Summer 2024

Features

All Articles in This Issue

A portrait of Faizah Malik, ’11. A portrait of Faizah Malik, ’11.

In Practice

Faizah Malik, ’11: Fight for Housing Justice

 Faizah Malik, ’11, managing attorney of housing justice at Public Counsel in Los Angeles, is working to address the housing and homelessness crisis in Los Angeles.

Professor Bridgette Carr teaching students in a classroom. Professor Bridgette Carr teaching students in a classroom.

@UMICHLAW

Human Trafficking Clinic Finds Multidisciplinary Solutions

The Law School’s Human Trafficking Clinic had been representing victims of labor and sex trafficking for more than a decade when its director, Bridgette Carr, ’02, began to envision a broader mandate for the clinic—one that would help combat trafficking before people become clients.

Davis and McNeil traveled to Pasadena to watch the Wolverines beat Alabama in the Rose Bowl in January. Davis and McNeil traveled to Pasadena to watch the Wolverines beat Alabama in the Rose Bowl in January.

Class Note Summer 2024

Brian Davis, ’14, and Katy McNeil, ’14: Persevering, Together

Anyone who met Brian Davis and Katy McNeil in 2021 would have assumed they led a charmed life. Both had graduated from Michigan Law in 2014 and were climbing their respective career ladders. But behind the scenes, Davis was beginning to experience unsettling health problems.

A portrait of Michelle Gluck, ’83. A portrait of Michelle Gluck, ’83.

Impact Summer 2024

Michelle Gluck, ’83: Opening Doors for Future Leaders

For Michelle Gluck, ’83, choosing which academic path she’d follow was better left in the hands of fate. Torn between medicine and law, she decided to let test results determine her next steps. 

A portrait of Ernest Newborn, ’83. A portrait of Ernest Newborn, ’83.

Impact Summer 2024

Ernest Newborn, ’83: Inspired by the Past, Looking to the Future

Ernest Newborn, ’83, has spent his career building on the legacy of his grandfather, who, against the odds as a Black man, rose from mail clerk to chief legal officer at a steel company in the mid-1900s.

A portrait of Nat Pernick, ’86. A portrait of Nat Pernick, ’86.

Impact Summer 2024

Nat Pernick, ’86: Forging a Path in Computers and Medicine

From a young age, Pernick has had a propensity for mathematics and science, which would pave the way for his future in computers and medicine. He recently set up a scholarship to support students interested in the intersection of law and medicine.

Bill, ’71, and Cindy Rainey at a Michigan football game. Bill, ’71, and Cindy Rainey at a Michigan football game.

Impact Summer 2024

Bill, ’71, and Cindy Rainey: Opening Doors for the Next Generation

Bill Rainey dreamed of being a lawyer as early as junior high, which led him to become the first person in his family to graduate from college and the first person in his high school to attend an Ivy League institution. 

A portrait of Mattie Peterson Compton, ’75. A portrait of Mattie Peterson Compton, ’75.

Impact Summer 2024

Mattie Peterson Compton, ’75: Access to Education, a Value Shared Among Generations

Mattie Peterson Compton, ’75, grew up in a family that strongly believed in the value of education, and she never questioned whether she would attend college—it was expected of her. 

A view of windows in a Michigan Law classroom. A view of windows in a Michigan Law classroom.

Impact Summer 2024

Spring 2024 Recent Gifts

Read about philanthropy at Michigan Law. 

Side-by-side images of the Lawyers Club past and present. Side-by-side images of the Lawyers Club past and present.

Cover Story Summer 2024

100 Years of the Lawyers Club

For generations of students, the Law Quad has been more than a collection of beautiful buildings—it has been home, a place of community that has enriched their Law School experience.

A student walks in front of the Lawyers Club in the warm autumn light. A student walks in front of the Lawyers Club in the warm autumn light.

