It was a remarkable and amazingly swift collapse of a century-old tradition: the practice of hiring law school graduates and having clients subsidize their on-the-job-training for a year or two virtually vanished in the space of five years, thanks to economic and technological issues buffeting the field of law.

For California Western, however, that sea change was the best news possible for an institution that already had established an excellent reputation for producing practice-ready graduates.

“We saw the crisis in legal education coming several years before it hit,” says Dean Niels B. Schaumann. “Specifically, we realized the new economic realities meant that the days were numbered in which law schools could rely only on providing an academic and theoretical education and ignore practical considerations. That gave us a tremendous head start on further enhancing our practical education capabilities.”

He adds, “That investment in practical education has already paid dividends, as California Western today holds a strong competitive advantage both in recruiting students and placing our graduates with employers, while other law schools are scrambling to retool.”

In the pages that follow, we’ll explore the elements of California Western’s drive for excellence in practical education. Among them: the enhancement of a core educational program that establishes a firm foundation in the theory and principles of law, and then assists the student in moving into experiential opportunities through which they can customize their curricular and clinical educational objectives.

We’ll look at how California Western’s extensive career and professional development efforts are producing practice-ready lawyers.

Finally you’ll hear from several satisfied employers who have hired California Western graduates with outstanding results. After all, the ultimate test of the school’s practice-ready approach is how well the graduates do when they get their first job. If the words of a distinguished local attorney hold any weight, that approach is working extremely well.

“I’ve hired many California Western grads over the years and they all come with a strong set of practical skills, along with a fire in their belly to succeed,” says Michael Whitton, managing partner of the San Diego office of Troutman Sanders, a 600-lawyer international firm. “What’s exciting is that with California Western’s push in practical education, firms like ours will have access to higher-performing junior associates we can rely on from day one.”

 

Inside the Cover Story

Comprehensive Curriculum Bolsters Pipeline to Practice

California Western Among National Leaders in Bar Preparation

Professionalism Crucial to Job Success, Employer Satisfaction

Skills, Ethics Training Help Students Grow as Future Lawyers

Recent Graduates Thrive at Public Defender’s Office

Strong Performance of California Western Hires Pays Off

Top San Diego Lawyer Knows What He Wants in New Associates

 

Tell me and I forget,
teach me and I remember,
involve me and I learn.

Benjamin Franklin

Stephanie J. De Jesus ’14 was amazed by how prepared and ready she felt at that long-awaited moment when she sat down to take the California Bar Exam, one of the toughest, most fear-inducing tests in the nation.

“Although there was frantic hustle around me on the morning of test day, I was relieved to see that I remained calm walking into the test room,” De Jesus recalls. “The bar preparation I received at California Western was so thorough, in-depth, and organized, that even with the amount of pressure I felt, I was able to focus all my energy on answering each question to the best of my ability. I know that’s the main reason I passed; I felt extremely prepared.”

De Jesus, who passed the bar with flying colors and is headed for a career in the Army JAG Corps, serves as an excellent example of how a law school can achieve higher than average bar passage rates by offering intensive preparation  for all of its students, according to Assistant Dean for Academic Achievement Shane Dizon.

“California Western has worked hard to create one of the most comprehensive bar preparation efforts in the country,” Dizon says. “We actually become partners with the students in the process, and starting in the second year, we provide them with an extensive array of resources and support that continues up to the moment they sit for the bar.”

Members of the Academic Achievement staff: Administrative Assistant Laura Franke, Assistant Dean Shane Dizon, Assistant Director Carly E. Sassi ’12, Assistant Director Jesus Barraza

That investment has paid off: National Jurist magazine recently ranked California Western number 12 in the nation in its article “Best Law Schools for Bar Exam Preparation.” Performing higher than their LSAT scores would indicate, California Western graduates passed the July 2014 bar exam at a rate of 71 percent for first-time takers, and over the past 14 exams, graduates have met or exceeded the statewide average 12 times.

Dizon says bar prep is a multi-year team effort embedded in the entire school, from the professors who teach the core curriculum that is the foundation of student knowledge, to his four-person department that creates and oversees the detailed bar prep structure and timeline, to the students who buy into the process and invest the hours required to get the most out of it.

