Table of Contents Message From the Dean.............................. 1 Message From the President....................... 2 The First 50 Years. . ...................................... 3 The Second 50 Years................................... 9 School of Opportunity. . .............................. 15 Student Organizations & Activities............ 19 City of Detroit & the School of Law. . .......... 23 Beloved Educators. . ................................... 27 School of Law Deans................................. 30 Alumni Traditions...................................... 31 Points of Pride. . ......................................... 35 Building for the Future.............................. 39
Message from the Dean
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t is an honor to serve as Dean of the School of Law during this historic year. When I look at the photographs on page 30 of the 19 distinguished men who have preceded me, I pause and reflect upon the many great leaders who have guided the School over the past 100 years. With supportive faculty, administrators, staff, excellent students, and dedicated alumni, we have all been blessed to be part of this special institution. Service has always been the foundation of the School of Law– service to the poor and disadvantaged, to the legal profession, and indeed to our entire community. Our location in downtown Detroit is an integral part of that commitment. We have always been downtown, in the heart of the judicial, civic, and corporate centers, and where those who are needy can easily access our legal aid services. Having renovated Dowling Hall and expanded the Riverfront Campus with the purchase and renovation of a new home for our clinical program across the street, we have a firm foundation for the next 100 years. I hope you enjoy this compilation of our history and the year’s festivities. It is also my hope that you will continue to support UDM Law for many years to come. Sincerely,
Lloyd A. Semple Dean and Professor of Law University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
Dean Lloyd Semple celebrates with new UDM Law alumna Tanya Potten (’12) and her family and friends. 2012
A CENTURY OF EDUCATING & INSPIRING LAW STUDENTS
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Message from the President
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niversity of Detroit Mercy has a rich history in the City of Detroit. As we celebrate the School of Law’s centennial anniversary, we reflect upon that history and the people and events which have left their indelible mark on our lives and our institution.
Detroit College, as the University of Detroit was originally known, was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1877 as the first Catholic college in Detroit. In 1990, the University of Detroit consolidated with Mercy College of Detroit, which was founded by the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, to form the University of Detroit Mercy. When the Jesuits opened the doors of Dowling Hall on October 1, 1912 for the first day of law classes, word quickly spread that this was a unique place. This was a law school where all students were welcome, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or religion. University of Detroit offered evening classes to provide students who held full-time employment during the day the opportunity to pursue a law degree at night. A rigorous curriculum was taught with an emphasis on humanistic values such as social justice, civic duty, and working for the poor and underrepresented. University of Detroit was not an ordinary School of Law; it was a law school where all students would be educated and inspired. Because of this strong foundation, the School of Law has been a leader in legal education for 100 years and is poised for an even more impressive second century. Please join us in celebrating this remarkable milestone. Sincerely,
Antoine M. Garibaldi, Ph.D. President, University of Detroit Mercy
University President Antoine M. Garibaldi, Ph.D., presents Ashley Gautreau (’12) with her J.D. diploma at the Calihan Hall Commencement ceremony. 2012
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FIRST 50 YEARS
School of Law, Dowling Hall, 1912
Progressive and inclusive from day one, the School of Law opened its doors to students on October 1, 1912, in the City of Detroit. 1 9 1 2 - 1 9 6 2
The First 50 Years: 1912-1962 FOUNDING OF THE SCHOOL OF LAW 1912
Thirty-five years after the University of Detroit (originally named Detroit College) was founded, we opened the doors of Dowling Hall on October 1, 1912, welcoming the first class of eager, inspired law students. Blending legal and Jesuit traditions, the new School of Law met the needs of University of Detroit undergraduates who wanted to continue their professional training at the School they so loved and respected. It was mutually advantageous to the City of Detroit, which needed more professionals and intellectuals to match the City’s booming industrial and manufacturing growth. Progressive and inclusive from day one, the School of Law was the first coeducational unit of the University of Detroit, welcoming female students for the first time. At the time of our founding, the President of the University of Detroit was Very Reverend William F. Dooley, S.J. The first Regent of the School of Law was Reverend Henry W. Otting, S.J., and the first Dean of the School of Law was the Honorable George S. Hosmer, LL.D. Learn more about Dean Hosmer on page 28.
Detroit College, as the University of Detroit was originally known, was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1877 as the first Catholic college in Detroit. Although Detroit had a large Catholic population for many years, historians have opined that a primary reason for the delay was that the body of Catholics in Detroit, who were too poor to send their children abroad for a secular college education, collectively were too few in number to support a local Catholic college. However, as the City of Detroit developed, and the numbers of Catholics in the area increased, the financial support grew and Detroit College was born. — Professor B.J. Otting, History of Detroit College
Dowling Hall, 1900s
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WORLD WAR I, 1914-1918
During the World War I years, School of Law students and faculty felt both the emotional and physical loss of its student body when the United States entered the war in 1917. In fact, by the end of the 19171918 school year, a large freshman class had dwindled by more than one-third, as students rapidly dropped from classrooms to join the service. Upper-level students, too, felt the weight of the war during what normally would have been jubilant times. The Varsity News reported on the June 1917 graduation: “There was a tinge of sadness in the air, as a great number had departed for camps and overseas, and those who had not were talking of greater means of rendering service.…” But following the war, enrollment boomed, as veterans poured back to the states seeking employment and educational opportunity.
AMERICA’S IMMIGRATION BOOM, 1910-1920s
The School of Law was not immune to the country’s immigration boom, and as Europeans flocked into the thriving metropolis of Detroit, the student body grew to include French, Irish, Polish, Armenian, and other nationalities of students. As reported by the Varsity News, “The 1918-1919 Freshman Law Class is very cosmopolitan, not to say international. Representatives of nine different nationalities are making the class….” By 1921, the School of Law was busting at the seams with an enrollment of 303 students, nearly half of whom were freshman. Morning classes were added to the schedule as a solution to the crowded conditions.
WOMEN’S SUFFRAGE, 1918-1920
As the national suffrage movement gained momentum, and women were accorded the right to vote in Michigan (1918), the School of Law was already known for its open policy. We had never excluded women, and the first women of record were enrolled in the 19161917 academic year. By 1919, we had four female graduates, all of whom passed their bar exams. WORLD WAR II, 1940s
Many School of Law students became soldiers after the United States declared war on Germany, Italy and Japan at the end of 1941. Following World War II, the Acting Dean of the School of Law pushed for three actions to support returning veterans: refresher courses for Michigan’s 1,100 lawyers in service; re-entrance anytime into courses disrupted by war service for students; and relaxation of admittance requirements for students returning from the war.
