houck2040/law huggingface dataset:
The Texas A&M University School of Law Black Law Students Association's (BLSA) mock trial team advanced to the national finals. Third-year students Enrica Martey, Sara Vargas, Regina Palmer-Coleman and Shawn Pullum placed second at the southwest region's Constance Baker Motley Mock Trial Competition (CBMMTC) held in New Orleans ​in early January. The team was coached by Doug Greene.
The team will compete in the national finals in Little Rock in March.
Texas A&M School of Law's BLSA mock trial team members Sara Vargas, Regina Palmer-Coleman, Enrica Martey and Shawn Pullum advance to the national finals
According to Jennifer Ellis, director of advocacy programs, the students sacrificed a large part of their holiday break to practice and prepare.
"It is exciting for their hard work to pay off. Enrica Martey is a veteran competitor who made it to the national finals last year, but the other three team members were competing for the first time," said Ellis.
The CBMMTC competition simulates a civil trial proceeding where each team presents opening statements, direct and cross examination of witnesses, and closing arguments. Advocates are evaluated on their overall courtroom presence, command of the Federal Rules of Evidence and Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, teamwork, and accuracy of objections. Each trial lasts approximately two and one-half hours.
3L Sara Vargas, recipient of the Traci A. Gibson Legacy Scholarship
At the competition, third-year student Sara Vargas, president of the Texas A&M School of Law Black Law Students Association, was awarded the Traci A. Gibson Legacy Scholarship, an annual scholarship given to a member of the Southwest region of the National Black Law Students Association for their commitment and service to the organization.
Learn more about BLSA:

BLSA fosters and develops professional competence and leadership, while providing a forum in which the unique needs of Black and other minority, law students may be addressed. Openness of communication within the law school community is encouraged.
Follow Texas A&M Law BLSA on Facebook.
Learn more about the Texas A&M School of Law Advocacy Program:

The Advocacy Program at Texas A&M School of Law is a key component of Texas A&M School of Law’s Experiential Education program, making Aggie law students practice-ready. Directed by Jennifer Ellis, the Advocacy Program consists of three disciplines: appellate advocacy (moot court), trial advocacy (mock trial) and dispute resolution (mediation, negotiation and client counseling).
Our Moot Court, Mock Trial and Aggie Dispute Resolution teams are nationally recognized. Since the law school’s inception, the program has received:

3 international championships
12 national championships
23 regional championships
1 state championship
1​6 best advocate awards
13 best brief awards
The Texas A&M Immigrant Rights Clinic won an appeal to reopen the case of a client from Somalia who fears being tortured in his home country by Al-Shabaab and the government for being a Christianity convert. The case was reopened based on the condition changes in Somalia.
Texas A&M Immigrant Rights Clinic students Miranda Leach, Ruth Correa, and Caitlin Revanna, who​ participated in the clinic ​in Spring 2018, prepared the motion to reopen.
​Fall 2018 semester clinic students Clarissa Dauphin, Denise Rosales, and Wesley Salazar prepared a habeas petition and complaint for the same client, which will soon be filed in federal district court to obtain his release from immigration detention. The petition and complaint allege constitutional due process violations based on deliberate indifference to his medical conditions, as well as Rehabilitation Act violations.
Professor Fatma Marouf, Texas A&M Immigrant Rights Clinic director
Professor Fatma Marouf, director of the Immigrant Rights Clinic, says she and the clinic students were able to obtain an emergency stay of removal to stop his deportation the day before the flight departed.
"We will have a chance to litigate his case from scratch," said Marouf.
Marouf said, "This client is one of the 60 or so Somalis who was physically abused by immigration guards at the West Texas Detention Facility in El Paso and is included in the report we published about those abuses last spring."
The report "'I was treated like an animal,' Abuses Against African Detainees at the West Texas Detention Facility," was jointly researched and produced by students and faculty at Texas A&M University School of Law Immigrant Rights Clinic, University of Texas School of Law Immigration Clinic, and the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES). 
Marouf believes immigration and the international refugee crisis are among the most pressing human rights issues of our time. "We need lawyers who are creative problem-solvers and who can connect local concerns to global developments.”
Marouf is an expert in immigration law, refugee law and international human rights law.
Professor Michael Z. Green
Hip hop artist Jay-Z grabbed headlines recently when he won a temporary stay in a major commercial arbitration involving his company Roc Nation and the clothing company Iconix. Jay-Z objected to the arbitration and sought the stay based on his concern that the American Arbitration Association (AAA) was offering an insufficient number of African-Americans to serve as potential arbitrators. A subsequent news report cited to Professor Michael Z. Green’s essay, "Challenging the Racially Biased Selection of Arbitrators for Employment Discrimination Suits," published in 2005 in the Journal of American Arbitration as support for the need for a more diverse pool of dispute resolution neutrals.

