Sarah J. Nowels (JD ‘10), the 2014 Chair of the Orange County Bar Association (OCBA) Young Lawyers Division (YLD), authored “Serving as a YLD Leader: Individual Commitment to a Group Effort” in the July 2014 issue of Orange County Lawyer magazine.

“This ‘individual commitment to a group effort’ is the catalyst for the YLD making an important difference for new attorneys who will ultimately shape the future of our profession.” – Sarah J. Nowels

In the article, Nowels shares how the YLD has positively impacted her personal and professional life since she joined as a new attorney. She also introduces the “outstanding leadership team” consisting of Sheila-Marie Finkelstein, Education Chair; Michelle A. Philo, Social Chair; Colin A. Hendricks, Sports Chair; Tara M. Simon (JD ’12), Community Outreach Chair; and Jesse K. Bolling, YLD Chair-Elect.

Sarah J. Nowels is a litigation partner at Amezcua-Moll & Associates, P.C. focusing on employment, business and real estate litigation. She also serves on the board of directors for the Orange County Women Lawyers.

The OCBA YLD provides young lawyers and young lawyer organizations with the tools and opportunities for professional and personal success.

Professor Kenneth Stahl’s article “Reliance in Land Use Law” was published in the Brigham Young University Law Review (Volume 2013, Issue 4, Rev. 949, 2014).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“For generations, Americans have tapped their life savings and assumed huge amounts of debt in order to achieve the American dream of owning their own home. Though investing so heavily in a single asset is a rather risky move on its face, buyers have been induced to purchase homes by a slew of public policies, most notably zoning ordinances that protect home values by buffering single-family neighborhoods against an invasion of undesirable uses. As a result, homeowners have a fairly convincing argument that they possess some sort of vested reliance interest in the existing zoning of their neighborhoods that should prevent municipal authorities from enacting zoning changes to allow unwanted uses…As I argue, however, the primacy of reliance has come at a substantial price. For the sake of protecting reliance interests in existing zoning schemes, courts have essentially reified a longstanding pattern of de facto income and racial segregation in most metropolitan regions by licensing suburban communities to maintain zoning barriers that enforce such segregation. Moreover, I conclude that the judicial enterprise to protect reliance interests by empowering local governments is entirely self-defeating because, as the recent real estate downturn vividly illustrates, property values are determined by a complex web of forces well beyond the control of local governments.”

View the full publication

Professor Kenneth Stahl

Professor Kenneth Stahl is the director of the Environmental, Land Use, and Real Estate Law certificate program at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. Before joining Chapman in 2008, Professor Stahl spent four years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of New York. Prior to that, he worked as a Trial Attorney for the United States Department of Justice, Office of Constitutional Torts, and as an Associate at the Washington, D.C. law firm of Arnold & Porter. Professor Stahl was named the 2008-2009 Professor of the Year at Fowler School of Law.

See more of Professor Stahl’s writings.

Professor Kenneth Stahl’s article “Local Government, ‘One Person, One Vote’, and the Jewish Question” was published in the Harvard Civil Rights – Civil Liberties Law Review (CR–CL) (Volume 49, Page 1-58, 2014).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“Enlightenment thinkers were transfixed by ‘the Jewish Question’ – how to incorporate the manifestly unassimilated Jewish community into a modern nation-state predicated on the idea of a uniform and homogenous citizenry. Their solution was to strip the Jewish community of its collective political character and recapitulate the Jews as abstract citizens of the state. Each Jew was henceforth to be ‘a man on the street and a Jew at home’…This article argues, though, that while Reynolds and its progeny have presumed to emasculate local governments, those decisions have had exactly the opposite impact. Under the guise that local governments have been rendered inert, courts surreptitiously permit municipalities to exercise a substantial degree of autonomy. The one person/one vote rule provides local governments with a veneer of legitimacy that enables courts to rationalize self-serving local behavior as the effectuation of a grand public interest. This seeming inconsistency in the courts’ treatment of local governments reflects an uneasy compromise between the Enlightenment dream to dissolve groups such as the Jewish community into the abstract ‘rights of man’ and a pragmatic realization that group identity is ineradicable. This compromise, I argue, has troubling consequences: it enables those with sufficient political or financial power to retreat into insulated enclaves under the aegis of state neutrality, while foreclosing recompense for those excluded from such enclaves by deploying the fiction that they still retain their abstract rights. The article concludes accordingly that the egalitarian promise of the one person/one vote jurisprudence rings hollow.”

View the full publication

Professor Kenneth Stahl

Professor Kenneth Stahl is the director of the Environmental, Land Use, and Real Estate Law certificate program at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. Before joining Chapman in 2008, Professor Stahl spent four years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Eastern District of New York. Prior to that, he worked as a Trial Attorney for the United States Department of Justice, Office of Constitutional Torts, and as an Associate at the Washington, D.C. law firm of Arnold & Porter. Professor Stahl was named the 2008-2009 Professor of the Year at Fowler School of Law.