“Other schools may graduate greater numbers, but what we lack in quantity is added in quality. Fifty years hence, when Time calls the roll, he will find among the score of lawyers, judges and statesmen who received their Law degrees in 1915 from the University of Detroit men who have made history, not by wars and gleaming sabers, but by golden words filled with noble sentiments, by just decisions, by proper laws and by honest efforts to do their little–well.” — Raymond J. Kelly (’15) The Class of 1914 graduating class from the University of Detroit School of Law Upper Row, left to right: Ben Johnston, Dan Lynch, Joseph Schnitzler, P.H. Kane, John H. Langdon, L. Crimmins Lower Row, left to right: Jas. H. Kane, W. A. Crebassa, Rev. William. F. Dooley, S. J. (President of the University of Detroit, 1911-1915), Frederick C. Vieson, Earl B. Young
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The First 50 Years: 1912-1962 THE HOMES OF THE SCHOOL OF LAW
Law classes were originally held in Dowling Hall– the School of Law’s current home–from 1912 to 1916. Dowling Hall is named after Rev. Michael P. Dowling, S.J., the President of Detroit College in 1889. The School of Law then moved across Jefferson Avenue to the second floor of the newly-built Dinan Hall, a building it shared with the School of Engineering and later with the School of Dentistry. Dinan Hall was built in 1916 through the generosity of two well-known Detroit merchants, brothers John and Michael Dinan. In September of 1927, the School of Law became the sole occupier of Dinan Hall. The occasion was noted in the University yearbook below. In the fall of 1952, the School of Law took an even greater leap when it moved from Dinan Hall back to Dowling Hall and became the primary occupier there, returning to its original, now historical home. A substantial renovation of Dowling Hall was done at the time, which was funded by a $100,000 bequest from the late Edward D. Stair, former publisher of the Detroit Free Press.
“Our law school will make a decisive step in September 1927. When the other colleges of the University have moved to their spacious new campus at [McNichols Road], the lawyers will enjoy the undivided use of the structure which they now share with several departments. More commodious offices for the resident professors, suitable consultation rooms, study and reading facilities will all be provided. The present bulging library will find its congestion relieved, and most court rooms will resound to the arguments of the tyro lawyers.” — 1927 University Yearbook
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
Top and middle: Dowling Hall exterior, 1889-1890 Bottom: Dowling Hall third floor lecture hall, 1889-1890 Right: Dinan Hall, the second home for the School of Law (1916-1952), photographed in 1940
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The First 50 Years: 1912-1962 THE GOLDEN ERA, 1950s
As America experienced a time of innovation, growth and prosperity– and unbelievable optimism–the School of Law gained esteem in a permanent home at Dowling Hall. After 40 years of moving around and sharing spaces with other U of D schools, the School of Law now enjoyed a new library, space for the Law Journal and Cooley Law Club, a snack bar, and a courtroom for the Moot Court Club. The Club landed in the National Moot Court Competition finals in New York the following year. In sync with America’s energy and leadership during the Golden Era, all of the School of Law candidates passed their Michigan State Bar examinations in 1957– a first in the State of Michigan. The School of Law again placed first the following year, and an experienced bar examiner was reported to proclaim: “The University of Detroit class was the finest prepared of any school he has ever seen.” CHARACTER BUILDING, EARLY 1960s Nearing the end of our first 50 years, the School of Law continued to be held in high esteem, standing true to its original ideals and the blending of scholarly and Jesuit values. These ideals would position our faculty and students for the years ahead, for during the mid to late 1960s the School of Law played a prominent role in fighting for justice for unrepresented Detroiters facing poverty and discrimination. In the Winter 1961 issue of Catholic Lawyer, School of Law Professor William Kelly Joyce, Sr., aptly stated the objectives of the School of Law at the time, as quoted below. Top: Students engaged in their law studies, 1949 Bottom: Student in class, 1958
“The School of Law has two objectives–professional and apostolic. It blends two great traditions of which it is singularly the possessor–the legal and the Jesuit. Consonant with the great profession of the law, the School of Law is dedicated to professional excellence and skill, classroom and teaching precision, and scholarly research in moot court and law journal.” “…In the long run, a school, professional or otherwise, must be judged by the character and ability of its graduates. The School of Law of the University of Detroit is justly proud of the record of its alumni in the profession of law and in the wider field of life itself.” — William Kelly Joyce, Sr., School of Law Professor, 1961
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SECOND 50 YEARS
School of Law, Dowling Hall, 1962
U of D’s new Urban Law Clinic caught national attention when it opened its doors in 1965; the wave of innovation in the School’s programs and curriculum continued through modern times. 1 9 6 3 - 2 0 1 2
The Second 50 Years: 1963-2012 JOHNSON’S WAR ON POVERTY, 1964
As part of America’s “War on Poverty,” the School of Law received a $250,000 federal grant from the Office of Economic Opportunity in 1964 for its Urban Law Program. On November 24 of the following year, the School’s Urban Law Office opened at 531 East Larned. Rev. Paul P. Harbrecht S.J., Dean, proclaimed, “At a stroke, this law school was placed in a position of national importance in a field of law that is growing daily in importance.” Indeed, it brought notoriety to the School quickly, but also brought needed legal representation for Detroit’s disadvantaged citizens and an unprecedented opportunity for students to gain working knowledge of the law while impacting social injustice in the community. As an outgrowth of the clinic, Fr. Harbrecht initiated a program in 1965: A Law School for the Urban Community. This included additions to the curriculum such as Welfare Law, Landlord and Tenant Relations, and Law and Poverty Seminars. Problems of urban society were also integrated into the traditional, core subjects. In 1971, the Detroit Free Press praised our progressive approach: “The kid lawyers are raising hell with the system, making waves, rocking the boat–creating new legal landmarks.” Landmarks indeed: the Urban Law Program was principally responsible for the Tenants Rights and Code Enforcement Legislation enacted in Michigan in 1968. Law students drafted a remedial bill and lobbied it through the state legislature after listening to complaints from victimized tenants whose landlords refused to make needed repairs.
The Urban Law Office on Larned Street, 1965
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
Top: School of Law clinic students interview clients in jail, 1965 Bottom: Students working in the Urban Law Clinic, 1965
WOMEN’S RIGHTS, 1970s
As the Women’s Rights Movement of the 1970s gained momentum, the University of Detroit School of Law responded by opening the Women’s Justice Center in 1977 in the School annex at 651 East Jefferson. The center provided legal services to women for problems such as credit, housing, employment, child custody and divorce, as well as educational programs on women’s legal rights. BUILDING OUT AND GIVING BACK, 1973-1976
In 1973, the University of Detroit backed a plan for major renovations to Dowling Hall with support from Detroit’s most prominent foundations. At the time, Detroit was undergoing its own rebirth with the groundbreaking and construction of the Renaissance Center across Jefferson Avenue. As the enormous towers were erected at the RenCen, the atrium and new law library were built and Dowling Hall was renovated. Accolades like this from a Detroit News editorial in March 1973 were not uncommon: “The university, with… a whole city that has benefited from the university’s educational efforts, is not just a ‘taker.’ It is also a ‘giver’ of well-educated graduates, top professionals and civic support and leadership. The University of Detroit, tiny compared to the state universities, is a big contributor to the tangible and intangible well-being of the city.” We also made a small mark in Europe, when a friendship between School of Law Professor Wenceslas Wagner and a professor from Clermont Ferrand, France, launched a cross-continental graduate teaching program between our campus and the Universite
d’Auvergne in 1976. The program continues today, with a recent UDM Law graduate teaching in France and a Universite d’Auvergne graduate teaching here for at least one semester. NEW PROGRAMS AND PROJECTS, 1980s
Our American Inn of Court chapter was founded in 1984 under the guidance of U.S. District Court Judge Julian Abele Cook, Jr. We were the first Michigan law school with an Inn of Court chapter. Today, approximately 20 students in their final year of studies meet monthly to perform pretrial and trial exercises before area judges and attorneys designated as “Masters of the Bench.” The program hones advocacy skills while emphasizing professional obligations of civility and ethics. In the 1980s and 1990s, our London Law Programme offered second- and third-year law students an exceptional opportunity to study abroad for an academic semester. We were the only American law school to operate a foreign-based academic year program organized on a semester basis. Students took courses in international,
comparative British and American law. The faculty was a blend of British and University of Detroit Mercy law professors, and classes were held on the campus of Regent’s College in central London.