It’s a three-prong process that starts in the second year when students are required to take an eight-week advanced legal analysis class. Third-year students take a pre-bar review course, followed by the jewel in the crown, the California BARBRI Bar Review, an intensive post-graduation course that offers a complete review of all subjects tested on the bar as well as essay workshops, multiple-choice question workshops, performance exam workshops, several simulated exams, and group and individual tutoring.

“Not only did we take timed practice tests under pressure to simulate the exam experience, but we went through each question to learn why we got it wrong, or even why we got it right,” De Jesus says. “The course not only pushes you, it holds you accountable, which was great because I would not have been able to stay that motivated or organized on my own.”

Many students, De Jesus included, choose California Western in part because of its bar preparation.

“We have built a reputation for excellent bar prep and it’s definitely a reason for students to consider California Western,” Dizon says. “At California Western, students will find a dedicated team of people committed to their success from their first class to getting their first job.”

The powerful impact of California Western’s innovative STEPPS Program on the careers of graduates is like a cultivation project that begins with remarkable seeds for success that are planted and grow steadily during law school, but aren't harvested until they get their first jobs.

Those seeds are planted in the second year, when students take the nationally recognized STEPPS Program, which stands for Skills Training for Ethical Practice and Professional Satisfaction. Students acquire knowledge, skills, and values by working on simulated cases under the supervision of an experienced mentor.

“The professors in the STEPPS Program understand from experience that success requires not only a foundation in substantive knowledge, but also the ability to apply that knowledge strategically and ethically,” says Professor Timothy Casey, director of the STEPPS Program, which just celebrated its fifth anniversary. “Our students work in a small group with an experienced mentor for an entire academic year. They learn from experience and through experience.”

The adjunct professors in the STEPPS Program have, on average, more than 20 years’ experience in the legal profession, and most participate in the process of hiring new lawyers. The program creates a mentor-apprentice relationship, where students learn the norms of ethical behavior in the legal profession. 

Simulated cases provide the context, and students learn by doing. In addition to written assignments, such as preparing a response to a motion for summary judgment, students practice communication skills. They interview and counsel clients, learn the basics of negotiation, and practice the finer points of professional communication and etiquette. Professional actors play the role of a client in video-recorded interview and counseling sessions. 

“Students see the tangible value of the STEPPS Program once they begin to practice,” says Casey. “They realize they are better prepared because they’ve drafted a contract, written a motion, and gained experience interviewing and counseling clients. And they’ve grappled with ethical dilemmas in a simulated environment, which prepares them for the challenges they’ll face in the real world.” 

The focus on ethics is key, and it’s infused into everything the STEPPS Program teaches, according to Adjunct Professor Vickie Turner, partnerat Wilson Turner Kosmo LLP, and a practicing lawyer for more than three decades.

“Ethics is critical because it is the foundation for all lawyers, whether you’re in a courtroom, transactional setting, in-house counsel, or public service law, Turner says. “We spend a lot of time emphasizing what is right and fair—important standards that real-world lawyers often forget or fail to adhere to in their desire to win cases.”

Beyond practical skills and ethics, the STEPPS Program examines the issue of career satisfaction, a unique feature of the training.

“There’s no single answer to the question of what makes a satisfying career—each individual will have to answer the question for him or herself,” says Casey. “We want our students to explore that process while still in school. Through extensive discussions, self-analysis, and goal setting, we provide them with a strong foundation for creating a satisfying law career.”

Satisfied is also a word that could be used to describe the employers who hire California Western graduates with STEPPS Program training

“Employers notice the difference immediately because California Western graduates arrive on the job focused and ready to put those STEPPS Program skills to work from the very start,” Turner says. “That kind of practice readiness is invaluable because it saves the employer training time, which helps to boost their bottom line.”

 

Adjunct Professor Vickie Turner

Ask attorney James McFall his policy on hiring graduates of California Western, and you’ll get an extremely straightforward answer.

“We don’t go out of our way to hire California Western grads. We’re looking to hire the best candidates. It just happens that a lot of them come from California Western,” says McFall, managing shareholder of the San Diego firm Neil, Dymott, Frank, McFall & Trexler, named a “Best Law Firm” for 2015 by U.S. News & World Report.

