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Nebraska students, directors, and alumni at the USSPACECOM Conference

Nebraska Students and Alumni Attend USSPACECOM Legal Conference

08 Mar 2023    

Nebraska Law students, program directors, and alumni were well-represented at the annual USSPACECOM Legal Conference, co-sponsored by the Law, Technology, and Warfare Research Cell at the U.S. Air Force Academy and United States Space Command (USSPACECOM). This year, the conference was focused on Cooperation in Space, featuring panels on commercial and military partnerships, space operations and national security in the space domain, space traffic managment, and operational law. Three students, Amelia Ruffolo, Indie Talken, and Emma Schlenker received a travel award to attend the conference. Many other Nebraska JD and LLM Alumni were also in attendance at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. 

Professor Ryan Sullivan.

Prof. Sullivan and volunteers named Free Legal Answers 2022 Pro Bono Leaders

27 Feb 2023    

Professor Ryan Sullivan and volunteers from Nebraska Law were recently named American Bar Association Free Legal Answers 2022 Pro Bono Leaders. This annual recognition is presented to individual attorneys, law firms, corporate law departments, and other organizations that have provided extraordinary pro bono services through this pro bono legal advice portal. Professor Sullivan and other faculty volunteers answered a total of 113 civil legal questions last year.

Laura Bolton, Bree Hurt, and Olivia Thiel.

National Trial Team advances to national competition

24 Feb 2023    

Two Nebraska Law National Trial Teams recently competed in the regional competition in Sioux Falls, S.D. There were 19 teams representing 10 law schools.  

Attorney members of the two teams:

  • Grace Deist, Lauren Olsen, and Julia Pomerenke.
  • Laura Bolton, Bree Hurt, and Olivia Thiel.

Witness members of the team:

  • Adam Barrett, Kenessa Copeland, Braden Dvorak, and Claire Shada.

Pomerenke received the Best Opening Statement award and the team of Bolton, Hurt, and Thiel won the Most Professional Team award. Both Nebraska teams advanced to the final round of the competition. The team of Bolton, Hurt, and Thiel won and will be competing in the national competition in San Antonio in late March.

The team is coached by Professor Steven Schmidt and Adjunct Professor Carolyn Bosn as assistant coach.

Professor Anthony Schutz

Schutz's article published in Nebraska Law Review Bulletin

24 Feb 2023    

Professor Anthony Schutz's article, "The Uncertain Fate of LB 753 Under Article VII, Section 11 of the Nebraska Constitution's No-Aid Provision" was recently published in the Nebraska Law Review Bulletin.

In the article, Schutz examines Legislative Bill 753 (L.B. 753), which would provide a non-refundable, 5-year carry-over tax credit for donations to qualifying scholarship-providing organizations. The bill is currently being considered by the Nebraska Legislature. Schutz addresses whether such a program violates article VII, section 11 of the Nebraska Constitution.

Professor Terence Center

Centner's article published by University of Cincinnati Law Review

24 Feb 2023    

Professor Terence Center's article, "Invasions of Dicamba Particles: Holding States Accountable for Taking Offsite Property Owners’ Right to Exclude,” was recently published by the University of Cincinnati Law Review. In the article, Centner examines the registration of dicamba herbicides by state governments.

Read the summary below:

In 2017, special formulations of dicamba herbicides were marketed for post-emergent use on genetically engineered soybeans and cotton. The use of these formulations was accompanied by considerable herbicide drift and volatilization that harmed millions of acres of nearby crops. For each growing season during 2018-2021, unacceptable offsite injuries were reported in the major soybean and cotton-producing states. Given the reported injuries, state agencies issuing new registrations for dicamba products in 2018 and 2020 knew offsite spray drift and volatilization would carry dicamba particles onto nearby properties. Despite their knowledge, states issued permits for the use of dicamba products that granted applicators easements over nearby properties. These easements involved entries of dicamba particles that damaged vegetation. The approval of dicamba registrations by state governments may be viewed as appropriations of neighbors’ right to exclude. The registrations grant dicamba applicators easements that allow dicamba particles to enter non-target properties and cause property damage. These intrusions suggest that the state-approved registrations are appropriating property interests. Depositions of dicamba particles onto offsite properties damaging plants effect per se physical takings. States should compensate injured property owners for losses from dicamba spray applications.  

