Mitchell on Law Summer 2014

ON LAW

SUMMER 2014

FIVE PERSPECTIVES ON WILLIAM MITCHELL’S NEW HYBRID ENROLLMENT OPTION

Dean Janus to return to the classroom

Deborah Ellis ’83 succeeds in her 30-year fight for freedom

A career filled with remarkable firsts for Judge Cara Lee Neville ’75

on law

10 CONTENTS SIX THINGS ABOUT

MITCHELL IN FOCUS A number of reasons to take pride in William Mitchell

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STUDENT, FACULTY, AND CAMPUS NEWS News and information from William Mitchell

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Remembering Rex Turner, an unsung hero

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TO THE POINT Stephen B. Bonner ’72 20

THE “IF NOT FOR MITCHELL” CAMPAIGN SURGES FORWARD Historic fundraising effort already 94 percent to its goal

Judge Kathleen Gearin ’75: hanging up her gavel

IN MEMORIAM

LOUIS AINSWORTH ’77 AND THE BUSINESS OF LAW His “If Not for Mitchell” Campaign gift supports practical wisdom

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CLASS NOTES 4–7

COMING TO THE AID OF INVENTORS How Professor Jay Erstling and the Intellectual Property Law Clinic are paving the way for patents

David Law ’00

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VOLUME 32, NO. 1 Published by the Office of Institutional Advancement William Mitchell College of Law 875 Summit Avenue St. Paul, MN 55105

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651-290-6370 651-290-7502 fax magazine@wmitchell.edu wmitchell.edu/alumni PRESIDENT AND DEAN

Eric S. Janus CHAIR, BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Stephen B. Bonner ’72 EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Steve Linders WRITING

Nancy Crotti Felicia Kelley Melissa Priebe Jim Walsh

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ART DIRECTION

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Karl Peters DESIGN

Karl Peters Kate Siebert PHOTOGRAPHY

John Connelly Tim Rummelhoff Brady Willette

FEATURES “This takes grit ... and it takes skill” Dean Eric Janus on his time as dean, his first day in the classroom, and Mitchell’s mission

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The Case for Innovation Five legal leaders share their thoughts on the new hybrid enrollment option

Freedom Fighter Deborah Ellis ’83 succeeds in her 30-year fight for a death-row inmate’s freedom

Legal Legend A career filled with remarkable firsts for Judge Cara Lee Neville ’75

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The

Number of Reasons

to take pride in William Mitchell is endless—the

commitment to practical wisdom, the long list of elected officials who graduated from Mitchell, the college’s unwavering support of students from all walks of life.

Here are some more.

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Where William Mitchell ranked among Minnesota law schools in a recent survey of 1,750 local attorneys for “preparedness of graduates” (Anderson, Niebuhr & Associates)

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Where William Mitchell ranks among the state’s private law schools in a recently released ABA report on 2013 employment outcomes

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MITCHELL ON L AW

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Where Mitchell’s part-time program ranks among the region’s law schools (U.S. News & World Report)

Number of judicial law clerks from the William Mitchell class of 2013

Number of William Mitchell students hired as law clerks last year by the Minnesota Court of Appeals (out of a total of 25 clerk positions)

MITCHELL IN FOCUS

77 1

Number of Minnesota law schools consistently ranked among the best in the country for clinical programs and practical training (William Mitchell, as ranked by U.S. News & World Report and National Jurist)

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8,000 2

Rank of William Mitchell’s Law Review for citations by the courts among the nation’s 507 student-edited law reviews (in the top 15 percent)

Where Mitchell ranks among law schools for percentage of students awarded state clerkships (National Law Journal: “Which Law Schools Are Tops for Jobs?”)

Number of clients last spring’s graduating class served while in law school through Mitchell’s top-ranked clinical program and other experiential learning opportunities

Number of law schools whose alumni comprised 25 percent or more of Minnesota’s Super Lawyers in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 (William Mitchell and the University of Minnesota)

wmitchell.edu/numbers

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STUDENT NEWS Mitchell students recently made their marks nationally, performing well in several moot court competitions and legal writing contests National Native American Law Student Association Moot Court Competition

The Sarah Weddington Writing Prize for New Student Scholarship in Reproductive Rights Law

Seven teams from William Mitchell competed in the 22nd Annual NNALSA moot court competition, delivering impressive performances.

Ryan McCarthy, 3L, and Joshua Peterson, 2L, won the competition. Third-year students Brieanna Hoban and Anna Light took home “Best Brief” honors. And third-year student Kelly McGinty won third place for “Best Oralist.”

In all, three teams advanced to the top 16, including McGinty and her teammate Nicholas Leverson, 3L, and the team of second-year students Rachel Mowry and Melissa Lorentz.

Hoban and Light made it to the quarterfinals.

The teams were coached by Professors Sarah Deer and Colette Routel.

Third-year student Amy Krupinski’s paper, “Most Urgent Need: Indian Health Service’s Policies Toward Native Women’s Reproductive Health Care—Availability of Emergency Contraception,” won second place in the ninth annual national writing competition.

The competition, sponsored by the Law Students for Reproductive Justice in Oakland, Calif., and the Center for Reproductive Rights, which is headquartered in New York City, solicits papers on a range of issues that affect reproductive health, rights, and justice in the U.S. According to the judges, Krupinski’s paper “stood out among an impressive showing by other writers” and “was one of the most remarkable.”

Human Rights and the Global Economy writing competition Fourth-year student Rachel Vesely won the Human Rights and Global Economy national writing competition sponsored by the Program on Human Rights and the Global Economy at Northeastern University School of Law. Vesely’s paper focused on how the Oneida Tribe of Indians of Wisconsin has implemented unique environmental codes and practices that make it successful in the realm of food sovereignty.

“I have always been fascinated by Native American history and law,” Vesely says.

“With farmers markets and ‘buying local’ becoming more popular in our society, I thought it would be interesting to explore how Native Americans are contributing to these practices.”

Papers were judged on originality, the quality of writing and analysis, exhaustiveness of research, and readiness for publication.

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Entertainment Law Initiative writing competition Mihajlo Babovic’s paper, “Last Call at the Oasis: Modifying the Noninteractive Webcast Royalty System to Support Sustainability,” was runner up in the 16th Annual Entertainment Law Initiative writing competition sponsored by the GRAMMY Foundation and the American Bar Association.

Law students from across the country submitted 3,000-word papers on compelling legal topics facing the music industry. Babovic’s paper caught the eye of the Entertainment Law Initiative’s executive committee, which includes Mitchell graduate Ken Abdo ’82 of Lommen Abdo.

Baylea Kannmacher ’14 honored with Student Award of Merit It only took Baylea Kannmacher ’14 two-and-a-half-years to earn her J.D. from William Mitchell—but the recipient of the January 2014 Student Award of Merit made a lasting impression on her law school and community.

She helped women getting out of prison through her work with the Reentry Clinic. She served children and families as a student attorney with the Child Protection Clinic. She had an externship with the Holistic Public Defender Clinic. She volunteered with the Blue Earth County Drug Court Family Clinic. She was active with the Minnesota Justice Foundation, working with the Minneapolis City Attorney’s Office and the Ramsey County Public Defender’s Office. She also had an externship with Judge Robert Awsumb ’86.

Now that she’s graduated, Kannmacher doesn’t plan to slow down. She’s secured a clerkship with Judge Joseph A. Bueltel ’87 in the Third Judicial District.

Baylea Kannmacher ‘14

STUDENT NEWS

Meet Courtney Hofflander, 3L, editor-in-chief of Cybaris®, an intellectual property law review

“Studying intellectual property law has equipped me with the knowledge to help clients secure their rights, protect against potential infringers, and add to their bottom line in nontraditional ways.”

I grew up in Edina, Minn., and chose to study the law at William Mitchell because of its strong alumni network in the area.

I majored in political science and minored in economics and business management at the University of Minnesota. After I graduate from Mitchell, I will practice a mix of business and intellectual property law.

Studying intellectual property law has equipped me with the knowledge to help clients secure their rights, protect against potential infringers, and add to their bottom lines in nontraditional ways.

Photo by Brady Willette

I applied to be a staff member of Cybaris® after my first year of law school. I then worked hard and volunteered for extra assignments.

I later applied to be the editor-in-chief and am honored to have been selected to lead Volume 5.

In October 2013, William Mitchell hosted a CLE entitled “Intellectual Property Asset Management at the Speed of Business.”

The latest issue—which is available for free at wmitchell.edu/Cybaris—features nine articles from several of the CLE’s presenters, including patent counsels for 3M and IBM, and former patent counsel for Cargill. In each article, the authoring practitioner shares incredible insight as to the best way to manage a company’s intellectual property and suggests useful strategies to maximize returns.

The authors all had an impressive depth of knowledge. That being said, each had a unique perspective based on their personal experience. For example, one practitioner emphasized the importance of international portfolio management whereas another highlighted the need for accurate valuation.

It was evident that the practitioners—both the authors and CLE attendees—respect William Mitchell and its broad intellectual property curriculum, and were impressed by the caliber of William Mitchell’s intellectual property law students.

After I graduate, I’ll join Droel as an associate attorney and will practice business, intellectual property, and renewable energy law.

wmitchell.edu/news

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CAMPUS NEWS

MITCHELL MAKES HISTORY with new hybrid program Starting in 2015, William Mitchell College of Law will offer the first hybrid on-campus/online enrollment option at an ABA-accredited law school The first-of-its-kind program will feature two interrelated elements: intensive, in-person, experiential learning and online coursework that integrates foundational doctrine and skills.

The hybrid option will be offered along with Mitchell’s 114-year-old part-time program and its 40-year-old full-time program.

Students who enroll in the new hybrid program will be on campus for at least one week each semester participating in 56 intensive hours of realistic simulations and other coursework. They’ll prepare for their on-campus work through an e-learning curriculum designed by William Mitchell faculty to integrate legal doctrine with practical legal skills.