In fact, the firm has hired five graduates in the past 12 months for its San Diego, Temecula, and Palm Springs offices. It is a tradition that goes back more than 35 years,  when the firm hired California Western graduate, Sheila S. Trexler ’86. Trexler, this year’s president of the Southern California Chapter of American Board of Trial Advocates, is a director of the firm.

“Sheila couldn’t be a better example of the outstanding quality California Western produces in its graduates,” McFall says. “She’s one of our long-time named shareholders and one of the best medical malpractice trial lawyers in the country—her many accolades include having been named both a top 50 women litigator in California and San Diego Defense Lawyer of the Year. “

Trexler was an emergency room nurse before becoming a lawyer, and that’s a positive tendency McFall sees among many California Western graduates who have had previous jobs before entering law school.

“That’s an important bonus because we like to hire people who are a little more mature, who already know what working in the real world is like, and who are often self-motivated to work the kind of long and irregular hours required by a firm like ours,” McFall says. “Although we know all of our associates will require on-the-job training—with the firm actually losing money on them for at least the first year or two—the fact that California Western grads arrive with a host of skills others don’t have is certainly beneficial because it shortens the learning curve considerably.”

Sandwiched time-wise between a longtime alumna like Trexler and the newly arrived graduates is Matthew R. Souther ’04, another distinguished medical malpractice lawyer who serves as an adjunct professor at California Western. He was invited to become a shareholder two years ago.

“I want to say we’ve had good luck hiring California Western grads, but the truth is that it isn’t luck,” McFall says. “They’re prepared, they’re go-getters, and over the years they’ve been a valuable addition to our firm’s capabilities and a major contributor to our success.”

Attorney James McFall

Students Burnish Legacy of Success in Competitions

California Western’s trial, appellate, and alternative dispute resolution (ADR)  competition teams carry on a tradition of excellence that has defined the program for years, bringing home several national awards and winning the first-ever trial team competition among San Diego’s three law schools.

The ADR team of second-year students Amy A. Vaughan and Braden A. Drake finished first in the California Bar Environmental Negotiation Competition in March—the fourth time in six years a California Western team has made the finals at this competition and the first team to win it all.

Also in March, the appellate team of 2Ls Jeremiah G. Ambabo and Grant P. Porter finished second in the ABA Law Student Division National Appellate Advocacy Competition regionals. The team of third-year students Jennifer N. Monterroso and Rachel M. Ferguson went to the semifinals at that event.
The appellate team of 3L Joanne L. Heilbrun and 2L Matthew W. Hobson excelled at the National Juvenile Law Moot Court Competition held at Whittier Law School in February. Heilbrun and Hobson finished second in the tournament, while Heilbrun earned the top oralist award and Hobson won second-top oralist out of 28 competitors. Between them, they came home with six trophies.

Heilbrun and Monterroso teamed up to finish first in the 17th Annual National Entertainment Law Moot Court Competition held at Pepperdine University School of Law in November. They prevailed over St. Mary’s School of Law in the final round after defeating law school teams from Arizona State University, Villanova, Baylor, and Texas A&M.

California Western finished first in the three-way competition with University of San Diego School of Law and Thomas Jefferson School of Law in November to win bragging rights in San Diego. The team of 3Ls Jordan B. Du Bois, Melissa M. Mack—along with 2Ls Sarah E. Reeb and Madelynn F. Woodhall—won the trophy and a $5,000 prize in the event sponsored by the Association of Business Trial Lawyers. 

Additionally, the trial team of Du Bois and Micaela De La Cerda went to the regional semifinals in the Texas Young Lawyers Association competition hosted by California Western, University of San Diego, and Thomas Jefferson.

Porter and Hobson performed well as a team—finishing second in the regional round of the Thomas Tang National Moot Court Competition at McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento in October. The duo also won best brief.

“The success this year has been extraordinary,” says Distinguished Practitioner Mario G. Conte, faculty advisor to the Moot Court Honors Board (MCHB). “We make two promises to our competitors. First, we will make them the best competitors we can. Second, we promise that we will make them the best attorneys we can when they graduate.”

Conte points to the legacy and continuity of the program as a factor in this success, as most of the coaches are California Western graduates who were trained the MCHB way. “They train students exactly the way they themselves were trained,” says Conte. “They pass on the spirit of champions.”

