Drake Law School 150th Book

Dr ake Universit y L aw S c hool

Drake University Law School

This book was created by Drake University Law School and Drake University Communications to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Law School.

Images were obtained through the Opperman Law Library at Drake University; issues of Quax, Drake University’s yearbook; and from the Drake University Communications photo archive.

The book is set in Iowan Old Style and Whitney. Copyright 2015, Drake University.

It’s hard to believe that 2015 marks the 150th anniversary of Drake University Law School. It is truly extraordinary to reach this milestone, which makes Drake one of the 25 oldest law schools in the country.

From the very beginning, when the Iowa Law School (the precursor to Drake Law School) was established in Des Moines, our students have received a practical education with an emphasis on gaining real-world experience—not just reading about the law.

Through the many trends and ups and downs of legal education, we have remained firm in our purpose and vision: to prepare outstanding lawyers who will promote justice, serve as leaders in their communities and the legal profession, and respond to the call of public service.

In the following pages, you will find stories that demonstrate our unique and progressive history. You will see a timeline of the many programs, centers, events, and people that have shaped us into who we are now, and laid the groundwork for who we will become in the future.

We are thankful for each of you and the role you play with Drake University Law School.

Ben Ullem Dean

Historic recruitment materials.

A look at the events, moments, and milestones that helped shape Drake Law School over our first 150 years.

Founding the Iowa Law School in Des Moines in 1865, Iowa Supreme Court Justices Chester C. Cole and George G. Wright aimed to teach law in proximity to the courts and enable students to witness the law in action. From the very beginning, learning focused on real and practical experience. The Law School eventually found a home at Drake University, and today we celebrate legal education that provides opportunities for service, leadership, and the pursuit of rewarding careers.

1865 Iowa Law School— to which Drake traces its origins—is founded in Des Moines, making it one of the 25 oldest law schools in the U.S.

1868 Justices Cole and Wright move the Law School to Iowa City

1876 Martha Angle becomes the first woman to graduate from the Law School, then located at Simpson College

1875 Justice Cole departs Iowa City and restarts the Law School as the Law Department at Simpson College

1881 Drake University is founded; Justice Cole moves the Law School to Drake

1898 John Lay Thompson becomes the first AfricanAmerican graduate of Drake Law School

1904 Law School moves into Cole Hall on the Drake campus

1900 Drake becomes charter member of the Association of American Law Schools

1923 First accreditation by the American Bar Association

1937 First Supreme Court Banquet held

1938 Law School and library move to Carnegie Hall

1942 Des Moines College of Law merges

(Right) Story in The Delphic about Drake Law School.

Over the last century and a half, Drake Law School has seen many firsts: the first African-American to graduate from the Law School in 1898, the first Supreme Court Banquet in 1937, and the first issue of the Drake Law Review in 1951, to name a few.

The opening of the Drake Legal Clinic in 1971 ensured experiential learning opportunities for generations of students, and the First-Year Trial Practicum, first held in 1998, remains the only program of its kind in the nation.

1946 Martin Tollefson (middle) becomes dean

1950 Law School begins requiring senior law students to volunteer at the Legal Aid Society of Polk County

1951 First issue of the Drake Law Review is published

1951 Drake becomes a member of The Order of the Coif

1971 Drake Legal Clinic is established; faculty supervise students in clinical legal education programs

1987

1976 Cartwright Hall is dedicated

1983 Drake Agricultural Law Center is established

1985 Opperman Computer Law Center opens to train students to use new electronic legal databases

1989 Constitutional Law Center is established

Neal and Bea Smith Law Center is dedicated, one of two such facilities in the U.S. supported by federal endowment

1988 First Dwight D. Opperman Lecture in Constitutional Law is held

As Drake Law School has grown over the years, the foundational aspect of practical experience has remained and is apparent today in the success of our students, alumni, and faculty.

