November 2018 - First Monday
Dear Alumni and Friends,
October was an exciting month for the College, full of opportunities to develop deeper relationships with both the newest members of the bar and our oldest friends. It was also a chance for me to experience for the first time as Dean three of the best aspects of leading the College of Law. I was able to attend the Idaho Bar admissions ceremony and welcome the newest members of Idaho’s legal community, hosted our Law Advisory Council in Moscow as part of Leadership Week and Homecoming, and invited everyone in both Moscow and the Treasure Valley to enjoy the timely and thought-provoking Bellwood Lecture events.
Law Advisory Council
The Law Advisory Council (“LAC”), established under the bylaws of the College of Law, is a group of distinguished alumni and friends who advise on the College’s programs, advocate on behalf of the College, and assist the College in endeavors such as career development, admissions, fundraising, and communicating with the College’s external constituencies.
On October 19, the Law Advisory Council met in Moscow, attending both a joint meeting with the Advisory Councils of the other U of I Colleges, as well as meeting for a full day with College faculty and staff in the Menard Law Building. My favorite part of the meeting was a long discussion focused on what it means to be an “Idaho Lawyer.” While many of our students will move on to other states, we at the College of Law work diligently to instill in our students the professionalism, collegiality, and dedication to problem solving that you all have made the culture of the Idaho legal community. As I tell the students, Idaho remains a small town with very long streets, and we all share a duty to protect the special community we share. It is a wonderful part of this state, our College, and our practicing bar and judiciary, that we expect our lawyers to be good people as well as good advocates. Please accept my sincere gratitude for all of the good work you do. Whether you practice in Idaho, or elsewhere, you are all part of this tradition of collegiality and good work.
I continue to be in awe of the LAC members’ dedication to the College, and the deep knowledge and experience they bring in helping us continue to prosper into our second century of training Idaho’s lawyers and leaders. We held a reception in the Menard building to honor their service, and to allow the faculty, staff, and students to meet with the members of the LAC, sharing stories both of law school and their plans for the future. If any moment from that reception could capture how special it is to be part of this community, it was seeing a circle of about eight students focused intently on Chief Justice Roger Burdick, as he regaled them with stories from his years as a law student at the College of Law. Only in Idaho, I thought, and always in Idaho.
It is a pleasure to work with such supportive and dedicated professionals, and I look forward to our spring LAC meeting in Boise.
Visiting Jurist
The Justice Alfred Budge Visiting Jurist Program was created to provide a link between the Idaho Judiciary and the University of Idaho College of Law by funding the travel and other expenses related to enabling a justice or judge to spend time in residence at the College of Law for scholarly, collaborative and teaching activities. The goal is to educate law students on the workings of the Court, to enhance understanding of the judicial function in a democracy grounded in the rule of law, and to encourage research on improving the administration of justice.
I am pleased to share that Chief Judge David W. Gratton of the Idaho Court of Appeals has accepted our invitation to be the Judge Alfred Budge Visiting Jurist for the 2018-2019 academic year. It will be an honor to have him join us in Moscow for a couple of weeks during the spring semester. Judge Gratton was born and raised in Emmett and graduated from the University of Idaho College of Law in 1985. Following law school, he served as a law clerk in both the Federal District and Circuit courts before joining the law firm of Evans Keane, LLP, where he practiced until his appointment to the Idaho Court of Appeals in 2009 by Governor C.L. “Butch” Otter. We are looking forward to the opportunity to learn from his deep knowledge and experience. Thank you, Judge Gratton!
Bellwood Lecture Series
This year’s Sherman J. Bellwood Lecture brought former Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff to both Boise and Moscow on October 23 and 24 to discuss immigration in the larger context of global migration.
We greatly enjoyed Secretary Chertoff’s lectures “Solving the Immigration Crisis.” I know that many of us entered the lectures, in both Boise and Moscow, wondering whether “solving” was the appropriate word to use in this context. Unfortunately, immigration law and policy have become perhaps overly contentious recently. But like many of you shared with me, I left Judge Chertoff’s lectures feeling hopeful that in fact we can do much better, and that reasonable and rational approaches exist that both honor the rule of law and uphold our long history of serving as a light of hope to all of the world. It is the sacred mission of the University to encourage conversations about the issues that matter, and Judge Chertoff’s lectures proved how important it is to continue supporting public debate and events like the Bellwood Lecture.
We are looking forward to continuing these conversations with the next session of the Immigration Law and Policy Series on November 14 with Thomas A. Saenz, President and General Counsel, Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), speaking on the topic “Civil Rights, Solidarity and the need for Immigration Reform.”
Leaders in Law Award
The Idaho Business Review’s Leaders in Law award recognizes individuals whose leadership in both the legal profession and in the community have had a positive impact on Idaho. The recipients of the award demonstrate the characteristics of leadership including experience, dedication, hard work, skill, tenacity, excellence, and compassion. We are thrilled to highlight the award recipients representing the University of Idaho, both as alums and as a professor:
- Elizabeth Brandt – Professor of Law
- Jefferey Brownson – Class of 2006
- Roy Eiguren – Class of 1977
- Debra Groberg – Class of 2015
- Bryan Norton – Class of 2015
- Shelli Stewart – Class of 2006
- Jason Stolworthy – Class of 2003
- Matthew Wilde – Class of 1994
We are proud of all of you and honored to call you part of the College of Law family. Keep up the wonderful work!
Idaho State Bar Professionalism Award
Finally, please let me close by congratulating Professor Maureen Laflin. The Idaho State Bar Professionalism awards are given to attorneys who have engaged in activities in their community that reflect the highest standards of professionalism. We are proud that our own Professor Laflin has been recognized for her decades of tireless work, receiving the Professionalism award for Idaho’s Second District. Professor Laflin truly demonstrates those qualities of the “Idaho Lawyer” that we hope will continue to be the foundation of the Idaho legal community. Congratulations to Professor Laflin on well-deserved accolades for a lifetime of dedication and hard work. And again, congratulations to all of you for creating a legal community, and an extended College of Law family, that we can all be proud of.
Have a wonderful fall,
Jerrold A. Long
Dean
College of Law
Upcoming Events
Civil Rights, Solidarity, and the Need for Immigration Reform
Date: Nov. 14, 2018
Time: 11:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. PT/12:30 p.m. – 1:30 MT
Location: Idaho Law and Justice Learning Center, Room 313, Boise (live)
Menard Law Building, Room 104, Moscow (connecting)
University of Idaho College of Law Alumni Holiday Reception
Date: Dec. 13, 2018
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00
Location: Cottonwood Grille, 913 W. River St., Boise, ID
