Josh Adams (’15)  won the 42nd annual George K. Walker Moot Court Competition final round held at Wake Forest University School of Law on Friday, April 19. 

The final round showcases the top two first-year law students in the moot court competition.

Arguing a fictitious case about whether a woman is entitled to keep the engagement ring after the engagement is called off, Adams was able to successfully argue in favor of the plaintiff Percy Pettigrew. Fellow first-year law student Kelsey Meuret represented the defendant Denise Daniels.

The distinguished panel of judges included The Honorable Joi E. Peake, U.S. Magistrate Judge, Middle District of North Carolina; The Honorable James L. Gale, Special Superior Court Judge, North Carolina Business Court; and Suzanne Reynolds (’77), Executive Associate Dean of Academic Affairs; Professor of Law.

The judges were highly complimentary of both finalists.

“It took us a long time to decide because it was so close,” Judge Reynolds explained. “Mr. Adams I was really impressed with your argument because I thought Ms. Meuret had the law behind her. You made best on what I thought was a difficult argument.”

Judges Gale and Peake added that they both represented Wake Forest well.

“You both did a fantastic job and it was a great argument,” Judge Peake said. “Ms. Meuret I thought you did a good job framing your argument.”

The summary of the case that was at issue follows:

The Plaintiff Percy Pettigrew met the Defendant Denise Daniels while he was attending Hampden-Sydney in Virginia. The two began dating and fell in love. Six months later, Pettigrew proposed to Daniels, giving her what he alleges is his grandmother’s family heirloom engagement ring. The next semester, Daniels was forced to leave Hollins University to take care of her seriously ill mother in North Carolina. Daniels did not return to Hollins that semester.

After moving back home, Daniels heard rumors that Pettigrew was dating her old roommate at Hollins University. Pettigrew then broke off his engagement with Daniels by changing his Facebook status from “in a relationship” to “single.” When Pettigrew requested his grandmother’s engagement ring back from Daniels, Daniels refused to return the ring because it reminded her of “his better side.”

The question before this Court is which party is entitled to keep the engagement ring after the engagement is called off. The first issue is whether the engagement ring is an unconditional gift or a conditional gift, conditioned upon the marriage actually occurring. If the ring is a conditional gift, the second issue is whether the Court should consider who was at fault for breaking the engagement off when determining who is entitled to keep the engagement ring.

The event, which is held each spring for first-year law students, fielded 86 initial competitors. Each student wrote a brief and argued twice, once “on-brief” and once “off-brief.” After two weeks, 19 students were invited to join Moot Court, and the top 16 competed in the following week in an elimination tournament leading up to the final round.

Adams was not the only student to take home an award. Distinctions for Best Brief, Best Oralist, including runners up, and the Debbie Parker Memorial Moot Court Service Award were also awarded.

Davis Phillips won the Best Brief award, while Josh Adams was the runner-up. The Best Oralist award went to Lauren Richburg, with Kelsey Meuret and Andrew Parrish earning runners-up. The Debbie Parker Moot Court Service Award went to Dylan Greenwood.

The 2013 Walker Moot Court Competition co-chairs are Linda Boss and Lindsay Watson. “We really appreciate everyone who participated,” Boss said. “We thought you all did a great job.”

Other new first-year members of the Moot Court Board are John Blanchard, Melissa Bryson, Zachary Dunn, Karon Fowler, Stephen Frost, Tee Hassold, Evan Leadem, Brooke Loucks, Caroline Massagee, Jim Miller, Andrew Parrish, Davis Phillips, Lauren Richburg, William Vandiford, Ashley Waring, J.D. Wooten, and Christine York.

For 40 years, the Wake Forest Moot Court Board has conducted a moot court competition for first-year law students. In 1998, the Moot Court Board named this competition the George K. Walker Moot Court Competition in honor of Professor George Walker’s long-standing support of the Wake Forest Moot Court program.

The Debbie Parker Moot Court Service Award is an honor granted to either a member of the Moot Court Board or a participant in the Walker Moot Court Competition who exemplifies throughout the competition a spirit of dedication and service to Wake Forest University School of Law, as well as compassion and cooperation with his or her fellow students.

Susie showed up ready for the red carpet at the sold-out world premiere of “Susie’s Hope” at the RiverRun International Film Festival Saturday at UNC School of the Arts. 

Wearing a royal purple bandana that featured the word’s “Susie’s Movie,” the pit bull mix also wore pearls around her neck. Her toenails were red.