1998

1998

1990 First Constitutional Law Symposium is held

1994 Addition to the Neal and Bea Smith Law Center is dedicated

1993 Opperman Hall and Law Library is dedicated

1994 Drake negotiations team wins first place at national competition

First-Year Trial Practicum begins

Legislative Practice Center is established

1996 First issue of the Drake Journal of Agricultural Law is published

2001 Joan and Lyle Middleton Center for Children’s Rights is established

2001 Drake team wins National Moot Court Championship

2007 Student Bar Association named “Best in the Country”

2007 Intellectual Property Law Center is established

2007 National Bar Association Archives Room is dedicated

2008 Drake Law School is awarded the Gambrell Professionalism Award from the ABA

2009 Student Bar Association President Kevin Bell, lw’11, and wife Erin’s dog, Porterhouse (bottom center), becomes Drake Athletics’ official live mascot

(Left) Winners shown are Theodore Simms II, lw’01, William D. Schultz, bn’99, lw’02, and Jeff Link, lw‘02

With 150 years of experience and success from which to draw, we are well positioned for the future. Our innovative programs are rooted in the traditions of our past, with an eye firmly focused on the future. This unwavering vision will ensure our success in educating lawyers who will continue to shape the world.

2015 Drake Law School celebrates 150 years

2014 Drake Law Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA) named “Affiliate of the Year”

2012 Drake students become first U.S. legal group to study agricultural law in Cuba

2012 Law library adds 350,000th volume

2013 Drake’s client counseling team wins the national championship and represents the U.S. at the international competition in Glasgow, Scotland

2015 Major news outlets broadcast live from the media “spin room” inside the Law School throughout the Democratic presidential debate held at Drake

2013 Cartwright Hall renovation is dedicated

Graduation procession, circa 1890s.

images of drake law school through 150 years

Generations of students. Dynamic, new buildings and updated learning spaces. Technological advancements. These images capture the passing of time and mark the evolution of Drake Law School from a small, country school with a handful of students into a nationally ranked and widely respected institution with alumni working around the globe in every facet of the legal profession.

(Top) First student body. (Below) Image from 1959 Quax showing law students getting practice in the courtroom.

Drake broke ground for Cartwright Hall, home of the Law School, on May 10, 1974. The building officially opened on April 10, 1976, with an opening ceremony and recognition luncheon that included remarks from U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Byron R. White.

Edward Larrabee Barnes, a fellow of the American Institute of Architects in New York City, served as the architect for the building. Barnes also designed buildings for Princeton University, the University of Chicago, and Harvard Divinity School.

Upon completion, Cartwright Hall contained a 160-seat lecture hall, two 80-seat rooms, two 60-seat classrooms, a 20-seat room for seminars, 20 offices for faculty members, two separate areas for staff, a courtroom, a meeting room, a study lounge, a library, and a special bookstore operated by students.

Extensive renovations in 2013 created new classrooms, seminar rooms, a gallery, and an open space to serve as a common area for students.

Generations of students have walked past Jack Youngman’s “Blackout” tapestry at the top of the main staircase since Cartwright Hall first opened in 1976 A portrait gallery of Drake Law’s dignitaries, which was added as part of the 2013 renovations to the building, now occupies that space.

Law Library

Access to library resources has been a critical component of a Drake legal education from the earliest years. Drake’s law library found its first home on campus in Cole Hall in 1904 and moved several times as its collection expanded and the Law School shifted locations. Thanks to a $2 million lead gift from Dwight Opperman, lw’51, a spacious new library was dedicated in 1993. Today the library in Opperman Hall houses more than 350,000 volumes, offers access to thousands of databases and electronic books, provides more than 700 seats, and delivers exceptional services thanks to a dedicated staff.

(Top) Students studying in the law library, 1959.

(Above) U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy speaks at the Opperman Hall dedication in 1993. (Left) Law library in Opperman Hall in 2001.

March 1993—Nearly 200 faculty, staff, and student volunteers formed a “fire brigade” to transfer books by hand into the newly constructed Opperman Law Library (below) from their former location at Carnegie Hall (left). More than 112,000 people entered the library in 2014–2015 to access its extensive resources.

