houck2040/law huggingface dataset:
Professor Sahar F. Aziz was invited by the American Bar Association to identify and describe a trial for the ABA Journal November cover story “10 Trials That Changed the World.” Professor Aziz was one of only ten distinguished lawyers from around the world the Journal selected to discuss one historic trial each.  
“At their best, trials provide insight into the human condition while they illuminate principles of the law. And sometimes they even change the course of history,” ABA Journal assistant managing editor James Podgers points out. “In some cases, however, trials are more than compelling stories about the search for justice. They become the stuff of history through their impact on the law and society. While the full impact of these cases is difficult to measure at the moment they occur, it often is clear that their impact will be profound.”
Professor Aziz’s contribution, A Court Decides Who Is White Under the Law, offers insight on the 1915 naturalization case of Dow v. United States where the court found people from the Middle East and North Africa white based on societal notions of race.
View Professor Aziz’s article here.
 Read the ABA Journal’s cover feature,
"10 Trials That Changed the World."

The "10 Trials That Changed The World"  article originally appeared in the November 2013 issue of the ABA Journal with the headline: "Courting Destiny."
(Image: Immigrants at Ellis Island.
Courtesy Library of Congress.) 
About the ABA Journal and the ABA:
The ABA Journal is the flagship magazine of the American Bar Association. The ABA Journal is read by half of the nation’s 1 million lawyers every month. It covers the trends, people and finances of the legal profession from Wall Street to Main Street to Pennsylvania Avenue. The ABA is the largest voluntary professional association in the world. With more than 400,000 members, the ABA provides law school accreditation, continuing legal education, information about the law, programs to assist lawyers and judges in their work, and initiatives to improve the legal system for the public. -- courtesy of the ABAJournal.com
About Professor Sahar F. Aziz:

Sahar F. Aziz joined the faculty in 2011 as an associate professor of law. Prior to joining Professor Aziz was an adjunct professor at the Georgetown University Law Center where she taught national security and civil rights law. Professor Aziz served as a senior policy advisor for the Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) where she worked on law and policy at the intersection of national security and civil rights. Prior to joining DHS, Professor Aziz was an associate at Cohen Milstein Sellers and Toll PLLP in Washington, D.C. where she litigated class action civil rights lawsuits alleging a nationwide pattern and practice of gender discrimination in pay and promotion.
(ABA Journal images, quotes, and "About" used with permission of the ABA Journal.)
We are pleased to announce another Best Brief award for the semester!  3L Grace Hwang Sundberg won Best Respondent’s Brief at the Pepperdine Entertainment Law National Moot Court Competition on November 10, 2013. The brief now qualifies for nomination for the Scribes National Brief Writing Award. Grace and teammates 2L Dwayne Lewis and 2L Rebecca Bradley finished the competition as National Quarter-finalists.

The team was sponsored and coached by KD Shull, of Huawei Technologies USA in Plano. Ms. Shull generously donated the funds to allow our school to once again compete in this prestigious competition in Malibu in addition to volunteering her time in coaching the team.  

The ABA Negotiation Competition held here at the school November 9-10, 2013 went smoothly. Our team of 2L John Kelley and 2L Mark Lister finished 3rd. The team was coached by Chris Watts ’00 and Professor Kay Elliott.  

Finally, our mock trial team of 3L Jenny Forehand, 2L Lacy McCully, 3L Jorge Molina and 2L Mark Walston finished as regional semi-finalists at the ABA Labor and Employment Trial Advocacy Competition in Dallas held November 2-3, 2013. This marks the highest placement for our school at this competitive event.  The team was coached by Justice Lee Gabriel, Second Court of Appeals.
The upcoming Texas A&M Journal of Real Property Law Wind Energy Law Symposium will feature a student speaker, 3L Ryan Brooke.  Brooke will be presenting his soon-to-be-published paper on wind energy law.  

Brooke’s paper will not only focus on the wind energy industry’s utilization of Texas Economic Development Act, but also the impact on property value across the state and public school financing.

“I hope to provide an understanding of the many benefits that wind energy provides in Texas, while also encouraging continued exploration of tools, specifically legislation, that will attract future wind energy development benefiting both the state and the public school finance system,” Brooke said.

