coastal law magazine (summer 2009)
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The magazine of Florida Coastal School of Law.TRANSCRIPT
COASTAL LAWM A G A Z I N E
TM
T H E M A G A Z I N E O F F L O R I D A C O A S T A L S C H O O L O F L A W
S U M M E R 2 0 0 9
There go theNeighborhoods:Predatory Lending andthe National Effect
I am pleased to report that, as another school year comes to a close, Coastal
Law continues to make great strides. Our moot court program was recently
ranked among the country’s top 10, as determined by organizers of the upcom-
ing Moot Court National Championship. Coastal Law’s ranking was based on
performances in moot court competitions from the 2008-2009 school year,
including team championships, as well as Best Brief and Best Advocate honors.
I wish our students well as they prepare for the tournament in January 2010.
As always, it is the mission of Coastal Law Magazine to update our readers
about school successes, faculty appointments, and alumni news, while also
presenting timely legal insight into the pressing issues and trends of the day
through features authored by our faculty. Further, we hope to illustrate how
these topics and perspectives relate to the Coastal Law education philosophy
and to our graduates in practice.
This issue’s cover story, “There go the Neighborhoods: Predatory Lending and
the National Effect,” explores not only today’s foreclosure crisis, but also the
factors that led to it and what may lie ahead. In our “Perspectives” feature, we
examine those affected by foreclosures and how Coastal Law’s student clinicians
work each semester to ensure those individuals rights are protected. Finally we
catch up with Mike Roland, Coastal Law class of 2007, and learn how he works
to protect consumer rights in south Florida.
The Florida Coastal School of Law Alumni Association continued in its chapter
development efforts in the spring, launching Second Circuit, Gulf Coast, and
South Florida chapters. Elsewhere, alumni in Washington, D.C., also formed a
chapter. Like those existing both in Florida and outside the state, these chapters
contribute to the school’s success by assisting with the recruitment of
prospective students, providing bar mentorship, and offering career advice
to current students and other alumni. Coastal graduates, I encourage you to
contact our Alumni Relations Office to find out how you can get involved.
On a final note, our upcoming Alumni Weekend on October 23-24 is especially
significant, as it marks the 10th Reunion of our first graduating class, as well as
the 5th Reunion of the class of 2004. I look forward to seeing you all at this
milestone event. I hope you will make plans to attend.
Thank you again for your continued support of Coastal Law.
C. Peter Goplerud IIIDean and Professor of Law
Greetings from Coastal Law
C. Peter Goplerud III
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Serving the Underserved
I S S U E F O C U S
COVER STORY
8 There Go The NeighborhoodsPredatory Lending and the National Effect
By Laura Boeckman, Assistant Professor of Professional Skills
Cover Illustration by Heather Blanton
PERSPECTIVES
14 Student Clinicians Serve on the Front Lines In trying times, Coastal Law students represent Jacksonville’s underserved
Illustration by Dan Vasconcellos
IN PRACTICE
16 Mike Roland, Class of 2007,Defends Consumer RightsTo do good for people is its own reward
D E PA RTM ENT S
5 Save the Date Important events for alums
and students
6 News and EventsCoastal Law achievements,
appointments, and programs
17 Everyday EthicsWise words will never
hurt you
18 Student NewsCompetitive team wins,
and campus-wide events
and projects
20 Faculty NewsPublications, achievements
and presentations
24 Alumni News and SpotlightsCoastal Law Alumni
Association highlights, and the
personal and professional
milestones of former students
30 Q & AMeet Greg Minton, Coastal
Law Audio Visual Specialist
IntraCoastalSUMMER 2009 VOL. 2, NO. 2
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PuBLISHER:
C. Peter Goplerud III, Dean and Professor of Law
EDITOR:
J. Brooks Terry, Director of Marketing and Communications
MANAGING EDITOR:
Margaret Widman Dees, Director of Institutional Advancement
CONTRIBuTORS:
DESIGN AND PRODuCTION:
BroadBased Communications, Inc.
PHOTOGRAPHy:
Jamie B. Cicatiello
Jim LaBranche
Paul Moulton
MAIN NuMBER
904.680.7700
ADMISSIONS
904.680.7710
ALuMNI
904.256.1212
MARKETINGAND COMMuNICATIONS
904.680.7730
REGISTRAR
904.680.7631
INSTITuTIONAL ADVANCEMENT
904.680.7649
Audrey McKibbin Moran, Chair President and Chief Executive Officer
Sulzbacher Center
Barbara “Babs” Strickland The Suddath Companies
Henry M. Coxe IIIBedell, Dittmar, DeVault, Pillans & Coxe, P.A.
Paul I. Perez Executive Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer
Fidelity National Title Group, Inc.
Robert M. RhodesFoley & Lardner LLP
Kenneth L. Shropshire David W. Hauck Professor
at the Wharton School of the university of Pennsylvania
Paul Vance Senior Vice President of Football Operations and General Counsel
Jacksonville Jaguars
Florida Coastal School of Law
Board of Advisors
COASTAL LAWSUMMER 2009 VOL. 2, NO. 2
Coastal Law Magazine is published by the Florida Coastal School of Law Office of Institutional Advancement. Address correspondence to:
8787 Baypine Rd., Jacksonville FL 32256 Telephone: 904.256.1212 Fax: 904.256.1104 Email: [email protected] Web: www.fcsl.edu or http://alumni.fcsl.edu
Assistant Professor Laura Boeckman
Assistant Professor Rob Hornstein
Wendy Arcuri
Kristin Mahshie
Jennifer Hyde
Emily Tracy
For information, contact Coastal Law’s Alumni Office.
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O U R C A L E N D A R O F U P C O M I N G E V E N T S *
Save the DateJune 25Alumni Reception at the 2009 Annual Florida Bar ConventionOrlando World Center, Orlando, Florida
July 10-12American & Caribbean Law Conference:Alternative Dispute Resolution and Restorative Justice Port of Spain, Trinidad
September 17Monthly Alumni SocialPeninsula Rooftop Club
October 22Guest Speaker Blake MorantDean of Wake Forest Law School
October 23-24Alumni Weekend
November 1211th Annual Northeast Florida Environmental Summit
November 19Career Services Department Starting Line for 1Ls
* Events listed are on campus unless specified elsewhere. Dates are subject to change.
Need more copies
orback issues?
Contact the Alumni Office at (904) 256-1212 or [email protected].
A C A M P U S - W I D E R O U N D U P O F H A P P E N I N G S A N D A C T I V I T I E S
News & Events
ADMINISTRATORS FROMCOASTALLaw and Jacksonville University
announced in May plans for a joint 3/3 program. Ready in time for the upcoming academic year, the program will allow selectedJU students to enter Coastal Law after completing only three years of undergraduatestudy and earn both a baccalaureate and a JurisDoctor degree in six years. With discussions under way for the better
part of the 2008/2009 academic year, CoastalLaw Vice Dean Terri Davlantes said she is“delighted the program will take root in thefall 2009.”“This program will provide students with
the opportunity to earn both degrees in a min-imum of six years, as opposed to the tradition-al seven years of study here in Jacksonville,”
said Davlantes. “It’s a wonderful joint effortbetween our two schools, and we’re hopeful itwill lead to more collaboration in the future.”In addition to the annual Northeast Florida
Environmental Summit, which will return forits eleventh year in November, Davlantes saidfurther opportunities could include sympo-siums and research initiatives.
“I also think it would wonderful if we couldcreate more opportunities for the faculty mem-bers to hold guest lectures on both campuses,”she said. “Things like that can potentially add alot of value to the experiences of the studentsbecause they would have even more access toinformation and practical perspectives.”Founded in 1934, JU is a private university
located in Jacksonville, Florida. Today, itsmore than 3,000 students from 47 states and27 different countries attend the school.In 2006, in the U.S. News and World Report
list of America’s Best Colleges, JacksonvilleUniversity placed in the first tier among morethan 150 master’s-level universities in the Southfor the fourth year in a row. The categoryincludes colleges and universities that offer a fullrange of undergraduate programs. COASTAL
Coastal Law and JU to Offer Joint 3/3 Program in Fall 2009
M ore than 200 guests visited Coastal Law in February, as part of The First Annual
Jacksonville Bar Diversity Symposium. The featured speaker for the day-long event
was Florida Supreme Court Justice Barbara Pariente.
The bar associations of Jacksonville, as well as Coastal Law, were commended by Pariente
for their initiative in the discussion of diversity in the legal community just days after new
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder referred to the country as a “nation of cowards” in regard
to race relations.
“I saw this headline today from Eric Holder about where he says we are a ‘nation of
cowards’ for not talking about race,” said Pariente. “Maybe the use of the word ‘cowards’ was
not the best description, but I think it’s an uncomfortable topic.”
In addition to remarks by Pariente, other program highlights included a viewing of the
Florida Bar continuing legal education video, “Changing Faces of Justice.” Attendees also
heard two panel discussions: “Diversity in the Community” and “Diversity in the Workplace.”
“We are committed to keep talking about diversity at Florida Coastal School of Law, and
we strive to make it part of the everyday environment of the law school,” said Dean Peter
Goplerud. “We’re moving in the right direction. I am already looking forward to reporting on
our progress during next year’s symposium.” COASTAL
Florida Supreme Court Justice
Barbara Pariente with Donald Jones,
Coastal Law Assistant Dean for Student
and Multicultural Affairs.
Coastal Law Hosts Diversity Symposium with Area Bar Associations
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Florida Coastal School of LawProfessor David Pimentel traveledto Nepal in March in an effort to
help reestablish the former monarchy andHindu state’s constitution. An expert ininternational court governance, Pimentelfocused exclusively on judicial reform dur-ing the three-day conference. The Communist Party of Nepal
(Maoist) won the largest number of seatsin the Constituent Assembly election heldon April 10, 2008. The party has sinceinsisted on the abolition of the monarchy,with Nepal transitioning to a democracywith an elected leader.Pimentel was one of only eight U.S.
