UMass Law Commencement Program

CXI X 119th

Commencement

Monday, May 13, 2019

Main Auditorium UMass Dartmouth Dartmouth, Massachusetts

UMass Dartmouth Mission

Board of Trustees

UMass Dartmouth distinguishes itself as a vibrant, public research university dedicated to engaged learning and innovative research resulting in personal and lifelong student success. The University serves as an intellectual catalyst for economic, social, and cultural transformation on a global, national, and regional scale.

Robert J. Manning Chair

UMass Dartmouth Vision

R. Norman Peters Vice Chair Mary L. Burns Robert Epstein David G. Fubini Maria D. Furman ’76 Stephen R. Karam

UMass Dartmouth will be a globally recognized premier research university committed to inclusion, access, advancement of knowledge, student success, and community enrichment.

Brian J. Madigan Katherine E. Mallett Jiya Nair Michael V. O'Brien

UMass School of Law Mission

Noreen C. Okwara Kerri E. Osterhaus-Houle

UMass Law is the Commonwealth’s public law school. We are committed to providing an excellent, affordable, and accessible legal education. Our collegial community respects and promotes diversity in identity and ideas.

Our program balances legal theory, doctrine, skills, experience, and professionalism.

We strive to graduate competent, ethical, and creative professionals who exercise sound judgment. Our involvement in the legal community enables our students to thrive in a changing profession and to serve the needs of their future clients. We advance justice within and beyond the Commonwealth through our research, writing, teaching, learning, practice, and engagement with the profession.

Imari K. Paris Jeffries

The permanent record kept in the Office of the University Registrar for each student will certify the award of degree and carry his or her grades, averages, and honors (if any).

At commencement, students graduating with distinction are noted only if that distinction has been earned at the end of the previous semester.

The University of Massachusetts is committed to a policy of equal opportunity without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, disability, military status, or genetic information in employment, admission to, and participation in academic programs, activities, and services, and the selection of vendors who provide services or products to the University.

The names appearing in the Commencement Program represent an unofficial listing of candidates.

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James A. Peyser Silavong Phimmasone ’19 Elizabeth D. Scheibel Sara Tariq Henry M. Thomas III Steven A. Tolman Victor Woolridge Charles F. Wu

Honorees Justice Elspeth B. Cypher / Doctor of Law / Commencement Address Associate Justice, Supreme Judicial Court

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ssociate Justice Elspeth B. Cypher was appointed to the Supreme Judicial Court by Governor Charles Baker on March 31, 2017.

Justice Cypher received a B.A., magna cum laude, from Emerson College in 1980 and a J.D., cum laude, from Suffolk University Law School in 1986, where she served on the Suffolk University Law Review.

From 1986 to 1988, she was an associate at the Boston law firm of Grayer, Brown, and Dilday. In 1988, she became an Assistant District Attorney in Bristol County, where she served for the next twelve years. From 1993 to 2000, she was chief of the Appellate Division of that office and argued many cases before the Supreme Judicial Court and the Appeals Court. In 2000, Governor Paul Cellucci appointed Justice Cypher to the Appeals Court.

For many years Justice Cypher was an adjunct professor at Southern New England School of Law (now the University of Massachusetts School of Law), where she taught courses on legal writing; criminal procedure; criminal law; and women, law, and the legal system. She has participated in numerous educational programs for judges and lawyers and has written extensively about developments in criminal law in Massachusetts.

Active in the Massachusetts Bar Association, Justice Cypher has served as co-chair of its criminal law section. She was the recipient of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly’s Lawyer of the Year Award in 2000 for her work in the long-running prosecutions of James M. Kater for the murder of Mary Lou Arruda.

Casey N. Shannon ’19 / Student Address School of Law

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asey Shannon, a native of Taunton, Massachusetts, served as the Business/Conference Editor of the UMass Law Review during the 2018-2019 academic year and collaborated with faculty, staff, legal professionals, and state legislators to present the 2019 Law Review Symposium, Navigating a New Reality: A Multi-Platform Look at Media and the Law. She has been deeply involved in community outreach throughout her life, including her mentoring of the Mock Trial Team at the Wheeler School in Rhode Island, supporting the United Way of New Bedford, and many other local endeavors. Ms. Shannon is grateful for the unwavering support, guidance, and love from her parents, Paul and Christine Shannon, and from her “better half,” Kyle, who never once doubted her in the pursuit of her dreams. Her speech is dedicated to the memory of her two brothers, Brian and Danny, who passed away during Ms. Shannon’s tenure at UMass Law, and whose pride and support fueled her drive to achieve her goals. After sitting for the Massachusetts Bar Exam in July, Ms. Shannon plans to continue her career at Bristol County Savings Bank where she will focus on enterprise risk management, corporate governance, contracts, real estate, and other legal matters. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Criminology with a minor in Business Administration from Stonehill College.

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Order of Exercises

Awards

Academic Procession

Academic Achievement Awards

(Highest GPA as of fall semester 2018)

The audience is requested to remain seated until after the processional has been completed.