See more of Professor Stahl’s writings.

Wes Miliband

Wes Miliband (JD ’05) focused on government affairs and land use subjects prior to attending law school at Chapman University. However, near the end of his first year it became clear to him that he wanted to pursue water law. Now, as a partner of Aleshire & Wynder, LLP, his main focus is water resources, including supply, quality, rates and related environmental land use issues.

Miliband recently spoke before a Senate hearing on behalf a municipal water district he represents. The client, seeking to renew legislation that will sunset next year, tasked Miliband with renewing the legislation which might lead to a new and improved statute. “It has been a different challenge and quite fun to try to make new law, rather than doing what we often do as lawyers – fight about what an existing law means,” he said. The legislation would allow the client to impose an assessment or charge on landowners for the water district to manage the local water supply in order to help keep the supply strong, in terms of quantity and quality. Miliband said that landowners and many groups support the bill, and so far, the Legislature has, too.

“In the litigation context, the issues involve establishment or defense of water rights; CEQA compliance; land use entitlements; hydropower licensing; and water infrastructure projects. In the transactional context, the issues range from water transfers/supply agreements to general counseling on California’s transparency rules for public agencies,” he said.

With his cross-training as a transactional and trial lawyer, he is able to make deals and take cases to trial when disputes cannot be resolved. He has found the different perspectives complement each other. He said that water law blends many subjects he finds interesting, including history, geology, environmental issues, law, science and public interests. In the future, Miliband plans to develop and maintain a full-service water practice.

View more stories like this about Chapman University Fowler School of Law alumni

Professor Lawrence Rosenthal’s article “Binary Searches and the Central Meaning of the Fourth Amendment” was published in the William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal (Volume 22, No. 881, 2014).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“Fourth Amendment jurisprudence is frequently accused of doctrinal incoherence. A primary reason is the persistence of two competing conceptions of ‘unreasonable’ search and seizure. The first is libertarian in character; it understands the Fourth Amendment’s command of reasonableness as establishing a constitutional boundary on investigative powers. On this view, the prohibition on unreasonable search and seizure keeps society free by limiting the government’s investigative reach. The second conception understands the Fourth Amendment’s prohibition as freedom against unjustified government intrusion. This conception of reasonableness is essentially pragmatic in character, balancing liberty and law-enforcement interests.

This article interrogates these competing conceptions by focusing whether a ‘binary search’ should be regarded as unreasonable under the Fourth Amendment. Binary search techniques reveal no more than whether there is probable cause to believe that an otherwise concealed area contains contraband or other evidence of criminality. In a binary search, the competing conceptions of the Fourth Amendment point toward different outcomes. On the libertarian conception, the Fourth Amendment would regard as unreasonable an effectively unlimited power to scrutinize otherwise private space through binary techniques. A libertarian Fourth Amendment demands limitations on binary searches. On the pragmatic conception, a binary search that discloses nothing more than the probable presence of contraband is supported by powerful law-enforcement interests, and is unlikely to threaten any legitimate liberty interest of the innocent. Therefore, it could readily be regarded as constitutionally reasonable even if unsupported by individualized suspicion of wrongdoing. As technology advances, the binary search will become increasingly important, as increasingly sophisticated and focused technologies are developed that can precisely target the presence of contraband or other evidence of criminality in both real and cyberspace.”

View the full publication

Professor Rosenthal

Professor Lawrence Rosenthal has been a professor of law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law since 2005. After graduating from Harvard Law School, where he won the Fay Diploma and was an editor of the Harvard Law Review, Professor Rosenthal clerked for Judge Prentice Marshall of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and Justice John Paul Stevens of the United States Supreme Court. Professor Rosenthal entered the practice of law as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, specializing in organized crime and public corruption prosecutions. In addition to teaching at Fowler School of Law, he continues to engage in litigation in the United States Supreme Court and other appellate courts, usually on a pro bono basis.

See more of Professor Rosenthal’s writings

After receiving an invitation from Fowler Law alumni and twin brothers Turki Alshaalan (LL.M. ‘13) and Thamer Alshaalan (LL.M. ‘13), Professor David Dowling visited Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The brothers wanted Professor Dowling to visit their home country and speak to the law schools in Riyadh about mediation and dispute resolution.

Professor Dowling visited King Saud University College of Law and College of Law at Dar Al Uloom University. He met with the Dean and Presidents of the universities and gave classroom presentations about mediation. He also shared the work currently being done in the Fowler School of Law Mediation Clinic.

