AJMLS Street Law Program Completes its Second Year with a High-Energy Mock Trial

The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia in partnership with Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School, hosted the 2nd Annual Street Law Mock Trial on April 23, 2014, at the United States Federal Courthouse.  John Marshall students and Assistant U.S. Attorneys met at Booker T. Washington High School bi-weekly to teach various legal topics to 10th and 11th grade students from Ms. Carrie Dean’s Business Law class as part of the Street Law program. The program culminated with an in-depth mock trial presentation.

The Honorable Timothy C. Batten, Sr., United States District Court Judge, presided over the mock trial. Students from the Atlanta high school argued the mock case of the State of Georgia v. Daniel Capulet. In the scenario, Capulet was indicted for murder, felony murder, and aggravated assault for the May 14, 2011 shooting of Philip Newton.  After great legal arguments from the students and robust jury deliberations, the jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict and Judge Batten directed counsel to retry the case again next year.

The Street Law program teaches practical law to laypersons using interactive teaching methodologies.  It empowers youth to use their knowledge to solve problems, better their communities, and become active and knowledgeable participants in society.

John Marshall students and recent graduates worked the entire spring semester teaching practical legal courses and preparing high school students for the mock trial. The students involved include: Aklima Khondoker, Alexander Silpa, Allison Lawrence, Courtney Gilkinson, Ellakisha O’Kelley, Emily Napier, Erin King, Eugenia Wallace, Gina Smith, Jackie Tyo, Hannah Mitchell, Jason Ross, Jaye Cole, Jeremy Yakle, Mary Snyder, Michael Roth, Miguel Barboza Jr., Monique Milner, Oluwasegun Adefope, Rebecca Palmer, Sunnita Blount, Jasmine Rowan, and Marcus Dickerson.

Also, Street Law was such a success that Atlanta Public Schools featured the program on its website. For more information on Street Law at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School, contact the Office of Pro Bono and Experiential Learning at rturner@johnmarshall.edu or bortega@johnmarshall.edu.

AJMLS Announces Eleven Upcoming Tenure Appointments

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School (AJMLS) is pleased to announce that the Board of Directors has granted tenure to eleven faculty members, effective August 1, 2014. Eight of the eleven appointments are AJMLS professors and three are professors at Savannah Law School (SLS), a branch of AJMLS.

Upcoming Tenured Professors at AJMLS

Associate Professor K. Lee Adams joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2008 and teaches civil procedure and constitutional law. Professor Adams earned her B.A. from Georgia State University and her J.D. from the University of Georgia School of Law.

Associate Professor Kari Mercer Dalton joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2007 and teaches legal research, writing & analysis I & II; pretrial practice & procedure. Professor Dalton earned her B.A. from Boston College and earned her J.D. from the Loyola University School of Law.

Associate Professor Andrea Doneff joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2008 and teaches ADR & writing, mediation, civil procedure, legal writing, research and advocacy. Professor Doneff earned her B.A. from Emory University, her M.A. from Emory University and her J.D. from the Emory University School of Law.

Associate Professor Patrice Fulcher joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2007 and teaches criminal law; legal research, writing & analysis I, II & III; pretrial practice & procedure; trial advocacy and criminal procedure. Professor Fulcher earned her B.A. from Howard University and J.D. from the Emory University School of Law.

Associate Professor Jace C. Gatewood joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2008 and teaches business organizations and real property. Professor Gatewood earned his A.B. from Georgetown University and his J.D. from the Georgetown University Law Center.

Associate Professor Elizabeth M. Jaffe joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2006 and teaches client interviewing & counseling, depositions, legal research, writing & analysis I & II, pretrial practice & procedure. Professor Jaffe earned her B.A. from Emory University and her J.D. from the Washington University School of Law.

Associate Professor Neva Browning Jeffries joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2008 and teaches Legal Drafting; Legal Research, Writing & Analysis I & II; Pretrial Practice & Procedure; Business Organizations. Professor Jeffries earned her A.B. from Duke University and her J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Associate Professor Kelly Casey Mullally joined the faculty at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School in 2009 and teaches Intellectual Property; Patent Law; Torts. Professor Mullally earned her B.S. from the Georgia Institute of Technology and her J.D. from the University of Georgia School of Law.

