Welcome to another year of law school!  The summer proved to be a very busy one for the members of the Valparaiso University Law Review.  Under the leadership of Editor-in-Chief Josh Reece, the Law Review’s group of editors worked tirelessly over the past several months to admit a new class of Notewriters into the Law Review.

Each individual participated in the annual case comment competition following their May final exams.  The Notewriters had only three weeks to thoroughly research and write a twelve-page comment on a recent Supreme Court decision.  The editors of the Law Review evaluated each submission and, through a combination of their writing scores and grades, the top submissions have been selected to participate in the review.  Additionally, congratulations to Arie Lipinski who received the highest score on his case comment.

The Notewriters, after deciding upon topics, are in the process of writing their Notes.  Since the new members will write on their chosen topics for the next seven months, the selection of their specific areas of law was an intimidating one.  However, these individuals have dedicated themselves to the Law Review and we congratulate them on their success and commitment to the school.

The Law Review is publishing four issues this year, and we are currently in the process of preparing Issues One and Two for publication.  In addition to articles submitted by outside authors and professionals, the Volume 45 issues will include Notes by the following Law Review members: David Marusarz, Josh Reece, Candy Kilpinen, Billy Horvath, Leah Provost, Erica Hoodhood, Gabriela Brizuela, Brian Borchert, Ross Brennan, Nicholas Cronauer, Joey Hoflander, Nick Hood, Brittany Smith, and Bradley Turflinger.  Congratulations to these diligent writers for achieving the publishable standard!

If you have any questions about the Law Review or if you want to learn more about the organization, feel free to stop by the Law Review office or contact Erica Hoodhood at Erica.Hoodhood@gmail.com.

Congratulations!  Volume 45 – Law Review Notewriters

Michelle Alyea, Brenda Ambrosius, David Bogaerts, Melissa Croom, Nicole Cudiamat, Cheryl Evans, Mark Frantz, Benjamin Geelan, Paul Gehm, Dylan Grady, Sonny Hodgin, Jamie Kauther, Dustin Klein, Jessica Levitt, Arie Lipinski, Shea Maliszewski, Matthew Passalacqua, Katie Patrick, Alex Planeto, Ryan Powers, Jonathan Sichtermann, Preston Sisler, Travis Stegemoller, and Anne Zygadlo.

By Tim Billick (1L)

Staff Reporter

Students from a myriad of different cultures and nationalities filled the Harre Ballroom to help celebrate the twenty fifth day of Ramadan with the Muslim Student Alliance (MSA).  The student group provided delicious food and an open forum for any and all questions relating to Islam.

Opening remarks were made by the officers of MSA. Waseem Mateen (3L) acts as the group’s treasurer and explained what Ramadan means to him in the form of a familiar acronym, VALPO, which stands for Vigilance, Abstinence, Love, Patience, and Observance. For Mateen, these components must be present for the fruitful celebration of Ramadan.

Answering the questions posed by the crowd was Faisal Kutty, assistant professor of law at Valpo. Kutty serves as the advisor for MSA and teaches Comparative Law, Islamic Law, and International Law among many other classes.  Kutty began his speech with an Islamic blessing, promptly followed by an explanation: “Bismillahi Rahamani Raheem.  In the name of God, the most merciful, the most compassionate.  I figured I should translate that quickly so people didn’t think I was going to blow up or something.”  This cleared the air of any tension that would have been present that evening.  He made certain that no one in the room felt uncomfortable about asking any question at all about Islam or Islamic Law.  Kutty’s depth to his answers prevented him from addressing the volume of questions he received, but it was a necessary tradeoff, given the format of the evening.  He expressed his frustration with the fact that the entire nation of Islam will always have to answer for the radical acts committed by the overwhelming minority of Muslims on “the fringe” of Islam.