In addition, students will have the opportunity to complete externships in their communities under the supervision of practicing attorneys.

This innovative hybrid of on-campus and online learning will provide access to those seeking a rigorous, experiential J.D. degree from an ABA-accredited law school.

Read more about the hybrid enrollment option on page 10.

MEET THE HYBRID PROGRAM FACULTY Professor and Academic Director

GREGORY M. DUHL Writing and Representation: Advice and Persuasion (WRAP)

Professor

MARK EDWARDS Jurisprudential and Comparative Analysis

Professor

NANCY VER STEEGH Contracts

LIVING IN RURAL AMERICA If you know someone who wants to pursue a J.D. but can’t because they live in a rural area of the country, invite them to look into the new hybrid program.

The program is perfect for students living in areas where commuting to the nearest law school is impractical.

To help increase access to law school, Mitchell is offering a $10,000 North Star Scholarship to students who live in small towns, on Indian reservations, and in rural areas—as long as they are committed to practicing law in their communities once they graduate.

Learn more at wmitchell.edu/hybrid.

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Professor

JOHN SONSTENG Criminal Law: Statutory Interpretation

Professor

MIKE STEENSON Torts: The Common Law Process

FACULTY NEWS Meet Dr. Luiza Dreasher, assistant dean and director of multicultural and international inclusion Dr. Luiza Dreasher joined Mitchell’s effort to welcome and support students from around the world and an array Dr. Luiza Dreasher of backgrounds.

She came to Mitchell from Iowa State University, where she worked since 1992 as a multicultural liaison officer and academic advisor.

Dreasher has worked in Ukraine, Spain, and Brazil. She’s lectured widely on topics of diversity, inclusion, and cultural competence.

She’s also published articles and working papers on everything from increasing student-veterans on campus to the impact of demographic changes on colleges and universities.

Dreasher earned her master’s degree and Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from Iowa State University. She’s a member of the Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research, and the National Academic Advising Association.

Susan Prohofsky ’90 joins the Intellectual Property Institute The Intellectual Property Institute has a new assistant director. Susan Prohofsky joined the institute in February.

She’s been a longtime Susan Prohofsky ‘90 adjunct professor at Mitchell, teaching and developing curriculum for the Intellectual Property Asset Management course. In addition, she’s a practicing attorney who currently works as U.S. counsel and director of business development for IPfolio, an intellectual property management software company.

Dean Janus announces plan to return to teaching Eric S. Janus has announced that he will conclude his role as president and dean of William Mitchell College of Law in June 2015 to return to the Mitchell faculty. He will have served as president and dean for eight years and as a member of the Mitchell faculty for more than 30 years.

Janus was named president and dean in 2007 after serving as a highly respected teacher, scholar, and administrator at Mitchell. He holds the Stephen B. and Lisa S. Bonner Distinguished Chair, created in 2011 to support the leadership of the college’s president and dean. Under Janus’ leadership, the college has achieved historical high-water marks in alumni engagement, fundraising, its endowment, experiential learning, and President and Dean innovative teaching methods.

Eric Janus “Eric’s contributions to Mitchell’s accelerating success are world class.

He has been at our helm as legal education has entered an exciting transformation, and he has positioned Mitchell to be even stronger,” said Stephen B. Bonner ’72, chair of Mitchell’s Board of Trustees. “We are indebted to Eric for his visionary leadership, his courage, and for his tireless commitment to everything that we stand for. He has guided the college with integrity, compassion, and innovation, and the great news is that he will continue to be a part of the Mitchell faculty.”

Over the next year, Mitchell’s board, in partnership with the faculty, will oversee a national search for Janus’ replacement. Janus will continue to lead the college until his successor is named and assumes the leadership role in 2015. After a one-year sabbatical, Janus will return to the classroom.

Read Dean Janus’s reflections on his time leading the school on page 8.

Mitchell bids farewell to five who made a difference This past December, five professors turned the page, left Mitchell, and began the next chapters of their lives.

Professors A. Kimberley Dayton, Phebe Saunders Haugen, Daniel S. Kleinberger, J. David Prince, and Christine D. Ver Ploeg retired after dedicating a combined 143 years to Mitchell’s students.

From teaching and mentoring students to volunteering and working in the legal community, each of these professors made important contributions to Mitchell, the justice system, and people in need of legal services. They helped countless students successfully pursue their dreams, shaped laws and policies that improved society, and led numerous efforts to ensure that our courts work for everyone.

While the entire Mitchell community will miss these wonderful teachers, scholars, and colleagues, the impact they’ve made on our law school will remain.

Professor Kim Dayton

Professor Phebe Haugen ‘72

Professor Dan Kleinberger

Professor David Prince

Professor Chris Ver Ploeg

wmitchell.edu/news

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‘This takes GRIT, PERSEVERANCE, COURAGE, SKILL.

and it takes

’

President and Dean Eric S. Janus on his time as dean, his first day in the classroom, and Mitchell’s mission.

Eric Janus at home with his wife Carolyn Chalmers

Eric Janus grew up in Bethesda, Md., raised by parents employed by the New Deal, surrounded by politically progressive neighbors. He was in fourth grade when the U.S. Supreme Court decided Brown v. Board of Education. In high school, he joined others in picketing an amusement park for its practice of segregation. When it was time to choose a college, he eschewed the Ivy League for Carleton College, in Northfield, Minn.

After graduation, he earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School then returned to Minnesota, interviewed with a large, prestigious Minneapolis law firm, but decided to take a job with Minneapolis Legal Aid instead. He later joined Mitchell’s faculty.

In 2007 he was appointed interim president and dean.

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Photo by Brady Willette

In June 2015, eight years after assuming the role, Janus will step down and return to teaching. Here are his reflections on his path to Mitchell and his tenure leading the college.

When I interviewed at Minneapolis Legal Aid, I met the three lead lawyers—Luther Granquist, Bernie Becker, and Paul Marino.

I fell in love with the place based on my interactions that day with these three. They were clearly passionate about their work, and they loved the law and law practice. I liked their groundedness, their intellectual curiosity, and their expressed dedication to the real clients of the office, as opposed to some abstract principles. I loved my time at Legal Aid. Bernie was a true mentor for me in my early years as a lawyer.

Ten years after I arrived at Legal Aid, he was teaching at Mitchell and told me about an open position.

I remember my first day in the classroom. It was Civil Procedure. I was surprised at how nervous I was. After all, I had been a lawyer for 11 years, had appeared before the Minnesota Supreme Court, the Eighth Circuit, the legislature. Yet, the prospect of being responsible for two hours of class, standing in front of 80 law students, was daunting. I thought I did OK. I worked hard, took careful notes about what worked and what didn’t. At the end of the semester, a student in the class thanked me and said that in his opinion, “some day” I would be a good teacher. From the beginning, I have loved teaching our students. They have a desire to learn and a keen sense for teachers who care about their learning.

On April 30, 2008, 300 people attended Dean Janus’ installation.

In his remarks, Janus read from the Letter from Birmingham Jail written by the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “We know through painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor,” Janus read. “It must be demanded by the oppressed.

Janus told attendees what he learned from Dr. King’s letter. “It’s not enough to think about the law,” he said. “It’s not enough to study it or theorize about it. We must practice it. We must be engaged. We have to roll up our sleeves, and we have to make the law work to serve justice. This takes grit, perseverance, courage, and it takes skill.”

His goal as dean, he said, was to do anything in his power to pass the law school along more vibrant, engaged, and diverse than he found it.

“Together, we will ensure that ambitious, smart, energetic people who want to transform themselves into expert practitioners will have a choice—a choice to pursue legal education grounded in practical wisdom.”

During his tenure, Mitchell has expanded clinical offerings and externships, made more endowed scholarships available to students, and launched the first on-campus/online hybrid enrollment option at an ABA-accredited law school—all while remaining true to its mission.

I’m proud of the fact that we are one of the few law schools that has “justice” in its mission. We understand, though, that “justice” is not just an idea, a theory, an ideal, a value—but a practice, requiring skill in the real world.

Over the past seven years, I believe we have become progressively clearer about our mission and our values, and these are distinctive. Our understanding of our mission has coalesced around the phrase “practical wisdom.” I like this idea because it shows the necessary marriage between the practical and the intellectual. For some time, we had a running debate about whether Mitchell should be more “scholarly.” Some perceived that an academic orientation was somehow inconsistent with our practical heritage. Through hard work, we have all come to understand that the genius of Mitchell is that it marries the two. We embrace the profession, we are proud to be training practitioners. We understand that law is an “expert practice,” not simply a complex field of cognitive knowledge.

It is important to understand that there would be no accomplishments here were it not for our faculty and staff.

A key accomplishment for us has been to attract and retain a group of talented people who care deeply about the institution and its mission.

We understand that great accomplishments are not possible unless we all work to create a “culture” in the workplace that focuses on mission and allows individuals to flourish.

I list the development of the hybrid option among the accomplishments of which I am most proud. It will provide a third enrollment option for our students—adding on-campus/online to our traditional full- and part-time options. Mitchell is the first law school in the country to seek—and obtain—ABA approval for a substantial innovation designed to harness the considerable power and flexibility of e-learning tools to improve student outcomes (and thus the value of the J.D. degree) while simultaneously making a rigorous, practical legal education accessible to many people whose geographic location, or professional and family commitments, make a traditional approach impractical. There is no other law school in the country that has the knowledge, the mission, the agility, to make this happen. I feel we are carrying on our night law school tradition into the 21st century.

If I were to offer advice to the new dean, I’d say believe in the school’s mission and understand the incredible value the school and our alumni have added to this community.