legal experts and the only one fromFlorida who has been invited to helpNepal with its constitutional conference. One of the big issues tackled, said
Pimentel, is Nepal’s currently corrupt gov-
ernment. The American system of checksand balances, with its judicial branch, couldact as a safeguard, he said, but simplycopying the U.S. governing model overseaswould not be a solution.“You have to be very sensitive diplo-
matically because there is always a certainamount of suspicion that you are anAmerican, so all you want to do is toexport American-style justice,” he said.“The rest of the world is leery about that,especially after the American interventionin Iraq.”Pimentel previously led rule of law
efforts in the Sudan for the UnitedNations mission in 2006. He was alsoinstrumental in reforming Bosnia’s courtsystem after the Dayton Peace Accordsended the war in the Balkans in the 1990s.Although unsure if he will return to
Nepal as formal constitutional restructur-
ing moves forward, Pimentel is hopeful hisskill sets will be called upon in the comingmonths.“If my recommendations are taken,”
he said.,“I feel confident I can be of greatassistance to Nepal. I’d love to be a part ofpaving the way toward creating a betterlife for the people.” COASTAL
Professor Works Toward Reform in Nepal
COASTAL LAW’S CENTER FORLaw and Sports and the Coastal
Law Sports Law Society hosted theschool’s annual symposium in April.Entitled “NCAA Coaches’ Contracts:Diversity and Negotiating Value in the21st Century,” the day-long event provid-ed a unique opportunity to raise aware-ness and understanding of sports law,specifically, the diversity and value issuespertaining to the NCAA’s hiring processfor coaches.“It’s great for students to be able to
come in and hear about the issues frompeople involved in it,” said Rick Karcher,Associate Professor of Law and Director,Coastal Law’s Center for Law and Sports.“For local attorneys, they’re able to learnabout what’s going on out there.”The conference consisted of two panel
discussions from guest speakers withsports law expertise, including Robert H.Lattinville of Stinson Morrison HeckerLLP; Clemson Athletic Director Terry
Don Phillips; Florida State UniversityAthletic Director Randall W. Spetman;Floyd A. Keith, Executive Director of theBlack Coaches and Administrators; andN. Jeremi Duru, Associate Professor of
Law at Temple University, BeasleySchool of Law.In addition to the symposium being
free and open to the public, three CLEcredits were also offered. COASTAL
Symposium Tackles Coaches’ Contract Issues
s. Mary Podelco paid off the balance of her mort-gage on her first and only home when her husbanddied in 1994. For the first time in her life, sheowned a home free and clear. In 1995, she received aloan solicitation offering her money for home
improvements. Needing to replace her windows and heating system,she agreed to the $12,000 loan. However, Ms. Podelco’s only incomewas Social Security, and the monthly payments on the mortgagewere more than half of her monthly income. One month after signing the mortgage, the same
lender contacted her about refinancing to a lowerinterest rate. Ms. Podelco did not understandthat each time she agreed to refinance, she was,in turn, paying more fees and costs. She pro-ceeded to have her loan flipped (i.e., refinanced)six more times over the next 18 months by vari-ous subprime lenders. Each flip had an interestrate in the double digits and included around$5,000 in fees. In addition, each flip took more andmore equity out of Ms. Podelco’s home until eventually shecould not afford to make the payments, and the final lender filed aforeclosure action against her. Ultimately, Ms. Podelco lost herhome less than two years after she had owned it free and clear.1
Stories like Ms. Podelco’s are becoming more and more commonacross the country. The foreclosure epidemic is bringing into starkrelief the dangers of predatory lending. When someone gets into a badloan, the borrower is not the only one to suffer. The family, neighbors,and even the surrounding community of the borrower suffer as well.When someone loses valuable assets to a predatory lender, he mustturn elsewhere to make up that shortfall. The place he usually turns is
to his community. Or if he turns to no one, his problems grow, whichcan lead to an erosion of the community fabric.
I. What is predatory lending?Predatory lending is generally considered to be any lending that is
more expensive than justified by the risk associated with the loan.2
Normally, a lender determines the interest rate and terms of a loanbased on a person’s credit score – the lower the score the higher the
interest rate. The lender insists on the higher rate because itwants to be compensated for taking a risk on a loan thathas a lower chance of being repaid. But predatoryloans do not adhere to this lending principle. Forexample, a predatory loan would be one that has aninterest rate that is higher than justified by a per-son’s credit score, or a loan that charges for unnec-essary products, has excessive or hidden fees,and/or has terms that are designed to trap a borrow-
er in debt.3 The predatory lender is not looking tomake a fair loan; it is trying to get as much money as pos-
sible from the borrower. However, this is a very general explana-tion because, quite simply, there is no agreed upon definition ofpredatory lending.4
Indeed, it is difficult to define predatory lending because a loanfeature considered predatory in one loan may be legitimate in anoth-er.5 For example, a mortgage with an adjustable interest rate may notbe predatory for a prime borrower who is taking out the mortgageon an investment property. The borrower knows the rate will adjustin five years but plans to have improvements to the property com-pleted and the property sold before that time. The advantage of theadjustable rate to this prime borrower is that he will get a lower ini-
COV E R S TO RY
Predatory Lending and the National Effect
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tial rate that will make it easier for him to make his paymentswhile he is making improvements to the property in exchange fora higher rate later – a rate he plans never to pay. However, an adjustable rate mortgage can be predatory in other
circumstances.6 An adjustable rate mortgage would be illogical for aborrower who has a low, fixed income and cannot afford anincreased mortgage payment at a later date. Typically, such borrow-ers are not told that the rate on the mortgage will change or are toldthat if it will change, the lender or broker will refinance the mort-gage when the rate is ready to adjust. Victims of predatory lendingfrequently report that the adjustable rate nature or other predatory
terms of their loans were not disclosed to them or that a lender orlender’s agent blatantly lied to them about the terms of their loan.7
While it is true there is not a clear-cut definition of predatorylending, predatory loans typically contain certain terms or fea-tures.8 Predatory loans tend to involve fraud or deception, arestructured to result in seriously disproportionate net harm to bor-rowers, lack transparency in loans that are not actionable as fraud,and require borrowers to waive meaningful legal redress.9 In short,predatory loans are designed to take advantage of people who areleast able to defend themselves in the credit market.10
Common examples of predatory loans that are usually presentin every community include:Payday Loans – Payday loans are typically structured around
a postdated check the borrower writes in anticipation of a pay-check to be received in the future. The check includes the amountof the principal (i.e., $300) plus the fees and costs associated withthe loan (i.e., $50). The total check amount ($350) reflects anannual percentage rate (APR) that can be in the triple digits. If theborrower is unable to make good on the check, he can rollover theloan amount into a new loan – in exchange for a new fee. Theserollovers can send the borrower into a downward spiral of payingincreasingly high fees and interest on the loan and never payingback the principal.11
Title Loans – These loans are similar to payday loans, butinstead of writing a postdated check as collateral for the loan, the
borrower uses the title to a car as collateral. If the borrower isunable to pay back the loan, the title lender retains ownership ofthe car in satisfaction of the loan.12 Most people who take out titleloans do not understand that if they use a $5,000 car as collateralfor a $500 loan and are not able to make the payments on theloan, they surrender the entire $5,000 car and do not recoup theremaining $4,500. Refund Anticipation Loans – These are loans that con-
sumers can take out against tax returns. The lenders offer to pre-pare a tax return and in anticipation of the return, the lender willloan the consumer the amount of the anticipated return on the day
the return is filed instead of having the consumer wait the 7-10days for a return. These short-term loans are very expensive, andthere is little assurance the return is prepared correctly. If thereturn is not prepared correctly, the consumer is responsible forpaying any penalties to the IRS. And if the actual return is lessthan what was anticipated, the consumer is responsible for repay-ing the loaned amount – with interest.13
Credit Insurance – While credit insurance is not a loan inand of itself, it is present in the vast majority of predatory loans. Intheory, credit insurance, whether life or disability, is designed tomake the payments on a loan in the event a consumer becomesunable to pay the loan. This very expensive insurance is typicallysold by the lender who also receives a significant commission fromthe sale. The consumer pays the monthly premium on the insur-ance but rarely sees a pay-out in the event she makes a claimbecause most of the insurance companies are looking for any rea-son to deny the claim. The additional cost of the insurance is prof-it for the lender and makes the consumer’s monthly payment high-er. Most consumers do not even realize they are buying the insur-ance or, if they do, they are unaware of their right to refuse it.Regardless of how predatory lending is defined or what form it
takes, one fact remains clear: Victims of predatory lending end upwith loans they cannot afford and lose valuable rights to protectthemselves and their assets in the process. These borrowers are vic-tims because they are unsophisticated, typically uneducated, and do
Victims of predatory lending frequently report that the
adjustable rate nature or other predatory terms of their
loans were not disclosed to them or that a lender or lender’s
agent blatantly lied to them about the terms of their loan.
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not have access to prime lenders. The predatory lenders are takingadvantage of them, and there is often little a victim can do to protectherself from becoming a victim. Even worse, borrowers are not theonly ones who suffer. When a victim of predatory lending feels afinancial strain, the community feels the strain as well.
II. The Legal System’s Response to Predatory LendingFor the most part, the legal system’s response to predatory lending
has been largely ineffective. There are few existing laws that give con-sumer advocates the leverage they need to be able to adequately com-pensate victims of predatory lending. One significant impediment tostrong laws against predatory lenders is preemption. Federal law has essentially preempted any state law that
attempts to regulate predatory lending. The Office of ThriftSupervision (OTS) and the Office of the Comptroller of theCurrency (OCC) regulate national banks, nationally charteredthrifts, savings banks, and their subsidiaries.14 Since most lendersfall into one of the categories regulated by the OCC and OTS,only a small segment of state lenders would be subject to statepredatory lending laws. So far, the OTS and the OCC have donelittle to curb predatory lending other than issuing policy state-ments discouraging it as an unsound lending practice.15 However,individual consumers have no enforcement authority for the poli-cies and rules promulgated by these federal regulators. Some federal laws can help combat predatory lending. The fed-
eral Truth in Lending Act (TILA) can often be a powerfulweapon in the consumer advocate’s arsenal.16 TILA mandates thata lender provide disclosures about the true cost of the credit theborrower is receiving. It also requires that the amount financed,the annual percentage rate, the finance charges, and the totalamount paid on the loan be disclosed in writing before the con-summation of the loan. Where a payday lender fails to provide anyTILA disclosures in a transaction, a prevailing consumer would beentitled to actual and statutory damages and attorney fees. How-ever, TILA only requires that the cost of the credit be disclosed(i.e., the 300% APR); it does not regulate the amount of the costs.Where a predatory mortgage lender gives the proper TILA disclo-sures but the loan amounts or rates are unreasonably high, TILAdoes not provide any relief for the borrower. One state remedy in the consumer advocate’s arsenal is the
Unfair and Deceptive Acts and Practices statutes (UDAPs).17
UDAPs are broad statutes that typically make it illegal for a per-son or entity to commit an unfair or deceptive act. They providefor actual and statutory damages as well as attorney fees and usual-ly have generous statutes of limitations. For example, the statute oflimitations for the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices
Act is four years from the date of the deceptive act.18 However, theweakness of most UDAPs is that they commonly exempt largesections of the financial market. In Florida, for example, any bankor savings and loan that is regulated by the Office of FinancialRegulation is exempted from the statute.19 This means that anynational bank, and most other types of banks and lenders, may beimmune from a UDAP claim. Although common law claims such as unconscionability, fraud,
conversion, and other federal claims provide some relief to victims ofpredatory lending, there is no comprehensive statute that directlyaddresses the problem. Some states have been successful at passingpredatory lending statutes,20 but they are for the most part preemptedby federal law. Current law is woefully inadequate at addressing thecentral issues, which is a significant reason why predatory lendingcontinues to be so pervasive in our communities.
