Derek Matthews (Vinson Class, 2017) is no stranger to giving back to Cooley Law School in the Tampa Bay region. Outside of legal practice, Matthews sponsors the annual Cooley Alumni Golf Outing in Tampa and participates in alumni events and mentoring programs to build relationships with faculty and fellow graduates.
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Charles Ford has lived life large, not only as a star athlete, but as an attorney and a successful sports and life coach for kids. He is without question a man of many talents with many gifts to share.
As beginning law students soon learn, what we call “legal reasoning” can be expressed by the formula IRAC. It’s the law’s version of the deductive syllogism. It stands for Issue, Rule, Application, and Conclusion. First, identify the salient issue (“Is Socrates mortal?”). Then, state the applicable rule (“All men are mortal”). Next, apply the rule to the relevant facts (“Socrates is a man”). This leads inexorably to the conclusion (“Therefore Socrates is mortal”).
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The 2020 Distinguished Alumni Award was presented to Amy Rombyer Tripp (Blair Moody Class, 1996) and Karen Truszkowski (Richard H. Flannigan Class, 1999). The coveted award is presented at the annual meeting of the Cooley Law School Alumni Association, and this past year, the virtual ceremony was held on November 19, 2020. Recipients are chosen by the Past President's Committee of the Alumni Association and awarded annually.
Assistant Dean of Admissions Stephanie Gregg may have retired from Cooley in 2012 after 25 years of service, but her heart continues to support the law school's historic equal access to justice mission through her talent as a local artist and advocate. In creating her art she finds an outlet to express her feelings.
On January 6, while rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol, Cooley Law School professors began answering calls from media outlets around the country regarding what could be considered both a criminal display of force and a violation of the Constitution.
Cooley Law School alum John Nocita (Turner Class, 1991) is profiled in the Winter 2020 issue of the alumni magazine Benchmark. The profile includes an account of his donation to the law school of an impressive bronze bust of Thomas M. Cooley mounted on a marble pedestal.
Yes, that statement exaggerates—but only slightly. Academics must publish or perish, meaning to lose their chance at a tenured position. Lawyers, on the other hand, don’t lose their law license when they fail to publish. Yet they lose a critical professional-development opportunity.
Earlier this year the Michigan State Bar Foundation announced the names of inductees into the 2020 Fellows Program. Among the twelve persons honored as Fellows is Cooley Law Professor Erika Breitfeld. A number of other Cooley Law School faculty members and senior administrators are members as well.
To say that Cooley Law School Distinguished Professor Emeritus Otto Stockmeyer was a little excited would be an understatement. In fact, the word Booyah, or "An expression of joy or triumph" according to Merriam-Webster's dictionary, comes to mind. After his two years of suggesting, proposing, reasoning, and cajoling, Michigan will adopt the Uniform Bar Exam! [UPDATE: IT'S NOW OFFICIAL 4/7/2022!]