Maintain and improve the grounded, community values and culture for people who study and work at the college. Understand and value the wealth of knowledge, wisdom, and good will embodied in our trustees and alumni. Nurture the student-centered, innovative spirit of the faculty. n

wmitchell.edu/news

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Jim Hoolihan ’79 President, Industrial Lubricant and Can-Jer

Kathleen Blatz Attorney and Former Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court

Darryl Dykes, 3L M.D., Ph.D., Medical and Surgical Spine Consultants of Minnesota

Ivan Fong Senior Vice President, Legal Affairs and General Counsel, 3M

Eric Janus President and Dean, William Mitchell College of Law

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Photo by Tony Nelson

THE

CASE FOR

INNOVATION FIVE PERSPECTIVES

ON WILLIAM MITCHELL’S NEW HYBRID ENROLLMENT OPTION

“In September 2013, the American Bar Association Task Force on the Future of Legal Education called on law schools to innovate and embrace technology as a means for educating future attorneys.

William Mitchell College of Law in St. Paul, Minn., has answered the call.”

This is how the ABA Journal started a story about Mitchell’s new hybrid enrollment option, which was formally approved by the American Bar Association Council of the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar in December 2013.

The four-year, part-time program is designed for students whose location or work commitments prevent them from pursuing a legal education full time. It will mix recorded lectures and quizzes with video conferences and online discussion forums when it launches early next year. Students will also be required to complete externships, attend on-campus experiential learning classes at the end of each semester, and practice their legal skills.

Some feel innovation in legal education is long overdue. Others question whether or not the program can adequately train students for a career in law. Whether people support the new enrollment option or are skeptical about its efficacy, one thing is clear: The latest Mitchell innovation has gained the attention of some of the brightest legal minds in the country.

Here, in their own words, is why some of Minnesota’s most respected leaders are so excited about Mitchell’s new hybrid program.

wmitchell.edu/thehybrid

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‘New opportunities for those seeking a rigorous, experiential legal education’

By Kathleen Blatz, attorney and former chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court

The internet and “The Paper Chase”—the iconic movie about life in law school—were created just a year apart in the early 1970s.

Since then, the internet has transformed how most people communicate and how most institutions operate. One notable exception: American law schools, where the education model has more in common with the 20th century than the 21st.

Like the fictional first-year student in “The Paper Chase,” many people pursuing a J.D. degree today must attend classes on a law school campus, where professors generally deliver their lessons from a lecturn in lecture halls.

To some degree, it’s not surprising that law schools have remained bastions of traditional teaching.

Consider: The law itself is based largely on precedent. However, the practice of law is increasingly driven by technology and the efficiencies it affords, from electronic research to client correspondence. The age of the long opinion letter written on expensive letterhead stationery is coming to a close and will be permanently replaced by ever-advancing online communications.

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“Other law schools will no doubt be watching William Mitchell’s progress and adopting their own hybrid programs tailored to technology in the 21st century.”

Clearly, the traditional approach has proven effective for training generations of attorneys.

Still, it excludes those who prefer new digitallearning methodologies. It also limits access for those who live in rural areas and want a legal education but can’t live on campus or affordably travel to attend classes, as well as those with heavy work schedules or family demands.

The internet holds the power to help overcome these learning-style and geographic constraints. That’s why William Mitchell College of Law is to be commended for launching the first-of-its-kind hybrid option to earn a J.D. from an ABA-accredited school.

William Mitchell’s innovative approach promises to provide new opportunities for those seeking a rigorous, experiential legal education.

Equally important, it takes advantage of the transformational change in how people interact and learn in the digital age. The internet has revolutionized communications, providing an electronic platform where people

can collaborate and access knowledge via computer—anywhere, anytime.

Some may remain resistant to this digital shift in law school and look askance at this new type of degree option.

I remember 30 years ago, when that same attitude prevailed about a J.D. earned at night school. Today, no one questions a lawyer’s degree just because they earned it in the evening. The same will hold true for law degrees with a strong digital element. In fact, I believe, digital learning will become a firm fixture in all types of education in the future.

Other law schools will no doubt be watching William Mitchell’s progress and adopting their own hybrid programs tailored to technology in the 21st century. For now, I applaud William Mitchell as it leads the way.

Photos by Brady Willette

“Hybrid programs like the one William Mitchell is creating can help eliminate the geographic barrier and help prevent a potential ‘brain drain’.”

Bridging the last mile in legal education

By Jim Hoolihan ’79, president, Industrial Lubricant and Can-Jer

Timber, iron ore, and Judy Garland: all are exports of my hometown, Grand Rapids, Minn., population 10,000. Our rural and vital community has also produced a number of graduates—a county attorney, several district court judges, me—from William Mitchell College of Law. Like many other outstate communities, Grand Rapids is hours away from any professional school or law school—a significant barrier to hopefuls like me. To prepare myself for eventually taking responsibility for my family’s business, I attended Notre Dame. Then, at some cost to the business, I went on to realize my aspiration of earning a law degree before intentionally returning to the community.

I was glad I did. Two years later, due to unforeseen circumstances, I was required to take the reins of our business. If I hadn’t managed to get my J.D. degree when I did, I’m sure it wouldn’t have happened.

Many others who live in greater Minnesota and aspire to a legal education don’t have the same opportunity I did. The obstacle of distance, the realities of time, and the demands of family and jobs become insurmountable barriers.

With our burgeoning collection of digital learning tools, distance shouldn’t stand in the way of a legal or any education. It’s time that higher education and our law schools adopt 21st century learning practices. An American Bar Association task force said as much, recommending new academic programs that improve student affordability and access.

Photo by John Connelly

As an alum and now a member of Mitchell’s board of trustees, I’m proud that William Mitchell has taken that advice to heart.

When it begins to offer the hybrid program next year (in addition to its full-time and part-time options), students throughout Minnesota and beyond will experience the same rigorous coursework as their on-campus peers, plus a concentrated period of on-campus instruction, that will help overcome the commuting barrier faced by so many aspiring attorneys.

I attended law school in St. Paul intent on returning to Grand Rapids, where I hoped to make lasting contributions. I had that opportunity, serving as the city’s mayor, and more recently, on the board of a community foundation.

Hybrid programs like the one William Mitchell is creating can help eliminate the geographic barrier and help prevent a potential “brain drain.” It will give future community leaders an option to participate in their community during and after pursuing their J.D.—which may lead to even greater contributions in our outstate communities.

wmitchell.edu/thehybrid

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“William Mitchell, with the development of its new hybrid on-campus/online enrollment option, has embraced innovation—and the business community will be better served as a result.”

‘This is the start of something exciting’

By Ivan Fong, senior vice president, Legal Affairs and General Counsel, 3M

“If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse.” So goes a famous quote attributed to Henry Ford, even though there is scant evidence he actually said it.

Regardless of who said it or who said it first, the point is clear: To build lasting success, leaders and organizations must continually innovate in ways that are disruptive to the status quo. They need, in other words, to offer customers something they would want if they had thought of it.

That is exactly what William Mitchell and its leaders have done with its new hybrid enrollment option. The new program is a pioneering and potentially disruptive step toward re-inventing the future of legal education.

As general counsel of 3M, I can appreciate the value of innovation and invention, for 3M is a company that never stops innovating and inventing. As the world changes ever more rapidly, 3M is there, on the forefront, to meet our society’s changing needs and desires. From sandpaper in the 1920s, to Post-it Notes in the 1980s, to orthodontics, high-speed fiber optics, and glass microspheres today, 3M is not afraid to invest in R&D and customer insights, to try new things, and to take calculated risks.

The same can be said of William Mitchell. The hybrid enrollment option has the potential to change the way we think about and provide legal education. It will provide flexibility for students who are unable, for distance or other personal reasons, to be regularly physically present in an on-campus classroom. And it is based on a new, proven model of learning, in which students learn from lectures outside the classroom and then do “homework” inside the classroom. One is not an optional addition to the other; they are both core pedagogical experiences that complement each other. I see this inversion of the traditional educational model in my own college-age children, who now watch lectures online on their own schedules (usually late at night!) and then go to class during the day to work with others on their homework assignments.

This is the start of something exciting. Executing the program successfully and measuring its outcomes will be critical to whether the program lives up to its transformative promise.

I wish it every success and look forward to toasting the graduates of the new program in the years to come!

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A doctor’s diagnosis of the hybrid program

by Dr. Darryl Dykes, 3L, M.D., Ph.D.

In my doctoral and post-doctoral work, I developed and used “conformational energy” analysis to study macromolecular geometry.1 Mathematically, these analyses are expressed as:

A simple way to think about this dreadfullooking equation is to consider familiar concepts in nature. For instance, the force of gravity that pulls objects toward the ground, the forces that bend steel when cars crash, and the forces that draw magnets closer together or further apart. As you can imagine, scientists can measure and predict all of these forces. Similarly, for any given shape of a macromolecule, its internal forces interact in ways that are measurable and predictable using equations like the one above. Well, here is the key: although every macromolecule has

an infinite number of possible shapes, nature always strives to find the best one possible.

(This is a law!)

But what does this have to do with legal education? Like cars, magnets, and macromolecules, educational programs come in many different forms. Unlike nature, however, legal educators have done relatively little over the centuries to discover or promote the best possible forms of teaching and training students. Clearly, every form of education has strengths and weaknesses that we will never understand with scientific or mathematical

precision. However, a key strength of online education is its convenience. As a practicing orthopedic surgeon, any opportunity to reduce the burdens of commuting and the inflexibility of year-round campus-based classes would have greatly improved both my educational experience and my ability to be able to care for patients. While I have had a great experience at William Mitchell, I certainly would have pursued the hybrid program if it had been available three years ago when I applied to law school.