Upcoming Tenured Professors at SLS

Professor Elizabeth Megale joined the faculty at the Savannah Law School in 2012 and teaches advanced appellate advocacy, pretrial advocacy and transactional drafting, art of advocacy. Professor Megale earned her B.A. and J.D. from Mercer University.

Professor Marc Roark joined the faculty at Savannah Law School in 2012 and teaches property, law & literature and sales & secured transactions. Professor Roark earned his B.A. from Louisiana State University, his LL.M. from the Duke University School of Law and his J.D. from Loyola University New Orleans.

Professor Judd Sneirson joined the faculty at Savannah Law School in 2013 and teaches contracts, intellectual property and business organizations. Professor Sneirson earned his B.A. from Williams College and his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

Current Tenured Faculty

●Dean & Professor Richardson Lynn
●Associate Dean for Scholarship & Professor Jeffrey Van Detta
●Associate Professor Joanna Apolinsky
●Professor Anthony Baker
●Associate Professor Scott Boone
●Associate Professor Kathleen Burch
●Professor Robert D’Agostino
●Associate Professor Helen de Haven
●Associate Professor Liza Karsai
●Professor Michael Lynch
●Associate Professor Lance McMillian
●Associate Professor Jonathan Rapping
●Professor Caprice Roberts, SLS
●Associate Professor Lisa Taylor
●Associate Professor Lisa Tripp

Granting an appointment of tenure is a firm commitment that AJMLS makes to talented faculty. The school does this to recognize professors who have consistently contributed to its mission by demonstrating excellence throughout their careers at AJMLS.

The conferring of tenure upon these faculty members represents a significant milestone in their academic careers. Please join us in congratulating each of these amazing professors for their ongoing dedication to enriching the lives of the AJMLS and SLS student body.

You may follow the hashtags #AJMLS and #ProfDev, on Twitter, to congratulate these professors or join the conversation.

AJMLS Professor Chosen for Radio Interview with Legal Talk Network

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School professor and Director of the Honors Program in Criminal Justice, Jonathan Rapping was recently interviewed on Legal Talk Network’s radio program, Lawyer2Lawyer, to discuss his organization Gideon’s Promise. On this episode of Lawyer2Lawyer, hosts Bob Ambrogi and J. Craig Williams interviewed Professor Rapping, founder of the Atlanta-based public defender training program Gideon’s Promise, and Dawn Porter, director and producer of the documentary Gideon’s Army. Together they discuss the daily rigors faced by public defenders in the south, their personal beliefs about unequal access to justice, and their ideas about how to better deliver on the promise of Gideon. The radio interview can be found on Legal Talk Network. More information on Professor Rapping can be found on his faculty profile.

Law Review Article by AJMLS Professor Cited in Forbes Magazine

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School professor Beckett Cantley was cited in a recent article by Forbes Magazine discussing life insurance and 831(b) captive insurance companies. His extensive experience on the issue, in addition to his recent appearance as a panelist at the Spring Meeting of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association made Professor Cantley an excellent source of information on the subject.

The excerpt reads:

The panel featured Prof. Beckett Cantley of John Marshal Law School in Atlanta, who discussed the fact that the IRS is taking a hard look at 831(b) captives that have purchased life insurance, and seem to be following their exact same avenues of attack that finally took down abusive VEBAs, 412(i), 419A(f)(6), and other abusive plans that offered pre-tax life insurance. Namely, the IRS is now conducting various promoter audits to obtain the client lists of the insurance managers whose 831(b) captives are involved with life insurance, as a possible predicate to making the purchase of life insurance within a captive a “listed transaction”, i.e., a presumed tax shelter that carries onerous reporting requirements and possibly very significant penalties.

Professor Cantley also spoke at some length about the technical issues about why the IRS would be absolutely right in taking down 831(b) companies with significant amounts of life insurance, but instead of me paraphrasing him, it is probably better to just read his excellent article on the subject: Cantley, Beckett G., Repeat as Necessary: Historical IRS Policy Weapons to Combat Conduit Captive Insurance Company Deductible Purchases of Life Insurance (February 2013). U. C. Davis Business Law Journal, Vol. 13, 2013. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2315868

And Professor Cantley is nothing like the only voice in the wilderness on this issue: Various other prominent captive tax attorneys have indicated that having an 831(b) captive be structured to invest significant assets in a life insurance policy is probably a pretty bad idea, and off-the-record statements from IRS and Treasury officials (not to mention the ongoing promoter audits) show that this is an area of intense interest, if not concern.

