Judge Bernadette D’Souza Discusses Family Law and Her Path to the Bench

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Rachel Martin ‘23
Staff Editor

On Thursday, September 24, UVA Law’s chapter of the American Constitution Society (ACS) and Virginia Law Women (VLW) virtually hosted Judge Bernadette D’Souza, President of the National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) and Family Court Judge of the Orleans Parish Civil District Court. Morgan Maloney ’22, the Director of Programming for ACS, arranged the event. “I think it is so important for all law students, but especially students from underrepresented communities, to think about careers in the judiciary while still in law school,” Maloney said. “I hope that the event inspired some students who had not formerly considered a career as a judge to begin to think about that as a potential career path.”

ACS President Wes Williams ’22 introduced Judge D’Souza. Judge D’Souza graduated from Tulane University School of Law in 1992. Before becoming a judge, she worked in public interest law for eighteen years representing indigent clients in domestic violence and other family law cases at places such as New Orleans Legal Assistance (NOLA) and Southeast Louisiana Legal Services. Judge D’Souza also taught family law and domestic violence as an adjunct professor at Tulane. She has served on numerous community and national boards and committees, been invited to speak at numerous events both at home and abroad, and been the recipient of numerous awards. She is also the proud mother of three children.

Pictured: Judge Bernadette D’Souza, President of the National Association of Women Judges and Family Court Judge of the Orleans Parish Civil District Court. Photo Courtesy of orleansdc.com.

After the introduction, Judge D’Souza’s first words were, “Students will wonder, ‘Where does she have the time to do what she’s doing?’ It’s when you find the passion that you find the time.” Judge D’Souza explained that after graduating, she could have joined any law firm, but she was “so taken with the work being done at NOLA that [she] wanted to dedicate [her] career” to public interest work.  

Judge D’Souza gave high praise to her students at Tulane, crediting them with the idea to start a domestic violence clinic and applying for the grant to fund it.

“It is the students that can make a difference with some of the social issues that we are confronted with in our country,” Judge D’Souza said. Judge D’Souza encourages students to become involved in clinics, policy advocacy, and other community service projects while in law school. “Just because you’re not a lawyer does not mean you cannot advocate for people in your community.”

Judge D’Souza first started thinking about becoming a judge when she realized the problems caused by not having a dedicated judicial seat for family law matters in her local civil district court. Because none of the judges wanted to handle the domestic violence cases, they were assigned to the newest judges, who would then rotate out as soon as there was another vacancy. As a result, a single case or ongoing issue would often be handled by multiple judges who never really became familiar with the background. To rectify this, Judge D’Souza managed to convince her Senator to introduce a bill creating two dedicated family law seats in Orleans Parish, which subsequently passed. In 2012, Judge D’Souza became the first person elected to the position. 

“It was humbling to receive the support of the New Orleans community,” Judge D’Souza said. She linked the overwhelming support she received with the work she had done for the community over many years, and she recommended that anyone interested in a state or local judgeship similarly work to serve their communities, because it is the people that elect the judge—or in the case of most non-federal appointed judges, vote to retain them. 

The most difficult thing about being a judge, Judge D’Souza observed, is the inability to advocate for one side, as judges must remain neutral. “Besides having the knowledge, experience, [and] expertise . . . to hear these cases, it is so critical that a judge has the proper demeanor and judicial temperament to judge from the bench.” 

However, Judge D’Souza still finds ways to ensure equal access to justice. One of the main ways she does this is by working to help connect people to community resources. Sixty-five to seventy percent of the people coming before her lack legal representation, so she set up a self-help desk in the court, and she arranges for lawyers from pro bono projects to help people do things such as fill out petitions. In addition to legal matters, she also works to connect people with resources for housing, employment, and food, on top of addressing other issues that often coincide with family law cases.

Another way that Judge D’Souza helps those facing domestic violence is through confiscating weapons from perpetrators and issuing various protective and relief orders.  Judge D’Souza recounted an incident from her days as a practicing attorney when one of her clients was gunned down on the courthouse steps moments after winning her case. As a judge, she helps prevent similar incidents from occurring by having her deputy retrieve all of the weapons from a household as soon as there is a finding of domestic violence occurring in the home. Judge D’Souza praised the many recent advances in Louisiana law allowing this and other protections. She advised that it is often up to clients’ lawyers, however, to educate judges and make sure these laws are used to their fullest effect. For example, in Louisiana, judges can now order financial support as part of a protection order, but the issue must be brought before the court in a petition in order for relief of this type to be granted. 

Judge D’Souza gave a lot of advice for people of color, mothers, and other women entering practice or looking to join the judiciary. As an immigrant from India, the only woman in her graduating class, and the mother of three children, Judge D’Souza faced many challenges throughout her legal career. However, her passion for equal justice drove her forward, and she strongly recommended that others interested in public interest work pursue it. “In doing this work you are able to confront [inequalities] head on and obtain justice in coming before the court . . . . Once you develop that confidence and know that you can get justice, you just work at it.” Judge D’Souza also highly recommended taking advantage of the many mentorship and networking opportunities available through organizations such as NAWJ. The best time to start is now as a law student. Finally, Judge D’Souza emphasized the importance of balance. “I think it is so important to have a balanced life. It is difficult because when you have children, you want to be able to know who they are as they are growing up. Make time for the family. There are certain times of the day when you just have to force yourself to make time.”

Judge D’Souza ended on the following note: “If any of you want to do a summer internship, you are welcome to come down to New Orleans.”

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rdm9yn@virginia.edu

Mandatory Vaccinations: Law, Ethics, and Religious Liberties

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Drew Calamaro 21
Satire Editor

On Wednesday, September 23, the Health Law Association hosted Professors Margaret Riley, Lois Shepherd, and Micah Schwartzman to discuss the implications of a vaccination mandate.[1] Professor Riley first discussed the development schedule of a possible COVID-19 vaccine. She explained the development process of a vaccine under the traditional paradigm, which often takes many years, with time allotted for manufacturing scale-up, commercial scale, and validation of manufacturing processes. The end of the process involves regulatory approval and licensure of the vaccine.

The development of a COVID-19 vaccine has been largely facilitated by the federal government’s “Operation Warp Speed,”[2] which has the stated goal of producing and delivering 300 million doses of safe and effective vaccines by January 2021. Accelerating the process, however, begets a whole host of issues. First, Professor Riley was clear to draw a distinction between emergency use authorization and regulatory approval. A safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine will not be approved at any point in the near future. Instead, a vaccine will be authorized for emergency use by the FDA, which may limit the number of people who receive it. Second, manufacturers and governments must overcome supply chain issues. There happens to be a global glass shortage, which may cause shortage in vials necessary to store the vaccine. Some vaccines also have to be kept at temperatures as low as -70 degrees Fahrenheit. There are very few companies with the capacity to ship and store vaccines at such low temperatures, and their ability to ship billions of vaccines across the globe will be put to the test.

Professor Shepherd then discussed Supreme Court precedent regarding mandates and the right to refuse medical care. First, she discussed Jacobson v. Massachusetts, a seminal public health decision that dealt with the state’s authority to mandate vaccinations. In 1902, Rev. Henning Jacobson attempted to refuse a smallpox vaccine that the city of Cambridge had mandated for its citizens. The penalty of refusal at the time was five dollars. Jacobson sued and appealed his repeated losses all the way up to the Supreme Court, which sided with the state of Massachusetts. Professor Shepherd then discussed Zucht v. King, which upheld school vaccination mandates even in the absence of an ongoing pandemic.

These cases, however, were decided in an era before the courts recognized a right to refuse medical care. Professor Shepherd discussed the possibility that a forced-vaccine mandate violates the right to refuse medical care, and also implicates the issue of whether the federal government can use quarantine precedents to justify one. She reiterated that it is important to remember that the Jacobson decision involved a fine as a penalty, whereas forced vaccinations would likely fly in the face of the medical rights developed throughout the twentieth century.

Finally, Professor Schwartzman discussed religious exemptions. Since the Jacobson decision, courts have consistently held that states are not obligated to provide religious and personal belief exemptions to vaccinations. There are currently forty-five states, including Washington D.C., that grant religious exemptions for people who have religious objections to vaccines for school children. Fifteen states allow philosophical exemptions for those who object because of personal, moral, or other beliefs.[3] States including California, New York, and New Jersey have either removed or attempted to remove religious and philosophical exemptions in the wake of recent measles outbreaks.

Professor Schwartzman also discussed the future of religious exemptions in the wake of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death. Courts are usually not in the business of creating religious exemptions to vaccine mandates. No court—to Professor Schwartzman’s knowledge—has created a religious exemption to vaccines where none previously existed. However, if a conservative Supreme Court Justice were appointed to replace late Justice Ginsburg, that precedent could change if the issue comes before the Court again.

Toward the end of the discussion, I added a few words about the history of immunization, quarantine, and vaccination mandates. During the Revolutionary War, George Washington mandated his troops be immunized to smallpox through variolation, which involved exposing un-immunized individuals to a small amount of the active virus.[4] This brought troop infection rates of smallpox from over 20 percent down to 1 percent. The first mass-vaccination event in the United States occurred in 1803 in the Old Natchez District of the Mississippi Territory. In the midst of a smallpox outbreak, the governor enacted stay-at-home orders, subjecting those who violated the order and ventured out in public to a $100 fine.[5] The governor acquired the smallpox vaccine and provided it to two-thirds of the city’s 1,400 residents.

While the United States has a long history of utilizing vaccines or immunizations to achieve herd immunity, it is politically unlikely that a federal mandate is around the corner. Furthermore, as Professor Riley pointed out, a mandated vaccine should be both highly safe and effective in a significant proportion of people. Achieving these two baseline requirements in the COVID-19 vaccine may be difficult. Our best hope remains in people’s trust in a vaccine’s safety and their willingness to receive it.

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dac6jk@virginia.edu

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[1] I also had the opportunity to contribute a few comments at the end of the event once the professors were finished speaking since this is my current area of research.

[2] A name Professor Riley attributed to the involvement of the military.

[3] https://www.ncsl.org/research/health/school-immunization-exemption-state-laws.aspx.

[4] I did not say this in the event, but I figure you, the reader, might be interested in it.

[5] Today, this amounts to about $2,110.