The Sunnah, the sayings and the living habits of the prophet Muhammed, and the Qur’an partially make up the Shari’a, which is essentially the law of Islam. But according to Kutty, the majority of Islamic Law comes from secondary sources, and is therefore open to very dynamic and flexible interpretation.  With nearly every question received, he clarified that the Qur’an is not to blame for the horrific acts of some Islamic states.  There isn’t even anything written in the Qur’an promoting the use of an Islamic form of government, according to Kutty.  “There’s a quote in the Qur’an that essentially says, ‘I made you into nations and tribes to know one another, not to despise one another,’” Kutty said.  Unfortunately, what we know about Islam is fed to us by what the media reports on violence in the Middle East.  Kutty cautioned against believing reports on Islamic violence, for those are the acts of states who misinterpret the Qur’an and Islamic Law, not the acts from the Qur’an itself.

For more information on Faisal Kutty’s works and essays, consult his blog at www.faisalkutty.com or his faculty profile on www.valpo.edu/law/faculty/fkutty.  For more information on joining MSA, talk to Professor Kutty or MSA website at www.valpo.edu/student/msa/about.html.

For any comments or concerns about this article, email Tim Billick at Tim.Billick@valpo.edu

By Michael Barnett, Amy Hyndman, & Rich Mitchell

During the first week back to school, our classes were temporarily interrupted by our attendance at Lavender Law.  Lavender Law is a conference organized by the National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Bar Association (NLGBT), an affiliate of the American Bar Association.  The annual conference celebrates diversity in the law.

The conference was held August 26-28, 2010, at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel and Conference Center.  Thursday, the first day of the conference, was a career fair.  Here, law students could sit with employers and discuss possible employment opportunities with companies that specifically seek out LGBT law students for employment.  Firms, large and small, spoke with the hundreds of law students in attendance at the conference, discussed the various opportunities available within their firms, and described the benefits of working for an openly welcoming firm that actively seeks of LGBT employees.

The second day of the conference was loaded with workshops and sessions on a variety of topics.  For example, the morning sessions featured “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell and the Transition to Repeal,” “LGBT Pro Bono at the Highest Echelons of Private Practice,” “Intellectual Property Basics and Hot Topics,” and “Policing, Prosecution and Punishment of LGBT People.”  A wide range of opportunities were readily available.  After lunch sessions included, “Social Networks/Social Justice,” “The Legal Profession and the Judiciary,” “Marriage Rules Meet the Family,” and “Preventing Peer and Teacher Harassment of LGBT Students:  Innovative Strategies for lawyers in the Safe School Movement.”

The final day of the conference provided many continued opportunities for meeting other LGBT attorneys and general networking.  Each night of the conference offered a “meet and great” at a local bar sponsored by a different organization or law firm.  All in all, an excellent experience for all of us who attended.

Mike, Amy, and Rich were pleased with the wide array of options to choose from throughout the conference, as well as its exceptional organization.  We attended this conference on behalf of Lambda, Valparaiso’s LGBT student organization.  If there was a disappointment to be had, it was the apparent “intensity” of the competition between law students.  We attributed it to the tight job market, but were expecting better from our LGBT colleagues.  Still, after a cocktail or two, most people relaxed and some new friendships were established.

The three of us would like to take this opportunity to recommend conference attendance to all 1L’s who are just beginning their law school careers.  Get involved with the organizations here on campus and spend some time reviewing the ABA’s available leadership opportunities as well.  You will find financial support for attendance at these conferences, which will not only improve your professional knowledge, but will increase your opportunities to meet others interested in moving the law forward in your particular area of interest.  We also would like to express our thanks to the folks at VUSL who make our attendance possible at these events—including, but not limited to, Joe Baruffi, Ann Weitgenant, and Dean Adams.

By:  Bradley Turflinger

Valparaiso University School of Law offers great opportunities to study abroad in either South America or Cambridge.  Certainly, both of these opportunities are nothing less than a fantastic way to grow as a lawyer and as a person.  What many students may not know is that there are countless other ABA approved study-abroad programs put on by law schools all over the country in which law students from any school can participate.  Israel, France, Italy, Mexico, Poland, China, and Russia are just a few of the possible locations where students can earn credits towards their law degrees (check out http://www.abanet.org/legaled/studyabroad/foreign.html for a full list of programs).  Last July, I studied in Madrid, Spain through one such program offered by William and Mary Law School.