Professor Mailyn Fidler

Fidler publishes chapter in Cyberspace & Instability

24 Feb 2023    

Professor Mailyn Fidler published a chapter in a new book, Cyberspace & Instability. The book investigates the contested notion of "stability" in cyberspace.

Professor Fidler's chapter, "Infrastructure, Law, and Cyberstability: An African Case Study" looks at the idea from an African perspective, as well as the interesting connections between stability in infrastructure and stability in the law. The book is available open-access through Edinburgh University Press. https://edinburghuniversitypress.com/book-cyberspace-and-instability.html.

Professor Kristen Blankley

Blankley's article accepted by University of Miami Law Review

24 Feb 2023    

Professor Kristen Blankley's article, "A Muddy Mess - the Supreme Court's Jurisprudence on Jurisdiction for Arbitration Matters" has been accepted for publication by the University of Miami Law Review. 

The article discusses recent trends in federal court jurisdiction to hear arbitration matters and shows how a pair of Supreme Court cases have created an unduly complex system for parties to enforce rights under arbitration agreements. Blankley suggests a legislative change to simplify all of these matters for the courts and parties alike.

2023 Mediation Team

Mediation Team takes first at invitational tournament

23 Feb 2023    

The University of Nebraska College of Law Mediation Competition Team traveled to the University of Central Florida on February 9 to take place in an invitational tournament for law students, international law students, and undergraduates.

Nebraska Law dominated the tournament with the following team awards:

1st Place - Mediator Team (Steve Lydick, Kelly Shanahan, Veronica Parish)

2nd Place - Attorney/Client Team (Steve Lydick, Kelly Shanahan, Veronica Parish)

The students also received numerous individual awards:

1st Place - Attorney/Client Individual Award - Steve Lydick & Veronica Parish

3rd Place - Attorney/Client Individual Award - Ashly Helfrich (as an alternate on a team put together hours before the competition!)

4th Place - Individual Mediator - Veronica Parish

5th Place - Individual Mediator - Kelly Shanahan

The team is coached by Professor Kristen Blankley.

Gatluak Ramdiet, '15.

Ramdiet, '15, reselected for The National Black Lawyers' Top 40 Under 40

09 Feb 2023    

Gatluak Ramdiet, '15, Associate at Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP in New York, has been reselected for The National Black Lawyers' Top 40 Under 40 list.

Ramdiet is a member of the Medical Malpractice, Healthcare, Life Sciences, General Liability, Construction, and Toxic Tort & Environmental Litigation Practices. He represents individual healthcare providers in complex, high-exposure claims in the area of medical malpractice. He is a global education advocate and speaks to students, teachers, school administrators, and policymakers about the transformative power of education. Ramdiet was previously selected by the National Black Lawyers as Top 40 Under 40 in 2022. For more information on his work, see his bio at https://lewisbrisbois.com/attorneys/ramdiet-gatluak

This honor is given to only the top 40 under 40 Black lawyers in each state or region with reputations for providing excellent legal representation in their respective practice areas. Membership in The National Black Lawyers is by invitation only and is based on current member referrals and independent research. The National Black Lawyers is a professional organization that celebrates legal excellence and promotes attorneys as subject matter experts, facilitates the exchange of timely information to enable members to maintain their status as leaders, and represents a strong national network of top Black attorneys.

Nathan D. Clark, '15, and John F. Zimmer, '16.

Clark, '15, and Zimmer, '16 promoted to partner at Cline Williams Wright Johnson & Oldfather, L.L.P.

09 Feb 2023    

Nathan D. Clark, '15, and John F. Zimmer, '16, have been promoted to partner at Cline Williams Wright Johnson & Oldfather, L.L.P. Established in 1857, Cline Williams is a full-service law firm with 64 attorneys representing and assisting individual and institutional clients.

