Sitting and former U.S. Attorneys visited The University of Alabama School of Law March 2 and discussed the role lawyers play in government.
The symposium, “The Role of Lawyers in Good Government,” was held in the McMillan Lecture Hall in Room 287 and consisted of three panels. It gave participants an opportunity to hear the views of lawyers from multiple presidential administrations and engage with them through questions and answers.
First, sitting U.S. Attorneys explored their role as the chief federal law enforcement official in their respective districts. The guidelines governing the position are established by the presidential administration and the U.S. Attorney General, but the position comes with a fair amount of discretion, which allows U.S. Attorneys to deviate from internal policies.
U.S. Attorneys prosecute federal criminal cases, including false claims, white collar crime, and healthcare fraud. When exercising discretion in cases, they have robust discussions with other attorneys. The focus, said Richard W. Moore, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama, is on truth and justice, not winning cases.
“The topic here is about a better government and a good government,” Moore said. “If the community is going to believe that government is good, then they have to believe that justice is being done.”
That discretion does not extend to public officials.
“The easiest way to approach those cases is if somebody has violated the law, you charge them,” said Jay E. Town, U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama.
Second, a panel of former government lawyers examined their responsibilities in law enforcement and cabinet-level agencies. Panelists had served the nation with the U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and the U.S. Department of Commerce.
In many cases, a group of lawyers provide legal advice to an entire staff at an executive branch agency. Those positions require lawyers to advise the staff that a policy will or will not be effective. If the policy is adopted, it is also legal counsel’s responsibility to carry out the policy, said David K. Bowsher, a former Acting General Counsel and Deputy General Counsel at the U.S. Department of Commerce.
“They make the policy,” Bowsher said. “You have to make sure that they get the right advice, that they are fully informed.”
And finally, lawyers discussed strategies that have been used in shaping criminal justice policy. Panelists described methods that may help prevent crime, such as prescription monitoring, visiting high schools and discussing opioid addiction, and helping felons find employment after they have been released from prison.
In Rhode Island, for example, the state has been working on what’s called justice reinvestment, a program that helps the state identify what’s driving the cost of corrections and develop solutions. One of those solutions is helping nonviolent offenders rejoin society.
“It’s just an economic reality that we have to get people back into the workforce,” said Peter F. Neronha, a former U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island.
Symposium panelists and moderators were:
Professor Fred Vars is quoted in The Wall Street Journal about gun access and mental health.
For more, read “Florida School Shooting Renews Debate Over Gun Access and Mental Health.“
Alabama Law’s Jessup International Law Moot Court team traveled to New Orleans and competed in the the regional competition. The team, comprised of Emily Van Haneghan, Tori McCarthy, Betsy Nicholson, and Hannah Darby, all 3Ls, won four out of four matches in the preliminary rounds, advancing to the quarterfinals, and then to the semifinals before being eliminated. In addition, Darby won the award for 10th best oralist in the whole competition, and Van Haneghan won the award for 9th best oralist. Professor Cameron Fogle coached the team during oralist practice rounds, and accompanied the team to New Orleans.
Alabama Law’s Trial Advocacy Competition Team competed in the 55th Annual Allegheny County Academy of Trial Lawyers Mock Trial Competition in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania February 21-23. Each mock trial was presided over by a sitting federal judge at the United States Courthouse for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
The team was comprised of Meg Deitz, 3L, Krystina Jackson, 3L, Ashley Ross, 2L, and Ben Edwards, 2L. The team competed against William & Mary Law School, in front of a 14 person jury. The team competed well and received high praise from the scoring judges, winning the jury verdict unanimously. The team was coached by Professor Yuri Linetsky.
The Law School’s National Environmental Law Moot Court Team – Lauren Bakke, Haley Cobb, Samuel Sun – and student coach and advisor, Sydney Schaefer − performed in masterful fashion at the National Competition, which was held in New York from February 22-24. Fifty-six law schools participated in this year’s competition – the nation’s most prestigious Environmental Law moot court and one of the largest, if not the largest, held under one roof.
The team faced excellent teams from the University of Virginia, the University of Texas, Penn State, Seattle University, and Rutgers-Camden as they progressed through the preliminary rounds to reach the Quarter-Final round of the competition. In doing so, the team won the best oralist award in all three preliminary rounds with Cobb snaring two and Sun the other. The faculty advisors of the team are Professor William Andreen and Professor Heather Elliott.