A key concern with online education is a perception that it is less rigorous than classroom teaching. However, in my experience teaching medicine online at the graduate and post-graduate levels, I have tended to demand more from trainees, and they have responded with even greater creativity, enthusiasm, and productivity than trainees in many other environments. Furthermore, where academic rigor relates to concepts like “high standards and expectations,” “critical thinking,” and “cognitive development,”2 research shows that online students and instructors often find their experiences more rigorous than in-class experiences.3 Ultimately, it is important to understand that William Mitchell’s new hybrid J.D. option is neither a traditional “bricks-and-mortar” approach nor a traditional “online” approach. I think of it as a “bricks-and-modems” program.

It delivers our time-tested, comprehensive, and rigorous curriculum in a package that is more accessible and responsive to 21st century living and working. These forces belong together.

I predict that this is a “natural” move toward the best possible shape of legal education!

1. Macromolecules are large chemicals, like proteins. They are important building blocks of all materials, including living organisms. Understanding the shapes of macromolecules helps us understand how they work together in nature—like how a key of a certain shape works in a lock. This has many important applications in medicine, such as how viruses attach to cells or how drugs and hormones interact with their targets in the body.

2. See work by Charles Graham & Christopher Essex for a synopsis of instructors’ definitions of “academic rigor.” Available at: http://eric.ed.gov/?q=ED470163&id=ED470163.

3. See e.g., Linda Harasim, Shift happens: online education as a new paradigm in learning., Internet and Higher Education 41–61 (2000) (An overview of the history of online education and the use of network technologies for collaborative learning in post-secondary education); and D. Randy Garrison and Heather Kanuka, Blended learning: Uncovering its transformative potential in higher education. Internet and Higher Education 7, 95-105 (2004)(Concluding that blended learning is consistent with the values of traditional higher education institutions and has the proven potential to enhance both the effectiveness and efficiency of meaningful learning experiences.)

Photo by Brady Willette

wmitchell.edu/thehybrid

15

Closing arguments

by Eric Janus, president and dean, William Mitchell College of Law

Mitchell began as an innovative law school, expanding access by providing night classes and a part-time schedule for adults whose work and family obligations precluded traditional, full-time education.

While welcomed as an opportunity by many, this innovative idea was viewed by others with skepticism. The dean of Yale Law School called night law schools a “rank weed” and urged their closure. John Henry Wigmore of Northwestern University Law School recommended that law schools exclude outside work of any kind because students who must work could not dedicate the necessary time to law school, and therefore should not aspire to a legal education.

Undeterred, the founders of William Mitchell understood that quality was not tied to a particular instructional format.

As a result, thousands of “if not for Mitchell” lawyers—from Warren Burger ’31 to Rosalie Wahl ’67—have been able to put their talents and energy to work for the benefit of themselves and our community and our nation.

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Today, we are once again challenging the routine assumptions about legal education, with our new hybrid enrollment option.

The way students want and need to learn is changing. Traditional classroom instruction, while still the choice for many students, is no longer the only effective way to educate aspiring lawyers. We can now choose from a greatly expanded palette of e-learning pedagogy, increasing access to serve people living in rural parts of the country, those with full-time jobs and families, and those who have grown up in the digital age and are accustomed to learning through technology.

I’m proud to be part of the hybrid option’s development. I’m glad that the ABA has approved it, and so many of our friends and alumni have embraced it. We are creating a “night law school for the 21st century”—one that truly takes us back to our roots, by taking us into the future of higher education.

The response from prospective students has been positive. We’ve received applications from mothers and fathers, bankers and baggage handlers, people with Ph.D.s and M.D.s, and an array of others who, if not for Mitchell’s hybrid enrollment option, would not have the opportunity to pursue their dreams.

The hybrid enrollment option puts Mitchell in the forefront of innovation in American legal education, and it doubles down on our traditional mission of access to rigorous, practical legal education. n

Photo by Brady Willette

“A night law school for the

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st

century” Dean Eric Janus

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17

Coming to the aid of inventors How Professor Jay Erstling and the Intellectual Property Law Clinic are paving the way for better patents by Melissa Priebe When it comes to patent law, it’s tough to find a better advisor than Jay Erstling. The William Mitchell professor had a seat at the table when much of today’s international patent law was formulated, and recently, he had a seat at the White House during a national assembly on patent law policy.

The White House event marked the one-year anniversary of President Barack Obama’s call to strengthen the U.S. patent system and foster innovation by combating abusive patent litigation and “patent trolls.”

During the event, Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling, and Head of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Michelle Lee highlighted progress on the patent initiative.

They announced three new executive actions to level the playing field for all innovators and increase patent quality.

One of those actions—to provide systematic pro bono assistance to independent inventors and small businesses—has been at the heart of Erstling’s work for years.

The lack of resources for inventors and the need to provide greater access to the patent system prompted administration officials to come the aid of American inventors.

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PATENT LAW PRO BONO Making pro bono programs available to financially under-resourced inventors and small businesses is now enshrined in U.S. patent law.

Erstling and his colleagues on the America Invents Act Pro Bono Advisory Council Steering Committee—including former Patent and Trademark Office Director David Kappos, Patterson Thuente IP Founder James Patterson, and now-retired Lindquist & Vennum Pro Bono Director Candee Goodman—have been at the helm of patent pro bono policy, helping good inventions get patented and inventors afford patent attorneys.

Erstling helped shape the Minnesota Inventors Assistance Program through LegalCORPS, a Minnesota nonprofit providing assistance to entrepreneurs. The pilot program was the first in the country to provide free legal representation to low-income inventors seeking to patent their innovations with the USPTO. The Intellectual Property Law Clinic at William Mitchell has partnered with the LegalCORPS pilot since its inception, allowing law students to further this work.

Students at Mitchell do preliminary work to prepare clients for the Inventors Assistance Program, or they provide legal help to clients who don’t meet the program requirements.

The partnership also pairs law students with LegalCORPS volunteers, creating opportunities for students to see patent law in action.

A NATIONAL MODEL Due to its ground-breaking involvement in patent clinical legal education and pro bono services, including publishing “Patent Law Pro Bono: A Best Practices Handbook” by Amy Salmela and Mark Privratsky, William Mitchell is recognized as a national model for IP clinical programs.

“Our law school clinic has emerged from the pack,” said Erstling, who is also of counsel at Patterson Thuente IP and formerly served as the director of the Office of the Patent Cooperation Treaty at the World Intellectual Property Organization.

Photo by Brady Willette

“We’ve been a catalyst–a model for creating other intellectual property law clinics in other schools.”

The Intellectual Property Law Clinic at William Mitchell was one of the original participants in the USPTO Law School Clinic Certification Pilot program, which allows law students to practice intellectual property law before the Patent and Trademark Office. Under the strict guidance of faculty clinic supervisors, students draft and file patent and trademark applications for clients. They also gain valuable experience answering Office Actions and communicating with either patent examiners or trademark examining attorneys on the applications they have filed.

“We are one of a very small number of law schools to be certified by the USPTO, which allows our students to experience IP practice with real clients and in a real-world setting,” Erstling says. “Because of the success of the program, it’s being expanded.”

Combined with the work Mitchell students are doing with LegalCORPS, the certification program sets the Intellectual Property Institute (and the Intellectual Property Law Clinic) apart.

“We’ve been a catalyst—a model for creating other intellectual property law clinics in other schools,” Erstling says.

It’s this work—and the work attorneys are doing through the Inventors Assistance Program—that has caught the attention of policy-makers in Washington, D.C. Leaders in patent law policy want to see more law schools get involved in creating access to patents for independent inventors.

To that end, Erstling has set out to coordinate pro bono programs with other law schools, and to continue to develop a broad outreach model for patent law. He takes many of his experiences back to the classroom,

letting decades of having a seat at the table inform his students.

“I’ve had such a long, privileged career.

This is now the important part, to impart this knowledge, to share my experience with students,”says Erstling.

“If you look at patent laws worldwide, the texts are very complicated. Students have to understand not only what the patent laws mean, they also need to understand how they got that way. Once you start to understand the political context, the historical context, and the change context, the law all comes together.” n

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Louis Ainsworthand’77the

Business of Law

By Jim Walsh

His “If Not for Mitchell” Campaign gift supports practical wisdom

Some of the most important roots of Mitchell’s Center for Law and Business can be traced to a John Deere foundry in Illinois where then 17-year-old Louis Ainsworth spent the summer sweating it out as a janitor.

“That pretty well taught me that I was going to have to live by my brains, not brawn. So I went into the brokerage business,” laughs Ainsworth, director of Mitchell’s Center for Law and Business and former general counsel at Pentair, a $2.7 billion, NYSE-listed diversified manufacturing company. “I left John Deere, went to college, got married, and ended up in Minneapolis. I decided I didn’t want to be the treasurer of a brokerage company; life’s too short for that.

“So I went to law school, and that’s where I found the blend that I like best: working with the figures and the words to essentially get my start in the securities area. I took all the courses on corporations, on corporate tax, on securities, and after William Mitchell I started out as a tax lawyer and ended up as more of a general commercial lawyer.”

At Mitchell, Ainsworth made a concerted effort to study law and business, as opposed to business law, though no center or formal curriculum existed. Today, the Center for Law and Business offers a first-of-its-kind certification program that lets potential employers know that they’re hiring attorneys who are well versed in both business and the law. Currently, more than 30 students are working toward achieving the certificate.

“When I went to school, it was more by accident than by design if you learned anything about business,” Ainsworth says. “But that was in the dark ages. Mitchell, at the time, was a night school. So I went part time for four years.

Luckily, I had a business background, so when

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I took the business law classes I could see how it all fit.”

It paid off. Ainsworth has secured his reputation as one of the most respected attorneys in Minnesota. After graduating from Mitchell, he went on to a distinguished career that included working in private practice as a partner at Henson & Efron, and serving as senior vice president and general counsel for Pentair, where he represented the company in all its acquisitions and divestitures from 1985 until he “retired” in 2010. Two days after media outlets reported that he was leaving Pentair, he joined Faegre Baker Daniels as of counsel.

