Regent Law News

On March 25th, Virginia Supreme Court Chief Justice Leroy Rountree Hassell, Sr. praised second-year student Robert Noote for winning the third annual Writing Competition named for His Honor. In his submission, “Is and Ought: How the Progression of Ricci Teaches Us to Accept the Criticisms and Reject the Norms of Political Jurisprudence,” Noote discusses the implications of a school of thought that removes any distinction between human will and rule of law. According to proponents of political jurisprudence, judges are merely political actors and their opinions and decisions are not law, but rather rationalizations of what the judge intends to do in a given case. “Of course the implications of this theory are disturbing to me,” said Noote. “However, not everything that this theory posits can be quickly dismissed. It is not appropriate to adopt a worldview that rejects the rule of law, but it is appropriate to accept the criticisms of an idea that challenges the human propensity to

Law Professor Lynne Marie Kohm commented in this CBN news story Thursday about a Washington high school student whose school facilitated an abortion for her without notifying the girl's parents. Law Professor Brad Jacob was interviewed by WAVY-10 , Norfolk's NBC affiliate, regarding a lawsuit filed by Virginia Attorney General Cuccinelli over health care legislation. The story also aired on the local FOX affiliate, was posted online to MSNBC.com and aired on WNOR FM99 of Hampton Roads.

The hard work and creativity of Joshua Bachman (’09) , City Prosecutor of Stewartsville, MO and sole practitioner, was chronicled in this March 24th article . Jordan Sekulow (’09) , Director of International Relations for American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ), has appeared on Fox News, MSNBC, and Al-Jazeera in recent weeks discussing everything from the reaction of Justice Alito to President Obama's State of the Union, to a possible reversal of policy to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammad in a military tribunal instead of civilian court. Sekulow spoke February 16th on MSNBC’s Dylan Ratigan show about bank regulation. He also appeared on Fox News’ Red Eye on March 12th to discuss curriculum modifications in Texas. On March 16th, on MSNBC’s Shuster Showdown , Sekulow discussed a Keep America Safe advertisement regarding the Department of Justice attorneys that represented Al Qaeda terrorists. On March 23rd, he appeared again on the Dylan Ratigan show to speak about the protests made

Twice a year, Regent University honors a professor who has excelled in teaching, service, or scholarship. School of Law professor Benjamin Madison recently received the “Award for Scholarship” for his excellence in research and publications. Of the scholarship Madison has published in various law reviews and journals in the last few years, Civil Procedure for All States: A Context and Practice Casebook is a highlight. Civil Procedure is one of twenty-five books in Carolina Academic Press’s Context and Practice Casebook Series , an innovative series among textbooks designed for law students. The series’ editor, a nationally known teaching and learning scholar, believes that students excel when given a chance to improve their self-directed learning skills in context-based instruction. And so, rather than relying heavily on cases, Madison’s text places students in roles as practitioners through simulated law practice problems. Also unique to the series is an ethical component designed

The Regent community congratulates third year law students Efrem Craig and Tiffany Verdell who advanced past teams from Boston University and the University of Virginia to win the 2010 National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA) International Negotiation Competition held March 12-14 in Boston, MA. They scored 98 out of 100 in the final round. NBLSA’s International Negotiation Competition (INC) is designed to hone the negotiation skills vital to a legal career while fostering an awareness of timely issues facing the global community. The winning team successfully negotiates real-life, cross-border conflicts over multiple 80 minute competition rounds. Craig and Verdell’s championship win hinged upon their renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement in the final round. As is the norm for the INC, they literally prepared their strategy overnight. “The final round was definitely the toughest,” Craig said. “The goal of our preparation was to fully understand the intr