In his essay, Professor Green wrote:  “Because race still matters significantly in our society, when arbitration agreements coerce black employees into a private dispute resolution system where employers may apply racial stereotypes with little regulation, it raises concern about the integrity of that system.” 

Professor Green added:  “The lack of diversity in the arbitrator pool may cause black employees to not pursue their discrimination claims out of a feeling that it would be futile in such a questionable system.”
At Texas A&M Law’s November 16 Dispute Resolution Symposium, Professor Green returned to this issue as he moderated a panel considering whether the use of metrics and transparency could promote parties’ selection of diverse neutrals.
Jay-Z has since withdrawn his motion to stay the arbitration. On December 9, his lawyers informed the New York Supreme Court that the AAA had committed to work with them “to identify and make available African-American arbitrators for consideration” and engage in broader remedial measures. The AAA had previously filed with the Court a letter detailing the initiatives it has undertaken over the years to mentor diverse arbitrators, expand its arbitrator panel, and encourage the selection of diverse arbitrators. More information, including the letter from Jay-Z’s lawyers, is available in this article.
Texas A&M Law Low Income Tax Clinic Director Bob Probasco
Texas A&M University School of Law's senior lecturer and director of the Low Income Tax Clinic, Bob Probasco, is the principal drafter for comments submitted to the U.S. Tax Court by the Tax Section of the State Bar of Texas. He and current law clinic students are advocating for change to the Tax Court’s Rules of Practice and Procedure to provide for entries of limited appearance by pro bono volunteers. 

Probasco says this change would allow clinics to provide even more help to taxpayers.

The ABA (American Bar Association) Section of Taxation: Pro Bono and Tax Clinics Committee submitted similar comments in October. The State Bar Tax Section agrees with the Texas A&M Law clinic’s goal but wrote separately to suggest an alternative process. Probasco says the Tax Court has already begun looking at the issue and hopefully will benefit from the law clinic’s input.

In addition to helping the community by representing low income taxpayers who have disputes with the IRS, Probasco is an active member of the tax practitioner community. He serves in the leadership of the State Bar Tax Section, is a frequent “guest blogger” on the Procedurally Taxing blog run by Villanova and Harvard, and he presents at various conferences.

In November, he served as chairman of the planning committee for the 66th Annual Taxation Conference and helped organize the event held in Austin.

This month, Probasco was a panelist for the presentation on “Demystifying IRS Transcripts” at a national conference in Washington, D.C. The conference was organized by the Taxpayer Advocate Service of the IRS for all low-income, taxpayer clinics (LITC) that receive funding from the IRS. 

Check out Probasco's recent blog posts:

The EITC Ban – It’s Worse Than You Realized
Paresky– A Mirror Image of Pfizer
Another Jurisdictional Issue in Pfizer

► Learn more about Bob Probasco.
► Learn more about the Texas A&M Low Income Tax Clinic.
► Learn more about Texas A&M Legal Clinics.
- Article by Tyra Kelly, Texas A&M University School of Law Marketing and Communications
Texas A&M University School of Law Agriculture Law Society students present their research findings to attorney Mark McPherson (center).
Texas A&M University School of Law's new Agriculture Law Society presented its research findings to Mark McPherson, a lawyer working on behalf of the Sandbranch community, as part of the members’ pro bono efforts. 

The 40-page local, state and federal research project, which covers issues associated with produce, egg production and distribution, was compiled by four teams of law students with faculty supervision. The document will be used in discussions with local, state and federal government authorities on important matters, including agriculture. 
Texas A&M Law Professor Lisa Rich, Agricultural Law Society faculty advisor
“I am very proud of the work undertaken by the Agriculture Law Society students,” said faculty advisor Lisa A. Rich. 

Rich is an associate professor of law and director of the Residency ​Externship Program in Public Policy at Texas A&M Law School. She is an expert in federal sentencing policy, legislative processes, public policy, legal research and legal writing.

“The law students took the initiative to find this pro bono project and completed it with incredible skill, professionalism and thoroughness, which is exactly what we expect from A&M law students. Their presentation of the final product was one of the best I have ever seen.” 

"Congratulations to 3Ls Cash Barker, Lauren Thomas, Kristin Newby, and 2Ls Trevor Armstrong, Kaitlyn Amundson, Jessy Bonds, Connor Colten Day, Alexandra Lizano and Alexis Long for completing a great project!" said Rich.
- Article by Tyra Kelly, Texas A&M University School of Law Marketing and Communications
Gabriel Eckstein, Texas A&M University School of Law professor and Natural Resources Systems Program director, is the newly elected president of the International Water Resources Association (IWRA).
Gabriel Eckstein, professor of law at Texas A&M University School of Law and director of the Natural Resources Systems Program, has been elected president of the International Water Resources Association (IWRA).

IWRA is an international, professional organization focused on improving and expanding the understanding of water issues through education, research and information exchange among countries and across disciplines.

“This is really a wonderful honor,” said Eckstein. “IWRA is one of the most respected, water-focused organizations globally, and I look forward to building on the association’s excellent policy work, which seeks to ensure sustainable water resources for people and the environment.”

