The holiday season is tradition­ally a time to be generous in spirit, time, and practice, and as law students with finals quickly ap­proaching, it can be easy to forget about the problems of others within the local community. So when organizations like the Multicultural Law Student Associa­tion (MLSA) or Phi Delta Phi do events like the Thanksgiving Baskets, it helps to portray our school in a positive light, which reflects positively on us all.

This year MLSA continued its tra­dition of providing Thanksgiving bas­kets for underprivileged families in the Valparaiso area. This is MLSA’s largest event of the year, and many of its mem­bers feel that it’s the most meaningful.

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First-year David Johnson spent a few minutes with Professor Ching: Read the rest of this entry »

Judge Thomas B. Griffith of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit spoke at Valparaiso University School of Law on October 13 to a crowd of both law students and professors. Griffith presented his speech, “Was Bork Right: Can Federal Judges be Neutral?”, re­ferring to Robert Bork, who was best known as the failed 1987 conserva­tive Supreme Court nominee, a distin­guished scholar of anti-trust law and a former D.C. Circuit Court judge.

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Andrea McArdle spoke at Valparaiso University School of Law on October 7 as part of the Scholars and Advocates in Resi­dence Program lecture series, “Shaping the Public Dialogue.” McArdle present­ed “Forming a Professional Identity in Law through Writing: A Pervasive Ap­proach.”

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On the heels of his second debate with Senator John McCain, Senator Barack Obama held a “Change We Need” rally at the Indi­ana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis on Wednesday, October 8th. This cool, rainy day marked the Senator’s sixth visit to the state since the end of the primary season. According to Robert L. Miller II of the Division of Fire & Building Safety, an estimated 21,000 supporters attended the rally. Obama spoke of the financial and housing cri­sis, the previous night’s debate, and the soaring price of home heating costs.

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On Thursday, October 9th, Pro­fessor Derrick Carter organized a networking trip to Indianapo­lis for many of his students to meet with various government entities and alumni. The trip was initially open to Professor Carter’s Criminal Procedure class, but several past students embraced the op­portunity as well. Throughout the day, the class met with several Valpo Law alumni to discuss their jobs and their experiences in securing those posi­tions.

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In visiting with over 20,000 Hoo­siers on Friday, October 17, GOP Vice Presidential Nominee Sarah Palin encouraged an energized crowd to keep Indiana a red state in the 2008 presidential election.

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The work varied greatly from pulling weeds to painting, from cleaning toys to socializing with abandoned dogs. All work was done by volunteers from the Valparaiso University School of Law for the Valparaiso University Day of Caring that took place on September 20, 2008. The event was well represented with volunteers from each of the three classes. Third-year Jennifer Sheetz, President of the Valparaiso Law Democrats, did an informal count and estimated there were at least 60 Valpo Law volunteers. Sheetz, who helped organize the event in conjunction with the Porter County United Way, was happy with the turn out, believing it was larger than the previous year.

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The seventeenth annual 1L dinner was held at Avalon Manner in Merrillville, Indiana on September 12, 2008. The honoree at this year’s event was Richard G. Hatcher, former Mayor of Gary, Indiana. Among the other speakers were Dean Jay Conison, Professor Derrick Carter, Mark Heckler, the new president of Valparaiso University, and Alger Boswell, a recent Valpo Law graduate.

winner of the first annual Hilbert Bradley Scholarship.

support system people can find in family. Hatcher credited many of his accomplishments to his law degree from Valpo Law and pressed students to take advantage of all that is offered by their legal education.

was the first African-American mayor of a major U.S. city. After being elected in 1967, he served as mayor of Gary for 20 years. Following his five terms, Hatcher was involved in numerous political organizations, served as Vice Chairman of Jesse Jackson’s presidential campaign, opened his own consulting firm and started teaching at colleges including Valpo.

gave a reflective speech at the dinner. He had many positive experiences to share, and explained how it is difficult to fit three years of school into a short speech. Boswell instead listed a few negative things regarding the law school work load in law, but made sure to share helpful tips with the new students as well. “Study for Carter’s mid-term,” Boswell said. “I know you don’t think much of it now, but that test can save your life. I repeat, study for Carter’s mid-term.”

Hilbert Bradley Scholarship followed Boswell’s speech. Hugo Gamez, President of HLSA, and Bridgitt Anderson, President of BLSA, announced the winner together. First year law student, Mecca Anderson, was chosen from a group of students who submitted essays about race and politics. Anderson’s essay, “The Race: Color and the Run for the White House,” discussed race and the election in addition to the three roles that race plays in politics. The scholarship is named after alumnus, Hilbert Bradley, who was the first African-American student to graduate from Valpo Law. Bradley has been previously an honored guest at the 1L dinners on two separate occasions. The annual dinner began in 1992

as a small affair to welcome first-year BLSA students. Both Hatcher and Carter were instrumental in organizing the event. HLSA joined as a partner in 1998. Over the past seventeen years it has evolved to include all 1L students, school faculty, lawyers and judges in the community.

Since the 1970’s, California has struggled in the battle to grant marriage rights to same-sex couples. In 2005, California’s legislature approved a same-sex marriage bill. This catapulted the controversy surrounding granting basic rights to people who identify as Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered (GLBT) into the mainstream. The Governor of California vetoed the Bill, and left the decision up to the courts. In 2006, several same-sex couples petitioned the California Supreme Court to review their case. In April 2006, the California Supreme Court decided to consolidate and hear all same-sex marriage cases before the court. (In Re Marriage).

Perez v. Sharp, the California Supreme Court held that the state’s interracial marriage ban was unconstitutional. The Court found that equal respect and dignity of marriage is a basic civil right.

Furthermore, the Court held that it was unconstitutional to prevent same-sex couples from getting married because GLBT individuals are a protected class, and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation should be subject to strict scrutiny under the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment.

In Re Marriage opinion finally takes into account that all men are created equal and equality is the essence of freedom. In the midst of this historic decision, the faculty at Valparaiso University School of Law stood behind VU’s GLBT student organization and supported their efforts to attend the 20th Annual Lavender Law Conference in San Francisco, California held from September 4-6.

The Lavender Law Conference takes place annually, and welcomes all interested legal professionals and law students. This year, the Valparaiso LAMBDA Student Organization was

able to send six students to the Conference in early September. Dean Conison and the faculty were very supportive of the organization’s efforts to network with other GLBT students and professionals. During the conference Valpo Law students were greeted by members of the National Gay Lesbian Law Association, and were introduced to one of California’s best Gay hot-spots, the Castro. The first day of the conference consisted of a career fair, where students had the opportunity to meet and greet with 167 law firms in their efforts to secure summer associate positions for 2009. The second and third days were dedicated to conducting workshops concerning the current legal battles facing the GLBT community. Valpo Law students attended Continuing Legal Education workshops led by many of the nation’s top legal scholars. Topics included marriage and dissolution, the Military’s “don’t-ask-don’t-tell” policy, how to come out on your resume, and ways to have a presence at your law school. The six students who attended the Conference were able to maximize the benefits of this conference by attending all daily workshops, and network with a large number of law firms. More importantly, students at Valpo Law School who identify as GLBT and their allies were able to celebrate the community’s success in the ongoing fight for equality achieved through the California Supreme Court’s decision to legalize same-sex marriage.