According to the Cline Williams website, Clark’s practice focuses on general civil litigation matters with an emphasis on intellectual property; First Amendment litigation and speech-related torts, such as defamation and invasion of privacy; commercial litigation; and appeals. His practice also includes personal injury, appeals to the Tax Review and Equalization Committee, legal malpractice defense, construction disputes, public records requests and the Open Meetings Act, securities, and products liability.

Zimmer represents banks, lenders, and businesses in the areas of bankruptcy, creditors' rights, commercial loan transactions, and business litigation. His civil litigation practice also includes an emphasis on real property disputes, state and local government, election law, and appellate practice. Zimmer is a member of the Order of the Coif, Order of the Barristers, and is active in many civic and community organizations. He is a director of the NEBRASKAland Foundation and a proud member of Lincoln Downtown Rotary Club 14.

College of Law faculty and Nebraska historians at McCollum Hall.

Law faculty, historians earn $1M grant for history & civil rights program

03 Feb 2023    

Faculty from the College of Law and a team of Nebraska historians have earned a four-year, $1 million grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to establish a new academic program focused on history and civil rights. 
The group has collaborated on launching a curricular, research and collaboration hub that will position the University of Nebraska–Lincoln as a national leader in education and scholarship focused on the relationship between U.S. law and race in American history. 
Read the full story on Nebraska Today.
Elsbeth Magilton

Magilton and Nebraska Deterrence Lab Run Experiment with Regional FBI

31 Jan 2023    

Elsbeth Magilton, Director of Externships and Executive Director of the SCTL Program, took part in an experiment with the Nebraska Deterrence Lab and regional FBI agents and analysts. Working to develop and test tools that can help inform decision-making analysis, the Nebraska Deterrence lab brings together faculty and students from both the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The experiment tested the use of a multi-actor deterrence analysis methodology (known as MADAM) as applied to potential threats to the Nebraska and Iowa agricultural economy. Potential threats could range from actions by terrorist groups to cyber threats, climate change, and more. 

The faculty and students worked with the FBI to obtain feedback on how MADAM could help to classify unfriendly actors and potential threats to recognize where vulnerabilities may exist and be exploited. Working together to prevent and deter future threats is a multidisciplinary endeavor requiring connections to be made within the fields of international affairs, national security, and foreign policy.

To read more about the event see: https://www.unomaha.edu/college-of-arts-and-sciences/news/2023/01/nebraska-deterrence-lab-hosts-experiment-with-regional-fbi-agents.php.

For more information on the Multi-Actor Deterrence Analysis Methodology: https://nsri.nebraska.edu/irad/projects/multi-actor-deterrence-analysis-methodology-and-laboratory

Keegan, Jeff and Kyle Hansen.

Keegan and Kyle Hansen, '22, continue family tradition

11 Jan 2023    

Brothers Keegan and Kyle Hansen are the latest in a line of College of Law graduates, following in the footsteps of their father and grandfather.   

Keegan and Kyle both graduated with their J.D. and Masters in Business Administration this past December. Their law school experience was filled with many unusual obstacles, as they continually shifted between on-campus and virtual learning. They agreed that their favorite experiences over the past few years included spending time in the building and making connections with their fellow classmates. 

“It’s been a long road,” Kyle said. “But it’s fun to come back and think about all of the memories.” 

Both Keegan and Kyle were initially drawn to the College of Law as a result of their family connection. When they visited on Admitted Student Day, they recognized the opportunity to share the Nebraska Law experience with their father, Jeff Hansen, '90 and grandfather, Laverne Hansen, '53. 

Jeff is the Executive Vice President and General Counsel at Troon Golf. He said that although many aspects of law school look much different than when he started in 1987, he could relate to many of Keegan and Kyle’s anecdotes. 

They worried about the same things I worried about, and we went through a lot of the same stuff,” Jeff said. 

By the time Jeff had started law school, Laverne had passed away. He said it was difficult at times to go without the guidance and advice he was able to give to his sons. 