Local, National Awards Recognize Service to Community and Legal Profession

California Western people and programs are frequently recognized by local, state, and national organizations for their work in the profession and the community. Among the most recent honors are:

President Obama’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction
For the fifth consecutive year, California Western was named to this distinguished list recognizing schools that give back to the community. Programs highlighted include the California Innocence Project, Community Law Project, and Pro Bono Honors Society.

Super Lawyers Pro Bono Awards 2014
Super Lawyers magazine, a program of Thompson Reuters, honored the California Innocence Project with a 2014 pro bono award. In addition to the more than 7,000 hours contributed by clinic students and staff, the award recognizes the project’s work to free Michael Hanline, the longest-serving innocent inmate in California, and their work to pass SB 980, which provides convicted prisoners with improved access to DNA testing.

2015 SDCBA Service Awards
Last year, Director of Alumni Affairs Lori Boyle received the San Diego County Bar Association’s Distinguished Citizen Award in recognition of her work in the legal community. This year, the SDCBA lauds the California Innocence Project with its Public Service by a Law Firm or Agency Award.

American Association of Law Libraries Hall of Fame
In recognition of her years of service to our law library and her “significant, substantial, and long-standing” service to the profession, Phyllis Marion, Associate Dean for Library and Information Resources, will be inducted into the American Association of Law Libraries Hall of Fame this year.

Trailblazer for Women in Legal Education

Professor Marilyn Ireland may not have realized she was helping usher in a new era for women in legal education the day she was physically thrown out the revolving door entrance to a private men’s club in the early 1970s, after being invited there as a guest of honor.

“It tore my nylons,” she recalls. She missed the lunch, and the organizer later apologized, but she says the incident was typical of ignominies women in legal education faced in that era, as they began to enter the profession in more than token numbers.

Before the day of her unceremonious heave-ho, Ireland had already managed the tricky feat of graduating with honors from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, with a degree in government, having done a substantial part of her degree work at the (then) all-male University of Virginia. She’d already accepted a scholarship to the University of Chicago law school, graduating with honors in 1969 — one of six women graduates that year.

She soon saw the inside of a courtroom as a high-powered federal litigator in Chicago, moving on to work for retired Supreme Court Justice Abe Fortas in Washington, D.C., where she specialized in antitrust law and constitutional federalism.

“Justice Fortas was one of the best legal writers and scholars to ever serve on the bench,” she says. “To have simply worked with him on a brief was worth 10 law degrees. The man was brilliant. It was a priceless opportunity. He was extremely professional. I don’t believe he thought of my gender as an issue.”

So as Ireland explains, “I had been the only woman for some time and had never encountered any trouble. I was not that interested in being pivotal in any movement, I was only interested in doing an excellent job for my firm and my clients. I ran into occasional roadblocks, which the firm was very helpful in getting me around.

“I didn’t really understand discrimination until I got into academia. There was nothing like it. There was just no way around it. It was just intense.”

What prompted her to consciously assist in the “end of tokenism” was a professional obligation to her students, who she found were encountering the same difficulties.

She joined and eventually chaired the Women in Legal Education Section of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS) from 1972-1973—a list of previous chairs includes current Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. It was a beleaguered period in the Section’s history, during which their first annual teaching conference was planned behind closed doors by non-Section male AALS members appointed to “assist” the many new women law teachers.

In a 2012 memoir of her time as Section Chair, Ireland recalls preparing a form letter response to routine AALS leadership charges the group was conducting “unauthorized” meetings every time women law professors were spotted socializing in public settings such as hallways and restaurants.

By the late 1970s, the environment was beginning to change. Ireland was drawn to the West Coast, and especially to California, where more than half the women jurists in the U.S. then worked. She accepted a two-year visiting position at California Western, at the end of which, both parties decided to make it permanent.

“I liked that it was a freestanding school,” she explains. “There are not that many of them; most law schools are connected with universities. I’ve been there, done that, and I don’t like it. I don’t like it when administrators get between me and my students. At a freestanding law school, you are a heck of a lot freer.” The law school separated from California Western University (which subsequently became United States International University) in 1975.

And, while the school was almost entirely male at that time, “the male faculty did not feel they were under assault, so it was fine,” she says.