“It [Riyadh] was beautiful. The experience of meeting the people and understanding the cultural background of the students will help me in the classroom.” – Professor Dowling

Meeting with attorneys working in Riyadh was another priority for Professor Dowling. He shared information about the law school as well as mediation – what it is, why it is important and ideas to start programs there on mediation and dispute resolution.

Professor Dowling was also able to meet with families of other Fowler Law alumni while in Saudi Arabia. One of the students arranged for him to meet her mother and her family, which he thought was a great experience.

Since his return, Professor Dowling has been busy finishing up the semester and working with other programs but plans to stay connected with those he met during his travels. One professor invited him to come and teach a class in Riyadh. He hopes to teach a program about mediation and dispute resolution in addition to taking the professor up on his offer in Riyadh.

Learn more about the Chapman University Fowler School of Law Mediation Clinic

Learn more about the Chapman University Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Board

Professor Nancy Schultz’s article “Law and Negotiation: Necessary Partners or Strange Bedfellows?” was recently published in the Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution (Volume 15, Number 1, 2013).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“How important is legal authority to the negotiation process? Scholars have discussed this issue and law students argue about it in negotiations classes. A survey of practicing lawyers reveals that law is very important to preparation for negotiation, but less so as a determinant of negotiated outcomes. Factors such as financial constraints, bargaining power, and negotiating skill seem to drive negotiated results in practice more than legal authority.”

View the full publication

Professor Nancy Schultz is the director of the Competitions and Alternative Dispute Resolution Program and professor of law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. Professor Schultz served on the ABA-Law Student Division Competitions Committee for 12 years, and currently serves on the International Client Counseling Competition Committee, and the International Negotiation Competition Committee, where she is the North American representative to the Executive Committee. Professor Schultz also chairs the International Law School Mediation Tournament. She has co-authored three texts in the research and writing field. In addition, she conducts workshops on legal writing, negotiations, and client counseling for practicing lawyers in private firms, corporations and government agencies.

See more of Professor Schultz’s writings

Associate Dean Donald Kochan’s article “The ‘Reason-Giving’ Lawyer: An Ethical, Practical, and Pedagogical Perspective” was recently published in The Georgetown Journal of Legal Ethics (Volume XXVI, Number 2, Spring 2013).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“Whether as a matter of duty, ethics, or utility, lawyers give reasons for their actions all the time. In the various venues in which legal skills must be employed, reason-giving is required in some, expected in others, desired in many, and useful in most. This Essay underscores the pervasiveness of reason-giving in the practice of law and the consequent necessity of lawyers developing a skill at giving reasons.”

View the full publication

Donald Kochan is the Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Development and professor of law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. Dean Kochan has published more than 30 scholarly articles and essays in well-respected law journals. His work has been cited in more than 250 published law review articles, and his articles have been downloaded more than 9,500 times from SSRN and BePress. In addition to his scholarly publications, Dean Kochan has published opinion editorials in leading newspapers across the country, recently including the Wall Street Journal and the L.A. Times. He has presented his work at national legal conferences and at law schools domestic and foreign, has testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, and has appeared on national radio and cable news broadcasts.

See more of Dean Kochan’s writings

During two days of orientation on August 13-14, the Fowler School of Law welcomed the incoming Class of 2017. After informative presentations, mock classes and networking with fellow classmates, faculty and administrators, the students wrapped up orientation excited to get started.

There were several opening remarks on the first day of orientation including, Orange County Bar Association (OCBA) Treasurer Todd Friedland who gave a talk entitled, “Your Legal Career Begins Today.” Assistant Dean of Admissions and Diversity Initiatives at Fowler School of Law, Karman Hsu shared some interesting facts about the Class of 2017 (as of August 13, 2014):

• Represents 68 undergraduate schools
• Born in 15 different countries
• Ages range from 21 to over 50
• 51% female and 49% male
• Class of 2017 accomplishments:
  • We are proud to have more than one student who has served in the armed forces – an Air Force Staff Sergeant, a U.S. Air Force Commander of the Color Guard and a Marine Corps Corporal
  • Two have careers as university professors, one of whom has her Ph.D. in english and the other is a Certified Public Accountant
  • They have worked for BET, Justice Corps, DreamWorks, the Department of Justice, Department of Defense and Atlantic Records
  • Two can communicate in sign language
  • Two are martial arts black belts
  • One has won a number of beauty pageants including the title of Miss Philippines USA Tourism and Miss Philippines Universe 2011
  • One played bass while touring with Cee Lo Green and has opened for Prince at Madison Square Garden

2014 Orientation Keynote Speaker, Steve Avila, General Counsel for The Spaceship Company (Virgin Galactic, LLC Affiliate), discussed his role with an aerospace production company charged to build the world’s first fleet of spaceships intended to make commercial, manned space travel a reality.