III. Predatory Lending Affects the Whole CommunityThe effects of predatory lending are not limited to the victims
alone. Though the practices may go unnoticed when a significantsegment of the community falls prey to predatory loans, the com-munity as a whole is affected and is forced to respond. As Ms. Podelco’s story demonstrates, when predatory lenders
take consumers’ assets, consumers have to make up for that loss insome way. If part of a person’s food budget is going to pay herpredatory mortgage, she will need food stamps or the services of asoup kitchen to get the food she needs. Otherwise, she may haveincreased health care expenses because of lack of proper nutrition.If a consumer is paying for a predatory loan as opposed to a fairloan, that consumer is spending more for the product than it isreally worth. That unearned money is going to the predatorylender, rather than being used by members of the community forvital needs such as food, shelter, health care, and transportation. The starkest example of predatory lending’s potential effect on
communities is being realized right now across the country as partof the current foreclosure crisis. When community members gettricked into mortgages they cannot afford, houses eventually gointo foreclosure, property values decrease, neighborhoods erode,crime rises, homelessness increases, and the city loses valuableincome on property taxes.21 Suddenly, homeowners who are cur-rent with their prime mortgages are finding that they owe morethan their homes are worth because surrounding property valueshave decreased so drastically.22
Foreclosures are not the only example of how predatory lendingcan affect entire communities. When victims of refund anticipationloans have significant portions of their return retained by lendersrather than available for their own use, it becomes less likely that they
will have the resources to put a deposit down on an apartment sothey can move out of public housing or to catch up on a late mort-gage payment instead of turning to city welfare agencies. Whenmoney goes to predatory lenders instead of the consumerswho can least afford to pay, these consumers willinevitably turn to city and charitable agenciesfor help with the basic necessities thatthey can no longer afford. The morepredatory lending occurs, the morethe community’s resources aredepleted. If a community stops or sig-
nificantly limits the amount ofpredatory lending, the local vic-tims of predatory lending will beless likely to require assistance fromthe community’s agencies, and morelikely to sustain and improve theirlifestyles. Consequently, the challengebecomes how to prevent predatorylending in the first place.
IV. Proposals for ChangeWhile the causes and effects of predatory lending are relatively
easy to identify, the remedy is much more elusive. There is no simplesolution to this problem. Part of the difficulty lies in the lack ofagreement on the definition of predatory lending itself. Without anability to define it, it becomes almost impossible to eradicate it. Forexample, while adjustable interest rate mortgages are very common inpredatory loans, banning adjustable interest rates from all loanswould not necessarily stop predatory lending. First, there is a certainsegment of the population for whom adjustable interest rates areappropriate. Second, adjustable interest rates are not necessarilypredatory in and of themselves. However, an adjustable rate maybecome predatory when combined with brokers who lie about theexistence of the rate, and lenders whose customers on fixed incomeswill not be able to afford the payment after the rate adjusts.Some advocates believe consumers should be better informed
about the terms of their loans because if a consumer fully under-stands the deal that she is getting she will be more likely to walkaway from the deal.23 Additional disclosures would only solve partof the problem, though. Many consumers either do not read or donot understand the disclosures that they are given. Almost everyloan comes with disclosures required by TILA that describe thefinance charges and total cost for the loan.24 But most consumersreport they did not see these disclosures in the stack of documentsthey had to sign and if they did see them, they did not understand
what they meant.25 Therefore, additional disclosures, while helpful,will not solve the problem entirely. Even if more consumers understood the terms of their loans,they still may have no choice but to accept the terms.
Predatory lenders tend to thrive in economicallydepressed areas because they are the only
lenders to which the community hasaccess.26 Many consumers may prefernot to use a payday lender, but in theabsence of any national banks in thearea, they may have no otherchoice for a short-term loan.27
One solution is to make illegalcertain types of predatory lending,such as payday loans and refundanticipation loans. The danger in thisproposal is that those with subprime
credit histories need some access to credit,even if it is more expensive. As distasteful aspayday lenders are, in their absence it is
likely that the old days of loan sharking could resurface.At least payday lenders are regulated by existing laws, whereas loansharking is completely unregulated. If subprime lending is a necessary evil and it is impossible to iden-
tify loan terms that are purely predatory, what options does a com-munity have? Several recommendations listed below may not solvethe problem entirely, but may curb the effects of predatory lending.Community Development Banks –These are entities
designed to provide capital and rebuild lower income communi-ties.28 They lend to low- and moderate-income homebuyers29 andcan present an alternative to predatory lenders. A communitydevelopment bank (CBD) does more than just help homebuyers;its mission is to resurrect the tradition of a hometown, neighbor-hood-based bank. Using sound and reasonable banking principles,CBDs work to revitalize and develop a targeted geographic com-munity.30 A small number of successful CBDs exist in the country,and those few are enormously successful. For example, the SouthShore Bank in Chicago and the Elk Horn Bank & Trust inArkansas have both been very successful in their communities.31
CBDs are not appropriate for every community and would noteliminate predatory lending, but their presence in a communitywould give low-income residents one alternative to using predato-ry lenders. Stronger Consumer Protection Laws – Empowering
individuals to fight specific incidents of predatory lending can leadto widespread relief for many in a community. State and federallegislatures need to pass more consumer protection statutes that
Even if more
consumers understood
the terms of their
loans, they still may
have no choice but
to accept the terms.
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1 Predatory Mortgage Lending: The Problem,Impact and Responses: Hearing Before the U.S.Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, andUrban Affairs, 107th Cong. 1-2 (2001) (statementof Ms. Carol Mackey, Private Citizen).
2 National Consumer Law Center, Stop PredatoryLending 256 (2nd ed. 2007).
3 Supra, note 2. 4 Stevens v. Deutsche Bank Nat. Trust Co., No.
2:08-cv-145-UA-SPC, 2009 WL 248239, at *1(M.D. Fla. Jan. 30, 2009).
5 Stephen Painter, Subprime Lending,Suboptimal Bankruptcy: A Proposal to Amend§§ 522(F)(1)(B) and 548(A)(1)(B) of theBankruptcy Code to Protect SubprimeMortgage Borrowers and their UnsecuredCreditors, 38 LYUCHILJ 81, 87 (2006).
6 Painter, supra note 5.7 R.G. Quercia, M.A. Stegman, & W.R. Davis,
The Impact of North Carolina’s Anti-PredatoryLending Law: A Descriptive Assessment 2003Center for Community Capitalism, at 4.
8 Gary Rice, New Strategies for Financial
Institutions in the E_Commerce Economy, 1206PLI/Corp 1037 (2000) (see Attachment 4:Testimony on Predatory Lending before theCommittee on Banking and Financial ServicesUnited States House of Representatives, 106thCong. 1102 (2000) (statement of Ellen Seidman,Director of Office of Thrift Supervision).
9 Kathleen C. Engel & Patricia A. McCoy, A Taleof Three Markets, The Law and Economics ofPredatory Lending, 80 Tex. L. Rev. 1255, 1260(2002).
10 Lloyd T. Wilson, Effecting Responsibility in theMortgage Broker-Borrower Relationship: A Rolefor Agency Principles in Predatory LendingRegulation, 73 UCINLR 1471, 1473 (2005).
11 Jenkins v. First Am. Cash Advance of Ga., LLC,400 F.3d 868, 871 (11th Cir. 2005).
12 See Annesley H. DeGaris, AAJ AnnualConvention Reference Materials, Am. Ass’n forJustice (2007.)
13 Pac. Capital Bank, N.A. v. Conn., No. 3:06-CV-28(PCD), 2006 U.S. Dist. WL 2331075, at *1(D. Conn. Aug. 10, 2006).
14 Elizabeth F. Brown, E Pluribus Unum—Out ofMany, One: Why the United States Needs aSingle Financial Services Agency, 14 UMIABLR1, 14-15 (2005).
15 Bank Activities and Operations; Real EstateLending and Appraisals, 69 C.F.R. §§ 1904,1908, 1913, 1914 (2004).
16 15 U.S.C. §§ 1601-1693r. (2000). 17 See, e.g. Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade
Practices Act, Fla. Stat. § 501.202 et seq. (2008). 18 S. Motor Co. of Dade County v. Doktorczyk, 957
So. 2d 1215, 1216 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007); Fla. Stat.§ 95.11(3)(f ) (2008).
19 Fla. Stat. § 501.212(b)-(c) (2008). 20 N.C. Gen. Stat. § 24-1.1E et seq. (2007). 21 Laura Dietrich, Massachusetts’ New Predatory
Lending Law and the Expanding Rift BetweenFederal and State Lending Protection, 26BCTWLJ 169, 184 ( 2006).
22 See Curbing Predatory Home Mortgage Lending28-30 (HUD, June 2000) available at http://www.huduser.org/publications/hsgfin/curbing.html.
23 Subprime Credit Crisis: Everything You Need to
Know Now, 1668 PLI/Corp 493, 504 (2008). 24 15 U.S.C. § 1605, 1606 (1995). 25 Debra Goldstein, Protecting Consumers From
Predatory Lenders: Defining the Problem andMoving Toward Workable Solutions, 35 HVCR-LLR 225, 235-236 (2000).
26 Danrellena Christie Burnett, Justice in Housing:Curbing Predatory Lending, 15-APR NBAM 14,14 (2001).
27 Deena Reynolds, A Look at Payday Loans &Current Regulation in Texas, 8 TXTALJ 321, 327(2007).
28 Rochelle E. Lento, Community DevelopmentBanking Strategy for Revitalizing OurCommunities, 27 UMIJLR 773, 776 (1994).
29 Lento, supra note 28. 30 Lento, supra note 28, at 781.31 Lento, supra note 28, at 783. 32 See, e.g. CARE Program: Credit Abuse Resistance
Education, http://www.careprogram.us/ (programinitiated by bankruptcy judge, Judge Ninfo).
actually protect consumers. The federal government needs toreduce the scope of its preemption of national banks. States arethe best laboratories for testing different solutions to the predato-ry lending problem. But right now, their hands are tied by pre-emption, and the federal entities responsible for regulating preda-tory lending in national banks are ineffective. Perhaps the most useful legislation would be statutes that
address predatory lending specifically. For example, one statutecould address predatory mortgage lending and another couldaddress other types of predatory lending (payday loans, refundanticipation loans, etc.). Consumer advocates would then havestatutes that directly combat predatory lending instead of onlyattacking the collateral problems outside the core of the transac-tion. Such statutes could im pose interest rate caps on certaintypes of loans and require disclosures that advise the borrower ofthe dangerous nature of the terms of the loan. For consumer protection statutes to be truly effective, they
need to provide for significant statutory damages and attorneyfees. Strong consumer statutes are useless if a victim is required topay an attorney a significant retainer up front just to obtain repre-sentation. Most consumer attorneys work on a contingency-feebasis; they count on recouping their fees and costs at the end ofthe case through the statutory entitlement to attorney fees. Mostvictims of predatory lending not only cannot afford an attorney’sretainer, but often have suffered damages significantly less than anattorney would charge to file the case. Fee provisions allow con-sumer attorneys to devote themselves to being effective consumerlaw advocates without fear of being unable to collect fees. Education – The best solution to a problem is preventing it
in the first place. While it seems a daunting task to educate allconsumers about the many aspects of financial transactions, advo-cates have been able to make significant headway in alerting themost vulnerable consumers to the dangers of the various types ofpredatory loans. Advocates have begun going into local schools toteach financial literacy,32 and many legal aid offices hold clinics onvarious consumer protection topics. Many victims of predatorylending suffer from a significant imbalance of informationbetween the lender and the borrower; the lender knows exactlythe implications of the predatory loan, while the borrower usuallyunderstands very little. Explaining the tricks and the deceptioninherent in predatory loans will help borrowers make informeddecisions about the loans they are getting.
