Yale Hosts Symposium On The Legal Treatise: Past, Present, And Future

Yale hosts a symposium today on The Legal Treatise: Past, Present, And Future (registration):

The Lillian Goldman Law Library, with the generous support of the Oscar M. Ruebhausen Fund at Yale Law School, is pleased to announce its second legal information symposium: “The Legal Treatise: Past, Present, and Future,” scheduled to take place at Yale Law School on Friday, March 24, 2023. The papers presented at this event will be published as a special symposium issue of Law Library Journal. This symposium will examine the legal treatise as a source and genre through the lenses of history, authorship, identity, and transition. 

Welcome Remarks 

• Femi Cadmus (Librarian, Yale; Google Scholar) 
• Heather Gerken (Dean, Yale) 

Keynote Address 

• John Langbein (Yale), The Rise and Fall of Legal Academic Treatise Writing in the United States

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Hofstra Hosts Symposium Today On Freedom Of Expression At American Law Schools

Hofstra hosts a symposium today on Freedom of Expression at American Law Schools (registration): 

Commitments to principles supporting the freedom of expression are found in statements of policy at public and private institutions of higher education throughout the United States. American law schools, either as parts of larger universities or standing alone, have embraced similar policies adhering to the principle that free intellectual inquiry is at the core of a law school’s educational and research mission.

General statements about free expression, however, do not always resolve actual controversies. When does expression "go too far?" Are controversies over free expression at law schools different from those elsewhere on campuses? There have been powerful reminders, in recent years, that law school free expression has limits — that at some point it can collide with other values and interests of concern to deans, faculty, and students.

Agenda:

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New York Law School Symposium: Race, Bias, And Advocacy

Symposium, Race, Bias, and Advocacy, 66 N.Y. L. Sch. L. Rev. 121-413 (2021-2022):

• Deborah N. Archer (NYU; Google Scholar), Preface, 66 N.Y. L. Sch. L. Rev. 121 (2021-2022)
• Edward A. Purcell, Jr. (New York Law School; Google Scholar), Race Across the Curriculum: A Team-Taught Course on Law and Race in America, 66 N.Y. L. Sch. L. Rev. 125 (2021-2022)
• Edward A. Purcell, Jr. (New York Law School; Google Scholar), Race and the Law: The Visible and the Invisible, 66 N.Y. L. Sch. L. Rev. 141 (2021-2022)

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Santa Clara Symposium: Lawyers, Leadership, And Change

Symposium, Lawyers, Leadership, and Change: Addressing Challenges and Opportunities in Unprecedented Times, 62 Santa Clara L. Rev. 1-244 (2022):

• Donald J. Polden (Dean Emeritus, Santa Clara), Introduction, 62 Santa Clara L. Rev. i (2022)
• Lindsey P. Gustafson (Arkansas-Little Rock), Aric K. Short (Texas A&M; Google Scholar) & Neil W. Hamilton (St.  Thomas-MN; Google Scholar), Teaching and Assessing Active Listening as a Foundational Skill for Lawyers as Leaders, Counselors, Negotiators, and Advocates, 62 Santa Clara L. Rev. 1 (2022)
• Joan MacLeod Heminway (Tennessee; Google Scholar), Change Leadership and the Law School Curriculum, 62 Santa Clara L. Rev. 43 (2022)

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Today's AALS Tax Highlight

Section on Taxation, Tax Reform at the Midterm: Reflections and Opportunities
3–4:40 pm Point Loma, First Floor, South Tower, Marriott

The Biden administration began in 2021 with significant attention being given to wealth and capital income tax reform as well as to the intersection of racial justice and the Tax Code. This panel will reflect on the resulting tax reform efforts that occurred during the first two years of the the Biden administration and the prospects for reform going forward.

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Today's Pepperdine And Tax AALS Highlights

Section on Associate Deans for Academic Affairs and Research, LLM (Law, Learning and Motivation): Transforming Legal Education via Learning and Motivation Principles
1–1:50 pm Marriott Grand Ballroom 9, Lobby Level, North Tower

Legal education and support are often described as entrenched in traditional methods of teaching and assessing student learning. Pedagogical considerations in law school classrooms and law school support systems rarely include a focus on how learning and motivation theory, and their practical applications, can positively impact the law student experience. In this session, participants will learn how to apply learning and motivation principles in the law school, with the overall goal of maximizing student learning and engagement, including a focus on self-regulation, goal setting, self-evaluation, cognitive load, emotions, and self-efficacy.

• Olympia Duhart (Nova) (moderator)
• Jeffrey Baker (Pepperdine)
• Chalak Richards (Pepperdine)
• Deepika Sharma (USC)
• Nickey Woods (USC)

Section on Taxation, Teaching Tax: Methods and Approaches for the Modern Student
3–4:40 pm Solana, First Floor, South Tower, Marriott

Experienced tax professors will share lessons that they have learned about teaching tax in the last few years of disruption in legal education. Topics will include utilizing technology, incorporating insights from practitioners, and covering issues of racial justice.

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Please Join Us: Pepperdine Caruso Law AALS Reception (Friday, Jan. 6)

Pepperdine Caruso Law School invites law professors and deans to a reception
hosted by Dean Paul Caron at the 2023 AALS Annual Meeting in San Diego

Friday, Jan. 6, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Malibu Room | Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina (Headquarter Hotel)
Please join us for local California wine & beer and hors d'oeuvres

Louisville Law Review Symposium: Mental Health And The Legal Profession

Mental Health and the Legal Profession, 60 U. Louisville L. Rev. 423- 519 (2022):

• Timothy S. Hall (Louisville), "We Don't Talk about Bruno:" Of Mental Health, Honesty and Openness, and the Legal Profession, 60 U. Louisville L. Rev. 423 (2022)
• David Jaffe (American), Reflections on Law Student Mental Health by a Dean of Students after 25 Years, 60 U. Louisville L. Rev. 429 (2022)
• David Jaffe (American), Katherine Bender (Bridgewater State) & Jerome Organ (St. Thomas-MN), "It Is Okay to Not Be Okay": The 2021 Survey of Law Student Well-Being, 60 U. Louisville L. Rev. 441 (2022)

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Drake Legal Education Symposium

Symposium on Legal Education, 70 Drake L. Rev. 1- 247 (2022): 

• Russell E. Lovell (Drake), Celebrating the Drake Legal Clinic at 50! Drake Law Experiential Education at 157! 157–50! A Proud Tradition since 1865, 70 Drake L. Rev. 1 (2022)
• Melissa L. Kidder (Ohio Northern; Google Scholar), The Future of Rural Lawyering: How Law Schools Should Embrace a General Practice Legal Clinic Model to Address the Current and Future Legal Needs of Rural and Smaller Communities, 70 Drake L. Rev. 83 (2022)
• Carolyn Young Larmore (Chapman; Google Scholar), Just Compensation: An Empirical Examination of the Success of Legal Externships for Pay and Credit, 70 Drake L. Rev. 145 (2022)

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Call For Papers: 9th Annual Michigan Junior Scholars’ Conference

Michigan Law School has issued a Call for Papers for its 9th Annual Junior Scholars' Conference:

The University of Michigan Law School is pleased to invite junior scholars to attend the 9th Annual Junior Scholars Conference, which will take place in person on April 21-22, 2023, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. 