At the end of the second day, Dean Tom Campbell administered the professionalism oath to the new students, with visiting family members watching with pride and equal anticipation. After completion of the oath, the students and their guests enjoyed a traditional barbecue feast on the back deck of Kennedy Hall and browsed the booths of nearly 40 student organizations at the annual student organization fair.

Learn more about Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law.

Professor Deepa Badrinarayana’s article “Trading up Kyoto: A Proposal to Amend the Protocol” was published in the Boston College Environmental Affairs Law Review (Volume 41, Number 1, pp. 1-61, 2014).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“This is the first of two Articles that analyze the dynamic and complex relation between international trade law and the Kyoto Protocol. These Articles argue that the Kyoto Protocol undermines efforts to negotiate a meaningful climate change treaty, and alternatively, they propose a new treaty framework to replace the Protocol. This first Article sets out the trade and climate treaty conflict and demonstrates that the problem cannot be addressed within the current framework of international trade law. Developing nations that are now emerging economies and major greenhouse gas emitters are not bound by targeted emissions reduction obligations under the Kyoto Protocol. Their exclusion in an era of trade liberalization under rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) creates loss of competition and leakage concerns among developed country signatories. These concerns have caused developed nations, such as the United States, to reject Kyoto Protocol obligations. Others, notably Canada, Japan, and Russia, have also rejected continued obligations under the Protocol. Solutions to these problems conflict with WTO rules, as demonstrated by efforts by some nations to promote their renewable energy sector in a manner that also addresses competition concerns. Specifically, countries have provided renewable energy subsidies (RES), but conditioned their availability on the use of domestic content. WTO member nations have challenged such RES under WTO rules, including specific agreements, notably the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (ASCM) and Trade-Related Investment Measures (TRIMs). In one recent dispute, a WTO Panel ruled that the RES violate WTO law. Further, these measures do not qualify for environmental exceptions under WTO law, for both legal and normative reasons. A new climate change treaty is needed in 2015 to addresses the loss of competition and leakage problems.”

View the full article

Deepa Badrinarayana is a professor of law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. She earned her Doctorate in Juridical Studies and LL.M. in Environmental Law from Pace Law School. Professor Badrinarayana is also a consultant to the United Nations Global Compact, on issues of corporate voluntarism and regulations. In addition, she was part of a team that advised the Government of India on its new legislation to manage biomedical waste. Professor Badrinarayana is also a Member of the World Conservation Union, Committee on Environmental Law.

See more of Professor Badrinarayana’s writings

On Tuesday, August 19, 2014, the Fowler School of Law Alumni Advisory Board announced the new executive board members during their quarterly meeting. The 2014-2015 Alumni Advisory Board includes: Chair, Natasha Buchanan (JD ’09); Vice Chair, Kyndell Paine (JD ’10); Secretary, Atticus Wegman (JD ’10); University Alumni Board Liaison, Lauren Shaw (JD ’13); and Alumni Continuing Legal Education (MCLE) Coordinator, Donnie Ho (JD ’06).

Atticus Wegman, Lauren Shaw, Kyndell Paine, Natasha Buchanan, Donnie Ho

The Alumni Advisory Board for Chapman University Fowler School of Law currently is comprised of members of each graduating class beginning with the inaugural class of 1998. The board members are selected by their graduating class and serve for a term of one year. The board meets at Chapman once each quarter to receive updates on recent developments at the law school. In addition, the board assists the law school in the planning of networking opportunities for alumni and current students and provides valuable input regarding career services, bar exam preparation, and MCLE opportunities. Alumni are encouraged to contact their class representatives with suggestions as to how the law school can best serve its graduates.

Professor Michael Bazyler published his new book Forgotten Trials of the Holocaust with NYU Press. The book will be available in October 2014.

Excerpt:

“In the wake of the Second World War, how were the Allies to respond to the enormous crime of the Holocaust? Even in an ideal world, it would have been impossible to bring all the perpetrators to trial. Nevertheless, an attempt was made to prosecute some. Most people have heard of the Nuremberg trial and the Eichmann trial, though they probably have not heard of the Kharkov Trial—the first trial of Germans for Nazi-era crimes—or even the Dachau Trials, in which war criminals were prosecuted by the American military personnel on the former concentration camp grounds.

This book uncovers ten “forgotten trials” of the Holocaust, selected from the many Nazi trials that have taken place over the course of the last seven decades. It showcases how perpetrators of the Holocaust were dealt with in courtrooms around the world—in the former Soviet Union, the United Kingdom, Israel, France, Poland, the United States and Germany—revealing how different legal systems responded to the horrors of the Holocaust. The book provides a graphic picture of the genocidal campaign against the Jews through eyewitness testimony and incriminating documents and traces how the public memory of the Holocaust was formed over time.