V. ConclusionThere are certainly no easy solutions to a problem that is
complex and defies classification. But communities must searchfor solutions to predatory lending or they will inevitably suffer.Stories like Ms. Podelco’s are not uncommon, and when hard-working citizens like her lose their homes, the fabric of the community begins to disintegrate. It is impossible for such a pervasive and insidious problem not to have a ripple effectthrough the community. Instead of lining the pockets of predato-ry lenders at the public’s expense, states and communities mustlook for ways to keep the hard-earned money in the pockets ofthe local citizens. COASTAL
Professor Laura Boeckman is the supervising attorney for the Consumer Law
Clinic at Florida Coastal School of Law. She would like to express her deep grati-
tude to Wendy Arcuri without whom this article would not have been possible.
P E R S P E C T I V E S
Student Clinicians Serveon the Front Lines
xpensive car repairs quickly catch a deaf Jacksonville resi-dent up in a financial crisis, leaving her behind on her mort-gage and facing foreclosure. Months later, she regains theability to make her mortgage payment, but cannot get the
mortgage company to talk to her. The company filed a foreclosure,but after five months of litigation has still not been able to prove itactually owns her mortgage. In addition, it has been force-placing aflood insurance policy on her property despite her already having anexisting policy, and it continues to send notices of the force-placedinsurance to her ex-husband’s address. Sound like a law school examquestion? Students in Florida Coastal’s clinical programs know thescenario is all too real. While there are legal service agencies in Northeast Florida that
assist those who lack the means to hire legal representation, theresources of these agencies are more limited than ever. The “perfectstorm” of economic crisis and fewer resources has placed CoastalLaw students on the front lines of defense for many. Clinical programs once primarily providing services to indigent
clients are finding themselves serving more and more of the work-ing poor in the community. Coastal Law students are seeing thepervasive effects of the economic crisis first hand, and as a resultare experiencing new and unique opportunities to learn while giv-ing a helping hand to those in need. As student clinicians gainboth the satisfaction of assisting clients and opportunities to refinepractical skills, they are discovering the enormity of the crisis whileat the same time learning how one financial “domino” leads to amultitude of legal problems.
Needs are many, diverseCreated in response to the growing need and from appeals for
help from local legal aid organizations, Coastal Law’s newHousing Rights Clinic students quickly filled their caseload withproblems ranging from basic landlord/tenant issues tosubsidized/public housing matters to fair housing reasonableaccommodation/modification requests. “With the economy being in the state that it is and with the num-
ber of foreclosures of homes and even rental properties being way up,the demand for lower income rental housing is far surpassing the sup-ply right now,” said Professor Lois Ragsdale, who oversees the
E
I L L U S T R A T I O N B Y D A N V A S C O N C E L L O S
In trying times, Coastal Law studentsrepresent Jacksonville’s underserved
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Housing Rights Clinic. “So many people are looking for subsidizedoptions right now because there is literally nowhere else to go.”Often tempted by a too-good-to-be-true financial “quick fix”
to their problems, those clients living on the economic edge fallvictim to fraudulent schemes in increasingly higher numbers.Not surprisingly, the Consumer Law Clinic has seen a signifi-cant increase in its caseload as well, with student clinicians thisschool year spending numerous hours working with clients,while being confronted with the ever-innovative ways companiesdefraud consumers. “More recently, we have been actively involved with the housing
crisis, with about half of our cases involvingforeclosure defense,” said Professor LauraBoeckman, who oversees the Consumer LawClinic. “And while these cases are extremelytime-consuming and complex, the studentsdo a wonderful job picking up where the pre-vious clinician left off and carry the case for-ward for another semester.” The other half of the Clinic’s cases,Boeckman said, involved protecting people from illegal debt collec-tion practices.
Financial hardship puts strain on families,exacerbates other problemsCertainly, the current economic situation has had an impact on
the clinical work associated with fiscal issues, but financial problemscan also put a strain on families and exacerbate other problems.“As is often the case, one client can bring a number of issues,”
said Professor Rebekah Gleason of the Family Law Clinic. “Onesuch case involved a child, K.R., with several disabilities who alsofound himself in the middle of a delinquency case largely due theimpact of his disabilities.“Without the clinicians’ assistance, K.R. would likely be in a
juvenile detention center without necessary academic services, andunable to advocate for himself,” Gleason said.Coastal Law’s Family Law Clinic covers issues ranging from
assisting clients in dissolutions of marriage including custody,adoptions, guardianships and paternity actions. The clinic alsospecializes in matters relating specifically to children, includingdelinquency, dependency, and special education. These practiceareas touch on what are sometimes volatile emotional arenas forfamilies under normal circumstances. Mix in financial problemsand the problems get worse. Likewise, the clinics that cover issues related to social security
disability claims, Medicaid and Medicare benefits, and advancedirectives expect to see a full caseload as more people are funneledinto the entitlements system after losing their jobs.
The “upside to the downslide” – developingvaluable practical skills in studentsFrom an educational and practice skills standpoint, the irony of
the situation is that Coastal students are getting a valuablepracticum in real-life issues that might not normally arise in thevariety and frequency that the economic crisis has produced. “The Clinic was successful this past semester in getting several
debt collection cases against our clients dismissed because of illegalcollection practices by the debt collector,” said Boeckman. “As impor-tant as these cases are, they also present wonderful opportunities forthe students to go to court for hearings and to usually have their case
resolved during one semester.” Additional opportunities have arisen in
search/seizure issues in civil cases, DART(drug abatement response team) and condemnation proceedings, fair creditreporting act questions, tenants in foreclosed properties, security deposits
and small claims proceedings. In its first semester alone, CoastalLaw students provided representation to 18 cases referred to theHousing Rights Clinic, from initial interview to completion; and eight cases remain pending. Clinicians also trained and subsequently acted as fair housing testers for rental properties, andattended a Fair Housing Symposium sponsored by the JacksonvilleHuman Rights Commission.Professor Ragsdale, who has more than 20 years’ experience
representing the indigent, noted that based on the sheer number ofcases referred to the housing rights clinic, students are getting a tasteof what it’s like to work at an accelerated rate. “It’s not an option for us to get back to a client ‘some time next
week,’ ” she said. “After we get the call, we need to be ready tomove within 24-48 hours because these kinds of cases can’t wait.“To broaden the clinicians’ exposure to client interviewing, they
were also given the opportunity to view courtroom proceedings atthe Duval County Courthouse, and to interview potential clientsat Jacksonville Area Legal Aid,” said Ragsdale. “I am also in theprocess of setting up a pro bono intake night at Jacksonville AreaLegal Aid for future clinical students.” In addition to gaining experience representing real clients, the
students also are given a chance to develop and participate in pre-ventative measures designed to help people make the decisions thatwill keep a crisis at bay.
“I routinely expect a lot out of my students, but they reallyexceeded my expectations this semester,” said Professor ErikaCurran, who oversees the Immigrant Rights Clinic. “They workedvery hard and won some significant and wide-ranging cases. I’mextremely impressed and proud of them.” COASTAL
15
Clinical programs once primarily
providing services to indigent
clients are finding themselves
serving more and more of the
working poor in the community.
Mike Roland, Class of 2007, Defends Consumer Rights
I N P R AC T I C E
Leaving the West Coast with a degree in MusicComposition from the University of California, SantaBarbara, and a master’s in Business Administration fromSan Jose State, Coastal Law alumnus Mike Roland
headed to the East Coast to study at Coastal Law in 2004. Roland, like many students new to law school, said he had an
idea of what he wanted to do with his JD, but his plans quicklychanged along the way. Though first taking an interest in constitu-tional law, Roland said he quickly fell in love with consumer lawfollowing a discussion with some of his professors. “There are many areas of law that are just out to get people,
and even many attorneys have that reputation,” said Roland, “but Iknew that I could never take a position that would hurt others.”“I found Consumer Law to be a positive area of law where
attorneys can do a lot of good for people.”Roland continued to pursue his interest in consumer law,
eventually signing up for Professor Laura Boeckman’s consumerlaw clinic during his second year. He enjoyed the class so muchhe enrolled twice.
“Mike was definitely very interestedin consumer cases and protectingour clients’ consumer interests,”said Boeckman. “He was a sen-ior clinician – meaning he tookthe clinic for one semesterand then took clinic creditsagain the following semesterso that he could continue towork on his cases.“Mike was a passionate and
eager student. He had a lot ofcompassion for his clients
and worked very hard to advocate for their interests.” Adds Roland, who refined his research and writing skills
while clerking: “The clinic had a huge impact in preparing mefor my career. It’s a good way to apply practical issues with allareas of the law.”Leading up to his graduation, Roland approached Boeckman
about helping him start his career – a task she was only too happyto accept. “I worked with Mike on helping him find a job in the consumer
field because I think it is important to help new attorneys who wantto do consumer law, especially those who possess the level of hardwork and dedication that Mike has,” she said. “The consumer lawattorneys are a close-knit group, and I knew I could find someonewho was doing consumer work that would be able to hire him.”Roland is currently still living near a beach and working with
two other attorneys at Consumer Law Center, P.A., in Bradenton,Florida. With the current economic crisis, Roland said his lawfirm has been busier than others, especially when considering theincrease in the number of people who are unable to afford theirmortgages. At the center, the firm also handles issues pertaining to bank-
ruptcies, foreclosure and credit card defense, predatory lendingabuse, and auto fraud/repossession. For Roland, the fact that he isable to do good for people with these problems is a reward initself.“Sometimes I’m working with people who are going through a
bankruptcy and it’s probably the most traumatizing point in theirlives,” he said. “But, I get this positive feeling when I’m able toprovide them with that step in the right direction.” When asked what advice he would give to law students inter-
ested in consumer law, Roland stressed the importance of takingthe class first to see if it is truly something of interest. Also, learnthe basics about local court rules combined with civil procedures. “But most importantly, don’t worry about money,” he
said. “There’s a pleasure in doing good, which sufficiently pays itself.” COASTAL
To do good for people is its own reward.
