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WVU College of Law alumni Ben Vanston and Jacob Trombley became friends through an unlikely matchmaker: the West Virginia bar exam. They met through a new College of Law initiative that pairs recent graduates with newer alumni to mentor them and provide support as the bar exam approaches. About 40 WVU Law graduates participated in the pilot Peer Bar Exam Consultant project.

Vanston, who graduated in 2021 and now works for a Charleston law firm, was paired with Trombley, a 2023 graduate now working in Kingwood. Beginning in May, they talked weekly —sometimes for up to two hours — about the rigor of the test and the effort needed to pass the July exam.

About halfway through the summer study marathon, Vanston said he realized that Trombley was scoring well on practice tests and was likely to pass, so he shifted his attention to helping ease the stress and mental exhaustion of preparing for a three-day exam.

PreLaw Magazine has named WVU Law among the 2023 Best Schools for Public Service: Public Interest. Lawyers who practice public interest law help those who cannot afford legal services and the underrepresented, including the poor, the elderly, children and victims of domestic violence.

The College of Law, in conjunction with the nonprofit West Virginia Fund for Law in the Public Interest, has a long history of commitment to public interest law.

Since 1987, these two entities have built a program that provides approximately 20 summer fellowships along with one-year postgraduate placements with a public interest entity in West Virginia. These experiences have created a generation of attorneys ready to serve the greatest needs of our state. 

Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself. 

A: I am from Oceana, WV, and I'm currently a 3L at WVU Law. I graduated from WVU Tech in Beckley, WV, where I majored in Public Service Administration. 

WVU Law Class of 2023 graduates will spend their summers preparing for the bar exam and then dive into new careers, which range from clerkships with federal and state judges to positions in law firms and government agencies all across the country. Here are a few of their stories:

Nakia Ridgeway

Ridgeway will begin a two-year clerkship with the Hon. Michael J. Aloi, United States Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of West Virginia, in Clarksburg. She served as a judicial extern in Judge Aloi’s chambers during law school and was eager to return to the “very hands-on opportunity.” While externing, Ridgeway attended hearings, helped write orders, and even assisted in handling two civil motions from start to finish.

Prominent trial attorney and West Virginia University College of Law alumnus Paul Thomas Farrell, Jr. is the recipient of the 2023 College of Law Justitia Officium Award.  Established in 1978 to mark the 100th anniversary of the College of Law, the Justitia Officium is the highest honor bestowed by the law faculty in recognition of outstanding contributions and service to the legal profession.  Mr. Farrell received his award at Commencement on May 12.

“Paul understands how lives hang in the balance when injustice exists in our courtrooms and in our communities – and that, often, what can be accomplished in the courtroom can change the lives of countless others outside of it.  Although he’s most recently fought for justice from the opioid industry for the devastation it has caused throughout West Virginia, Paul’s passionate advocacy for all and his relentless dedication to the legal profession and its role in society have had an immeasurable impact throughout his career. We are so honored that he and his wife, Jackie, are our alumni and continue the Farrell family’s lasting legacy to the College of Law,” said WVU College of Law Dean Amelia Smith Rinehart.

This spring, WVU Law students and members of the West Virginia State Bar have been learning about international and domestic terrorism from former international war crimes prosecutor Cody Corliss, a Wetzel County native who returned to West Virginia to join the College of Law faculty last August.

Prior to coming to WVU Law, Professor Corliss served in the Office of the Prosecutor at a United Nations criminal tribunal in The Hague, the Netherlands. He was a member of the team that secured the conviction of Bosnian Serb General Ratko Mladić on charges of genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the laws and customs of war.  

Corliss spoke to judges and practicing lawyers at the West Virginia State Bar 2023 Annual Meeting this spring and also taught a new law school seminar focusing on terrorism.

“What’s nice for me is that my talk for the bar and my scholarship dovetail really nicely with the seminar I’m teaching on domestic and international terrorism,” said Corliss, who holds degrees from Harvard University, Universiteit Leiden, and Cornell University. Fourteen students took the introductory terrorism seminar.

WV Bar Foundation Renames Scholarship in Honor of Justice Starcher To Benefit WVU Law Students

Thirteen federal judges gathered with nearly 70 law students and members of the state bar at WVU College of Law earlier this month for a national diversity event designed to demystify the process of becoming a bankruptcy or magistrate judge.

The purpose of the event, according to co-chair Judge David Bissett, was to “put the bug in people’s ears that lawyers from a variety of practice backgrounds” can become judges.

While WVU Law Director for Career Services and Professional Development Lauren McCartney sees much to be proud of in the College’s recently announced employment statistics for the Class of 2022, the most exciting news is that 18 graduates secured judicial clerkships at both the state and federal levels.

 “We’re seeing a major trend with our students wanting government service, and the judicial clerkship is an opportunity for WVU Law students to get really hands on with work that matters,” McCartney said. “A judicial clerkship is a great place to learn how the court works and thinks.”

 Six of the 2022 WVU Law grads secured clerkships with federal judges, often besting students from Ivy League institutions for these extremely prestigious and sought out positions, McCartney said. Shawn Hogbin, a 2022 graduate originally from Hedgesville, is working in Charleston for the Honorable Irene C. Berger in the United States District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia.

“Working in chambers is truly a delight,” said Hogbin, 26, who will begin a second clerkship in the fall with Judge Robert King in the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. “I’ve heard people compare it to a small practice group. It feels very close-knit, and we talk about all of the issues.”

Maggie Lohmann, a third year WVU Law student from Bridgeport, has been named one of the “finest law school writers” in the country by the Burton Awards, a national non-profit program run in association with the Library of Congress and the American Bar Association.

Lohmann, whose student law review note was chosen from nominations submitted by the nation’s top law schools, will receive the “Law360 Distinguished Legal Writing Award” in Washington, D.C. The awards ceremony, which will be held at the National Portrait Gallery in June, will be followed by a gala reception and performance by comedian and late-night talk show host Seth Meyers. 

Lohmann’s winning piece, featured in the West Virginia Law Review, examines Federal Indian Law and land rights disparities. Lohmann said she wanted to investigate the topic after reading a seminal case in Professor Alison Peck’s property law class.