“She gets her nails done anytime she has a special event,” said Donna Lawrence, a hair-salon owner from High Point, who along with Susie, is the inspiration for the movie.

To read the full story, click here.

Wake Forest School of Law is featured in PreLaw’s Spring 2013 magazine as one of the “Best Law Schools of 2013,” and one of the top law schools leading the way in experiential learning.   

The first article pertains to Wake Forest moving ahead among other law schools in sufficient academic learning with hands-on work.

Executive Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, Suzanne Reynolds, is quoted in one of the articles regarding law schools leading the way in experiential learning: “Most of our students get some experiential learning. It is integrated throughout the curriculum and we have at least 25 ALTLA courses.”

The second article presents the National Jurist’s first-ever ranking of best law schools, using post-graduate success, student satisfaction, affordability, and diversity to measure schools. Wake Forest School of Law ranked 23rd among “Best Law School’s of 2013.”

Read the full articles (pgs.29-41) here.

The reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act that President Barack Obama signed earlier this month will mean more services and more comprehensive coverage for victims of domestic violence, local activists say.

“Since the Violence Against Women Act has been in effect, we’ve been able to have programs and services that we would not be able to have without it,” said DeWanna Hamlin, coordinator of prevention and education for the Safe Relationships division of Family Services Inc. in Winston-Salem.

Suzanne Reynolds, a professor of law at Wake Forest University, said the reauthorization bill doesn’t change any federal or state laws about extending domestic violence protections to gay and lesbian couples.

“It doesn’t change any state laws,” she said. “It simply provides that when gay and lesbian survivors try to access services, the state administrators and service providers should not discriminate.”

In North Carolina, a partner in a same-sex relationship can obtain a domestic violence restraining order under a section that deals with people who live in the same household. However, the law doesn’t provide a way for a person to file for a restraining order in a same-sex relationship if the couple are just dating but not living together. That part of the law is limited to heterosexual couples, Reynolds said.

Read the full story here.

“Scarred For Life: The Legacy of Forced Sterilization at Home and Abroad,” co-sponsored by  Wake Forest Law, will be held Thursday and Friday, April 4-5, on the Wake Forest University Reynolda Campus. The events will focus on issues surrounding forced sterilization in both the national and international arenas. 

The program will start at 5 p.m.  on Thursday in the Annenberg Forum of Carswell Hall where all the panelists as well as the film, “Wicked Silence,” will be introduced by moderator Phoebe Zerwick.  Panelists include Simone Caron, WFU Professor and Chair of the Department of History and a leading expert on reproductive history ; Kevin Begos, journalist who has written extensively on North Carolina’s eugenics program in the Winston-Salem Journal’s 2002 series “Against Their Will” and a 2011 series in the Indy in Chapel Hill; and Charmaine Fuller Cooper, former director of the N.C. Justice for Sterilization Victims Foundation established by the then Gov. Bev Perdue in 2010 to provide justice and compensate victims who were forcibly sterilized by the State of North Carolina.

Following the film screening and introductions from the panelists, there will be a question and answer session and reception with books available for purchase.

On Friday, the second part of the series will begin at 2 p.m. in the Annenberg Forum of Carswell Hall.  Law Professor Suzanne Reynolds will introduce the keynote speaker, Dan Kevles, Professor of History at Yale University, who will present the history of the eugenics movement in the United States and its implications for the future of genetics.

Following the keynote, Professor Reynolds will introduce the next round of panelists to discuss the history of eugenics in Central Europe.  These panelist will include  Angela Kocze, Hungarian visiting Fulbright scholar with Women’s and Gender Studies; Adam Stein, N.C. lawyer who filed suit on behalf of sterilization victims in the 1970s; Nancy King, WFU Professor in the Department of Social Sciences and Health Policy; and Dan Kevles, Professor of History at Yale University.  To conclude this event, there will be another Q&A session followed by a reception.

This event is also co-sponsored by the Women’s and Gender Studies Program with Journalism, the Office of the Provost, the Center for Bioethics, Health and Society, the Department of History, the WFU School of Law, the Department of Politics and International Affairs, the Department of Communications, the Film Studies Program, the Center for International Studies, the Writing Program and the Documentary Film Program.

RALEIGH, N.C. — The head of the closely held company that stages NASCAR races is fighting to keep the public out of hearings and documents related to a battle with his ex-wife over their high-dollar divorce settlement.

