News

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — The sixth annual National Energy Conference at West Virginia University will look at the state’s the emerging energy economy.

The free, one-day conference will be held on October 20 beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the WVU College of Law. Admission is free and the public is invited to attend. Registration for lunch is required via the conference website .

The energy conference will feature experts from industry, public policy organizations, environmental groups, and academic institutions. It is being hosted by the WVU College of Law’s Center for Energy and Sustainable Development and the Appalachian Stewardship Foundation.

“Our goal is to bring together policy makers and practitioners, with a focus on sound science, to help lead West Virginia into an environmentally responsible and economically viable energy future,” said Shanda Minney, executive director of the Appalachian Stewardship Foundation.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — Professor James Van Nostrand, director of WVU Law's Center for Energy and Sustainable Development, has issued the following statement about the Trump administration's repeal of the EPA's Clean Power Plan:

The rollback of the Clean Power Plan will have little, if any, effect in bringing coal jobs back. The adoption of the Clean Power Plan had virtually no effect on the coal industry — it was years away before the regulations would have been implemented, in any event — and thus revoking the rule will have no positive impact on coal jobs. 

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — Within days of starting his new job in Northern Virginia, Jonathan Heath ’17 was recognized by the Points of Light Foundation.

Heath was recently sworn in as a magistrate for the Commonwealth of Virginia’s 31st Judicial District, which encompasses Prince William County outside of Washington, DC. 

As a magistrate, Heath will conduct probable cause and bail hearings and will issue a wide range of criminal and civil processes including warrants and emergency protective orders.

“I credit the opportunities and experiences I had at WVU Law with preparing me for this position,” Heath said. “I feel that courses such as interviewing, counseling and negotiation as well as the experience I gained both as a member of the Immigration Law Clinic and as a mediator gave me some invaluable hands-on experience.”

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — On September 15, 2017, the White House Press Office announced that President Donald J. Trump had nominated Kimberly Reed to serve as First Vice President of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

Reed, a 1996 graduate of WVU Law, was confirmed by the U.S. Senate on October 3.

The Export-Import Bank of the United States is the official export credit agency of the United States. It is an independent, self-sustaining agency of the Executive Branch with a mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating the export of U.S. goods and services.

From the White House Press Office:

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — WVU Law is hosting “The Defamation Experience,” an interactive live performance dealing with diversity issues and the law, on Monday, October 9 at 6:30 p.m. in the Marlyn E. Lugar Courtroom.

Admission is free and the public is invited to attend. Due to limited seating, a free e-ticket must be downloaded at http://bit.ly/defexpwvu.

An old fashion courtroom drama, “The Defamation Experience” addresses issue of race, class, religion, gender and the law. It focuses on a legal case in which an African-American woman sues a Jewish real estate developer who has accused her of theft.

Through polls, deliberations and post-show discussions, the play’s audience serves as the jury, determines the outcome of the case, and engages in a civil discourse that challenges preconceived notions and promotes self-examination. Written by Todd Logan, “Defamation” premiered in 2010.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — Professor Alison Peck has been appointed director of the Immigration Law Clinic at the West Virginia University College of Law.

“Alison has the background and the passion to ensure that our immigration clinic continues to serve clients in need and provide our students with valuable legal experience,” said Gregory Bowman , dean of the College of Law.

The Immigration Law Clinic serves foreign citizens who are facing deportation, seeking asylum, or need help on other immigration proceedings. Legal services are provided for free by student attorneys working under faculty supervision.

Recent clients of the Immigration Law Clinic include asylum seekers from Honduras, Iraq, Kenya and Libya who faced discrimination or violent persecution for their religious and political beliefs or sexual orientation.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — A new scholarship established at West Virginia University by the West Virginia State Bar is designed to increase legal services in rural communities across the Mountain State.

The Rural Practice Scholarship at the WVU College of Law will be awarded to two members of the Class of 2020 who commit to practicing law in under-served areas.

In exchange for a student’s commitment to three years of post-graduate practice in a rural county, the scholarship will pay tuition and fees for three years of law school at WVU. The scholarship will match in-state tuition and fees and be given in the form of a forgivable loan. At current tuition levels, each scholarship is worth more than $22,000 a year.

One year of loans will be forgiven for each year of qualifying post-graduate rural practice. If the recipient chooses to stop practicing in a rural community, he or she will be required to pay back the outstanding scholarship amount.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — A top attorney for New Orleans will discuss the city’s removal of Confederate monuments for the annual Charles L. Ihlenfeld Lecture on Public Policy and Ethics on Monday, October 2 at 5 p.m. in the event hall at WVU Law.

Admission is free and the public is invited to attend.

Adam Swensek is the chief deputy city attorney for the City of New Orleans. From 2015-17, he successfully argued the city’s case in both the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Louisiana Supreme Court for removing four Confederate monuments.

Swensek oversees the appellate division of the City of New Orleans and serves as lead trial counsel in many of the city’s highest-profile civil disputes.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — West Virginia University’s annual observance of Constitution Day this year will focus on the role of a free press in a democratic society.

A Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist will join WVU communications, journalism and law professors to address the erosion of the First Amendment, fake news, and why a free press is necessary for a strong democracy.

“Freedom of the Press: Constitutionally Enshrined Guardians of Democracy” takes place September 18 at 4 p.m. in the Event Hall at the WVU Law.

Admission is free and the public is invited to attend.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA – International relations scholar Daniel Añorve Añorve will deliver the annual Archibald McDougall Lecture on International Law on September 5 at 12:30 p.m. in the WVU Law Event Hall.

Añorve will discuss “The Role of Baseball Diplomacy in U.S.-Cuban Relations.” He is a professor of law, policy and government at the University of Guanajuato in Mexico.

Admission is free and the public is invited to attend.

“When relations began normalizing between the United States and Cuba in December 2014, it marked, at least potentially, a turning point not only for both countries, but also for a handful of subnational actors,” said Añorve. “Baseball, a prime national hobby in both countries, suddenly seemed to have the potential to be much more than leisure, opening the possibility to trigger political, economic, and social forces that could pave the way to new channels of communications between these two ideologically-torn apart neighbors.”