I came in not knowing anybody, but I met new people, enjoyed the professors I had, and it was a really good experience, Jeff said. 

Jeff recalled hearing stories about Laverne from former Professor John Gradwohl, '53, from time to time. 

“To have the connection I had with my dad going here, and then having these two follow in that same vein is just so special,” Jeff said.  

Jeff said he’s proud to share his Nebraska Law connection with his sons and wished his father and mother could be there to see the graduation ceremony. 

It’s just really important and rewarding for me to see it.” Jeff said. 

Following graduation, Kyle will be working at Cozen O’Connor Law Firm in their commercial litigation department in Dallas, Texas. Keegan will continue working at the firm Jennings, Strouss and Salmon, PLC, in Phoenix, Arizona.

Ciara Coleman and Murphy Cavanaugh.

Mentorship Spotlight: Coleman, ’15, and Cavanaugh, ’24

10 Jan 2023    

Ciara Coleman, '15, and Murphy Cavanaugh, '24, are a mentor and mentee pair in the Nebraska Law Mentor Program. The bond they share has helped Cavanaugh maximize her experience at Nebraska Law and prepare for her future career. 

Since their pairing in Cavanaugh’s first year, the two have developed a strong, supportive mentoring relationship. They discuss everything from trials in the professional and academic realm to personal successes.

Coleman is often the first person Cavanaugh goes to when she needs advice or someone to talk things through with. When she was recently elected to the Nebraska Law Review Executive Board, Coleman was the first person she texted. She also called Coleman right away when her first semester grades came out.

“It’s so great because, first of all, she always celebrates my accomplishments with me,” Cavanaugh said. “But then she immediately asks what I’m going to do to celebrate.” 

While Coleman has been a great help to Cavanaugh in navigating academic tasks such as cover letter and resume writing, on-campus interviews and exam preparation, she has also advised Cavanaugh on how to keep a healthy perspective and set boundaries. 

"Those boundaries are critical, and a lot of students don't make them because you're wanting to get validation that you're doing well, but you also need to have that space to just be yourself," Coleman said.

Taking from her own experience at Nebraska Law, Coleman hoped to encourage Cavanaugh to carve out sufficient breaks from school and make meaningful connections. Not only would these practices enrich Cavanaugh’s experience in law school, Coleman said, but they would also help her be more effective in her future career. 

“You're so used to comparing yourself to the rest of your classmates that to hear someone from the professional sphere who has also been exactly where I have been is so helpful,” Cavanaugh said.

The pair have also bonded over their shared experience of being out-of-state students. Coleman said she enjoys helping students navigate the potential culture shock of moving to Nebraska, something Cavanaugh experienced after having lived in Chicago.  

"That's part of why I was immediately drawn to the mentor program," Cavanaugh said. "I didn't really know what the whole first year looked like, so having Ciara was immensely helpful."

Although Coleman acts as the mentor in the partnership, she said she’s learned a great deal from Cavanaugh.  

“Seeing Murphy's drive to help the people around her in law school and how she approaches those situations was something I took away from her in our discussions,” Coleman said. “It really helped me learn how I can help other people in a more constructive way.” 

Coleman is currently based in Lowell, Arkansas, but both her and Cavanaugh continue to communicate often. Both Coleman and Cavanaugh said they see no end in sight to their mentorship. Coleman said it’s especially important to continue the relationship through the first five years after law school, where they will encounter unique challenges. 

“I wish I had had a mentor during that time, and particularly a female mentor,” Coleman said. “Having another female attorney to be able to help you navigate some of the ins and outs of firm life and how to best position yourself is absolutely critical.”

Elana Zeide

Zeide's article accepted by UMKC Law Review

09 Jan 2023    

Assistant Professor Elana Zeide's article, "The Silicon Ceiling: How Artificial Intelligence Constructs an Invisible Barrier to Opportunityhas been accepted for publication by The University of Missouri–Kansas City (UMKC) Law Review. In the article, Zeide examines artificial intelligence, algorithms, automation and platform intermediation in education and employment. 