Top left: Fr. Malcolm Carron, president of the University of Detroit, and Mr. James T. Barnes, Sr. (’40), chairman of the Renaissance Campaign to restore the downtown campus, watch as Mr. Stanley S. Kresge, chairman of the board, The Kresge Foundation, breaks ground for the new $1.5 million Kresge Law Library, March, 1974 Top right: Students working in the law library, 1974 Bottom: The London Law Programme was offered at Regent’s College, London, in the 1980s and 1990s.
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The Second 50 Years: 1963-2012 MULTIPLE DEGREE OPPORTUNITIES
The School of Law has been a leader in multiple degree opportunities to meet the needs of students seeking to compete in an international marketplace. In 1983, the School pioneered a joint degree program with the University of Windsor, which was recreated in 2001 in response to expanding globalization. In 2012, enrollment in the Canadian & American Dual J.D. Program is at its peak of 150 students, and it is still the only comparative law program of its kind in Canada and the United States in which students can earn both J.D. degrees in three years. Expanding upon this success, in 2007 the School of Law joined with the Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey in Mexico to develop a J.D./L.E.D. (Mexican) Degree Program in which bilingual students can earn both common and civil law degrees in five or six years in order to practice law in both countries. Ambitious students may enroll in both programs to earn all three degrees in approximately six years, giving them the opportunity to practice in all three countries. The School of Law also has a J.D./M.B.A. Program with UDM’s College of Business Administration, which allows students to earn both degrees in four years. BUILDING NOTORIETY, 2000s
In 2004, we returned to our roots, dramatically expanding ties with the Michigan legal community by offering more courses taught by preeminent practitioners through the Distinguished Visiting Professor program. Lloyd Semple, Chairman Emeritus of Dykema Gossett, was the first participant, followed by an impressive Who’s Who of metro Detroit’s senior counsel. Now called Professors of Practice, the program continues to flourish today, under the watchful eye of now Dean Lloyd Semple. Our Clinical Program has been a part of the City of Detroit for nearly 50 years, but since 2001, it has grown from one clinic to ten. In 2004, the School added a Mobile Law Office component, converting an RV into a law office. In recent years, the Program has reached beyond the city and across the country with Project SALUTE, our national clinic that works to secure federal disability benefits for veterans. While we have always strived to teach students to be both skilled practitioners and compassionate professionals, UDM Law began a Public Interest Fellowship Program in 2003, which expands our long-standing tradition of service to the community and provides students the opportunity to succeed while making a difference. Students selected for fellowships spend the summer working for nonprofits that fight poverty and discrimination, building on the fundamental concerns of our Jesuit and Sisters of Mercy traditions. APPLIED LEGAL THEORY AND ANALYSIS PROGRAM, 1990s
In 1995, UDM Law launched its innovative Applied Legal Theory and Analysis program to replace the standard Legal Research and Writing course. In 2005, U.S. News & World Report for the first time ranked legal writing programs at law schools across the country. Our ALTA program was ranked 12th in the nation and has routinely ranked in the top 25 among all law schools.
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Top: New high-tech classrooms allow close teacherstudent interaction, 2011 Middle: Clinic professors working on a case with a student, 2009 Bottom: UDM Law students in the U.S. District Court in Detroit, 2009
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The Second 50 Years: 1963-2012 LAW FIRM PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT, 2007
In the winter of 2007, the School of Law launched the Law Firm Program, an innovative curriculum for third-year students that simulates the real practice of law in a classroom setting. Shaped by national and local law firm leaders, together with UDM Law faculty, the program is not only preparing UDM students for the day-to-day duties they will see in practice, but also setting a new standard for legal education. Articles in the National Law Journal have touted the new curriculum, while the Wall Street Journal noted how the program helps UDM Law graduates find jobs with elite national firms. A national model for teaching law students the practical elements of the practice of law, it continues to help students more smoothly transition into practice. RENOVATIONS FOR THE FUTURE, 2010-2012
During 2010 and 2011, initial renovations to Dowling Hall were underway: the cafeteria and atrium were improved and updated, the library revamped, and eight classrooms were totally renovated, with a new large classroom created on the third floor. Throughout 2011 and into 2012, a total makeover of the remainder of the interior of the building was completed, including a new student service and welcome center. The hallways and the historic stairway were restored to their classic beauty, and new floors and lighting were installed throughout the building. The remarkable, extensive, and beautiful renovation of Dowling Hall has provided us with a platform for the next 100 years of service to students, alumni, and the community at-large.
Top: The new Student Service Center on the first floor of Dowling Hall.The room served different purposes over the years, initially as a chapel, then as a library, and finally as a student center. 2011 Middle: One of many renovated classrooms with the latest high-tech features– smart podiums, wireless wi-fi, flat screen monitors, and white boards. 2011 Bottom: The reference desk at the revamped Kresge Law Library. 2011 Left: Restored main staircase at Dowling Hall. 2011
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SCHOOL OF OPPORTUNITY
Moot Court Law Club, 1954
The School of Law, from the early years, offered classes in the day, evening and nighttime, so working students had the opportunity to enroll; since the beginning, a diverse student body has made its mark on the School and the profession.
School of Opportunity “The atmosphere is extremely conducive to the study of law.... It doesn’t involve the ‘cut throat’ competition which exists in so many of the better known law schools, but rather a genuine enthusiasm on the part of all those participating to know the law more deeply and thoroughly.” — I. John Snider III (’60), quoted in a 1958 letter to a former classmate who was attending Yale Law School. The enthusiasm of which John Snider spoke was evident from our earliest days, when flexibility in class schedules and equal opportunity for all students without regard to religion, gender, race, or ethnic background clearly illustrated our School’s genuinely open environment. DAY, AFTERNOON, AND NIGHT CLASSES
Due to the number of potential law students and professors who worked by day, the School of Law opened in 1912 with two programs: late-afternoon classes, held from 4:15 to 6:15 pm, and night classes, held from 6:30 to 8:30 pm, with all students taking Saturday afternoon courses.
“Monday, October 10, the
In 1921, U.D. Law added a day class program, unique for the era, meeting the need for more classes for the growing school. Day class students also could broaden their studies with literary courses as a supplement.
growth and extension, when
The School of Law continued to develop new programs. In 1924, we began to offer summer courses. In 1957, the summer program expanded to offer 18 course options to practitioners or students of any accredited law school. Today, our summer offerings allow students to graduate early or spread their coursework to accommodate work schedules.