Tuesday’s oral arguments before the state Court of Appeals mark the second time the court has heard NASCAR chairman and CEO Brian France’s plea to close court proceedings that are generally open to the public. The court previously ruled that the public’s right to open court proceedings outweighed France’s interest in keeping the litigation secret. After that appeals court ruling, a Mecklenburg County judge decided to reverse a peer judge and open court documents and hearings to the public. France is challenging that judge’s decision, asserting that one trial judge had no right to overturn another’s decision.

“That’s so we don’t have judicial anarchy,” France attorney John Stephenson Jr. told the three-judge court panel. France attended Tuesday’s court hearing and declined comment. France’s request for secrecy involves a dispute over whether the woman he married and divorced twice, Megan France, violated confidentiality and other provisions of the agreement they reached before divorcing in 2008. Read more here.

RALEIGH, N.C. — The head of the closely held company that stages NASCAR races is fighting to keep the public out of hearings and documents related to a battle with his ex-wife over their high-dollar divorce settlement.

Tuesday’s oral arguments before the state Court of Appeals mark the second time the court has heard NASCAR chairman and CEO Brian France’s reasons to close court proceedings generally open to the public.

France’s search for secrecy involves a dispute over whether the woman he married and divorced twice, Megan France, violated confidentiality and other provisions of the agreement they reached before divorcing in 2008.

Read the full story here.

Wake Forest University School of Law, the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence and Legal Aid of North Carolina will collaborate on a six-hour Continuing Legal Education seminar, “Gaining a Greater Understanding of Domestic Violence,” for attorneys and law students on Friday, Oct. 5, in the WFU Worrell Professional Center.

The event, which will be from 9 a.m. until 4:45 p.m.,  is open to all attorneys and is free, except for the $3/credit hour fee imposed by the North Carolina State Bar, which is paid by the lawyer directly to the N.C. State Bar. The CLE will provide six hours of credit. Five hours will teach about domestic violence and the sixth hour will provide N.C. State Bar required training about Substance Abuse and Mental Health. Lunch is also included in the CLE and is graciously being provided by Comerford and Britt, LLP, a law firm in Winston-Salem.

The purpose of this training is to teach attorneys about domestic violence and to encourage each lawyer to provide pro bono representation to two domestic violence survivors a year, according to organizer Susan C. Taylor, Systems Advocacy Coordinator for the North Carolina Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

“The purpose of the CLE is to encourage pro bono involvement by the attorneys, and that while the CLE is free, we hope that each attorney who attends will agree to represent two individuals in obtaining a domestic violence protective order,” she said.

Executive Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Suzanne Reynolds  says this is one of the clearest ways that lawyers make a difference.  “When survivors have lawyers, they have the courage to leave their batterers,” she explained.  “If lawyers will represent two survivors a year, we can change lives – and in some cases, save them.”

In addition to Reynolds and Taylor, who is also a retired Superior Court Judge, speakers include University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill Adjunct Professor Beth Posner; Jo Liles, director of the Roanoke Chowan Domestic Violence Offender Program; and representatives of N.C. State Bar Lawyer Assistance Program.

Attorneys who sign up with Legal Aid to give pro bono representation will be referred two cases per year; at the same time, if the lawyer agrees, a law student from Wake Forest will be referred with that attorney and will work with the attorney in case preparation. The attorney will have a law student to assist with some of the preliminary work in getting the case ready to be heard.

“Attorneys who agree to have a law student help them with the pro bono DVPO, that law student will be referred to assist with work on the DVPO,” Taylor said. “We hope this will be a help to both the attorney and the law student, as well as the domestic  violence survivor, and offer a good way for the attorneys to fulfill their opportunity to do some pro bono work as contemplated by the Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Responsibility.”

The seminar is being held at the same time as the District Court Judges’ Conference, so there might not be District Court in some counties that day, according to Taylor.

“Please encourage the attorneys in your county to attend this CLE,” Taylor said.

For more information, contact Taylor at 919.956.9124 or staylor@nccadv.org.

Bob Rosenberg (’11) describes his semester with the inaugural class of the Child Advocacy Clinic in Fall 2010 as the most rewarding experience he had at Wake Forest law school. As the result of his team’s efforts, a young child was permitted to remain in the custody of his grandmother, in a nurturing and drug-free home.

“My partner and I worked on behalf of a 2-year-old boy stuck in the middle of a high-conflict custody case,” Rosenberg said.  “We conducted interviews with witnesses and even had the opportunity to testify in court.”  He continued, “The CLC staff did a tremendous job not only teaching us the relevant law, but also helping us to make valuable connections throughout the courthouse.  I would recommend the Child Advocacy Clinic to any student wanting to gain practical experience outside of the classroom.”