Read the abstract below:

Algorithmic assessments increasingly shape individuals’ success in education and employment. Schools, recruiters, and companies now rely on automated platforms and analytics services to sort through an overwhelming number of options. Similar technologies help students and workers find opportunities to pursue. The “opportunity brokers” who provide these tools not only vet applicants, but also personalize advertisements, curate user-facing recommendations, and identify potential candidates to recruit or promote.

Because algorithms rely on data reflecting historical bias and inequality, artificial intelligence can retrench existing patterns of inequity. Automated systems compound this disadvantage as a few dominant companies draw on the same data and apply similar criteria. Further, the scale and pressures of the platform economy encourage both organizations and opportunity seekers to prioritize options with the highest probability of success. This leads to less diverse outcomes across industries and over time, constructing an imperceptible, but systemic, barrier to opportunity that I call the Silicon Ceiling.

Like the glass ceiling, the Silicon Ceiling undermines traditional regulatory regimes focused on discrete decisions and ex post remediation/fair scores and procedural guarantees. Algorithmic intermediation occurs out of view as targeted advertising, personalized recommendations, and passive recruiting shape the candidate pool well before formal decision making. As a result, the automated opportunity system precludes, rather than denies, access to opportunity. Most people will not know the details of the decisions, the entities making them, or that they have even been evaluated. It is not just that the “black box” of algorithmic opacity obscures inflection points; the barrier itself is invisible. These paradigmatic shifts call for new conceptualizations of harm and structural reforms to shatter the Silicon Ceiling.

Jonathan L. Grob, '07.

Grob, '07, selected as president at McGrath North

04 Jan 2023    

McGrath North has selected Jonathan L. Grob, '07, to serve as the new president of the firm. Roger W. Wells, who has served as the firm’s leader since 2010, will transition to the role of chairman and continue his full-time business law practice for key firm clients.

"This selection is part of our ongoing transformation to transition firm leadership to our next generation of outstanding lawyers," Wells said. "We have also added new members to our Board, new practice group leaders and new chairs of key firm committees all as part of this carefully planned process. This succession strategy has also intentionally advanced our genuine commitment to diversity, apparent in additions to our Board, practice group leadership and committees."

Grob has served on the Board of Directors as executive vice president of the firm, as leader of the firm’s top-rated Tax, Trusts and Estate practice group and on various firm committees and project teams. In this new role, he will continue his full-time practice and commitment to the clients he supports and serves. Grob is highly recognized by key national professional rating services for his excellence in all aspects of the tax, trusts and estate planning fields, is a fellow in the American College of Trust & Estate Counsel, a former adjunct professor at Creighton University School of Law and a frequent lecturer on tax, estate planning and other topics.

"I am humbled, and at the same time, very excited to assume leadership of our firm, joined by our strong team of fellow leaders spread across all of our practice areas,” Grob said. "At McGrath North, we focus first and always on supporting our clients’ success, serving them with excellence, creativity, integrity and respect. And to do this, our firm management is firmly committed to continue building a talented, experienced and diverse team of professionals and to support them so they succeed both professionally and personally."

Craig Finger, '16.

Finger, '16, made shareholder at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck

04 Jan 2023    

Craig Finger, '16, has been promoted to shareholder at Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck effective Jan. 1, 2023.  Brownstein is a Denver-based law and lobbying firm with practice areas in corporate and business law, energy and natural resources, intellectual property and real estate.

A member of the firm’s Litigation Department, Finger’s practice encompasses the intricate world of commercial litigation with a particular expertise in navigating highly complex and emerging legal issues. He has extensive experience advising on and litigating issues related to the constantly evolving legal cannabis industry. Finger brings the required high-level analytical skills to navigate novel and complex legal questions in a variety of practice areas, including employment, class actions, securities, general contracts, breach of fiduciary duty and other business torts, consumer protection, cannabis, administrative law and government investigations. In addition to his commercial litigation work, he is skilled in helping businesses resolve pre-litigation disputes.

Professor Eric Berger.