But Ireland recalls it was the personal warmth of Robert Castetter—California Western’s founding dean—that won her over.

“He was one of the kindest people you could meet on this planet. To him, the person he was talking to was the person he cared about. He would look at you not from what he could get from you but from who you were as a person. I liked him. He made me feel that he wanted me at California Western, and that it would be a pleasant place to be because he was there. He offered me a job and I took it.”

For the next 36 years, California Western served as Ireland’s base of operations, offering the intellectual independence she sought as professional, and the security she required as a single mother raising two children. And as practical matters go, the San Diego climate didn’t hurt.  After all, she asks, “When are you going to leave San Diego to go to Columbus, Ohio? Or North Dakota?”

She taught and published extensively, specializing in constitutional law issues such as free speech, civil rights, privacy, sexual harassment, women in law, and separation of church and state.

After earning tenure in 1981, Ireland went on to hold numerous visiting professorships locally and internationally. In San Diego, she taught at San Diego State University, University of San Diego and UC San Diego. In 1996, she accepted a visiting professorship at Victoria University in New Zealand, leading an honors comparative law seminar on free expression and international torts. From 2006-2007, she went to University of Maribor in Slovenia as a Fulbright Scholar, teaching English legal terminology and American jurisprudence.

She describes her teaching style as “eclectic,” combining lectures, practical application and a now-softened approach to the sometimes withering Socratic dialogue to which she was, as a student and young professor, accustomed.

“The first thing I ran into in teaching that had to do with women being different, was when I was using the Socratic dialogue—and I must admit I was very good at it. Some of my women law students came to me afterwards absolutely livid, wanting to know why I was doing everything the way the men did. Why not? I thought at first. But it got me thinking about other modalities. And one thing I found is that you can use a less intimidating style of the Socratic dialogue and get better results.”

As she looks forward to her retirement, Ireland says what she will miss are her students. “I like students. I enjoy interacting with them. They teach me and I’ve learned a lot from them.”

As she embarks on her next chapter in life, she plans to focus first on her health, doing “what I’m physically able to do as long as I can.” Then, she hopes to get back to travel. “I’m a Europhile. I wish I could move there,” she says, having made her way through the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Slovenia just last fall.

In general, whether it’s Chichén Itzá or former Yugoslavia, “I try to get there before the tourists do,” she says. “When they start arriving and demanding balloon rides, it becomes like everywhere else in the world.”

 

 

Professor Marilyn Ireland

Community Service Key to Satisfaction in 46-Year Career in Law

A few years into Jeffrey S. Isaacs’ legal career, he came to a realization that would alter—and enrich—the rest of his life. “I had an epiphany that I was essentially working and living my life to meet my partners’ expectations and I knew there had to be more,” says Isaacs ’68, who retired in January after a 46-year career at Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch, where he was one of the region’s top bankruptcy and creditor-debtor lawyers.

Isaacs would end up involving himself in a number of organizations and causes that would help both his community, his profession, and—most recently—his alma mater, when he accepted an invitation to join California Western’s Board of Trustees.

Serving on boards such as the San Diego County Bar Association and San Diego County Bar Foundation was satisfying, but it wasn’t until Isaacs started his long relationship with the San Diego Volunteer Lawyers Program (SDVLP) that he came to truly appreciate the impact community service could have on the lives of those who most need help.

“As a lawyer, I came to realize that, at least for me, nothing was more gratifying than helping people out dire of circumstances who were unable to help themselves.

“SDVLP is such a special and vitally needed program because it annually provides pro bono legal services to over 6,000 of the most vulnerable members of our community, including domestic violence victims, children at risk, elder abuse victims, and the homeless—just to name a few of the areas in which the program is involved,” says Isaacs, who has served as SDVLP president and remains highly active as a member of both the board and the executive committee.

As he looks back on his career, Isaacs is grateful for many things, but near the top of the list is the education he received at California Western.

“This school was transformational for me,” says Isaacs, who grew up in Los Angeles. “I wasn’t an exceptional student and, in fact, wasn’t even sure I wanted to be a lawyer, but Dean Robert Castetter and the school gave me a chance. I was willing to work hard and I surprised myself by doing exceptionally well, including becoming editor in chief of the law review.”