Prior to teaching at John Marshall, Professor Cantley served as a law professor at both St.Thomas University School of Law (Miami, FL) and in the International Tax and Financial Services Program (LL.M.) at Thomas Jefferson School of Law (San Diego, CA).  He currently also teaches International Taxation at Northeastern University.  In addition to the courses he currently teaches at AJMLS and NEU, he has previously taught several other JD and LL.M. level courses, including: Tax I; Tax II; Partnership Taxation; and Business Entities.  Prior to entering academia, Professor Cantley’s private practice included serving as an Associate Attorney with Oliver Maner & Gray LLP in Savannah, GA.

To read the full article, visit the Forbes Magazine website. Professor Cantley’s full biography including published articles and media appearances can be found here.

AJMLS Announces Spring 2014 Commencement Speaker

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School (AJMLS) is pleased to announce Chief Judge Herbert E. Phipps as the keynote speaker at the school’s upcoming commencement. The commencement exercises will be held on May 17, 2014 @ 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm at the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center.

About Chief Judge Herbert E. Phipps

Judge Phipps is known for his intense commitment to justice and a keen understanding of ethics. It is this commitment to equality and service to others that has led to his illustrious career in public service.

Courtroom Accomplishments

Chief Judge Herbert Phipps has earned a long list of professional accomplishments. Most recent was his 2013 election as the 27th Presiding Chief Judge of the Georgia Court of Appeals.

Even before the election, Judge Phipps was no stranger to the Georgia Court of Appeals; as he got his start with the Georgia Court of Appeals in 1999 when Governor Roy Barnes appointed him as judge to the Court of Appeals. Prior to that appointment he’d served as judge with the Dougherty County Superior Court, the Dougherty Circuit Juvenile Court and also as part-time Magistrate and Associate Judge of the Dougherty County State Court.

Additional Recognition and Achievements

In addition to his achievements in the courtroom, Judge Phipps has also made historic strides outside of court. In March 2014 Judge Phipps was honored by the Georgia Legal History Foundation, who awarded him with the Nestor Award in recognition of his contribution to Georgia’s legal history.  He became the first African American judge to have his portrait unveiled and displayed on the 2nd floor of the Dougherty County Justice Center in 2012.

In 2007, Judge Phipps earned the distinction of being inducted into the Society of Benchers of Case Western Reserve School of Law. In 2006 The Georgia Bar Association recognized his dedication to the community by awarding him with the Justice Robert Benham Award for Community Service.

Judge Phipps has served on the boards of numerous organizations and boards in the past, including:

●        Board of Directors of SB&T Bank of Albany and Americus (Chairman)
●        The Albany Association for Retarded Citizens (President)
●        The Faith Fund Foundation (President)
●        The Criterion Club (President)
●        Lawyers Club of Atlanta (President)

Judge Phipps is a strong proponent of family. He believes that much of his success would not have been possible without the support of his wife Connie, as well as their children Herbert and India, son-in-law Will J. Epps and granddaughter Zoë Olivia Epps.

About the 2014 AJMLS Commencement

The commencement ceremony is scheduled to begin on Saturday May 17, 2014 at 1:30 pm. Tickets are not required for entry.  For more information regarding parking or other venue related topics, please visit www.atlantaciviccenter.com.

On behalf of AJMLS, we’d like to congratulate you on your momentous achievement. We’d also like to extend our best wishes to all of our 2014 graduates as you go on to change the world!

To join the AJMLS commencement conversation on Twitter just follow the hashtags #AJMLS and #LawGrad.

AJMLS Professor Featured Panelist in American Constitution Society SCOTUS Review of Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School professor Kathleen Burch is a featured panelist in the upcoming SCOTUS review of Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby presented by the Georgia Lawyer Chapter, Georgia State University College of Law, Emory University School of Law and Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School Student Chapters of the American Constitution Society (ACS). The event, SCOTUS Review of Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby: Does the Constitution Protect Corporate Religious Freedom? will be held on Tuesday, April 22, 2014 from noon to 1:30 p.m. at One Atlantic Center.