PLACE and Power: A Conversation with Professor Emily Prifogle and Journalist Earl Swift

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Jonathan Peterson ‘23
Staff Editor

PLACE and Power, an ongoing series held by the Program in Law, Communities, and the Environment (PLACE), kicked off this week with a conversation about “the importance of rural places in shaping the laws, customs, and attitudes of the people who live in them, as well as their role in the cultural and political future of the nation.” The speakers were Professor Emily Prifogle, a legal historian and professor at the University of Michigan Law School; Earl Swift, a Virginian journalist and the author of Chesapeake Requiem: A Year with the Watermen of Vanishing Tangier Island; and the moderator, Professor Jonathan Cannon, who is head of the PLACE program here at UVA Law.

Pictured: Tangier Island, a small community threatened by rising waters. Photo Courtesy of richmond.com.

The trio began by talking about the guest speakers’ backgrounds. Professor Prifogle’s research places her in the rural Midwest, whereas Swift has spent fourteen months living with the watermen of Tangier Island on Virginia’s Eastern Shore. The pair’s experiences, although undeniably different, yielded no shortage of cultural similarities between the populations. Swift’s watermen were admittedly more insular, relatively cut off from the rest of the country by the Chesapeake Bay when compared to their midwestern counterparts. But, nonetheless, the similarities were there. Both speakers saw a heavy reliance on anecdotal and experiential knowledge in the communities they studied and, as a result, more skepticism of government regulation. A farmer in Wisconsin can, with an inspection, generally tell good farming land from bad farming land. Similarly, one of the Tangier watermen can spot an oyster bed or a good area for crabbing simply through their experiential and cultural knowledge of the area. Neither group sees the necessity for relying on scientific knowledge in their day-to-day lives.

Similarly, both communities distrust outside law enforcement, particularly state and federal enforcement. Swift in particular noted the way in which the community on Tangier handles malfeasances within the community. The community preferred to use local law enforcement and social customs to deal with problems. The same is true of rural communities in the Midwest, although to a lesser extent as a result of the federal highways connecting them to the rest of urban society.

This documented mistrust of outside authority and scientific knowledge can have disastrous consequences, particularly for Tangier, where time is running out quickly. The small island is scheduled to be one of the first to disappear as a result of rising water levels, but according to Swift, the people of Tangier don’t see it. What it comes down to is simply different means of data collection. Local knowledge is, at its base, data collection. As Swift puts it, the locals of Tangier learn about their environment by going out and looking at the water, looking at the catch, and watching the weather. But people, with just their eyes and their boats, are not in a position to analyze accurately the movement of the environment over a long period of time. The people of Tangier will have a hard time seeing the effects of rising water levels without the right resources. For example, one needs an airplane to see the extent of the water level’s rise. And one needs to take periodic measurements of factors like water temperature, marsh accretion, and water levels to begin to understand more minute changes in the ecosystem. These are resources that could come from the State or Federal level.

 Despite being on the periphery of urban life and the national news, rural communities with a population of 2,500 people or fewer make up approximately 1/5th of our nation’s population. Even more impressive, according to the U.S. Census Bureau they inhabit 97 percent of this country’s land. Clearly, this is a significant portion of the U.S. population. That is why the talk ended with this question: What do we owe rural communities? For Swift, the answer relates back to the American identity. These people help to establish the breadth of our cultural identity as Americans. Swift sees them as existing on the edge of American culture “where all the spice is.” Valuing these kinds of pluralistic experiences is important because, when we write off the nuanced and astute perspectives of people on “the edge” of mainstream urban culture, all we’re left with is a “bland, flavorless center.”

Prifogle, agreeing with Swift, wants to do away with the narrative of decline surrounding rural areas. She believes that we owe rural communities the same thing we owe to everyone in our country—respect. Rural inhabitants deserve to be taken seriously and they deserve the same access to public goods as any of the people in our country. And ultimately, as the custodians and stewards of 97 percent of our nation’s land, the best way to bring these people into the conversation is to do just that—meet them in the middle, and include them in the conversation. By doing this and by fostering relationships between rural communities and governing bodies, we can begin a conversation that benefits everyone at the table and promotes active stewardship from every citizen.

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jtp4bw@virginia.edu

Domestic Violence Project Talks Highlights, Patterns, and Prevalence of Domestic Violence

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Anna Bninski ‘23
Staff Editor

Professor Geri Greenspan spoke on Wednesday, September 16, giving a talk for the Domestic Violence Project that kicked off the educational aspect of the organization’s mission this year.

“It’s not what most people picture when you think of court.” Professor Greenspan, who has spent a lot of time in the Charlottesville and Albemarle Juvenile & Domestic Relations District Court, described an environment that’s typically pretty chaotic—and the work of helping survivors of intimate partner violence to navigate that chaos. (Unfortunately, it’s only one of the massive number of hurdles survivors have to face.)

Professor Greenspan has represented survivors of intimate partner and sexual violence for ten years, and she brings that experience to the class she’s teaching this semester: Gender-Based Violence: U.S. Law and Policy. She provided the audience with a crash-course in domestic violence issues in her talk.

Intimate partner violence, as Professor Greenspan defines and encounters it in her work, is “a pattern of behavior in any relationship that is used to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner. Abuse is physical, sexual, emotional, economic or psychological actions or threats of action that influence another person. This includes any behaviors that frighten, intimidate, terrorize, manipulate, hurt, humiliate, blame, injure, or wound someone.”

Professor Greenspan contrasted that on-the-ground definition with Virginia’s statutory definition of “family abuse,” which focuses on individual acts that include violence, force, threats, stalking, and sexual assault. She emphasized that while only having to prove one abusive act is to the advantage of survivors seeking an emergency protective order, “where you get one act you always have a pattern. It doesn’t come out of the blue.”

Though legislation about intimate partner violence is a complicated and contested topic, Professor Greenspan expects to see an expanded statute in the next few years.

“Obviously the laws are only as good as the people who are applying them,” she said, observing that judges working within the law can make good use of the tools available, such as including financial provisions within a temporary protective order. “Some judges think, ‘This is a protective order, it’s not about money, it’s about safety.’ But money is safety . . . having a house is safety. It keeps you safe from the world, [and] from having to return to your abuser.”

Leaving an abusive relationship, Professor Greenspan explained, is only the first step in what is generally a long and difficult process: Survivors often hope they can take care of all the legal aspects quickly, but divorce and custody arrangements come slowly and can be dragged out by the other party. And that’s on top of the uncertainty that many survivors face when it comes to simple needs like housing and employment.

“[Intimate partner violence] affects every age, every race, every gender, gender identity, sexuality, socioeconomic status, religion,” Professor Greenspan emphasized. She has worked with clients from a wide range of backgrounds, including many immigrants from around the world, and the same patterns appear. “People will say the exact same thing in a hundred different languages . . . no matter where they’re coming from, I can relate to their story, because it’s the story I hear everyday.”

On the topic of hearing stories, Professor Greenspan spoke to the need for everyone—the Law School community very much included—to reach out to any family or friend whom they believe may be affected by domestic violence. “Let them know that you’re ready to talk whenever they are ready,” she said. Professor Greenspan also suggested offering concrete support if needed, such as helping the person involve the authorities, offering them a place to stay, or making sure that they’re able to tap into resources like the local Shelter for Help in Emergency (434-963-4676).

The discussion ranged over many more topics than can fit in this article: the intersection of domestic violence with concerns about policing and immigration status; extracting legally compelling facts from the stories of clients; the developing understanding of trauma and its effects; need for diversity in service providers; and a community network to support survivors with logistics and finances.

The talk was just an opening event for DVP. For those who don’t know, DVP is a student pro bono project focused both on education and direct service. While programs like Wednesday’s talk and further upcoming events during Domestic Violence Awareness Month in October make up the educational side, DVP’s pro bono work continues despite the pandemic.

“The Domestic Violence Project is pleased to continue its long-standing relationship with the Charlottesville Commonwealth's Attorney's office,” said Morgan Maloney ’22, who is spearheading DVP’s COVID-era pro bono project. “As in years past, students are working with the attorneys in the office to help prepare case summaries for domestic violence cases. This semester all volunteering is being done completely remotely. Moving to virtual volunteering was not the smoothest transition but, thanks to the patience and dedication of our volunteers and the Commonwealth's Attorney's office, we are starting to develop a more streamlined system. The strength of our domestic violence prevention community in Charlottesville has allowed us to continue this crucial work even in unprecedented times and with new challenges. I am so thankful for our volunteers and especially for their understanding and grace as we all try to navigate this new system.”

DVP President Alex Karahalios ’21 summarized DVP’s forthcoming work. “We are also currently researching ways to expand our pro bono efforts beyond the Commonwealth's Attorney's Office, create a policy initiative, and adjust our philanthropy efforts to be the most effective they can be in a virtual world. We are already very impressed and encouraged by the participation and interest we have seen from new students and hope to continue that enthusiasm throughout the year.”

Anyone interested in DVP’s pro bono work should definitely get in touch.

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amb6ag@virginia.edu

Dean Groves Discusses COVID-19 Safety Policies

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Drew Calamaro ‘21
Satire Editor

I spoke with Dean Groves (UVA Law ’90) on Wednesday, September 16, about SEC-045.[1] SEC-045 dictates social distancing and safety rules students must agree to while living in Charlottesville. The conversation below is lightly edited, but I think that I stayed true to the points he was trying to make. Thank you to Dean Groves for his time!

Tell me about the process of drafting SEC-045. Who helped, and how did that come about?

            When it was initially drafted, it was very limited in scope. And as we continued to learn from our own experiences and those of other schools’, we tried to figure out what to add, including the exceptions. One challenge with that was that the policy took longer than any of us anticipated to fully vet and get it where it needed to be. The original SEC-045 didn’t contemplate the public health and first amendment collision that was happening in our country, but the moment the policy was done, I sent it to students and said “here’s some things you can do, here’s where I need to be strict.”

            We had our health people, the senior leadership at the university, student affairs—me, the police, the general counsel’s office, so there were a lot of cooks in the kitchen, but in a good way, and it took a lot of perspectives to get the policy crafted.

What took the longest—were there any big sticking points?

            I think it was more trying to figure out the parameters of the exceptions. How do we define those sufficiently so that SEC-045 protects public health, but also generally enough so that a student can look at it and apply to their own circumstances? We also had to discuss whether we were going to have a process where students can request to get an exception, and how we were going to vet those.

