Alumnus creates fund to sustain KU Law faculty excellence

James Riedy, L'77

Photo courtesy of McDermott Will & Emery law firm

James Riedy practices law in Washington, D.C. But as a Kansas native and 1977 graduate of KU Law, he’s committed to ensuring students from his home state have access to an outstanding legal education and local employment opportunities.

To that end, he created the James A. Riedy Fellowship with a $100,000 pledge to KU Endowment. The teaching fellowship will be awarded to KU Law faculty for three-year terms to cover salary support, travel and other costs.

“It is important that residents of Kansas are confident that they may remain in Kansas and obtain an excellent legal education,” said Riedy, L’77. “Financial support for KU Law faculty enables the school to hire and retain top-notch attorneys to teach, and that is one element of sending confidence to Kansas residents who want to enter the legal profession.”

Of course, top-notch faculty benefit all students. KU Law fills each year’s entering class with a mix of Kansans and nonresidents, and the school’s graduates live and work in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, three U.S. territories and 24 foreign countries. Riedy’s goal is to ensure that graduates leave Green Hall with a legal education that opens doors in the markets of their choice.

He is a partner at McDermott Will & Emery LLP in Washington, D.C., where he focuses his practice on international tax matters. Prior to entering private practice, Riedy was a lawyer in the Appellate Section of the Tax Division at the Department of Justice in Washington D.C.

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