Isaacs’ academic achievement paid off in his being hired upon graduation by Procopio, a top-tier San Diego law firm.

“I was proud of that, but it would never have happened if the school hadn’t prepared me to think like a lawyer and equipped me with a thorough understanding of the concepts that are integral to legal analysis. Honestly, the things I learned in my first year at California Western I literally used every day for 46 years as a lawyer.”

These days, Isaacs is still involved with law, transitioning to a new career as a mediator while maintaining ties to California Western through board service and his annual presentation of the Alec L. Cory Pro Bono Award. Named in honor of his partner and mentor in community service, the award provides a $3,000 grant to a third-year student who has exhibited outstanding pro bono involvement.

“I like to encourage young lawyers to consider pro bono work and community service, because I believe they will come to understand that getting involved and giving back to the community will be one of the most rewarding things they will ever do,” Isaacs says. “I know my career would not have been half as satisfying without it.”

 

 

Jeffrey S. Isaacs '68

Giving Tuesday Sets One-Day Record

Thank you to the many students, alumni, and friends of California Western who contributed to the law school’s inaugural Giving Tuesday Campaign on December 2, 2014. Because of the generous support of our donors, we raised a total of $61,735 in just 24 hours, making Giving Tuesday the most successful day of giving in law school history.

This success was due in large part to Roy M. Bell ’74 and the rest of the Board of Trustees. Bell generously agreed to match all donations to the school on Giving Tuesday up to a total of $10,000. When that goal was met before 10:30 a.m., the board worked quickly to offer an additional match goal of $19,000. Thank you to Roy Bell and the board, whose generosity helped provide more than $60,000 in support for an array of student scholarships, clinical programs, and more.

California Western’s second annual Giving Tuesday Campaign will take place December 1, 2015. We are working hard to build on the success of our first-year campaign and raise even more money in 2015.

For more information visit www.cwsl.edu/givingtuesday or contact Associate Director of Development Melissa Wells at mwells@cwsl.edu.

 

Giving Tuesday Donations

Access to Law Initiative	$1,000
Annual Fund	$20,980
California Innocence Project	$5,792
Community Law Project	$4,900
Brigadier General John R. DeBarr Award	$1,000
Murray L. Galinson Scholarship	$300
Prof. Irwin Miller Memorial Fund	$1,000
William Lynch Scholarship	$1,075
New Media Rights	$7,315
Proyecto ACCESO	$2,400
Student Scholarships	$15,973
Total Raised	$61,735

Law Firm Challenge

This April, California Western kicked off its first-ever Law Firm Challenge, a community-based engagement campaign that challenges local law firms employing two or more California Western  graduates to achieve 100 percent alumni giving.

By meeting the challenge, participating firms raise their profile within the legal community and among California Western students who represent future employees. The challenge also provides the first opportunity of its kind for California Western graduates to reconnect with their alma mater and fellow alumni, building a stronger and more mutually beneficial alumni network.

The challenge is currently underway and runs through June 30, 2015. This year’s participating firms include:

Higgs Fletcher & Mack LLP
Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP
Gordon & Rees LLP
Wingert Grebing Brubaker & Juskie LLP
Greenman, Lacy, Klein, O'Harra & Heffron
Silldorf & Levine LLP
Hyde & Swigart
DLA Piper
Zeldes Haeggquist & Eck
Foley & Lardner LLP
San Diego District Attorney's Office
Casey Gerry Schenk Francavilla Blatt & Penfield LLP

It’s not too late for your firm to sign up! To register your firm or for more information, please contact Melissa Wells at mwells@cwsl.edu.

 

2013 Honor Roll of Donors

Last fall, California Western changed its donor reporting period from a fiscal year to a calendar year system. Below, please find a list of donors who made a gift of $100 or more from August 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013 who did not appear in the last Res Ipsa Honor Roll.

2014 Honor Roll of Donors

Leland G. Stanford Circle

The Leland G. Stanford Circle, named after the founder of California Western, recognizes lifetime giving at the highest level, comprising a select group of individuals and couples whose lifetime giving totals $100,000 or more.