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L E S S O N S I N P R O F E S S I O N A L I S M
Everyday Ethics
BY ROBERT HORNSTE I N
Assistant Professor of Law
In 1996, I represented a disabled non-English speaking 12-year-old student whohad been placed under suspension from his mid-
dle school in a Central Florida school district. The student had asevere case of Tourette’s syndrome and several related behavioraland emotional disorders.That fall, the school district filed for an injunction in the local
state circuit court to remove the child from the school house onthe ground he posed a danger to others and to himself. At theemergency hearing, the attorney for the school district declared:“Isn’t it wonderful? Under Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act, whichis the statute that [the student’scounsel] loves . . . there is now a cat-egory for socially maladjusted.“I mean are we to be faulted that
we’ve come here today before some-one has been hurt? Is what [the stu-dent’s counsel] would suggest thatwe need to wait [until] there’s blood?“We can’t run a school if we’re
forced to put [the student] back. Ithink the worst thing that . . . canhappen to [the trial court] [is] youcan get reversed and I’ll go downfighting to make sure [you don’t].“[P]erhaps [the student’s counsel]
would like to live in the world wherethe inmates run the prison. ”The use of language is not only a
core concern of good advocacy, butprofessionalism as well. Here, incen-diary language was used in aid of an
adversarial position. You can say that the school district’s lawyerwielded a linguistic hammer rather than a deft adversarial scalpel. Missing from his calculus were the weighty concerns of profes-
sionalism that inform any use of language by a lawyer. That criticalomission would ultimately prove fatal in the end. The
judge was not moved by the school district’slawyer’s arguments and denied the request for aninjunction.The stock-in-trade of the legal profession is
language and judgment. How language is used is notonly a core concern of good advocacy but professionalism as well.Using language to demean and degrade opposing counsel is nei-ther good advocacy, nor is it good judgment. All too often lawyerssubstitute sharp-edged language for carefully crafted argumentsthat persuade. That was done in this case, though thankfully it did not yield
the intended results. COASTAL
Wise Words Will Never Hurt You
17
InfusingProfessionalism with Winning Arguments
A W A R D S , A C H I E V E M E N T S A N D H I G H L I G H T S
Student News
FLORIDA COASTAL SCHOOL OFLaw has earned an invitation to
compete in the Moot Court NationalChampionship (MCNC), an annual competi-tion held in Houston. The Championship,which is open to the top 16 moot court pro-grams across the country, will take place inJanuary.“Florida Coastal’s appellate advocacy pro-
gram has emerged as one of the nation’s eliteprograms,” said Professor Sander Moody,Coastal Law’s Moot Court Honor BoardFaculty Advisor. “The competitions are strictlymerit-based. Anonymous grading removeseverything else to reveal work ethic and ability.The competitions show which law studentsconsistently perform at the highest level in legalresearch and writing and oral advocacy. Thisconsistent record of achievement by FloridaCoastal’s Moot Court students reveals them forwhat they are – among the best in the nation atwhat attorneys do.” In addition to being recognized as the top
law school from the state of Florida, CoastalLaw is ranked among the top 10 ABA-accredited law schools in the country.Columbia University, University ofPennsylvania, Washington University, St.Louis, and William & Mary earned top-20moot court rankings. Coastal Law is the onlylaw school in Florida to be invited to theNational Championship.As part of the qualifying process for the
MCNC, the approximately 200 ABA-accred-ited law schools across the country earn pointsbased on their performances in major moot
court competitions each academic year. This year alone, Coastal Law won a
national title at a prestigious competitionhosted by the Williams Institute at UCLA,defeating New York University in the finals,and a championship in a competition hostedby the Navy’s JAG Corp, defeating theUniversity of Florida in the finals. FloridaCoastal’s Moot Court students reached thefinal round in six of the nine moot court com-petitions they attended this year.In the nine moot court competitions,
Coastal Law won three Best Brief Awards,
including winning the Best Brief Award at theFlorida state championship, and six BestAdvocate Awards. Coastal also had a briefplace in the top 10% at an international com-mercial arbitration competition in Vienna,Austria, attended by more than 230 lawschools from around the world.“It’s been rewarding to watch the most
competitive law firms and other organiza-tions here in Florida, and across the countryand in Europe, recognize this in grantinginterviews and job offers to our students,”Moody said. COASTAL
Taken at this year’s moot court internal competition at the United States Courthouse,Jacksonville: Team co-champions, Lindsay Brye and Jennifer Dunne (second and fourth from left),with Judge Robert M. Foster of Florida’s Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, Senior Judge James C.Hill of Florida Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, and team coach Professor Sander Moody.
Coastal Law Ranked in National Top 10School will compete at Moot Court National Championship in January 2010
Scientist on European Union Death Row Visits Coastal Law
In March, Coastal Law’s Criminal Law and International Law Societies, and the school’sinternational law faculty members, hosted scientist Constantin Rauta as part of a legalconference held on campus. A former Romanian spy and now a U.S. scientist, Rauta was
sentenced to death for treason in 1974. The High Court of Romania recently upheld thedecision despite abolishing the death penalty in 1990.“This was a case that fell through the cracks,” said second-year Coastal Law student
Andrei Nana, who presented the idea for the conference after his discovery of Rauta’s case.“I just want to try to raise the issue and examine both sides of it.”After Nana and Rauta presented their information, the panel of international law faculty
from Coastal Law discussed the case.“The Romanian High Court upholding his death sentence seems to be another example
of a judicial system refusing to come to grips with the fundamental issues of justice that theyshould be considering,” said Professor David Pimentel. “It’s the fundamental problem of how
you deal with bad justice that was done before the conflict, now in the post-conflict environment.”The sentence was originally handed down when Rauta was working as the Chief of the Foreign Intelligence Directorate.
Shortly after Rauta defected to the U.S., he was found guilty of treason by the Romanian court for giving away sealed letters ofthe state.As a U.S. citizen and scientist, Rauta has contributed to the development of the Hubble, Landsat, EOS and Kobe
satellite systems. COASTAL
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AS PART OF THE ACTIVITIESANDpresentations during Coastal Law’s
Annual Law Week in March, students pre-sented Judge Gerald Bard Tjoflat with the2009 Justice Ehrlich Award. Tjoflat, of theEleventh Circuit Court ofAppeals, accepted the distinc-tion during a banquet held atthe Hyatt Regency JacksonvilleRiverfront.The Ehrlich Award is pre-
sented annually to a member ofthe legal community who is notonly a pioneer in his/her pro-fessional life, but also a greathumanitarian. The selectioncommittee criteria included a review of thenominee's professional accomplishments,community involvement, ethical standards,and the embodiment of Coastal Law student ideals.“Lawyers are what make the system
work," Ehrlich once said. “The Bill of Rights,which means so much to all of us, wouldn'tbe worth the paper it's written on except for a
vigilant and strong Bar. If somebody thinkshis rights have been violated, he can find agood lawyer who will challenge it in thecourts. And that's the way it should be.”Outgoing SBA president Brian Strickland
said Tjoflat represents more than the standard level of profes-sionalism and civility. Rather, hesaid, he is the example.
“Judge Tjoflat has spent alifetime of service in the legalprofession representing theideals of professionalism andservice that reflect the founda-tion of our legal education atFlorida Coastal,” said Brian
Strickland, outgoing SBA president. “Anyyoung lawyer would be wise to follow in hisfootsteps.”In addition to recognizing Tjoflat at the
banquet, the results of the SBA officer elec-tions were revealed.Students elected their new SBA officers
for the fall during the school’s Law Week inMarch. COASTAL
THE JAMES WELDON Johnson chapter of the Black Law
Students Association (BLSA) had anexceptional school year. The group startedoff with a Coastal Law record of 115members, and finished being namedBLSA Chapter of the Year by theSouthern Region of the Black LawStudents Association. The chapter earnedthe achievement by providing its mem-bers with benefits such as its AcademicEnrichment program and Mentorshipprogram and then by achieving morethan 145 hours of community service inthe fall semester alone.Additionally, the group sent Mock Trial
and Moot Court teams to competitions atthe convention, where they made strides. The Mock Trial team competed in the
Thurgood Marshall Competition, where it won both of the preliminary rounds.The Moot Court team advanced to thequarterfinals, and also earned BestRespondent Brief honors. COASTAL
Students Honor Judge Tjoflat at Law Week Banquet BLSA Chapter EarnsNational Distinction
Constantin Rauta and CoastalLaw student Andrei Nana.
Professor Jim Cataland
Professor Jim Cataland has been appointedto a second term on the advisory board of theWomen’s Business Center of NorthFlorida. The organization providesvarious programs and services tobusinesswomen in a seven-county region. ProfessorCataland is also a judge forselection of the WomanFranchisee of the Year. He is alsoserving on the charter Second StageAdvisory Board, an initiative of theJacksonville Chamber of Commerce. Theboard is dedicated to the development of pro-grams and resources to support the continuedgrowth of successful local companies with 10to 100 employees, and annual revenue from
one to fifty million dollars.
Professor Elizabeth DeCoux
Professor Elizabeth DeCoux (left) spoke atthe First International Conference on
Animal Law in Montreal in May.She will also serve on a paneladdressing Animal Law issues atthe 2009 Annual Meeting inDenver, Colo., of the Associationfor Law and Society. Closer to
home, she served as SantaClaus for Pet Pictures with
Santa at PetCo, raising a tidy sumfor Saving Animals ThroughEducation.
Professor Cleveland Ferguson
Professor Cleveland Ferguson III
(below) has been selected to chair the Budgetand Audit Committee of the Florida LegalServices, Inc. (FLS). In addition to assistingmanagement and the Executive Committee inthe formulation of the FLS budget, the com-mittee makes recommendations on monetary,auditing, and investment policy. For moreinformation, visit http://www.floridalegal.org/.
Professor Roger Groves
Professor Roger Groves made a sympo-sium presentation on digital entrepre-
neurship and the evolving interna-tional business applications ofFacebook at a conference at theWest Virginia UniversityCollege of Law in March.Professor Groves has also become
the Puerto Rican Chamber of
H I G H L I G H T S , A C H I E V E M E N T S A N D A P P O I N T M E N T S
Faculty News
Professor Rick Karcher
On November 7, Professor Karcher gave a presentation on professional sports leagues disciplining players foroff-field misconduct at a symposium at Seton Hall University.On December 10, he was a speaker at Street & Smith’s seventh annual Intercollegiate Athletics
Forum on a panel titled Tackling Fantasy Football in College Athletics, discussing right-of-publicity issues relatedto commercial use of amateur athletes’ names and likenesses.
On January 6, Karcher testified at a bench trial as an expert witness on behalf of the plaintiff in the case ofOliver v. NCAA, Case No. 2008-CV-0762. The plaintiff, a pitcher at Oklahoma State University, was suspended forviolating the NCAA’s “no agent” rule, which prohibits a lawyer from communicating with professional clubs onbehalf of a student-athlete concerning the prospects of signing a professional contract. On February 12, in a
27-page opinion, the Common Pleas Court of Erie County, Ohio, ruled in favor of the plaintiff and deter-mined that the rule is void as “arbitrary and capricious and against the public policy of the State of
Ohio as well as all states within this Union and further limits the player’s ability to effectivelynegotiate a contract.”
On February 19, Professor Karcher participated as a panelist in a teleconference spon-sored by the ABA Section of Antitrust Law and the ABA Center for Continuing LegalEducation entitled “Whose Home Run is it Anyway? Practical Advice on IntellectualProperty Issues in Sports.” COASTAL
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Commerce Liaison and Board of Directormember to Jaxport on international trade.Fully 75% of exports from Jaxport are toPuerto Rico. He also played the piano as part of the Presidential Inaugural Ballfestivities at the Mayflower Hotel,Washington, D.C.
Professor Susan Harthill
Professor Susan Harthill’s(right) recent ERISA articlewas accepted for publicationin the April volume of theOklahoma Law Review. Thisarticle explores whether make-whole relief, a traditional form ofrelief under trust law, is available forparticipants and beneficiaries of ERISA-governed employee welfare benefit planswho have been harmed by a breach of fidu-ciary duty. Professor Harthill presented thisarticle in November at the Third AnnualColloquium on Current Scholarship inLabor and Employment Law (San Diego).Professor Harthill guest lectured on the
topic of bullying in the workplace at theCharlotte School of Law. The lecture was onFebruary 17, via teleconference, in ProfessorMeredith Jeffries’ course Employment Law:Workplace Health and Safety. Professor Harthill presented a similar
topic to the faculty of Coastal Law onMarch 4, at the inaugural FacultyColloquium. The colloquiumwill be a monthly event forthe faculty to present theirscholarly work and isorganized by the Ad HocCommittee on FacultyScholarship, consisting of
Professor Harthill, ProfessorQuince Hopkins, Professor
Lucille Ponte and ProfessorNareissa Smith. Professor Harthill was
also very active in her con-tinued association with theJacksonville Human RightsCommission ( JHRC).Professors Harthill and
McDowell worked with the JHRC toestablish an internship for Coastal Law students at the JHRC and the first internbegan working at JHRC, this semester. InFebruary, Professor Harthill invited guestspeakers from JHRC to her EmploymentDiscrimination class to speak on the workof the JHRC. And, in March, members ofher Employment Discrimination class wereguests at a JRHC brown bag lunch program in which EEOC representativesdiscussed the 2008 ADA AmendmentsAct. Professor Harthill was also a guest ofthe JHRC, along with Professor LynnMcDowell, at an evening with author BlissBroyard, discussing her book One Drop and
how racial identities are defined andtheir impact on our society.