The Child Advocacy Clinic, which began in August 2010, is the law school’s newest clinic.  The clinic is designed to teach students the best practices of representing children’s interests in high-conflict custody cases, civil domestic violence actions and in issues involving the public school system.  According to Director Iris Sunshine (’89), who is also the executive director of the Children’s Law Center of Central North Carolina (CLC), clinic students have worked more than 2,010 hours on behalf of the best interests of more than 50 children in the community to date.

“The Child Advocacy Clinic offers students invaluable real-world legal training and experience while enabling the CLC to expand its reach and serve more children,” Sunshine said.

The Children’s Law Center of Central North Carolina was founded in 2005 by Penny Spry (’82), and Amy Kuhlman as a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization.  Sunshine joined the CLC in November 2008.  The CLC has grown to a staff of five; three full-time and two part-time employees.

“Our mission is to provide children with quality legal advocacy focusing on domestic violence issues, high-conflict custody cases, and ensuring access to education,” Sunshine said. “Our ultimate goal is to enable children to grow up in safe environments and to become emotionally healthy adults.”

The CLC is the only non-profit organization in North Carolina representing the best interests of children in domestic violence cases in the courtroom, according to Sunshine.

The Child Advocacy Clinic is housed at the CLC and typically enrolls six to eight students a semester working under the supervision of CLC attorneys to provide a voice for children embroiled in Chapter 50B domestic violence cases and Chapter 50 high conflict custody cases. District Court judges appoint CLC staff to act as Guardians ad Litem (GAL) for these children.  Sunshine explained that “students in the Child Advocacy Clinic serve as the voices of the children in the courtroom and act as the eyes and ears of the Court.”

Sunshine said law students in the clinic may also have the opportunity to represent children in issues involving the public school system. Parents contact the CLC if their child is not receiving necessary services from the schools, particularly if they have an education plan for meeting special needs (an IEP). In addition, some parents may reach out to the CLC for help if they believe their child has been wrongfully suspended or expelled from school.

The clinic consists of two components: field work and the seminar. Students study the various models for representing children – as lawyer advocate, as lawyer Guardian ad Litem, and as non-lawyer Guardian ad Litem – and analyze the ethical issues raised in the various settings. They also study the procedural and substantive law involved in deciding the custody issue in both the family law and the domestic violence settings and in representing children in the educational setting. Students work in teams of two on cases that have been referred from the District Courts.

Former clinical student Tara Tannehill (’11) described serving as a Guardian ad Litem for children in cases of domestic violence and high conflict custody situations as very rewarding.

“As I observed court proceedings, it became abundantly clear that appointing GALs to represent the best interests of children involved in situations of domestic violence and high-conflict custody disputes was a very valuable resource for the court,” she said.  “In addition to the satisfaction of knowing that I advocated on behalf of children who would not otherwise be represented in court, my internship at the Children’s Law Center provided a great deal of exposure to the district court system… That sort of firsthand experience was invaluable for helping to improve my own advocacy skills.”

In order to work on a case, students must complete Guardian ad Litem training.

“It is the same training that we use for attorneys, such as those from Kilpatrick Townsend, who volunteer their time to the CLC for the high-conflict custody cases,” Sunshine explained. “Students are required to observe the domestic violence courts and juvenile court, in order to better understand what it is that we do, and why we do it. Then, students will work with a teammate on a case in conjunction with any one or more of our staff at the Children’s Law Center.”

Sunshine added that students do what staff attorneys at the Children’s Law Center do; work a case from the ground up. Students learn how to prepare and file an order, interview children, review civil and criminal records pertaining to the parents, interview the parties, conduct home visits, and prepare a written report for the court with their findings, concerns and recommendations.

“Students interview teachers, relatives, neighbors, friends, pediatricians, therapists, DSS workers, law enforcement officers, coaches, among others; it just really depends on each case as they are all quite different,” Sunshine said. “The students need to be prepared to make an oral report to the court because the judge will often ask for only an oral report or for additional comments to a written report. Some students have had the opportunity to testify in court regarding their investigation.

“Through their work with the CLC, the clinic students are exposed to a wide variety of situations and people including judges, lawyers and other professionals that will actually make them more marketable when they go out in to the work place.”

Nigel Vanderford (’12) worked on four Chapter 50B domestic violence cases during the Fall 2011 semester.

“I want to work in family law, and I got a better understanding of what exactly it means to figure out the best interests of the child, and that will really help me going forward,” he said. “I’ve got all kinds of things I can rely on and make an argument for my client, for what the child’s best interest is in that situation because I have seen so many different levels. It really helps you gain confidence in the court room, because there is so much experience working with the attorneys and the judge to hammer out a custody arrangement for this child. I can’t speak highly enough about the class.”