The volume covers a variety of trials—of high-ranking statesmen and minor foot soldiers, of male and female concentration camps guards and even trials in Israel of Jewish Kapos—to provide the first global picture of the laborious efforts to bring perpetrators of the Holocaust to justice. As law professors and litigators, the authors provide distinct insights into these trials.”

View more about this book

Michael Bazyler is a professor of law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. He is also a research fellow at the Holocaust Education Trust in London and the holder of previous fellowships at Harvard Law School and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. In 2006, he was a Research Fellow at Yad Vashem in Jerusalem (The Holocaust Martyrs’ and Heroes’ Remembrance Authority of Israel) and the holder of the Baron Friedrich Carl von Oppenheim Chair for the Study of Racism, Anti-Semitism and the Holocaust.

See more of Professor Bazyler’s writings

Professor Denis Binder’s article “Looking Back to the Future: The Curmudgeon’s Guide to the Future of Environmental Law” was recently published in the Akron Law Review (Volume 46, Number 4, 2013).

Excerpt from the abstract:

“The enactment of NEPA on January 1, 1970 and the inaugural Earth Day on April 22, 1970 signaled an epochal change in America from a resource exploitation society to one focusing on the quality of life. Beginning with the early settlers, America fought to conquer the wilderness, dredge, fill, or drain the wetlands, bridge the rivers, mine or pump fossil fuels, harvest the forests, divert water, and farm the Great Plains. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787, the three federal swamplands acts, the railroad land grants and the Homestead Act, the General Mining Law, the Newlands Act, and the Multiple Use Act are examples of the drive to exploit the air, land, mineral, timber, fishing, and water resources of the nation. The American economy was built on cheap energy.

The exploitation of our natural resources resulted in both economic growth and environmental degradation, often incalculable pollution. The era of affluence that followed World War 11 allowed America to refocus itself on preserving and restoring the environment.

Society must meet the basic needs of modern civilization: potable water, electricity, and fuel for our cars. Shortages are appearing. The question arises therefore is if the past 4 decades represent a change in paradigms, a pause, or an adjustment in the history of America’s development? The thesis of this article is that the preceding 350 years still play a role in defining our environmental future.”

View the full publication

Denis Binder is a professor of law at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. His career teaching Antitrust, Environmental Law, Torts, and Toxic Torts at law schools nationwide spans four decades. Professor Binder has received the National Award of Merit from the Association of State Dam Safety Officials for his contributions to promoting dam safety.

See more of Professor Binder’s writings

PreLaw Magazine has named Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law’s joint JD/MFA in Film & Television Producing one of the 20 most unique joint degree programs in a recent article. The magazine has also included Chapman’s Kennedy Hall as one of the Best law buildings.

JD/MFA in Film & Television Producing Degree Program
Located in the heart of Southern California and its thriving entertainment industry, Fowler School of Law, in conjunction with Chapman’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, is proud to offer the first fully integrated JD/MFA in Film & Television Producing program in the country.

The JD degree allows students to gain insights into the legal workings of the entertainment industry from experienced legal professionals whose combined work includes representing and advising major motion picture companies, drafting music industry contracts, and executive producing feature films. The MFA in Producing allows students to study the fundamentals of film production (including writing, directing, cinematography, post-production, and sound) that culminates into a personally produced thesis film or media production.

Entertainment Law Clinic
The Fowler School of Law also offers the Entertainment Law Clinic, which provides students with a unique opportunity to work directly with independent filmmakers and to serve as production legal counsel for a feature length motion picture. Under the supervision of the faculty, participating students set up corporations or LLCs, file for copyrights, and draft all production-related contracts and documents including crew, actors, and locations agreements for real clients.

Entertainment Law Emphasis Program
Fowler School of Law students may also elect to pursue a specialty certificate by participating in the Entertainment Law Emphasis Program. The first and only program of its kind in the United States taught by faculty members with sizable industry experience provides students with expert knowledge of the legal aspects of the entertainment business, including intellectual property rights, entertainment contract negotiations, and licensing. Additionally, the school’s proximity to Hollywood and Southern California’s business market, which enhances Chapman’s commitment to train students to compete in the entertainment industry, offers untold opportunities for practical experience and networking.

Kennedy Hall Building
The law school’s Kennedy Hall is located on the beautiful 42-acre Chapman University campus, in the heart of charming and historic Old Towne in Orange, California. The modern four-story building offers an efficient and comfortable learning environment for law students. The structure incorporates the latest technology in an architecturally stunning design. Classrooms are equipped with state-of-the-art technology for enhanced teaching and learning, and are capable of accommodating future changes in electronic, visual and on-site learning. The award winning, three-story law library occupies one full wing of the building, including an informal reading area filled with popular periodicals. Two courtrooms, one designed for trials and the other for appellate hearings, provide fully equipped facilities for trial advocacy exercises, mock court competitions and formal hearings by visiting courts. The school provides a spacious student lounge with a television, kitchen, vending machines, pool table, game room and comfortable couches and tables.