What is one thing you would want to tell students at the Law School about SEC-045?

            One important thing that I’ve noticed is that folks are really focused on the letter of policy without thinking through the spirit. For example, we’ve had reports on students in really small spaces but they said, “We didn’t have fifteen people.” People latch onto a number, and I say they should think about what we are trying to achieve here, and then use common sense to say, “Is what I’m doing going to achieve that?”  And if it doesn’t, we need to tweak the behavior to make sure it does.

            I get asked about car rides, for example, and I tell people: If you don’t live with the person, wear a mask in the car, keep the mask on in the car, then think about whether you want to use disinfecting wipes when the person gets out of the car. For example, my husband and I live together, so masks are probably unnecessary. But on the other hand, if I’m picking up a colleague, I need to be making sure we’re wearing masks in the car.

How many reports have you received, what types of things are catching your attention, and what is causing concern or giving you hope?

            So that’s a great question, Drew, and it’s funny—the Washington Post asked me that, so you’re in good company.

Not surprising—those are my colleagues over there.

Your colleagues over there, yeah . . . But the Law Weekly is a much higher priority for me.

            So, to answer the first question, I don’t know. And I’ll tell you why. We have two portals for reporting. We have JustReportIt,[2] and I get a notification whenever someone files a report on there for anything. I can see the report, but actually, it’s the associate dean on call who takes ownership of the report. They will look at it and say, “What is this report telling me? Should I escalate this to Dean Groves for him to review, or is this pretty routine, low level, or just not there?” Then, they figure out what to do.

            Then, there is a second portal called the community portal where you don’t need to sign in through Netbadge. However, the challenge there is that you don’t have to identify yourself, so we often have no one to follow up with or ask questions. The report is then triaged by some folks in community relations, and then some of them are elevated to me or to the Dean’s Office, but we don’t see all of them. We could drill down and get the numbers, but the reality is that we really need to care about the ones with meat on the bone.

            By that, I mean parties over fifteen people—what you might call a pre-pandemic party. The real alarm is when you start to get into some of those higher numbers. I think JMU had a 100-person party or something. Sometimes it may not have been a party—it could have been four roommates living together and playing loud music that someone reported as one. We might get a report that says there were students on the balcony and they get reported. Let’s say one of them was just a friend and didn’t live there. We might have a conversation, educate, and do the right thing.

            But the reality is that we are looking for large social gatherings—that’s the kind of case where there would be swift action. There might be other things that could entail verbal counseling. Whether it’s graduate or undergraduate students, if there are a bunch of people in a confined space, like a super spreader event, that’s the fear. All you need is twenty law students in an apartment and a lot of people leave the party COVID-19 positive. We need to crack down on those things.

During enforcement, what considerations are in the back of your mind other than just safety?

            You’re right, the public health piece is number one. But outside of that, first off, I want to be fair. I don’t want to make a judgment before I talk to the person and let them tell me what happened. I will say there have been situations that looked very bad, but after speaking to the people involved and getting the facts, they turned out to be nothing like what was reported. So you have to come to the table with zero preconceived notions.

            I am also very aware of due process. I have the power to suspend someone immediately, and they have the right to appeal. I am very conscious of the fact that I have to defend any decision I make, and I need to make sure that I make each decision based on applying the facts to the policy and what is appropriate for the circumstances.

            I am also aware that I am not a police officer. I am not a prosecutor. I am a Dean whose primary job is safety and education. Part of my job is to explain to people what they did wrong and why. But primarily, I am thinking of safety, how to stay consistent and fair here, how do I make sure I’m listening fully to the student before making any judgements or decisions, and how do I handle the case in a way that is consistent across cases like the ones that I am seeing.

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dac6jk@virginia.edu

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[1] https://uvapolicy.virginia.edu/policy/SEC-045

[2] www.Justreportit.virginia.edu

Supreme Court Summer 2020 Round-Up: Experts Break Down Major Decisions

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Dana Lake ‘23
Guest Writer

Of the sixty-three cases decided by the Supreme Court so far this term, this summer’s decisions have contained some of the heaviest hitters. The major cases were broken down in the Federalist Society’s Supreme Court Summer Round-Up, which turned out to be one of the most thought-provoking events thus far this semester. Expertly hosted by Vice President for Speakers Chloe Knox ’22 and delivered by Professor Julia Mahoney, Professor Dan Ortiz, and Supreme Court litigator Jeffrey Harris, the Zoom recording proceeded with only one freeze frame and less than ten seconds of someone speaking without unmuting themselves. The recorded session is available through the Federalist Society and this editor encourages you to watch it for yourself. If you are short on time, check out the highlights:

Pictured: Decisions by the Supreme Court this term are likely to cast shadows over major areas of policy for the federal government. Photo Courtesy of Getty Images/Stockphoto.

Most Underrated Decision:  Maine Community Health Options v. United States

Professor Mahoney foresees major ramifications stemming from this decision in the coming years. The Affordable Care Act created risk corridors for insurers, limiting both the losses and gains an insurance company could expect from a particular healthcare plan. The House of Representatives turned over in 2014 and Republicans refused to appropriate money for the deal, resulting in several insurers going bankrupt. The Supreme Court ruled that the United States has an obligation to pay its commitments, and the insurers have a right to seek damages. With the national debt exceeding the US GDP for the first time since World War II, chances are high we will see similar debates over government obligations to pay in the near future.

Most Surprising Decision:  McGirt v. Oklahoma

Professor Ortiz highlighted this case for the insight it provides into the mind of Justice Neil Gorsuch. Joined by a liberal majority, Justice Gorsuch explained in his opinion that because Congress never formally disestablished the Native American reservation that covers much of Oklahoma, crimes committed by Native American tribal citizens on those lands must be brought in federal court rather than state court. Justice Gorsuch’s advocacy for Native American rights in the face of the major impact this ruling has on thousands of already tried cases (and the disapproval of his fellow conservatives) was surprising for most people who forgot Justice Gorsuch is the only true Westerner on the court.

Most Recommended Opinion:  Chiafalo v. Washington

Professor Ortiz assured us that if you are going to read an opinion, it might as well be written by Justice Elena Kagan. Her inimitable writing style and penchant for throwing in pop culture references make her opinions an engaging read even when addressing mundane topics. With this opinion, Justice Kagan dove straight into the hot topic of faithless electors. Just in time for this November, the majority found states do indeed have the right to punish members of the Electoral College who do not vote for the candidate that won their state’s popular vote. Though faithless electors have yet to sway an election, increased scrutiny of the Electoral College in recent cycles has created a real demand for accountability.

The Court’s summer decisions were historic not only for their content, but also for their delivery. With COVID-19 forcing the Court to jump head-first into the 21st century, the public was able to enjoy live-streamed audio arguments for the first time. That brought the joys of unmuted toilet flushes (slate.com points the finger toward Justice Breyer, but listen to the audio of Barr v. American Association of Political Consultants for yourself) and unprecedented involvement from Justice Clarence Thomas.

Greater public access to this year’s decisions has led to greater interest in the tantalizingly named “shadow docket.” Rarely making the front page, the shadow docket refers only to cases the Court submits orders on without taking oral arguments and usually without submitting opinions. In keeping to time, Supreme Court litigator Harris had only a moment to touch on some of these cases. Shadow docket decisions from this summer included: clearing the way for the resumption of federal executions, allowing military construction funds to be diverted to construction of the border wall, and preventing thousands of felons in Florida from voting in their state primary for failure to pay fines and fees. 

The session included a deeper discussion of other noteworthy cases from the summer. Professor Mahoney started off by providing her insights into cases involving the Affordable Care Act, President Trump’s personal finances, and continued efforts by conservative state leadership to limit access to abortion. Professor Ortiz followed up with cases on contraceptives, faithless electors, and Native American rights; Mr. Harris closed out the evening with employment discrimination, DACA, and conflicts at the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.

Capped off with an insightful Q&A session that saw the speakers jumping straight in to asking each other questions, the Supreme Court Summer Round-Up was overall a very good use of a precious seventy-five minutes this fall semester.

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dl9uh@virginia.edu

SBA President Welcomes Law Students Back: Outlining SBA's Initiatives for the School Year

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Katharine Janes ‘21
SBA President

Hello, UVA Law!

On behalf of the Student Bar Association (SBA), I would like to welcome our new 1Ls and LL.Ms to UVA. The 2Ls and 3Ls are so excited to get to know you over this coming semester and year. Whether it be through student group activities and events, casual coffee chats in the courtyard, or unexpected run-ins at King Family Polo, we are really looking forward to integrating you as a part of our vibrant community. When upperclassmen offer their emails or phone numbers as a way to reach out, they fully hope that you will be in touch. We—as your Peer Advisors, colleagues, and friends—want to be here for you however we can be during your transition to life at UVA Law.

And to the 2Ls and 3Ls: Welcome back! It’s been lovely to see you all on Grounds and over Zoom since classes began two weeks ago.

SBA has been hard at work over the past few months imagining new ways to bring students together this semester. We know that, for now, things cannot be the same as they were before. UVA’s community is what makes this place so special, though, so in the meantime, we are committed to maintaining our school’s culture by offering creative and exciting alternatives.

Pictured: The SBA Executive Board. Top left, Katharine Janes ’21, top right, Savanna Williams ’21, bottom right, Katherine O’Neal ’22, bottom left, Chance Maginness ’22. Photo Courtesy of virginiasba.com

If one thing has remained constant since last spring, it’s SBA’s passion for getting students tasty and subsidized food. Starting soon, in direct response to your comments in SBA’s beginning-of-year survey, our Programming team (led by Chase Harris ’22 and Steph Metherall ’21) will be rolling out bi-weekly food deals and social opportunities for students. Roots delivery is also back in action, albeit in a slightly different form due to Law School delivery restrictions. Monday through Friday, Roots will be dropping off to Pav and Ivy and waiving any delivery charge (check your email for further details). SBA’s Academics & Faculty Relations Committee (co-chaired by Joanna Borman ’22 and Alex Retzloff ’21) is also expanding the “Take Your Professor To Lunch Program.” This semester, if you and at least three other students host a Zoom “lunch” with a professor, SBA will contribute $10 to each person’s meal. Finally, our Health & Wellness team (led by Isabelle Perfetto ’22 and Danny Seidita ’21) has worked to expand access to healthy food by sponsoring weekly deliveries from Bellair Farm, in partnership with Student Affairs.

