ASU Law Case File: Indian Legal Program honored, SCOTUS deadlock hits home

A top award for the Indian Legal Program, a rare feat by students, and the effects on one student and his family as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s deadlock over deportation highlight the latest issue of the ASU Law Case File. The ASU Law Case File looks at the accomplishments of students, faculty, and alumni of the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.

Students

• Jon Brinkman (JD Candidate ’17) is working as a summer law clerk at Jones, Skelton & Hochuli. At ASU Law, he has received the CALI Excellence for Highest Grade in Legal Writing, and the Willard H. Pedrick Scholar Award.

• Danielle Ta'Sheena Finn (JD Candidate ’17) was crowned Miss Indian World. Finn, a member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, competed against 23 other contestants for the title.

• Thomas Kim (JD Candidate ’18) is featured as one of the faces of immigration on azcentral.com's photo gallery that examined those awaiting the U.S. Supreme Court decision on deportation. See his story here.

• Four student groups successfully competed with thousands of professors and attorneys to place articles in environmental law journals. It is a rare accomplishment for students to place full-length articles in law journals and they did it with the help of ASU Law’s Sustainability Law Research Clusters program. All the students are designated as Sustainability Law Student Research Fellows:  

• Daniel Schwiebert & Shane Urban, "Trickle-Down Solar: Which Strategies for Expanding Access to Solar Energy Make the Most Cents?", 4 Arizona Summit Law Review Accord __ (forthcoming 2016).

• Casey Ball & Courtney Moran, "Penny Lane, Literally: Funding Roads One Vehicle Mile at a Time," 5 Willamette Envtl. L. J. __ (forthcoming 2016)
 
• Racheal White Hawk, "Community-Scale Solar: Watt’s In It for Indian Country?", 40 Environs Envtl. L. & Pol’y. J. __ (UC Davis) (forthcoming 2016)
 
• Casey Clowes, Tessa Hustead & Danny Kolomitz, "Thirsty for a Solution: Promoting More Efficient Water Use in the West," 20 U. Denver Water L. Rev. __ (forthcoming 2016)

Faculty

• Congratulations to the Indian Legal Program for being selected the first recipient of the State Bar of Arizona’s 2016 Diversity and Inclusion Leadership Award. The award is presented to an attorney, judge, employer, organization, or bar association that significantly advances diversity and inclusion in the Arizona legal community through creative, strategic, or innovative efforts. The award was established in 2015.

• Professor Kenneth Abbott has received an honorary doctorate for contributions to the interdisciplinary study of international relations from Laval University in Quebec City. During a dinner for all the honorees, Professor Abbott sat next to the former Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien.

• Professor Paul Bender’s expertise on the Arizona and U.S. constitutions was tapped in articles by AZCentral, Politifact, and the Eastern Arizona Courier. He also appeared on KAET’s “Horizon” to discuss recent decisions handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court.

• Professor Adam Chodorow’s op-ed, “Drug Test All of Us,” was published in U.S. News & World Report. In his op-ed, Professor Chodorow posits that if welfare recipients are required to be drug tested, all recipients of government money—such as farmers and business owners—should be drug tested as well.

• Professor Evelyn Cruz was quoted in an Arizona Daily Independent article that shows Arizona’s 11 immigration judges varied widely in their handling of asylum cases between 2009-2014. She also appeared on KTAR-Radio's public affairs program Think Tank to discuss the legal process of attaining citizenship, migration flows, and the immigration process.

•Professor Ira Ellman’s research was highlighted in the Pacific Standard article, “What’s the Real Rate of Sex-Crime Recidivism?”

• Professor James G. Hodge Jr.’s work on the public health crisis the Zika Virus is posing was featured in an NBC News online article, as well the podcast, "This Week in Health Law."

• Professor Orde F. Kittrie’s book, “Lawfare: Law as a Weapon of War,” was highlighted in an Oxford University Press blog. He also wrote an op-ed for the Jerusalem Post on how to take on terrorist groups without the bloodshed

• Professor Gary Marchant is quoted in a Buzzfeed article looking at the ethics of human gene editing during the National Institutes of Health meeting in Washington, D.C. His work on GM food labeling was also cited in an op-ed in the Huffington Post.