The Conference provides junior scholars with a platform to present and discuss their work with peers and receive feedback from prominent members of the Michigan Law faculty. The Conference aims to promote fruitful collaboration between participants and to encourage their integration into a community of legal scholars. The Junior Scholars Conference is intended for academics in both law and related disciplines. Applications from graduate students, SJD/PhD candidates, postdoctoral researchers, lecturers, teaching fellows, and assistant professors (pre-tenure), who have not held an academic position for more than four years, are welcome.

Submission: To apply to the Conference, please submit an abstract of no more than 500 words reflecting the unpublished work that you wish to present and a copy of your CV through the online submission form by January 9, 2023.

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Texas A&M Conference For Associate Deans

Five years ago, on my first day as dean, I presented Faculty Scholarship Assessment: A (Very) New Dean's Perspective at the 2017 Texas A&M Associate Deans Conference.  I am delighted to be back at the 2022 Texas A&M Associate Deans Conference today as part of a Panel of Deans:

This panel features current law deans with diverse backgrounds and experiences. They will discuss issues relevant to associate deans, including the relationship between the dean and associate dean, as well as advice for prospective law deans.

• Robert Ahdieh (Texas A&M)
• Paul Caron (Pepperdine)
• Tamara Lawson (University of Washington)
• Moderator: Gary Lucas (Texas A&M) 

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Symposium: Epoch — Going Beyond A Racial Reckoning

Symposium, Epoch: Going Beyond A Racial Reckoning, 44 Seattle U. L. Rev. 623-654 (2021):

• Foreword, 44 Seattle U. L. Rev. 623 (2021)
• Michael Rogers (J.D. 2021, Seattle), Hannah Hamley (J.D. 2021, Seattle) & Rayshaun D. Williams (J.D. 2022, Seattle), Introductory Remarks, 44 Seattle U. L. Rev. 625 (2021)
• Mario Barnes (UC-Irvine; Former Dean, University of Washington), Majidah Cochran (J.D. 2021, Seattle), Danielle Conway (Dean, Penn State-Dickinson), Tamara Lawson (Dean, St. Thomas-FL), L. Song Richardson (President, Colorado College; Former Dean, UC-Irvine) & Angela Onwuachi-Willig (Dean, Boston University), Deans Roundtable, 44 Seattle U. L. Rev. 627 (2021)
• Marissa Jackson Sow (St. John's; Google Scholar), Whiteness as Contract, 44 Seattle U. L. Rev. 635 (2021)

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Call for Proposals: The COVID Care Crisis In The Legal Academia, Part II

Call for Proposals: The COVID Care Crisis Symposium, Part II: Imagining Solutions and Taking Action (June 16, 2022):

The COVID Care Crisis Symposium held in January 2021 convened dozens of scholars to theorize about what the organizers labeled as the unfolding “COVID Care Crisis” and its effects on legal academia. During that two-day event, scholars, teachers, students, and practitioners shared the difficulties of managing the demands of work and the constantly shifting changes to care infrastructures. The Symposium amplified the voices of caregivers and sounded the alarm on how disparities, if left unaddressed, could alter the landscape of academia long into the future and further marginalize women and scholars of color as well as other primary caregiving faculty and staff. Many speakers published their Symposium papers in a just-released volume in FIU Law Review as well as in other venues.

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Indiana-McKinney Law School Hosts Inaugural Conference: Law vs. Antisemitism

Indiana-McKinney Law School Special Event, Law vs. Antisemitism: Inaugural Conference (March 14-15):

Antisemitism is more than a hatred and a practice — it's legal phenomenon. Join legal scholars and experts at the Law vs. Antisemitism Inaugural Conference as they discuss how law has been used both to perpetrate and to combat antisemitism, historically and today.   US law in particular has been used to fight antisemitism through the constitutional separation of church and state, anti-discrimination laws, and “hate crimes” laws, among other means.  Despite these laws, there has been a recent resurgence in anti-Jewish violence and antisemitism more generally, ranging from online hate speech to cemetery desecration to attacks on synagogues.  What does this tell us about the efficacy of law in combating antisemitism?

The Conference will be held at IU Robert H. McKinney School of Law on March 14-15, 2022, and will be broadcast live online.  It will consist of the panels and speakers listed below. 

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St. Louis Symposium: Teaching Law Online

Symposium, Teaching Law Online, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 455-726 (2021):

• Bridget J. Crawford (Pace; Google Scholar) & Michelle S. Simon (Pace), Law Faculty Experiences Teaching During the Pandemic, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 455 (2021)
• Yvonne M. Dutton (Indiana-McKinney) & Seema Mohapatra (SMU; Google Scholar), COVID-19 and Law Teaching: Guidance on Developing an Asynchronous Online Course for Law Students, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 471 (2021)
• Charletta A. Fortson (Southern), Now is Not the Time for Another Law School Lecture: An Andragogical Approach to Virtual Learning for Legal Education, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 505 (2021)
• Shivangi Gangwar (Jindal Global; Google Scholar), Some Thoughts on the Corona Semester, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 517 (2021)
• F. E. Guerra-Pujol (Central Florida; Google Scholar), Christiana Champnella (Graduate TA, Central Florida), Benjamin Mayo (Undergraduate TA, Central Florida), Morgan Travers (Graduate TA, Central Florida) & Antonella Vitulli (Undergraduate TA, Central Florida), Teaching Tiger King, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 527 (2021)
• Agnieszka McPeak (Gonzaga; Google Scholar), Adaptable Design: Building Multi-Modal Content for Flexible Law School Teaching, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 561 (2021)
• Antonia Alice Badway Miceli (St. Louis), From a Distance: Providing Online Academic Support and Bar Exam Preparation to Law Students and Alumni During the COVID-19 Pandemic, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 585 (2021)
• Ira Steven Nathenson (St. Thomas-FL; Google Scholar), Teaching Law Online: Yesterday and Today, But Tomorrow Never Knows, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 607 (2021)
• Margaret Ryznar (Indiana-McKinney), What Works in Online Teaching, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 643 (2021)
• Anita M. Singh (George Washington), From Crisis Springs Opportunity: Using Virtual Learning to Develop More Effective Lawyers, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 663 (2021)
• Sonia M. Suter (George Washington), Legal Education in a Pandemic: A Crisis and Online Teaching Reveal Who My Students Are, 65 St. Louis U. L.J. 679 (2021)

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Northwestern Hosts Zoom Panel Today On Validity And Equity Problems In Law School Teaching Evaluations

Northwestern hosts a multidisciplinary Zoom panel on Validity and Equity Problems in Law School Teaching Evaluations today at 1:00 pm ET (registration):

Student evaluations are, as shown by study after study, not valid measures of teaching quality and are biased along the axes of gender, race, accent, age, disability, attractiveness, and other instructor attributes unrelated to teaching ability. Yet, even as many universities and colleges have begun reckoning with these established problems with teaching evaluations, and while many law schools have started tackling other barriers facing women and minorities in academia, attempts to reform evaluations have lagged behind in the legal academy. This panel brings together a multidisciplinary group of scholars to discuss the most recent research on teaching evaluations and how law schools should proceed given what this work shows about the issues with such evaluations.

