florida and Alabama. Rumberger's Dan Gerber, Steve Klein, Sara Burton and LaShawnda Jackson acted as a jury for this semester's Final Four. The Honorable Judge William Davis presided over the competition.

Career Services: UF Law Alumnus Steven Uhlfelder Presents 'The Pro Bono Challenge' Oct. 17

Steven Uhlfelder (JD 71), chair of Fulbright Scholarship Board and former chair of Florida Board of Regents, will speak on "Lawyers as Leaders: The Pro Bono Challenge” at noon Wednesday, Oct. 17, in Holland Hall Room 180. The event is presented by the Center for Career Services and the Center on Children & Families. Uhlfelder, a lawyer who specializes in public and administrative law at his private practice in Tallahassee, is a public interest and youth advocate with a lengthy legacy of volunteer work and advocacy on behalf of youth. He has been the steward of programs such as the Florida Mentoring Partnership with 206,000 volunteer mentors, Holland & Knight’s Opening Doors tutoring/mentoring program, which has helped more than 12,000 children across the nation, and the Florida Children’s Coalition, which led the effort to obtain $23 million in initial funding for the state’s pre-K program for at-risk kids. Following Uhlfelder’s remarks, representatives from local organizations have been invited to table on the concourse for a Pro Bono Organizations Fair. Stop by to learn about how you can participate in their organizations and UF’s Pro Bono Project.

Additional Career Services Articles
• General Practice, Solo & Small Firm Section Seeking Student Applicants
• Follow-Up Phone Calls
• Save The Date: Fourth Annual Minority Mentoring Picnic Oct. 27

Career Spotlight: Judge Kathleen Hill Roberts

Most people don't get the chance to live out a childhood dream they've had since age 11, but UF Law alum Kathleen Hill Roberts (JD 93) does so every day as a Martin County Court Judge. Roberts started her quick ascent to the bench as assistant state attorney in the 19th Judicial Circuit from 1995 to 2005 involved in prosecuting sex crimes and child-abuse felony cases, where she got to make the world a better place by just doing her job, she said. "I loved prosecuting because each time I protected another child, it made me feel like I was making a difference and paying back to the community, while at the same time getting my job done," she said. "It was emotionally satisfying, and definitely where I wanted to be."
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Florida Bar President Francisco R. Angones to Speak at UF Levin College of Law Thursday, Oct. 18

Francisco R. Angones, president of The Florida Bar, will speak at the University of Florida Levin College of Law at 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 18, in the Chesterfield Smith Ceremonial Classroom (HOL 180). Angones' speech is presented by UF's Spanish American Law Student Association as part of its Hispanic Heritage Month celebration. A native of Cuba and a South Florida resident since 1961, Angones is a founding partner of the Miami law firm Angones, McClure & Garcia, P.A., where he practices personal injury defense, commercial torts and insurance defense litigation. He received a B.A. degree, Magna Cum Laude, in June 1972, and a J.D. degree in June 1976, from the University of Miami, where he was inducted into Iron Arrow Honor Society, Omicron Delta Kappa and Phi Kappa Phi. Angones will answer questions after his speech, and a reception will follow in the Faculty Dining Room. All faculty, staff and students are invited to attend.
READ MORE>>www.law.ufl.edu/flalawonline

Center for the Study of Race and Race Relations Announces First Oral Competition

The University of Florida Center for the Study of Race and Race Relations (CSRRR) is pleased to announce its first oral competition. The Race, Law and Justice Oral Competition provides law students with an opportunity to research, discuss and debate important issues of race and justice. The subject for this year's competition is race-based hate speech. The hypothetical that students will research and debate is based upon an actual incident involving racial conflict between white and black high school students in a South Carolina town. White students wore T-shirts emblazoned with the confederate flag and "100 percent cotton and you picked it." Black students responded by having T-shirts printed with the confederate flag in red, black, and green—the colors of African liberation.
READ MORE>>www.law.ufl.edu/flalawonline

Florida's Democratic Primary and No-Fault Auto Coverage Among Media Topics Discussed by Faculty

The New York Times called on Professor Michael Seigel (pictured left) last week for a story on the dismissal of a case against a former federal prosecutor who was charged for having sex with a 5-year-old girl in Michigan after he committed suicide in his prison cell. "They have no choice," said Seigel, adding that case dismissal is standard procedure when a defendant dies, even after conviction if the defendant has not exhausted his appeals. "We don’t charge people in absentia in this country. You can’t prosecute somebody who’s not, in effect, there to defend himself."

Dean Robert Jerry appeared live on WCJB-Channel 20 to discuss Personal Injury Protection coverage, which the Florida Legislature sought to re-enact, and Center for Governmental Responsibility Director Jon Mills was interviewed on WRUF regarding the National Democratic Party's stated intention to not count Florida's votes in the primary due to their accelerated primary date. Read what UF Law professors are saying in the media and writing about in scholarly publications in FlaLaw Online's weekly updates on Faculty Scholarship & Activities.
• Faculty Scholarship & Activities

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News Briefs

Fathers' Rights Movement Topic of Oct. 24 Lecture Presented by UF Center on Children & Families
The UF Center on Children & Families 2007-2008 lecture series, "Families in Transition," presents "The Fathers' Rights Movement, Law Reform and the New Politics of Fatherhood: Reflections on the UK Experience," with Richard Collier, professor of law and social theory, Newcastle University, Newcastle Law School, in the United Kingdom, Wednesday, Oct. 24, at noon in the Chesterfield Smith Ceremonial Classroom (HOL 180). A lunch reception will follow in the Faculty Dining Room. Collier is the author of several books on law and fathers, fathers’ rights and legal reform, and law and masculinities. This is the first of four lectures to be presented this academic year, all of which will be open to faculty, staff and students.