Professor Jenny Carroll is quoted on WBHM about an Alabama advisory committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights that is holding hearings on whether Alabama laws adversely affect access to voting for women, people of color, people with disabilities, and the working poor.
For more, read “Committee Probes Whether Laws Limit Access for Voters.”
Maynard Cooper & Gale is pleased to announce a $200,000 pledge in honor of Founding Partner and former Chairman, Boots Gale, to the Law School Foundation to further enhance the Fournier J. “Boots” Gale Endowed Scholarship.
The Boots Gale Scholarship was originally created in 2004 with significant gifts from John McMahon and the Protective Life Foundation. Gale and his family have made additional contributions to the fund since that time to more than double its value.
The firm made a similar $200,000 commitment in 2008 to establish and fund the Lee and Joy Cooper Endowed Scholarship at the law school, and is pleased to be making the same financial commitment to honor Boots and all the great service he has provided to the firm and to the Law School over many years.
Gale is a 1969 graduate of the Law School. He is a past president of the Law School Foundation and has served as Treasurer since 1995.
Current and Former U.S. Attorneys will visit The University of Alabama School of Law March 2 to discuss the role lawyers play in government.
The symposium, “The Role of Lawyers in Good Government,” will be held at 8:30 a.m. in the McMillan Lecture Hall in Room 287. The event is free and open to the public. Please register here.
“Lawyers play an essential role in our government.,” said Joyce White Vance, Distinguished Visiting Lecturer in Law and a former U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Alabama. “Although we are used to thinking of them in key roles in the Justice Department, they also play leadership roles in investigative and other executive branch agencies and contribute to major policy decisions.”
The symposium will consist of three panels. First, current U.S. Attorneys will discuss their role as the chief federal law enforcement official in their respective districts. Second, a panel of former government lawyers will explore their roles in law enforcement and cabinet level agencies. And finally, lawyers and legal experts will examine the role that U.S. Attorneys played in shaping criminal justice policy.
The symposium will feature:
Dear Alabama Law Alumni:
I write, in sadness, to let you know that Camille Wright Cook died yesterday. Her son (and fellow alumnus) Sydney Cook reported this morning that she passed away at home, surrounded by family, listening to Frank Sinatra.
Camille was part of an impressive lawyering family. She was the daughter of Judge Reuben H. Wright and sister of Judge George Wright. Two of her children and a son-in-law are graduates of the School of Law. Camille herself was a member of the Class of 1948, along with twelve other students. Twenty years after taking her degree, she returned to the Law School – as administrative assistant to the Dean, then Assistant Dean and Assistant Professor of Law, then full Professor of Law. In 1976, she became the first tenured female member of the faculty at the School of Law. She served for two years as UA’s Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs. In 1992, she was named to the John S. Stone Chair of Law, the first woman to hold an endowed chair in the School of Law. She taught in the Law School for 24 years, until her retirement in 1993.
Her awards through the years were many, including UA’s Distinguished Alumna Award, UA’s Outstanding Commitment to Teaching Award, the Award of Special Merit from the American Law Institute, the Walter P. Gewin Award for Outstanding Service to Continuing Legal Education, the Award of Merit from the Alabama State Bar, and the Sam W. Pipes Distinguished Alumna Award from the School of Law.
A memorial service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, February 23, at Christ Episcopal Church in Tuscaloosa.
Our hearts go out to Camille’s family.
Respectfully, – Mark
Two moot court teams from University of Alabama School of Law competed last week in the ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition.
The team of Jessica Pagano, Caroline Stephens, and Mary Caroline Wynn, all 3Ls, won the regional final (defeating Ohio State twice) and will advance to compete in the national finals in April. This team also won second place for its brief. The team of Sloane Bell, Amber Hall, and Nikki Skolnekovich, all 3Ls, beat a team from Northwestern in the semi-finals and lost a close final round to the first seed team from Washington University. Miriam Biffle, Mary Lindsay Hannahan, and Nic Nivison, all 2Ls, supported the teams in bailiff and coaching duties.
This ABA event is the nation’s premier moot court competition. The Chicago regional had 32 teams from 18 law schools. Alabama Law was the only law school with two teams advancing to the regional finals. In the national finals, a special 40th Anniversary ABA event in Washington D.C., the Alabama team will compete against the champions of other regions.
