Commencement 2022

THE W&L SCHOOL OF LAW CELEBRATED its 167th commencement on May 13, awarding 119 juris doctor degrees. The ceremony returned to the Colonnade lawn for the first time since the onset of COVID-19, and the impact of the pandemic on the graduating class loomed large in remarks by the official speakers.

“It has been three long years since we have been able to gather in our traditional fashion for this ceremony, and the sight does wonders for the soul,” said President Will Dudley as he welcomed students and family members.

“The experience of the class of ’22 has been historic,” he said. “Your time in law school has been like none before it. Yet you also share much with the law graduates who have preceded you. W&L has shaped you, as individuals and as a class. Together you have studied, argued, and developed the habits of mind that characterize good lawyers. You have made lasting friendships that will give you pleasure and support wherever you may go.”

Michelle Drumbl, interim dean of the Law School, addressed the ways in which the graduating class was impacted by the pandemic, but how they overcame its challenges. Reflecting on the remarks made during the annual “50 Days to Graduation” celebration that occurred earlier in the semester, Drumbl recalled how students spoke of their deep friendships and how they supported each other through difficult times and celebrated each other’s accomplishments.

“What struck me that night — and strikes me today as I look out at you — is that despite all the curveballs life threw at you over the last three years, you really did have a typical W&L Law experience,” she said.

After the graduates were awarded their degrees, Lizanne Thomas ’82L, a member of the university’s Board of Trustees, gave the commencement address. Thomas is the chair of corporate governance practice and partner-in-charge of the Southern U.S. region for Jones Day in Atlanta.

Thomas distilled in her remarks the wisdom of her many years as a governance lawyer, helping the graduates to see that they already possessed

PHILLIP S. HARMON

John W. Davis Prize for Law highest cumulative grade point average

JAMES THOMAS DWYER IV

American Bankruptcy Institute Medal excellence in study of bankruptcy law

HAYDEN J. DRISCOLL

Roy L. Steinheimer Jr. Commercial Law Award excellence in commercial law

CARSON ALEXANDER COX

Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Award effective trial advocacy

RAVEN CHA’NEL BURKS

H. McLeod-Ross Malone Oral Advocacy Award distinction in oral advocacy

ANNA RENEE SCHROER AND TIMOTHY WANG

Frederic L. Kirgis Jr. International Law Award excellence in international law

SHELDON VICTORIA EKIRCH

Virginia Bar Family Law Section Award excellence in the area of family law

RYAN MICHAEL D’ERCOLE AND ELENA SCHIEFELE

Barry Sullivan Constitutional Law Award excellence in constitutional law the tools to be successful in legal practice — as she put it, “the how” rather than “the what.” She spoke about how grit, curiosity, resilience, optimism and gratitude can be employed for success in their professional endeavors.

“Almost every good thing in my professional and personal life ties in some way back to W&L — from my first job to clients, to mentors, to my husband, to cherished friends. And I am standing here today

Awards

ANDREW C. DAGEN AND KATRINA PEPPER JEDAMSKI

James W. H. Stewart Tax Law Award excellence in tax law

JACOB B. LICHTENSTEIN AND ANGELO A. PAVONE

Thomas Carl Damewood Evidence Award excellence in the area of evidence

LAUREN DAWN RODEWALD AND CLAIRE LINDSAY WILLIAMS

Criminal Law Award excellence in courses of criminal law

ALISSA N. GARUFI

Business Law Award excellence in courses of business law

LUIS F. INARRA ROJAS

Administrative Law Award excellence in courses of administrative law

CHRISTOPHER SWOPE

Clinical Legal Education Association Award outstanding clinical student

EVANTHEA HAMMER

Clinical Legal Education Association

Outstanding Externship Award outstanding externship student because in some small way I want to express my gratitude to those who went before all of us and made this happy day possible — for me and for you,” said Thomas.

The Student Bar Association Teacher of the Year and Staff Member of the Year award were also presented at the awards ceremony. Brandon Hasbrouck was named Teacher of the Year, and Alegra Steck won the staff award.

WILLIAM H. SMITH III

Charles V. Laughlin Award outstanding contribution to moot court program

EMMA R. BURRI

Student Bar Association President Award recognition for services as president of the Student Bar Association

EVANTHEA HAMMER AND CLAIR ELIZABETH WELCH

W&L Law Women’s Law Award outstanding contribution to women in the law

SENURI THARINDHI RAUF

Calhoun Bond University Service Award significant contribution to the University community

SABRINA MATLOCK, LAUREN R. ROBERSTON AND CHRISTOPHER E. WATTS

Randall P. Bezanson Award outstanding contribution to diversity in the life of the Law School community

EMMA R. BURRI, HANNAH E. COFFMAN

POLK, MATTHEW DAVID KAMINER AND ALYSSA M. MATHEWS

Professionalism and Service Award significant contribution of public service in the community

It has been a stellar year for employment, with both the Law Classes of 2021 and 2022 hitting near all-time highs in job outcomes.