Established in 1971, IWRA provides a global, knowledge-based forum for bridging disciplines and geographies by connecting professionals, students, individuals, corporations and institutions concerned with the sustainable use of the world’s water resources.

Eckstein said he is especially pleased to be part of a board that has "great diversity of people" who bring unique knowledge and experience to the table.

The incoming executive board, which is composed of twenty members (40 percent of whom are women), will have water professionals from 15 countries including Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania and the Americas. 

“The breadth and depth of experience of these individuals is remarkable. We are fortunate that these water leaders, which includes engineers, scientists, academics, policy wonks, executives, lawyers and government officials, have committed to work together toward the Association’s common goals,” said Eckstein.

Eckstein's three-year term at the helm of IWRA will begin in January 2019.

From 2010-2015, Professor Eckstein served as treasurer of IWRA.

He also chaired the International Scientific Committee for IWRA’s XVI World Water Congress in 2017.

► Learn more about Professor Gabriel Eckstein.
Photo credit: Texas A&M University
President George H.W. Bush at Texas A&M University in October 2009
Robert "Bobby" Ahdieh, Dean and Anthony G. Buzbee Endowed Dean's Chair, Texas A&M University School of Law
Texas A&M University School of Law’s Dean Robert "Bobby" Ahdieh was named a “Point of Light” by President George H.W. Bush in 1991 for his volunteerism and service to others. 

Selected while a freshman at Princeton, Ahdieh was recognized for organizing the Peace Committee and his service work with senior citizens, Native Americans, and in Israel and the Soviet Union.

Ahdieh shares this dedication to service with President Bush and Texas A&M University, home of the Bush School of Government and Public Service, the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library Center, and President Bush’s final resting place.
Ahdieh discusses the "Point of Light" ​selection on WFAA, the local ABC affiliate. View the video and article on WFAA's website.
The Texas A&M University School of Law Latinx Law Student Association (LLSA)’s Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month series is off to a great start with the September 20 panel presentation “Latinos in the Labor Law Movement: Past, Present, and Future.
Panelists included Dr. Cristina Salinas, labor historian and Mexican American Studies professor at UT-Arlington; Anthony Elmo, Communications & Political Director, United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW 1000); Arturo Laurel, National Labor Relations Board attorney; and Texas A&M School of Law’s Professor Angela Morrison.
The event was an engaging conversation about the impact of labor law on the Latinx community. The discussion began with the history of labor law in America and how it relates and intersects with Latinos in America. The panel also discussed the involvement of Latinos in the labor union movement. 
Professor Angela Morrison, Dr. Cristina Salinas, Arturo Laurel, and Anthony Elmo at the LLSA event "Latinos in the Labor Law Movement" at Texas A&M University School of Law.
LLSA’s next event is “Latinos in Law: Attorney Panel” on October 1. Attorneys in various legal fields will conduct "roundtable discussions" where, for a limited amount of time, will discuss topics like "navigating law school," "what it's like to be a minority in the legal field," "being far away from home," and of course the particular area of law in which they practice. Panelists include Carla Green '15, Haynes and Boone, LLP; Elsa Manzanares, Akerman LLP; David B. Cantu (Texas Wesleyan Law '96), Law Offices of David Cantu; Veronica Garza (Texas Wesleyan Law '09), The Law Offices of Veronica Garza, PLLC; and Joe Robles, Jr. '18, Texas A&M Apprenticeship Program.
Other LLSA National Hispanic/Latino Heritage Month events include:

October 1-5: Hispanic Heritage Month display at the Law School
October 15: Pan Dulce fundraiser
October 24: Lunch and reception with Rachel Moran, UCLA Michael J. Connell Distinguished Professor of Law and Dean Emerita

Additionally, LLSA is conducting a “Power of Attorney Workshop” for the community on November 3, 2018, at the law school campus located in downtown Fort Worth. In addition to licensed attorneys helping participants produce power of attorney documents free of charge on-site, presentations at the event will address the new tax bill, pleading a misdemeanor, arrest warrants, child support and protective orders.
On September 12, 2018, Texas A&M School of Law Professor Lynne Rambo was awarded the 2018 Distinguished Achievement Award​ - College Level from the Association of Former Students of Texas A&M University. 

The award is given to educators who exemplify the meaning of teach/mentor in the highest sense. 

In a letter from a former law student, the student writes that Professor Rambo is the type of lawyer she aspires to be.
Associate Professor Saurabh Vishnubhakat
Texas A&M University School of Law Associate Professor Saurabh Vishnubhakat has been invited to present testimony to the Federal Trade Commission in Washington, D.C. on October 24. The FTC hearings on "Competition and Consumer Protection in the 21st Century" will study whether recent changes in the economy might require adjustments to competition and consumer protection, enforcement priorities and policy. 