In June of last year, he signed on as the director of the Center for Law and Business.

“I believe in Mitchell, its focus on practical wisdom, and its focus on the practice of law as opposed to the theory of law,” he says. “I owe a lot to Mitchell because I went here, and I got a lot out of it. Mitchell allowed me to do a lot with my career. It has a tremendous reputation

on the advocacy side of the law, and that reputation has not really translated to the business side—although I can count a dozen or more local public companies’ chief legal officers and general counsels who are Mitchell alumni.

So it just seemed to me that if there were a program at Mitchell for the business-oriented law student, I would want to support that.”

Ainsworth has given generously to support Mitchell. He recently made a leadership gift in support of the Center for Law and Business, which was launched in the fall of 2011 and currently offers courses covering business enterprise, income tax or business entity taxation, transactions and settlements, bankruptcy, construction law, and more.

“Three or four years ago, the school did a focus group at the behest of a couple of alumni who weren’t practicing law; they were in business. They wanted to see if they could get interest at the school and among alumni for a center focused on law, business, and how to run a business,” Ainsworth says. “They felt that their law degrees were as good an entrée to the business world as an MBA, in many cases better, and I wanted to participate in that. We developed a couple of courses for the students. I ended up teaching a course, and it got to the point where we had a complete program for law and business students that focused on both the business side of commerce and the law side of commerce.”

The center’s vision for the future, according to assistant director Leanne Fuith ’10, is to offer students “a strong foundation of knowledge, skills, and experience in business and business law that will enable them to become successful business advisors, business managers, and business owners.” n

“I believe in Mitchell, its focus on PRACTICAL WISDOM, and its focus on the PRACTICE OF LAW as opposed to the theory of law.”

Photos by Brady Willette

wmitchell.edu/clb

21

The ‘If Not for Mitchell’ Campaign is already 94 percent to its $25 million goal Alumni, friends of the college, faculty, students, and staff have come together in an unprecedented effort to support scholarships, faculty, and innovation—and already their generosity is paying off.

In fewer than four years, the “If Not for Mitchell” Campaign has raised more than $23.4 million.

This progress would not have been possible without those who stepped up to support the campaign. William Mitchell is especially grateful to those who have made leadership gifts, including recent gifts received from the following:

Martin Lueck ’84

John H. Faricy Jr. ’82

Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi and two of its partners.

John H. Faricy Jr. ’82. The founder of Minneapolis-based

This $1.125 million gift is the largest from a law firm and its partners in the college’s history, and is given in honor of the firm’s 75th anniversary.

The gifts establish two endowed faculty positions and expand Mitchell’s scholarships for women. In addition to the firm’s gift, leadership gifts were made by the chair of its board, Martin Lueck ’84, and by Kathleen Flynn Peterson ’81, a partner at the firm. Both are or have been members of Mitchell’s board of trustees.

“The practical education that I received at Mitchell changed the course of my life and career,” Lueck says. “This investment in the college by the firm and its partners truly underscores the value we place on legal education that doesn’t just teach students theory, but also how to be outstanding, compassionate, and practice-ready lawyers.”

Faricy Law created the first-ever professorship that will provide the college with resources for conducting empirical research in the law.

The John H. Faricy Jr. Professorship will be rotated among Mitchell faculty based on a professor’s leadership, past scholarship, and research plans that will help build objective clarity and understanding of particular legal issues as well as sound public policy.

“We often proceed in the practice of law and in life with biases until research shows us otherwise,” Faricy says. “Empirical scholarship can help us test our biases and better understand what our laws and the practice of law should be.”

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CAMPAIGN GOAL $25 million

Campaign successes

94% TOWARD GOAL $23,408,650 TO DATE Innovation

$3,361,041

Faculty

$6,355,314

Students

$10,648,370

We’ve created 52 new scholarship endowments.

These scholarships help a range of students, from those going into intellectual property law, public service, and business to students with top credentials to those who enrich the diversity of Mitchell.

We’ve established seven new endowed faculty positions, giving Mitchell a total of 12: Austin J. and Caroline M. Baillon Chair in Real Estate Law

Annual Fund

$3,043,925

Stephen B. and Lisa S. Bonner Distinguished Chair Larry and Christine Bell Distinguished Professorship Briggs and Morgan / Xcel Energy Chair in Energy and Environmental Law James E. Kelley Chair in Tort Law Martin R. Lueck and Mallory K Mullins Professorship in Advocacy Rolf and Nancy Engh Distinguished Professorship Judge Edward J. Devitt Professorship Louis L. Ainsworth Distinguished Professorship John H. Faricy Jr. Professorship Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi Directorship Robins Kaplan Miller & Ciresi Distinguished Professorship in Intellectual Property We’ve launched and expanded innovative programs: Center for Law & Business Child Protection Program, Clinic & Partnerships Energy & Environmental Law Program

Louis L. Ainsworth ’77

Externship Program for hundreds of students Law Review Endowment Public Service Programming

Louis L. Ainsworth ’77. The former senior vice president and general counsel of Pentair has donated more than $1 million to the law school. The gift will create an endowed professorship in law and business, the first in this field at the college, and also includes an estate gift to support the law school’s Center for Law and Business.

“Legal education is changing dramatically, and Mitchell is helping lead the change,” Ainsworth says. “I’m in a position to help in that transformation of law because of my Mitchell education and business experience, and this professorship, in a field that is growing in importance, will strengthen Mitchell’s law and business program.

I owe Mitchell a lot because it allowed me to do what I love.”

We’ve launched an innovative new hybrid enrollment option, thanks to investors in innovation, including: Louis L. ’77 and Susan H. Ainsworth Peter Berge `83 Stephen B. ’72 and Lisa S. Bonner Christine J. Chalstrom `91 Rolf ’82 and Nancy Engh Prof. Roger S. and Elaine Haydock Ruth Mickelsen `81 Kathleen Ridder Christine D. Zonneveld ’89

wmitchell.edu/giving

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1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 24

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Deborah Ellis ’83,

FREEDOM FIGHTER

By Jim Walsh

On March 11, 2014, after almost 30 years of being incarcerated in Louisiana State Penitentiary at Angola for a murder he didn’t commit, Glenn Ford walked out a free man and smiled as he conducted interviews with the throng of reporters from CNN, Fox News, and other national media outlets.

Nearly 1,200 miles north, up the Mississippi River in St. Paul, Minn., criminal defense lawyer Deborah Ellis sat quietly in her office and cried.

Nearly three decades of hard, pro bono work had finally paid off.

Ellis was a big part of a St. Paul-based team of volunteer attorneys who worked to make sure justice was done.

“I can get choked up just thinking about it,” says Ellis, who credits the trial advocacy program and the Legal Assistance To Minnesota Prisoners Clinic at Mitchell as foundations for her work that set Ford free. “Just seeing him on the video outside that prison, I really was just overwrought with a combination of joy, relief, catharsis. It was something that we always imagined and believed would happen, but until he actually walked out of prison, it didn’t really hit me—how monumental it is.

“I’ve had convictions overturned, but this was a death sentence. I mean, he was condemned to death. He had no chance of life in prison or parole, but he was exonerated. He steadfastly maintained his innocence. He just kept saying, ‘I wasn’t there.’”

Ford, 65, was convicted of first-degree murder in the November 1983 killing of Isadore Roseman in Shreveport, La. Ford did odd jobs for Roseman, but repeatedly told police, judges, and lawyers he wasn’t guilty.

Finally, thanks in large part to Ellis and her late mentor, famed criminal defense attorney Doug Thomson ’60, a Louisiana judge ruled on new evidence that set Ford free.

“Doug and I went down there early on in 1989 or 1990,” says Ellis.

“A lot of it was filing papers, and I spent a lot of time with the late New Orleans attorney Neal Walker of the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center in Shreveport. We spent a full week re-interviewing everyone we could

Photos by Brady Willette

find: the prosecutors, the defense lawyers, the retired police officers.

We went and looked at the old evidence at the courthouse.

“We did a lot of that gumshoeing, because when the lawyers handled his case they didn’t get police reports back then. We got reports that the defense lawyers never saw because we were able to get them under the equivalent of Minnesota’s Data Practices Act, or the FOIA. We had access to a lot more information; we learned that the police were looking at a lot of different avenues and they weren’t even looking at Glenn immediately after the murder was discovered.

“There was a lot of investigative work that went into it, and then we filed a petition for post-conviction release, which is over 160 pages and it’s on that long paper that people only in Louisiana probably still use.

We raised 65 issues.”

Ford has been part of Ellis’s life for nearly 30 years, his life literally in her hands. Her family and friends have supported her in her fight for his freedom, and now that he’s out, the lawyer’s thoughts are never far from the Louisiana man—or the fact that he spent 27 years behind bars as an innocent man.

“Since 1986, he has been part of my practice,” Ellis says, softly.

“I have volumes of correspondence with him, back and forth. My kids and paralegals have some of his pencil drawings. I’m so glad he’s out.

We stuck in there for the fight and never gave up. As a result, he was alive at the time when some new evidence came forward and he was allowed to walk out the door.” n

wmitchell.edu/alumni

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a career of When Cara Lee Neville graduated from William Mitchell College of Law in 1975, Minnesota’s legal community was homogenous.

Women judges were few and far between, the state was just one year removed from ratifying the federal Equal Rights Amendment, and there weren’t many women civil trial lawyers in the state. It was a challenging period for women with law degrees.

In other words, it was the perfect time for someone like Neville to enter the profession.

Neville wasn’t going to let her gender drown her career aspirations. In fact, by the time she graduated from Mitchell, she’d already broken through some glass ceilings.

One of only 11 female students in her class, she was elected the first woman president of Mitchell’s Student Bar Association.

“I didn’t feel like the fact that I was a woman should stop me from doing anything,” she says.

Neville passed the bar exam, took a job as an assistant Hennepin County felony prosecutor, and quickly began working to improve the climate for women in the profession.