Professor NancyHogshead-Makar
Professor Hogshead-Makar (left) has been electedto the Board of the Forum for
the Scholarly Study of
21
Professor Lucille Ponte
Professor Ponte’s article “Preserving Creativity from Endless Digital Exploitation: Has the TimeCome for the New Concept of Copyright Dilution?” was published in Boston University’s Journalof Science and Technology Law in February 2009.
Professor Ponte delivered her paper “Echoes of the Sumptuary Impulse: Considering theThreads of Social Identity, Economic Protectionism, and Public Morality in the Proposed DesignPiracy Prohibition Act (DPPA)” at the Intellectual Property Scholars Roundtable at DrakeUniversity School of Law in Des Moines, Iowa, on February 27-28. The paper reviews the historicalobjectives of pre-industrial sumptuary codes, government control over social identity, the reinforce-ment of public morality, and the implementation of economic protectionism. These underlying objectives are also apparent in thelegislative history and testimony in support of the recently proposed DPPA, which seeks to expand copyright protection to fash-ion designs. The article warns that the proponents of the DPPA will need to recognize why these earlier laws failed if they wish toenact and successfully implement the proposed DPPA today.Her article “Preserving Creativity from Endless Digital Exploitation: Has the Time Come for the New Concept of Copyright
Dilution?” has been published at 15 Boston University Journal of Science & Technology Law, 34-101 (2009). The article discusses theinternational legal issue of the moral rights of attribution and integrity for creative works and proposes a new legal theory ofcopyright dilution to protect such rights in an increasingly digital open content environment.In addition, her published article “Coming Attractions: Opportunities and Challenges in Thwarting Global Movie Piracy” (45
Am. Bus. L. J. 331 (Summer 2008)) has been reprinted in a social science version as a chapter in the book The Global Challenge ofIntellectual Property Rights (Robert Bird and Subhash C. Jain, eds., Elgar Publishing, 2009). The article critiques the current digitalrights management (DRM) regimen and calls on the film industry to learn key lessons from the success of the “piracy businessmodel” to reduce global copyright infringement. COASTAL
Intercollegiate Athletics in Higher Education.She will also serve on the editorial board ofthe Journal of Intercollegiate Sport, which isedited by the Forum. The Forum presents anacademic colloquium on issues in intercolle-giate athletics just prior to the annual meetingof the NCAA in early January. Professor Hogshead-Makar wrote an
amicus brief on behalf of the Women’s SportsFoundation (where she is counsel of record) onbehalf of plaintiffs in Mansourian v. Regents ofthe University of California, et al., in the NinthCircuit, Civil Case No. 03-cv-02591-FCD-EFB, February 9, 2009. Other parties thatsigned onto the brief were the NationalAssociation for Girls and Women in Sport(NAGWS), the Feminist MajorityFoundation, Northeastern University CenterSport in Society, Dads & Daughters, and theSporting Goods Manufacturing Association(SGMA). Professor Hogshead-Makar presented at
the NCAA’s Scholarly Colloquium January 14in Washington, D.C. Her topic wasImplementing the NCAA’s Pregnancy andParenting Policies, with her coauthor,
Elizabeth Sorensen, Ph.D., RN, CNOR,Assistant Professor-College of Nursing andHealth NCAA Faculty AthleticsRepresentative, Wright State University.
Professor Michael Lewyn
Michael Lewyn (right) continues to par-ticipate in the Planetizen urban planningblog, at http://planetizen. com/inter-change.He was recently named con-
tributing editor of the“Keeping Current” section ofProbate & Property, a publica-tion of the ABA RealProperty, Trust, and EstateLaw Section. In addition, hecontinues to write for Folio Weekly;his articles are available in the “Op-Eds”section of his web page at http://works.bepress.com/lewyn .
Professor Marc C. McAllister
Professor Marc McAllister’s article analyz-ing the scope of third-party consent in thepost-Georgia v. Randolph world was recently
published in the Cleveland State Law Review,accessible at 56 Clev. St. L. Rev. 663 (2008).Professor McAllister has also accepted anoffer to publish his most recent article in theSpring 2009 edition of the Case WesternReserve Law Review. The Case Western article, entitled “Down But Not Out: Why GilesLeaves Forfeiture by Wrongdoing Still
Standing,” builds upon his first con-frontation clause article published inthe Florida State Law Review inSpring 2007, and contends thatthe Supreme Court in Giles v.California, 128 S.Ct. 2678(2008) unduly limited thescope of a confrontation exception the Court had
endorsed just four years earlier.
Professor Sander Moody
Professor Sander Moody has been invited tomoderate a panel on appellate advocacy at theHonorable Ralph W. “Buddy” Nimmons Jr.Federal Practice Seminar hosted by the FederalBar Association. The other panel members willconsist of federal circuit court judges.
Professor Andrew Long
Professor Andrew Long was invited to join the International Union for theConservation of Nature, Commission on Environmental Law. TheCommission is a volunteer legal network that assists in the work of IUCN,
the world’s oldest and largest global environmental network.He was also invited to speak at the University of Aarhus in Denmark for the
conference Beyond Kyoto: Addressing the Challenges of Climate Change in March.The conference precedes the December 2009 negotiations in Copenhagen by theparties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and KyotoProtocol, which will aim to reach agreement on a post-Kyoto climate changetreaty. Speakers at the conference include Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland andProfessor Robert N. Stavins. Professor Long will make a presentation, Linkages &Opportunities: Preserving Biodiversity in a Changing Climate, during the sessionon the role of global environmental conventions in protection of biodiversity andecosystems in a phase of climate change.Also this month, Professor Long’s most recent article, “International
Consensus & U.S. Climate Change Litigation,” was published in theWilliam andMary Environmental Law and Policy Review. Prior to publication, the article was list-ed in SSRN’s top 10 downloads for the journals LSPLCL: International &Comparative Law, LSPLCL: Judicial Review, JR: Policy Limitations on Judicial Review,and LSPLCL: Structure of Government & Political Theory. It was featured on theLegal Theory blog. COASTAL
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Professor David PimentelDavid Pimentel (right) pre-
sented his research on prob-lems in the federal judicialdiscipline regime – TheReluctant Tattle-tale: theUntold Story of JudicialMisconduct – at a J. Reuben ClarkLaw Society Conference at ThomasJefferson School of Law in San Diego onJanuary 6.Pimentel went to Kathmandu,
February 12-17, to make presentations onthird branch (judiciary) issues in the draft-ing of the new constitution of Nepal. Hecollaborated with local officials involved inthe drafting process as well as other inter-national scholars also there to participate.
Professor Christopher Roederer
In January,Professor Roederer(left) presentedWorking theCommon LawPure: Developingthe South African
Law of Delict
(Torts) in Light of the Spirit,Purport and Objects of theSouth African Constitution’sBill of Rights at the AmericanAssociation of Law SchoolsAnnual Meeting: Torts and
Compensation Section ( January2009). His article will be published in
the Arizona Journal of International andComparative Law (2009).
Professor Bradley Shannon
Professor Shannon (right)recently submitted formalcomments with respect tothe proposed amendmentsto Federal Rule of CivilProcedure 56, the rule gov-erning summary judgment.Professor Shannon’s comments(08-CV-134) may be viewed athttp://www.uscourts.gov/rules/2008_Civil_Rules_Comments_Chart.htm.
Professor Cynthia Stroud
Professor Cynthia Stroud has beenappointed to the Archives Committee ofthe Legal Writing Institute.
Professor Fred TrombergAdjunct Professor Fred Tromberg has
been appointed by the President of theFlorida Bar to serve as Chair of the CivilTrial Law Board Certification Committeeof the Florida Bar. There are approximately1,100 board-certified civil trial attorneyswho are members of the Florida Bar. TheCivil Trial Board Certification Committeeis responsible for reviewing all applicationsand reapplications, as well as preparing and
grading the written examinationsfor board certification. ProfessorTromberg has served on thecommittee for four years. AsChairman, he has lectured onbehalf of the Florida Bar andalso participated in the Board
Certification Exam ReviewCourse as a speaker. Approximately
1% of the attorneys in Florida are board-certified civil trial lawyers. As such, theseattorneys are designated as “specialists” and “experts” by the Florida Bar in civil trial law. Professor Tromberg teachesFlorida Practice and Procedure at CoastalLaw and maintains a private practice as atrial attorney. COASTAL
Professor Rod Sullivan
Professor Rod Sullivan has agreed to be a contributing author to the book Maritime Law:Practice and Procedure to be published in September by the Florida Bar. Professor Sullivan willbe writing the chapter entitled “Maritime Procedure.” In December, Professor Sullivan taught
a seminar for lawyers in Jacksonville on maritime personal injury presented by Lorman EducationServices.Professor Sullivan’s article entitled “A Faustian Bargain: Creating a Successful Agreement in the
WTO Negotiations on Trade in Maritime Services” has been accepted for publication by theUniversity of San Francisco Maritime Law Journal. The article addresses the currently deadlocked World
Trade Organization negotiations under theGeneral Agreement on Trade in Services and proposes compromises inthe field of maritime services which address the concerns of the U.S.,the European Community, and UNCTAD. The USF Maritime Journal isthe law journal in which U.S. maritime policymakers frequently publisharticles on matters of national and international maritime policy.In March, Professor Sullivan appeared before the justices of the
Supreme Court, (illustration, left) representing an indigent seaman whowas denied medical care by his employer after he was injured in an accident on a tugboat. A final decision is expected this summer.Professor Sullivan has been invited to be a lecturer at the Louisiana
Association of Justice Maritime Seminar to be held in New Orleans inAugust. COASTAL
1999Larry Gilliam is a solo practionerin London, Kentucky. He practicespersonal injury law primarily; crimi-nal defense and family law.
Jim Farah re-openedThe Farah Law Firm,P.A., in January 2009.
2000Shirley Taylor has practiced with aCity Attorney in Hattiesburg,Mississippi, since graduation and as asolo practitioner in the areas of fami-ly law and criminal defense. She iscurrently working with theMississippi Center for Legal Servicesprimarily assisting Katrina victims.
David J. Taylor has left Florida afterpursuing a 25-year successful lawenforcement and legal career andreturned to his home state ofWest Virginia to becomethe Director of ExtendedLearning at West VirginiaWesleyan College. In the stateof Florida, Taylor served as deputysheriff and Major Crimes Detectivein Marion County Sheriff ’s Office.After law school, Taylorbecame an attorney at theCapital HomicideProsecution Unit (deathpenalty-involved cases) inthe Office of the StateAttorney in the FifthJudicial Circuit.