Vishnubhakat's testimony will focus on innovation policy challenges arising from the new U.S. Patent and Trademark Office system of administrative patent revocation.

The hearings, held September through November 2018, will be webcast live, open to the public, reported by the press, and eventually synthesized into a comprehensive FTC report. 
Vishnubhakat is an expert in innovation and intellectual property, particularly patents, and how they affect administrative agencies, federal courts and the marketplace. He writes and teaches on intellectual property law, civil procedure, and administrative law, particularly from an empirical perspective. He holds a joint appointment as Associate Professor in Texas A&M University’s College of Engineering and is a fellow of the Duke Law Center for Innovation Policy. His research has been cited in federal appellate and trial court opinions, governmental reports, and nearly twenty Supreme Court briefs.
Texas A&M School of Law's 3L Cash Barker and 2L Alexandra Lizano
This month, two Texas A&M University School of Law students begin working with the National Agricultural Law Center (NALC), the only agricultural law research and information facility that is “independent, national in scope and directly connected to the national agricultural information network.”
The NALC seeks applicants who completed their first year of law school, exhibit experience in legal research and writing and maintain a GPA of 3.0 or higher. 
Third-year student Cash Barker and second-year student Alexandra Lizano are ecstatic about their new paid research positions with the NALC. The center requires both students to commit at least a semester of research, focusing on conducting legal research and writing projects that assist the NALC and its partners in the Agricultural & Food Law Consortium.  
Barker, who holds a bachelor of science degree in agricultural and applied economics, says he is grateful for this opportunity. “I look forward to tackling issues I’m not familiar with and learning more about them.” 
Lizano, a native of northern California near Napa Valley, holds a bachelor of science degree in environmental policy analysis and planning from the University of California-Davis. She says she is also excited to learn more about food law. 
“I took a huge interest in wine law after my first semester of law school and I am so happy that NALC can help me explore my passion,” says Lizano. I just think everything about it is so interesting. I didn’t even realize that you could specialize in things like wine or food law in practice,” says Lizano.
Both Lizano and Barker shared their interest in agriculture law with their legal writing professor, Lisa Rich. Rich says she is elated that Barker and Lizano are the first to represent the law school at NALC. She is confident that they will represent the school well and usher in the opportunity for more Texas A&M School of Law students.

- Article by Tyra Kelly, Texas A&M University School of Law
Left to Right: Texas A&M Prof. Saurabh Vishnubhakat; USPTO Texas Regional Director Hope Shimabuku; State Bar IP Section Chair Kirby Drake; scholarship recipient Texas A&M 2L Brandon Cofield; PTAB Chief Judge David Ruschke; State Bar IP Section Past Chair Herb Hammond; State Bar IP Section Chair-Elect Derrick Pizarro at the State Bar of Texas Intellectual Property Section ​Diversity Scholarship awards ceremony held at the USPTO Texas Regional Office in Dallas. Photo courtesy of USPTO Texas Regional Office.
2L Brandon Cofield sees a connection between serving economically-disadvantaged communities and helping innovators navigate the intellectual property system. 

As he enters his second year of law school, Brandon is the recipient of the State Bar of Texas Intellectual Property Section ​Diversity Scholarship.

This is the second time in three years that the prestigious award has gone to a Texas A&M law student.

In describing what set Brandon apart from the large pool of candidates, IP Section Chair Kirby Drake noted Brandon's preparation for an intellectual property law career and his passion for service. 

Brandon holds both a bachelor’s degree in nutrition sciences and a master’s degree in public health. Before law school, he worked in community development to reduce the effects of continuous unemployment in underserved communities.

This summer, Brandon’s travels took him to Silicon Valley where he interned at the Palo Alto office of White & Case, and he was a Google Legal Scholar at the Google Legal Summer Institute. He also served in the chambers of Judge Linda Carpenter in Philadelphia.

The scholarship was awarded by the Honorable David Ruschke, Chief Judge of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The ceremony was held at the Texas Regional United States Patent and Trademark Office located in Dallas, and it was hosted by Regional Director Hope Shimabuku, who is also a former Chair of the State Bar IP Section. The ceremony was attended by s​everal administrative patent judges and other members of the bench and bar, including Professor Saurabh Vishnubhakat of the Texas A&M IP law faculty, who was Brandon’s first-year advisor.

“Brandon is a very bright and hard-working student, and it is clear that he will be a committed and passionate member of the Texas legal community,” said Professor Vishnubhakat. “It is our good fortune at Texas A&M Law to guide and teach a future colleague like him.”
Terri Lynn Helge, Texas A&M School of Law Associate Dean for ​Academic Affairs, selected as a SEC Academic Leadership Development Program Fellow
Texas A&M School of Law’s new associate dean for academic affairs, Terri Lynn Helge, was one of the four Texas A&M administrators selected as a fellow for the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Academic Leadership Development Program (ALDP) for the 2018-2019 academic year.