It marks the fruition of an
RELIGIOUS FREEDOM
Since the beginning of student recruitment in 1912, the administration of the University and the School of Law made it clear that although this was a Catholic institution, students of all faiths were welcome. This policy was defined in the first recruitment publication of the University in 1877, which provided, “‘No one who may apply for admission . . . will be refused on account of the religious opinions he may entertain, and no undue influence will be used to make a student change his religious belief.’” Herman J. Muller, S.J., The University of Detroit 1877-1977: A Centennial History, p. 21, quoting Detroit College Catalogue, 1877-79, p. 3. The School enjoys a religiously diverse student body, and student organizations and accommodations have developed to meet their needs. SPECIAL SUMMER PROGRAM
For nearly four decades, UDM Law has offered a conditional admission program, the Special Summer Program, for minority, disadvantaged, or disabled applicants who do not meet the minimum standards of the entering class, but show potential for the study of law. SSP courses are taught as traditional law school classes, exposing candidates to skills that are developed throughout law school. SSP’s primary objective is to give candidates the opportunity to prove that their numerical predictors of success in law school are unreliable. Satisfactory demonstration of ability in the SSP permits admission to UDM’s J.D. program.
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Law School entered upon a new epoch in its history of it inaugurated day classes. idea that has long been germinating and the culmination of the hope of every member of the faculty.” — Varsity News, October 12, 1921
Top: Students entering Dowling Hall for night classes, 1962 Right: Students on the steps of Dowling Hall, 1928
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School of Opportunity WOMEN AT THE SCHOOL OF LAW
It was June of 1919 when the School of Law first saw female graduates cross the stage at commencement. Clara Marks, Alice Donovan, Lillian Griffin, and Catherine Doran–all four of whom passed the Bar Exam–hold the honor of being our first female graduates. We have long been a place of possibility for women, as evidenced by the School offering a coeducational setting since opening its doors. Today, following a century of women’s rights movements, the School is no less committed. In fact, in the spring of 2012, 90 women graduated, comprising 47 percent of their graduating class. We share these memories of some of our earlier female graduates…. Students, 1930
Anne Davidow (’20) Anne Davidow was a suffragist in the early 20th century with an enduring passion for women’s rights. She believed that women should not be treated like property, a logical conclusion to being raised by a father who twice tried to sell her. Starting in 1918, Davidow would stand outside the factory gates in Detroit shouting arguments for women’s suffrage. As the Nineteenth Amendment was ratified in 1920, Davidow graduated from the School of Law, practicing in Detroit until she was 85. Catherine McIntosh (’23) Catherine McIntosh was a clerk in the prosecutor’s office in 1924 when she obtained a conviction against two men charged with assault and battery. She was called to court in the absence of the assistant prosecuting attorney. When she graduated from U.D. Law in 1923, she was among the top three students in her class. A few months later she received second highest honors on the Bar Exam.
Anne Davidow
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Catherine McIntosh
Virginia Brodell Dreyer (’28) Virginia Dreyer was one of four women to graduate in 1928, choosing her own career path, rather than following her parents’ wish for a doctor. “We learned by case method and I liked that very much, as I did not like lecture courses.” After graduation she worked for six years for a trust company, and then moved on to teaching for the rest of her career, taking clients to fill in her spare time. Dr. Margaret Rose (’37) Margaret Rose was the only woman in her class of 49 students. “There was no ladies’ restroom. The secretaries and I used the men’s room.” Some men in the building “seemed to wonder what I was doing in those sacred halls.” Rose went on to practice probate law for the rest of her career, taking two political appointments before joining Polumbo, Polumbo & Pugh in 1942, eventually becoming partner. She stayed there until 1987, when she opened her own practice.
Virginia Brodell Dreyer
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
Dr. Margaret Rose
Muriel Tallant Maxwell (’39) “I do not remember any discrimination. I was called on as often as the men, and my answers were taken as seriously as theirs,” recalls Muriel Tallant Maxwell. After graduating with four other women, Maxwell opened a solo practice in Port Huron, but felt like an “oddity” in a small town. In 1941, she moved back to Detroit to work. She left the practice of law after having her first child, eventually becoming a teacher and then principal in Port Huron. Joan D. Jarson (’57) Joan Jarson wanted to sue her insurance company for $100 after a car accident in 1955. Unable to afford an attorney, she decided to take on the case herself, waiting through three years of law school to pursue it. Jarson was one of only two female 1957 graduates from the School of Law, and one of only six women in the Detroit area to pass the Bar Exam.
Muriel Tallant Maxwell Joan D. Jarson
STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS & A CTIVITIES
Students, 1928
School of Law student organizations have provided industrious students many ways to become involved in service and intellectual activities beyond the classroom.
Student Organizations & Activities There are approximately forty student organizations at the School of Law. The four organizations that are most active on campus and have a long history are the Student Bar Association, Moot Court Board of Advocates, the Black Law Students Association, and Law Review. STUDENT BAR ASSOCIATION
The Preamble to the Constitution of the Student Bar Association sets forth the purpose of the School of Law’s elected student government: “To promote and coordinate student participation in educational and social activities, to provide for the student welfare, to promote understanding within and among students, faculty, staff and alumni of the School of Law and University committees and local, state and national bar associations, to promote professional conduct and attitudes, and to provide a method for the resolution of student grievances.” Preamble to the UDM Law Student Bar Association Constitution. The SBA has provided law students with a clear voice during critical times in the School’s history, while also organizing wonderful social gatherings such as the annual Barrister’s Ball. Top: 10th Annual Voice for Justice Auction held at the Detroit Golf Club in 2012 Bottom: Five student members of the Student Bar Association, 1962
University of Detroit Mercy J-Hop, 1923
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MOOT COURT BOARD OF ADVOCATES
In 1937, students drafted the constitution for the University of Detroit Moot Court Club, which–for a time–was also known as the Thomas M. Cooley Law Club. The constitution called for an annual meeting to elect officers and mock legal trials to be performed under the supervision of members of the legal profession, giving students the opportunity to perform judicial proceedings three times each month. Students argued cases before a University “supreme court” made up of law students. The Club was formed to help familiarize members with appellate practice. It was not until 1952 – when the School of Law moved from Dinan to Dowling Hall – that the Club was given its own room. One year later, the team made it to the National Moot Court Competition in New York. In 1956, two teams went as far as the semifinals of the National Competition, and in 2009 UDM Law’s Moot Court brought home the National Champion trophy. Today, the Moot Court Board of Advocates is focused on providing students with confidence and leadership skills both in and out of the courtroom. Members of the Moot Court Board have the opportunity to compete in national appellate competitions as well as internal trial competitions. Over the years, the Moot Court Board has enjoyed success in numerous competitions. BLACK LAW STUDENTS ASSOCIATION
The National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA), formed in 1968 at New York University Law School, is a national organization that articulates and promotes the needs and goals of black law students and brings about change in the legal community. The UDM chapter of NBLSA was formed in 1988 with a mission to serve, mentor, network, and raise political and social awareness. Our association works diligently to increase diversity in the legal profession and to demonstrate that academic excellence in legal education is an attainable goal for students of color. BLSA sponsors events and speakers throughout the year. The recent prestigious list of speakers has included U.S. Congressman John Conyers, Jr. (2012), Rev. Jesse Jackson, Sr. (2011), and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy (2008). Student members also host an annual alumni mixer, a scholarship brunch for recipients of the Hon. Denise Langford Morris (’82) Scholarship and the 3L Bar Assistance Scholarship, a Vegas Night fundraiser, and various community service projects.
