ODDS & ENDS
Leiter Report
Faculty Among Most Cited Law Professors in the Country, According to Latest Leiter Rankings
Several UF Levin College of Law professors are among those recognized as the most cited in the country in the latest rankings from University of Texas Law Professor Brian Leiter. Leiter's ranking of Most Cited Law Professors by Specialty, 2000-2007 includes the following members of the UF Law faculty: Professor Jerold Israel, Ed Rood Eminent Scholar in Trial Advocacy & Procedure, who is 25th in Criminal Law & Procedure; Professor Lawrence Lokken, Hugh F. Culverhouse Eminent Scholar in Taxation, who is 9th in Tax; Cone Wagner Nugent Johnson, Hazouri and Roth Professor Juan Perea, who is 24th in Critical Theories; and Professor Christopher Slobogin, Stephen C. O'Connell Chair, who is 11th in Criminal Law & Procedure. Earlier this fall, Leiter ranked the UF Law faculty among the Top 35 Law Faculties Based on Scholarly Impact for 2007.
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US News & World Report Rankings
UF Law Moves Up in U.S. News Rankings
The Levin College of Law rose in recent U.S. News and World Report rankings to place in the top 25 public law schools and 46th overall of the nation’s nearly 200 accredited law schools. The graduate tax program was once again rated first among public law schools and second overall, with only New York University ranking higher. The law school also was ranked 13th overall and 6th among public schools for Environmental Law.
"First let me emphasize,” said Dean Robert Jerry, “as detailed in a letter I have endorsed along with about 170 other law school deans in the nation, that ranking systems are an unreliable guide to the differences among law schools that should be important to anyone trying to compare them. The U.S. News and World Report ranking methodology is, in my opinion, an extremely inexact measure of an institution’s true quality. But the reality is that many people use such rankings, and it would therefore be poor judgment for us simply to ignore them.”
“Having said that, we are still pleased that the exceptional quality of our Graduate Tax Program continues to be recognized, as is our status as one of the country’s best public law schools," he said.
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UF Trial Team Brings Home National Civil Rights Trial Competition Title
Trial Team Brings Home Title in St. John's University National Civil Rights Trial Competition
The University of Florida Trial Team brought home a national title at the St. John's University National Civil Rights Trial Competition in Jamaica, NY. After an intense three-day competition Oct. 18-20, team members Jessica Anderson (3L), Frank Gaulden (3L), Alicia Philip (3L), and Justin Stevens (3L) defeated 15 teams from across the country including Pace, Arizona State, and Emory, among others. The team was coached by Stacy Scott, Esq. (JD 95), and the Hon. David Gersten (JD 75), chief judge of Florida's Third District Court of Appeal in Miami. Presenting the plaintiff’s case Gaulden and Stevens defeated Temple University in the semifinals and presenting the defense’s case Anderson and Philip defeated Washburn University School of Law (Topeka, KS) in the final round. The civil rights case concerned a student accusing his college of violating his due process and free speech rights in the way in which the school sanctioned him after he was accused and found responsible for harassing a college dorm director. After weeks of practicing the team is very proud of the victory. "We only had four weeks but everyone worked extremely hard day in and day out and in the end it all paid off. I'm so proud of the effort my teammates put in and we couldn't have done it without our coaches," Philip said.
Stacy Scott, Esq., Justin Stevens (3L), Alicia Philip (3L), Frank Gaulden (3L), Jessica Anderson (3L), The Honorable David Gersten
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Moot Court in the Elite Eight
The Justice Campbell Thornal Moot Court Board team finished in the “elite 8” at the American Bar Association Law Student Division National Appellate Advocacy Competition National Finals in Chicago on April 3-4. As one of only 26 regional champions to advance to the National Finals, the team of Elizabeth Faist, Michael Schuster and Jennifer Jones beat out Michigan State to reach the quarterfinals. The ABA NAAC is the largest and most prestigious moot court competition in the United States.
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Little Named Professor of the Year
Professor Joseph Little and student Steve Adamczyk (3L) have won two of the law school’s highest honors. Little was named Professor of the Year and Adamczyk was named Student of the Year by the John Marshall Bar Association, which presented the awards at the Multicultural Fair April 10. JMBA selects the Professor of the Year by a vote of JMBA members. The Student of the Year is selected by a group of judges who evaluate nominees based on academics, campus involvement, independent community service, co-curricular activities and leadership.
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2008 NALSC Freedom Fellowship
The National Association of Legal Search Consultants is awarding the “NASLC Freedom Fellowship” to University of Florida Levin College of Law fi rst-year student Ghulam Tariq Khan. Khan will be a volunteer law clerk with the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia on its National Security and Immigrant Rights Project. As part of this summer program, Khan also will be assisting in monitoring the conditions at Georgia immigration detention facilities, as well as conducting community outreach.
This project was recently created to address the erosion of the civil liberties of various immigrant communities in Georgia post-9/11. There will be a special emphasis on education, community outreach and the framing of domestic civil liberties in an international human rights framework.
Khan’s dedication to community service is exceptional. He spearheaded a local organization called “Project Downtown,” which provides weekly hot meals and hygiene products to the homeless in downtown Gainesville, Fla. Additionally, Khan has volunteered in fl ood relief efforts for the Pakistan Red Crescent, a counterpart to the Red Cross. UF Law applauds Khan’s commitment to the public interest and immigration issues and we wish him much success in his summer endeavors.
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UF Law Students and Alumni Selected For Prestigious Federal Judicial Clerkships to Begin This Summer and Fall
Last fall, seven UF Law students and two recent alumni were selected through a highly competitive process for prestigious Federal Judicial Clerkships to begin during Summer and Fall 2008. Those selected included (pictured standing from left) Michael Hoii, a May 2008 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit for Judge Charles R. Wilson in Tampa; Scott Kennelly, a May 2008 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit for Judge Susan Black in Jacksonville; Ryan Maxey, a May 2008 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for Magistrate Judge Elizabeth A. Jenkins in Tampa; John Paglio, a December 2007 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for Magistrate Judge Howard T. Snyder in Jacksonville; (John) Cole Oliver, a December 2007 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for Judge John Antoon II in Orlando; and (pictured sitting) Laura Lothman, a December 2007 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for Senior Judge Harvey E. Schlesinger in Jacksonville. Not pictured: Simon Rodell, a May 2008 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida for Judge Steven D. Merryday in Tampa; Robert Caplen, a December 2005 graduate whi will clerk in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims for Judge Margaret Sweeney in Washington, D.C.; and Amanda Reid Payne, a December 2004 graduate who will clerk in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit for Judge Susan Black in Jacksonville.
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Strengthening Ties Between Students and Professionals
Florida Supreme Court Justice Raoul G. Cantero, III engages UF Law students in a round-table discussion in the college’s Rare Book Room during his visit to the Levin College of Law on April 16. Justice Cantero, accompanied by Carl Zahner, director of the Florida Bar Association’s Henry Latimer Center for Professionalism, and John Berry, also of the Florida Bar Association, met with faculty and students to discuss ways to strengthen implementation of professionalism in law school classrooms and curriculum.
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Statutory Slayers Knock-out the Corporate Kickbacks 7-4
Second-year law students enrolled in Professor Lee-ford Tritt’s Estates and Trusts and Professor Michael Siebecker’s Corporations classes spent an afternoon testing their skills in the 5th Annual Kickball Tournament held on the softball field at Southwest Recreation Center on Nov. 9. Serving as the neutral party and referee, Associate Dean for Students Rachel Inman kept the competitors in line.