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Briefs
Students and Alumni Unite to Guarantee Summer Funding for All 1Ls
Gifts from the Himan Brown Charitable Trust and from Lisa and Chris Jeffries, ’74—with a startup gift from the Law School Student Senate and ongoing fundraising through Student Funded Fellowships—will support 1Ls taking unpaid or low-paying summer internships in the public, nonprofit, and private sectors, making it the most inclusive program at any top law school.
Impact
Dee and Dickson Brown, ’71 Endow Scholarship Fund
“The more we can do to make Michigan somebody’s first choice—and make it easier to be their first choice—the better.”
Briefs
Justice Ginsburg Visits Campus
Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court Ruth Bader Ginsburg participated in an engaging and spirited 90-minute conversation at U-M’s Hill Auditorium on February 6, during which she spoke about milestones in her own life, as well as key moments in the legal history of the past several decades.
Impact
Morgan L. Fitch, Jr., ’48: A Legacy of Generosity
Morgan Fitch Jr., ’48, was a loyal donor to the Law School—and he continued his generosity through his estate. The Law School Fund received nearly $150,000 through charitable gift annuities established by Fitch and his wife of 68 years, Helen.
Briefs
Human Trafficking Clinic Helping to Create New Clinic in Brazil
Michigan Law’s Human Trafficking Clinic is working with a university in Brazil to create a similar legal clinic there in which law students will represent people who have been forced into slave labor in South America’s largest country.
Impact
Jim Zirin, ’64: A Gift for the 50th
Jim Zirin, ’64, sees himself as a storyteller. He knows that Michigan Law has been central in his own story. In gratitude, Zirin made a significant contribution to the Law School Fund to commemorate his 50th reunion.
Briefs
2014 Fiske Fellows Gratefully Pursue Their Passions
The Fiske Fellowship was established in 2001 by Robert Fiske, ’55, a senior counsel at Davis Polk & Wardwell and a former U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York. Three-year fellowships are awarded annually to up to four Michigan Law graduates who serve as government lawyers.
Impact
Recent Gifts: Spring 2015
Giving to Michigan Law is an investment in the future of legal education, and private support ensures that the excellence that has distinguished Michigan-trained lawyers continues for generations to come.
Briefs
A Royal Reception
Two Michigan Law professors reflect on a February reception honoring the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta.
Cover Story
East Meets West: China Opens to Western Hospitals
Seth Yu, LLM ’08, is on the front lines of a massive change that is just beginning to occur in the Chinese health care system: the opening of hospitals in China, for Chinese citizens, by Western companies.
Cover Story
The Intersection of Health and Law
Research has shown that one in six people needs legal care to be healthy. One in six. That figure informed our decision to highlight the intersection between health and law in this issue of Law Quadrangle. From the Law School's Pediatric Advocacy Clinic to WebMD, this issue's stories illustrate that the overlap between health and law is vast. And it is a safe guess that the junction will only become more complex and varied over time.
Cover Story
Health and the Law: Trends, Challenges, and the Future
We asked alumni who work in health-related legal fields about what is happening in their specialties, the challenges they face, and what we can expect in the future. They shared their thoughts about trends related to pharmaceuticals, mass torts, reimbursements, big data, and the implications of the Affordable Care Act.
Cover Story
Doctor’s Orders: Call Your Lawyer
Medical-legal partnerships, such as the Pediatric Advocacy Clinic at Michigan Law, address the social conditions that affect the health and well-being of people and communities. Says Clinic Director Debra Chopp: “The idea is that the legal clinic becomes part of the medical team. We’re all working together to improve the health of the child.”
@UMICHLAW Spring 2015
Five Former Clerks Share Thoughts About Justice Ginsburg
The U-M Law School has five full-time faculty members who once clerked for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg—more than any other law school. In honor of Justice Ginsburg’s visit to campus in February, we asked them to tell us about their experience with her.
Cover Story
The JD at the Helm of WebMD
David Schlanger, ’84, used his legal education as the springboard for a career in business. Here, we look at how he rose to the position of CEO of the company behind the most-visited health information website in the world.
@UMICHLAW
International Transactions Clinic Helps Jibu Test Waters of Franchise in Africa
When a Jibu franchise opens in Uganda or Rwanda—and provides a new community with access to clean, affordable drinking water—traces of that success are felt 7,500 miles away in the Law School’s International Transactions Clinic (ITC).
Cover Story
Immigration Law and the Nation’s Physician Shortage
Lawyers are trying to help foreign-national physicians who trained in the United States stay in the country to treat medically underserved patients. The process is reportedly laborious and burdensome to employers and physicians alike. We look at this lesser-known facet of federal immigration law, one that is potentially vital to the nation’s health care needs.
@UMICHLAW
Michigan Law Faculty and International Experts Highlight Conference in Hong Kong
The U-M Law School, the Chinese University of Hong Kong’s (CUHK’s) Centre for Financial Regulation and Economic Development, and the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies (LRCCS) at U-M brought together some of the world’s top experts in the public and private enforcement of corporate and securities law at a December conference in Hong Kong.