Professor Eric Berger narrates course on U.S. Constitution

03 Jan 2023    

Professor Eric Berger has recorded 24 video lectures for a course entitled “The U.S. Constitution Through History," released in fall 2022 by Wondrium (formerly known as The Great Courses). This is Berger’s second Wondrium course about constitutional law. Throughout the course, Professor Berger discusses the U.S. Constitution from the time of its conception through 230 years of social and political change. 

The history of the Constitution is a history of the ideas that define our country and our national identity,” Berger said. 

The Earl Dunlap Distinguished Professor of Law, Professor Berger's scholarship focuses on constitutional law. Much of his work explores judicial decision making in constitutional cases, with special attention to deference, fact finding, rhetorical strategies and other under-theorized factors that help shape judicial opinions in constitutional cases.

Alice Kang. Photo by Craig Chandler I University Communication.

Alice Kang on reimagining the judiciary

16 Dec 2022    

Political Scientist Dr. Alice Kang recently received the C. Herman Pritchett Book Award from the American Political Science Association for her latest work, “Reimagining the Judiciary: Women's Representation on High Courts Worldwide.”

Along with her co-authors, Kang has been instrumental in creating the first international database of when and how women are elevated to high courts. A grant from the National Science Foundation made this work possible. The findings show that women often were appointed to high court when a country was being influenced by the changing norms of nearby countries. The database covers judicial appointments of women to courts equivalent to the U.S. Supreme Court in both developing and stable democracies. Kang’s study is one of the first to apply an international lens to research on judicial appointments of women, she explained in a conversation with University Communication last year.

Kang shared her findings with legal professionals this fall in a discussion facilitated by the College of Law’s Women’s Leadership Initiative. Kang said it was helpful talking to members of the Nebraska community about their experiences.

“It was really nice to be able to talk with people in the state about their observations and analyses of what encourages diversification of the judiciary, because it is still predominantly male and white,” she said.

Having women in the judiciary is important for several reasons, Kang said. 

“Beyond just the question of fairness, it's really important to think about the composition of decision-making bodies and whether they reflect all of the different life experiences and perspectives that exist in that society,” she said.

Kang said one of the main takeaways from the discussion revolved around networks, which often lead to encouragement from trusted colleagues or mentors. These networks, she said, tend to be gendered and racialized, which means some individuals get a helping hand while others don’t.

“Something that can be really powerful for people in Nebraska who are senior members of the legal profession or judicial profession is to consciously think about who you're nudging or encouraging to apply for vacancies,” she said. “In our estimation, it really matters what the people at the highest ranks do.”

Kang and her co-authors agree that it’s important to keep diversifying who goes to law school and practices, but they also believe that the lack of diversity shouldn’t be used as an excuse as to why there can't be gender parity now.

“We don’t need to wait for more people to enter the pipeline, there’s already a sufficient number,” Kang said. “It’s just a matter of whether they are being selected.”

Now, Kang said she is working on plans to update and maintain the database. Additionally, she said she hopes to study the intersection of race and sex in the judiciary. 

Maria C. Escobar-Lemmon of Texas A&M and Valerie Hoekstra and Miki Caul Kittilson of Arizona State University co-authored “Reimagining the Judiciary: Women's Representation on High Courts Worldwide.”

Joy Kathurima, '19

Kathurima, '19, selected for Top 40 Under 40 Black Lawyers in Nebraska

13 Dec 2022    

Joy Kathurima, '19, of Hightower Reff Law in Omaha has been selected for inclusion into the Top 40 Under 40 Black Lawyers in the state of Nebraska by The National Black Lawyers.

This honor is given to only the top 40 under 40 African American lawyers in each state or region with reputations for providing excellent legal representation in their respective practice areas. Membership into The National Black Lawyers is by invitation only and is based on current member referrals and independent research.

The National Black Lawyers is a professional organization that celebrates legal excellence and promotes attorneys as subject matter experts, facilitates the exchange of timely
information to enable members to maintain their status as leaders and represents a strong national network of top African American attorneys.