The SEC ALDP provides an executive-level training experience to proven academic leaders identified for senior positions within the conference. The program rotates its venues throughout the SEC universities. The fall 2018 workshop will take place at the University of Kentucky and the University of Tennessee will host the Spring 2019 ​workshop.

Former Interim Dean Thomas W. Mitchell said he was elated to nominate Professor Helge. He believes that her previous and current legal work exemplify the kind of faculty member that the SEC ALDP seeks to recognize.

“Associate Dean Terri Helge is a highly respected teacher and faculty member who has a long and impressive record of law school and ​university service, including service on many of the law school’s most important faculty committees, including a term serving as chair of our ​tenure committee,” said Mitchell. “In nominating Terri, I wanted to give her the opportunity to gain new knowledge, skills and perspectives on higher education administration for her own professional development,” continued Mitchell. “She can apply what she learns this year in the SEC ALDP in her administrative leadership position at the law school in a way that will confer significant and tangible benefits to our law school.”

Helge said she is pleased to be one of the four academic fellows to represent Texas A&M University. “I am excited to work with exceptional leaders in higher education administration through the SEC Academic Leadership Development Program.”

Following completion of the year-long program, Helge plans to apply her legal expertise and knowledge gained from the SEC ALDP to her new position. 

“The law school has experienced tremendous growth since becoming part of Texas A&M University. As associate dean for academic affairs, I plan to apply the leadership skills I develop through the SEC Academic Leadership Development Program to advance the law school’s programs and enhance opportunities for students and to effectively manage the associated challenges,” said Helge.
2018-2019 Texas A&M University SEC ALDP Fellows:

Mindy Bergman, Professor, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, College of Liberal Arts
 
Carol Bunch-Davis, Associate Professor, Department of Liberal Studies, Texas A&M University at Galveston
Terri Helge, Professor and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, School of Law
Scott Schaefer, Professor and Associate Head, Department of Computer Science and Engineering

- Article by Tyra Kelly, Texas A&M University School of Law
This week, Shira Perlmutter, Chief Policy Officer and Director for International Affairs of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), will visit Texas A&M University School of Law to participate in events organized by the Center for Law and Intellectual Property (CLIP) at the Law School.
Shira Perlmutter
Before joining the USPTO, Perlmutter served as Executive Vice President for Global Legal Policy at the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) and Vice President and Associate General Counsel for Intellectual Property Policy at Time Warner. In 1995, she was appointed the first Associate Register for Policy and International Affairs at the U.S. Copyright Office. 
On Thursday, March 22, Perlmutter will deliver a presentation on "New Technology and Emerging Intellectual Property Challenges: A Global Perspective." Organized by CLIP in collaboration with the Texas Regional Office of the USPTO, this presentation will be held at the Law School Conference Center from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m.
On Friday, March 23, Perlmutter will offer a luncheon address as part of CLIP's annual spring symposium. Titled "Digital Millennium Copyright Act at 20," this symposium brings together legal commentators, policy makers and industry representatives to critically examine the past two decades of developments surrounding the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA).
Perlmutter's luncheon address will focus on "DMCA at 20: The Global State of Play." The full program of the symposium is available online.

"We are very excited to have Shira Perlmutter visiting the Law School," said Professor Peter K. Yu, who organized both events. "Since the establishment of the USPTO Texas Regional Office three years ago, our Center for Law and Intellectual Property has worked closely with ​them to put together events that are of great interest to the intellectual property community in North Texas." 
Yu is currently the director of CLIP and holds a joint appointment at the Law School and the Department of Communication. Under his leadership, the intellectual property law program at Texas A&M University School of Law has been ranked seventh in the nation in the past two years, based on peer surveys conducted by U.S. News and World Report.
Professor Peter K. Yu
On January 25, Professor Peter K. Yu, the director of the Center for Law and Intellectual Property at Texas A&M University School of Law, will join David Kappos, the former director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, at the opening panel of the 19th Congress of the European Intellectual Property Institutes Network (EIPIN) at Maastricht University in the Netherlands.
Titled "Innovation and the Triple Helix," the Congress focuses on the role for government, the private sector, and academia in driving innovation forward through cooperative action. The Congress's opening panel will be devoted to the debate on whether intellectual property rights can serve as proxies for innovation.
 David Kappos
Speaking after Kappos, who will open the panel with a talk on "Intellectual Property -- The Ark of Innovation," Yu will present on "Imitative Pasts, Innovation Pathways and Intellectual Property." This presentation will draw on the two decades of research Yu has conducted on the Chinese intellectual property system.
Yu is a preeminent expert on Chinese intellectual property law and policy in the United States. He has testified before the U.S. International Trade Commission on intellectual property protection and enforcement in China and has spoken on related issues at the National Academy of Sciences.
At the EIPIN Congress, Yu will also participate in a meeting of the external advisory board of the EIPIN Innovation Society, funded by the European Commission. In addition to Yu, this prestigious five-member board includes Fidelma Macken, a former justice of the Supreme Court of Ireland, and three leading intellectual property academics in Europe.
Kappos, former Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property, delivered the keynote address at the "Intellectual Property in All the New Places" Symposium ​organized by Yu and CLIP ​in 2016 at Texas A&M University School of Law.
Texas A&M University School of Law Professor Elizabeth Trujillo is among the 4​5 newly elected members of the American Law Institute (ALI).
ALI, founded in 1923, “is the leading independent organization in the United States producing scholarly work to clarify, modernize, and improve the law,” according to its website. The members of the institute “influence the development” of the drafting and publishing of restatements of the law, model codes and principles of law that contribute to legal scholarship and education.
ALI members are selected based on their professional achievements and a “demonstrated interest in improving the law.” The new ALI members were confidentially nominated by their peers, vetted by the ALI Membership Committee, and elected by the ALI Council.
The diverse group of new members with a broad array of legal expertise includes practitioners, judges, and professors. They are charged with contributing to ALI’s “work of clarifying the law through restatements, principles, and the modern penal codes.”