Professor Mario Mainero

Professor Mario Mainero has been selected as the 2014 St. Thomas More Society Attorney of the Year for the Orange County chapter. This honor will be conferred at the annual Red Mass at 6 p.m. on October 6th at the Holy Family Cathedral in Orange. The Red Mass is celebrated annually by the Catholic Church for judges, attorneys, law professors, and law students. In the United States, the Red Mass is traditionally held on the Sunday before the first Monday in October (the opening of the new United States Supreme Court term). The mass is open to everyone.

Professor Mainero is the faculty advisor to the St. Thomas More Society student organization at Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law. The current President is Victor Bachand (JD ’16), who explained, “The organization’s focus is on the moral and ethical dilemmas that face not only law students, but lawyers, judges, politicians, etc. Our connection with the St. Thomas More Society in Orange County is growing; we will be looking directly to its members for mentorship, leadership, guidance and opportunities for all of our law students (not just members of our student organization).”

On September 18th, the Fowler Law St. Thomas More Society along with its guests from the Whittier Law School St. Thomas More Society will have its first meeting of the year.

Sean Murray, a member of the Red Mass Committee and a partner of Knobbe Martens, wrote an article about the Red Mass that is expected to be included in the upcoming Orange County Catholic newspaper. Below is an excerpt from his article.

“The origins of the Red Mass lie in the high middle ages of western Europe. It was likely celebrated in honor of St. Yves, the principal patron saint of attorneys before the canonization of Saint Thomas More…The Red Mass first appeared in the United States in the late nineteenth century and is now celebrated throughout the country. The most prominent of these celebrations is the mass at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C., which is held on the Sunday before the opening of the Supreme Court’s annual term. The Red Mass at St. Matthew’s is attended by many well-known attorneys, judges and government officials, both Catholic and non-Catholic. In 2012, six of the nine justices of the Supreme Court attended the service. President Bill Clinton, President George W. Bush and Vice-President Joe Biden are among the senior members of the executive branch who have attended in the past.”

Professor John Eastman also won the Catholic Lawyer of the Year award for the St. Thomas More Society, Orange County chapter and the St. Thomas More Award, Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio in 2010. He has also been a member of the St. Thomas More Society of Orange County Advisory Board since 2010.

The St. Thomas More Society of Orange County is dedicated to faith and community within the legal profession. The Society seeks to provide a Catholic voice on issues of relevance to judges, lawyers, public officials, and law students, and to promote an understanding of church teaching. Membership in the Society is open to persons of all religions who are interested in exploring the rich teaching of the Roman Catholic Church.

In July 2014, Chapman University Fowler School of Law Professor David Dowling attended the World Mediation Summit in Madrid, Spain. The event was hosted by Mediation International and attended mostly by those in the World Mediation Organization. Professor Dowling attended the summit for the opportunity to learn from experts around the world about mediation and conflict resolution. Specifically, he wanted to network with individuals working with juvenile and minors (young offenders) to gain insights for Fowler’s own Juvenile Hall Conflict Resolution Clinic (JHCRC), a subset of the Mediation Clinic.

“It was an exciting opportunity to share my ideas about working with juvenile offenders and teach them conflict resolution skills. I had an overwhelming response from the attendees. They were very interested in what I do and reached out to me to work with them on some of their projects.” – Professor Dowling

On the first day, he met with summit organizers to discuss the JHCRC. On day two, the organizers invited Professor Dowling to speak on a panel with mediators from Greece and Germany, with topics that ranged from mediation in Greece and India to his program in the United States. The scholars compared notes on the different approaches to conflict resolution and ways to start mediation programs.

“I figured I would go just as an attendee. I did not expect to present, so I was very happy to get the opportunity to present and have that platform to represent the Fowler School of Law to people from the Philippines, India, Latin America, West Indies, Australia, etc.” – Professor Dowling

Future Plans
Professor Dowling plans to connect with some of the mediators he met during the summit to help develop a novel new justice program that would allow mediators to meet with victims and offenders to address the crime and propose solutions. Professor Dowling plans to start this new program with Riverside County in the fall. This summit allowed him to share ideas with others already engaged in this unique program and to help brainstorm ways to make improvements. He has already received follow-up inquiries from counterparts in California, London and Greece.

David Dowling is an associate clinical professor and director of the Mediation Clinic. Professor Dowling joined the faculty in 2007 as an adjunct professor working with the interscholastic competition teams in mediation, negotiations and client counseling. Most of his work is based in Riverside with the courts and juvenile detention center.

Tom Goldstein

The 2014-2015 Chapman Dialogues Series is off to a great start, with a visit by Tom Goldstein, co-founder of SCOTUSblog and partner at Goldstein & Russell, P.C. The presentation on September 22, 2014, addressed “Perspectives on Finding Your Niche and Personalizing Your Path in Law.”