“I am very excited and honored to have the opportunity to present my research at the Wind Energy Symposium, especially after seeing the success of last year’s Water Law Symposium.  The Journal of Real Property Law does such an amazing job showcasing ripe and important legal issues and attracting top experts in their fields; it is a privilege to be part of the symposium,” continued Brooke.

The Texas A&M School of Law Journal of Real Property Law Wind Energy Law Symposium will serve as a catalyst to discuss the dynamics of the wind industry, recognizing the importance that wind has in the growing discussion of renewable energy and green jobs.

In addition to Brooke, the symposium boasts a line-up of leading authorities in wind energy law:

Bob Beckage, Vice President of Engineering, Pike Energy 
Steven DeWolf, Partner, Bellinger, DeWolf and Suberg 
Dennis Donley, Naman, Howell, Smith & Lee 
Elizabeth Drews, Partner, Husch Blackwell 
K.K. DuVivier, Professor of Law, University of Denver Sturm College of Law 
Josh Linn, Research for the Future 
John Pappas, Interim Director, Texas A&M Energy Institute; Director, Texas A&M Wind Energy Center 
Roderick Wetsel, Partner, Wetsel & Carmichael 

The symposium, the third in a series of conferences organized by the Real Property Law Journal, will be held on Friday, Nov. 15, at Texas A&M School of Law in Fort Worth.
Texas A&M University School of Law is proud to announce it has been named as one of Fort Worth Business Press 2013 Smart Moves award winners. 

The award recognizes 10 local businesses for success, growth, and smart moves over the past year.
“We’re delighted to be named to this year’s Fort Worth Business Press Smart Moves list. In this historical year as Texas A&M University School of Law, we are honored to be recognized for our innovation and progress. I am tremendously proud of our academic program, which emphasizes critical thinking, effective communication and professionalism,” Aric Short, interim dean of Texas A&M University School of Law, said.

“Our institution has seen great growth and development in our short 24 year history, and now, as part of a comprehensive Tier One research institution with a decades-long commitment to excellence in the classroom and in the community, we are excited to build upon the foundation of our past successes.”

Texas A&M University School of Law is committed to providing its students with the strong theoretical foundation and practical lawyering skills necessary to traverse the dynamic legal landscape of the 21st century. The law school pursues its mission of excellence through outstanding teaching and scholarship, the development of innovative academic and experiential learning programs, and a commitment to public service and community outreach. 

The law school prides itself on its ability to prepare students for the demands of the legal profession through rigorous coursework, specialized certificate programs, externship opportunities, and a multitude of practical training centers and clinics designed to give the individual student the most comprehensive training available. One example of our educational approach is the Center for Intellectual Property (CLIP), an integrated legal educational center designed to give law students an in-depth understanding of intellectual property law. CLIP’s core curriculum which combines theoretical learning, clinical training and community service, enables our students to interact and learn from the best and the brightest in the field. 

“It is my pleasure to lead such a talented group of faculty and staff as we move into a new era for our law school, one of great growth and promise as we anticipate collaborative educational programs and developments with Texas A&M University. In our short three months as Texas A&M University School of Law, we have already planned to debut an integrated J.D./engineering program in spring 2014. We greatly appreciate Fort Worth’s support as we work to transform legal education,” Short said.

Carolina Beverage, Leading Edge Aviation Services and Sundance Square are among the other awardees included in the 2013 list. A formal reception will be held Wednesday, Nov. 13, at the Plaza Pavilion at Sundance Square for all of the 2013 Smart Moves awardees. Photos and details from the night will follow in the Nov. 18 issue of the Fort Worth Business Press.
2L Todd Smith, 3L Robert Koehl and 2L Eliana Albelbaisi
2L Todd Smith won Best Petitioner’s Brief at the John Marshall International Intellectual Property Moot Court Competition in Chicago held Oct. 24-26, 2013.

The award qualifies his brief to be submitted for consideration for the Scribes National Writing Award at the end of the school year. Additionally, Smith’s winning brief will be published in the John Marshall Journal of Computer and Information Law.

Smith and his teammates, 3L Robert Koehl and 2L Eliana Albelbaisi, also received the International Finalist award, finishing in 2nd place overall in the competition of 24 teams from the U.S., India and Ethiopia. Jennifer Ellis ’05, director of advocacy programs, coached the team.