Law Professor Lynne Marie Kohm's comments about possible labor law violations regarding children on reality TV shows were included in this Foxnews.com article . Regent University's participation in a legal brief for the U.S. Supreme Court supporting the Christian Legal Society at the Hastings College of Law was included in this Inside Higher Education article , which provides a comprehensive overview of the case. Law alumna and Army National Guard Major Sarah D. Smith '02 recently earned a Bronze Star for her efforts in Afghanistan. An account of her work in supporting Operation Enduring Freedom can be found in this article from her hometown newspaper, The Edwardsville (IL) Intelligencer . Law alumnus '05 Justin Bush was featured in The Suffolk Sun, a tab section of The Virginian-Pilot, on Thursday. He made law partner faster than anyone at his firm, Stallings and Bischoff, handling criminal justice and family law cases. A link to the article is not available. Law

As Regional Legal Coordinator with Freedom Firm in Maharashtra, India, Evan Henck ‘07 helps unravel the complex legal and social difficulties that come with prosecuting sex trafficking. Evan’s virtual journal entry below depicts the sobering reality of the sex trade even as it celebrates the Freedom Firm’s recent progress. It originally appeared in the 2010 Spring/Summer edition of “Brief Remark”, Regent University School of Law’s new biannual publication. From giving papers at a national human rights conferences and training human rights attorneys , to subsidizing summer internships within the nascent Center for Global Justice, the Regent Law community is committed to furthering the cause of justice at home and abroad. If you feel called to the legal profession and to the fight for social justice, a Regent J.D. might be for you. Learn more here . Jan. 16 2010 Maharashtra, India In January an informant phoned Suresh Pawar, a human rights activist with the Freedom Firm in Maharashtra,

Regent Law’s Black Law Student Association (BLSA) chapter exists to promote service to neighboring black communities and to be a vehicle of spiritual, academic and cultural awareness for law students. From tutoring at a local detention center to hosting the annual Soul Food Cafe, BLSA’s local events support the overall mission of the National BLSA (NBLSA), which is to “articulate and promote the needs and goals of black law students and effectuate lasting change in the communities in which they live and serve.” As a part of her BLSA duties, Regent 3L member Valerie Johnson served as the competition director for the 35th Frederick Douglass Moot Court Regional Competition (FDMCC) February 12-13, 2010 in Norfolk, VA. Johnson worked in coordination with the Mid-Atlantic Black Law Students Association (MABLSA), an organization comprised of law students from schools in PA, DE, VA, MD and DC. In addition to securing a competition location, coordinating teams, and briefing judges for the reg

Law Professor Jim Duane was interviewed in this Forbes.com article about the merits of actress Lindsay Lohan's lawsuit against E-trade.

Regent University School of Law's home page ranks fifth in the nation, tied with Harvard Law, according to an independent research study conducted at Georgetown University Law. The study, "Top 10 Law School Home Pages of 2009," (Georgetown Public Law and Legal Theory Research Paper No. 10-03), scores 195 American Bar Association (ABA) accredited law school home pages on over a dozen objective design criteria including: CSS, news headlines with images, embedded media, social network links, content carousel, RSS, microformats and hierarchal organization. As the report's introduction states, home pages are the "virtual front door" of any law school and are "critical components of enrollment success." For many prospective students, a school's home page is the first and only contact they have before deciding whether to dig deeper or to look elsewhere. Access the study's full results here on the Social Sciences Research Network, a world-wide co

Law school Dean Jeffrey Brauch sounded a note of balanced optimism at the annual “State of the School” address, praising improvements in the school’s bar passage rate, employment placement, and incoming student LSAT/GPA metrics while offering encouragement to 3Ls beginning their employment search in the midst of a challenging job market. Dean Brauch opened his address by highlighting a recent Carnegie Foundation on Education report calling for ethically principled legal education and practice, noting that Regent’s integrated curriculum has been training students to practice law ethically and professionally since its inception - in advance of recent findings. He reminded faculty, students, and staff that Regent Law’s goals haven’t changed, confirming that the school would continue to integrate faith and law with excellence in legal advocacy skills training, and would continue to produce alumni called to engage the world with Christian legal though and practice. Supporting his remarks w