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Law Clerk Spotlight
LAW CLERK SPOTLIGHT - RYAN MAHER By Tracee Fruman
Ryan Maher is currently serving as law clerk to the Honorable Patrick H. Stringer. Mr. Maher hails from Eldersburg, Maryland, but is a graduate of Calvert Hall College High School in Towson. After graduating a semester early (thanks to AP credits) from the University of Maryland, College Park with a degree in economics, Mr. Maher had no intention of going to law school. In fact, Mr. Maher was looking for an entry-level job to put his newly-minted degree to use when a conversation with a friend, who was in law school, changed the trajectory of his career. Within a few short months, Mr. Maher did some research, took the LSAT, applied, and was admitted to the University of Baltimore School of Law. Unlike most (if not all) judicial law clerks, Mr. Maher was not yet a law school graduate when he began his clerkship. Due to Judge Stringer’s upcoming retirement in early 2022, Mr. Maher had the unique opportunity of clerking by day and taking law school classes in the evening. This allowed Mr. Maher to maximize his time as a law clerk, giving him more than one year, instead of just five months, with Judge Stringer. Mr. Maher was open to this non-traditional arrangement and “was thrilled by the opportunity” to work with Judge Stringer while also finishing law school.
Like his fellow judicial law clerks, Mr. Maher has had to be flexible has he navigated the challenges of clerking during a global pandemic. Now that we have entered the final phase of re-opening the courthouse, Mr. Maher enjoys spending the majority of the week working in-person. He recently experienced his first civil jury trial and by press time, will have also observed a criminal jury trial. He described jury selection as “very eye-opening” and was “very impressed by how smoothly the process went,” despite the jurors and courtroom staff being relocated to the American Legion due to COVID-19 safety guidelines. Regarding his favorite part about being a law clerk, Mr. Maher said, “Every day is different, with wide variety of cases and areas of law that we touch on. Every day is a learning experience and I’m very grateful for that.” In addition, Mr. Maher touched on his relationship with his chambers co-workers. He said, “they are such a joy to work with and we have a lot of fun. It makes coming in everyday just a great experience.” Now that Mr. Maher finished his last law school classes, he will be studying for the July 2021 bar exam. Although he has another six months of his clerkship, Mr. Maher is already thinking ahead to his first job as a practicing lawyer. He has a natural interest in business, especially how businesses start, develop, and run. He hopes to find employment doing transactional work, which will dovetail with his undergraduate degree in economics. Outside of work, Mr. Maher has a love of “all things sports.” Although playing (and watching) baseball is his first love, he has found more opportunities as an adult to play soccer. Mr. Maher enjoys playing in a co -ed, weekend soccer league called Charm City Soccer. He spends his free time hiking with his pandemic puppy, a Golden Retriever named Camden (yes, like the stadium!), with his new fiancée, Megan. Congratulations on your law school graduation and recent engagement and good luck on the bar exam!
As a species, humans generally mark momentous events by a length of time or a date. Members of the Baltimore County Bar Association are marking a significant event on DATE, when this esteemed and honorable organization turns a century. A century is a significant amount of time in human history since our lifespans mirror that amount of time. This means that in the course the history of the BCBA, the lengths of members’ lives overlapped each other providing for continuity and connection through the generations of members. We share and promote this continuity by celebrating remarkable events that occurred over the last century. Although by no means exhaustive, the following events shaped the law and legal community as we know it. On the outer edge of our century of existence is women’s suffrage, which is marked by the August 26, 1920 passage of the 19th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Initially, only white land-owning males over the age of 21 could cast a vote. One of the most monumental changes regarding the voting franchise, the fight to gain equal access to vote, was far from over. In fact, the fight continues in various state legislatures and Congress to either pass laws restricting the right or creating comprehensive protections to the vote franchise. Passage of the 18th Amendment and the enabling legislation of the Volstead Act, passed in October 1919, created a whole body of criminal laws addressing illicit industries and the rise of the black market and organized crime. The 21st Amendment repealed prohibition to stem the rise of organized crime violence. A similar debate, although not at the constitutional amendment level, is currently playing out among state legislatures with the legalization of cannabis in an attempt to halt the rise of organized drug-related crime. Most likely a catalyst to the Great Depression, Wall Street crashed October 24, 1929. This crash exposed the fragilities of an unregulated market. The crash set in motion the legislation that would create the Securities Act of 1933. This gave investors access to the information about the investments they made. To this day, the Security and Exchange Commission proactively protects the everyday investor from unscrupulous finance professionals. Germany fired the first shots of World War II on September 1, 1939, changing the course of history forever. Regimes touting different political systems and versions of personal freedom sprung up and challenged what we, as legal professionals, swore to uphold and protect zealously. During the war, Congress approved the First and Second War Powers Act to grant the president extraordinary power to reorganize the executive branch, federal agencies, government businesses, and allocate resources for national defense. Flash forward to the COVID-19 pandemic and we revisit the grant of extraordinary powers to a president to protect the health and welfare of Americans.
The end of World War II on September 2, 1945 sparked the creation of the United Nations and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Although the contribution and participation of the United States during the last few years became contested, the importance of these two agencies to world health, prosperity and security is unquestioned.
On May 17, 1954, the United States Supreme Court issued its decision in Brown v. Board of Education, argued by Thurgood Marshall, finding that separate but equal schools still violated the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment.
Not to diminish world wars, but I would argue that through the eyes of a legal professional, the Civil Rights Act of 1964 initiated a monumental shift in the prohibition of discrimination based on race, color, sex, or national origin. The United States Supreme Court, in several landmark cases, expanded the Act to include a prohibition of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
From 1989 to 1992, democracy was on the rise after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Many legal scholars and even some members of our esteemed organization provided counsel and advice to these newly birthed democratic countries. Not without strife, many of these democracies endured, showing the importance of the rule of law and personal freedoms.
The blistering spread of COVID-19 and the 2020 global pandemic reinforced how connected and interdependent our society has become. This pandemic not only changed epidemiology as we knew it, but also fundamentally changed how we interact with each other. Whole industries and areas of law shifted and became obsolete virtually overnight. The best silver lining from this horrific virus: we, as humans, as legal professionals, as members of this organization continued to persevere, adapt, and overcome. Even without the pandemic, our organization continues to adapt and forge new and stronger bonds with our community at large and within our profession. When someone writes this article for BCBA’s 200th anniversary, which will be beamed telepathically (included in your 2121 BCBA dues), rest assured, it will cover the monumental challenges, accomplishments, and contributions that this organization will undoubtedly come to pass in the next century.
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