Speakers:

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Call For Tax Papers And Panels: SEALS 2022 (Jan. 19 Deadline)

Hello and Happy New Year! Jennifer and I are coordinating tax panels and discussion groups for next year’s SEALS Conference.  The 2022 SEALS Conference will be held at the Sandestin Beach & Golf Resort, Sandestin, Florida on July 27-August 3.  All the info you need to send us is below but the most important bit of info to note might be that we are on a tight timeline.

The conference submission tool is open, and Jennifer and I are eager to coordinate people who are interested in presenting tax work at the SEALS conference into relevant panel groups.  In addition, we have also had very successful Tax Policy Discussion Groups in recent years.  Panels are generally composed of 4 to 5 people speaking for 15 to 20 minutes each.  We will attempt to group papers so that panels include papers on similar topics.  The Discussion Group includes about 10 people, each speaking for 5-8 minutes on a topic related to tax policy, broadly interpreted.  This has often included topics that are not necessarily fully formed paper ideas but are thoughts the presenter has had on something he or she would like to discuss with a group of smart, informed people in an informal setting.  Both types of presentation have been very successful in the past.  Each presenter may participate in one Panel AND one Discussion Group.

So, if you are interested in submitting to SEALS and would like us to include you in a group of other tax profs, please email me with the following information:

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AALS Hosts Three Four Virtual Tax Events Today

11:00 am ET:  The Promise and Pitfalls of the Global Tax Deal:

In October 2021, 136 countries struck a ground-breaking tax deal for the digital age. This panel will discuss the proposed two-pillar tax system from the perspective of the United States, the EU, and other regions, what these two pillars do, the likely approaches in many countries, practical concerns, and the impact on existing measures, such as DSTs, tax treaties, 15% global minimum tax, GILTI, BEAT, Subpart F, and foreign tax credit rules.

• Young Ran (Christine) Kim (Utah) (moderator)
• Steven Dean (Brooklyn)
• Omri Marian (UC-Irvine)
• Susan Morse (Texas)
• Diane Ring (Boston College)

11:00 am ET:  Nonprofit and Philanthropy Law:

Nonprofit organizations engage in discriminatory practices without losing their tax-exempt status. However, tax law may be used as a powerful tool to eradicate institutional discrimination among nonprofit organizations. This panel will explore nonprofit organizations and discriminatory practices, almost forty years after the landmark Bob Jones University v. U.S. case. In this decision, the Supreme Court held that the IRS may deny tax-exempt status to institutions whose policies violate “fundamental public policy,” even if those policies are allegedly based on religious beliefs. The panel will address the legacy of this decision today in educational, religious, and broader settings.

• Khrista McCarden (Tulane) (moderator)
• Samuel Brunson (Loyola-Chicago)
• JoAnne Epps (Temple)
• Lloyd Hitoshi Mayer (Notre Dame)

2:00 pm ET:  Social Networking Session:

Take a break from formal programming and join your colleagues from the Section on Taxation for informal conversation.

• Adam Thimmesch (Nebraska) (Incoming Chair)
• Kathleen Delaney Thomas (Chair)

4:45 pm ET:  New Voices in Taxation:

This program will feature works in progress by three emerging tax scholars, each of whom will be paired with a senior tax scholar discussant.

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AALS Hosts Virtual Panel Today On Tax Policy In The New Administration: Priorities And Opportunities

The AALS Tax Section hosts a Zoom panel today on Tax Policy In The New Administration:  Priorities And Opportunities at 11:00 AM ET:

President Biden’s administration has proposed a broad tax reform agenda aimed at providing middle and lower income tax relief and curtailing tax abuse. This panel will bring together experts from across the country to examine priorities and opportunities for reform. Topics covered will include: advancing racial equity in the tax system, IRS enforcement, global digital taxation, the American Families Plan, and other tax relief efforts.

Speakers:

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ABA Hosts Redesigning Legal: The Role Of Legal Education, Clinics And Legal Labs Today

The American Bar Association will host the Redesigning Legal: The Role of Legal Education, Clinics and Legal Labs panel as part of its Redesigning Legal Speaker Series today at 1:00 P.M. EST: 

The fourth virtual Redesigning Legal Speaker Series on Tuesday, Dec. 7, will explore opportunities being created for law school education by the growing trend of regulatory innovation in the legal profession.

Utah and Arizona have already enacted sweeping changes to how legal services can be delivered and who can provide them. Nationally, no fewer than 10 other states are in different stages of exploring, recommending or implementing regulatory change that would generally allow nonlawyers to provide some legal services. The emerging landscape is certain to impact the legal profession in significant ways as well as present new challenges for J.D. education while possibly spawning other law-related educational programs.

Panelists will focus on how law schools are responding and adapting to the prospect of fewer barriers to innovation that offer increased employment opportunities for their students, more roles for people other than lawyers in the delivery of legal services, the creation of tiered legal service providers and collaboration across professional fields to provide more and new kinds of legal services.

Panelists: 

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Call For Papers: 8th Annual Michigan Junior Scholars’ Conference

Michigan Law School has issued a Call for Papers for its 8th Annual Junior Scholars' Conference:

The University of Michigan Law School is pleased to invite junior scholars to attend the 8th Annual Junior Scholars Conference, which will take place in-person on April 22-23, 2022, in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

The Conference provides junior scholars with a platform to present and discuss their work with peers and receive feedback from prominent members of the Michigan Law faculty. The Conference aims to promote fruitful collaboration between participants and to encourage their integration into a community of legal scholars. The Junior Scholars Conference is intended for academics in both law and related disciplines. Applications from graduate students, SJD/PhD candidates, postdoctoral researchers, lecturers, teaching fellows, and assistant professors (pre-tenure) who have not held an academic position for more than four years, are welcomed.

Cooperation with Michigan Law Journals: We are excited that this year the Conference will collaborate with several Michigan Law journals, all of which are among the highest ranked in their respective fields. The Michigan Law Review, the Michigan Journal of International Law, the Michigan Journal of Gender and Law, the Michigan Journal of Race and Law, Michigan Technology Law Review, the Michigan Journal of Law & Society, the Michigan Journal of Law Reform, and the Michigan Business & Entrepreneurial Law Review will give serious consideration to publish papers selected for the Conference that are within each journal’s research agenda and meet its requirements. Additional details on the publication process will be provided after selection for participation in the Conference itself has been completed. In any event, there will be no obligation to accept any offer of publication that you may receive. 

Submission: To apply to the Conference, please submit an abstract of no more than 500 words reflecting the unpublished work that you wish to present and a copy of your CV through the online submission form by January 10, 2022. 

