Law School News

On March 16, 2011, the ABA Journal Web site cited an article co-authored by attorney Benjamin Skjold of Skjold Parrington and Carl Engstrom (’12), a law clerk at the firm, entitled, "Free Speech Threat or Misled Jury? Verdict Against Blogger 'Johnny Northside' Likely the Result of a Flawed Special Verdict Form."

Professor Emeritus Leo J. Raskind, a long-time faculty member and dedicated friend of the Law School, passed away March 22, 2011, in Minneapolis at age 91. His interest in law and commitment to the Law School were unflagging, and on his 90th birthday he was recognized at a faculty dinner for his years of service.

At the second annual meeting of the Association for Law, Property & Society in early March at Georgetown Law School, Professor Hari Osofsky was voted president-elect of the organization. She will become president in March 2012. The nonprofit association was formed to bring together scholars of all aspects of property law, policy, and theory for exchange of ideas and critical discussions of new information.

Catharine F. Haukedahl (’79), the new executive director of Mid-Minnesota Legal Assistance (MMLA) selected by the board of directors, assumed her new role on Feb. 16, 2011. As executive director, she is responsible for fulfilling the mission and goals of the multi-office, 60-attorney program.

Howard J. Bergman (’81), a 25-year member of 3M's Office of General Counsel, will join the Law School as Counsel in Residence on April 1, 2011. "Howard's wide-ranging experience will be an invaluable asset as the Law School expands its strong business law programs and its connections with the larger business community,” says David Wippman, Dean of the Law School.

On Feb. 21, 2011, the Minnesota State Legislature appointed four new members to the University of Minnesota Board of Regents. Among the distinguished candidates elected to serve a six-year term is David McMillan, a 1987 graduate of the Law School. He represents Minnesota’s Eighth Congressional District, which includes Duluth.

The University of Minnesota Law School will welcome Jessica A. Clarke to its faculty on June 30, 2011, as an associate professor. She comes to Minnesota from the Associates-in-Law program at Columbia Law School, a two-year fellowship. At Columbia, she conducted scholarly research and taught legal writing, research, and analysis to first-year students.

The University of Minnesota Women’s Faculty Cabinet in conjunction with William Mitchell College of Law is proud to present a workshop featuring Dr. Martha West of UC Davis. Dr. West will be discussing sex-based employment discrimination and accommodating discrimination by delaying child-bearing.

An amicus curiae brief drafted by the Law School's Human Rights Litigation and International Legal Advocacy Clinic was cited by two circuit judges in a recent oral argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals of the District of Columbia. Prof. Fionnuala Ní Aoláin signed the brief, which was drafted by Prof. Jennifer Green as Counsel of Record and by student attorneys Astrid Brouillard ('12), Anne Fuchs ('12), James C. Horvath ('12), Melissa Muro Lamere ('12), Nathaniel Nesbitt ('11), Feras Sleiman ('12), and Leo Twiggs ('11).

Now in its fourth year, the Law School will offer a program to help students prepare for the Law School Admissions Test (LSAT) from June 8 to Aug. 17, 2011. The class will meet once or occasionally twice a week and will be limited to 25 students.

The University of Minnesota Law School will participate in the John Paul Stevens Public Interest Fellowship program for the next five years. The program will, each year, provide two law students grants of $5,000 to support their work in summer public interest law positions.

Joan Humes (’90) was promoted to oversee the Litigation and Investigations Function at Medtronic Inc., with the title of Vice President and Deputy General Counsel for Litigation and Investigations.

Thirty-seven teams from 24 law schools across the country competed in the 26th annual William E. McGee National Civil Rights Moot Court Competition held at the University of Minnesota Law School on Feb. 24-26, 2011.

National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Chairman Wilma B. Liebman will give a lecture entitled “Reviving American Labor Law” at the Law School on March 31, 2011, at 12:15 p.m. in Lockhart Hall.

Law School Professor Bradley C. Karkkainen and Associate Professor Hari M. Osofsky have been awarded a $10,000 University Symposium grant by the Institute for Advanced Study at the University of Minnesota. The grant will support their project "Climate Change, Inequality and International Lawmaking: New Governance Approaches to Addressing Abundance and Security."

Khary Hornsby ('05), Director of International and Graduate Programs at the University of Minnesota Law School, was voted chair-elect of the Section on Graduate Programs for Non-U.S. Lawyers at the 2011 annual meeting of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) in San Francisco in January. He previously served as treasurer of the Section.