She hasn’t stopped since.

Her impressive career is marked by many firsts. In 1979, she became the first woman supervisor of the Hennepin County Public Defender’s Office. Four years later Minnesota Gov. Rudy Perpich appointed her to the municipal bench. Then in 1986 she was named a Hennepin County District Court judge, making her one of Minnesota’s first female state judges.

“Judge Neville has had a huge influence on the Hennepin County and Minnesota state bar associations,” says Susan Holden ’88, a partner with Sieben Grose Von Holtum & Carey who served as president of both the Minnesota State Bar Association and the Hennepin County

Photos by Brady Willette

LEGAL LEGEND

firsts

By Nancy Crotti

Bar Association. “She’s helped so many Minnesota lawyers—female and male—advance through the ranks of the ABA. She’s a true leader and role model, and someone who truly believes that you stand on the shoulders of those who come before you.”

That belief is something Neville learned from the late Rosalie Wahl ’67, who knew a thing or two about breaking down barriers for women.

Justice Wahl was the first woman appointed to the Minnesota Supreme Court. She was also Neville’s mentor and friend.

“Rosalie taught me that it was very important for us to get our foot in the door, but you can’t be the only one there,” says Neville. “You have to reach out and bring others with you. I’ve tried hard to do that.”

Neville mentors Mitchell students and has taught as an adjunct professor at the college.

She also travels through the world, teaching the rule of law in China, Rwanda, Tanzania, Cambodia, Poland, and beyond.

Although she retired from the bench two years ago, she remains active in the profession.

She serves as a senior judge with the Hennepin County District Court. And she opened Benchmark National ADR, which specializes in mediation and arbitration.

She is one of the top five officers of the 400,000-member American Bar Association and will be president-elect of the fellows of the American Bar Association next year. Only one percent of all lawyers in the country is invited to be fellows.

Today, the walls of her corner office on the 49th floor of Minneapolis’ IDS Tower are covered with awards and plaques, each a testament to her contributions to the profession.

But perhaps most telling is the fact that when she looks out her window, the region’s legal community is now much more diverse. n

Kicking open the doors of opportunity for women: FIRST woman president of the Minnesota Trial Lawyers Association FIRST woman to chair the Minnesota State Bar Association’s criminal justice committee FIRST woman elected as Minnesota state delegate to the American Bar Association FIRST woman president of the Douglas K. Amdahl Inn of Court One of the Founding Mothers of Minnesota Women Lawyers

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6 THINGS about DAVID LAW ’00

Every kid daydreams about running the school— usually while waiting outside the principal’s office.

David Law is living the dream and going one step further. This June, he’ll take over as superintendent of Anoka-Hennepin School District 11. With 39,000 students at 35 schools, Anoka-Hennepin is Minnesota’s largest school district. It’s also where Law spent his formative learning years. Although he won’t admit to ever being called to the principal’s office, Law did take some time out of his busy schedule to answer six questions.

Why public education?

I’m a big advocate of public education. In fact, I was a teacher when I decided to enroll at Mitchell. I planned on becoming a lawyer, but during my third year of law school, I took a job as dean of students at the school where I was teaching. That’s when I decided to get my principal’s license. There are a lot of ways to make a positive difference in the community with a law degree. My path is through public education.

How did Mitchell help prepare you to run a school district?

I am constantly problem-solving issues that involve contracts, policy, or law. My experience at William Mitchell gave me confidence to analyze these sources and make decisions.

What are your fondest memories of Mitchell?

When I was at Mitchell, I was the Student Bar Association representative each year and the president my final year. I fondly remember the Black acre and Greenacre social events. I enjoyed many professors during my time. In particular I thought Eric Janus was a great teacher, and Paul Marino was incredibly entertaining.

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Entertaining?

One of my favorite stories was when I was a 3L in Marino’s class, and there were about eight required textbooks. I hadn’t bought a single book, knowing Marino rarely referenced a text in class. On the first day, he leaned over the front row, looked at the stack of books sitting in front of a student and said “What’s all this?” pointing to the books.

The student said “These are the required texts.” Marino picked one up, looked at it briefly, and said “Of course they are.” I didn’t buy a single book for his class.

What can lawyers learn from elementary school students?

Good question. Elementary school students look for obvious, simple answers, and assume that everyone has good intentions. I think we lose that lens as we grow up, yet many great solutions are simple and don’t come from the win/lose frame of reference.

With so many young minds relying on your guidance and leadership, how do you relax?

I am married and the father of three busy boys who are fairly active in both music and athletics, so I don’t have much down time. But that’s okay because I really enjoy my non-work time with family.

Photo by Brady Willette

CLASS NOTES

1969

1976

1978

Judge Gearin hangs up her gavel JUDGE KATHLEEN GEARIN ’75 hung up her gavel last July, quietly retiring from a career that saw her preside over some of the most controversial cases in Minnesota history. Only months later, she returned to the courtroom to serve as a senior judge.

As a Ramsey County District Court chief judge from 2008 to 2012, she heard some of the most contentious, high profile cases in state history, including cases involving the 2008 Republican National Convention, the Coleman-Franken U.S. Senate election recount, and the 2011 state government shutdown. Her unwavering commitment to justice was evident throughout her career—regardless of whether the cases made headlines. She handled every case with tenacity and compassion.

After working as a high school social studies teacher, Judge Gearin decided she wanted to participate in the judicial process. She obtained her juris doctor from William Mitchell in 1975, then spent 10 years as a prosecuting attorney for the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office. After being recruited to run for judge by Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Rosalie Wahl ’67, she was elected to a judgeship in 1986. She was one of few women on the county bench at that time and served as a mentor to those who followed. Judge Gearin went on to become the assistant chief judge in 2004, then chief judge in 2008.

She has been honored with many awards for her service, including awards from the Minnesota District Judges Foundation, the YWCA, the Minnesota Education Association, and the Minnesota State Bar Association, which presented her with the Rosalie E. Wahl Judicial Award of Excellence. Last year, she also received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the MSBA and the Honorable Warren E. Burger Distinguished Alumni Award from William Mitchell.

Although she has already made a measurable impact on the legal profession, Judge Gearin continues to be active in the legal community. Her appointment as senior judge runs through June 2015, and on top of that, she teaches on the faculty of the Expert Witness Training Academy at William Mitchell. She is also planning a seminar for judges regarding complex cases.

JOHN W. CAREY, an

attorney at Sieben, Grose, Von Holtum & Carey, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

1974

PAUL F. SCHWEIGER, who manages the Duluth office of Sieben, Grose, Von Holtum & Carey, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

JUDGE FRED W. WELLMANN retired

in April. He served in Minnesota’s Third Judicial District. He will serve as senior judge.

JUDGE PHILIP T. KANNING retired in

2012 after serving in Minnesota’s First Judicial District. He currently works as a Eulex International Judge in Mitrovica, Kosovo trying war crimes from the 19992000 conflict.

his law firm, Hauser and Schmid, has joined The Legal Professionals to form the law firm of The Legal Professionals Hauser Schmid Franta & Associates.

1980

ERIC J. MAGNUSON

joined Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi as partner.

THOMAS H. FROST

was appointed by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker to district attorney of Washburn County.

DAVID M. SPARBY was named president and CEO of Northern States Power Company in Minnesota for Xcel Energy.

EILEEN M. ROBERTS

1977

joined Dorsey & Whitney as of counsel in the real estate and land use group.

1975

DONALD E. SCHMID JR. announced that

PATRICIA A. BURKE

retired from full-time work. She is now concentrating on project consulting in human resources and labor relations.

MICHAEL L. EVANS, managing director of the Northern California practice for Newport Board Group, was invited to join the All Business Experts Team by Forbes Magazine.

ROBERT J. KING JR. has become a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is a shareholder Briggs and Morgan.

JUDGE JOHN P. SMITH

was appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to an at-large seat on the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

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CLASS NOTES

Olson appointed to the bench in Fargo, North Dakota JUDGE THOMAS R. OLSON ’81 has spent his entire legal career of 32 years in the area of Fargo, N.D. In February, he was appointed by Gov. Jack Dalrymple to the East Central Judicial District Court bench, serving Cass, Steele, and Traill counties.

1981

1983 GARY L. HUUSKO

MICHAEL D. MADIGAN,

managing shareholder of Madigan, Dahl & Harlan, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

was elected to the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School Board.

THOMAS E. HOFFMAN

joined Lindquist & Vennum as partner with the financial restructuring & bankruptcy practice group.

“Thomas is a dedicated and highly qualified attorney who is well respected by his peers,” said Dalrymple.

“His many years of experience in civil litigation and mediation services will serve the people of the East Central Judicial District very well.”

1984

BARRY M. ZELICKSON

launched Big Thrill Factory, an indooroutdoor family entertainment center in Minnetonka, Minn.

1985

EDWARD J. DRENTTEL, a shareholder at Winthrop & Weinstine was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

named executive director of the Minnesota State Board of Investment, where he will direct Minnesota’s $68 billion portfolio.

30

MITCHELL ON LAW

was appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to an at-large seat on the Minnesota Court of Appeals.

WILLIAM J. TIPPING

joined Larson King as a partner.

1986

JUDGE RODNEY C. HANSON was

appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to a seat in Minnesota’s Eighth Judicial District. He was a partner with Anderson, Larson, Saunders & Klaassen.

1987

DAVID H. GOLDSTEIN’S

JAMES P. CAREY,

play “Skiing on Broken Glass” recently appeared at the Guthrie Theater.

president and managing partner of Sieben, Grose, Von Holtum & Carey, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

1988

SUSAN M. HOLDEN, an attorney at Sieben, Grose, Von Holtum & Carey, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

JOELLEN J. AMBROSE,

ROLF A. LINDBERG CLARK D. OPDAHL was

re-elected managing partner of the Minneapolis law firm Henson & Efron.