Features Summer 2024

Stories from the Lawyers Club

The Lawyers Club offered the setting for cherished memories for a century and counting. Here, alumni share a few of those experiences.

A portrait of Eli Savit (left) and J.J. Prescott (right). A portrait of Eli Savit (left) and J.J. Prescott (right).

Features

Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit, ’10, and Professor J.J. Prescott Team Up on Transparency Project to Study Racial Disparities in Legal System

Even before he was elected Washtenaw County prosecutor in 2020, Eli Savit vowed to examine racial disparities in the county’s legal system. Led by Savit and Professor J.J. Prescott, the Prosecutor Transparency Project has released its analysis—and it hopes to serve as a model for similar efforts elsewhere.

Clinic students (in the center, from left to right) Lindsey Corbett, Emily Unger, and Jessica Carter met with Nyiransenguwera Mayimuna (far left), a BioMassters client, and Benjamine Barihuta (far right), a member of the BioMassters team, on a site visit. Clinic students (in the center, from left to right) Lindsey Corbett, Emily Unger, and Jessica Carter met with Nyiransenguwera Mayimuna (far left), a BioMassters client, and Benjamine Barihuta (far right), a member of the BioMassters team, on a site visit.

Features Summer 2024

Learning International Transaction Law on the Ground in Rwanda

During spring break in February, three Michigan Law students traveled to Kigali, Rwanda to meet with the management of BioMassters Limited, a client with whom they had been working all year in the International Transactions Clinic.

A portrait of Kyle Logue. A portrait of Kyle Logue.

Features Summer 2024

Interim Dean Kyle Logue Discusses His Vision for the New Role, Relations with Alumni, and What He Loves about the School

Long-serving faculty member Kyle Logue has assumed the position of interim dean at the Law School while the University seeks a permanent replacement. In this wide-ranging interview, Logue discusses his new role, the Law School’s relations with its alumni base, his feelings about the school, and more.

In 2017, the Law School hosted US Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in conversation with Susanne Baer, ’93, who at the time was a justice on the German Supreme Court. Then Dean Mark West is pictured (center) with Sotomayor (left) and Baer (right). In 2017, the Law School hosted US Supreme Court Associate Justice Sonia Sotomayor, in conversation with Susanne Baer, ’93, who at the time was a justice on the German Supreme Court. Then Dean Mark West is pictured (center) with Sotomayor (left) and Baer (right).

Features Summer 2024

New Fund Honors Former Dean Mark West and Supports Future Deans

A group of more than 30 alumni and friends—many of whom are members of the Law School’s Development and Alumni Relations Committee or the Dean's Advisory Council—recently established a $500,000 discretionary fund at Michigan Law to honor Mark West’s tenure as dean. 

A portrait of Kya Henley, ’16, and Calyssa Zellars, ’17. A portrait of Kya Henley, ’16, and Calyssa Zellars, ’17.

Class Note Summer 2024

Kya Henley, ’16, and Calyssa Zellars, ’17: From BLSA to Business Partners

Henley and Zellars first met as members of the Black Law Students Association at Michigan Law, and the alumnae recently opened a new boutique law firm with offices in Detroit and Washington, DC.

 A portrait of Alan Alexander, ’11.  A portrait of Alan Alexander, ’11.

In Practice Summer 2024

Alan Alexander, ’11: Building a Lower-Carbon Energy Sector

Alan Alexander’s work on energy transition projects—including those focused on producing more-sustainable fuel for airplanes—involves collaborating with investors and clients in the energy sector to upgrade existing plants and invest in the research and development of renewable fuels and other low-carbon energy sources.

A portrait of Aaron Perzanowski(left) and Salomé Viljoen(right) A portrait of Aaron Perzanowski(left) and Salomé Viljoen(right)

@UMICHLAW

Law and Technology Faculty Share What’s on Their Minds

Law Quadrangle asked two faculty members with expertise in law and technology about what’s been on their minds lately.