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Utah Symposium: #IncludeTheirStories — Rethinking, Reimagining, And Reshaping Legal Education

Utah Law Review symposium, #IncludeTheirStories: Rethinking, Reimagining, and Reshaping Legal Education:

The entire world was shaken by the events of 2020, a year which the history books will pen with infamy. Along with a global health pandemic that tested both human frailties and social infrastructures, the world witnessed the devastation of George Floyd, an African American man, dying under the knee of Derek Chauvin, a white male police officer. The nation erupted. As 2020 ended, many organizations and institutions clamored both to process ethnic divides and injustices, and gain tools and skills to create meaningful change and lasting impact. Legal education was one such institution.

This event will gather scholars and practitioners who have been deeply engaged in this work to determine how law faculty might best prepare today’s law students through teaching racism and related inequities in the classroom. A few law schools have grappled with race-silent neutrality within the 1L curriculum and diversity reading lists have been created, but, however elusive a goal, we have not yet arrived at an inclusive curriculum. So the conversation must continue. We are excited to bring together academics and practitioners to offer practical and pedagogical steps toward rethinking, reimagining, and reshaping the legal education curriculum in efforts to #IncludeTheirStories.

Friday, November 5

Session 1: Grappling with Our Legal History of Exclusion
Tom Romero (Denver), Joann Thach (Snell & Wilmer), Angela Winfield (LSAC)

Session 2: Overcoming the Resistance to DEI
Robin Boylorn (Alabama), Thomas Donnelly (Jones Day), Robert Razzante (Western Washington University)

Keynote Address: Danielle Conway (Dean, Penn State-Dickinson)

Saturday, November 6

Opening Address: Meera Deo (Southwestern)

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Symposium: Leading Differently Across Difference

Hofstra Symposium, Leading Differently Across Difference Conference, 48 Hofstra L. Rev. 597-759 (2020):

• Akilah Folami (Hofstra) & Susan Sturm (Columbia), The Paradox of Legal Training and Leadership: A Conversation Between Akilah Folami and Susan Sturm, 48 Hofstra L. Rev. 603 (2020)
• Neil Hamilton (St. Thomas-MN; Google Scholar), Fostering and Assessing Law Student Teamwork and Team Leadership Skills, 48 Hofstra L. Rev. 619 (2020)
• Susan R. Jones (George Washington), The Case for Leadership Coaching in Law Schools: A New Way to Support Professional Identity Formation, 48 Hofstra L. Rev. 659 (2020)
• Donald J. Polden (Santa Clara) & Leah Jackson Teague (Baylor), More Diversity Requires More Inclusive Leaders Leading by Example in Law Organizations, 48 Hofstra L. Rev. 681 (2020)
• Deborah L. Rhode (Stanford), Lessons from Iconic Leaders: Thurgood Marshall and Nelson Mandela, 48 Hofstra L. Rev. 705 (2020)

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Tennessee Symposium: Law School Leadership Training

Symposium, Law School Leadership Training, 14 Tenn. J. L. & Pol'y 287-466 (2020):

• R. Lisle Baker (Suffolk), Character and Fitness for Leadership: Educating Lawyers for Compassion and Courage as Well as Brains—The Wizard of Oz Was Right, 14 Tenn. J. L. & Pol'y 287 (2020)
• R. Lisle Baker (Suffolk), Appendix 1: Selected Journal Assignments, 14 Tenn. J. L. & Pol'y 339 (2020)
• Douglas A. Blaze (Dean Emeritus, Tennessee), Of Wigs, Wickets, and Moonshine: Leadership Development Lessons from an International Collaboration, 14 Tenn. J. L. & Pol'y 345 (2020)
• Elizabeth M. Fraley (Baylor) & Leah Witcher Jackson Teague (Baylor), Where the Rubber Hits the Road: How Do Law Schools Demonstrate a Commitment to Training Leaders?, 14 Tenn. J. L. & Pol'y 375 (2020)

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Deans' Leadership In Legal Education Symposium

15th Deans' Leadership in Legal Education Symposium, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 189-333 (2019):

• Gail B. Agrawal (Former Dean, Iowa), Reflections on Stepping Down, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 189 (2019)
• Nicholas W. Allard (Former Dean, Brooklyn), Love’s Labors Found, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 199 (2019)
• Leonard M. Baynes (Dean, Houston), A Dean’s Roadmap to Diversity and Inclusion: The University of Houston Law Center as a Template for Success, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 221 (2019)
• Luke Bierman (Dean, Elon), Audacious Is Not a Four Letter Word: Is Bold Big Enough For Legal Education?, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 247 (2019)
• Gregory W. Bowman (Dean, Roger Williams), The Rise of the Creative Law School, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 255 (2019)
• Megan M. Carpenter (Dean, New Hampshire; Google Scholar), Legal Education Unbundled (and Rebundled), 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 265 (2019)
• Thomas C. Galligan (Dean, LSU), Deaning Redux—Walking It Back, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 275 (2019)
• Thomas Geu (Dean, South Dakota), The Law School Dean Game: “What’s It Like To Be a Law School Dean?”, 50 U. Tol. L. Rev. 281 (2019)

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Fordham Symposium: Mental Health And The Legal Profession

Fordham Symposium, Mental Health and the Legal Profession, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2415-2595 (2021):

• Susan A. Bandes (DePaul; Google Scholar), Feeling and Thinking Like a Lawyer: Cognition, Emotion, and the Practice and Progress of Law, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2427 (2021)
• Jenny E. Carroll (Alabama), If Only I Had Known: The Challenges of Representation, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2447 (2021)
• Meera A. Deo (Thomas Jefferson), Investigating Pandemic Effects On Legal Academia, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2467 (2021)
• Hon. Bernice Donald (U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit) & Alex Bansford, Widening the Lens, Sharpening the Focus: Mental Health and the Legal Profession, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2497 (2021)
• Tsedale M. Melaku (CUNY; Google Scholar), The Awakening: The Impact of COVID-19, Racial Upheaval, and Political Polarization on Black Women Lawyers, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2519 (2021)
• Gregory S. Parks (Wake Forest; Google Scholar) & Julia Doyle (J.D. Candidate 2024, Wake Forest), The Rage of a Privileged Class, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2541 (2021)
• Deborah L. Rhode (Stanford), Managing Stress, Grief, and Mental Health Challenges in the Legal Profession; Not Your Usual Law Review Article, 89 Fordham L. Rev. 2565 (2021)

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Deans' Leadership In Legal Education Symposium

16th Deans' Leadership in Legal Education Symposium, 52 U. Tol. L. Rev. 197-352 (2021):

