In Memoriam

Judge W. Homer Drake, ’56

Judge Drake became a prominent figure in bankruptcy law and was influential in the passage of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978, which revolutionized the field. For over half a century, he served as a U.S. bankruptcy judge for the Northern District of Georgia, retiring in 2021. In addition, he founded the Southeastern Bankruptcy Law Institute, which is dedicated to continuing the legal education of attorneys in bankruptcy law.

“Judge Drake treated everybody respectfully, and lawyers just loved appearing in front of him. He might not always rule in their favor, but he treated people with dignity.” —Professor

Mike Sabbath

Judge Clyde L. Reese, ’96

Judge Reese was a dedicated member of the Mercer Law School Board of Visitors since 2018 and a strong supporter of Mercer Law School. He established the Judge Clyde Reese Book Award at Mercer Law School in honor of his parents Clyde and Dorothy Reese which the school awards to a deserving minority student to help defray the cost of law books. Prior to his appointment to the Georgia Court of Appeals in 2016, Judge Reese was the commissioner of the Department of Community Health. His legal career in healthcare-related fields and his time at the Department of Community Health allowed him to shine an important spotlight on the challenge of access to healthcare in rural Georgia.

“Mercer Law is grateful for Judge Reese’s wisdom, support, and leadership.”

—Dean Karen J. Sneddon

Deryl Dantzler, ’70

Deryl Dantzler retired from her faculty position at Mercer Law in 2013, but her legacy lives on in her former trial practice students. In addition to being a professor at Mercer Law for 35 years, Deryl was the founding dean of the National Criminal Defense College (NCDC), providing criminal defense practitioners across the country with experiential, hands-on trial skills training. Her work as an attorney, professor, and founding member of NCDC brought national acclaim for her career and for Mercer Law School.

“Professor Dantzler was an excellent, if not the best, trial practice professor. She was intimidating and her class was no doubt daunting for many attorneys to who graduated from Mercer Law School. But she was insistent on creating, fostering, and growing generations of better litigators who would go on to serve as better advocates for the public.” —Rahul Sheth, ’12