Tracie Phillips (left) has been in pri-vate practice in Lake City sinceNovember 2002. She is also a FamilyLaw Mediator for the Third and
Eighth Circuit Court System.“I also am still a good oldcountry girl and run barrelson the professional rodeocircuit.”
Jeff Reel is currently VicePresident and Assistant GeneralCounsel for the ATP World Tour(the men’s professional tennis tour)in Ponte Vedra Beach. Jeff is also anadjunct professor at Coastal Law,teaching a course concerning legalissues in the area of sports market-ing, sponsorship and licensing.
2001Charles Keller (left) remains at
Citibank in ProjectManagement. He has awonderful granddaughterwho takes all his time!
Tracy Alan Brown (left,seated) was recently appointed tothe Bench as a Magistrate Judge inWayne County, Georgia. He is a
partner in the firmBrown & Johnson, LLC,located in Jesup, Georgia.He has also been chosenas Wayne County,Georgia’s, FavoriteAttorney as voted in thelocal newspaper in 2008,
H I G H L I G H T S , P R O M O T I O N S , A W A R D S A N D A C H I E V E M E N T S
Alumni NewsDear Fellow Alumni:
I am Michael Orr and will be serving you, the2,000+ Alumni, as the President of the AlumniAssociation for the next two years. We havemuch to be proud of with respect to ourgrowth and establishment, but still have a greatdeal of work to do. Over the next two years,
my overarching goal and theme will be for all of us to accept moreresponsibility for this Association by getting involved.
Our growth has resulted in steady alumni chapter developmentnationwide. We should continue those efforts by contacting theAlumni Office to take on the challenge of setting up chapters in ourcommunities. They can assist in this process.
We should attend events and meetings planned throughout the yearto better network with each other. I especially encourage you tomake plans to attend the annual Florida Bar meeting in Orlando( June 25) and Alumni Weekend 2009 (October 23).
We should continue our efforts to embrace the online technologybeing introduced to us by Coastal Law to provide better online com-munity services. The online services will be bolstered this coming August, so please register with the Alumni Office today tomake sure you can readily take advantage of the benefits.
Our Board of Directors is meeting to determine how best to increasealumni involvement in our activities and pursuits. In the meantime,if you are interested in getting involved, please visit the website andsubmit your interest.
Our degree advancement and the success of our school ultimatelydepend upon our alumni successes. When we accept responsibilityfor our Association, we will all benefit and excel. Best of luck to youall in the future, and thank you for your support of the AlumniAssociation.
Cheers,
Michael Fox Orr, President
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2007, 2005, and 2003.
John S. Frankowski, Jr. openedhis own practice in October 2008.He focuses on the criminaldefense area, but also handlesfamily law cases.
2002Garry Crews works in the Law Offices of Ron Sholes, specializing in criminal defenseand family law.
2003Peggy A. Baldt opened the newfirm Coplan Baldt, P.L., withMeade Marston-Coplan (2002).This is a general practice firm;Meade is working from AtlanticBeach and Peggy from OrangePark, Florida.
David and Jenny Meyers
(Nash) (both 2003) opened thefirm of Meyers & Meyers, PC,in January 2007 in Canton,Georgia, and recently movedinto a new office they share withtheir two golden retrievers.Meyers & Meyers focuses oncriminal defense and domesticlitigation. David also serves asthe Public Defender for threeneighboring cities.
2004Jo-Anne Yau (right) was appoint-ed as a Magistrate for the State ofFlorida. She presides over CivilTraffic Court. Jo-Anneis an associate atWood, Atter &Wolf inJacksonville,Florida, doingpatents, trademarks,
franchising, personal injury, andcriminal defense.
Amanda H. Meadows joinedBrasfield, Fuller, Freeman,Goldis & Cash in SaintPetersburg, Florida, specializingin appellate litigation, real estatematters, personal injury, andcorporate litigation.
2005Mark A. Hall opened the lawfirm of Hall & Soileau, P.A., withhis partner Joshua Soileau in
December 2008, inJacksonville, Florida. Hall& Soileau is a generalpractice with concentra-tion in the areas of fam-ily law, social security,
contracts, and torts.
Marcus Boston opened a lawfirm, Wright, James & Boston, inthe metro Atlanta area with alum-ni Jermane Wright (2005) andNichole James (2005). The firmhandles bankruptcy, family, crimi-nal, personal injury, and tax law.
Cynthia Veintemillas is practic-ing at Apple Law Firm PLLC asan associate attorney. She special-izes in criminal defense, but han-dles civil litigation as well.
Maggie Jo Hilliard, of the LawOffice of Maggie Jo Hilliard,P.A., was cast for a leading role ina full-length feature film that waswritten and directed locally inNortheast Florida. Filming hasended and the movie should bereleased before Fall 2009.
Leland Taylor was elected VicePresident of the Young LawyersDivision of the Lee County,Florida, Bar Association inJanuary. In addition, he was reap-pointed by the Lee CountyCommission on March 24, 2009,to serve as a member of theAffordable Housing Committee,which he currently chairs.
Jennifer Lewis was elected ChiefMagistrate of Camden County,Georgia, and took office onJanuary 1, 2009, for a four-yearterm. Additionally, she is the firstfemale Chief Magistrate inCamden County.
Jeffrey Rich and JasonMayberry (2006) opened a firmin Tampa, Florida.
Attend your 10-Year Reunion!
Coastal Law’s first graduating class will reach a mile-
stone this October when it returns to the school
for its 10-year reunion. This time is a special one,
and the school’s Office of Institutional Advancement would
like to personally invite each of you – the 195 original alum-
ni - to your reunion weekend, whether you are practicing in
Jacksonville or as far away as Hawaii (you know who you are!)
In the past 10 years, Coastal Law continues to grow in
both size and in reputation. Our graduates are excelling in all
practice areas across the country, and most recently the school
became home to one of the top 10 Moot Court programs in the nation.
Give us the opportunity to thank you for providing a solid foundation, and
for your continued mentorship to the thousands of graduates who follow in
your footsteps.
Many of you from the class of ’99 have also shown leadership by becoming active
on the Alumni Association Board of Directors, including Immediate Past President
James Farah.
“I hope my fellow classmates will take part in the festivities this October,” says
Farah. “It is a day I don’t think many of us could have imagined would arrive so
quickly. I am proud to be a part of the school’s legacy and will certainly attend.”
Again, please make plans to be a part of Alumni Weekend 2009 on October 23
and 24. We hope to see you there - Coastal Law’s pioneers!
Visit www.fcsl.edu/alumni for a schedule of events, information on accommodations,
and more. COASTAL
Calling All Class of 1999 Alumni:
Alumni Weekend C
oastal Law
O
ctober 23-24, 2
009
4th Annual
2006Ryan Hulslander will be conduct-ing an oral argument before JudgesVan Nortwick, Kahn and Wolf atthe First District Court of Appeal.Currently, Ryan is a land use andzoning attorney with PatriceBoyes, P.A.
David Goldman has started a newlaw firm in Jacksonville, Florida.The Apple Law Firm PLLC cur-rently works with clients in thefollowing areas: estate planning,asset protection, guardianship,elder law, business formations,trust and will litigation, criminallaw and firearms law.
J. Leighton Channell and AmberA. Channell (both 2006) announcethe opening of Channell Law Firmin Greensboro, North Carolina. Thefirm concentrates in the areas offamily law, criminal defense, civil litigation, and estate planning, wills,and probate.
Patrick Cremeens formed TheLaw Office of Patrick J. Cremeens
in South Tampa, Florida, practicingin the areas of consumer claims forbreach of warranty, Florida’s lemonlaw, civil trial and appeals, andcriminal law.
Robert Baggett is employed by theU.S. Department of State in LosAngeles, California.
Jeff Miller, Judge Advocate, U.S.Coast Guard, served as an AdjunctInstructor for the Defense Instituteof International Legal Studies’ exec-utive seminar April 13-17, 2009, inPraia, Cape Verde, Africa. Therange of topics included: humanrights and international law andmaritime security and law enforce-ment. Specifically, Jeff instructed onthe following topics: maritime lawenforcement, rules for the use offorce in maritime law enforcement,maritime counterdrug operations,and piracy and armed robberyagainst ships. He accompanied
Commander Luke Reid, JudgeAdvocate, U.S. Coast Guard,International Operations Officer,and Commander KathleenDuignan, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S.Africa Command.
2007Elisabeth Ruiz, in collaborationwith the Coastal Law ImmigrationClinic, won a pro-bono asylum casein removal proceedings before theImmigration Court in Orlando,Florida on May 14, 2009. The caseinvolved a Haitian who fled hiscountry of origin based on persecu-tion for his political opinion.Elisabeth was assisted by 3L studentclinicians Crystal Johnson andDeidrean Lyon.
Sandra Perez is now working atBoyd-Jenerette in Jacksonville,Florida.
Megan Richards is practicing insur-
ance defense litigation at Rinaman& Associates in Jacksonville,Florida. The firm is interested inaccepting Chapter 7 bankruptcycases and other civil litigation cases.Megan is also preparing to take theGeorgia Bar in July 2009.
Captain Mitchell Bishop (above) is a Judge Advocate in the U.S.Marine Corps and is currentlyassigned to the Office of the StaffJudge Advocate at Marine CorpsBase, Quantico, Virginia. His currentbillet is Legal Assistance Attorney.
Jessica Blackman is working atKelley, Kronenberg, Gilmartin,Fichtel & Wander in Ft. Myers,Florida, and focuses on workers’compensation insurance defense.
Andrea Baird is practicing residen-tial and commercial real estate lawwith the St. Simons Island, Georgia,firm Gilbert, Harrell, Sumerford &Martin, P.C. – one of the oldest andmost well-respected law firms in thestate. “Our practice areas includetrust and estates, corporate law, resi-dential and commercial real estate,bankruptcy and all types of litiga-tion. I am licensed to practice inGeorgia and am a member of theReal Property Section of the StateBar of Georgia. I took and passedthe February 2009 Florida Bar.”
Your fellow alumni can’t refer you a case or invite you to an eventif they don’t know where you are and what you are doing, so be sure to register with the
Alumni Online Community. http://alumni.fcsl.edu
The Florida Coastal School of Law AlumniBoard Officers 2009-2011**
PresidentMichael Fox Orr ’05
Vice President Heather M. Reynolds ’02
Immediate Past PresidentJames E. Farah ’99
SecretaryRebecca Black ’06
** As approved by board vote on May 29, 2009.
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Elizabeth Nemeth (right) continues to enjoy her practice,The Nemeth LawCorporation, locatedin Fleming Island,Florida. Shehandles familylaw as well asestate planning,guardianship andprobate matters.
Eric Cummings recently createdFirm Client Connection, a web-site that connects law students,lawyers and experts alike with acommon goal in mind: makingthe best case for the client. Thewebsite provides a forumthat may be used forlive chat, resumeposting relating tojob opportunities,job searching, recom-mendations of expertwitnesses, referrals toother lawyers, and a host of usefullinks for law students and lawyersalike. For more information visit:http://www.firmclientconnec-tion.ning.com.
Kristin Dunmire recentlyaccepted a position as anAttorney-Advisor with the SocialSecurity Administration in theJacksonville, Florida, office.