BLSA Motto: “Lawyers must use the law as a means to effectuate social change.” — Thurgood Marshall, U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Top: Moot Court mock trials, 1951 Middle: Members of the Moot Court Club in 1957 Back row left to right: Father Jerome A. Petz and John W. McAuliffe. Front row left to right: Bill Stancyzk, Bob Wilmoth, George Roumell, Jr., and Charlie Rutherford. Bottom: Barrister’s Ball, 2011
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Student Organizations & Activities LAW REVIEW
The Law Review of the University of Detroit was first issued in 1916 as a student publication recording all written opinions of Michigan Circuit Court judges. The value is two-fold: members of the profession have an early compendium of noteworthy, precedent-establishing cases, and the students, in editing it, have practical exercise in briefing the decisions of the courts as they are actually handed down unabridged. Since 1916, students who are a part of Law Review have contributed to the legal scholarship of the State of Michigan and the nation by publishing five issues of their legal journal each year. The group provides opportunities for members to hone their research, writing, editorial, and analytical skills, as well as meet other students and alumni, all while developing a greater sense of the culture of the legal profession. In 1932 the magazine became the Law Journal, and expanded to include articles by area experts, book reviews, and other matters of interest. Its name changed again to the Journal of Urban Law, eventually becoming University of Detroit Mercy Law Review, as it is known today. Within the last ten years, UDM Law Review articles have been cited in the opinions of the U.S. Supreme Court, U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeal, and numerous state supreme courts. The Law Review initiated an annual symposium in 2010, which is gaining national notoriety. Top: Some of the members of the The Law Journal staff, 1959 Bottom: The 2012 Law Review Symposium held at Detroit Athletic Club.
UDM President Antoine Garibaldi and UDM Law Dean Lloyd Semple pictured with the 2012 members of BLSA
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
CITY OF DETROIT & THE SCHOOL OF LAW
Downtown Detroit, Hart Plaza, 2000s
Intertwined since the early years, Detroit and the School of Law grew and changed together. We were not immune to Detroit’s victories and struggles.
City of Detroit & the School of Law
Opening dedication of the Urban Law Clinic on East Larned Street in Detroit, November 24, 1965
While the School of Law was founded more than 200 years after the City of Detroit, their histories intertwined throughout the 20th century. While the City grew and changed, the School of Law was not immune to Detroit’s victories and struggles. INDUSTRIALIZATION, 1910s
Following the introduction of the Model T in 1908, mass production took off and Detroit grew rapidly. The creation of the University of Detroit School of Law was a direct result of this growth, with the founders noting that great industrial growth needed “like expansion along intellectual and professional lines.” In October of 1912, the first class of 28 law students began their studies. An evening program was in place from the onset to afford working Detroiters the opportunity to further themselves. POPULATION BOOM, 1910s–1920s
Detroit’s burgeoning automobile industry gave way to a rapid population increase. Between 1900 and 1920 more immigrants settled in Detroit than other U.S. cities, except New York and Chicago. The School of Law’s 1919 freshman class had many different nationalities, including French, Irish, Polish, Jewish, Italian, Armenian, and German.
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WOMEN’S RIGHT TO VOTE AND SERVE AS JURORS, 1918
In 1918, women were accorded the right to vote in Michigan and, along with that, the right to serve on juries. Six years later –with women starting to appear on juries, but the decision still controversial among many – School of Law Dean Hally commented about women jurors being just as capable as men. “It is sometimes said that a woman’s emotions might have an undue effect upon her judgments, but there seems to be little foundation for this charge,” noted Hally in a Varsity News story. “The same thing may be said with equal truth of many men.” DETROIT AS AMERICA’S ARSENAL OF DEMOCRACY, 1940s
Economic growth during the mid 1940s was tied to World War II as Detroit’s mass-production prowess shifted to outputting tanks, trucks, guns, and airplanes, boosting Detroit’s identity as the nation’s Arsenal of Democracy. On campus, war recruits were missed at graduations, and enrollment standards were relaxed for returning veterans wanting to study law.
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
MOVING MORE PEOPLE, 1950s
For the last time in history, Detroit’s population grew, reaching its all-time high of 1.8 million people in the 1950s. During this mid-century population boom, a colossal freeway system was engineered and built, supporting the automobile industry in more ways than one. Alumni of that era have told us that the freeway expansions, and consequential loss of Dinan Hall, expedited the School of Law’s move back to Dowling Hall in 1952. DETROIT’S CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT, 1960s
The “Walk to Freedom” march in Detroit, one of the country’s largest civil rights events to date, was organized in 1963. Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. led the march along Woodward Avenue with prominent Detroiters, including Reverend C. L. Franklin (soul singer Aretha Franklin’s father), labor leader Walter P. Reuther, and Mayor Jerome P. Cavanagh (’54). At the downtown rally, King gave his “I Have a Dream...” speech before delivering it two months later in Washington, D.C. The Varsity News enthusiastically covered news of the march. Right: Students strolling on the sidewalk in front of the Law School on Jefferson Avenue, 2011
A CENTURY OF EDUCATING & INSPIRING LAW STUDENTS
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City of Detroit & the School of Law UNREST, RIOTS AND LEGAL REPRESENTATION, LATE 1960s
In 1967, Detroit made the national press on a less positive note when the Detroit Riot broke out. Our Urban Law Program students traveled to Jackson State Prison after the riots to screen minor offenders for quick processing and release. Some had been in jail over a week. More than 1,000 prisoners were transported to Jackson due to overcrowding of jails in Detroit; courts imposed high bonds in an effort to keep rioters off the streets. According to a University of Detroit press release, “When the students arrived in Jackson, they were given a standing ovation by prisoners who had been kept incommunicado for days and who felt abandoned.” Back on campus, and in response to segregation and urban issues in Detroit, the School of Law proposed a feasibility study for a Center of Urban Studies, shifting curriculum focus even more toward legal issues of people of modest means and situations arising from urban environments. At the end of the 1960s, Detroit still recuperating from the 1967 turmoil, Wayne County Sheriff Roman Gribbs (’54) was elected as Detroit’s mayor. His term began in 1970. FROM FIRSTS TO WORSTS, 1970s AND 1980s
In 1974, Coleman A. Young became the first African-American mayor, and was the longest serving chief executive of Detroit, serving for 20 years. Dennis W. Archer became the first African-American elected president of the Michigan Bar Association. Detroit’s population took a hit, dropping by 20 percent from 1970
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to 1980. In response to the growing Women’s Rights Movement of the 1970s, University of Detroit School of Law opened the Women’s Justice Center in 1977. Following the 1969 termination of our Office of Economic Opportunity grant, which launched the Urban Law Clinic in 1965, the School of Law remained deeply committed to the clinic program. As poverty grew in Detroit in the 1970s and 1980s, law students and the School reacted by putting heavier focus on representing poor and indigent people. Substance abuse and eviction cases were common areas of representation. A 1971 Time Magazine article about the University of Detroit School of Law praised the School’s work in Detroit. “U.D. Law has developed a social consciousness rivaling that of many better-known institutions. Detroit’s students have fought for new rights for impoverished individuals in hundreds of civil and criminal cases and have handled important suits against neighboring suburbs, claiming racial discrimination in housing.”
news captured our worst moments, such as the 1992 death of Malice Green who was beaten by two Detroit police officers. More people left the city, and by 2000, Detroit’s population dipped to less than one million. But the outlook improved as Dennis Archer took office in 1994. He started bridging the great divide between city and suburbs, pushing for a healthy and unified metropolitan region, and working to redevelop and reignite our faltering city. Crime statistics improved as the decade progressed and efforts to revitalize downtown Detroit emerged. Today, Archer, having returned to private practice, serves on the UDM School of Law Dean’s Advisory Board. At UDM Law, the 1990s were a time of growth and expansion. Our population peaked at 800 students, and the School was doing its own redevelopment and recharging.