Cover Story
Prescription: Career Change
After more than a decade as an ER physician, Mike Casner, ’14, decided it was time for a new challenge. He set his sights on law school, and never looked back. Casner describes returning to school after so many years away as “exciting, exhilarating, terrifying, and amusing.”
@UMICHLAW
Transactional Lab and Clinic Opens Doors into Corporate World
The partner has asked you to draft an ancillary agreement for a multibillion-dollar M&A deal. But there’s one catch: You’ve just started as a summer associate. Where do you begin? The situation may sound hypothetical, but for Mark Viera, ’14, it was last summer’s reality. And though the experience could have been nerve wracking, the Transactional Lab veteran never doubted his ability to handle the task.
Features
Schneider on the Failure of Mandated Disclosure
Mandated disclosure is a Lorelei, luring lawmakers onto the rocks of regulatory failure. Mandated disclosure is alluring because it addresses a real problem, the problem of a world in which non-specialists must make choices requiring specialist knowledge. Its solution is charmingly simple: If people face unfamiliar and complex decisions, give them information until the decision is familiar and comprehensible.
@UMICHLAW
Mercury Fund and Detroit Innovate Offer Students Venture Capital Fundamentals in New ZEAL Lab
The ability to think like a lawyer is what students expect from law school, but what about thinking like a venture capitalist? A new Michigan Law offering provided through a partnership with national and local venture capital firms Mercury Fund and Detroit Innovate is making it possible for students to learn the ins and outs of the venture capital world.
Features Spring 2015
The Memory of Detroit—and Beyond
Alumnus Clarence M. Burton traveled the globe to acquire historical documents. His collection—including some 500,000 books and 250,000 images—spans 400 years of North American history and is regarded as one of the best in the nation. On May 21, the Detroit Public Library will commemorate its 150th anniversary and the 100th anniversary of the Burton Historical Collection.
@UMICHLAW Spring 2015
Prof. Kamisar Awarded Medals for Korean War Service
Last November, Michigan Senator Carl Levin presented four military service medals to Prof. Yale Kamisar in a ceremony at the Law School: the Purple Heart Medal, the Presidential Unit Citation, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Republic of Korea—Korea War Service Medal.
Impact
1L Summer Funding Gets a Boost from Chris Jeffries, ’74
As a long-time real estate developer, Chris Jeffries knows the importance of functional-yet-beautiful facilities in a community, which is why he made a $5 million gift toward the building of South Hall in 2007. But he also knows that buildings are only as good as the people and experiences they house, which is why he recently made a $2.5 million gift in support of the 1L summer funding program.
@UMICHLAW Spring 2015
Theodore J. St. Antoine Collegiate Professorship Established with Support from Seyfarth Shaw
In honor of one of the Law School’s most legendary professors, the U-M Board of Regents has approved the creation of the Theodore J. St. Antoine Collegiate Professorship at Michigan Law. Professor Richard Primus was named the inaugural chairholder.
Impact
New Scholarship Aims to Attract Future Leaders
James P. “Jim” Kennedy, ’59, believes that lawyers who are leaders solve problems and work well with clients. He has documented a $400,000 bequest to create a scholarship that will help promising leaders consider the U-M Law School.
Impact
Elaine (Murphy) Rice, ’94: A 20th Reunion Gift
The first gift Elaine (Murphy) Rice, ’94, ever made to the University of Michigan was in 1991 for $19.91, commemorating her upcoming graduation from the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts (LSA). Now, she and her husband, David Rice, Med ’94, are members of the University’s Presidential Society, reflecting lifetime giving of more than $75,000.
Impact
New Scholarship Fund Focuses on Dual Degree Opportunities
Through the new Shaughnessy Family Scholarship Fund at Michigan Law, Jim Shaughnessy, JD/MPP ’79, wants to help Michigan Law students—particularly those in dual degree programs, who incur an extra year of educational expenses while foregoing a year’s income.
Impact
With Planned Gift, John Reed Scholarship Fund Exceeds $1 Million Goal
When Dudley Godfrey, ’52 and fellow members of the Class of 1952 decided to establish the John Reed Scholarship Fund, they hoped it would grow to $1 million. Thanks in part the generosity of Dudley and his wife, Constance, the value of the fund now exceeds $1.2 million.
Impact
Father and Son Team Up to Establish Davenport Family Scholarship Fund
For Bill Davenport, ’53, and his son Kirk Davenport, ’84, their shared love of and appreciation for the U-M Law School has led to a desire to give back. Together, Bill and Kirk have established the Davenport Family Scholarship Fund for current and future students at Michigan Law.
@UMICHLAW Spring 2015
A Yearbook Etched in Wood
Before Facebook, LinkedIn, and the Michiganensian yearbook, soon-to-be Michigan graduates carved their signatures on canes to forever remember each other. Senior canes were a campus tradition from the mid-1800s to World War II. A display at the Law Library now showcases some Michigan Law students’ canes, including one from 1877 that bears the signature of Clarence Darrow.