National Anthem Lauren Barrington ’19 Invocation Rev. David C. Frederici Welcome Robert E. Johnson Chancellor Greetings from the Dean Eric J. Mitnick Greetings from the President Martin T. Meehan Greetings from the Board of Trustees Mary L. Burns Greetings from the Alumni Association Louis A. D’Amarino JD ’14

Clinical Legal Education Award (CLEA)

Andrea Rebeca Martin Connecticut Attorneys Title Insurance Company (CATIC) Foundation, Inc. Award

Stephanie Rodriguez-Ruiz Dean’s Service Award

Christopher J. Leazott Pro Bono Award

Jalessa L. Almonacy (644 hours of pro bono work) St. Thomas More Award

David M. Kaiser

Student Address Casey N. Shannon ’19

Student Bar Association Hon. Francis L. Larkin Amicus Award

Dionte Germon Salvi

Conferring of the Honorary Degree Justice Elspeth B. Cypher

Thurgood Marshall Social Justice Award Jesse G. Purvis

Commencement Address Justice Elspeth B. Cypher Announcement of Awards Eric J. Mitnick Dean Hooding of the Candidates and Conferring of Juris Doctor Degrees Robert E. Johnson Chancellor Eric J. Mitnick Dean

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Full-time student:

Kayla J. Venckauskas

Part-time student:

Patrick J. McKeon

2019 School of Law

Eric J. Mitnick Dean

Patrick J. McKeon ** Barnaby E. McLaughlin * Stephanie Y. Melhem Charles C. Merrill

Reader Shaun B. Spencer Associate Dean for Academic Affairs

Alexander S. Nee ** Karima Amalya Ortolano Joshua Overton *

Juris Doctor Recipients

Maria Cristina Pagan Colon *

Jalessa L. Almonacy

Brianna M. Prince

Reza Amirmotazedi **

Jesse G. Purvis

Lauren Barrington

Stephanie Rodriguez-Ruiz *

Melissa Benner **

Dionte Germon Salvi

Shaina P. Bethala

Casey N. Shannon

Sushantika Rajya Laxmi Bhandari

Kerina Silva **

Krista Grace Brown

Janice E. Small **

Tatiana Chiu

Kayla J. Venckauskas ***

Peter Stephen Christopher *

Ann D. Walsh

Mayara Jordani Cordeiro *

Chad Yates *

Kathleen C. Flannery * Jayme Heather Fleischer Jorge Marcel Franco Kathleen Lyne Franklin Robert L. Fread Abigail K. Frerichs James A. Glick Krystal R. Gonzalez William Ryan Gregory Jackson David M. Kaiser Aileen Coakley Kirwin * Kalene Elizabeth Kobza Charles Henry Lanham Stoshu J. Larkin-Nabozny Christopher J. Leazott * Alexander Y. Lengyel * Andrea Rebeca Martin Joseph R. Martin Catharine Patricia McGlynn

Honors designations, pending final grades *** Summa Cum Laude ** Magna Cum Laude

* Cum Laude

#UMassD2019

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Recognition

Academic Fellows

Sushantika Rajya Laxmi Bhandari

Kathleen C. Flannery

David M. Kaiser

Stephanie Rodriguez-Ruiz

Casey N. Shannon

Kerina Silva

Kayla J. Venckauskas

Chad Yates

Delta Theta Phi Law Fraternity Award

Shaina P. Bethala

Public Interest Law Fellows

Sushantika Rajya Laxmi Bhandari

Aileen Coakley Kirwin

Kalene E. Kobza

Barnaby E. McLaughlin

Karima Amalya Ortolano

Jesse G. Purvis

Stephanie Rodriguez-Ruiz

Kayla J. Venckauskas

Law Review Board

Editor-In-Chief

Kayla J. Venckauskas

Managing Editor

Christopher J. Leazott

Executive Articles Editor

Joshua Overton

Executive Notes Editor

Catharine Patricia McGlynn

Business & Conference Editor

Casey N. Shannon

I.T. Editor Barnaby E. McLaughlin

Lead Editors Melissa Benner Sushantika Rajya Laxmi Bhandari Peter Stephen Christopher Stephanie Rodriguez-Ruiz Chad Yates

Staff Editors Mayara Jordani Cordeiro Patrick J. McKeon

Associate Editors

Jalessa L. Almonacy

Robert L. Fread

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#UMassD2019

The Alumni

“Servant of Justice Award” for performing 100 hours of pro bono or community service work

Shaina P. Bethala

Abigail K. Frerichs

William Ryan Gregory Jackson

Kerina Silva

Ann D. Walsh

Alumni Marchers Louis A. D’Amarino JD ’14 Roger J. Dugal ’70, JD ’89 Tisha M. Giles-Radek JD ’99 Kimberly Hogan JD ’98 George L. Mesmar JD ’17 Leigh A. Mills, JD ’96 Judge Carolanne Rowe JD ’05

“Leader for Justice Award” for performing 200 hours of pro bono or community service work

Jalessa L. Almonacy

Sushantika Rajya Laxmi Bhandari

David M. Kaiser

Aileen Coakley Kirwin

Kalene E. Kobza

Alexander Y. Lengyel

Barnaby E. McLaughlin

Karima Amalya Ortolano

Jesse G. Purvis

Stephanie Rodriguez-Ruiz

Kayla J. Venckauskas

Albert H. Thornton, Jr. JD ’00

Faculty and Staff Marshals

Chief Marshal Professor Philip E. Cleary Faculty Marshal Professor Dwight G. Duncan Julie Cahill Sandra Leger Silva

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