2008Stephanie Cabral is pursuingan LL.M. in international commercial arbitration inStockholm, Sweden. Her university recently competed inthe Willem C. Vis InternationalCommercial Arbitration Mootin Vienna, Austria. She was
selected to represent the univer-sity as a lead advocate andbrief writer. “OurRespondentMemorandumtook firstplace overallout of 233teams from acrossthe world. Our Claimant
Memorandum took secondplace against the same pool ofcompetitors. In oral arguments,we finished in the top 64teams.”
Adam Marshall (left) became anassociate at The Marshall Law
Firm, P.A., inGreensboro, NorthCarolina. The firm isa general practicewith a special focusin collection law, debtdefense, real estate,
business law, wills andestates, personal injury, trafficviolations, and other areas.
Kristine Kramp is working forGoodman, McGuffey, Lindsey &Johnson in Atlanta.
In MemoriamCharles Limbert died SaturdayJanuary 31, 2009, from a lengthyillness.
Benjamin Lowe passed awayTuesday, May 12.
David Lyle Brooks
passed away September13, 2007.
BirthsMeg Griffith Sandefur
and Joe Sandefur (both 2006)had their first child, Lily
Elizabeth Sandefur,(left) on December15, 2008.Additionally, Joejoined the MyrtleBeach, South
Carolina, office ofMcGangus, Goudelock andCourie.
Travis R. Walker (2006) and hiswife Anissa welcomed their firstchild, Travis R. Walker, Jr.,on January 1, 2009.Travis is an associateattorney practicingland use, zoning andreal estate law withWeiss, Handler,Angelos and Cornwell,PA, in its Port Saint Lucie,Florida, office.
MarriagesRichard Sichta
(2003) (right) married SusanneSichta in September2008. He was made apartner in 2007 at the law firmof Tassone and Sichta, LLC, inJacksonville, Florida. Thefirm predominatelyfocuses on capitalappeals, includingdirect and post-con-viction work.
Summer
Rose (Davis)
Nichols (2008) (left)was married toDavid Nichols onMarch 7, 2009, inKey Largo, Florida.
Summer practices family law atthe Law Offices of John C.Kenny in Tallahassee, Florida.She is currently busy preparing toopen a new branch of the firm inJacksonville, Florida, in January2010. Her husband, David, isemployed as a civil engineer atCSX in Jacksonville, Florida.
Arielle Molinet-Peters andWilliam Peters Jr. (left) (both2007) were married on January31, 2009, at First Presbyterian
Church in Fort Lauderdale,Florida. The couple metin early 2005, whileattending CoastalLaw. Mrs. Molinet-Peters is an AssociateAttorney at Bazinsky,
Korman and Baker. Sherecently argued her first
appeal to the Third District Courtof Appeal in Miami,Florida. Mr. Peters isworking as anAssistant PublicDefender for the 17thJudicial Circuit in
Broward County, Florida.
Erin (Shiffleger) Maruskin
married fellow alumDavid Maruskin
(both 2008) (left)on January 9,2009, inRichmond,Virginia. She passed
the July 2008 VirginiaBar exam and currently
works as an attorney inRichmond. David passed theFebruary 2009 Virginia Bar examand is working as a civil engineerin Richmond. COASTAL
C O A S T A L L A W P H O T O R O U N D U P
SnapShots
Coastal Law alumni Harold Mitchell, Scott Brennan, and Melanie Schneiderat a luncheon in Washington, D.C.
The kick-off reception for the Gulf Coast Alumni Chapter in March. The chapter includes Florida’s sixth, twelfth, and thirteenth circuits.
Dean Peter Goplerud presents Melissa J.Davenport with the James A. RichterHumanitarian ServiceAward at the annualHonors Banquet in March.
The Coastal Law Second Circuit Chapter kick-off reception. Front: CoastalLaw alumni Richard Marshall, Tiffany Jones, and Justice Choate with EmilyTracy, Coastal Law director of development, and Brooks Terry, Coastal Lawdirector of marketing and communications. Back: Coastal Law alumniPatricia Horal, Rachel Clark, and Lance Neff.
Coastal Law alumni JamesArnold, AndrewBragg, and Robert
Hines at the kick-offreception for the Gulf
Coast Alumni Chapter.
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Coastal Law graduating 3Ls at the annual Bask in the Glow reception during Reading Week.
Vice Dean Terri Davlantes, first runner-up in the ALWR Research PosterContest Stephanie Espinosa, and Professor Chris Roederer.
Alumni at the Atlanta chapter meeting in February.
An Evening with the Experts question and answer session at Sporher &Dodd, P.L. From left: Panelist Marleen Williams with Coastal Law alumniEric Friday, Holly and Jay Howanitz
Kristen Galles, a civil rights attorney and Title IXexpert, with Floyd A. Keith, Executive Director ofthe Black Coaches & Administrators, at the annual Sports Law Symposium.
Coastal Law alumniImani Boykin andStephanie Harriet atthe Alumni Board
Annual Dinner in May.
Timothy Roache, winner of the spring ALWRResearch Poster contest, with Rosa DuBose,Associate Dean of Academic Affairs.
A C O N V E R S A T I O N W I T H C O A S T A L L A W ’ S G R E G M I N T O N
Q&AMEET GREG MINTON, ONE OF
Coastal Law’s Audio Visual TechnologySpecialists. As part of his role at the school, Gregprovides support, instruction, and maintenancefor the many a/v infrastructures at the school.That includes equipment like microphones, sound
systems, video cameras, projectors, television dis-plays, DVD players, as well as the smart
lecterns and touch panels in all of theclassrooms. He also provides serviceslike video capturing, editing, podcast-ing, multimedia conversion, and sched-uling equipment for checkout for stu-dents, faculty, and staff.
QGreg, you have a background in television produc-tion. How did that prepare you for your work here?
AI think one of the biggest things that I took away from tele-vision was the art of looking forward and working ahead —
thinking in terms of what’s coming next. In TV engineering land,falling behind ultimately results in something not getting on theair or even worse - dead air! Whenever folks would tour mastercontrol, they were always amazed at how calm and relaxed we alllooked. And that was, in large part, because we were working sofar ahead of what was actually on the air. I used to tell them “Ifyou see the news producers running around like maniacs, then youknow that everything is OK. If you see us just running around,then something has gone horribly wrong!”
QYou’re a part of Coastal Law’s IT Department – one of the school’s largest. How do you all work
together as a team?
A I’ve never worked with a group of folks so talented, support-ive and dedicated to excellence. We are all very much
specialized and focused on our respective roles, but at the sametime that tends to make us very interdependent. This is especiallytrue in my case. Being an audio visual specialist, I am by far theleast “IT” person in the IT Department. My background andexperience is in audio production, video production, and livesound reinforcement. There are countless technology bridges that
I could never dream of crossing without the help of this team.
QThe school prides itself on integrating some of themost state-of-the-art technologies into the class-
room. Are you a part of finding out what’s available and, ifso, what do you look for?
AYes, that is one of the best things about being a part of theCoastal Law IT team. The technology here is second to none.
In fact, I got the opportunity last year to attend the InfoCommconference in Las Vegas. InfoComm is the leading voice of theaudio visual industry, and their yearly conference is by far the premiere pro a/v event of the world. Some of the technology presented there was mind blowing. I saw everything from telepresence video conferencing – think Star Wars – to three-dimensional digital signage (no glasses required!). However, thehard part with a/v technology is determining how to effectivelyintegrate new systems into an existing environment.
QWhat have been some of your favorite projectssince you started?
AI was really proud of the work that we were able to do withthe seventh successful Appellate Advocacy Workshop at
Coastal Law. The idea was to try and figure out a way to video-capture 24 lawyers in four different rooms at the same time. Thelawyers would be speaking to three different judges over a periodof maybe an hour or so and then the videos needed to be accessedimmediately for review. This, of course, ruled out any traditionalvideo distribution methods. Through a week of testing and a littlebit of trial and error, we came up with a system that worked outwell. We took the a/v feeds from the classroom cameras andmicrophones and routed them to the IT server room. We theninstalled Windows Media Encoder on the PCs and used remotedesktop software to monitor and access the video feeds from ourlaptops. We would start and stop the recordings remotely andthen immediately move them over to a SharePoint site we had setup for the event. The video feeds were encoded directly to theWindows Media file format, so no post-capture transcoding orrendering was required. I remember walking down the halls afterwards and seeing the attorneys downloading the videos withtheir laptops. COASTAL
Alumni Weekend C
oasta
l Law
October 23-24
, 20
09
4th Annual
Whether a new graduate or from our very first class,Alumni Weekend presents numerous opportunities to gettogether with law school faculty and staff, and catch upwith your former Coastal Law colleagues. This year’s festivities are especially important, as 2009 AlumniWeekend marks the 10th Reunion of our first graduatingclass, as well as the 5th Reunion of the class of 2004.
Be our guest and attend lectures, parties and family funactivities, catch up with current students, and earn CLEcredit. Today our more than 2,000 alumni are in practiceacross the country and abroad.
We look forward to seeing you!
Schedule of Activities
Friday, October 23 (all activities at the school)
8:00-9:00 amFaculty-Alumni BreakfastFREE
8:30-10:00 amTrack 1: How to Avoid (or Handle) a Bar Complaint CLE Track 2: Student-Alumni Roundtable OR Coastal Law Library ResourcesFREE
10:15-11:45 amTrack 1: LOMAS/Trust Accounts CLE Track 2: Criminal Defense CLEFREE
12:00-1:15 pmWestlaw Refresher Course CLE and Lunch$25
1:30-3:00 pmTrack 1: Bankruptcy CLE Track 2: Operating and Marketing a Small or Solo Practice LectureFREE
3:15-4:45 pmTrack 1: Intellectual Property CLE Track 2: Real Estate and Foreclosure CLEFREE
5:00-6:30 pmReception and Showcase of Student OrganizationsFREE
Saturday, October 2412:00-2:00 pmFamily-friendly Lunch (includes admission)Jacksonville Zoo $10/Adults and $5/Children
6:00-10:00 pmGala Reception and Dinner Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort and Spa, Heritage Ballroom$50
A room block has been reserved for the nights of October 23-24, 2009, at the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort and Spa. Reservations must be made by October 15, 2009. Guests are encouraged to make reservations as early as possible.
To reserve your room, call (800)457-4653. Please indicate you are with the Florida Coastal School of Law Alumni Weekend to get a group rate of $169 (plus tax) with a maximum occupancy of four.
To book your reservations online you may go to the Florida Coastal School of Law Alumni and Friends link on www.fcsl.edu. For more information, call 904-256-1212 or e-mail [email protected].
Check the alumni website for updates on speakers, CLE credit information, and more.
8787 Baypine Road
Jacksonville, Florida 32256
www.fcsl.edu
Presorted StandardU.S. Postage
PAIDJacksonville, FLPermit #610
Inspire.The Florida Coastal School of Law
Foundation is a nonprofit organization thatmakes a difference in the lives of our students andthe communities where they will practice.
With financial contributions from alumni, members of the legal community, and corporations, The Coastal Law Foundation supports scholarships and loan repayment assistance programs that allow our students topursue their passion for public service.
8787 Baypine Road, Jacksonville, Florida 32256904.256.1212 [email protected]/foundation
Angela Lynne Davis, Class of 2009Fayetteville, North Carolina