96% 86% Class of 2021 Employed or in Grad School

Class of 2022 Employed or in Grad School

Behind the Numbers: Career Paths

ELENA SCHIEFELE ’22L graduated from Florida Atlantic University in 2019. She has been a research assistant for Professor Hasbrouck since her 1L summer and interned at the Federal Public Defender’s Office for the Western District of Virginia during her 2L summer. Elena also served as a managing editor of the W&L Law Review. After graduation, she will work in Sanford Heisler Sharp’s D.C. office for one year before clerking for Chief Judge Roger L. Gregory in the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

“During the Fall 2021 semester, I externed for a magistrate judge in the Western District of North Carolina. That experience was one of my favorite things that I’ve done during law school and confirmed my decision to clerk. I loved the close, collaborative working relationship between the judge I externed for and his clerks. I also learned something new in every case that I worked on during the externship. My professors talked about their past clerkships in similar terms, and I am excited to keep learning during my clerkship with Judge Gregory.”

TREY SMITH ’22L is from St. John’s, Antigua. He received a B.A. in government from the University of Virginia. Prior to studying law at W&L, Smith worked as a real estate paralegal in Charlottesville. He spent his 1L summer working as a summer associate at MichieHamlett in Charlottesville and his 2L summer at Troutman Pepper in Richmond. Smith served as chair of the Moot Court executive board and president of the Black Law Students Association. He joined Troutman Pepper in Richmond in the firm’s white-collar litigation and investigations practice group.

“Having worked as a real estate paralegal, I knew that I enjoyed the intricacies of handling complex real estate transactions. However, during 2L, I took business associations and mergers and acquisitions, both with Professor Haan, and Uniform Commercial Code. Those courses sparked an interest in business law, so when I got to Troutman I took assignments from the corporate, multi-family housing, and white collar litigation practice groups. I really appreciated having the opportunity to sample such a wide variety of practice areas.”

Student Accolades

Kristin Barkemeyer ’22L and Max Blumenthal ’24L competed as a team in the Global Antitrust Institute Invitational Moot Court Competition, the only moot court competition in the U.S. devoted exclusively to antitrust law. Barkemeyer won the top award of Best Oralist. As a team, Barkemeyer and Blumenthal finished the competition as semifinalists, facing teams from the law schools at Harvard and the University of Missouri in the final rounds.

AINSLEY-BROOKE SATTERWHITE ’22L, is from Fredericksburg, Virginia. She received her B.A. from East Carolina University. While at W&L, she served as vice president of Veterans Affairs for the National Security and Military Law Society. After graduation, she entered the Army JAG Corps.

“I was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army in September 2019. I grew up in a militaryentrenched family: my father, sister and brother-in-law are currently serving in the Navy. Although I knew I wanted to enter the JAG Corps, I wanted to experience it for myself and, in my 2L summer, I sought out two externships with different JAG offices. I was exceptionally fortunate to split my summer between Fort Bragg and Fort Eustis and experience different mission-sets within the Army. I won’t find out where I will be stationed until later in the application process nor do I know what type of law I’ll be practicing. During my externships, I thoroughly enjoyed working in military justice and trial defense service and hope to waive the Jolly Roger!”

LAUREN ROBERTSON ’22L is from Sarasota, Florida. She received a B.A. in English from Florida State University. Robertson spent her 1L summer as a judicial extern for the Hon. Julie Sneed of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida and her 2L summer working for Holland & Knight LLP in Tampa, Florida. As a 3L, she served as the editor-in-chief of the W&L Law Review and a Burks Scholar for Legal Writing. After graduation, she will join the litigation group at Holland & Knight LLP in the firm’s Tampa office.

“When I worked in commercial insurance before law school, I felt like a square peg trying to fit into a round hole. As wonderful as the people I worked with were, I knew that it wasn’t the right career fit. It may sound a bit corny, but law school as a whole has validated that this is what I’m meant to do. I loved my classes. I loved my extracurriculars. I loved my job experiences. These past three years have only reinforced that being an attorney is my calling.”

The American Constitution Society selected Halley Townsend ’22L as the winner of the 2022 Constance Baker Motley National Student Writing Competition. Townsend won for her paper “Second Middle Passage: How Anti-Abortion Laws Perpetuate Structures of Slavery and the Case for Reproductive Justice.” She argues that Texas SB8, like its counterparts in the other former slaveholding states, perpetuates structures of slavery in the form of state control over the Black female body.

In addition to a monetary award, Townsend will be invited to publish her paper in the University of Pennsylvania Journal of Constitutional Law. The competition garnered entries from law students across the country. Seven finalists were selected, from which a distinguished and diverse panel of judges chose one winner and two runners-up. Among the finalists were students from the law schools at the University of Chicago, Duke University, the University of Texas and Yale University.