The Confrontation Clause
Jonathan Tietz, ’19, and Michael Huston, ’11, reconnected with their former professor Richard Friedman on the steps of the Supreme Court following oral arguments in Smith v. Arizona in January. Tietz and Huston, an associate and a partner at Perkins Coie LLP in Washington, DC, respectively, were there in their capacity as accompanying counsel for Jason Smith, the petitioner in the case. Friedman, the Alene and Allan F. Smith Professor of Law, was there because the case concerns the Constitution’s Confrontation Clause, and, according to Friedman, “That’s my thing.” (Read more about the Law School’s recent symposium on the Confrontation Clause.)
Gaming Complex Decisions
Professor Nicholson Price used a board game in his Health Law class to jump-start a discussion about the nuances—legal and otherwise—of end-of-life care. Players in the game worked as nursing staff and were tasked with navigating medical emergencies and making decisions related to care for a terminally ill patient.
The system makes it easy to work in Big Law; the path is well worn and clear, and the financial incentives are great. You probably know someone who thinks you’re crazy to not take that path.”
—Molly Kovel, ’06, a senior staff attorney at the ACLU’s Criminal Law Reform Project, who gave the kickoff address for the Law School’s Public Interest Week in February. Sponsored by the Office of Career Planning, the week provided a series of programs designed to support and inspire students pursuing careers in the public and nonprofit sectors.
United Wolverines in DC
Admitted students attended an event with alumni, faculty, and staff—including Sarah Zearfoss, ’92, the senior assistant dean of admissions, and Kyle Logue, the interim dean—at the D.C. United soccer team’s stadium in April. The event was hosted by the team’s co-chairman and CEO Jason Levien, ’97, and Chris Burtley, ’15 (pictured), vice president of strategy and Levien’s chief of staff.
This is going to be precedent, most obviously in Michigan and its home jurisdiction, but prosecutors all over the country will see this as a new and viable form of liability. I think we should not underestimate the precedential power of this case, even as we recognize that the facts were quite extraordinary.”
—Ekow Yankah, the Thomas M. Cooley Professor of Law and associate dean for faculty and research, in a New York Times story about the conviction and sentencing of James and Jennifer Crumbley, the first parents to face trial because their son killed four people and wounded seven others in a school shooting.
Richard W. Pogue Law Leaders Panel
David Foltyn, ’80, Aaron Lewis, ’05, and Barbara Mendelson, ’81, returned to the Quad this spring for the annual Richard W. Pogue Law Leaders Panel. Foltyn is the chairman of the board and chief executive officer at Honigman LLP in Detroit, Lewis (pictured) is a partner at Covington & Burling LLP in Los Angeles, and Mendelson is a partner at Morrison Foerster in New York. Pogue, ’55, senior adviser at Jones Day, offered opening remarks.
A Round of Applause
Faculty members joined students in class for the Michigan Law tradition of “clapping out” professors Bob Hirshon and Dave Moran, who are both retiring from the Law School. Hirshon, ’73, the Frank G. Millard Professor from Practice, spent 30 years in private practice and served as president of the American Bar Association before joining the faculty 15 years ago. Moran, ’91, a clinical professor of law, co-founded the Michigan Innocence Clinic in 2009, which has freed 41 people who collectively spent approximately 660 years in prison for crimes they did not commit.
It is really difficult to overstate the stakes of this case. There is a possibility that the Supreme Court is going to suggest that there are some matters that fall within the scope of the president’s official duties that cannot be subject to criminal laws at all."
—Professor Leah Litman, ’10, on NPR’s 1A regarding the oral arguments in Trump v. United States.
Hail to the Victors!
Zach Antin, ’24, had a busy fall term during his 3L year. On top of a full course load, Antin closely followed U-M football’s undefeated season—literally, by attending every game in person.
A Curio from the Past
On June 18, 1923, 109 Michigan Law students were joined by their families and friends in Ann Arbor to celebrate the culmination of what was then known as Commencement Week. The 1923 class was predominantly American men, but it also included international students from Shanghai and Hong Kong as well as three women.
The four-day event kicked off on a Friday with an alumni reunion and culminated with a commencement ceremony the following Monday. In the interim, attendees enjoyed a buffet lunch, senate reception, senior promenade across campus, and an evening of “student entertainment” at Hill Auditorium (the specifics of which have been lost to history).
We know these details because Law Quadrangle recently received an unexpected package from Albuquerque, New Mexico. It contained a leather-bound invitation booklet to the 1923 Commencement Week, which included a faculty and student list as well as a detailed agenda for the event.
According to the sender, who works as a set dresser in the TV industry, the well-preserved invitation had been used on the set of the show Longmire. She wrote, “I thought it was a beautiful piece of history that belongs with you!” Naturally, we agree.