SBA has also stayed busy throughout the summer advocating for students and their interests. On one front, our Governance Oversight Committee (chaired by Chance Maginness ’22) has drafted its report on student representation, transparency, and academic policies and will be presenting its findings to the administration before the end of this month. The Committee will recommend changes such as eliminating the employment provision from our academic policies, ensuring students are represented in the work of every faculty committee, and changing clinic grading to credit/no credit. In tandem with these efforts, our Diversity Advisory Council (headed by Ida Abhari ’22, Will Hinton ’21, and Christina Luk ’21) is also drafting a memo on changes its membership would like to see made at UVA Law relating to diversity and inclusion efforts, including student involvement in the hiring process for the new Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Belonging, securing more support for diverse students at the Law School, providing talk-forums to share experiences, and supporting our diverse affinity groups in their own advocacy. Retaining diverse faculty and recruiting diverse students is a chief concern for the Council. Meanwhile, our Health & Wellness team is seeking to establish services to improve mental and physical health, including expanding access to counseling services and offering free virtual workout classes. Finally, SBA is working with the Darden Student Association to support the elimination of the tuition increase through a letter that will be presented to the Board of Visitors during their upcoming meeting on September 10 and 11. All of this has been done with an eye toward our mission of making UVA Law the best and most inclusive place it can possibly be, and our student advocacy will continue to be a central part of our efforts moving forward this semester.

While we are proud of the work we’ve done—and are excited for the work to come—we could always use more voices at our table. If you would like to become involved with any of SBA’s efforts mentioned above, please consider applying to one of our sixteen committees and subcommittees; we would love to hear your thoughts on what UVA Law needs, as well as get your assistance in making that happen. The application can be found in Savanna Williams’ latest email to students and is due this upcoming Friday. Finally, if there is anything you would like to see offered or hosted by SBA—or if you just want to chat!—swing by one of our SBA meetings, drop in my office hours on Tuesdays from 2:30-3:30 p.m., or get in touch with me or any of the individuals listed above. While there remains considerable uncertainty around how the school year will unfold, SBA is here to help our community navigate these times together. 

All the best,

Katharine Janes

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kmj4vg@virginia.edu
sbapresident@virginia.edu

Online Competition: When Will Students Get Sent Home?

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Drew Calamaro ‘21
Satire Editor

My fellow law students and COVID avoiders,

A storm is coming. A wave of undergrads is on the horizon and there is no end to their numbers in sight. Each vector comes from afar, bringing with them the many strains of COVID-19 (two—some would say two too many) that are spreading throughout the country. Of course, the school administration could choose to NOT do this, thereby protecting the student body and the city of Charlottesville as a whole, but here we are.

As a result, we have a situation where we all KNOW the school will go completely virtual at some point, but we don’t know when. Or maybe we do… Here at the Law Weekly, we believe everything should be made a game, and, to that end, we are providing a reward to the person who most accurately guesses the date and time at which an email will be sent out that entirely shuts down undergraduate classes.[1] Here are the rules:

Your guess: Go to lawweekly.org and click on the link to the Google survey (you must be logged into your UVA email to access).[2] You will be required to include your name and email, and others who fill out guesses will be able to see yours as well. You are warned. The tiebreaker, if needed, will be naming who sends out this email.

Deadline: Your answer must be sent by Sunday, Sept. 6, at 11:59 p.m.. This is a hard deadline.

Online shutdown event definition:  I will personally determine whether the email meets the definition of a full switch to online classes. Even if classes are not entirely online, I think we can agree that if the vast majority of classes become virtual, it counts. But it’ll be an “I know it when I see it” situation. Do I believe it should be a democratic process to determine if the email counts? No. Do you know why? Because I am the one organizing this.

Determination of closeness:  I will publish everyone’s guesses on a Google Sheets document, which you will be able to access. If the tiebreaker fails to establish a clear winner, we will hold a socially distanced footrace to determine the ultimate champion.

The prize:  A Dr. Ho’s Humble Pie gift card. I can promise you I did not pay for this, but the Law Weekly clearly has Bezos-level deep pockets. Maybe the true prize is the knowledge that at some point, you will be able to walk around Charlottesville without running into an infected undergraduate.

That’s it. Good luck, stay safe, and guess away!

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dac6jk@virginia.edu

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[1] And sending undergrads back to the virtual realm where they belong.

[2] If you think this sounds like a naked attempt to garner clicks to our highly intuitive and advanced-looking website, then you think correctly. The Law Weekly must still drink at the fount of clicks for our affirmation.

Dean Goluboff Welcomes Class of 2023

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Risa L. Goluboff ‘00
Dean of UVA Law

Photo Courtesy of virginia.edu

To say that we begin this school year at a challenging moment is an understatement. The unprecedented COVID-19 global pandemic continues, and it has ushered in an economic crisis unprecedented in its own right. We are in the middle of a national reckoning with racial injustice. A hotly contested election fast approaches.

As we navigate these challenges together, this year will certainly differ from any that has come before. In your first week of classes, you have already seen many ways in which that is the case. You wear masks, take some or all of your courses online, keep your distance from one another, and watch your professors through Plexiglass. You monitor your health and worry about both your own health and that of others. You are being asked to fulfill obligations to each other and this community that no class before you has had to contemplate.

So much remains the same, however. This is your first year of law school, and that means it is the start of an exciting intellectual, personal, and professional journey for each of you. That is, as it always is, a joy to behold.

This year will transform you, as the first year of law school always transforms 1L students. The opportunities before you—both during your time here and in the careers that will follow—are almost limitless. Our faculty, administrators, 2Ls, and 3Ls are eager to help you begin to take advantage of those opportunities and to find your way around the Law School. I mean that in the literal sense: Note, for example, that there are two Caplin Reading Rooms—the one in the Library and the one off Scott Commons—as well as both a Caplin Pavilion and a Caplin Auditorium. (Mortimer Caplin ’40 was an alumnus, a member of the faculty, and a loyal and generous donor.)

I mean it in a figurative sense as well. Our world-class faculty is dedicated to initiating you into the mysteries of the law and bringing their innovative research into their instruction as they do so. Outside of the classroom, fellow students, faculty, and staff offer countless ways for you to connect with each other and dive into our community, both virtually and in small groups. We are here to help you navigate the intellectual challenges ahead of you and identify the aspects of the law and law school—areas of study, service projects, political causes, student organizations, extracurricular activities, research opportunities, career paths—that give you a sense of purpose and belonging and enable you to thrive. We are here to help you find your path and to support you at every step along it.

It will not always be easy, for the reasons made (in)famous in popular culture and mythology: required classes and cold calls, oral arguments and journal tryouts and job searches. But it will no doubt be rewarding. This year will prepare you not only for the rest of law school, but for the amazing, varied, as yet unknown careers that you will each make your own.

You will spend hours each week with your new classmates, over screens and otherwise. Take advantage of opportunities to connect and engage with each other. As I said during orientation, the legal profession is dedicated to testing ideas with argument and persuasion. Lawyers both ask difficult questions and must hear difficult answers. It is not always easy to speak so that others can listen or listen even when the message is hard to hear. It may be even harder to do those things this year, when we are coping with a new normal that feels anything but, engaging in important and difficult conversations about race, and witnessing and participating in that most central of our democratic institutions: voting.

I am confident that we are up to the task. We are a community that cares deeply about each other and makes dialogue across difference a hallmark. We come from different races, religions, nationalities, ethnicities, and cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. We have had different life experiences and live different identities. We hold different beliefs, attitudes, and interests, and subscribe to a wide range of political views. We each have our own unique hopes and dreams. We bridge these differences with a shared commitment to this community, a shared aspiration that our differences serve as a source of humility and strength, empathy and intellectual stimulation. The community of trust and belonging to which we each contribute takes real dedication and effort to maintain, and it is worth every ounce of such effort. It is essential to all we do here and to becoming the exceptional lawyers you are all here to become.

This moment in our nation’s history calls out for exceptional lawyers. Lawyers will lead our government, our institutions, our businesses, and our communities through the many changes on the horizon in ways that comport with the core values of our Constitution and our profession. You will follow in the footsteps of a learned profession committed to justice and the rule of law. You will become those lawyers.

As you run through what can seem the gauntlet of 1L year, you will gain new skills, new ways of thinking, and new intellectual resources. You will also make new friends and colleagues, connect with new mentors, and have new experiences that will enrich and transform you. You will become essential members of this community. Through it all, you will find here the joy and humanity that is at the core of UVA Law and that, more than anything, remains very much the same as it always has.

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risa.goluboff@law.virginia.edu

Welcome Letter from the Editor

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Christina Luk ‘21
Editor-in-Chief

Hello and thank you for picking up the Virginia Law Weekly! We are the Law School’s one and only student newspaper and you are in for a treat. Inside these pages you will find the heart and soul of the UVA Law community. As Editor-in-Chief, it’s my privilege to introduce you to what we’re all about and to entice you into our ranks.

Now, in years past, welcome letters have tended to be pretty upbeat and funny—but nothing about this year has been ordinary. I mean, we started the year with an entire continent on fire, and no one really expected it to ramp up from there. COVID-19 has forced us all online, impacted our communities, and tested our resilience, kindness, and care for each other. The events of this summer unfolded like a slow-motion fever dream. Disease, death, police brutality, protests, and, of course, the ever-ramping up election. We are buckling in for the second half of an already crazy year.

What an incredible time to attend law school. So much has changed. A look around the Law School reveals a different space. There are stickers on the floors and tables, cameras and plexiglass have been installed in every classroom, and a thousand hand sanitizing stations litter the halls. Folks are wearing masks (or they had better be!) and many of us are online this semester.

The start of the year brings everything rushing back—the excitement, the nostalgia, the burning curiosity of whether the snack office will still provide snacks. Old and new students alike, we’re grappling with social isolation, missing people closest to us, and deciding on the next stage in our legal career. We’re all trying to figure things out. Now is the time for community, solidarity, and laughter. Now is the time for optimism—to say that we will meet each new challenge with grace and perseverance. That we are all here because we were called to something outside of us.