• Nicholas W. Allard (Former Dean, Brooklyn), Sweet Are the Uses of Adversity, 52 U. Tol. L. Rev. 197 (2021)
• D. Benjamin Barros (Dean, Toledo) & Cameron M. Morrissey (J.D. 2021, Toledo), A Survey of Law School Deans on the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic, 52 U. Tol. L. Rev. 241 (2021)
• Brian Gallini (Dean, Willamette; Google Scholar), Pandemic Leadership, 52 U. Tol. L. Rev. 261 (2021)
• Vincent R. Johnson (Former Interim Dean, St. Mary's), The End of the Golden Age of American Legal Education: My Year as Interim Dean, 52 U. Tol. L. Rev. 289 (2021)
• Michael Waterstone (Dean, Loyola-L.A.), Top Ten Leadership Lessons Learned From Being Dean During COVID-19, 52 U. Tol. L. Rev. 337 (2021)

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Tax Panel Today At SEALS

Tax panel today at the 2021 SEALS Annual Conference on Amelia Island, Florida (program):

Workshop on Tax Law: Tax Law, Policy, and Human Beings
Sometimes we forget, but real live human beings (and dead ones!) are subject to the income tax. The presenters on this panel consider the myriad ways that the income tax responds to and is shaped by the choices human beings make. In particular, papers in this panel address the rise of telework, the effect of the tax system on the cost of death, tax and the cyborg, and the human factor in the economic calculus.

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Tax Panel Today At SEALS

Tax panel today at the 2021 SEALS Annual Conference on Amelia Island, Florida (program):

Workshop on Tax Law: Discussion Group: Tax Law
This discussion group is broadly concerned with issues of taxation. Discussants will address individual income tax, corporate income tax, state & local tax, estate & gift tax, tax expenditure policy, international tax, and entitlements. While these disparate themes might seem only loosely related, a common thread of the difficulties of balancing equity, simplicity, incentives, and transparency runs through all of them. These scholars grapple with the central tax topics of the day, and address the looming concerns that must be dealt with by all levels of government.

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Tax Panels Today At SEALS

Tax panels today at the 2021 SEALS Annual Conference on Amelia Island, Florida (program):

New Scholars Workshop: Corporate Law, Financial Markets, and Taxation II
This workshop gives New Scholars the opportunity to present a work-in-progress in a welcoming and supportive environment and to receive feedback on their presentation from more senior scholars in their fields. New Scholars are also assigned a mentor. The program is open to junior faculty at member schools. New Scholars are nominated to participate in the New Scholars Workshop by the deans of their respective law schools.

• John Anderson (Mississippi College) (moderator)
• Catherine Baylin Duryea (St. John's), Crumbs of Judicial Relief: Judicial Review of Price Controls During Wartime
  Mentor: Eric Segall (Georgia State) (mentor)
• Young Ran (Christine) Kim (Utah), Taxing Telework 
  Mentor: Tessa Davis (South Carolina)
• Jennifer Levine (Quinnipiac), Qualified Small Business Stock: A Proposal for Reform to Promote Business Formation and Growth 
  Mentor: Joan Heminway (Tennessee)
• Daniel Schaffa (Richmond), Payroll Subsidies as a Policy Tool
  Mentor: Colin Marks (St. Mary's)

Workshop on Tax Law: Tax Law and Policy - International, Federal, State
This panel addresses a variety of issues in tax policy, including the implications of complex sets of relevant tax rules in various contexts and scenarios. Papers included in this panel consider cross-border issues at the local, state, and international levels, as well as questions that arise around the coordination between the IRS and other agencies. Other panelists consider issues around the marriage penalty and the physical presence rules.

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Baylor Symposium: Vision For Law School Leadership Training

Symposium, Vision For Law School Leadership Training, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 1-248 (2021) (video):

• Leah Teague (Baylor), Making Progress in Legal Education: Leadership Development Training in Law Schools, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 1 (2021)
• Erwin Chemerinsky (UC-Berkeley), Remembering Deborah Rhode, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 64 (2021)
• Deborah L. Rhode (Stanford), Leadership in Times of Social Upheaval: Lessons for Lawyers, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 67 (2021)
• April Mara Barton (Duquesne), Teaching Lawyers to Think Like Leaders: The Next Big Shift in Legal Education, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 115 (2021)
• Neil Hamilton (St. Thomas-MN; Google Scholar), The Major Transitions in Professional Formation and Development from Being a Student to Being a Lawyer Present Opportunities to Benefit the Students and the Law School, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 139 (2021)
• Patrick Bryan (Systems Planning & Analysis) & Donald J. Polden (Santa Clara), Learning Lawyer Leadership from the Military Profession, 72 Baylor Law Rev. 170 (2021)
• Martin H. Brinkley (North Carolina), Teaching Leadership in American Law Schools: Why the Pushback?, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 194 (2021)
• Lee Fisher (Cleveland-Marshall), Change at the Speed of Leadership, 73 Baylor Law Rev. 211 (2021)

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Tax Panels Today At SEALS

Tax panels today at the 2021 SEALS Annual Conference on Amelia Island, Florida (program):

New Scholars Workshop: Corporate Law, Financial Markets, and Taxation I
This workshop gives New Scholars the opportunity to present a work-in-progress in a welcoming and supportive environment and to receive feedback on their presentation from more senior scholars in their fields. New Scholars are also assigned a mentor. The program is open to junior faculty at member schools. New Scholars are nominated to participate in the New Scholars Workshop by the deans of their respective law schools.

• Mark Drumbl (Washington & Lee) (moderator)
• Nicole Iannarone (Drexel), Faux Transparency
  Mentor: Constance Wagner (St. Louis)
• Carla Reyes (SMU), Limited Liability DAOs for Regular People
  Mentor: James Gibson (Richmond)

Call for Papers Luncheon
This luncheon is being held to honor the winners of SEALS' annual Call for Papers competition. Admission ticket required.

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Journal Of Legal Education Symposium: Gender Inequity Throughout The Legal Academy

Symposium, Gender Inequity Throughout the Legal Academy, 69 J. Legal Educ. 3-122 (2019):

• Kristen K. Tiscione (Georgetown) & Melissa H. Weresh (Drake; Google Scholar), Building Bridges Across Curricular and Status Lines: Gender Inequity Throughout the Legal Academy, 69 J. Legal Educ. 3 (2019)
• Sahar Aziz (Rutgers; Google Scholar), Identity Politics is Failing Women in Legal Academia, 69 J. Legal Educ. 14 (2019)
• Mary Nicol Bowman (Arizona State), Legal Writing as Office Housework?, 69 J. Legal Educ. 22 (2019)
• Leslie Patrice Culver (Utah; Google Scholar), No Matter How Loud I Shout: Legal Writing as Gender Sidelining, 69 J. Legal Educ. 31 (2019)
• Meera E. Deo (Thomas Jefferson), The Paradox of Faculty-Student Interactions, 69 J. Legal Educ. 36 (2019)
• Darby Dickerson (Dean, Southwestern), Finding the Goldilocks Zone: Negotiating Your First Employment Offer in Legal Academia, 69 J. Legal Educ. 48 (2019)
• Susan Hanley Duncan (Mississippi; Google Scholar), Reducing Gender Inequity in the Academy and the Legal Profession, 69 J. Legal Educ. 95 (2019)
• Deborah Jones Merritt (Ohio State; Google Scholar) & Kyle McEntee (Law School Transparency), Gender Equity in Law School Enrollment: An Elusive Goal, 69 J. Legal Educ. 102 (2019)

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George Mason-Scalia And Cardozo Host Free Virtual Conference For Aspiring And New Law School Deans

George Mason-Scalia and Cardozo law schools are co-sponsoring a free virtual conference for aspiring and new law deans on June 3-4: the Deans Leadership Academy:

Taking charge of a law school requires specific skills and conquering a series of natural milestones in order to “get it right.” The early months are critical to establishing the tone and substance of your Deanship. The interview process for new deans rarely provides you with real insight about how to lead and what’s expected. The critical to-do list and the timetables for accomplishing them are not necessarily obvious. And retaining consultants for expert guidance may not be economically feasible.