Technology

Once a paper-intensive endeavor, the study of law has changed over the years to incorporate new technology—and Drake Law School has been at the forefront of these changes. Drake was one of the first law schools in the country to have permanent training centers for Lexis and Westlaw and was an innovator in course podcasting. Today, Drake Law School students have access to state-of-the-art technology in classrooms and the legal clinic courtroom, providing new and engaging ways to learn about the law.

(Below right) Drake Law School partners with ViewYou, LLC, to develop student e-portfolios. All students create a unique e-portfolio consisting of items chosen from their coursework and practical experiences at Drake Law School. The videos demonstrate to employers evidence of advocacy, public speaking, writing skills, and more.

Centers of Excellence

The Centers of Excellence at Drake Law School are key to the practical experiences and distinctive programs afforded our students. With myriad opportunities covering a wide range of professional interests, generations of students have benefited from involvement in one or more of Drake’s five centers.

Agricultural Law Center

Founded in 1983, Drake’s Agricultural Law Center was the first in the United States to offer a J.D. concentration in Agricultural Law. The Center is internationally recognized for providing opportunities to study how the legal system shapes our food system and influences the ability of the agricultural sector to produce, market, and use agricultural products. Recently, students had the opportunity to participate in research trips to Cuba to consider the role of law in agrarian reforms.

Constitutional Law Center

The Drake Constitutional Law Center is one of only four constitutional law programs established by the U.S. Congress and funded by the federal government. The Center’s mission is to foster study of the U.S. Constitution and its roots, formation, principles, and development. The Center has welcomed 11 U.S. Supreme Court justices to campus, hosts an annual symposium, and allows students to graduate with a Certificate in Constitutional Law and Civil Rights.

Intellectual Property Law Center

The Intellectual Property Law Center was founded in fall 2007 to promote global, interdisciplinary understanding of intellectual property law and policy. Since its establishment, the Center has added numerous courses and advanced seminars, the LL.M./M.J. program in Global Intellectual Property Law, and the Global Intellectual Property Law Certificate for J.D. students. In addition, the Center sponsors an annual Intellectual Property Law CLE and the Summer Institute in Intellectual Property, Biotechnology, and Agricultural Sciences.

Legislative Practice Center

The Legislative Practice Center began in fall 1998 to offer students hands-on experiences at the Iowa State Capitol. Equipped with a thorough background of the legislative process, students are prepared to work for administrative or government agencies, research and draft legislation, represent businesses and organizations with government interests, or work in a variety of other public policymaking positions.

Middleton Center for Children’s Rights

The Middleton Center is an innovative program aimed at improving the lives of children who enter the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. The Center has a broad agenda including advancing children’s rights through the court process, training, and public policy formulation. Students have a unique opportunity at Drake Law School to participate in all three of these areas. Third-year students also practice for a year in juvenile court under the supervision of a clinical professor.

(Left) Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad, lw’74, signs a bill that Drake Law School students helped draft.

(Top) Iowa Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Cady, la’75, lw’78, at the 2012 Constitutional Law Symposium.

(Bottom) Drake Law School was the first American law school to send students to Cuba to study agricultural law.

The first group traveled to Cuba in 2012.

Bench and Bar

Drake Law School was founded on the premise that its proximity to the state capitol and courts would create a symbiotic relationship among law students, the courts, and practicing attorneys. The Law School’s first faculty members, recruited by Chief Justice Cole, were prominent members of the bench and bar. This relationship remains a cornerstone of the Drake Law School experience today. Students tour the Iowa Supreme Court during orientation, witness a real jury trial on campus in their first year, and honor the courts during the annual Supreme Court Celebration.

(Above) Erin Grundy, lw’09, argues before the Iowa Supreme Court as part of the Advanced Criminal Appellate Clinic on March 10, 2009. Grundy argued the case just three days after winning the Iowa Supreme Court Day Oral Argument Competition (as part of Drake’s Supreme Court Celebration), and the day before leaving for the ABA Moot Court Competition.