“The tireless commitment shown by these students is impressive,” Ellis said.

“These students demonstrated the work ethic, eye for detail, and fundamental skill sets needed to succeed as really good attorneys in the real world. I’m very proud of these students and am particularly excited to see Texas A&M’s advocacy programs be so competitive internationally.”

In other advocacy news, 3L Marshall Bridges won Best Oralist at the Mack Kidd Administrative Law Moot Court Competition in Austin held Oct. 25-26, 2013. He received the award after maintaining the highest overall average of all advocates in the five preliminary rounds. Bridges was coached by Andy Sommerman, of Sommerman and Quesada in Dallas.

Read about more Advocacy wins in 2013.
With speakers representing nine different states and a record one-day symposium attendance record, the Texas A&M Law Review’s Inaugural Intellectual Property Symposium on Friday, Oct. 25, 2013, proved to be a great success. 

According to 3L Matt Fronda, symposium editor, the law review board decided to do their fall symposium on the topic of intellectual property due in part because of the (then) pending acquisition talks with Texas A&M University.

“When we took over in March of last year, we were unsure of where the law school was going to go (the acquisition was still in the rumors stage at that point). But we knew that Texas A&M has a large engineering program, and that if the deal with A&M did work out, there would likely be a lot of Aggie IP lawyers that we could contact as resources,” Fronda said.

Fish & Richardson and Munck Wilson Mandala, LLP were the sponsors for the inaugural IP symposium, and Professor Lucas Osborn, Director of Intellectual Property Law Program at Campbell University, provided the keynote presentation, “Pirates, PhD’s, and Preservation: How 3-Dimensional Printers Open New Avenues – and Challenges – in the Arts.”

Additional presenters for the day included Professor Peter Yu, Kern Family Chair in Intellectual Property Law and Director of Intellectual Property Law Center at the Drake University Law School; Professor Steven Jamar, Associate Director at the Institute of Intellectual Property & Social Justice at Howard University School of Law; Professor Sergio Sarmimento, adjunct professor at Fordham University School of Law; Professor Sidney Beckman, Lincoln Memorial University – Duncan School of Law; Professor Susan Richey, University of New Hampshire School of Law; Professor Megan Carpenter, Director of Center for Intellectual Property at Texas A&M School of Law; Professor Michael Murray, Valparaiso University Law; and Professor Jon Garon, Northern Kentucky University.

According to Fronda, although the professors were from a variety of different schools across the nation, many of them had worked together in the past.

“One thing that surprised me was that on Thursday night we had a dinner with the speakers who all came in from different states (nine speakers from nine states), and yet they all knew each other already,” Fronda said. 

“We had speakers giving each other hugs and catching up with each other. I think that I learned that the experts in a given field are a very small and close-knit group.”
Karon Rowden ’01, 3L Laurie Weir, Charlotte Hughart, DeeAnn Strother ’10 and Judge Cynthia Mendoza ’03 showcase awards won by Texas A&M University School of Law.



The volunteer efforts of Texas A&M University School of Law were recognized on Oct. 24, 2013, during the “Celebrate Pro Bono” reception sponsored by Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas. The event was held at the downtown Fort Worth YMCA as part of “Pro Bono Week” to honor volunteers and recognize those who have distinguished themselves through their unselfish contributions to the promotion of equal justice. Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas provides free civil legal services to eligible low-income residents in 114 Texas counties.

The Hon. Cynthia Mendoza ’03, associate judge in the 360th District Court, was the event’s special guest speaker. Judge Mendoza noted that she became an attorney at age 47, after having spent much of her professional career as a nurse. She handled and settled a pro bono case on her very first day as an attorney, just hours after having been sworn-in.

Callie Vivion-Matthews ’06 and 3L Laurie Weir were recipients of the Dwight H. Moore 2013 Special Recognition Award. Dwight Moore served as executive director of West Texas Legal Services for 18 years before retiring in 1995. Shortly after Moore’s retirement, the Fort Worth Private Attorney Involvement Advisory Board named its Pro Bono Attorney of the Year and then Special Recognition Awards for Moore, to honor his exemplary dedication and commitment to access to justice for the disadvantaged.