The potential reasons for choosing to use another school’s study-abroad program are numerous.  Maybe you have family in Germany, or you want to practice your Chinese, or you want to see Venice while it is still around.  From a more professional angle, maybe the program you are interested in offers classes for the area in which you want to practice.  Scheduling conflicts with Valparaiso’s South America program led me to William and Mary.  For ILs who want to be on law review, Valparaiso’s South America trip takes place at the same time as the case-comment competition.  While you can still write your comment in South America, the ability to write a quality comment may be diminished.

Obviously, many classes offered in these programs deal with international law.  The classes I took in Madrid—The E.U. Legal System, European Human Rights Law, and Comparative Civil and Constitutional Law—exemplify the international flavor of classes taken abroad.  The professors in many programs are also exceptional and may be another reason to take a specific program.  My experience offered an advisor to the drafting of the E.U. Constitution, another who advises the Spanish Parliament, and yet another advisor for the Spanish Prime Minister.  In the same vein, programs often offer trips to government institutions.  My program took me to the Spanish Senate and the Spanish Constitutional Court.

Then, of course, there are the food and spirits, music, smells, sights, history, cathedrals-temples-mosques, and proximity to other cities and countries that all coalesce into a unique and life-affirming encounter with the world.  For one month, I regularly had siesta by the pool.  I ate caramelized goat-cheese, onion, and tomato tapas.  I experienced world-class jazz, dive-bar flamenco, and roof-top club music.  On weekends, I went to Retiro Park (Madid’s Central Park) and watched people row boats in front of a gigantic columned monument to a former monarch.  I saw Goya’s “Saturn Eating His Children” and Bosch’s “Garden of Earthly Delights” (along with works by Raphael, Rembrandt, etc.) at the Prado museum, and Picasso’s “Guernica” at the Reina Sophia.  I took a day trip to see Roman Aqueducts and eat roasted suckling pig in Segovia.  Other adventures took me to Toledo (home of “El Greco”) and the century old walled city of Avila (home to St. Teresa).

And what is left after a study-abroad; what is the take-away?  I earned six credits, took hundreds of beautiful pictures and made many friends from law schools all over the country.  I now have a Spanish flag I wore like a cape in an endless sea of red (250,000 people) as I watched Spain win the Word Cup.  I bridged the divide between the intangible and tangible by walking in the formerly abstract (to me) palace from where Isabella and Ferdinand ruled; I have a familiarity (as concrete as a memory can be) with the Royal Palace that fills my mind when I think about Columbus seeking financing for his venture/crusade.  I know in detail just how fascinating the European Union is – it rivals the United States in its idealism, lack of historical precedent, and provocative nature (what is sovereignty?).  More than anything, I am inspired to make certain that this in not a “once in a lifetime” experience; the world is big, people are beautiful and creative in ways that cannot simply be read about, and I will not be content to coast through the rest of my life on the fumes of this past summer.  But, studying abroad is a start – a start this writer encourages all law students to consider.

HLSA welcomes you back to school and for the new 1Ls; we support the wonderful journey you have begun here with us at Valparaiso University School of Law. We are excited to bring you a year full of opportunities to give back to the community and embrace diversity.

The mission of the Hispanic Law Students Association (HLSA) is to foster a community built on diversity both on and off the Valparaiso Law School campus. In this endeavor the organization strives to build awareness, break down borders and bring together the diverse community in Valparaiso, Indiana. HLSA does this by bringing attention to academic success and achievement by Latinos in this arena.

One of the main focuses of HLSA to recognize the Hispanic Culture in our society and the importance that it holds for the people. This awareness allows the Hispanic community to embrace and reflect on the history of Latinos. In doing so, HLSA brings both educational and social events to the campus and community for everyone to enjoy and be a part of. A listing of the upcoming events is listed below. Feel free to contact Priscilla Puente Chacon at priscilla.puente-chacon@valpo.edu with any questiosn or interest in the organization.