(Left) A group of Drake Law School first-year students present their proposal for a new Iowa Lawyer’s Oath to the Iowa State Bar Association Board of Governors and the Iowa Supreme Court in 2005. The oath, which the students wrote as part of the Law School’s Academic Success Program, is still used today.

National Bar Association

Founded in Des Moines on Aug. 1, 1925, the National Bar Association now boasts 65,000 members in 84 affiliate chapters throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Africa, and the Caribbean. It is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of predominantly African-American lawyers, judges, educators, and law students.

Co-founder Charles P. Howard, Sr. received his law degree from Drake University in 1922, and the organization’s archives have been housed at Drake Law School since 2007. The archives contain biographical information, newspaper clippings, and articles about the original founders.

(Above) Drake Law School dedicates the transfer of the National Bar Association archives from the Des Moines Public Library to the Drake Law Library on Feb. 1, 2007

First-Year Trial Practicum

Drake is the only American law school where first-year classes shift to a working courtroom for a week, enabling students to view an actual state or federal trial as if in an educational laboratory. The trial practicum, held in the Law School’s Neal and Bea Smith Law Center’s courtroom, dissects every phase of a trial, from jury selection to verdict. Trials incorporate small group discussions, lectures, practice panels, and debriefings with attorneys, judges, and jurors.

Since 1998, students have observed cases dealing with burglary, involuntary manslaughter, homicide by vehicle-OWI, and more. A traditional event experienced in a revolutionary way, the First-Year Trial Practicum is the most obvious example of Drake’s holistic approach to legal education.

Neal and Bea Smith Law Center

The Neal and Bea Smith Law Center houses the Law School’s clinical programs. Noted for its stunning architecture, the building includes classrooms, conference rooms, offices, a library, courtroom, and atrium.

The legal clinic courtroom, used for a variety of educational purposes, is also available for Iowa district court hearings, which are typically open for student observation.

Drake’s clinical programs allow students to build valuable professional experience by applying classroom knowledge to real-world situations. Working with real clients with real legal problems, students apply classroom theory to actual cases; sort through and analyze complex information; develop interviewing and other interpersonal communication skills; research possible solutions; develop advocacy strategies; negotiate and mediate; and act in the best interests of their clients.

Year after year, Drake Law School students graduate with real-world experiences that give them a notable advantage over their peers.

(Left) Jerry Foxhoven, executive director of the Drake Legal Clinic, walks with a student through the Neal and Bea Smith Law Center atrium. (Top right) ConGarry Williams, lw’00, meets with clients as a student at the legal clinic. (Bottom right) Neal and Bea Smith at graduation, 1950, with their young son, Douglas.

Opperman Lectures

An integral part of Drake Law School’s history has been the Dwight D. Opperman Lecture series. Opperman, former chairman of West Publishing Company and a Drake Law School alumnus, endowed the lecture series in 1988 to bring the country’s top jurists and legal scholars to Drake.

Eleven U.S. Supreme Court justices have delivered the Opperman Lecture: Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., Justice Stephen G. Breyer, Justice Clarence Thomas, Justice Antonin Scalia, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, Justice Lewis F. Powell, Justice Harry A. Blackmun, and Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr.

In 2008, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr. addressed the crowd during the 11th Dwight D. Opperman Lecture in Constitutional Law as Drake President David Maxwell and Dwight Opperman, lw’51, listen intently.

(Left) Justice Samuel A. Alito, Jr. talks with a small group of students in 2010 following the 12th Dwight D. Opperman Lecture in Constitutional Law.

(Right) Justice Clarence Thomas with members of the 2006 Black Law Student Association, which had recently been named Chapter of the Year. Justice Thomas was

serving as distinguished jurist in residence, where he taught a week-long Supreme Court seminar and met informally with students, faculty, and staff.

Moot Court/Mock Trial Success

Practical experience is at the core of Drake Law School. For many, that experience has included participation in a wide range of moot court competitions.