We at the Law Weekly are called to “community.” When our back is up against a wall, our first impulse is to put pen to paper (fingers to keyboard) and write. My goal for the paper is to build our community, celebrate our triumphs, discuss room for improvement, and give voice to every member of the Law School. Over this year, I want to introduce you to your classmates and professors, spotlight clubs, inspire laughter and hope, and above all, show that we are a community of thoughtful and caring individuals. That we are unafraid to share our opinions and that we respect all voices, especially those who have had the fewest opportunities to speak.  

So, to the 1Ls, welcome to the Law School. In the time-honored tradition of upperclassmen giving unsolicited advice, I urge you to look for joy in your lives. The passions that sustained you before law school will nurture you the next three years. You will find like-minded individuals who share your values—people who will be your dearest friends and fiercest champions. I encourage all of you to grab this school year by its horns. Reach out to people, get virtual coffee, go to office hours, and join a student organization that sparks joy for you. There is no dearth of extracurricular offerings at this Law School. I should know, I’ve spent the last two years writing about them.

Speaking of extracurriculars, I’d be remiss not to invite each and every one of you to join the Law Weekly. We publish once a week, twelve editions per semester, and we welcome new members throughout the year from every class. Historically, we met in Slaughter Hall 279 to edit articles, listen to tunes, and eat free Domino’s pizza. In this brave new Corona world, I’m inviting all of you to join us virtually Monday nights at 7 p.m. Please email me if you are interested in joining our mailing list. 

If you have a qualm, a passion, a joke (good or bad), or even just the itch to write—we want to hear from you. Please. Regale us with your views on attending class over Zoom, your awkward virtual hallway encounters, or your funniest professor quotes. Are you discontented with a school policy? Do you have an opinion on the upcoming election? Maybe you have a complaint for our widely cited Court of Petty Appeals? We want it all. Get in touch with us at editor@lawweekly.org.

To ensure you never miss an issue of our rip-roaring fun, please register with us at: https://www.lawweekly.org/register. You can also like our page on Facebook or add us on Instagram or Twitter. We don’t have a TikTok yet, but the shenanigans we get up are certainly meme-worthy.

On behalf of the staff of writers and editors at the Virginia Law Weekly, good luck and welcome to UVA Law! We can’t wait to meet you all!

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cl3eh@virginia.edu

SBA Update: Current and New Initiatives

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Katharine Janes ‘21
SBA President

Hi all, 

It has been quite the month to be a student at UVA Law. When this piece is published, it will have been exactly four weeks since classes went from in-person to online. Since that time, we started taking courses on entirely new platforms; rallied as a student body in support of grading policy changes, against academic policy injustice, and in favor of contract worker wellbeing; and we’ve found new and creative ways to remain engaged with one another. I have been so proud to be a part of the community we occupy and, as SBA President, I am working tirelessly to ensure student voices are heard as decisions are made throughout this time. I wanted to take this chance to outline how SBA has been—and will continue to be—advocating on your behalf. 

The transition to online learning has brought to light many structural problems of concern to students, and SBA has heard student feedback loud and clear. In response, SBA plans to undertake a thorough review of the policies and procedures that impact students at UVA Law.

In line with recent conversations with students and SBA, and following the recent charge by Dean Goluboff in the Law Weekly to “[gather] student views to make recommendations to the curriculum and academic review committees,” we plan to form an ad hoc committee that will investigate three key areas of governance at the Law School: academic policies, transparency in decision making, and student representation within the shared governance structure. This working group—comprised of both SBA and non-SBA members—will serve as a conduit for student feedback on these focus areas, and it will work with stakeholders throughout the school to propose effective solutions to the problems that have been brought to light. It will complete this mission with an eye towards increasing transparency, fostering better communication between students and the administration, advocating for marginalized and underrepresented students, and increasing the power of the student voice in decision-making. A comprehensive report will be produced by the end of the summer, to be presented to Deans Goluboff and Kendrick for review and implementation. This project will be seeking student leadership and participation, and more details about the initiative and how to be involved will be coming to your inboxes soon, so please keep an eye out!

SBA committees have also been hard at work to keep students connected with one another during our time apart. SBA Health and Wellness (H&W), led by Page Garbee ’21 and Chance McCraw ’21, recently initiated the Unsung Hero award to draw attention to acts of compassion and thoughtfulness completed by UVA Law students, faculty, and staff. Our first winners—Will Kelly ’21, Jana Ruthberg ’21, and Cat Guerrier ’21—are wonderful models of what UVA collegiality means in practice. H&W’s Care Package Swap and Quarantine Buddy programs have been wonderful community-building additions, and personally, I have loved their weekly recipe suggestions.

SBA Programming (headed by Taz Jones ’20 and Read Mills ’20) recently unveiled the Lawhoos Eat Local initiative, which aims to support local businesses across the country while giving away eighty free meals a week to students. Finally, Programming’s Card and Letter Writing Campaign aims to send love to the contract staff members of the UVA Law family. I have seen firsthand how difficult it is to coordinate and launch events and activities from afar, so to these committees and all members of SBA, thank you for your time, effort, and service over these past few weeks.

As a final, more personal note, I would just like to thank all UVA Law students for your outreach and involvement over these past four weeks. I, like you, have oscillated between feelings of connectivity and isolation, joy and distress, while we have been apart. These circumstances are not easy for anyone to navigate, but through it all, we have rallied around the mission of keeping students' best interest at heart. If you want to be a part of our structural reform efforts, our programming initiatives, or have ideas you would like to see implemented—please email, text, or call me. I love talking through ideas of how SBA can best serve students, and I look forward to working with you. I hope to see you in-person soon, but until then, I will be sending positive vibes to wherever you may be.

All the best,
Katharine

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kmj4vg@virginia.edu

Joint Statement from Dean Goluboff and Frannie Skardon '22

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On Monday, April 6, at 9:09 p.m., Dean Risa Goluboff and Frannie Skardon ’22 released a joint statement to the Law Weekly in response to our request for further comment from the dean regarding Michael Berdan ’22’s article recapping the Coffee with the Dean event. At this event, students had vigorously discussed the controversy surrounding Ms. Skardon’s appeal to remain a full-time student. The joint statement is reproduced below without edits. The Law Weekly does not necessarily endorse the content or viewpoint herein published.

Statement begins:

We are reaching out jointly to express how glad we both are that Frannie’s situation came to a positive resolution and to share some thoughts about the future.

We have both expressed separately but want to emphasize here together the invaluable contributions service members make to our community both at the Law School and beyond, and honor the sacrifices they make every day to protect our safety, health and freedom. They will always have a home at UVA Law.

The two of us have had productive conversations about how the Law School can improve the administration of its policies in situations similar to Frannie’s. In so many ways, we are in unprecedented times—times that our policies did not contemplate. ABA standards require the Law School to develop and adhere to its policies, including how best to do that as our learning environment has changed. 

Going forward, we are both committed to improving the Law School’s process for implementing academic policies and finding ways to communicate policies in a manner that empowers students and increases transparency. We are eager to work with other students to hear their experiences and feedback.

Dean Goluboff has asked Vice Dean Kendrick to work with the Student Bar Association on gathering student views to make recommendations to the curriculum and academic review committees, both of which include student representatives. Together, we hope this collaboration will improve the implementation of the Law School’s academic policies, maintain the high standards of a UVA Law education, increase our understanding of the hardships military students face, and safeguard the interests and welfare of our students.

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 goluboff@law.virginia.edu

Dean Goluboff Hosts Coffee Chat in Wake of Controversy

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Michael Berdan ‘22
Staff Editor

On Friday, Dean Risa Goluboff hosted a school-wide “Coffee Break” on Zoom. After prefatory remarks, Dean Goluboff opened the floor to student questions.

A number of questions centered on the administrative withdrawal of Frannie Skardon ’22, and her subsequent appeal. Skardon’s National Guard unit was activated March 17 to respond to COVID-19. Skardon notified the administration of her change in status, indicating that the National Guard is accommodating her educational obligations by providing her six hours each day for study. The administration responded that Skardon cannot complete the semester while receiving full-time compensation from the National Guard, citing Academic Policy I.H., which bars students from paid employment in excess of 20 hours per week during the academic year.[1] Skardon was given two options: Take a leave of absence from UVA Law or be administratively withdrawn by the registrar. Skardon was not told about any appeal process or offered any other recourse. She independently discovered that an administrative withdrawal can, in fact, be appealed, so she elected not to take a leave of absence, and the withdrawal was enforced by the administration on Tuesday, March 31.

Having received only twenty-four hours to prepare her appeal, Skardon started an online petition and submitted a letter to the editor about her situation to the Law Weekly, both of which circulated rapidly through GroupMe, Facebook, Twitter, and word of mouth among students and alumni. Although Skardon specifically requested that the media not be involved, within hours, Above the Law published a scathing report on the situation. That evening, the UVA Law official Twitter account (@UVALaw) issued a brief statement to say that the Law School is proud of veterans and that Ms. Skardon’s situation is “working its way through the usual process.”[2] Rep. Doug Collins (R-GA), retweeted the story that evening, calling UVA Law’s actions “Shameful,” and calling on the school to overturn Skardon’s withdrawal.[3] Local news media picked up the story shortly thereafter.[4] In a since-deleted tweet, @UVALaw replied to Rep. Collins, calling the Above the Law article “Inaccurate,” and noting that the matter was still in process. The next day, April 2, after receiving over 5,700 signatures on the petition, and over 140 letters of support, the Academic Review Committee unanimously granted an exception allowing Skardon to remain a full-time student.

In the coffee break conversation with Dean Goluboff the next day, I asked Dean Goluboff the first question, wanting to know whether the Law School will change or review its procedures in light of these events, in order to better handle emergency situations where policy leads to an unacceptable result. Dean Goluboff noted that she is always reviewing events and actions in order to improve, but regretfully declined to answer any further, citing privacy concerns.

My question was followed by a series of questions from Savanna Williams ’21, asking in her personal capacity whether Dean Goluboff had personally contacted Ms. Skardon, whether individual administrators would face discipline for the handling of the matter, why Dean Goluboff did not step in and correct the situation, and why formal statements from the Law School were made that misleadingly presented the issue as an ongoing decision, rather than a final decision being appealed. Dean Goluboff replied that she had not yet contacted Ms. Skardon, but intended to do so. She declined to answer the other questions, citing privacy concerns. Subsequent questions from other students about the institutional implications of these events were also not answered, although student concerns and suggestions were acknowledged.

