EVENTS

NEWS

• UDM Law Warming Center Clinic on Tenant Rights

  Thirteen UDM first-year law students assisted attorneys from Legal Aid and Defender Association, Neighborhood Legal Services, and Detroit Center for Family Advocacy at a Clinic UDM Law hosted at Ss. Peter & Paul Jesuit Warming Center on January 15.  The students and attorneys provided information and individual consultations to 35 guests on housing related matters.  Additionally, Sydney Booth ('14), a participant in UDM's Solo and Small Firm Incubator Program, introduced her newly formed law firm, Rushing Law, and conducted a short presentation on Criminal Expungement.  

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• PROFESSOR DUBIN COMMENTS ON HIGH PROFILE CASES IN THE NEWS

  Professor Larry Dubin recently commented in The Detroit News on two high profile federal cases.  First, he discussed the DeBoer case, which challenges Michigan's ban on same-sex marriage as unconstitutional.  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on January 16 that it would accept the case.  Professor Dubin stated in part, "Public opinion has shifted greatly, making this an issue that needs to be resolved due to the conflicting federal law that now exists."

  On January 23 and 25, Professor Dubin discussed the Kazan case, in which a Muslim woman filed suit against the City of Dearborn Heights and its police department, alleging that her constitutional rights were violated when she was forced to remove her hijab when she was booked by a male officer for a traffic violation.  Professor Dubin noted that the case involves conflicting rights:  "Ms. Kazan is entitled under the First Amendment protection of her religious beliefs including the wearing of a hijab, which may cover part of her face.  However, the police have the right to process a person who is being arrested."

  Justices to rule on same-sex marriage, Jan. 16, 2015, The Detroit News (quoting Prof. Lawrence Dubin)

  Woman sues Dearborn Heights for forced hijab removal, Jan. 23, 2015, The Detroit News (quoting Prof. Lawrence Dubin)

  Meet the Women Suing a Michigan Police Department and Standing Up Against Islamophobia, Jan. 25, 2015, Mic Network (quoting Prof. Lawrence Dubin)

• NEW SOLO AND SMALL FIRM INCUBATOR PROGRAM EARNS PRAISE BY STATE BAR OF MICHIGAN

  UDM Law's New Solo and Small Firm Incubator Program is featured on the State Bar of Michigan's Stories of Service website. The Program is praised as an innovative model for teaching recent graduates how to grow and sustain a solo practice while also meeting the legal needs of low-income clients through pro bono service.

  UDM Law’s New Solo and Small Firm Incubator Program Aims to Grow Better Lawyers, Jan. 21, 2015, State Bar of Michigan Website – Stories of Service

• MANY DISTINGUISHED UDM LAW ALUMNI ARE SWORN IN TO OFFICE

  Many distinguished UDM Law alumni have been sworn in to serve as members of the judiciary and Legislature recently. We are proud of their ongoing commitment to the School of Law's mission and the example they set for our students in their service to the public.

  Macomb County's judiciary has a sister act. Suzanne Faunce ('98), a former county assistant prosecutor, and her sister, Circuit Judge Jennifer Faunce ('90), who won re-election, were sworn in on January 5 by retired District Judge and current Visiting Judge Sherman Faunce, their father. Both women stated that it was one of the "greatest moments in their lives" to be sworn in together and with their father beside them.  Related article:  Family affair: Faunce sisters sworn in as judges by father, Dec. 22, 2014, Macomb Daily

  Many other alumni have also been sworn in as members of the judiciary, including:

  Hon. Brian K. Zahra ('87) was re-elected to the Michigan Supreme Court.

  Hon. Michael J. Talbot ('71) was appointed by the Michigan Supreme Court to be Chief Judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals.

  Hon. Christopher Murray ('90) was re-elected to the First District of the Michigan Court of Appeals. Judge Murray is currently a member of the University of Detroit Mercy Inns of Court and is president of the DMBA Inns of Court.

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• PROFESSOR BROUGHTON COMMENTS IN LAW360 ON PRESIDENT OBAMA'S JUDICIAL NOMINATIONS

  On January 7, Professor J. Richard Broughton commented in Law360, a national legal news service, on President Barack Obama's renewed nominations of 17 judicial candidates for the federal bench and the likely response of the new Republican-controlled Senate.

  Obama Judicial Noms Face Uphill Battle in Republican Senate, Jan. 7, 2015, Law360

• CRIMINAL TRIAL CLINIC HAS SUCCESSFUL YEAR

  Students in UDM's Criminal Trial Clinic represent indigent misdemeanor defendants in district courts. The Clinic is led by Adjunct Professor Michael Morgan and Professor Richard Krisciunas. The following students won cases on the merits while acting as defense counsel in the Clinic in 2014:

  Nargiz Nesimova gained an acquittal at trial for a client charged with Obstructing a Police Officer.

  Robert Warchuk won a motion to dismiss for a client charged with Operating with a Suspended Driver's License, Possession of Narcotic Paraphernalia, and violating the local knife ordinance.

  Amanda Gingrich convinced the city attorney to dismiss the case against her client charged with violating the local knife ordinance.

  Amanda Gingrich convinced the city attorney that the police had arrested the wrong man for Operating with a Suspended Driver's License.

  Jared Henry convinced the city attorney that police had arrested the wrong man for Obstructing a Police Officer.

  The Criminal Trial Clinic arranges for UDM law students to act as public defenders in district courts in Eastpointe, Hamtramck, Plymouth, and Troy.

  To learn more about the Criminal Trial Clinic, visit the Clinics' website.