JUDGE DENISE D. REILLY MANSCO PERRY III was

Olson has been in private practice since 1985, specializing in litigation and mediation services. He recently practiced law at Johnson, Ramstad & Mottinger.

His experience also includes two years working as an assistant attorney for Clay County, a Minnesota county that borders North Dakota.

In addition to his professional work, Judge Olson is active in his community.

He currently serves as secretary for the North Dakota Foster and Adoptive Parent Association. In the past, he served as president of the Red River Soccer Association and as a council member of the First Lutheran Church of Fargo.

He and his wife, Sandra Leyland, have six children.

was named senior underwriter at Stewart Title Guaranty Company.

a high school teacher in Champlin Park, Minn., received the 2013 American Bar Association Isidore Starr Award for Excellence in Law-Related Education. The award recognizes individuals for outstanding achievements in teaching about the law in the elementary and secondary grades.

CLASS NOTES

KURT R. MATTSON,

director of library services at Lionel Sawyer & Collins in Las Vegas, Nev., published an article “Why do I need books? Isn’t everything online?” in Nevada Lawyer.

1990

PATRICK H. O’NEILL JR.

joined Larson King as partner.

KATHRYN N. SMITH,

DANIEL J. RYAN joined

with her husband, received the Award in Philanthropy from the Willmar Area Community Foundation.

the Apple Valley, Minn., law firm of Dougherty, Molenda, Solfest, Hills & Bauer as associate.

CHAD A. JOHNSON was

named managing partner of Hellmuth & Johnson.

1993

PHILIP K. MILLER

was named Benton County Attorney.

1991

BARBARA J. KLAS was

named director of eDiscovery Client Services with @Legal Discovery.

JUDGE JENNIFER K. FISCHER was

appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to a seat in Minnesota’s Eighth Judicial District. She was previously Kandiyohi County Attorney, where she prosecuted crimes and served as the legal advisor to the County Board of Commissioners.

1992 JAMES R. FREY, PAUL K. DOWNES, an attorney at Sieben, Grose, Von Holtum & Carey, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

STEVEN M. KOEHLER

was named shareholder at Westman, Champlin & Koehler.

president and CEO of the Frey Foundation of Minnesota, was named to the National Catholic Reporter Board of Directors.

1994

JON L. PETERSON, an

attorney at Winthrop & Weinstine, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

JOHN K. ROSSMAN, an

attorney at Moss & Barnett, was named to the executive steering committee of the Consumer Relations Consortium, based out of Washington, D.C.

1995 ANDRIEL M. DEES, director of

multicultural affairs at Capella University, received the 2013 Outstanding Women of Color in Higher Education Award from the University of Wisconsin system.

1996 CHRISTIAN M. SANDE

was appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to the Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board.

KATHERINE M. WALLACE, was

appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to a seat in Minnesota’s Third Judicial District.

Previously, she was a team lead attorney with the Criminal Division of the Olmsted County Attorney’s Office.

MARY M. MCMAHON

was signed by Brighton Publishing for her novel “Seeing Red: Tribal Tribulation.”

1997

DAVID M. AAFEDT, an attorney at Winthrop & Weinstine, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

THEODORE J. SCHMELZLE was

promoted to assistant general counsel and chief privacy officer at Securian Financial Group.

THOMAS K. RIPPBERGER was

named vice president of AdvisorNet Wealth Management.

Previously, he was senior director at McGladrey Wealth Management.

JOSEPH M. FISCHER

was elected to the board of the Richard I. Bong Veterans Historical Center, where he will serve as secretary.

Shelton Walczak pioneers role as MSBA director of diversity and inclusion Answering the call from its members, the Minnesota State Bar Association created a new position in 2013 to foster diversity in the legal profession. The MSBA named Danielle Shelton Walczak ’98 the first director of diversity and inclusion for the state bar.

She is charged with making the association a more diverse and inclusive place, chartering new territory, by helping to prepare the organization’s Diversity Strategic Plan for state bar leadership, and identifying new ways for the MSBA to promote inclusion. Her work will also include expanding MSBA partnerships with minority bar associations, with the goal of creating collaboration and resource sharing among groups like the Minnesota Association of Black Lawyers, the Minnesota Lavender Bar Association, the Minnesota American Indian Bar Association, and the Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association.

As a woman and an attorney of color, Shelton Walczak already encounters issues of diversity and inclusion in her professional and personal life. Now, she aims to expand the definition of diversity in the legal profession to include sexual orientation, religion, disability, and other areas.

Prior to working for the MSBA, she operated her own law firm concentrated on family law. In 2011, she was appointed by then Mayor R.T. Rybak to the Minneapolis Commission on Civil Rights, where she still serves as chair of the Standards and Procedures Committee. She closed her law office in 2013 to devote more time and energy to her values of diversity and inclusion.

wmitchell.edu/alumni

31

CLASS NOTES

1998

1999

CORY P. WHALEN,

a partner and shareholder at Sieben, Grose, Von Holtum & Carey, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

JUDGE ANDREW R. PEARSON was

appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to a seat in Minnesota’s Seventh Judicial District. Previously he was a criminal defense attorney at Bradshaw & Bryant and a public defender for Stearns and Benton Counties.

ALYSSA M. SCHLANDER

joined Securian Financial Group as senior counsel and director of public affairs.

TIMOTHY L. GUSTIN, an

attorney at Moss & Barnett, was selected to serve on the Freddie Mac Multifamily Legal Advisory Council.

JUDGE AMY R. BROSNAHAN was

appointed by Gov. Mark Dayton to a seat in Minnesota’s Tenth Judicial District.

She served as a Sherburne County assistant attorney.

2000

2002

2005

JAYNE J. JONES was

signed by Kelsey McBride PR as a co-author with Alicia Long of the novel “Capitol Hell.”

DAN J. HOEHN

received the Waseca Area Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award for Schmidt Hoehn Law.

CINDY J. ACKERMAN,

an attorney at Moss & Barnett, was snamed a 2014 Five Star Estate Planning Attorney.

2001

ANDREW C. SLOSS,

who was recently promoted to senior manager at Ernst & Young, co-authored an article “New York State’s Excelsior Jobs Program - Growing and Changing to Provide Expanded Opportunities for New York State Businesses,” which was published in the Journal of Multistate Taxation and Incentives.

ALEXANDER J. KIM MATTHEW S. FRANTZEN

joined Gislason & Hunter as litigation attorney.

AMY L. DE KOK was

a shareholder at Winthrop & Weinstine, was named one of the “50 Women in Business” by the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal.

This list recognizes women who have demonstrated exemplary professional achievements, leadership qualities, and contributions to the community.

She was also elected to the board of directors of the National Association of Women Business Owners Minnesota chapter.

2004

2006

2003

CHRISTY L. SNOWKASTER, managing

attorney of Central Minnesota Legal Services, was honored by the Minnesota Justice Foundation with the Direct Legal Service Award.

named shareholder at Fredrikson & Byron.

joined Stinson Leonard Street as partner with the firm’s intellectual property and technology division.

an attorney at Winthrop & Weinstine, was selected for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2014.

ROBB G. HUNTER

joined Monnat & Spurrier as criminal defense trial attorney.

received the 2013 Leadership Award at the 25th Anniversary Gala of the Minnesota Asian Pacific American Bar Association. He was also named regional governor for the International Association of Korean Lawyers.

CONNIE I. ARMSTRONG

was elected to shareholder at Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson.

ANDREW J. STEIL

was elected shareholder at Gray Plant Mooty.

MARA GARCIA KAPLAN was chosen

as a 2013 Target Corporation Fellow, participating in a program created by the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity to identify, train, and advance the next generation of leaders in the legal profession.

TAMMERA R. DIEHM, JOEL D. LEVITON

was elected partner at Foley & Mansfield.

LEE A. HUTTON III

joined Zelle Hofmann Voelbel & Mason as trial litigator and entertainment attorney.

KRISTIN M. NIMSGER

MITCHELL ON LAW

RYAN D. KAPLAN

accepted a new leadership role with Virtus Law as originating attorney.

AIMÉE D. DAYHOFF,

joined MicroEdge as CEO.

32

ELIZABETH M. SORENSON BROTTEN

BRENDAN R. TUPA

joined the Law Offices of Thomas P. Stilp, the in-house law office of record for Liberty Mutual Insurance Group.

DR. LORI P. SARAGENO MATTHEW R. KUHN

joined Faegre Baker Daniels as partner.

joined the patent group as of counsel at Dorsey & Whitney.

JOSEPH L. CURRIER was D. SCOTT ABERSON

was elected to partner at Maslon Edelman Borman & Brand. He practices with Maslon’s litigation group.

elected shareholder at Briggs and Morgan.

He is a member of the firm’s business law section.

CLASS NOTES

2013 ELLEN A. BRINKMAN

SARAH M. HOFFMAN

was elected joined Bassford shareholder at Briggs Remele as associate. and Morgan. She is a member of the firm’s employment, benefits, and labor section.

2007

& Hoffer Law Firm as family law attorney.

ADINE S. MOMOH was

ANDREA N. NODOLF

was appointed by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker to district attorney in Rusk County.

2008

joined Meagher & Geer as associate in the anti-fraud counseling and litigation practice group.

JILL S. IDE joined Bolt

2009 CHUE VUE was elected to the St. Paul Board of Education.

COURTNEY R. SEBO

named to the Midwest Region of Lawyers of Color “Hot List,” which recognizes early to middle career attorneys who excel in the legal profession.

She is a trial attorney in the business and commercial litigation group at Stinson Leonard Street.

2010

STEPHEN C. BARGHUSEN was

elected to the Judicial Council of the American Veterinary Medical Association as an at-large member.