CLOSING THE MILLENNIUM, 1990s
As the United States, overall, enjoyed a time of prosperity and low unemployment during the 1990s, Detroit continued to struggle. The national
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
Students walking through the Millender Skywalk to the Renaissance Center on Jefferson Avenue, 2000s
BELOVED EDUCATORS OF THE S CHOOL OF LAW
Students in class, 1963
Over the years, more than a few beloved, esteemed educators have made an impenetrable impression on the School and its students, faculty, administrators – and all whose lives they touched.
Beloved Educators of the School of Law DEAN GEORGE S. HOSMER
The first Dean of the School of Law was the Honorable George S. Hosmer, LL.D., a judge of the Wayne County Circuit Court. Dean Hosmer continued to actively serve as a judge while holding the position of Dean until his death on March 2, 1921. Many at the time noted that Judge Hosmer was well suited for the position of dean due to his temperament and abilities.
Dean George S. Hosmer, First Dean of the School of Law, 1912-1921
Dean Hosmer’s broad and practical knowledge of the legal profession in Detroit was invaluable in the formation of the new law school. He understood the importance of the School’s proximity to city, county, and federal courts, recruiting the top jurists and practitioners to lecture at the new law school. An advocate of learning through court observation, he stressed to the student body the importance of practical experience. As a tribute to Dean Hosmer, the annual G. Mennen Williams Moot Court Competition for all first-year law students occurs in the fictitious State of Hosmer each spring.
“He was a modest, kindly man who earned the admiration of the students by his ability and who won their affection by his sympathetic humanity.” — 12 University of Detroit Law Journal 1, 2 (1948)
PROFESSOR WILLIAM KELLY JOYCE, SR.
William Kelly Joyce, Sr. earned his degree from the University of Detroit School of Law in 1923 and joined the School’s faculty in 1931. First impressions of Prof. Joyce were strong based on his bold appearance with a straw moustache and bellowing voice.
William Kelly Joyce, Sr., Professor of Law, 1931-1965
However, as alumnus William J. Oldani (’36) noted in a memorial to Prof. Joyce that appeared in the Journal of Urban Law after Joyce passed away in 1974, there was a kind interior beneath that facade that made him a favorite among students: “There are many practicing lawyers today who know the bigness of his heart–camouflaged by his rough and tough exterior. His office door was always open. He was always ready and willing to listen to the after-class questions, and he helped many novice lawyers in their legal problems and in their placement woes.”
“There are many practicing lawyers today who know the bigness of his heart– camouflaged by his rough and tough exterior. His office door was always open.” — Wlliam J. Oldani (’36)
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
PROFESSOR FRANK S. SENGSTOCK
Frank S. Sengstock earned his bachelor of arts degree, summa cum laude, and his bachelor of law degree, magna cum laude, from the University of Detroit. He joined the faculty in 1965, with his memorable personality, but died all too soon ten years later following a chronic illness. Although he was only 42 years old, his accomplishments were of epic proportion at the School of Law. As the editors and staff of the 1975-76 Journal of Urban Law aptly wrote in a memorial to their faculty advisor: “As a professor, Frank Sengstock became a legend at the University of Detroit. He was, all at once, a tyrant pushing and pulling answers out of students, a parent encouraging them to do better, and a lawyer instilling respect for the intricacies and theory of property law. His lessons, perhaps the toughest, taught accuracy, a respect for the law, and the necessity of excellence in the legal profession.”
Frank S. Sengstock, Professor of Law, 1965-1975
“His lessons, perhaps the toughest, taught accuracy, a respect for the law, and the necessity of excellence in the legal profession.” — 53 Journal of Urban Law 581, 587 (1975-1976)
PROFESSOR PATRICK A. KEENAN
When Patrick Keenan passed away in 2006, former students and colleagues dressed in their academic regalia and gathered with his family at his memorial service to honor him as a beloved teacher, mentor, colleague, and treasured friend of UDM Law. Professor Keenan was a legend in the classroom from 1976 to 2006, known for his loyalty to the School and its traditions and for his passion for teaching. “You cannot speak to anyone who has been associated with UDM without hearing stories about Pat’s teaching skills and his, I must admit, sometimes untraditional teaching techniques. I heard about classes filled with laughter and with learning, with admiration and awe. And once you were a student of Pat Keenan’s, you were a student for life,” said School of Law Dean Mark Gordon during Prof. Keenan’s eulogy in May 2006.
Patrick A. Keenan, Professor of Law, 1976-2006
“Once you were a student of Pat Keenan’s, you were a student for life.” — Former School of Law Dean Mark Gordon
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Beloved Educators of the School of Law SCHOOL OF LAW DEANS Hon. George S. Hosmer 1912 -1921
Hon. P. J. M. Hally 1921 -1927
Hon. John P. Scallen 1927 -1928 Hon. George S. Hosmer
Hon. P.J.M. Hally
Hon. John P. Scallen
Peter J. Monaghan
Peter J. Monaghan 1928 -1932
Daniel J. McKenna 1932 -1955
David Cowan Bayne, S.J. 1955 -1960
Louis H. Charbonneau, Sr. 1960 -1964 Daniel J. McKenna
David Cowan Bayne, S.J.
Louis H. Charbonneau, Sr.
Paul P. Harbrecht, S.J.
Paul P. Harbrecht, S.J. 1964 -1967
Philip Colista 1967 -1968
Paul P. Harbrecht, S.J. 1968 -1969
Brian G. Brockway 1969 -1971
William T. Downs Philip Colista
Paul P. Harbrecht, S.J.
Brian G. Brockway
William T. Downs
1971 -1972
Richard L. Braun 1972 -1974
Joseph Dante Grano 1974 -1976
Richard A. Seid 1976 -1979
Carl M. Selinger 1979 -1982 Richard L. Braun
Joseph Dante Grano
Richard A. Seid
Carl M. Selinger
Bernard Dobranski 1982 -1995
Stephen A. Mazurak 1995 -2002
Mark C. Gordon 2002 -2009
Lloyd A. Semple 2009 -present Bernard Dobranski
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Stephen A. Mazurak
Mark C. Gordon
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
Lloyd A. Semple
ALUMNI TRADITIONS
Red Mass, 2011
Bonded by common experience, school pride, and belief that we will create a more just world, our alumni carry forward both storied traditions and newer customs to share with the future generations of graduates.