Trujillo, a leading scholar in international economic law and trade, is co-convener of the Texas A&M Global and Comparative Law Program. Awarded an Alexander von Humboldt Foundation Research Fellowship, she is writing her book with Cambridge University Press, "Reframing the Trade and Environment Linkage for Sustainable Development in a Fragmented World." As Humboldt Fellow, she has also been serving as a Visiting Scholar at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law in Heidelberg, Germany.

Among other organizations, Trujillo is also an active member of the American Society of International Law or ASIL, having been co-chair of the International Economic Law Interest Group until 2015, an appointed member of the 2014-2015 Book Awards Committee and the 2012 Annual Meeting program committee.

She joins seven current Texas A&M Law faculty elected to ALI: Professors Irene Calboli, Susan Fortney, Paul George, Randy Gordon, Michael Z. Green, Bill Henning and Meg Penrose. In addition, Dean Emeritus Frank Elliott is a life member and Interim Dean Thomas W. Mitchell serves as an ex-officio ALI member.
Mitchell says of Trujillo, “Texas A&M School of Law is very proud that Professor Trujillo was among a very esteemed group of lawyers elected to ALI this year from across the country and that her membership increases the impressive number of our faculty members who also have been elected to ALI.”

Trujillo said she is honored ​to be elected. 
 “I am honored to have been elected to this influential organization and look forward to working on the various ALI projects; in particular, those connected to commercial law and international trade and investment issues."
As part of its continuing effort to make law school more accessible, Texas A&M Law announced today that it will accept the GRE in addition to the LSAT as part of its application process for the Fall 2018 entering class. While Texas A&M is the first law school in Texas to accept the GRE, several schools across the nation are now doing so, including Harvard, Columbia, and Northwestern.  
“Our decision to accept the GRE will make it easier and cheaper for Texans to gain access to law school,” said Interim Dean Thomas W. Mitchell. “It will also make law school more attractive to highly qualified students who have diverse educational backgrounds and interests, including students from fields such as engineering and science.”
To comply with American Bar Association standards, the Law School participated in a validity study involving current and past Texas A&M students. The study found that the GRE is a strong predictor of success in the first year at Texas A&M.
Accepting the GRE will broaden and diversify the pool of applicants who consider Texas A&M Law.  The GRE is offered more frequently than the LSAT, and unlike the LSAT, the GRE is accepted by numerous graduate and professional degree programs. “Besides the practical benefits of saving our applicants the time and expense of taking another test, this decision opens doors for those who might have considered law school but for whom the LSAT was a deterrent,” said Terence L. Cook, Texas A&M Law’s Assistant Dean for Admissions. “The decision also reflects our increasingly interdisciplinary approach to training lawyers.”
Texas A&M School of Law 3L Megan Reed
Shortly after starting her law school career, Texas A&M law student Megan Reed discovered the Innocence Project, igniting a professional passion for criminal law advocacy.
“I had considered corporate law, but what I quickly realized after working with Mike Ware was how much I enjoyed criminal law, especially innocence work,” Reed said. 
Ware is Texas A&M’s Innocence Project professor and the Executive Director of the Innocence Project of Texas. 
“I found myself wanting to stay up late and work on these projects, making my professional path very clear,” she said. 
Reed’s Innocence Project work served her well in her pursuit of a clerkship with the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals—the state’s highest criminal court.
“My first interview turned out to be with Judge David Newell, who wrote the majority opinion for some of Mike’s clients, known as the San Antonio Four, granting their actual innocence claim,” Reed said.
Building on her prior experience interning for Judge Carolyn King on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit and Chief Judge Lee Rosenthal in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Reed will clerk for Judge Newell from September 2018 to August 2019. During her clerkship, she will work closely with both Judge Newell and his career clerk while learning the intricacies of the state’s criminal justice system.
“I’ve never given up looking for the position I wanted,” said Reed, who is listening to SCOTUS podcasts and studying upcoming cases in preparation for the role. 
“The opportunity to work in this environment is absolutely invaluable,” she added. “I’m excited to work with a seasoned career clerk and also serve in an advisor capacity, discussing the complex legal issues with Judge Newell.”
As for what the future holds, Reed said she’s remembering the words of Anna Vasquez, one of the San Antonio Four exonerated in November 2016.
“I always saw myself becoming a criminal defense attorney and never considered becoming a prosecutor. But Anna told me, ‘You’re the type of person we need as a prosecutor. You understand what justice means rather than just getting wins.’”