Students become vested in their cases and want to see the outcome, Sunshine added. “Some of our cases are not resolved during the course of the semester yet the students will return for court hearings and even to testify,” she said.  “The law students truly enjoy their work and are committed to advocating for the children in their case.”

Brittany Sajbel (‘12) was Vanderford’s partner and enthusiastically described her experience to prospective Child Advocacy Clinic students, “You have so many different people involved, so many backgrounds, so many experiences, that at the end of the semester you go away wishing you had one more case.”

In addition to teaching students about the law involving custody disputes and domestic violence and the practical application of what they have learned in law school, Sunshine explained that the Child Advocacy Clinic has another goal.

“Our hope is that after taking this course and working with the Children’s Law Center, the students will be inspired to continue to advocate for children,” she said. “We encourage the students as they launch their careers to consider serving as a pro bono attorney with a non-profit organization or for an individual in an area about which they are passionate.”

Tannehill began making plans last year for her career.  “As I prepare to leave law school and begin my legal career, I take my experiences at the Children’s Law Center with me.  I plan to fulfill my pro bono requirement through the Guardian ad Litem program, hoping to make an impact in my community the way the Children’s Law Center has done in Winston-Salem.”

Executive Associate Dean of Academic Affairs Suzanne Reynolds describes the Child Advocacy Clinic as the latest component of the law school’s larger effort to enrich the experiential learning available to students through its Applied Legal Theory – Law in Action program.  “We hope the new Child Advocacy Clinic will expand the collaborative learning experiences and match the law school’s goal of a more integrative learning experience,” Reynolds said.

The law school, under the direction of Dean Blake Morant, is expanding clinical opportunities, and exploring metropolitan externships and other methods of integrating the classroom with the realities of legal practice as part of the new program.  “Our students, our alumni, and even some prospective students are very excited about this new clinic and the new opportunities it will provide to help the children of our area,” Reynolds said.

Sunshine added: “We have been very pleased with all of the work the students have done that have come through the clinic,” she said. “More importantly, we have been impressed by their dedication and commitment to advocating for children exposed to the horrors of domestic violence and the strain of adult conflicts.”

CHARLOTTE — The Wake Forest University Charlotte Center is expanding its commitment to the community by offering a series of skill building courses designed for nonprofit board members, staff and volunteers through a partnership with the Wake Forest University School of Law’s Community Law and Business Clinic and the University’s Institute for Public Engagement.

“Essentials of Business for Nonprofit Organizations” is a series of nine courses covering a range of topics essential to the governance and management of nonprofits.

Classes are taught primarily by Wake Forest faculty and administrators and are open to the community.

“The Wake Forest University motto is Pro Humanitate, which means ‘for humanity.’ The core of our mission is to teach passionate leaders who are dedicated to sharing their knowledge and talents to serve humanity,” said Steve Virgil, director of the Community Law and Business Clinic. Virgil explained the clinic will be the lead in Charlotte.

“Over the past four years Virgil and the IPE have led regular capacity building seminars for nonprofit organizations and developed these workshops into a series of popular programs. that is now offered through the Institute for Public Engagement,” he said. Virgil explains, “The program has been very successful, so much so that the folks leading the Charlotte Center encouraged the IPE asked me to offer the programs there. Instead of the IPE, The Clinic will take a more active role in the lead in Charlotte and the workshops will continue to be taught by faculty from across Wake Forest. The programs in Winston-Salem attract between 250 and 300 participants each year. We and I expect the interest in Charlotte to eclipse these numbers.”

Sessions will be offered monthly from September to June of the following year, with a break in January. Courses include: Human Resources, Fund Development, Collaboration, Evaluation, Advocacy and Communication, and Leadership Lessons for Nonprofits. Participants have two years to complete all nine sessions.

After finishing all sessions, participants will receive a certificate of completion from Wake Forest University.

Individual courses cost $75. Participants can register for all nine classes for $575. Scholarships are available courtesy of our corporate partners Duke Energy and Foundation for the Carolinas. Classes are held at the Wake Forest University Charlotte Center on College and 5th streets in Uptown. Fees include lunch, parking and course materials.

Registration opens on June 1. To register or learn more about “Essentials of Business for Nonprofit Organizations” go online to UptownMBA.com/executive-education. You may also contact the Wake Forest University Charlotte Center at (704) 365-1717.