Please join the ACS Georgia Lawyer Chapter for a panel discussion on the Supreme Court’s consideration of Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby, Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v. Sebelius, and Autocam Corp. v. Sebelius, which address whether corporations may deny coverage to their employees for items such as contraceptives drugs to which they would otherwise be entitled under the Affordable Care Act based on the religious objections of the corporation’s owners under both the First Amendment’s free exercise clause and the Religious Freedom Restoration Act.  Topics to be discussed include religious freedom and discrimination, corporate personhood and federal health policy. For questions on the day of the event, please contact Douglas Park at 404-862-0582. To attend for free with no CLE credit, RSVP here. To purchase 1.0 hours of CLE credit for $5, RSVP here. A full list of panelists is listed below.

  • Kathleen Burch, Associate Professor of Law, Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School
  • William P. Marshall, William Rand Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor of Law, University of North Carolina School of Law, former Deputy White House Counsel; Member, ACS Board of Directors
  • Frank J. Mulcahy, Executive Director, Georgia Catholic Conference
  • Anne Tucker, Assistant Professor of Law, Georgia State University College of Law

 

 

Professor Fulcher Gives Expert Opinion to the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School professor Patrice Fulcher was asked by Representative Elijah E. Cummings’ office, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, to comment on the contempt proceedings against Lois Lerner. Cummings released opinions from 25 legal experts across the country and the political spectrum concluding that Committee Chairman Darrell Issa compromised any House contempt action against former IRS official Lois Lerner when he rushed to adjourn the Committee’s hearing on March 5, 2014.

In Professor Fulcher’s comment, she said:

released opinions from 25 legal experts across the country and the political spectrum concluding that Committee Chairman Darrell Issa compromised any House contempt action against former IRS official Lois Lerner when he rushed to adjourn the Committee’s hearing on March 5, 2014. – See more at: http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/press-releases/twenty-five-independent-legal-experts-now-agree-that-issa-botched-contempt/#sthash.twEBtBUd.dpuf
released opinions from 25 legal experts across the country and the political spectrum concluding that Committee Chairman Darrell Issa compromised any House contempt action against former IRS official Lois Lerner when he rushed to adjourn the Committee’s hearing on March 5, 2014. – See more at: http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/press-releases/twenty-five-independent-legal-experts-now-agree-that-issa-botched-contempt/#sthash.twEBtBUd.dpuf
released opinions from 25 legal experts across the country and the political spectrum concluding that Committee Chairman Darrell Issa compromised any House contempt action against former IRS official Lois Lerner when he rushed to adjourn the Committee’s hearing on March 5, 2014. – See more at: http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/press-releases/twenty-five-independent-legal-experts-now-agree-that-issa-botched-contempt/#sthash.twEBtBUd.dpuf
released opinions from 25 legal experts across the country and the political spectrum concluding that Committee Chairman Darrell Issa compromised any House contempt action against former IRS official Lois Lerner when he rushed to adjourn the Committee’s hearing on March 5, 2014. – See more at: http://democrats.oversight.house.gov/press-releases/twenty-five-independent-legal-experts-now-agree-that-issa-botched-contempt/#sthash.twEBtBUd.dpuf

“American citizens expect, and the Constitution demands, that U.S. Congressional Committees adhere to procedural constraints when conducting hearings. Yet the proper required measures designed to provide due process of law were not followed during the May 22nd House Oversight Committee Hearing concerning Ms. Lerner. In Quinn v. United States, the Supreme Court clearly outlined practical safeguards to be followed to lay the foundation for contempt of Congress proceedings once a witness invokes the Fifth Amendment. 349 U.S. 155 (1955). To establish criminal intent, the committee has to demand the witness answer and upon refusal, expressly overrule her claim of privilege. This procedure assures that an accused is not forced to ‘guess whether or not the committee has accepted [her] objection’, but is provided with a choice between compliance and prosecution. Id. It is undeniable that the record shows that the committee did not expressly overrule Ms. Lerner’s claim of privilege, but rather once Ms. Lerner invoked her 5th Amendment right, the Chairman subsequently excused her. The Chairman did not order her to answer or present her with the clear option to respond or suffer contempt charges. Therefore, launching a contempt prosecution against Ms. Lerner appears futile and superfluous due to the Committee’s disregard for long standing traditions of procedure.”

For the full story or to read the opinions of other legal experts, click here.