Alumni Traditions Tied together by shared experience, our alumni have always had opportunities throughout the year to gather in celebration of times past. Many alumni traditions have withstood the test of time, and new traditions continue to emerge. RED MASS
Each fall since the School’s beginning, attorneys, judges, and law students have gathered in Saints Peter & Paul Jesuit Church to celebrate the centuries-old tradition of the Red Mass. The purpose of the Mass is to pray for the assistance of the Holy Spirit for each new term of court. In a 1949 letter to University President Celestin J. Steiner, S.J., Professor William Kelly Joyce explained, “While this service is primarily for the students, invoking the Holy Ghost to aid them in the fulfillment of their desire to become members of the Bar, the Alumni are invited and it is hoped in the future that the whole Bar of the City and State will make it a practice to attend.” Professor Joyce’s wish came true, as the Red Mass is attended by lawyers and judges practicing throughout the region. The purpose of the Mass has changed only slightly in modern times. In addition to preparing students for the coming year, Red Mass attendees also join in the Renewal of the Lawyer’s Oath of Commitment. The Oath is a mandatory part of swearing-in ceremonies. Publicly renewing the Oath each year at Red Mass is an opportunity for attorneys and judges to reaffirm the pledge they made at the start of their careers. THE M c ELROY LECTURE SERIES
Due to a bequest from alumnus Philip J. McElroy in 1993, the School of Law was able to establish its Center of Law and Religion. The School began the McElroy Lecture series dealing with prominent issues of religion, law, and society. The mission of the lecture series is to educate students, legal professionals, and the wider public on a variety of questions related to moral philosophy, freedom of conscience, the interaction of legal and religious institutions, and the role of religion in public life. Philip McElroy was a recognized corporate and civic leader and received his bachelor of science (’25), bachelor (’29), master (’30), and doctor of law (’32) degrees from the University of Detroit. In 1948, he established a law firm in Farmington Hills, Michigan, presently known as McElroy and Pheney. Throughout his life, McElroy, who passed away in 1993, maintained a steady commitment to his alma mater. McElroy lecturers have been U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, Stephen L. Carter, Cardinal Adam Maida, Hon. John T. Noonan, Jr., Michael John Perry, Dr. Jaroslav Pelikan, Dennis W. Archer, Geoffrey C. Hazard, Jr., Cass R. Sunstein, Noah Feldman, Dr. Leslie Griffin, Cardinal Roger Mahony, John Witte, Jr., Douglas Laycock, and Marci A. Hamilton.
Top to bottom: Cardinal Roger M. Mahony, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles 1985-2011, McElroy lecturer on March 25, 2009 U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, the first McElroy lecturer, pictured with UDM President Maureen A. Fay, O.P., Ph.D., May 10, 1995 in Detroit Red Mass Processional, 1988 Red Mass attendees at the annual Renewal of the Lawyer’s Oath of Commitment Right: Red Mass Processional, 2011
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
A CENTURY OF EDUCATING & INSPIRING LAW STUDENTS
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Alumni Traditions ALUMNUS OF THE YEAR
A tradition started in 1985, the Law Alumnus of the Year Award was established by the Board of Directors of the UDM Law Alumni Association to honor alumni who have in many ways distinguished themselves in their chosen field or endeavor, and who through their careers have brought recognition and honor to the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law. 1985 1985 1985 1986 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997
Hon. James H. Brickley (’54) Nathan B. Goodnow (’30) Frank J. Kelley (’51) Donald H. Mitzel (’51) Hon. James L. Ryan (’57) Hon. Thomas G. Kavanagh (’43) Hon. George R. Deneweth (’42) John A. Kruse (’52) William L. Cahalan (’51) William D. Gilbride, Sr. (’50) James A. Courter (’61) Hon. Michael F. Cavanagh (’66) Hon. Joseph A. Sullivan (’48) Hon. Alice R. Resnick (’64) Hon. Louis F. Simmons, Jr. (’56) William D. Booth (’62)
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Thomas C. Mayer (’55) Charles R. Rutherford (’57) Hon. Roman S. Gribbs (’54) Eugene A. Gargaro, Jr. (’67) Hon. Peter E. Deegan (’66) Edmund M. Brady, Jr. (’66) Hon. Maura D. Corrigan (’73) L. Brooks Patterson (’67) Frederick W. Lauck (’69) Denise Ilitch (’80) Hon. Patrick J. Duggan (’58) Lawrence G. Campbell (’69) Joseph V. Walker (‘72) Robert A. Ficano (’77) Hon. Michael J. Talbot (’71)
The Alumni Board promotes a continuing relationship between the alumni and the School of Law by supporting the improvement of the School of Law, sponsoring various alumni activities, and assisting students in various projects and activities. The Board of Directors consists of up to 24 alumni.
TIME AND TALENT AWARD
Concentrating its work in the areas of
The Time and Talent Award was established by the Board of Directors of the UDM Law Alumni Association in 2002 to honor alumni who have given their time and talent through their distinguished leadership and dedicated service to the School of Law and its Alumni Association. Each recipient has a record of long-standing service (six years or more) on the Alumni Board, or has served the School of Law for many years in other capacities. 2002 John W. Fitzer (’50) Patrick E. Hackett (’50) Hon. Barbara K. Hackett (’50) Patrick J. Keating (’53) Robert H. Martin (’66)
2005 Hon. James P. Sheehy (’69) Patricia Rossi Galvin (’70) Neil A. McQuarrie (’72) 2006 Robert P. Milia (’69) Gregory J. Gamalski (’83)
2003 Gerald C. Simon (’52) 2007 John B. Lizza (’53) Mary Catherine Rentz (’81) Hon. Roland L. Olzark (’54) Stephen M. Kelley (’81) 2004 2008-2009 Hon. Maureen Pulte Reilly (’58) Michael V. Morgan (’72) Richard L. Lehman (’60) Michael L. Donahue (’65)
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
alumni relations and events, the Board selects the annual Alumnus of the Year and Time and Talent Award honorees.
2010 Jane Sullivan Colombo (’79) 2011 Dean P. Valente (’84) 2012 Michael G. Costello (’85)
Top: William D. Gilbride, Sr. (’50) presents the 1985 Alumnus of the Year Award to Frank J. Kelley (’51) Bottom: Dean Valente (’84), the 2011 Time and Talent Award winner, pictured with Jane Sullivan Colombo (’79)
POINTS OF PRIDE & DISTINCTION
School of Law Commencement, Calihan Hall, 2010
Mayors, policymakers, and prosecutors have passed through our halls on the way to make a difference in this world. Our supportive community, rigorous curriculum, and handson learning experiences create an environment that fosters success.
Points of Pride & Distinction Throughout our 100-year history, the School of Law has always fostered an open-minded learning environment that focuses on intellectual rigor and service to others. Our unique environment has created numerous points of pride and distinction. EDUCATING LEADERS
The School of Law has produced our fair share of politicians, from legislators to lieutenant governors to mayors. In fact, in the mid 20th century, between 1957 and 1974, three successive Detroit mayors were U of D School of Law grads: Louis Miriani (’22), Jerome Cavanagh (’54), and Roman Gribbs (’54). From the early years, we were also graduating a large proportion of judges. The School of Law is known to many as “the school of judges,” perhaps influenced by our first dean, the Honorable George S. Hosmer. Currently, the school has 221 judges who were educated in our great halls. CURRICULUM
The School of Law curriculum has always focused on intellectual rigor, ethics, and service to others, based on our Jesuit and Sisters of Mercy values. While we have continued to place those values at the core of the educational experience, the School also has responded to contemporary issues through its curriculum. In fact, we are often ahead of trends in legal education as a result of the Dean’s Advisory Board, a group of 60 legal practitioners from around the country that advises on courses and content. UDM Law’s curriculum is second to none. Beginning with the first-year Applied Legal Theory and Analysis course, which continues to receive national recognition for its quality and comprehensiveness, to the Law Firm Program where students handle simulated transactions as if part of a law firm, to upper-class seminars and clinical experiences, today’s students are challenged at every level.
country. It is also one of the few required clinical programs in the country. Clinics provide a unique educational experience that emphasizes “experiential learning” and “service to others.” UDM Law Clinics represented 1,450 clients in 2011. UDM’s School of Law is the only law school in the nation to have a mobile law office that travels through Michigan and the nation, assisting veterans through Project SALUTE. Clinics are designed to serve the community and are determined by
CLINICAL EXPERIENCE
community demand. Our current clinics
Our Urban Law Clinic was one of the earliest law clinics in the country, opening in 1965 and honored in 1967 with the Bill of Rights Award for “outstanding contributions in the field of law and justice” by the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan.
include:
In 2006, we received the prestigious Judy M. Weightman Award for Public Interest from the American Bar Association Student Law Division, a testament to the quality of our clinical program.