UF Law Students and Faculty Join Neighborhood Association in Restoration of Law School Woods
UF Law students and faculty were joined by residents of the Golfview Neighborhood Association on Saturday, Oct. 6, for the Environmental & Land Use Law Society's (ELULS) fall semester work day at the Law School Woods. In an effort to restore the property, the group removed exotic invasive plants species, built small earthen erosion control structures, picked up trash and debris, and laid mulch on some of the trails through the woods. In adopting the UF Conservation Area, directly west of the law school, the ELULS has pledged to host two work days each year, one in the fall semester and one in the spring semester. The next event ELULS will host is a Landscape Architecture Design Charette noon-6 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 19, in the Faculty Dining Room. As part of the design phrase of the Law School Woods Restoration Project, landscape architecture students will be providing various drawings on the design of the woods. From these drawings, one final design will be selected and submitted to the UF Office of Facilities and Planning for approval. All faculty and students are welcome to stop by and participate in or simply observe the charette.

Levin College of Law Honor Committee Holding Elections
The Levin College of Law Honor Committee will hold elections to elect representatives for the 2006 and 2007 entering classes and for LL.M. students on Thursday, Oct. 18, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The Honor Committee administers the Honor Code. In this capacity, the Honor Committee has the authority to do all actions which are necessary for the proper administration of the Code. It is composed of law students, two faculty advisors, the Levin College of Law associate dean for students, and a representative of the University of Florida Office of Student Judicial Affairs. Five students will be elected from the Fall 2006 entering class, five from the 2007 entering class, and two to represent LL.M. students.

UF Law Alumni Council Happy Hour at Orlando's UrbanThink! Bookstore Oct. 18
The University of Florida Law Alumni Council invites all Central Florida area alumni, students, and friends of the UF College of Law to a happy hour on Thursday, Oct. 18, 6-8 p.m., at the UrbanThink! Bookstore, 625 East Central Blvd., Orlando. Our special guest will be UF Law Professor Michael Seigel, who will be signing copies of his book, Improbable Events: Murder at Ellenton Hall, an exciting murder mystery that takes place in a law school. We are currently planning to have these events two or three times a year, and limited sponsorships are available. Please contact Sarah Rumpf at srumpf@cfl.rr.com if you or your firm are interested. Current sponsors are UrbanThink! Bookstore; Harris, Harris, Bauerle & Sharma P.A.; and Gatorlando, LLC. Remember to RSVP and support your College of Law. Check out the online invitation.

Jury Duty Notices Sent to Half of Fall 2007 Entering Class Students
Notices of jury duty have been sent to half of the Fall 2007 entering class. These students are required to serve on a jury for Trial Practice or Clinics (see http://www.law.ufl.edu/students/policies.shtml#15) and will lose registration priority if they shirk their duty. The notices are also posted on the academic bulletin board outside Student Affairs (HOL 164). First semester 2Ls are also reminded that if they missed their jury duty last fall they need to come to the Clinics (Bruton-Geer 105) and sign up.

Judge Smith Launches ACS 'Food For Thought' Lecture Series with Talk on Judicial Independence
Chief Judge Frederick D. Smith of Florida's 8th Judicial Circuit spoke in the Levin College of Law's Bailey Courtroom Oct. 4 on the topic of judicial independence. Judge Smith's talk was the first of this year's "Food For Thought" lecture series presented by the The American Constitution Society. To learn more about the American Constitution Society visit the website for the national organization, where you can also become a registered member, at http://www.acslaw.org/.

Author to Present 'Humane Alternatives to Feminism' Oct. 24
The Federalist Society and the Family Law Society will host speaker Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse at noon Wednesday, Oct. 24, in Holland Hall Room 360. Roback Morse's talk, "Humane Alternatives to Feminism," is described as "an articulate public policy argument based in logic, social science, and secular thought." Roback Morse, a former tenured professor at Yale and who also taught at Cornell and George Mason Universities, writes public policy articles for Forbes, Fortune, and the Wall Street Journal. Additionally, she has published numerous scholarly articles in various journals including the University of Chicago Law Review and the Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy. She resigned from her Yale University post to raise her family and now lives in California, where she pursues her primary vocation as a mother and wife, combined with an avocation of writing and lecturing. Since her resignation at Yale she has served as a senior fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institute. Roback Morse is the author of two best-selling books, Love and Economics: Why the Laisse Fair Family Doesn't Work and Smart Sex: Finding Lifelong Love in a Hookup World.

JLSA & SALSA Present Bowling at the Reitz
Remember a time before Wii when bowling involved heavy balls, stinky stranger shoes, and actually leaving your house? Don't miss this chance for some free bowling, good conversations, and a chance to show off your real life bowling skills. The Jewish Law Students Association (JLSA) and the Spanish American Law Students Association (SALSA) will co-sponsor a bowling night at the Reitz Union game room 7-9 p.m. Thursday, Oct 25. Several lanes have been reserved, and your stinky bowling shoes are covered.

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