Since 1990, Drake’s teams have placed either first or second in the region, and a team has qualified to compete in the finals of the National Moot Court Competition in New York City for 19 out of 24 years.

The Drake team of Jeff Link, lw’02, William D. Schultz, bn’99, lw’02, and Theodore Sims II, lw’01, won the national finals in 2001 (see Counselor magazine, left). Nathan J. Borland, lw’13, and Katheryn Pearson Thorson, lw’13, were named champions at the ABA National Client Counseling Competition at Baylor University Law School in March 2013.

(Top) Article from The Gavel on Jodi TerwilligerStacey, lw’92, and Marian Bloss, lw’91, accepting ABA Law School Division awards at the Eighth Circuit spring meeting awards ceremony in 1991

(Bottom left) View of a moot court trial from an observation balcony in Cartwright Hall shortly after the building opened.

(Bottom right) Justin Tade, lw’93, is questioned on the witness stand as faculty member Gregory Sisk acts as judge in the Cartwright courtroom.

The Student Experience

Student organizations regularly gain recognition for their leadership and service activities, and moot court and mock trial teams consistently earn regional and national titles. The student experience at Drake Law School is as varied and diverse as our student body. Perhaps the only common denominator found among students is their determination to take advantage of the many opportunities for personal and professional growth available through the Law School.

The varied student experience at Drake Law ties generations of alumni together. From Halloween Hoops, Summer in France, and Barrister’s Ball to the Professor’s Auction and an annual trip to New Orleans for pro bono work, these experiences encourage a sense of community and round out the full experience of attending law school.

the people of drake law

From the founders and deans with their clarity of vision and remarkable leadership to faculty members who translate real-world experience into class lessons. From dedicated staff with unflagging support for the student experience to the visitors and friends who share their knowledge and expertise. From students who excel in their studies to the alumni who represent the best of the profession. It’s the people who truly make Drake Law School special and allow for our continued success. While there is no possible way to recognize all those who have influenced Drake Law during the past 150 years, here is a sampling of the many people— students, alumni, faculty, staff, and visitors—who have walked through the Law School’s doors.

Notable visitors

Samuel A. Alito, Jr., justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Ruth Bader Ginsburg, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

F. Lee Bailey, nationally renowned trial attorney

Harry A. Blackmun, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Steven G. Breyer, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Tom C. Clark, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

William Colby, director of the CIA

Sandra Day O’Connor, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Michael G. Gartner, president of NBC News

A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit

Anthony M. Kennedy, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Alex Kozinski, judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Thomas S. Lambert, Jr., counsel at the U.S. trial at Nuremberg

James W. McElhaney, prominent legal scholar and litigation expert

Lewis F. Powell, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

William H. Rehnquist, chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Janet Reno, U.S. attorney general

Elliot Richardson, secretary of defense and attorney general

John G. Roberts, Jr., chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Antonin Scalia, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

William S. Sessions, director of the FBI

Clarence Thomas, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Richard Thornburgh, U.S. attorney general

Harry S. Truman, president of the United States

William Webster, director of the FBI

Byron R. White, justice of the U.S. Supreme Court

Governors

Robert D. Blue, lw’22

Terry E. Branstad, lw’74

Robert D. Ray, bn’52, lw’54

Justices

Elma Albert, lw 1891

Robert G. Allbee, lw’55

John W. Anderson, lw 1893*

William L. Bliss, lw 1902

Mark Cady, la’75, lw’78*

W.H. Hamilton, lw 1900*

Louis Lavorato, bn’59, lw’62*

Halleck J. Mantz, lw 1904*

C. Edwin Moore, lw’27*

Henry K. Peterson, lw 1908*

Louis W. Schultz, lw’49

Marsha Ternus, lw’77*

Terry N. Triewelier, la’70, lw’73

Hubert Utterback, lw 1906

Charles F. Wennerstrum, lw 1914*

David Wiggins, lw’76

Bruce Zager, lw’81

* Chief Justice

Drake Law School graduates have served with distinction locally, nationally, and internationally. One of our key points of pride is that the first African-American male and female judges in the state of Iowa are both Drake Law School alumni. Luther Glanton, lw’42, (above top) and Romonda Belcher, lw’95, (above) are true exemplars of the Law School’s emphasis on public service.