This program offers critical lessons that current deans say they wish they had learned before starting. It is designed to take away some of the mystery of the do-it-yourself approach, while highlighting some of the dangers that come with the territory. Sessions will be led by leading experts in their respective fields, from both in and outside academia.

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Yale Hosts Virtual Symposium Today On Citation And The Law

Yale hosts a virtual symposium today and tomorrow on Citation and the Law (program):

This FREE symposium will highlight the scholarship of law librarians and faculty interested in issues ranging from the US News and World Reports rankings for scholarly productivity, to link rot, to empirical research in the use of citations, and more.  Keynote speaker Fred Shapiro will set the stage with his paper “The Most-Cited Legal Scholars Revisited” to be published in the University of Chicago Law Review.  All the papers will be published in a book by the Hein Company.

To quote Legal Reference Services Quarterly editor Mike Chiorazzi, “If it takes a village to raise a child, it takes a profession to support a symposium like this.  The Yale Law Library, the ALL-SIS Committee on Research and Scholarship, the Boulder Conference workshopping team, and LRSQ all pulled together to make this  symposium happen.  What has emerged is an impressive collection of first-rate scholarship that advances our understanding of law librarianship and legal information management.”

Panel #1

• Caroline E. Osborne (West Virginia) & Stephanie Miller (West Virginia), The Scholarly Matrix Impact: An Empirical Study of How Multiple Metrics Create an Informed Story of A Scholar’s Work
• Margaret Kiel-Morse (Indiana; Google Scholar), Exploring Citation Count Methods of Measuring Faculty Scholarly Impact
• John R. Beatty (Buffalo; Google Scholar), Citation Databases for Legal Scholarship: Ranking the Top 28 Law Faculties

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Villanova Symposium: Gender Equality In Law Schools

Norman J. Shachoy Symposium, Gender Equality in Law Schools, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 933-1206 (2021):

• Catherine J. Lanctot (Villanova), Women Law Professors: The First Century (1896-1996), 65 Vill. L. Rev. 933 (2021)
• Debra Austin (Denver), Leadership Lapse: Laundering Systemic Bias Through Student Evaluations, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 995 (2021)
• Jamie J. Baker (Texas Tech), The Intersectionality of Law Librarianship & Gender, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 1011 (2021)
• Mary Beth Beazley (UNLV), Shouting into the Wind: How the ABA Standards Promote Inequality in Legal Education, and What Law Students and Faculty Should Do About It, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 1037 (2021)
• Deborah L. Borman (Assistant Attorney General, Office of the Illinois Attorney General), "You Should Smile More," Academic Catcalling, and Women-on-Women Crimes, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 1065 (2021)
• Susan Hanley Duncan (Dean, Mississippi; Google Scholar), Karen Lott (J.D. 2020, Mississippi), and Catherine Pettis (J.D. 2020, Mississippi), Law School Dean Wanted: A Woman For All Reasons, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 1083 (2021)
• Stevie Leahy (Northeastern), Fostering Equity and Inclusion Across the Gender Spectrum in the Law School Classroom, 65 Vill. L. Rev. 1105 (2021)

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Call For Proposals: Legal Writing Institute Symposium On Artificial Intelligence And The Legal Profession

The Legal Writing Institute has issued a Call for Proposals:

The Legal Writing Institute and The Journal of the Legal Writing Institute invite proposals for their virtual symposium on Artificial Intelligence and the Legal Profession, scheduled for Friday, September 24, and Saturday, September 25, 2021, and hosted by Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law.

Symposium Topic
The symposium will bring together legal scholars, practicing lawyers, technology experts, and others to discuss how rapidly developing technologies are affecting legal research and writing processes, the practice of law generally, the ethics of practice, legal education, and access to justice. We anticipate a combination of single speaker presentations and panel presentations.

Proposals
We invite proposals for a variety of presentations, including but not limited to

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Symposium: Catholic Legal Education In The United States

Symposium, A Light Unseen: A History of Catholic Legal Education in the United States, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 1-124 (2019):

• Anthony Nania (Editor in Chief) & Matt Dean (Managing Editor), Introduction: A Light Unseen: A History of Catholic Legal Education in the United States, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 1 (2019)
• Kathleen M. Boozang (Dean, Seton Hall; Google Scholar), A Light Unseen?, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 5 (2019)
• Angela C. Carmella (Seton Hall), Reflections on Breen & Strang's A Light Unseen: A History of Catholic Legal Education in the United States, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 15 (2019)
• Teresa Stanton Collett (St. Thomas (MN)), Saints, Sinners, and Scoundrels: Catholic Law Faculty and A Light Unseen: A History of Catholic Legal Education in the United States, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 29 (2019)
• Richard W. Garnett (Notre Dame; Google Scholar), Persons and the Point of the Law, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 65 (2019)
• Jeffrey A. Pojanowski (Notre Dame), Teaching Jurisprudence in a Catholic Law School, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 75 (2019)
• Vincent Rougeau (Dean, Boston College; Incoming President, Holy Cross), Reflections on A Light Unseen, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 89 (2019)
• William Michael Treanor (Dean, Georgetown), Reflections on a More "Catholic" Catholic Legal Education, 58 J. Cath. Leg. Stud. 99 (2019)

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Santa Clara Hosts Virtual Conference Today On Defunding Casebooks

Santa Clara hosts a virtual conference on Defunding Casebooks today from 12:00 - 1:30 PM PT:

The conference will kick off efforts to broaden the movement to replace the for-profit casebook model with one that engenders collaboration amongst law professors, broadens the scope of those whose stories and issues are included in the legal curriculum, and saves students significant financial resources. To RSVP to the conference, CLICK HERE. For more background on Santa Clara Law’s development of an open-source criminal law casebook, CLICK HERE.

This will be a working meeting, with brief plenary sessions leading into subject-specific breakout sessions/working groups.