Other questions were directed to Kevin Donovan, Senior Assistant Dean of Career Development, concerning the impact of COVID-19 on the private practice job market. Dean Donovan noted that firms actively pursue UVA Law students and that it is their interest to maintain ties they have built with the School over such a long relationship. Economic conditions could force them to choose a different path, but firms are working hard to try to welcome new associates and hold summer programs in some form. He also assured students that the Office of Private Practice is working its network of connections with firms for any information, and, over the next two weeks or so, he expects firms to be coming to more concrete decisions about this summer and communicating those to his office and to students. Dean Donovan invites students to reach out to the Office of Private Practice with any questions or concerns.

While students commend Dean Goluboff for hosting a public Q&A session directly following this controversy, members of the student body and I were dismayed that so many questions, even those seemingly unrelated to privacy concerns, were left unanswered. In the midst of this crisis, students hoped that UVA Law would continue to hold to its human-centered values and were concerned that the rigid application of policy nearly carried the day. “I guess my primary emotion is confusion,” says Ida Abhari ’22. “I’m left wondering what is being prioritized here, given the overwhelming amount of evidence that these are not normal times and cannot be treated as such.”

Incoming president of the Virginia Law Veterans, Jordan Armstrong ’22, says his group is “grateful that the general UVA Law community... shares our commitment to the wellbeing of our vets and understands the value that we bring [to the Law School].” But Armstrong, while hopeful that this will lead to improvement in the Law School, also expressed disappointment: “It seems clear that the current policy hurt, most importantly, Frannie during a stressful time, [and] it also undoubtedly publicly damaged the core reputation of UVA Law as a collegial institution.” Air Force Veteran Nevah Jones ’22 echoed the sentiment, saying, “[T]his issue never should have been dependent on an ‘appeal.’ It’s beyond disappointing that the initial decision-maker was either unable or unwilling to make the right call on such a common-sense question.” Admitted students who are armed services veterans were reported to be reconsidering their application to UVA Law in light of the controversy, a feeling that wouldn’t surprise Jones, who commented, “I chose UVA Law because it has a reputation for being veteran-friendly. However, I will think twice about recommending it to fellow veterans going forward.”

I personally remain hopeful that the administration will take steps to remedy what failed last week. Most obviously, the Law School should impose a blanket requirement for administrators to inform all students subject to withdrawal of all possible avenues for appeal. The shared values that make UVA Law both great and good require policies and administrative action structured to support students and keep them in our community. Those values were betrayed when Frannie Skardon was guided toward withdrawal without being informed of her options to appeal. In the wake of the matter’s resolution and the subsequent conversation with the Dean, students expect changes to be made to ensure that this will not happen again.

[Update]

The Law Weekly received a joint statement from Dean Goluboff and Frances Skardon ’22. Read it here.

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mwb4pk@virginia.edu

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[1] https://www.law.virginia.edu/policies/i-academic-policies-and-procedures#ig

[2] https://twitter.com/UVALaw/status/1245539086636630021

[3] https://twitter.com/RepDougCollins/status/1245531120835399680

[4]https://www.whsv.com/content/news/UVA-student-activated-by-National-Guard-nearly-forced-to-withdraw-from-school-569334221.html

Bar Exam Changes Leave Many Unsure of What Will Come Next

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M. Eleanor Schmalzl ‘20
Editor Emeritus

In the last month, the United States has seen drastic change in all areas of life. Beyond businesses shutting down and classes being moved online across the country, the bar exam is one area of specific concern for graduating law students. As of April 6, five states have officially opted to postpone the bar exam that was originally scheduled to be administered in July of 2020: New York, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Hawaii, and New Jersey.[1] The National Conference of Bar Examiners also recently announced how it plans to address bar examination issues for the thirty-five jurisdictions (thirty-three states along with the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands) who administer the Uniform Bar Exam every year. The NCBE stated, “To provide needed flexibility for jurisdictions and candidates, in addition to preparing materials for a July bar exam, NCBE will make bar exam materials available for two fall administrations in 2020: September 9-10 and September 30-October 1. Each jurisdiction will determine whether to offer the exam in July, in early September, or in late September.”

  These announcements and changes leave many graduating law students uncertain of when they will be able to sit for the bar exam and anxious about whether a fall administration will even be possible. With delayed administration of the bar exam, those preparing to sit may face several obstacles and challenges in studying for the bar beyond the already challenging, labor-intensive study schedule that is considered par for the course. Challenges may include moving in the midst of studying, starting new jobs, running out of money to live on while they wait to be barred, studying while living in close quarters with others with whom students are self-quarantined, and, most significantly, the fear of sitting for the exam if the student has a compromised immune system. Because of the significant hardship many could be, or are facing, students across the country have been pushing for states to implement an emergency diploma privilege that would allow graduates of American Bar Association-accredited law schools to be admitted without taking the bar.[2]

Law students are not the only individuals pushing for issuance of diploma privileges; law school administrators are fighting on behalf of students as well. The deans of all fifteen of New York’s ABA-accredited law schools signed a letter “urg[ing] the court to adopt a system whereby 2020 law graduates would be able to practice for up to 18 months under the supervision of a licensed attorney” and sent the letter to Chief Judge Janet DiFiore of the New York State Court of Appeals (New York state’s highest court) on April 1.[3] In a school-wide Zoom call with UVA Law’s very own Dean Goluboff, one student asked whether Virginia’s law school deans have discussed the possibility of a similar letter in Virginia. Goluboff replied that a meeting with all the Virginia deans was set for later in the afternoon that day. No further information has been disclosed at this time.

The legal profession also stands to suffer hardship with the administration of a postponed bar examination. While many students face delays in starting legal positions that are contingent on passage of the bar exam, those planning to hire them may also suffer as work piles up with fewer people staffed to handle it. And with many court systems not hearing cases beyond those that are urgent or time-sensitive, mounds of work await those planning to enter offices involved in the courtroom. Many students planning to work in these roles also cannot practice in a courtroom without bar licensure or a practice certificate, most of which usually expire shortly after the results of the July exam were set for release. This means those students will be legally unable to perform certain aspects of the jobs they have accepted for the fall, leaving fewer attorneys and more work than usual to be done.

Even if an emergency diploma privilege option is given, further questions exist for students planning to sit for a bar exam in one state with plans to waive into another jurisdiction shortly thereafter. Wisconsin is the only state at this time that regularly offers a diploma privilege option whereby students who attend a Wisconsin law school and meet certain requirements will receive admission to the state’s bar without having to take an admission exam. However, this privilege does not allow Wisconsin attorneys to transfer this admission to other states where they may like to practice, meaning students who went to school in Wisconsin but want to practice in Virginia (for example) would need to sit for Virginia’s exam to be able to do so. Thus, as students and administrators advocate for a change in policy, the many complications and questions that exist beneath the surface add to the challenging decision facing bar licensure groups across the country.

These challenges, along with others, will continue to grow and manifest as the impacts of a delayed bar exam become transparent. The difficulty at the forefront for those planning to sit in July 2020, however, is the uncertainty of what will happen next. Many graduates begin studying for the July bar in May after their graduation, but whether that is advisable or not cannot be known until more information is released by various jurisdictions. As students advocate for alternative means of getting barred and worry about the challenges they face in sitting for a traditional bar exam, they have to set plans now for their future when what their future actually holds is very uncertain.

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mes5hf@virginia.edu

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[1] http://www.ncbex.org/ncbe-covid-19-updates/july-2020-bar-exam-jurisdiction-information

[2] https://www.law.com/2020/03/30/amid-more-bar-exam-delays-push-for-diploma-privilege-grows/

[3] https://www.law.com/newyorklawjournal/2020/04/02/fall-bar-exam-gets-pushback-from-ny-law-deans/

Letter to the Editor: Thank You for Your Support - Student Announces Petition Results

Letters of interest to the Law School community may be sent to editor@lawweekly.org. Letters may be published at the discretion of the Editorial Board and are subject to editing for grammar, style, and clarity, but not content or viewpoint. The Law Weekly does not necessarily endorse the content or viewpoint of any letter herein published.

Read Frances Skardon ’22’s original letter to the editor here.
Read the Law School administration’s response here.

——

Dear UVA Law,

The Academic Review Committee has decided to grant me an exception to remain a full-time student.

I would like to thank every person who signed my petition, wrote a letter, or shared my story. I am very moved at the outpouring of support and cannot thank each one of you enough. In less than a day, I received over 140 emails and 5,700 signatures.

I chose to come to University of Virginia School of Law based on its reputation of being supportive of the military and the past 24-hours has shown me that this is absolutely true. For veterans choosing a school, please know that you are welcome here.

For those who expressed interest in continuing to support veterans in higher education, I urge you to learn more about the amazing work being done by Service2School.

Again, thank you and I look forward to being back on Grounds together in the Fall.

Stay safe,
Frannie Skardon
J.D. Candidate, Class of 2022
University of Virginia School of Law
fps7nv@virginia.edu

School Administration Responds to Frances Skardon's Letter to the Editor

At 10:24 p.m., April 1, 2020, the UVA Law administration reached out to the Law Weekly to respond to Frances Skardon’s Letter to the Editor, published 12:37 p.m. April 1, 2020. Read her letter here. The administration’s response is reproduced below without edits. The Law Weekly does not necessarily endorse the content or viewpoint herein published.

The Law Weekly has asked for further comment with a hope to hear back. This article will updated at such time. [Update: No further updates are expected.]

A message from Mary M. Wood, the chief communications officer for UVA Law:

“We are proud of all veterans and active-duty service members, especially those who attend or graduated from UVA Law. Though we are limited in what we can say about ongoing, individual student concerns due to federal privacy laws, this matter is still working its way through the usual process we use when questions over academic policies come up.” [10:24 p.m., April 1, 2020]

[Update]

“We can't comment on matters regarding individual students, but based on prior experiences, resolution should happen today.” [10:33 a.m. April 2, 2020]

[Update]

A decision has been made by the Academic Review Committee. Read the announcement here.