Anonymous
Roy M. '74 and Diane Bell
Harold A. and Eileen Brown
Constance L. '74 and David C. Clapp
Dean E. Donald and Merle Shapiro Family Donor Advised Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation of Greater Phoenix, Inc.
Dean Emeritus Michael H.* and Carolyn Dessent
Frederic L. '81 and Janis Gordon
Huggy Bear, Inc.
J. Randall '81 and Kathleen Jones
Howard J. '80 and Beverly S. Silldorf
Dean Emeritus Steven R.* and Lera B. Smith
Universidad Catolica de Temuco
Weingart Foundation
The Honorable Howard B. and Joan C. Wiener
William and Flora Hewlett Foundation
Sally T. Wong-Avery
James '73 and Linda R. Ybarrondo

Juris Legatum Society

The Juris Legatum Society recognizes those who have made a planned gift to California Western.  With their gift, members of the Juris Legatum Society leave behind a legacy of their generosity and commitment to California Western, making a lasting impact on the school and its students for years to come.

Marlene J. and Roger A. Gaskins
Kenneth L. '71 and Patricia Greenman
Howard J. '80 and Beverly S. Silldorf
Dwight E. and Fern Stanford

Juris Society
The Juris Society recognizes the individuals whose generous annual support maintains the core operations of the law school and strengthens programs of central importance to our mission.

Juris Friends ($1,000 to $2,499)
American Inns of Court Louis Welsh Chapter
William M. '81 and Nancy A. Aul
Professors Thomas D. Barton* and Sharon L. Foster
Charles H. ‘82 and Sarah C. Beale
The Honorable Larrie R. ‘68 and Kathleen R. Brainard ‘88
Professor Arthur W. Campbell*
Professor Susan A. Channick '80*
Han P. '74 and Meredith J. Ching
Constance L. '74 and David C. Clapp
Dwight W. '74 and Sharon L. Clark
The Diane and Elliot Feuerstein Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation
Pamela* and Michael Duffy
Kelly Fernando*
Martha A. Gafford
Mark S. '82 and Cindy Garber
The Honorable David M. and Marcia Gill
Thomas Goldstein
Geraldo and Scarrain Gomes Fund
Grantors Foundation
Kenneth L. '71 and Patricia Greenman
Herbert J. Solomon Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation
Gary Hunt
Imran M. and Aniqa Jaswal
J. Randall '81 and Kathleen Jones
Cy C. Kuckenbaker
Samuel S. Lionel
Roger L. and Darleen K. Long
Vice Admiral Bruce E. '87 and Karen E. MacDonald
Mary Ellen Mahoney
Chris Maxwell '75
Mitch M. '72 and Tomoe Michino
Associate Dean Linda H. Morton* and Lenny Bole
Nathaniel D. Davis Foundation
Ambassador Thomas A. ‘68 and Zinetta Nassif
Arthur Neill
Jeffrey R. ‘80 and Tseela Newport
Doctors Erica J. Pascal ‘06 and Michael J. Hostetler
Robert J. Pecora ‘81
Dennis M. Prince ‘93
Eberhard H. and Jessica Röhm
Charles E. ‘71 and Christina C. Rumbaugh
Russell F. Accornero Family Trust
David S. Sabih
Rana Sampson and Mayor Jerry Sanders
The San Diego Foundation
James E. L. and Sarah Seay
Howard Speight
Joshua B. ‘02 and Rahil K. Swigart ‘03
Professor Roberta K. Thyfault ‘84*
Shirley K. Watkins '82 and Steve Stevens
Larry and Louise Williams
Doctor Peter A. Winograd
The Honorable Lawrence F. '77 and Patricia M. Winthrop
Michelle M. Wu '94

Juris Fellows ($2,500 to $4,999)
Michael H. '86 and Gayle M. '85 Blatt
Vice Dean Barbara J. Cox* and Peg Habetler
Douglas E. ‘89 and the Honorable Rita C. Federman ‘89
Charles R. ‘70 and Dawn Grebing
Higgs, Fletcher & Mack LLP
James T. Nystrom Foundation
Thomas A. Lehrer
Mark P. Mandell ‘77 and Dawn Rose
Associate Dean Phyllis C. Marion*
Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch
Dean Niels B.* and Carla Schaumann

