News

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—The Michael Late Benedum Chapter of the American Association of Professional Landmen has donated $24,000 to the Veterans Advocacy Law Clinic at the West Virginia University College of Law.

The clinic provides pro bono legal services to former service members while training law students. Under faculty supervision, students working in the clinic represent veterans in litigation before administrative agencies and courts on benefits, discharge upgrades, employment claims and other civil matters.

The Michael Late Benedum Chapter raised the funds at its fifth annual Charity Clay Shoot, Dinner and Auction. This is the third year in a row that the veterans law clinic has received the event’s proceeds, which now total $78,000.

The clay shoot was held at Hunting Hills in Dilliner, Pennsylvania. It was sponsored by 23 oil and gas companies and service providers who pledged between $500 and $7,500 to the veterans clinic. Northeast Natural Energy’s Anthony Romeo, himself a veteran, is the founder of the event.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—Jed Nolan, a public interest attorney based in Beckley, West Virginia, has been named director and staff attorney of the Veterans Advocacy Law Clinic at the West Virginia University College of Law.

In his new role, Nolan will supervise third-year law students who provide pro bono legal services to West Virginia’s veterans.

“I have six family members who served in the military,” Nolan said. “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to help others obtain the benefits they earned serving their country. I am also thrilled to training a group of young lawyers to understand that legal practice is about more than arguing case law and statutes; it is about connecting with a client and using the law as a means to improve their daily life.”

There are currently seven student attorneys in Veterans Advocacy Law Clinic. Under faculty supervision, students in the clinic represent clients before administrative agencies and courts regarding benefits, discharge upgrades, employment claims and other civil matters. The clinic also provides community outreach efforts and legal services in partnership with the Louis A. Johnson Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Clarksburg, West Virginia.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.— When the National Gandhi Museum and the Delhi High Court Bar Association in India recently wanted to stage an exhibit about Mahatma Gandhi’s early years as a lawyer, they drew inspiration from the scholarship of WVU Law professor Charles DiSalvo. 

DiSalvo is the author of “M.K. Gandhi, Attorney at Law: The Man Before the Mahatma"  (University of California Press, 2013).

“The National Gandhi Museum in Delhi contacted me for advice and documents,” DiSalvo said. “I was not sure what to expect, but, as it turned out, I couldn’t have imagined a more gratifying use of my scholarship. More than 500 Delhi High Court lawyers and judges showed up to kick off the exhibit.”

The exhibit, “Gandhi: the Lawyer,” was held on the premises of the Delhi High Court as part of India’s ongoing commemoration of Gandhi’s 150th birthday this year on October 2. It was opened by D.N. Patel, the chief justice of the Delhi High Court.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—The Center for Consumer Law and Education will present a free public workshop on October 7 from 6-8 p.m. at the Kanawha County Public Library in Charleston, West Virginia.

Titled “10 Things You Should Know About Consumer Law and Where to Get Help,” the workshop will be led by Jonathan Marshall, director of the CCLE. Dinner will be provided.

A representative from the West Virginia University Veterans Advocacy Law Clinic will also be present to answer questions from veterans about available resources and services.

This is the first in a series of state-wide consumer workshops that the CCLE is calling the People’s Law School.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—The Honorable John K. Bush of the 6th U.S.Circuit Court of Appeals is speaking at WVU Law on September 26 at noon in the Marlyn E. Lugar Courtroom.

Admission is free, and the public is invited to attend

Bush will discuss finding meaning in the law. His lecture is co-sponsored by the Federalist Society at WVU Law.

Bush joined the 6th U.S.Circuit Court of Appeals in 2017 after a nomination from President Donald Trump. The court hears appeals from federal judicial districts in Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Michigan. 

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.— Global warming and climate change are having an impact on our health, not just the planet, according to experts gathering at the WVU Law for a free public conference.

“Climate Change and Public Health: Addressing the Growing Crisis” will be held on September 21 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the law school’s Event Hall. Registration is free and includes a buffet luncheon. 

To register, visit energy.law.wvu.edu/ccph

The speakers at the conference will discuss how the climate crisis is causing serious economic, physical, and mental injuries from extreme weather, heatwaves, flooding, drought, and poor air quality. The program is presented by the Center for Energy and Sustainable Development at the WVU College of Law, the West Virginia Center on Climate Change, and the Mid-Atlantic Regional Public Health Training Center.

MORGANTOWN, W. Va.—Members of the WVU Law Class of 2022 have begun their legal careers, and the women outnumber the men.   

There are 116 students in the WVU Law Class of 2022, which is an enrollment increase of almost 4.5% over last year. Women make up a majority of the class at 53%, which is the highest rate at the college in at least a decade.

The academic credentials of the incoming class are also higher than last year. The median LSAT score for the Class of 2022 is 154 and the median undergraduate GPA is 3.46. Eight percent of the class self-identify as a minority and the average age is 25, with an age range of 21 to 55. Almost one-third of the class is a first-generation college student

 “This kind of growth is a positive sign for WVU, legal education and the profession,” said Gregory Bowman , dean of the College of Law. “We welcome the class of 2022 to Law School Hill and look forward to the privilege of preparing them for a fulfilling and rewarding career in the law.”

MORGANTOWN, W. Va.—Sixteen legal professionals have been named to the Lawyers & Leaders Class of 2019 by West Virginia Executive magazine and WVU Law. The inductees were honored at a reception at WVU Law on August 22.

The 2019 Lawyers & Leaders inductees are: 

Ola Adekunle, patent counsel for Google LLC; 

WVU Law professor John Taylor believes ‘red flag’ gun laws, if challenged in court, would be upheld. Taylor, the Jackson Kelly Professor of Law, calls the proposals being floated in the wake of the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton “compromise measures.”

Some prominent Republicans are supporting ‘red flag’ laws so that they can be seen as taking some sort of action in response to the tide of mass shootings. 

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—Two WVU Law professors helped secure the recent release of data that is shedding light on the national distribution of opioids.

Patrick McGinley and Suzanne Weise represented pro bono the Charleston (West Virginia) Gazette-Mail and its parent company, HD Media, in a year-long federal court legal battle to force the public release of government information identifying the volume of prescription opioid pills that flooded the United States and fueled a national health crisis.

An Ohio federal judge overseeing more than 2000 cases brought by states, counties, and cities, including many in West Virginia, had barred public disclosure of the data, which was also sought by The Washington Post. However, that ruling was overturned by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.

The data, gathered by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, tracks every pain pill sold in the country, from manufacturers and distributors to pharmacies. On average, 46 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose, according to the Centers for Disease Control.