Spring 2017 Innocence Project students pictured with two of the San Antonio Four Exonerees and Amanda Knox from the Innocence Network Conference. Left to Right: Catherine Wirth ’18, Melissa Rust ’17, Anna Vasquez, Amanda Knox, Cassandra Rivera, Megan Reed ’18, Michele Moss ’17, and Caitlyn Ashley ’18.
Texas A&M School of Law 3L Henrik Strand
After a six-week summer internship with Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht of the Texas Supreme Court, Texas A&M Law student Henrik Strand knew he wanted to return for a post graduate clerkship.
“Writing research memos for the Court was one of the most exciting experiences of my law school career,” said Strand, citing his experience last summer. “By the time a matter reaches the Court, it’s a hard call on either side. Being at that level and examining how to parse out the differences of these cases is really eye opening.”
This fall, Strand will head back to Austin, this time to serve as a clerk for Justice John Phillip Devine. Crediting the clerks who helped him during his internship days, Strand says he’s eager to return to the Court.
“Last summer, a clerk would occasionally hand me a brief that they thought was particularly well done,” Strand said. “That exercise alone was tremendous in helping me examine these issues with a critical eye. Moreover, it’s helped me hone my legal writing skills.”
In addition to the study of solidly written briefs, Strand said the experience of writing for the Court last summer helped him immensely.
“Writing memos that I knew the Justices would see absolutely influenced my writing and legal reasoning skills,” he said. “Unlike a memo for class or an internship application, I had the opportunity to write about issues they had thoroughly considered.”
During his upcoming clerkship, Strand will continue researching and writing memos in collaboration with staff attorneys, while also having the unique experience of observing deliberations. 
“The Texas Supreme Court is one of the only high-level courts that permits clerks to be present during deliberations – this was a big draw for me,” he said. “To take part not only in that process, but in helping inform the justices as they write their opinions – it’s an incredible honor.”
Strand is the current Editor-in-Chief of the Texas A&M Law Review. Last spring, he was an extern with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in Austin as part of Texas A&M Law’s Residency Externship Program in Public Policy. In addition, he has served as a Public Interest Fellow, a Dallas Bar Foundation James A. Baker Clerk, and a member of the Center for American and International Law’s Higginbotham Inn of Court.
Aggie Law student Jordan Simmons with Texas A&M Law Adjunct Professor Jim Bradbury, following their presentation, “Water Rights and Eminent Domain Issues for the Landowner in East Texas.”