Dean's Associates ($5,000 to $9,999)
Association of Business Trial Lawyers
Gilbert and Pamela S. Binninger
Robert M. '76 and Judith J. Dowd
Ian Edwards
Daniel L. Essig '07
H. Wayne Goodroe '74
The Honorable Judith L. '75 and John L. Haller
Jeffrey S. '68 and Johanna J. Issacs
Jackson Lewis P.C.
Judith S. Levine
Jeffrey D. '75 and Marie Lewin
The Marks Family Fund of the Jewish Community Foundation
Colette Newman
Dean Emeritus Steven R.* and Lera B. Smith
Tecnológico de Monterrey
Universidad Nova Spania
The Honorable Howard B. and Joan C. Wiener

Dean’s Partners ($10,000 and above)
Roy M. ‘74 and Diane Bell
Kenneth Fait ‘69
The Gilbert J. Martin Foundation
J.B. and Emily Van Nuys Charities
Steven and Lisa Pite Family Foundation
Michael J. Whitton

Rising Leaders Society

The Rising Leaders Society recognizes loyal alumni who have graduated within the past ten years and have made gifts to the law school in three consecutive years. These future leaders of California Western support the law school above and beyond the value of their gifts by inspiring a culture of giving amongst their peers. Members receive the same benefits granted to members of the Juris Society.

Michael T. Bannon ‘06
Nihat D. Bayramoglu ‘13
Craig S. Benner ‘12
Jennifer M. Booth ‘07
Miranda M. Bordson ‘05
Rebecca G. Church ‘08
Helene C. Colin ‘08
Kristopher M. Cronin ‘05
Adam E. Davalos ‘08
Deborah S. Dixon ‘07
Irina A. Doliner ‘12
Albert N. Le ‘08 and Laralee E. Easton ‘08
Farzeen F. Essa ‘06
Daniel L. Essig ‘07
Lindsay A. Herf ‘08
Edward J. Hughes ‘05
Sarah E. Jordan ‘12
Kevin Y. Kanooni ‘13
Reem S. Khalil ‘13
Christopher M. Lawson ‘05
Alan Lewenstein ‘05
Rachel C. Lipsky ‘05
Kevin E. Magennis ‘12
Debra B. Manduley ‘06
Michael Manley ‘10
Annamarie S. Martin ‘05
Audrey A. McGinn ‘10*
Nima Namdjou '12
Captain Kevin R. O'Neil '05
Rachel S. Opatik '06
Doctor Erica J. Pascal '06
Ashley J. Ratliff '06
Matthew P. Reinhart '07
Alex W. Sachs '05
Carla W. Sanderson '12
Angela H. Santamaria '11
Michael A. Semanchik '10*
Arthur A. Severance '06
Lucia A. Thayer '09
Mark S.K.M. Tom '09
Jihan S. Yacoub '11
Kyle E. '06 and Eden R. Yaege '07
Patricia L. Zlaket '09

2014 3L Campaign Contributors

By contributing to the 3L Campaign, these students left a lasting mark on California Western, and a legacy of success and public service by which the Class of 2014 will be remembered.

Christina A. Alkire '14
Zagros S. Bassirian '14
Alyn B. Beauregard '14
Ryan D. Buchanan '14
Christina N. Burton '14
Allyson E. Calvird '14
Brian S. Carter '14
Erica E. Chang '14
Laura M. Coey '14
Michael E. Cosgrove '14
Gina E. Damiano '14
Marc G. Ebel '14
Jeffery T. Economides '14
Sean M. Elo '14
Felicia J. Erlich '14
Lauren E. Foley '14
Adam A. Freeman '14
Dennis P. Gallagher II '14
Corey C. Garrard '14
Julia N. Goldman '14
Camille L. Gustafson '14
Sami Haddad '14
Daniel I. Halimi '14
Brieanna R. Harb '14
Siamak S. Hefazi '14
Carina M. Jordan '14
Nathan J. Kingery '14
Mark R. Kiran '14
Harrison Le '14
Mitchell G. Miller '14
Kathleen L. Milligan '14
Nicholas P. Mouton '14
Rachael A. Neal Harrington '14
Leah A. Reeves '14
Priscilla A. Salgado '14
Christina S. Sarkiss '14
Alison K. Schlick '14
Julia D. Schneider '14
Jacob T. Spaid '14
Shannon Wicks '14
Patricia M. Wilson '14

*California Western faculty and staff