September:
Sept. 14th, Chapel break 1st Meeting
Sept. 17th, Meet and Greet
Sept. 24, HLSA/BLSA/MLSA picnic

October:(National Hispanic Month)
Oct. 6th  Hispanic Film
October 14th Meeting Chapel break
October 27th- Immigration Lecture on Arizona’s SB1080

November
Nov. 2nd, Dia De Los Muertos Display
Nov. 10th, HLSA meeting chapel break
Nov. 11th, @ 6pm “Internacional De La Eliminacion De La Violenca Contra La Mujer”. Film to be show: In the Time of the Butterflies.

December
1L Civil Procedure Review Session

Jolene Cieniawski,

Editor in Chief

Ok, so chances are that at least 80% of the students AND professors here at VUSL have some sort of online social networking account, whether it be Facebook, MySpace, or something else.  Chances also are that those who have an account check it at least once a day, but probably more like five to ten.  I bet most of us check our online account more in one day than we check our email or our online bank account.  So what is the attraction?  And furthermore, are these sites a good thing or a bad thing for us as future lawyers?

Many of us would agree that online social networking sites are just that – online social networking.  They are a fun way to network with other people without having the hassle of picking up the phone or seeing people in person.  But, are we really networking through these sites?  When I think of networking, I think of reaching out to prospective employers or current or past colleagues who may be able to offer me something or vice versa in this professional world.  That being said, those professional types of people are the ones who most of us deliberately try to keep off our page.  We change our privacy settings to make us undiscoverable or at the very least , uninteresting with just a profile picture and current location.  And God forbid someone in our professional network ask to be our “friend” – we don’t want them seeing our Wall or pictures!  It’s arguable that the “networking” we really gain entails silly banter with friends, showing our friends what we are “Fans” of, and stalking old lovers or schoolmates.  This may be more of distraction that an actual networking tool, as it claims to be.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the online world of “social networking,” but every time I see a “Farmville” or “Mafia Wars” post, I feel more and more as if the networking intent is slowly disappearing. 

Yeah, so I share my life with my friends on my online social networking page and preclude all professional relationships by hiding myself – what does this have to do with the world of lawyering?  Well, it’s a somewhat scary thought to imagine that people are trending toward favoring a more informal, electronic way of keeping in touch, rather than a face-to-face approach.  Sure, a huge part of a lawyer’s job is to maintain contact with a client in the most convenient way possible, and this may not be face-to-face, i.e. via phone or email, but has the door been opened to a slow loss of actual human communication?  If we are used to the nuances of online social communication, will we freeze up when we have to actually see people in person?  If we become too engulfed in a world of convenience and short-cuts, our clients can suffer and we may not even know it unless you have that outspoken client who will explicitly demand your attention and human correspondence.  Other clients will slip through the cracks and will likely never return to you if you don’t know how to be warm and open to them in person.  You may even lose clients by being put into an unwanted situation.  For example, a few years back when I was selling real estate, a client of mine “Friended” me on Facebook.  Needless to say, I was shocked – I remember thinking, who does that?  Why would he possibly want to be my “Friend” online?  Aside from my shock, anxiety set it.  If I “Friend” him, he’ll see my entire personal world.  If I don’t, I may offend him and lose him as a client.  It seemed like a lose-lose situation to me, but I had to choose something.  I decided to ignore the request, and luckily our business together soon ended and he moved on.  I still think about it, though, and hope it never happens again. 

Online social networking has other implications in the legal world aside from client relationships.  In law school, we learn about the continuing evolution of case law and statutes accepting emails and electronic communications as hard copy paper.  Will online social networking sites fit in this realm?  As lawyers, we’ll have to continually check our jurisdictions to make sure we are on top of what’s going on.  Our courts are new to the concept, but Australia and New Zealand are making headway in this area.  Their courts have found in 2008 and 2009 that Facebook is a valid protocol to send notice to defendants and it is also an acceptable avenue to send and receive legal papers/filings.  A site that we see as fun and time-wasting is suddenly now a serious avenue for correspondence in every day legal life.