Vivion-Matthews is a long-time volunteer for Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas and was appointed by Gov. Rick Perry to the Texas Council on Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorders in 2010. Weir is a volunteer coordinator for the Veterans Project at Texas A&M School of Law, which provides volunteers for monthly clinics at the VA hospital in southeast Fort Worth.

The 2013 Outstanding Law Firms Awards went to Texas A&M Law Clinic and the firm of Strother & Strother. Accepting the award for the Law Clinic were director Charlotte Hughart and supervising attorney Karon Rowden ’01.

DeeAnn Strother ’10 and her sister-in-law, Tiffany Strother, accepted for Strother & Strother. The firm is dedicated to treating its clients with respect, integrity, compassion and honesty. “We pride ourselves in developing and maintaining personal client relationships,” DeeAnn Strother said.

During its 15 years of existence, 742 students have enrolled in the Law Clinic course. “The clinic has been recognized by Tarrant County Commissioners, Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, the Tarrant County Bar Association and the National Association of Social Workers for its efforts to help those who could not otherwise afford legal representation,” Hughart said. “Fort Worth is a compassionate community and has been very welcoming and appreciative of the Law Clinic.” In 2012, legal aid referred 28 cases to the Law Clinic.
3Ls Chris Brown and Joshua Graham win the Southwestern National Entertainment Law Negotiation Competition held October 5-6, in Los Angeles, CA.

The team defeated 27 teams from across the nation to take this title. Chris Watts ’00 and Kay Elliott, adjunct professor of law, acted as coaches for the team.

This marks the second national championship for Graham, who previously won the FINRA Securities Dispute Resolution Triathlon in 2012.

Congratulations!
Former lightweight boxing champion, Jesus "El Matador" Chavez, and his former counsel, Barbara Hines, spoke to more than 75 students, faculty and staff on Monday, Sept. 23, 2013, in the law school's conference center. 

Chavez shared the story about his high profile immigration case which was documented in the award-winning film, "Split Decision." Chavez grew up in Mexico and crossed the U.S. border with his family as a child. He later went on to win three Gold Glove championships. As a teen, he was convicted of robbery and served three years in prison. After serving his time, he was deported to Mexico. Eventually, he re-entered the U.S. illegally and resumed his boxing career, but was deported for a second time. After a long battle with the U.S. government, Chavez gained his permanent residency. Chavez highlighted how his hard work and determination led to his multiple championships. He now trains young boxers and provides free training to youth from lower socio-economic neighborhoods in the Dallas/Fort Worth area

After their presentation, Chavez and Hines took questions from the audience. Texas A&M Law Professor Sahar Aziz served as moderator for the discussion.
For the seventh year in a row, the career services office at Texas A&M University School of Law has partnered with the Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association to offer the Fort Worth/Tarrant County Young Lawyers and Texas A&M University School of Law Student Mentorship Program.
The program seeks to match law students with young lawyer mentors who can give them information on what the practice of law is really like, and advice to help guide them through law school and in their future careers.  
“The program benefits our students by giving them an opportunity to see what it is that attorneys do. For some of the students who participate in the program, this may be their first time to talk to practicing attorneys about their jobs and get insight into the profession, and we encourage mentors to be candid when talking with their mentees about the rewards and challenges of practice,” Courtney Key,assistant director of career services, said. 
This year 26 law students were partnered with 26 mentors. Participating students were selected on a first-come, first-served basis and were matched with attorneys in their areas of interest. 
As part of the program, students are required to meet with their mentors at least three times each semester,although they are not limited to that. A kick-off reception was held on Thursday, Sept. 12, to allow students and their mentoring attorneys a chance to network and socialize before they begin their work together in the upcoming months. 
In the past, mentors have met their mentees for coffee, answered their questions by phone and email, invited their mentees to their offices, taken them to bar association events, and invited their mentees to observe them in court. 
“We are fortunate to have a legal community that is supportive of our law students and our programs,” said Arturo Errisuriz, the director of career services.
3L Joakim Soederbaum, editor-in-chief of the Texas A&M Law Review has been selected as the winner of the 2013 National Sports Law Student Writing Competition by the Marquette Sports Law Review for his article titled, “Leveling the Playing Field—Balancing Student-Athletes’ Short- and Long-Term Financial Interests With Educational Institutions’ Interests in Avoiding NCAA Sanctions.” 