“If you want to be involved in something, offer up a resource – like your time,” Goldstein said at the start of his presentation. He explained how he offered his time to get his first internship working at National Public Radio. Then, once he decided to work on Supreme Court cases, he offered his time for free when taking on cases. He continued to stress that law students should find something that is of interest to them and look for something that someone else is not already doing. He suggested that they make it their niche and try to focus on providing what others are not providing. In Goldstein’s career he realized no one had created a law school Supreme Court clinic, so he began teaching Supreme Court Litigation at Harvard Law School in 2004. He previously taught the same subject at Stanford Law School for nearly a decade.

In 2003, when blogging became more popular, he started the Supreme Court of the United States Blog (SCOTUSblog) as a marketing tool for his work as a Supreme Court practitioner. He admitted that it failed as a marketing tool so he stopped writing about his own cases and instead objectively wrote about other cases, which was a great success and the blog became a trusted resource.

“The law is hard, competitive and draining on your time and relationships. Decide how to use your skill set to make yourself great.” – Tom Goldstein

Tom Goldstein is an appellate advocate, best known as one of the nation’s most experienced Supreme Court practitioners. He has served as counsel to the petitioner or respondent in roughly 10% of all the Court’s merits cases for the past 15 years, personally arguing 31 cases. He is also the co-founder and publisher of SCOTUSblog – a website devoted to comprehensive coverage of the Supreme Court. It is the only web blog ever to receive a Peabody Award.

View the archived webcast of the Tom Goldstein Chapman Dialogue Series.

Dean Tom Campbell and Tom Goldstein

In the past year, the Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law Library has undergone a significant transformation in line with the strategic objectives of the law school to modernize student services and expand the research support for faculty scholarship. As library director and professor Linda Kawaguchi explains, “Our faculty are eager to find new and innovative ways to enhance their scholarship with the assistance of a first rate, professional library staff.” The library staff and resources have improved capabilities to train students in research skills that will be vital in their future practice of law. The librarians are a daily resource for students to learn how to use the library in ways that can enhance their general understanding of the subject matters of their study on both a scholarly and practical level that form the basis of assignments in law school courses. As Professor Kawaguchi notes, “we’ve put together a great team here in the new Fowler Law Library, and it is showing substantial results. We are excited about how much more we can do in the library to enhance the already significant research culture here at Fowler through this new commitment of resources.”

Under Kawaguchi’s leadership, the law library continues the transformation to ensure it plays an active role in students’ legal education by teaching research skills, not only in a traditional classroom setting, but also in a digital and student-friendly setting. A number of specialists were added to the law library team:

• Associate Director for Library Services – Brendan Starkey has worked in the law libraries at Seattle University School of Law, Whittier Law School and University of California, Irvine School of Law. He also practiced law at DLA Piper for five years.
  

  Brendan Starkey

  “I oversee the public face of the library. We circulate library materials, provide research assistance and instruction, and generally make sure the library is an inviting place to study.”

• Systems/Technology Librarian – Seong Heon Lee has years of experience programming and building library systems.
  

  Seong Heon Lee

  “I am the systems administrator for our Integrated Library System. I coordinate library technologies to enhance user access to information resources in the law library.”

• Research/Instruction Librarian for Faculty Services – Sherry Leysen has worked in law libraries at Loyola Law School and the University of Washington School of Law. She also practiced law for seven years before that.
  

  Sherry Leysen

  “My role is to coordinate the law library’s research and reference services in support of faculty scholarship and teaching. Typical activities include in-depth research, training on research databases and giving guest lectures on specialized research topics and sources in support of classes and clinics.”

• Collection Management Librarian – Rachel Decker has a Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) and came to Fowler School of Law from the University of California, Los Angeles Law Library.
  

  Rachel Decker

  “I work behind the scenes to help evaluate, select and provide access to library materials in print and online. My team has two library assistants who help acquire, catalog, process, and maintain the collection as well as work to improve the library catalog so our patrons not only have access to what they need, but can find it!”

• Research/Instruction Librarians – Matthew Flyntz and Heather Joy both have JD’s and recently received their MLIS from the University of Washington, Law Librarianship Program.
  

  Matthew Flyntz

  Heather Joy

  “We help students find and use pertinent resources, tackle the research process, and navigate the Bluebook. You’ll see us in your classes teaching specialized research skills, and we assist faculty members with in-depth and wide-ranging research. Legal research can be a pain – we’re here to make it easier!”

• Circulation Librarian – David Moody worked in the Orange County Public Libraries system for many years.
  

  David Moody

  “I manage the law library student workers who assist library patrons; user library accounts; and make sure the library doors are open and things are running smoothly.”