So, what’s the point of the article?  Be aware of the implications online social networking can have on your professional life.   I know you’re thinking ‘yeah, yeah, yeah,’ but I sure wasn’t thinking that when one of my clients hunted me down.   It may be the fun, hip thing to do, but always expect the unexpected.  You never know who your clients will be and you never know when and how your online social networking world will collide with your professional one.               

Jolene Cieniawski is a 2L and can be reached at forum@valpo.edu.   874 words

The 1L Chronicles: May Edition

By Dan D. Hallberg

Managing Editor

I remember when I was in high school thinking as I entered my sophomore year, “Wow, there is no better feeling then not being a freshman anymore.” Well I was wrong, because I am quite sure that there is no better feeling in the world then not being a 1L anymore.

If I remember correctly from orientation, there were a lot of copies of The Forum lying around and to kill the time many of us read through them several times. Well, I hope some of you incoming 1Ls are reading this column now because this column is for you. In fact this column could even be yours next year. I mean, I can’t write it, so someone has to. So here you go, a little advice for you just cutting your teeth in the law school world from someone who just finished the year.

Words of Wisdom for the Valpo Law School Class of 2013

1.  Don’t hoard books.

This won’t make any sense to you right now, but in a week or so you’ll have your first legal research assignment. First off, I’m sorry. Second off, if you need a book, don’t take it to your desk; just write down the answer or the info you need in a notebook or something in the stacks where you found it. If you don’t, everyone will hate you.

2. Make outlines, don’t collect them.

The whole reason you do outlines is so that you review the material as you write them. There’s nothing wrong with having a few others to compare with, or even well organized one from someone else for use on open book exams. However, you don’t need to start up a collection of them, there is such a thing as too much information.

3. Don’t be late to Civ Pro.

If you have Prof Lind she will kick you out. No joke. Other than that, she is a delightful person.

4. Don’t worry about grade normalization.

I know a lot of you have been getting A’s for the better part of your scholastic career. What you’re going to find out is that that’s not going to be the case here. We have a thing called grade normalization going on here and it kind of works like a bell curve. Other law schools will have a curve or something like that, but a grade system like this is not that uncommon. You won’t ever understand it, it won’t affect your grade too much, and you have have absolutely no control over it, so don’t worry about it.

5. Everyone’s first writing grade sucks, just take a deep breath and deal with it.

You’ll be getting your first writing assignment soon, and you’re going to work very hard on it. You’ll put in tons of effort and try to work in things you learned from writing in undergrad and think that you did a good job adjusting to the new writing system that we use in law school. Then, about a month later when your prof finally grades it, you’ll see that your paper is hemorrhaging pen ink. Don’t be discouraged, it happened to all of us, and we’re still here. Also, don’t forget the honor code, that’s 10 points right there.

So that’s it guys, for those of you leaving good luck getting jobs, and for those of you coming in, heed my words. Trust me, they’ll do you a lot of good.

Dan is a 1L and can be reached at forum@valpo.edu.