Third-year student and Marshall, Texas native Jordan Simmons Hayes (’18) recently co-hosted an eminent domain workshop for the landowners of her hometown. The event, "Water Rights and Eminent Domain Issues for the Landowner in East Texas," was sponsored by the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, and featured a keynote presentation by property and water rights attorney James D. Bradbury.
Bradbury is also an adjunct professor for Texas A&M University School of Law, where he first worked with Hayes in her study of agricultural law and eminent domain.
“From the first day I met Jim, I told him, ‘I want to be like you,’” Hayes said. “These people are my people, and everything I am doing is so I can get back home and help them.”
The idea originated in the spring, when Harrison County AgriLife Extension agent Matt Garrett, a longtime family friend of Hayes’, approached her asking for an eminent domain expert.
“Matt wanted a lawyer with expertise in this area to come and speak with the landowners of Harrison County, specifically on the topic of landowner rights related to condemned property,” said Hayes, who immediately thought of Bradbury.
Building on the eminent domain white paper they helped produce earlier this year, a document also presented to the 85th Texas Legislature, Bradbury and Hayes conducted additional research this summer, and presented to the Harrison County landowners group in early October. 
Before a packed audience of 60 Marshall residents, the two quickly moved from delivering an educational presentation to facilitating an interactive discussion, one that spanned some 90 minutes longer than scheduled. 
“It was really a tremendous experience to work together in Marshall explaining the law to landowners,” Bradbury said. “That is what a good lawyer does. Jordan made it more than that, however. This wasn’t just hometown advantage. I saw firsthand how Jordan’s ability and character helped her build rapport and trust with the landowners.” 
“People asked lots of questions to the point that it really became more of a conversation,” Hayes said. “It was a timely topic, and one that the people of Marshall really wanted and appreciated.”
That warm reception affirmed for Hayes why she came to Fort Worth in the first place.
“Yes I came to the ‘big city’ to attend law school, but it was to learn things that will benefit the people of Marshall,” Hayes said. “It felt wonderful to take part in this presentation and to show my hometown that when I said I want to return home, practice here, and help our community, I meant every single word.”
For his part, Bradbury said he can’t wait to see what unfolds when Hayes returns to Marshall following law school graduation.
“Landowners and rural Texas have a deep need for attorneys and civic leaders, and Jordan Hayes is going to make that happen.”
Left to right: Assistant United States Attorney Paul Yanowitch, Walmart Global Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer Jay Jorgensen, University of Miami Law School Professor Marcia Narine Weldon, Southern Illinois Law School Professor Mike Koehler, Ohio State Law School Professor Daniel Chow, Northwestern Law School Professor Juliet Sorensen, and Texas A&M Law Professor Peter Reilly at the FCPA Conference.
In the year the FCPA statute turns 40, practitioners and academics gathered October 12 at Texas A&M University School of Law to examine the legal and policy issues relevant to the current enforcement and compliance landscape. 
“The FCPA is as controversial now as it was when the statute became law in 1977,” said Professor Peter Reilly, who organized the conference. “This conference provided a neutral setting for attendees to learn about the current state of the FCPA, free from some of the heat that can come out of these discussions on Capitol Hill.”
It also included in the trenches commentary from industry leaders, including keynote presenter Jay Jorgenson, Executive Vice President, Global Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer, Walmart.
“Walmart is on the cutting edge of basically designing a compliance program specifically addressing the FCPA,” Reilly said. “Jay provided useful insight as to how they are trying to build a better mousetrap in terms of compliance.”
Paul Yanowitch, Assistant United States Attorney, U.S. Attorney's Office – Northern District of Texas, addressed conference attendees about the DOJ’s views on the statute generally and its enforcement.
“Paul provided the kind of detail one cannot glean from academic articles,” Reilly said. “He shared key insights about what the DOJ prioritizes when determining prosecutorial decisions around the FCPA.”
Conference attendees also participated in legal and policy sessions, presented by Daniel Chow, Professor, Ohio State School of Law, Mike Koehler, Professor, Southern Illinois School of Law, Juliet Sorensen, Professor, Northwestern School of Law, and Marcia Narine Weldon, Professor, Univ. of Miami School of Law.
Kit Addleman of Haynes and Boone LLP and Sandra D. Gonzalez of Greenberg Traurig LLP discussed the FCPA enforcement and compliance landscape.
“As most of these matters are settled through deferred prosecution agreements, this conference gave attendees a rare opportunity to gain a sense of what’s happening with the FCPA,” Reilly said.
Professor Scott Moss, University of Colorado; ​COSELL 2017 coordinator Professor Michael Z. Green, Texas A&M ​University; Professor Joseph Slater, University of Toledo; and Professor Angela Morrison, Texas A&M University
During the recently held 12th annual Colloquium on Scholarship in Employment and Labor Law (COSELL), hosted by Texas A&M Law, more than 40 professors and fellows from across the United States presented papers in progress on workplace law topics.
COSELL was designed to give both emerging and established scholars an avenue to present their work on critical topics impacting employment and labor law.
The 2017 COSELL program fostered collaborations among colleagues attending from law schools in Germany and England, as well as U.S. law schools including Columbia, Colorado, Denver, Illinois, Marquette, North Carolina, Ohio State, Saint Louis, Toledo, Seattle, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, UCLA, UNLV, Vanderbilt, Wisconsin, and Yale, among others.
The participants examined issues through the lens of workplace conditions related to race, gender, disability, retaliation, labor, wages, the gig economy, immigration, bargaining power, vulnerability, proof structures, contracts, procedure, mentoring, and the future of the workplace.
The event also included a keynote presentation by David Foley of the National Labor Relations Board, Region 16, who is responsible for supervising and managing all litigation under the National Labor Relations Act occurring in Texas.
In COSELL tradition, two law professors received special recognition for their achievements in labor and employment law at the awards ceremony held on September 15, 2017. Recipients of the COSELL awards that evening included:

2017 Paul Stephen Miller Memorial Award Winner for outstanding academic and public contributions to the field of labor and employment law – Marcia L. McCormick, Saint Louis University School of Law, and;

2017 Michael J. Zimmer Award Winner for a rising scholar who has made significant contributions to the field of labor and employment law scholarship – Brad Areheart, University of Tennessee College of Law.

Texas A&M Law Professor Michael Z. Green, who coordinated the 2017 COSELL program, commented shortly after the program ended: “The COSELL conference provided such a wonderful opportunity, for me and many of my colleagues throughout the country and beyond, to have rewarding exchanges about many of the challenging issues that employers and employees are facing in today’s economic environment. It left me invigorated and determined to continue my scholarly pursuits regarding workplace law while recognizing I have many new friends and fellow law professors that I may call upon if I need valuable input.”

View more images from COSELL 2017 at Texas A&M School of Law.