Jonathan Rapping Earns National Recognition with Inaugural Purpose Economy 100 Award

Nearly 80 percent of the 12 million people who move annually through America’s criminal justice system cannot afford a lawyer. As a result, many innocent defendants plead guilty simply because they cannot afford to take their case to trial, and the public defender system is so overwhelmed by crushing volume, that adequate and meaningful defense fails them as well. For Jonathan Rapping, the injustice in the U.S. justice system is simply unacceptable, and now everyone is taking note of his exploding and impactful non-profit organization, Gideon’s Promise.

Gideon’s Promise, based in Atlanta, yet armed with a national reputation, works tirelessly to inspire, mobilize and train legal professionals to provide the highest quality defense representation to people unable to afford an attorney. And work zealously to ensure that those accused of crimes, who are most vulnerable in our society, have the same access to criminal justice as everyone else.

“For the past seven years, we at Gideon’s Promise have worked tirelessly to ensure ‘equal justice for all’ is not just an empty promise, but a reality that is consistent with our Constitution and its founding ideals,” says Rapping. “Being honored with the Inaugural Purpose Economy 100 truly validates that our work to change the status quo is vital, and that our public defenders are making justice a reality every day.”

It is because of this ground-breaking work that Rapping was recently honored as one of the Inaugural Purpose Economy 100, an honor that he shares with Melinda Gates, Rick Warren, former Vice President Al Gore and Jonathan Trent among others. A complete list of winners can be found at www.PurposeEconomy.com.

“The Purpose 100 highlights and celebrates the work of those shifting the paradigm on what is possible for all of us through work that reignites purpose,” says Aaron Hurst, CEO of Imperative and innovator/creator of The Purpose Economy. “By founding Gideon’s Promise and training more than 250 public defenders over the past seven years, Jon more than exemplifies that calling. He is a pioneer working to bring equal justice back to our judicial system. I look forward to watching Jon and Gideon’s Promise continue strengthening the resources available to public defenders.”

Last year, Rapping and Gideon’s Promise were featured in the HBO documentary, “Gideon’s Army,” which follows three young public defenders, trained by Rapping and Gideon’s Promise, in their sometimes breaking quest for equal justice in indigent defense. The organization has now trained more than 250 public defenders, who each see an average caseload of 300 per year.

Rapping is a nationally renowned speaker and author – advocating for better standards in the criminal justice system by delivering powerful and varying keynotes at conferences and institutions across the country. His national outreach includes audiences at law schools, organizations committed to justice, bar associations and public defender offices and systems.

AJMLS Hosts Legal Education in the 21st Century Conference in Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School and Savannah Law School in partnership with Bahçeşehir Üniversitesi, are hosting the Legal Education in the Twenty-first Century: an International Conference of Legal Educators on May 4-7, 2014 in Istanbul and Ankara, Turkey.  With the globalization of the economic markets and outsourcing of legal work, the discussion of the future of legal education has not been confined to the United States, but has been a topic of discussion throughout law schools and the legal profession around the world.   Legal Education in the Twenty-first Century will bring together law faculty from around the globe to explore the best pedagogies and curricula for preparing lawyers to practice in both global and domestic legal markets.

Conference panels include: The State of Legal Education Across the Globe, The Future of the Practice of Law, The Role of the Judiciary in Admission to the Bar and Attorney Discipline, Bar Exams and Admission to Practice Standards, The Faculty: Tenure and Academic Freedom, Legal Education in the Digital Age, The Classroom as Apprenticeship, Reading Cases Globally, Integrating Doctrine and Writing, Experiential Learning, and Training the Global Lawyer.

Confirmed speakers include:  Justice Carol Hunstein, Georgia Supreme Court; Justice Christine Durham, Utah Supreme Court; Dean Emeritus James P. White; Sally Lockwood, Director, Georgia Office of Bar Admissions; James Moliterno, Jane Ching, Lucy Jewel, Denis Binder, Kathleen Burch, Jeffrey Van Detta, Bruce Luna, Jessica Rubin, Joan Blum, Elizabeth Megale, Rebecca Cummings, and Patrick Hugg.

For more information or to register for the conference, please contact Professor Kathleen Burch via e-mail at kburch@johnmarshall.edu or via phone at (404) 872-3593 ##Ext. 105.