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Founded in 1965, UDM Law Clinical Program is one of the oldest in the
– Criminal Trial Clinic – Immigration and Asylum Clinic – Juvenile Appellate Clinic – Mediation Clinic – Mortgage Foreclosure Clinic – State Appellate Defender (SADO) Clinic – Urban Law Clinic – Veterans Appellate Clinic – Veterans Clinic and Project SALUTE – Youth Justice Clinic
Today, the School has 10 active clinics that serve the underrepresented. Project SALUTE, a mobile law clinic that has helped 4,000 veterans around the country since 2004, was chosen as the American Bar Association Young Lawyers Division’s National Public Service Project last year.
Top: Student assisting veterans at the Project SALUTE mobile law office, 2009
Unique to UDM Law, all students today are required to complete an externship or work in a clinic.
Right: Prof. Deborah Paruch (’92) working with a student in the Applied Legal Theory & Analysis course, 2011
UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
A CENTURY OF EDUCATING & INSPIRING LAW STUDENTS
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Points of Pride & Distinction DIVERSITY OF THE STUDENT BODY
From the very beginning, the School of Law has educated students of many nationalities and admitted women, and a diverse population of scholars has roamed our halls. Today, the School is even more far-reaching. More than one-third of this year’s class members are international students, nearly 20 percent are an ethnic or a racial minority, more than 40 percent are from outside Michigan, and they range in age from 20 to 53 years of age. FACULTY-STUDENT INTERACTION
With faculty who are established in academia and practice, UDM Law professors provide instruction and career advice. A faculty-to-student ratio of 1-to-17 translates to a more interactive classroom and more accessible professors. Read about some of our most memorable professors on pages 28-29. The first international dual-degree
SUPPORTIVE COMMUNITY
program of its kind in the country,
Alumni, faculty, and students make up our close-knit community at UDM Law. While faculty concentrate on teaching and advising, alumni help in numerous ways, providing professional guidance to new graduates, externships to upper-level students, and financial support toward scholarships, programs, building improvements, and endowments that will ensure the School’s role in training young lawyers in perpetuity.
the J.D./LL.B. Program, a partnership
MOOT COURT
Since its fledgling years in the 1930s, the School of Law has always had a strong Moot Court Program. But 2009 was a banner year as UDM Law’s Moot Court team won the National Championship. The same year, the team received a championship title from the Chicago Bar Association and landed as finalists at the Jessup Midwest Super Regional. EXTERNSHIPS
The externship program at the School of Law has been providing legal experience and insight into career options for students since the School’s early years. At its peak in 2010, 135 students served in public and nonprofit sectors across the nation through legal externships. In return for credit hours and invaluable legal experience, students provide free legal services, a fresh perspective, and a zest for learning that adds value to their workplace.
between the School of Law and the University of Windsor Faculty of Law, began in 1983, granting graduates both a U.S. law degree and a Canadian law degree. It was recreated in 2001 under the leadership of Professors George Stewart and Leon Lysaght to better respond to globalization. During the 1980s and into the 1990s, the School also offered the London Law Programme for second and third-year students to study abroad for one academic semester at Regent’s College in central London. Today, the School offers a variety of globally focused legal education opportunities in conjunction with our partners in Canada and Mexico, including dual and multiple degree programs.
Top: The Ambassador Bridge connects the United States and Canada, reflecting UDM Law’s ties to Canada through our dual-degree program Left: Students in the new millennium enjoy the same sense of community as students in the past
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE
George J. Asher Law Clinic Center, 2012
A new home for our law clinics, the George J. Asher Law Clinic Center will move forward the next 100 years of learning and service in Detroit, as we continue to set high standards for legal education in the century ahead.
Building for the Future PRESERVING UDM LAW CLINICS
From the founding of the Urban Law Clinic in 1965, to the touring of the Project SALUTE mobile Veterans Clinic today, the Clinical Program has boosted our School’s national reputation and provided valuable hands-on experience for our students, improving their legal knowledge and their employability. Yet despite the success of the Clinical Program, the clinics have never had a set place to call home. Instead, over the past 48 years, they have rented storefronts, used basements, and borrowed a miscellany of office space around the City of Detroit. So, it is perfect timing that during our 100-year anniversary, we finally give the clinics a permanent campus home. Long awaited and much deserved, the UDM Law clinics will finally have a new, functional home in December of 2012 as they move into the George J. Asher Law Clinic Center on the corner of Larned and St. Antoine. The original building was used as a firehouse in the early 1900s, housing Detroit Fire Department’s Engine 2 for many years. Its historic character–with spiral staircases, bright red, engine-sized exterior doors, and fire lookout tower–has been preserved. The new space will have conference rooms, dozens of student and faculty work stations, and space for faculty offices. Along with giving students a professional and well-equipped physical space to work and serve, the School is also establishing an endowment fund to secure the current and future viability of the Clinical Program. Our clinic fulfills an integral part of the mission of our law school and helps those without means–including parents, children, teenagers, immigrants and veterans–have proper legal representation. The School is hoping to build a significant endowment over the coming years to ensure that the program continues serving those in need over the next 100 years.
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UNIVERSITY OF DETROIT MERCY SCHOOL OF LAW
Top: Professor David Koelsch, Director of the Immigration Law Clinic, and a student from the Class of 1951 in the Moot Court Room, 2009 Middle: Students working with Professor Michael Bryce (’77), Director of the Clinical Program, 2009 Bottom: Mobile Law Office for the Veterans Clinic and Project SALUTE, 2009
Special Thanks A great deal of gratitude is owed to a number of people whose tireless efforts and sustained commitment helped ensure the success of this publication. The individuals listed below proved invaluable to the research, writing, and publication process. We thank them for their hard work and dedication to the University of Detroit Mercy School of Law.
— Lloyd A. Semple Dean and Professor of Law
— Denise P. Hickey (’95) Editor, Asst. Dean of Alumni Relations
Contributors Christina E. Krogh Bidlack Creative Group Melinda Clynes University of Detroit Mercy Libraries, Archives, and Instructional Design Studio In addition to the names listed above, recognition is given to the late Herman J. Muller, S.J., whose historical books about the University were invaluable to this project. Copyright ©2012 University of Detroit Mercy School of Law
Show Your Support Complimentary copies of this book are available through the UDM School of Law Office of Alumni Relations. Your support is appreciated. Please join your fellow alumni and friends by making a gift today. Make a gift online: http://www.udmercy.edu/donate/law Make a gift by mail: University of Detroit Mercy School of Law Office of Alumni Relations and Development 651 East Jefferson Ave., Suite 209 Detroit, MI 48226-4349