News

Minnesota Law's Law in Practice Program, which provides 1Ls with the opportunity to develop real-world practice skills, was recently recognized by Bloomberg Law as a national leader in innovation in the field of experiential education.
2L Jack Tate, who is now an LiP student instructor, says participating in the program during his first year of law school was a huge confidence boost.

Edward H. Borkon ’58, a longtime private practitioner and friend and supporter of the Law School,  passed away on Dec. 3 at the age of 92.

Originally from Turtle Lake, Wisconsin, Borkon came to the Twin Cities in 1948 to attend Macalester College. After graduation, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps and 11th Armored Calvary Division of the U.S. Army.  He subsequently enrolled at Minnesota Law, graduating in 1958.

The law school’s Ronald M. Mankoff Tax Clinic had a record year in 2022—for the first time ever surpassing the $1 million mark in how much it helped clients reduce their tax liabilities.

The clinic annually files a report with the IRS providing the client liability reduction figure as part of a federal grant that it receives. For years in which records are available, the highest amount  the clinic has previously reported was about $572,000 in 2016.

Allan A. Ryan ‘70, a former U.S. Justice Department lawyer who in the 1980s was responsible for finding and prosecuting dozens of Nazi collaborators living in the United States, died at the age of 77.   

Professor Jon Choi has been named a McKnight-Land Grant Professor by the University’s Office of the Provost.

Dave Durenberger ‘59, who served 16 years in the U.S. Senate, has died at the age of 88.

Born in St. Cloud, Minnesota,  In 1955, Durenberger graduated from St. John's University in Collegeville. The top cadet in his ROTC class, he became a lieutenant in the Army Counter-Intelligence Corps, and later a captain in the U.S. Army Reserve. He enrolled at Minnesota Law, and graduated in 1959, practicing corporate law.

Nekima Levy Armstrong, a civil rights attorney and activist, engaged in a lively discussion on social justice and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy at the Law School’s eighth annual MLK Convocation yesterday.

Mahlon Floyd Hanson ’69, a former judge for the Minnesota Workers Compensation Court of Appeals and the Miami Immigration Court, died on Dec. 29 at the age of 77.

Hanson received both his bachelor of arts and law degrees from the University of Minnesota. In addition to his judicial service, he served as an assistant counsel for the former Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) in Minnesota and later in Miami. 

Hanson also served as a Staff Judge Advocate Officer in the U.S. Army on active duty and as a reservist. He retired as a Colonel. 

On December 20, 2022, Minnesota Law students Emma Kruger, 2L,  and Joshua Gutzman, 3L, successfully argued for a conditional reprieve for a 16-year-old client before the Minnesota Board of Pardons. Kruger and Gutzman are students in the Clemency and Child Advocacy and Juvenile Justice Clinics, respectively.

Suzanne Mead, a 2L at Minnesota Law, has big plans to pursue a career in international human rights law advocacy after graduation. Mead chose this area of work because it combines her immense passion for helping people with her interest in the Mandarin language, which she has studied for well over a decade. Because of Minnesota Law’s reputation of public interest law programs and the notoriety of the Human Rights Center (HRC), it was Mead’s first choice when picking a law school.