Well, another baseball season is upon us. Being a Cubs fan, I tend to get excited about another year of baseball, hanging my hat on previous years where we “almost made it.” This year my playoff hopes may be fleeting, but they’re still alive, as they are for any Cubs fan. Although my loyalty is true and true, I have my eye on a few other teams that may go farther than everyone expects, but let’s start with a preview of the Cubs season.
Two years ago, the Cubs won 97 games – the second most in baseball behind the Angels and tied with the Rays. Then last year, they infected themselves with Milton Bradley, Geovanny Soto had his “sophomore slump,” and injuries really screwed Aramis Ramirez and Alfonso Soriano. This year, the Bradley infection has cleared and Soto has vowed to rebound from his slump excuse. Ramirez has been my guy since 2003, and if he can stay healthy, I think he can team up with Derrek Lee, Ryan Theriot, and Mike Fontenot to make some magic happen. I have nothing to say about Soriano. He has started off the season already with three errors and he was never the “superstar” we thought he was after he joined the team. As far as pitching is concerned, we’ve got Carlos Zambrano for a long time, so hopefully his comfort with this team will keep him in solid pitching mode and Carlos Silva may be revived now that he’s on a this new. The Cubs have their flaws, but they also have the makings of a solid club and could sneak up on teams this season. They have a huge challenge with the Cardinals, but hey, anything can happen.
Another sneak team this season will be (and I hate to say it) the Chicago White Sox. Being a Cubs fan, I am quite pleased that Jim Thome is gone and the chants of “Thome’s Home-eys” are a thing of the past, but the team’s still got a few heavy hitters. Jake Peavy is their main man and Paul Konerko is always a favorite with Alex Rios, Mark Teahen, and Mark Kotsay are all there to back him up. The addition of Juan Pierre is a hit or miss – he sure didn’t do anything spectacular for the Cubs, but then again almost everyone the Cubs get ends up being a superstar somewhere else after they leave.
Going along with this “leave the Cubs become a superstar” trend, the Seattle Mariners may be a team to watch out for with the addition of Cliff Lee. Again, he didn’t do anything notable for the Cubs, but this may be his time to really shine. The Mariners also have Felix Hernandez and the always popular Ichiro Suzuki, but time will tell if these two are enough to carry an entire team through seven months. This uncertainty may be the advantage they need to creep up to the top of the league in the next few months.
The Atlanta Braves are another team I have a feeling will go pretty far, but I say this because of their impressive roster, not necessarily any action I’ve seen come out of Hot-lanta. Chipper Jones, Troy Glaus, and Nate McLouth are easy compliments to Jason Heyward, Yunel Escobar, and Melky Cabrera. If this roster can turn out runs and Heyward can prove that he deserves Rookie of the Year glorification, the Braves may be set. They gotta stay humble though – with a roster of big names, it’s sink or swim.
Well, that rounds out my top four sleeper picks for this 2010 season. My loyalty is and has always been with the Cubbies, and I hate to even mention the White Sox in this article if I’m not trash-talking about them, but I like to think that this could be a possible inflation of their ego, hopefully causing a crash and burn mid-season. I have no qualms about the other teams, they gotta make that pay-pah, too, boo boo. You may or may not see me in next year’s August issue – if these predictions pan out, I’ll likely leave law school to pursue an oh-so-rewarding career in MLB futures.

Jolene Cieniawski is a 2L and can be reached at jolene.cieniawski@valpo.edu.   669 words

By:  John Bayard

Staff Writer

This month I met with Professor Vandercoy and discussed many aspects of his law career and life.

John: So Professor Vandercoy why did you decide to give up your flourishing career as a folk singer and become a law professor?
Professor Vandercoy: I found it was easier to lip sync to a class of law students than to sing real music in front of a live audience. I also heard that you get higher admission prices with law students than concert attendees. It was a natural move since most of songs are about legal ethics anyway.

John: While you were here at Valparaiso University School of Law, you created a new sport involving Law Students. Can you tell our readers more about it?
Professor Vandercoy: While I actually created two sports. The first involves not placing enough seats in the law library and than watching as students struggle to find a place to sit. The second is actually a running bet between the faculty in which I place answers to exams in several of the tort books in the law library and see how long it takes for students to find them. As of this date, no students have even opened those books.

John: Can you describe the time you managed to take down a 500 lb Grizzly Bear using only the rules of evidence?
Professor Vandercoy: What a fun time that was. First I confined the bear with hearsay evidence rules and then smothered him with the new pocket part of Title 16 of the United States Code. However I realized that the statute I was smothering the bear with was a new subsection of 16 U.S.C. §1538 which prohibits smothering of Grizzly Bears with the United States Code. Fortunately enough for myself I was walking my man-eating shark at the time (I was a bio-engineer before becoming a great folk singing legend and had been able to engineer a shark that can breath out of water) and the shark fought off the bear for me. Congress is currently amending the statute to prohibit law professors from bio-engineering man-eating sharks. What’s next, prohibiting law students from bio-engineering man-eating sharks?

