Category: Top News

The Avarita Hanson Chapter of the Black Law Students Association hosts its annual Black History Month Celebration with a series of programs that will feature minority members of the Bench and Bar, and which will cover a range of issues, from African-American children in foster care to minority perspectives in the practice of law and on the judiciary. All events are free and open to the public: “What About Our Babies?” February 13, 2008, 5:00 – 6:15 p.m. Room 301 A panel discussion focusing on the overrepresentation of African-American children in the foster care system and the role of Child Advocate Attorneys and Special Assistants to the Attorney General (SAAG) in remedying the problem. Featuring: Judge Nikki Marr, Dekalb County Juvenile Court Karlise Grier, Esq. Antavius Weems, Esq. Lytia Brown, Esq. Minorities in the Profession Present: The Practice of Law: Getting in the Game, Playing the Game, and Changing the Game February 20, 2008, 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. 9th Floor Conference Room Featuring a managing partner whose clients include fortune 100 companies; a former recruiter for a local top-tier firm; an attorney from the Fulton County Prosecutor’s Office; a large law firm association who transitioned to a midsized firm; in-house counsel for a fortune 100 company; a large firm associate; a public interest attorney; and a former attorney who has left the practice. Refreshments will be served. Judicial Panel Discussion: Taking Judicial Notice . . . A Judge’s Perspective from a Minority View February 27, 2008, 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. Room 301 Featuring: Judge Herbert Phipps, Georgia Court of Appeals Judge Mark Anthony Scott, Dekalb County Superior Court Judge Barbara Mobley, Dekalb County State Court

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School recently teamed with The State Bar of Georgia’s Diversity Program, and The Leadership Institute for Women of Color Attorneys to launch the Pipeline Project. The project goal is to increase interest in the study and practice of law among minority high school students.

Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School donated over 750 law books to APPEAL (Academics Promoting the Pedagogy of Effective Advocacy in Law.) Professor Michele Butts is pictured preparing the books for their journey to the School of Law, Moi University, Kenya Africa. Click here for more information on APPEAL.

JMLS launches its Micronesian Externship Program. Three rising third year students have traveled to remote Pacific Islands to work with local courts and an attorney general. Daniel Stafford is an extern with the Supreme Court of the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas. Cara Rockhill is an extern in the chambers of Judge Michael Bordallo of the Superior Court of the Territory of Guam. Jared Craig is an extern with the Office of the Attorney General for the State of Yap in the Federated States of Micronesia. Click on “Micronesian Externship Program” to read their blogs and learn more about their experiences.

Go to Micronesian Externship Program

In honor of one of the leading lawyers in the Civil Rights movement, Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School is pleased to present the inaugural Fred Gray Social Justice Seminar Honoring the Past, Looking to the Future: the Struggle for Civil and Human Rights Friday, November 9, 2007 12:00 – 1:00 Luncheon – Invitation Only In honor of Attorney Fred Gray and the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights for their outstanding resilience and service. 1:00 – 3:30 Panel Discussion – The Public is Invited (Click here to register) Confronting issues of Civil and Human Rights in 2007

• The Struggle for Human Rights: Working for Justice, Opportunity, and Peace Jakada Imani, Executive Director Ella Baker Center for Human Rights
• America’s Legal System: The Last Frontier for the Civil Rights Movement Attorney Gary Parker
• Human Rights and the CIA’s “Extraordinary Rendition” Program Attorney Azadeh Shahshahani, Interim Legal Director ACLU of Georgia
• Civil & Human Rights Issues Regarding Juveniles Susan Teaster, Senior Appellate Attorney Georgia Public Defender Standards Counsel

A veteran civil rights attorney from Alabama, Fred Gray represented Rosa Parks when she refused to give up her seat to a white man on a city bus and was chief counsel during the Montgomery Bus Boycott. Gray was also Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s first civil rights lawyer. Gray has been at the forefront of changing the social fabric of America regarding desegregation, integration, constitutional law, racial discrimination in voting, housing, education, jury service, farm subsidies, medicine and ethics. For more information about the work of Attorney Fred Gray, visit www.fredgray.net.

In the few brief years since its inception, the School’s Annual Bobby Lee Cook Practical Legal Symposium has become a respected tradition in the legal community, drawing some of Georgia’s top attorneys as featured presenters. Consistent with the School’s mission, the Symposium was created to help all Georgia law students learn the issues involved in practicing law.

The Legal Skills and Professionalism Program at Atlanta’s John Marshall Law School takes a holistic approach to preparing students for success during and after law school. John Marshall developed its Program with two goals in mind: higher bar passage rates and developing client-ready graduates who can practice law independently after obtaining a law license. The Program offers a cohesive approach to legal problem solving: students utilize tools they learn in their first year to solve increasingly complex and varied legal problems in the courses that follow. The Program begins with Legal Research, Writing & Analysis I and II in the first year. Building upon what is learned in the first year, students further develop their analytical and writing skills in two upper-level writing courses – Pretrial Practice and Procedure and Legal Drafting. Upper level elective courses such as Negotiation, Mediation, Trial Advocacy, Client Interviewing and Counseling, and Advanced Appellate Advocacy offer further opportunities for students to hone their legal problem solving skills. A professionalism component is built into every course in the Program, preparing students to confront and resolve real-world professionalism and ethics issues as they learn to solve legal problems and meet client goals. The Program relies heavily on a hands-on approach – each Program course provides opportunities to participate in simulated oral arguments, client conferences, negotiations or other exercises. The Program also provides support for several national and intra-state mock-trial, moot-court and other skills-based competitions, in which John Marshall students compete against other law schools. In addition, students can gain valuable experience in the field through the school’s Externship Program. John Marshall Legal Skills Faculty come to the School with diverse but expansive practice experience, including medical malpractice litigation, commercial litigation, administrative law, domestic relations practice, and corporate/transactional work. The Legal Skills Faculty are active in the Georgia legal community, involving practitioners in judging student oral arguments, guest speaking, and sponsoring workshops.

Receive five CLE hours including one hour of Professionalism presented by full-time and adjunct John Marshall Law School faculty. This program is offered to alumni at cost: $5.00 for each general hour and $15.00 for the hour of Professionalism. Non-alumni fees are $10.00 for each general hour and $30.00 for the hour of Professionalism. Register for one hour or for the entire program! A box-lunch is included in the cost of the program. Please call (404) 872-3593 or email vrichardson @ johnmarshall.edu. Payment must be made at the time of the program. We accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover, personal checks (made payable to JMLS) and cash.