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Syracuse Symposium: Online Learning And The Future of Legal Education

Symposium, Online Learning And The Future of Legal Education, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 1- 203 (2020):

• Nina Kohn (Syracuse), Online Learning and The Future of Legal Education: Symposium Introduction, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 1 (2020)
• Eric S. Janus (Former Dean, Mitchell Hamline), “The Worst Idea Ever!”- Lessons from One Law School’s Pioneering Embrace of Online Learning Methods, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 13 (2020)
• James McGrath (Dean, WMU-Thomas Cooley) & Andrew Morriss (Dean, Texas A&M School of Innovation), Online Legal Education & Access to Legal Education & the Legal System, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 49 (2020)
• Margaret Ryznar (Indiana-Indianapolis) & Yvonne M. Dutton (Indiana-Indianapolis), Lighting a Fire: The Power of Intrinsic Motivation in Online Teaching, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 73 (2020)
• Michael Hunter Schwartz (McGeorge), Towards a Modality-Less Model for Excellence in Law School Teaching, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 115 (2020)
• Victoria Sutton (Texas Tech), Asynchronous E-Learning in Legal Education: A Comparative Study with the Traditional Classroom, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 143 (2020)
• Noelle Wall Sweany (Texas A&M), From Theory to Practice: Evidence-Based Strategies for Designing and Developing Engaging Online Courses, 70 Syracuse L. Rev. 169 (2020)

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Utah Hosts Junior Scholar’s Conference Today On How To Improve The Impact Of Your Legal Scholarship

Utah hosts the Rocky Mountain Junior Scholar’s Conference virtually today on How to Improve the Impact of Your Legal Scholarship (2:00 PM ET):

Please join us on Zoom as our expert panelists talk about how to improve the impact of your legal scholarship. Learn from our panelists about the following important topics:

• How to become one of the most cited in your field
• How to improve SSRN downloads
• How to improve law review placements
• Whether and when to write books or articles
• How to place quotes and op-eds in national publications

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Call For Papers: Michigan Junior Scholars’ Conference

Michigan Law School has issued a Call for Papers for its 7th Annual Junior Scholars' Conference:

The University of Michigan Law School is pleased to invite junior scholars to attend the 7th Annual Junior Scholars Conference which will take place virtually on April 16-17, 2021.

The conference provides junior scholars with a platform to present and discuss their work with peers and receive feedback from prominent members of the Michigan Law faculty. The Conference aims to promote fruitful collaboration between participants and to encourage their integration into a community of legal scholars. The Junior Scholars Conference is intended for academics in both law and related disciplines. Applications from graduate students, SJD/PhD candidates, postdoctoral researchers, lecturers, teaching fellows, and assistant professors (pre-tenure) who have not held an academic position for more than four years, are welcomed.

Cooperation with Michigan Law Journals: We are excited that this year the Conference will collaborate with several Michigan Law journals, all of which are among the highest ranked in their respective fields. The Michigan Law Review, Michigan Journal of International Law, Michigan Journal of Law Reform, Michigan Journal of Gender and Law, Michigan Journal of Race and Law, Michigan Journal of Environmental and Administrative Law, and the Michigan Business & Entrepreneurial Law Review will give serious consideration to publish papers selected for the Conference that are within each journal’s research agenda and meet its requirements. Additional details on the publication process will be provided after selection for participation in the Conference itself has been completed. In any event, there will be no obligation to accept any offer of publication that you may receive.

Submission: To apply to the conference, please submit an abstract of no more than 500 words reflecting the unpublished work that you wish to present and a copy of your CV through the online submission form by January 4, 2021.

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Black Lawyers Matter: Strategies To Enhance Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion

I am honored to have the opportunity to update my remarks on A Dean's Perspective on Diversity, Socioeconomics, The LSAT, And The U.S. News Law School Rankings as part of a panel at today's virtual conference on Black Lawyers Matter: Strategies To Enhance Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion (more here):

Moderator: 
Leonard M. Baynes (Dean, Houston)

Panelists:
Robert B. Ahdieh (Dean, Texas A&M)
Paul L. Caron (Dean, Pepperdine)
Robert Morse (Chief Data Strategist, U.S. News & World Report)
Victor Quintanilla (Indiana)
Kellye Testy (President & CEO, Law School Admission Council)

Karen Sloan (Law.com), Black Lawyers Matter: The Symposium:

The numbers tell the story of a legal profession divided by race. Less than 8% of first-year law students in 2019 were Black.

In California, 53% of Black bar examinees passed between 2009 and 2018. That figure was 80% for white examinees.

The percentage of 2019 Black law graduates who found jobs requiring a law degree within 10 months was 62%, compared to 80% for white law graduates. And in 2020, white shoe law firm Cravath, Swaine & Moore had no Black partners.

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The Intersection Of Race And Taxes

The Philadelphia Bar Association Tax Section hosted a webcast on Friday on The Intersection of Race and Taxes:

Amid a renewed focus on racial justice in our society, this CLE program will address the scholarship and client-facing work on issues related to our tax system and its impact on racial inequality. The panelists share their insights and perspectives on how different aspects of international, federal, state and local tax structures effect racial inequities. Join your colleagues in the Tax Section for this fascinating examination of the intersection of racial diversity and federal, state and local tax policy.

• Alice Abreu ( Temple)
• Steven Dean (NYU)

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Emory Law Journal Call For Submissions: Systemic Racism In The Law & Anti-Racist Solutions

Emory Law Journal: Call for Submissions:

Dear Scholars:
We write to you in troubling times, yet we are hopeful for a brighter future ahead. First, we hope that you are taking care of yourselves and your loved ones. Second, we want to announce that the Emory Law Journal is calling for essay submissions for our forthcoming Special Issue: Systemic Racism in the Law & Anti-Racist Solutions. The Issue will be published in May 2021, with an accompanying remote symposium in March 2021.

In the wake of numerous police shootings of unarmed Black men and women, the murder of protesters, and the lack of justice for many of the perpetrators, a statement from ELJ will no longer suffice; to be an anti-racist Journal, we must act. Therefore, this spring, we will use our platform to elevate scholarship that seeks to facilitate racial justice and dismantle white supremacy by publishing a Special Issue and holding a remote symposium.

ELJ is looking for essays from 7,500 to 15,000 words that expose systemic racism in the law or propose anti-racist solutions to make the law more just. Emory’s Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Law Dorothy A. Brown will be writing the introduction to the Special Issue. We will accept abstracts as submissions, and if your essay is selected, you are not required to participate in the Symposium, but you will have a standing invitation to do so. We will accept essay submissions on a rolling basis. The deadlines for submission and publication are below:

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Miami And AALS Host Free Virtual Symposium Today On Power, Privilege, and Transformation: Lessons From The Pandemic For Online Legal Education

The University of Miami School of Law, in partnership with the AALS Journal of Legal Education, hosts a free virtual symposium today (noon - 6:00 pm ET) on Power, Privilege, and Transformation: Lessons from the Pandemic for Online Legal Education (registration):

Keynote Address:  Cass R. Sunstein (Harvard)

Panel #1: Power, Race, Gender, Class, Disability and Family Status

• Meera E. Deo (Thomas Jefferson)
• Doron Dorfman (Syracuse)
• Sheila R. Foster (Georgetown)
• Mary Anne Franks (Miami)
• Osamudia James (Miami)
• Margaret Y. K. Woo (Northeastern; Co-editor, Journal of Legal Education)

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ABA Tax Section Hosts Free Webinar Today On Careers In Tax Law

The ABA Tax Section hosts a free virtual program on Careers in Tax Law today at 12:00 - 1:15 pm ET (9:00 - 10:15 am PT):

The program is intended for summer associates, law clerks, law students, and young lawyers who may be considering a career in tax law. Panelists will discuss their own career paths, provide advice, and give their perspective on the practice of federal tax law.