As the winner of the competition, Soederbaum will receive an offer to publish his article in the fall 2013 issue of the Marquette Sports Law Review and is invited to attend the National Sports Law Institute's annual fall conference. 

“That prominent sports law scholars believe that my article adds to the already broad body of scholarship on NCAA regulations, the ongoing discussion on "amateur" athletics, and the protection of student-athletes is truly exciting. I am honored to receive this award and the opportunity to be published in the Marquette Sports Law Review, and I hope that more Texas A&M University School of Law students will pursue this type of great opportunity,” Soederbaum said. 

The Marquette Sports Law Review is the first biannual scholarly journal devoted entirely to legal issues in sports law in the nation.
Texas A&M School of Law students, faculty, staff and friends celebrated student excellence and the school’s donors at the annual Barristers Society Donor and Scholarship Reception, held in the Dee J. Kelly Law Library on Sept. 19, 2013.

The reception recognizes alumni, friends, law firms, corporations and foundations that have made the generous gifts to the law school and, in so doing, make the scholarships possible.

After opening remarks from Interim Dean Aric Short, 3L David Lopez, a recipient of the Dallas Hispanic Bar Association Scholarship, spoke on behalf of all scholarship recipients and thanked donors for their support of the school and the students.

2L Larisa Maxwell received the Dallas Gay & Lesbian Bar Association Scholarship Award, and 3L Marlin Carter received the Jeff Kubes ’03 Memorial Scholarship, created by the Fort Worth-Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association and the Kubes family to honor the memory of their son who passed away in 2008. 


Ann and Bill Greenhill, member of the Dean's Advisory Council, and their son Joe were in attendance and viewed the Special Collections Room which features memorabilia and articles from Bill’s father, former Texas State Supreme Court Chief Justice Joe Greenhill.  3L Liz Wiggins was awarded the Chief Justice Joe Greenhill Endowed Scholarship in April at the alumni and community sponsored Greenhill golf tournament.
Other 2013 scholarships at the Law School include the Alma and Ronnie Blackwell Scholarship awarded to Austin Siewart, the Dallas Association of Young Lawyers Foundation Scholarship awarded to Adam Swartz, the Dallas Hispanic Bar Association Scholarship also awarded to Carla Green, and the Dallas Women Lawyers Association Scholarship awarded to Stephanie Bagwell.
Audrey Moorehead, Texas Wesleyan University School of Law, Class of 2006, has been selected as the 2013 Attorney of the Year by the L. Clifford Davis Legal Association.
Moorehead was selected to receive the award because of her commitment to mentoring young attorneys as well as her professionalism and work within the community.

According to Nikki Chriesman, president of the L. Clifford Davis Legal Association, Moorehead “embodies the vision Judge Davis had when he formed the Fort Worth Black Bar Association, now known as the L. Clifford Davis Legal Association.” 

Judge L. Clifford Davis is a legend in the legal community. He successfully litigated the case to integrate the Mansfield Independent School District in Mansfield, Texas. He also opened the first African-American law office in Texas and organized the Fort Worth Black Bar Association.

Moorehead will be honored at the Annual Scholarship and Awards Banquet on Saturday, Sept. 14.
The last regulatory step needed to complete the law school acquisition was cleared today when the American Bar Association Council for the Section on Legal Education formally approved the Texas Wesleyan-Texas A&M University joint application for Acquiescence. 

The last step needed to complete the law school acquisition was cleared today when the American Bar Association Council for the Section on Legal Education formally approved the sale of Texas Wesleyan’s law school to Texas A&M University. 

“We are very pleased with the ABA’s formal decision,” Texas Wesleyan President Frederick G. Slabach said. “Many staff and faculty at both universities have been working long hours over the last year to get us to this point. This has been an extremely collaborative process, and I am grateful to those who have made this a reality.” 

The formal approval by the ABA now clears the way for Texas Wesleyan and Texas A&M University to close the agreement the schools have been working toward since last June, when the two announced they intended to pursue a partnership. 

"We appreciate the mutual dedication required to make this dream a reality and look forward to welcoming our first class to the Texas A&M School of Law," Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp said. 

Both universities are working toward a successful close and anticipate making a joint formal announcement next week.