[Final Updates]

UVA Law’s statement via Mary M. Wood:

With Frannie Skardon’s permission, we are pleased to share her statement. We are thrilled with this outcome and regret any uncertainty the process caused. We have a long history of supporting service members at UVA Law, and we're indebted to them and all who serve. We are grateful for Ms. Skardon’s service to our country and the daily sacrifices service members make to protect us all. [3:27 p.m. April 2, 2020]

Dean Risa Goluboff's statement:

I’m so pleased that Frannie will be able both to serve our country in this moment of crisis and continue with her studies at the Law School. I appreciate the many members of our community who have reached out to express support for Frannie. They showed the best of the UVA community. UVA Law has always supported and taken great pride in our students, faculty, staff, and alumni who serve our nation. I am so proud of and grateful to Frannie for her service, and I look forward to seeing her in Charlottesville next fall. [3:27 p.m. April 2, 2020]

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wood@law.virginia.edu

Letter to the Editor: Student Activated to Respond to COVID-19 Seeks Policy Exception - Petition and Appeal

Letters of interest to the Law School community may be sent to editor@lawweekly.org. Letters may be published at the discretion of the Editorial Board and are subject to editing for grammar, style, and clarity, but not content or viewpoint. The Law Weekly does not necessarily endorse the content or viewpoint of any letter herein published.

Link to her petition here. Letters of support may be addressed to the Academic Review Committee and emailed to fps7nv@virginia.edu. This is not an April Fools article. The author asks at this time that this letter not be posted elsewhere or shared with additional media.

[Update] Read the Law School administration’s response here.

[Update] Read about the petition results here.

———

Dear UVA Law students, faculty, staff, and alumni:  

It is safe to assume that this is not how any of us expected the semester to go. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the world as we know it. My life has changed significantly in the last month, and I am writing to you all to share my story. 

On March 17, my Army National Guard Unit was activated by Governor Cuomo to respond to the crisis in New York City caused by the COVID-19 virus. I reported the following day. Located in the middle of Manhattan, my unit has a long history of service, including being one of the first units to respond to Ground Zero on 9/11. New York City is currently the epicenter of the pandemic in the United States, and our mission contributes to the goal of keeping as many New Yorkers alive and healthy as possible. I am very proud of the sacrifice our service members and their families are making when our country most needs it. 

There were a lot of unknowns when I was activated. Online classes had not yet started, and I was still unsure how the transition to distance learning would go. I emailed the school to let them know I was being activated and that, although I did not have a clear picture of what the next few weeks would look like, I intended to finish the semester. I am very fortunate to be a part of such a great military organization and have leadership that is extremely supportive of my legal education. I was confident that, if the mission permitted, my command team would support me in finishing the rest of the semester. 

To my surprise, the administration responded to my email and stated that I am in violation of Academic Policy I.H., which deals with employment while attending Law School. This policy states that “students may not engage in employment in excess of what is compatible with a full-time commitment to the study of law.” As a result of my unit’s activation, the administration has determined that I cannot complete the remainder of the semester. 

This policy makes sense in normal times, as it helps develop the collegial environment that drew many of us to UVA Law. But as we all know, these are not normal times. My unit’s activation has not interfered with class discussion, cold calls, or office hours. Because campus is closed, I am learning and engaging in the law school community in the same format as students scattered across the nation. I am tracking the rapid spread of the virus to support my unit’s mission, but I am also given at least six hours a day for law school. My life was not the only one that was interrupted by COVID-19, and we are all taking these new challenges day-by-day. 

I asked for a waiver, but the administration informed me that they could not grant an exception to their policy because of the compensation I receive from the Army. Since I have elected not to take a leave of absence, the administration is enforcing a withdrawal. 

This withdrawal means that I will not receive credit for any of my classes this semester and that I will need to retake them in Spring 2021. This includes Legal Research and Writing II, even though I have submitted my final brief and am scheduled to complete my final oral argument on Friday. Additionally, I may not be able to take upper level classes that require Property or Constitutional Law as a prerequisite until my 3L year. 

I have been given 24 hours to appeal the withdrawal decision to the Academic Review Committee. Based on the extraordinary circumstances, I am hopeful that an exception to the compensation limitation of Academic Policy I.H. will be granted. The school’s decision to go credit/no credit was premised upon the fact that the emergency our country is facing will disadvantage students unpredictably, and my service is a prime example of this. To have the best chance at finishing the semester, though, I need support from members of the UVA Law community who sympathize with my case. I am collecting signatures here. I would also appreciate any letters of support sharing why you think an exception should be granted and how COVID-19 has impacted your life. These letters can be addressed to the Academic Review Committee and sent to fps7nv@virginia.edu. 

This situation has shown me how amazing, caring, and kind our student body is. I feel privileged to be a part of this community, and I am extremely grateful for your support. 

Best,

Frannie Skardon
J.D. Candidate, Class of 2022
University of Virginia School of Law 
fps7nv@virginia.edu

Classes Online: Student Perspectives and Privacy Concerns about Zoom

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On Thursday, March 19, Z̶o̶o̶m̶ ̶U̶n̶i̶v̶e̶r̶s̶i̶t̶y̶ UVA Law kicked off its first day of online classes. Most larger, lecture-based classes are being recorded by professors and posted on Canvas with no opportunity for real-time questions. However, courses requiring more participation from students, such as seminars, have transitioned to the Zoom video conferencing platform.

Last Thursday, I had the opportunity to take my first Zoom class: Employment Law with Professor Rip Verkerke. The class has around sixty students and Professor Verkerke uses a website called Poll Everywhere to solicit student answers and opinions on course-related questions. The first poll question on Thursday’s class was: “What word best describes your feelings about our shift to online instruction?”

Pictured: Employment Law students react to online classes. Photo Courtesy of Prof. Rip Verkerke.

As the word bubble shows, many students were feeling anxious and apprehensive, and some mentioned current Law School GroupMe buzzwords like “pass/fail” and “Bryce.”[1] It became clear as the class went on that people were more timid about piping up on Zoom than in regular, in-person class. Then again, it was around noon, so maybe everyone was just too busy eating lunch with their mute on and cameras off to feel the need to contribute. Eventually, people warmed up a bit to the format and participated more, reducing the number of uncomfortable silences. As Kshitiz Gautam ’22 summed it up, “Despite the awkwardness, it was a fruitful experience overall.”

Zoom definitely has its benefits and drawbacks. One handy feature of the platform is the “hand-raising” function, which allows students to virtually signal if they have a comment or question without them having to awkwardly interrupt the professor or each other. It also has a nice chat feature, so if you have friends in a class, you can easily shoot them a chat.

However, maybe don’t say anything too spicy on a Zoom DM, because it’s been suggested that even private messages to another student can be monitored by the meeting host for “non-webinar” meetings.[2] This is not the platform’s only privacy red flag. As Zoom has surged in popularity over the past two weeks and become the teleworking software of choice for thousands of employers and schools across the country, it has also been under fire for a slew of privacy issues. Meeting hosts can see when users do not have the Zoom meeting open and active for more than thirty seconds. You should also be aware that all of your text chats to the whole group are saved if the Zoom session is recorded. And just like any internet service you use these days, Zoom will track your “name, physical address, email address, phone number, job title, employer [or school].” Students who wish a large company to not have these details, and live off the grid, seemingly have no options.

All things considered, however, Zoom seems to offer a solid solution for continuing the typical law school style of education during a global pandemic. For better or worse,[3] you can now get virtually cold-called while in the comfort of your own home, in your pajamas. It remains to be seen whether the privacy issues will be resolved, so in the meantime, just G-chat your friends during class instead of Zoom chat. Happy Zooming, everyone, and don’t forget to stay muted.

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Jacob Jones ’21
Features Editor

For future generations trying to figure out what life was like during online classes,[4] let me tell you, it’s funky. I’d heard many stories of Zoom lectures before they came to UVA and they all seemed wild. My expectations were high as I started my first Zoom lecture in Professor Ferzan’s evidence class.

Unfortunately, no one used memes for their Zoom background backgrounds. The “this is fine” dog with everything burning would have been a popular choice. As we started the lecture, Professor Ferzan’s voice sounded like a robot. Fearing that I was the only one having this problem, I said nothing and prepared to have an awkward lecture. But other people apparently were having the same problem, which was a relief. But then I had another concern: What if Professor Ferzan had been replaced by a robot? Or worse, what if Professor Ferzan had hired a robot to lecture for her, thereby breaking her contract with the Law School? I could simply not stand for any breach of contract. Luckily, the audio issue was fixed, and Ferzan stopped sounding like a series of beeps and boops.

While Zoom classes are clearly no good substitute for in-person ones, I will admit that it’s nice to have a bit of a schedule and something close to normalcy. The city of Charlottesville, Main Grounds, and North Grounds may be empty of people, but Zoom lets you see how everyone who used to be there is safely at home. When you’re used to seeing the 900-some faces of UVA Law everyday, seeing a few on Zoom is the next best thing.

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Sam Pickett ’21
News Editor

My Zoom School of Law Experience began at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday—or rather it was supposed to begin. What actually occurred was that I sat there on my laptop answering emails and waiting for the wait screen to materialize into a gridded group of faces. Just as I had given up hope, I was admitted into the “Zoom Room” at 1:30 p.m.. Finally, I had done it. I was online-law-schooling. My classmates and I soon realized, however, that our professor was not in the virtual room with us. Sad. It was then that we received an email that class that day was canceled and that he would see us on Monday. What a wild ride and what a positive start to the Zoom School of Law.

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mav3p@virginia.edu
jmj3vq@virginia.edu
shp8dz@virginia.edu 

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[1] If you don’t know who Bryce is, ask a local 1L about his infiltration of the Class of 2022 GroupMe, including the puzzling but thought-provoking line: “Law school isn’t the same, sure, but leave a lug loose on a Goodyear Eagle and it’ll cost you checkers.”

[2] https://mashable.com/article/zoom-conference-call-work-from-home-privacy-concerns/

[3] Definitely worse.

[4] I’m assuming in 1,000 years when all other professions transfer to digital learning, law schools will still require students to attend class using only #2 pencils.

UVA Law Moves Online in Response to Corona Outbreak

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Christina Luk ‘21
Editor-in-Chief

Over Spring Break, on March 11, President Jim Ryan announced that the University of Virginia would extend Spring Break and move all classes online starting Thursday, March 19, in response to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) that is sweeping the country. Classes will remain online for the foreseeable future and, though the University administration will reassess on April 5, classes are expected to remain online through the end of the semester. [Edit: Per President Ryan’s March 17 email, classes will definitely remain online through the rest of the semester.]