In less than six months the law library has:

• Completed over 160 research requests for approximately 30 faculty members
• Taught research training sessions to individual faculty, research assistants, faculty assistants, colleagues at Leatherby Libraries, law clinics and doctrinal courses
• Offered a Legal Research Boot Camp for students heading out to summer jobs last May

This year the law library is trying to promote and train students on our wealth of legal databases such as Bloomberg Law, Proquest, HeinOnline, and West Academic’s Digital Study Aids. A long-term goal is to recycle much of the print collection that is widely available online in order to remove a significant amount of shelving to create more study space for students with different types of seating.

Learn more about the law library at Fowler School of Law

Linda Kawaguchi has two decades of law school library experience, including positions at the University of California Berkeley School of Law; University of Washington, School of Law; University of Michigan Law School; and Gonzaga University School of Law. She attended the University of Washington, where she received a M.S. in Library Science and the University of Idaho, where she received her JD. She is a member of the American Association of Law Libraries, American Bar Association, Association of American Law Schools, and serves as Vice-President on the Board of Trustees for the Orange County Public Law Library. She has presented numerous papers on advanced legal research, critical thinking and legislative intent. She teaches advanced legal research at the Fowler School of Law.

The Princeton Review’s 2015 Edition of “Best 169 Law Schools Rankings” has listed Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law #3 in the Best Quality of Life category. Our #3 ranking is a move up from last year’s #9 position, and marks the 11th straight year that the law school has been ranked in the top ten for the Best Quality of Life.

With one of the best faculty/student ratios among ABA-approved law schools, Fowler Law offers smaller class sizes and greater access to faculty, both in and out of the classroom. Fowler has earned a unique reputation for its friendly, collegial and collaborative students, who enjoy significant opportunities to work closely with faculty, administrators and staff.

The law school is located just one block from a variety of restaurants, shops and taverns in the historic Orange Circle and is just a short drive to world class beaches in Newport, Huntington and Laguna. Students take advantage of externships and job opportunities throughout the region and are within minutes from landmarks such as Anaheim Stadium, Disneyland and the federal and state court complex.

“Best Quality of Life” as Defined by Current Fowler Law Students

“Each day at Fowler School of Law, you walk into a lobby where the words of freedom are etched into the wall and you attend classes where scholars, judges, and attorneys teach the law in efforts to expand your mind. The quality of life here affords you the opportunity to strive towards accomplishing your personal goals and achieving a bright future for our society.” – Jessica Roundy (JD ’16)

“Don’t get me wrong – I appreciate the wall-to-wall marble, pre-finals massage tables and snacks, and comfy chairs that allow me to bounce to my heart’s content, but beneath all the subtle luxuries and amenities, the soul of the school is its close-knit, community environment and the wealth of relationships it fosters.” – Shaun Sanders (JD ’15)

“Fowler School of Law provides a challenging law school atmosphere, but at the same time, I am most grateful for the sense of community that exists, particularly the support I receive from the professors and administration.” – Tiffany Kuo (JD ’15)

“When you come here, you are coming to one of the most beautiful and prosperous places in the country to attend law school. You can do so without worrying about horrendous weather, significant crime rates, poor employment opportunities, and large distances from amenities and attractions.” – Evan Brennan (JD ’15)

“Fowler School of Law has a friendly, vibrant, and enthusiastic atmosphere. The students around you are always willing to help you out, professors are genuinely invested in your success, and you can’t help but feel a sense of belonging.” – Madiha Shahabuddin (JD ’15)

Chapman University Dale E. Fowler School of Law Professor Ronald D. Rotunda spoke in the “Think Forward” session of the TEDxOrangeCoast Annual Conference on September 19, 2014 at Soka University of America in Aliso Viejo, California. His session was titled, “The Last 75 Years of the 21st Century.”

“The future will see not only change but also a dramatic increase in the rate of change” said Ronald D. Rotunda.

His session began with a frank recollection of the reasons why we have “doom and gloom in this country right now and worldwide.” But then, he predicted that “the last 75 years of this century will give us unprecedented peace and prosperity because of the growth of democracy, the new respect for the rule of law and the explosion in technology.” The above video of his TEDx session shares the details of his reasoning for the positive outlook about the future.

TEDxOrangeCoast brings a community of like-minded and highly engaged forward-thinking innovators, designers, educators, technologists, and environmentally and socially concerned individuals together to turn “Ideas Worth Spreading” into action.

Ronald D. Rotunda joined Chapman in 2008. Prior to coming to Chapman, he was a professor at George Mason University School of Law and the University of Illinois. Prior to teaching, he was a clerk for Judge Walter R. Mansfield of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, practicing law in Washington, D.C., and serving as assistant majority counsel for the Watergate Committee. He has written several books and more than 350 articles in various law reviews, journals, newspapers, and books in this country and in Europe.