• Michael J. Desmond (Chief Counsel, IRS)
• Diana L. Erbsen (Partner, DLA Piper)
• Maurice B. Foley (Chief Judge, U.S. Tax Court)

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Pepperdine Caruso Law Hosts Webinar Today On Federal Courts In The Age Of COVID-19

Pepperdine Caruso Law hosts a webinar today on Federal Courts In The Age Of COVID-19 with our three alumni U.S. District Court judges (Hon. Andre Birotte ('91), Central District of California; Hon. Charles Eskridge ('91), Southern District of Texas; and Hon. Jennifer Dorsey ('97), District of Nevada) at 3:00 p.m. ET/noon PT (free registration here).

Update:  Pepperdine Caruso Law Federal Judge Alumni Discuss Courts in the Age of COVID:

Dean Caron began the conversation with a tribute to the Honorable Beverly Reid O'Connell (JD '90), formerly of the U.S. District Court of the Central District of California. Judge O'Connell was Pepperdine Caruso Law's first alumna to serve as a federal judge. Prior to her death in October of 2017, Judge O'Connell was a friend and mentor to the judges on the panel and a stalwart supporter of Pepperdine Caruso Law. Judge O'Connell had accepted a position as co-chair of the law school's new Board of Advisors, but unexpectedly passed away before she could preside over the board's first meeting. Pepperdine Caruso Law is grateful for all she did for the students and alumni of the law school.

The three judges on the panel began the discussion by describing their experiences on the federal bench during the COVID era. Judge Dorsey spoke of the Nevada federal courts, which began to close in mid-March. Criminal and civil proceedings continued via video and teleconferencing, which was authorized by the CARES Act. In June, some matters were resumed in the courthouse, with social distancing and a court-wide mask mandate. Most proceedings, however, are still taking place remotely.

Judge Birotte remarked that the Los Angeles courts, which were completely closed to the public beginning on March 13, are now opening in phases. Phase I of the reopening began three weeks ago with some staff returning to the courts. There have been no in-person hearings and all criminal cases have been handled by video conferencing.

Judge Eskridge commented that the Houston courts closed in late March, which was less than four months after he was confirmed to the bench. A soft reopening of the Houston courts occurred in June for filings only. It was initially decided that no trials would begin that require empaneled juries until August, but that timeline has been rescheduled to after Labor Day.

Judge Eskridge noted, with Judges Dorsey and Birotte agreeing, that lawyers are to be commended during this time for their spirited cooperation and empathetic collaboration. The judges acknowledged that the current unprecedented situation has brought out the best in the legal profession.

Judges Dorsey, Birotte, and Eskridge then turned to answering questions that included their advice to incoming law clerks, how to be effective advocates, the handling of sensitive information, and changes in cases settling, in-person depositions, and the number of COVID-related lawsuits. The three judges do not foresee any changes in externship and law clerk hiring, and Judge Dorsey offered helpful tips for students regarding job candidate interviews over zoom. They also stated that future law clerks should plan to be nimble and comfortable with circumstances changing constantly. The judges noted that the biggest issue they see moving forward will be empaneling a jury.

The three judges agreed that the biggest opportunity right now for the judiciary is the abandonment of the "That's how we've always done it" philosophy. Judge Dorsey conveyed that the embrace of technology has advantages such as allowing criminal defense attorneys to better communicate with the people they represent. Judge Birotte indicated that video and telephonic hearings are not only an efficient way to deal with matters, but are also a savings for the client and government. Judge Eskridge related that zoom and video conferencing have become the new normal, which is a technological advancement that his friend and classmate Judge Beverly Reid O'Connell advocated 10 years ago and would be pleased to see in practice today.

Pepperdine Caruso Law thanks our distinguished alumni judges for their invaluable insight.

A full recording of the event will be available soon on the Pepperdine Caruso Law channel here.

AALS Hosts Virtual Panel Today On Inclusion And Addressing Racism In The Federal Income Tax Course

The AALS Tax Section hosts a Zoom panel today on Inclusion and Addressing Racism in the Federal Income Tax Course at 1:00 pm ET:

The AALS Tax Section will convene a panel discussion on classroom inclusion and how to identify and address policies with racist implications in the Federal Income Tax Law course. It may also discuss issues relating to who takes tax courses in law school. Many colleagues have been spurred by Jeremy Bearer-Friend’s post to the TaxProf email list about inclusive course design, and this panel seeks to connect course design choices to the specific context of tax classes.

The session will have two parts. The first (about forty minutes) will provide an overview that touches on casebook selection and syllabus goals. Each panelist will speak briefly about what they have done in their classrooms, with a focus on specific examples. The second part (about thirty minutes) will feature a moderator-panelist exchange during which the moderator will pose questions that have been submitted to panelists in advance of the panel.

Speakers:

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Today's Tuesday Afternoon AALS Faculty Focus Webinar: Excellence In Online Instruction

AALS Faculty Focus:

COVID-19 has affected the normal rhythms of the legal academy in ways that may be particularly disruptive for early-career faculty.

AALS invites tenure-track, clinical, and legal writing faculty to join us on Tuesday afternoons for “Faculty Focus,” a series of weekly webinars organized around issues these individuals may be facing as well as challenges affecting higher education and the profession in general.

Each 60-minute webinar will feature expert advice from law school leaders followed by shared experiences from early career law faculty. The sessions will be structured to encourage conversation and connection, with opportunities for participants to crowdsource solutions and discuss common issues across schools and teaching areas.

Up Next: How to spend your summer
The first series of topics will be organized around how newer faculty members might best allocate their time during the summer of 2020. The moment of pause and recalibration faculty usually experience after grades have been submitted—when the spring semester has been closed but planning for the fall has not yet begun—has become cluttered and confusing due to the exponential increase in demands on time and attention. Join our speakers to explore issues concerning work-life balance and the demands of scholarship, meeting the needs of all students online, and delivering high-quality online instruction using best practices from higher education.

Week 3 (today at 4:00 pm ET/1:00 pm PT):  Excellence in Online Instruction (register here):

Speakers:

• Yvonne Dutton (Indiana-McKinney)
• Nina Kohn (Syracuse)
• John Manning (Dean, Harvard)
• Alison Mikkor (UC-Irvine)
• Eloise Pasachoff (Georgetown)
• Michael Pollack (Cardozo)

Hosts:

• Darby Dickerson (AALS President & Dean, UIC John Marshall)
• Vince Rougeau (AALS President-elect & Dean, Boston College)

Moderator:

• Jeff Allum (AALS Director of Research)

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