John: What do you feel is the best teaching method? Teaching students while scuba-diving or while sky-diving?
Professor Vandercoy: Personally, I prefer scuba-diving. The oxygen rich breathing suits really help the students focus more. Further, they are more incline to answer questions quickly when surrounded by my bio-engineered man-eating sharks.

I like to give my thanks again to Professor Vandercoy for agreeing to have this interview.

John Bayard is a 2L and can be reached at forum@valpo.edu

MMA Monthly Matchups: April

By Dan D. Hallberg

Well, it’s a first for MMA Monthly Matchups: this month, they’re all title fights! That’s right, everyone is coming full force and gold is on the line. Who keeps it and who loses it? Well here we go!

5. Champion Anderson Silva (25-4) v. Damian Maia (12-1), UFC 112, 4/10/10

It’s been nearly a year since pound-for-pound kind Anderson Silva defended his title. Unfortunately for us fans, original and more worthy contender Vitor Belfort had to step out due to injury. That leaves Damian Maia as the winner of the “who gets a title shot” lottery. That doesn’t mean that Maia isn’t a threat, but right now the biggest weakness in his game is his striking and striking defense. Now he’s up against the best striker on the planet. Hard to see this ending in any other way then a decision or TKO for the champ.

4. Champion B.J. Penn (15-5-1) v. Frankie Edgar (11-1), UFC 112, 4/10/10

And the pound-for-pound list makes a second appearance as B.J. Penn takes on up and comer Frankie Edgar. I like Edgar, he’s an impressive kid with good boxing, wrestling, and okay jiu jitsu skills. He’s on the rise and could be Champion some day. Unfortunately April 10th isn’t that day. Edgar on paper is very similar to Kenny Florian, but he does focus more on his boxing. That could help Edgar provided he doesn’t shoot for takedowns. In the end though, it’s B.J. Penn, and he doesn’t lose to people his size. Penn by submission in the championship rounds.

3. Champion Jose Aldo (16-1) v. Urijah Faber (23-3), WEC 48, 4/24/10

WEC is live on pay per view for the first time, and they chose a fantastic card to start with. Time for the biggest star in the WEC to try and reclaim his titled against the fierce Jose Aldo. Faber’s style is weird to say the least and hard to explain. But it doesn’t really matter. The only thing that matters is that Jose Aldo is the baddest man in the WEC. He is 145 pounds of butt-kicking wonder. If he doesn’t destroy Urijah Faber I will be shocked. Knockout, early.

2. Champion Jake Shields (24-4) v. Dan Henderson (25-7), Strikeforce: Nashville, 4/17/10

Jake Shields is a good champion and a great young fighter. A prospect that will eventually get to the UFC and make a real challenge for the belt. The problem is that he’s a welterweight pretending to be a middleweight because Strikeforce’s competition is lowsy. That was until they landed number two middleweight Dan Henderson. Like Shields, Henderson has crossed into different weight classes, except he went up from middleweight rather then down. He even held his own against Big Nogueria. Again, it would be a huge shock if Shields wins this and the only way he could would be if he grinded out a decision, which he won’t do because Henderson is such a great wrestler. This fight will probably be on the feet because of the cancelled wrestling, and Henderson’s huge right will be the deciding factor.

1. Champion Benson Henderson (11-1) v. Donald Cerrone (14-2), WEC 48, 4/24/10

It’s the rematch of last years Fight of the Year, and this time it’s for the real title. This fight could very well go just like the last one, but I don’t think it will. Cerrone has learned that his slow starts have been costing him his decisions, so look for him to come out swinging. This could play into Henderson’s favor. He’s got the reach and moves to play a patient game which will frustrate Cerrone. Henderson has new confidence and has been working hard and even helped B.J. Penn train for Diego Sanchez. Cerrone put on an impressive show in his last fight, but I have to keep with Henderson. The man with the smallest waist in MMA retains his title in a five round thriller.

Dan is a 1L and can be reached at forum@valpo.edu.