14 Yujie Gu,

15

16 Martin Tollefson,

17

18 Eldon McAfee,

19 Barbara

20 Chief Justice Mark Cady,

21 Mark Kende, professor

22 Judge Odell McGhee,

23 Philip De Koster,

24 Justice Chester Cole

25

1 Justice George Carpenter

2 David Walker, dean

3 Judge Lavinia Ash-Thompson, lw’62

4 Dwight Opperman, lw’51

5 William Scales, Jr., lw’11

6 Nan Horvat, lw’81

7 Dick Calkins, dean

8 Leland S. Forest, dean

9 Sean Bagniewski, lw’08

10 Gregory Kenyon, lw’78

11 Victor Corpuz, lw’88

12 Mike Traxinger, lw’12

13 Andrea Charlow, associate dean

lw’99

Governor Robert Ray, bn’52, lw’54

dean

Roxanne Conlin, la’64, lw’66, gr’79

lw’91

Decker, la’72, gr’83, lw’00

la’75, lw’78

lw’77

lw’10

Shannon McDonough, as’92, lw’95

39 David Brown, lw’75

40 John Edwards, associate dean

41 Amos Hill, gr’09, lw’09

42 Allan Vestal, dean

43 Daniel Power, professor

44 Kara Blanchard, assistant dean

45 David McCord, associate dean

46 Jerry Anderson, associate dean

47 Chief Justice Louis Lavorato, bn’59, lw’62

48 Brian Fagan, lw’01

49 Alexandria Smith, as’08, lw’11

50 Dan L. Johnston, lw’64

26 Kim Stamatelos, la’78, lw’81

27 Bill Hennan, assistant dean

28 Stephen Rapp, lw’74

29 Laurie Doré, professor

30 Anthony Garcia, lw’14

31 Ed Hayes, associate dean

32 Dr. Deborah Turner, lw’08

33 James Quartemont, as’92, lw’96

34 Alana Stamas, lw’11

35 James Bruner, bn’60, lw’63

36 Neil Hamilton, professor

37 Judge Linda Reade, la’70, lw’80

38 Matt Eslick, as’02, lw’05

(Top) Class of 1923

(Bottom) Class of 1962

(Right page top) Class of 1980, Section 1

(Right page bottom) Class of 1951.

51 Peter Goplerud, dean

52 Robert Rigg, professor

53 Johnny Taylor, gr’91, lw’92

54 Ronja Butler, gr’95, lw’95

55 Judge John Jarvey, lw’81

56 Don Nickerson, lw’77

57 Mitch Kunert, lw’05

58 Sherry VonBehren, library staff

59 Jerry Foxhoven, lw’77, professor

60 Russell Lovell, associate dean

61 Ursula Koenig, lw’98

62 Keith Miller, professor

63 Charles Monterio, lw’04

64 Arthur Ryman, professor

65 Nasseem Moradi, lw’00

66 Jennifer Zahradnik, lw’03

67 Martha Angle, lw 1876

68 John Scarlett, dean

69 Governor Terry Branstad, lw’74

70 Kristina Stanger, lw’06

71 Brooke Timmer, lw’06

72 Congressman Neal Smith, lw’50

73 Rajee Harris, bn’10, gr’13, lw’13

74 Jake More, lw’28

75 Martin Begleiter, professor

“A school’s ‘place’ encompasses the accomplishments, over time, of its faculty and graduates, the direction and character of the school that they reveal, and the ways in which current faculty, staff, students, and programs express that direction and character and offer means for building the school’s future.”

David Walker

“Teaching and Learning Professionalism in the First Year, with Some Thoughts on the Role of the Dean,” 40 U. Toledo L. Rev. 421 (2009).