• Professor Robert Miller has been appointed to the Navajo Nation’s new Council of Economic Advisors. He was selected by the Navajo Nation's Office of the President and Vice President. Professor Miller was also quoted in a Voice of America article on a 500-year-old Vatican charter, and in the Atlantic on the economic advantages of marijuana cultivation on reservations.

• Professor Troy Rule’s drone research continues to draw attention. He was quoted in articles for USA Today and Slate, a story on KJZZ, and wrote an op-ed published in the Orange Country Register.

• Professor Rodney Smith had two op-eds published in the Deseret News; one on the Summer Olympics in Rio and the other on Senate Republicans refusing to hold confirmation hearings for U.S. Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland.

• Professor Glenn Wong was recently interviewed by MONEY regarding a new ASU Law course aimed at teaching future professional athletes about the legal and business issues that come with workout drills, game days, and championship bonuses.

Alumni

Congratulations to our alumnae named to AZ Business magazine's Most Influential Women in Arizona Business for 2016:

Clare H. Abel (JD ’81), Burch & Cracchiolo
Jaime R. Daddona (JD ’04), Squire Patton Boggs
Roxann Strozzi Gallagher (JD ’02), Sacks Tierney
Karen S. Gaylord (JD ’84), Jennings, Haug & Cunningham
Cathy Reece (JD ’79), Fennemore Craig
Cynthia A. Ricketts (JD ’89), Sacks, Ricketts & Case

1970s
Jim D. Smith (JD ’70), of the Law Offices of Jim D. Smith, was reelected to the Arizona Bar Association board. He currently serves in the ABA House of Delegates.

1980s
Michael N. Poli (JD '80) has joined the Merlin Law Group, where his practice focuses on personal injury and business litigation.

John L. Stoss (JD '88) has joined Nussbaum Gillis & Dinner as a partner. His practice is concentrated in business, commercial real estate, and corporate finance and securities transactions.

1990s
Andrew F. Ortiz (JD ’98) was awarded the prestigious 2016 Ellis Island Medal of Honor, given to individuals who assist the less fortunate while showing compassion and generosity, all while maintaining the traditions of their ethnic heritage.

Michelle Parker (JD '99) has been selected as general counsel for Legal Affairs at Northern Arizona University. Parker joined NAU in 2010 as associate general counsel.

Kevin Quigley (JD '94), a partner at Quarles & Brady, has been appointed general council for the Greater Phoenix Chamber of Commerce.

Dax Watson (JD '99), a managing partner in the Phoenix office of Lipson, Neilcon, Cole, Seltzer, Garin, has expanded his practice to include mediation.

2000s
Shayna Balch (JD ’06), a partner at Fisher & Phillips, has been named to Super Lawyers Magazine’s 2016 Southwest Super Lawyers and Rising Stars listing.

Kesha A. Hodge (JD '02) has joined the Merlin Law Group, where her practice is focused on the representation of policyholders in first-party insurance claims.

Xochitl Orozco (JD '07) was quoted in a front-page story in the LA Times looking at the prosecution of minors who are used by drug cartels as drug mules.

Miguel P. Prietto, Jr. (JD '08), a senior associate atArcher Norris, has been recognized by Super Lawyers Magazine as a 2016 Southern California Rising Star.

Ruben L. Reyes' (JD ’09) was featured in a State Press article that highlighted his journey from the military to owning his own immigrant law practice in Phoenix

Grant Sahag (JD ’09) has been named CEO of the Phoenix-based sustainable glycol technologies company, GlyEco.

Nicole Marie Stewart (JD '08) has joined the firm of Sanders & Parks as an associate. She will focus her practice on medical malpractice, healthcare law, and civil litigation.

2010s
Casey Campbell (JD '14) has been named an associate in the law firm of McDermott Will & Emery and is based in the firm’s Chicago office.

Brittany Dugan (MSLB ’16) has been hired as an account coordinator for Integrated Web Strategy.

Chelsey Golightly (JD '10) of Jones, Skelton & Hochuli, has joined the Fiesta Bowl Committee.

Roger Klingler (JD '13) has been appointed interim city manager for the city of Buckeye. He has served as Buckeye’s assistant city manager for the past two years.

Julia Koestner (JD '14) of Quarles & Brady, was named a Top 50 Pro Bono Attorney by the Arizona Foundation for Legal Services & Education. Koestner was nominated by the Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project.