LEANNE R. FUITH is the

new assistant director for William Mitchell’s Center for Law and Business. She will split her time between administrative duties and teaching.

joined Arthur, Chapman, Kettering, Smetak & Pikala as associate attorney.

She was also awarded the Volunteer Law Student Award from the Minnesota Justice Foundation. Her primary activities with MJF have been to support a self-help clinic for small businesses preparing the construction of the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit.

Fride in Duluth, Minn., as associate.

KIMBERLY E. BRZEZINSKI joined the

real estate team of Hanft Fride.

joined Faegre Baker Daniels as associate.

CHRISTINE M. BRIGHT MARWEDE joined

Haberkorn Law Offices as associate attorney.

BRIAN WALLENFELT

joined Merchant & Gould, an intellectual property law firm.

LARIE ANN PAMPUCH

was promoted to associate attorney at Anastasi Jellum.

MARGARET R. HENEHAN was named

DEBORAH J. PROKOPF

joined Cummins & Cummins.

NATASHA C. PHELPS

joined Aafedt, Forde, Gray, Monson & Hager as associate attorney.

LAUREN A. D’CRUZ

joined Lind, Jensen, Sullivan & Peterson as associate in the firm’s litigation group.

TARYN R. PURCELL

joined Blair & Fitzsimmons as associate attorney.

NATHAN M. MAUS

joined TSR Injury Law as associate attorney.

HEATHER J. DIERSEN

joined Fafinski Mark & Johnson as associate in the human resources & employment and litigation practice groups.

SARA J. WENZEL

joined Thibodeau, Johnson & Feriancek, as associate attorney.

the first Judge Nancy C. Dreher Fellow at Volunteer Lawyers Network.

HOLLY E. LABOONEHALLER joined Hanft

joined Faegre Baker Daniels as associate with the firm’s litigation group.

CHRISTOPHER R. SALL

ADINA R. FLOREA

2011

ADAM J. PABARCUS

MARY E. JOHNSON

joined the business litigation team at Oppenheimer Wolff & Donnelly as associate.

KARLEN PADAYACHEE

announced the foundation of Encompass Law. JENNIFER L. JOHNSON

joined Stoel Rives as associate.

GREGORY B. LAWRENCE joined

Arthur, Chapman, Kettering, Smetak & Pikala as associate attorney.

SEAN E. FROELICH

was named district attorney for Pierce County, Minn.

KARLI B. PETERSON

joined Gray Plant Mooty as associate with the franchise and distribution practice group.

wmitchell.edu/alumni

33

IN MEMORIAM

1942

WILLIAM B. KORSTAD

97, Nov. 10, 2013.

Survived by daughter Beverly (Jonathan) Tomhave; son Stephen (Rachel) Korstad; grandchildren; and great granddaughter.

(Ken) Kochendorfer (Julie) Norman, John and Mary (Al) Kieffer.

(Rhonda) Norman, Katherine Norman; step-grandchildren; sisters Beverly (Bohn) Engell, Josephine MICHAEL F. FETSCH Teare, Anita (Wesley) 73, Sept. 12, 2013.

Miller, Sherry Osborne; Survived by wife nieces and nephews.

Marilyn; children Anne (Jim Horner), John (Nancy), Tim (Louise Muth); and grandchildren.

EUGENE P. BRADT 76, Aug. 29, 2013.

Survived by wife Dona MacaulayBradt; children, Kellie Bradt, Kevin (Marsha) Bradt, Eric (Kathleen) Bradt; grandchildren; great grandchildren; step-children Robert ROGER A. (Karen) Macaulay, CHRISTIANSON Cathy (Michael) 70, Dec. 6, 2013.

Burlager, Jim Survived by mother (Susan) Macaulay, Bonnie; children George (Cheryl) Vicki, Tim (Helena), Macaulay, Carolyn Tonya (Marcel), Anna; (Michael) Liebe; grandchildren; step-grandchildren; niece; nephews; brothers Guy and special friend (Darlene) Bradt, Jane Henderson.

William (Darlene) Bradt; sisters Audrey

1966

1963

1959

LLOYD O. BERGMAN

86, Jan. 28, 2014.

Survived by wife Bonnie Bergman; children Kathy (John) Bergman-Baer, Mark (Debbie) Bergman, Steven Bergman; and grandchildren.

1960

PHYLLIS G. JONES

90, Sept. 8, 2013.

Survived by children Stephanie (Phillip) Martineau, Jacqueline (Harry) Ridge, Kent Carroll Jones; grandchildren; step-children Will

1970

1971

lifelong friend Kathy Callies.

R. M. REGAN

69, Oct.11, 2013.

Survived by companion Judith Pomerleau; children Erin (Damian) Drummer, Matthew (Colleen) Regan, Seamus (Angela) Regan; grandchildren; siblings John (Carol) Regan, Fay Regan, Patrick Regan, Marilyn Regan (Conrad Osborne), and Thomas (Deb) Regan.

1974

RICHARD P. KNAUER

68, March 24, 2013.

1991

1987

STEPHEN A. PALMER

ROBERT L. MENNELL 62, Nov. 30, 2013.

Survived by wife Cory; 79, Dec. 12, 2013. parents Arnold and Survived by wife Patsy Palmer; brother Antoinette Yarrow Scott (Pam) Palmer; (Toni) Mennell; and sister Cynthia children Ann (Russell) Iverson.

Mennell (Mrs. Kirk ) Clowser, Rev. John (Rev. Sonia Waters) Mennell, James (Elizabeth) Mennell, ALFRED M. STANBURY Dec. 8, 2013. Survived Betsy Mennell; and by sister Arline (Frank) grandchildren.

Spino; niece Susan Calabrese (Richard); and nephew Thomas J. (Mary) Spino.

1988

1981

JEANNE A. SAYERS

62, Sept. 21, 2013.

Survived by husband Randall; step-son Justin Sayers; sisters Lori Tenney, Sam Olson, Susan Austin; nieces; nephews; and

‘Unsung hero’ watched over campus Rex Turner, 88, was a fixture at William Mitchell. A security officer for 21 years, he sat at the front desk, monitoring the comings and goings of campus visitors.

He was heralded as one of the law school’s “Unsung Heroes” in the student newspaper.

Rex was a great storyteller, and his friendly demeanor was a boon to students in the height of their stress.

One student reported losing her car keys during her first week of law school.

When she had given up hope of finding them, Rex comforted her and told her everything would work out fine. And it did.

“He loved working here,” said David Hellermann, assistant director of facilities and security.

34

MITCHELL ON LAW

Little did many people know, though, that Rex was not just a hero when it came to lost keys. He was also a hero in the U.S. Armed Forces.

Before moving to Minnesota, Rex served in World War II. He was stationed in England, and he served as a gunner on a B-17 bomber, flying in 26 missions before the war’s end. With the help of the GI Bill, he studied government at New York University. Then he went on to attend the University of Oklahoma Law School. Rex moved to Minnesota in 1959, taking jobs in life insurance and facilities management. He took the position at William Mitchell after he moved into a house on Portland Avenue – just across the street.

The war veteran passed away in January. He is survived by his wife, Catheryne; daughters Cassandra Murphy and Roxanna Turner; grandchildren; and nephews.

Innovation is in the DNA at Mitchell, and we are driving positive change across the college. That spirit of innovation will support us as we now launch a national search for the 30th dean of William Mitchell and its predecessor schools to succeed Eric Janus when he returns to the faculty in June 2015.

I know I speak for the entire board of trustees, and for all of you, when I say that Dean Janus has set the standard for leadership at Mitchell, and we are challenged to find a successor who will build on his record of progress over the last 30 years, including eight as president and dean. He leads with integrity, compassion, innovation, collaboration, and an eye to the future, which is why our next leader will be well-positioned to build on our recent success and continue to move our mission forward.

The new search committee, led by the Hon. Helen Meyer ’83, will include faculty, alumni, students, and staff representation. We will want the full voice of our community to be heard as we conduct the search. To assure a wide reach for our search, the committee will employ an outside search firm, as well. Once the top candidates are identified, they will be brought to campus for interviews. We expect to introduce the successor shortly after Jan. 1, 2015.

Your input will be valuable in finding the right leader for our law school. You know our culture, values, and mission. You also know the difference Mitchell can make in the lives of students, alumni, and our community. And we want to hear from you.

We will tell you more about the search process in the coming weeks and months. In the meantime, I encourage you to keep up with all the great things that are happening at William Mitchell by visiting wmitchell.edu, reading the monthly eNewsletter, and coming to campus for events and CLEs. Thank you for your engagement with Mitchell. You are one of the reasons we are the law school for the real world!

to the

POINT

Stephen Bonner

CHAIR AND

BOARD MEMBER

Sincerely,

Stephen Bonner ’72 Chair, William Mitchell Board of Trustees

Photos by Tim Rummelhoff

wmitchell.edu/news

35

WILLIAM MITCHELL

in

52 WORDS

ONE OF THE TOP-RANKED CLINICAL PROGRAMS IN THE COUNTRY.

A leader in teaching theory and practical, real-world skills. Robust externship and mentoring programs. Faculty who teach, study, and practice. A large, engaged, supportive alumni base. A commitment to community service. Innovative enrollment options.

That’s William Mitchell College of Law. That’s practical wisdom.

WILLIAM MITCHELL

BY THE NUMBERS in Minnesota for part-time law (U.S. News & World Report)

in Minnesota for clinical training (U.S. News & World Report)

in Minnesota for “preparedness of graduates” (Recent survey of 1,750 practicing attorneys in Minnesota)

among Minnesota’s private law schools for employment outcomes American Bar Association

1,300

The number of William Mitchell alumni who have helped their law school achieve these milestones by making a gift to the 2014 Annual Fund so far this year.

Join them, and help William Mitchell maintain its position as Minnesota’s law school for the real world.

Make a gift to the Annual Fund at wmitchell.edu/give.

43

Nonprofit Org. U.S. Postage

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