Photo Courtesy of virginia.edu

At UVA Law, classes will be delivered entirely online via two platforms. Lecture classes will be recorded and posted by Panopto to students’ Canvas pages under “Class Recordings,” while seminars and professional skill classes will meet virtually on Zoom, a live teleconferencing platform. In response to this shift to online classes, discussions have already sprung up in the student body about the pros and cons of making classes pass-fail this semester.[1] Some students who advocate for pass-fail point out that it will relieve much of the stress of transitioning to an online curriculum halfway through the semester. Others worry that pass-fail will undermine the rigors of our academic education or place students at a disadvantage against other top law schools who keep the traditional grading system. As of writing, the Law School has yet to make any new decisions about final exams, except to confirm that all students will be able to complete their courses whether or not they return to Grounds.[2] In conjunction with moving classes online, both the University and the Law School administrations have encouraged students to follow CDC guidelines recommending social distancing and return home if they are able. The Law School’s Student Affairs Office is specifically offering help and services to any student who only needs to return to grab belongings or textbooks from their lockers.

Although University buildings, including the Law School and the UVA Health System, will remain open, the administration has canceled all university-sponsored events with more than 100 participants, including the Law School’s Admitted Students’ Open House (originally planned for March 19-20). For university-sponsored events involving fewer than 100 people, the administration strongly recommends alternatives to in-person events. As a result, many time-honored and favorite activities at the Law School have been directly affected, such as the Libel Show and the 37th Annual Softball Tournament, both of which are now canceled.

These disruptive and unsettling changes have come as a blow to many students. Will McDermott ’22 reports there was initial excitement in the 1L GroupMe over the announcement to transition to online classes and 1L oral arguments to take place over video chat but then divisive debate over whether classes should be pass-fail. Leah Deskins ’21 said that she is “really sad about the Libel Show not coming to fruition,” but found a silver lining in that “professors can’t force me to take handwritten notes now, and before this happened, I had literally no idea how I’d get all of my work done. Now, after I’ve suddenly found myself with a more flexible schedule, I’m marginally less concerned about that, at least for the time being.”

For many 3Ls, the recent changes have been especially disappointing because they affect their last semester at the Law School. Eleanor Schmalzl ’20 comments, “It’s wild to see just how quickly things that seem certain can change. I am so sad for this community and my fellow classmates, as well as so many like us around the country, who are missing the last of our big, memorable school events (for UVA Law, Libel, the Softball Invitational, and likely graduation),” and she hopes that “the 1Ls and 2Ls see this and realize how special every day at this place is, and I hope the 3Ls get a chance for one more day together before we all part ways to go on and do great things.”

Griffin Peebles ’20 also shared his feelings, saying, “UVA Law has been one of the best experiences of my life.  I have gotten to travel internationally and learn at one of the best law schools.  But it’s the people. The people at UVA Law are sensational. The lifelong friendships we have made, the fun times we’ve had just can’t be present at other law schools. To know that never again will I be in the same room as everyone I am graduating with is sad. It’s sad to not have that moment to internalize it.  But it doesn’t take away the memories we had together.”

Taz Jones ’20 gives a hopeful account: “I find a lot of peace through reflection—on the folks whose love and support brings me strength and courage, on the ways that I can return that favor through my own encouragement, and on the opportunities for further community building that we can all take away from these unfortunate events. Above all else, I’m thinking about how much I love every single member of our Law School community, and how thankful I am for the opportunity to weather this storm as part of something bigger than myself.”

In many ways, though, the Law School remains resilient. Both the Student Affairs Office and all offices of Career Counseling (the Office of Private Practice, the Public Service Center, and our unstoppable Clerkship Director, Ruth Payne) have announced continued services in the coming weeks and encourage all students to reach out via email if they have any concerns or questions. The Law School library remains open and is actively working to make course materials available online for students who have returned home for the semester. For students experiencing financial difficulties, the Financial Aid Office is offering support with staff via phone, Skype, or other teleconferencing services.

If anything has made itself clear in the past week, it is that the school administration and student leaders are working hard to make sure students get the support and information they need to adjust successfully to an online curriculum. As Dean Risa Goluboff said in her email to the Law School shortly after President Ryan’s initial announcement, “We are lucky to live, learn, and work in a community filled with people who care for each other and who work together toward the greater good. Even when we are not all together in Charlottesville, our ties to one another remain strong.”[3]

Dean Goluboff’s words prove all the more meaningful in the wake of the first confirmed case of COVID-19 in our community. Early Monday morning, the Thomas Jefferson Health District released information that “a Charlottesville resident in their late 50s who had recently traveled tested positive for the virus with a test through a commercial lab.”[4] President Ryan confirmed this news in an email later in the day. The confirmed individual is a staff member of the UVA Women’s Center, lives off Grounds, and is currently in quarantine and receiving care in accordance with protocols from the Virginia Department of Health.[5] As our community begins to face the full brunt of the COVID-19, it is more important than ever to remember our ties to each other. The strength of those ties and the choices we make will have rippling effects for all of us. It is paramount that we make healthy decisions not only for ourselves but for those most vulnerable in our community. As we’ve written here in this paper before, we’re all in this together.

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cl3eh@virginia.edu

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[1] A GroupMe Poll in the Class of 2022 put voting at: 128 in favor of pass/fail this semester and 71 against, as of 6:30 pm on March 16, 2020.

[2] Per Dean Sarah Davies’s email, “March 14 Update from Student Affairs.” (As Provost Liz Magill said in her March 12 email to the University community, “If we resume in-person classes before the end of the semester, we will make sure any student who has gone home and cannot return to Grounds is able to complete the term.” This applies to Law School students as well as all other students. Please plan to remain where you are for the foreseeable future and do not worry about returning.)

[3] Dean Goluboff’s email, dated March 11, 2020, “FW: Important Update Regarding Spring Semester—Please Read.”

[4] https://www.whsv.com/content/news/1st-positive-case-of-COVID-19-confirmed-in-Charlottesville-568827371.html

[5] President Jim Ryan’s email, dated March 16, 2020, “Confirmed Case of COVID-19 in UVA Community.”

Dean Cordel Faulk Bids Law School Farewell

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Cordel Faulk ‘01
Departing Chief Admissions Officer

In 1996, A.E. Dick Howard became the first graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law I ever met. I seriously wish everyone such a magnificent introduction to the Virginia Law community. There I was—some silly little 20-year-old, closeted black kid who ran up to him after a speech because I wanted to meet the man who wrote the Virginia Constitution. He was the most courtly, urbane, brilliant human being I’d ever been within five feet of. He then put up with months of me staying in touch while I was an undergrad. When I finally submitted my application to UVA Law for the Class of 2001, he was nice enough to write a letter to endorse my candidacy—even though that might mean decades more of me demanding that he mentor me. In the years since, he has been a needed ear, a friend, and a reminder of the type of person I should aspire to be.

Through that lens, I hope every student who reads this understands why I attacked my job in the Admissions Office the way I did. For no extrinsic reason whatsoever, Dick Howard treats me like a human being deserving of care, support, concern, and love. Every day I walked into the Admissions Office it was my greatest desire to do the same for the students who choose to join the Virginia Law community.

Pictured: Cordel Faulk ‘01, Chief Admissions Officer
Photo Courtesy: law.virginia.edu

I love this Law School. I do, because I love the types of people who feel compelled to call it home—despite having the opportunity to get a legal education just about anywhere else. My fellow alumni (and future alumni) have built a community not based on elitism or prestige or bravado. No, you have not. You have built a community based on values—foremost among those is that we value each other first. The tie that binds is an acknowledgement of the humanity that animates our interactions with one another.

Promissory estoppel is taught at every law school; a law student can get that anywhere. You don’t get the Virginia Law community everywhere.

To the classes that were here before me: Thank you so much for creating a place where these wonderful people can come together, and thank you (specifically Dick Howard and Al Turnbull) for welcoming me into your ranks. For those who have come after: Thank you for letting me be a part of your story and thank you for being a part of mine. Every time I think about “my classes” I smile, and think about two things: (1) all the lessons I have learned because I got to interact with you and (2) the amazing things you will do once you leave these halls.

I won’t name any names of particular students because there are too many to put in this space. I love you all, though. Every application became a part of me I’ll never lose.

The year 2020 is the 100th anniversary of the first women to come to the University of Virginia School of Law as students. This year is also the 50th anniversary of the first black women joining the ranks of UVA Law graduates. It’s the 200th anniversary of the University itself.

Think of everything we lost by not educating women during UVA’s first hundred years. Think of the shame we accumulated during the 150 years our forebearers refused to have black women in our ranks. If we think hard, it should be obvious that this absence wasn’t just damaging to the women who were stopped at the gates. That period without women in our community was a violence against civil society itself. All the law and logic and reason those women could have given us was lost. That harmed everyone, and we’re still trying to catch up from those times today. Why did that happen? We lost generations of progress because of misogyny, fear, and ignorance. Let’s take this fancy elite education and make sure nothing like that ever happens again.

When we see Muslims being mistreated at airports, we should stand up and say, “Hell no!” When we see laws making it difficult for black Americans to go to the polls, we should stand up and say, “Hell no!” When we see society dismissing the contributions and potential of women, we should stand up and say, “Hell no!” When we see legislatures attacking the basic American freedoms guaranteed in the Bill of Rights, we should stand up and say, “Hell no!” When we don’t, we are wasting the privilege this degree affords us.

Every day you leave your house, you should be planning what you will do to deserve a degree from the University of Virginia School of Law.

As I end my employment at UVA Law, I’d like to thank a few people who made all of this possible. Dean Jeffries: Thank you for your friendship, your willingness to correct me frankly, and for making me feel valued and respected. Dean Mahoney: Thank you for your trust in giving me this job and for being the type of person whose judgment I could trust implicitly. To George Geis and Leslie Kendrick: Thank you for showing me that intelligence, strength, compassion, and commonsense could work in concert with one another. To Stephen Parr: Thank you for preparing me to be a leader. You all made me better and I am grateful. 

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cfaulk@law.virginia.edu