Everyone benefits from pro bono service. The intention is to help those in need, those without the means to help themselves. But those groups and individuals are not the only ones who benefit – you do too. Pro bono work is a symbiotic experience. The more law students and lawyers who participate in pro bono service, the more people who can be helped. There is good reason why pro bono work is a staple in the legal community.
Many people need pro bono work for daily life. There are
countless situations in ordinary lives that we may take for granted because we
have something to fall back on – experience, family, friends, resources. We can
share that frame of reference. We can expand it. When helping someone, we ensure
that they become that reference for another. Pro bono service is not simply
about one person in one situation. The work spreads and affects more people
than we may ever know or anticipate. That is the true value in the work –
making a difference beyond what is presented. We see how the work matters in
those day-to-day situations, the ones where we cannot possibly know who will be
affected and to what degree. But we know that we are doing what we can do to better
people’s lives.
Pro bono is encouraged and rewarded at KU. The best
opportunities may not be paid nor provide class credit. The experience is far
more valuable than any sort of tangible gain. I spent my 2L summer and 3L fall
in the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office in Kansas City. I saw people at the
worst times in their lives, but I also saw the humanity in the law. I saw every
day how everyone helped address exceptionally trying situations and emotions.
It was invaluable for me to learn how I can best serve the community and
confront life-changing issues.
My experience is not the only example of pro bono
service. There are countless ways to make a difference. Legal training helps
you see more sides of an issue, and thus more ways to help. We are in a
position to do more for those around us. The work may seem small or trivial to
us, but the person or group almost certainly does not see the issue that way. The
breadth of the law means that there are pro bono opportunities in each area of
law. Every one of us can do something.
If a student is unsure what to do, KU provides numerous pro bono opportunities. These range from the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program to the Expungement Clinic. Even minimal legal experience can provide insight for how to help others. You learn about diversity, culture, vulnerability, resources, methods and so much more. But you should never underestimate how much it means to someone else that you are available and willing to share your knowledge. Pro bono service allows all of us to become strong advocates and strong members of our communities. Even more importantly, it allows the community to trust lawyers and feel comfort in knowing that they are not alone.
KU Law faculty research addresses environmental concerns
Sustainability is a global issue. As sustainability concerns and environmental threats occupy an ever-growing role in international affairs, KU Law faculty have placed an emphasis on scholarship, policy work and course offerings in this area.
“We see sustainability as a core focus of our international and comparative law programs,” said Virginia Harper Ho, associate dean for international and comparative law. “These issues cross not only geographic boundaries but also legal disciplines from environmental law and natural resources, to intellectual property, jurisdiction and finance, to immigration and national security.”
More than one-third of the law school’s faculty are engaged in teaching or research on international and comparative law issues. Of that group, a growing number are working on projects related to sustainability issues and impacts.
Below are highlights of recent faculty scholarship in the broad field of global sustainability.
Virginia Harper Ho: Green finance
Companies and investors are increasingly concerned about the financial impacts of climate risk and other environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns.
Professor Virginia Harper Ho’s research offers new evidence and policy solutions to help corporate boards, investors and regulators confront those challenges. Her work focuses on corporate governance, sustainability and finance from a comparative perspective, with recent projects covering green finance and shareholder activism around ESG issues and ESG disclosure reform for publicly traded companies.
“Over 60 governments around the world, and international organizations from the United Nations to the G20’s Financial Stability Board, are also developing standards that can help companies be more transparent about climate risk and help financial markets do better about taking those risks into account,” Harper Ho said.
Several of Harper Ho’s recent articles focus on the financial incentives for large investors to shape how companies address climate impacts and environmental risks. In 2017, she authored a brief report on investor priorities for The Conference Board, a global business think tank. Several of her recent articles have received research awards.
“My latest work presents empirical evidence of where the views of investors and business groups align – or not – on how the Securities and Exchange Commission should revise public company reporting rules to address ESG risks,” Harper Ho said.
Harper Ho is also an expert on contemporary Chinese legal reform. Her most recent projects shed light on how China is implementing its national policy framework for sustainable finance. Harper Ho’s article in the Cornell International Law Journal is one of the first to look at Chinese banks’ efforts to introduce green lending practices. In 2018, she was a visiting research fellow at the Central University of Finance & Economics’ International Institute of Green Finance in Beijing. While there, she joined local scholars at the Institute in conducting field research on Chinese policy proposals to align financial systems with sustainable development goals.
Harper Ho has presented her work at the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investment annual academic conference and at leading universities in the U.S. and abroad.
John Head: International law and environmental protection
Climate change poses challenges to global production. Meeting those challenges will require legal and institutional reform on a global scale.
That’s where John Head’s research comes in. Head is three books in on a four-book series about the intersection of international law, agricultural reform and environmental protection. In 2016, he received a Fulbright fellowship – the third in his career – from the U.S. Department of State, to further his scholarship in the area.
Head’s research aims to examine and contribute to efforts at reforming global agriculture in ways that will help address crises in the areas of climate change, ecological degradation and food insecurity. Reflecting his international law specialization, his work gives special emphasis to concepts of sovereignty, global governance and the public trust doctrine.
“My overall aim is to design new legal and institutional frameworks to facilitate a transformation of agriculture to a sustainable system,” Head said.
Head presented on the topic at the Institute for Comparative Federalism in Bolzano, Italy, during a fall 2018 research semester.
Uma Outka: Energy law and environmental law
Professor Uma Outka’s research focuses on the intersection between energy systems and the environment.
“The transition to low-carbon energy sources is underway around the globe as nations strive to meet the goals of the United Nations Convention on Climate Change,” Outka said. “My work engages this transition from multiple angles, considering legal pathways and barriers to decarbonization.”
In recent work, Outka has studied the evolving role of the consumer on the electric grid. The work considers large corporate consumers’ demands for clean power on the one hand and the place of low-income households in energy law on the other, she said.
Outka traveled to India in May 2018 to explore climate change solutions rooted in renewable energy law and policy with Indian students and faculty. She co-taught a course at the Rajiv Gandhi School of Intellectual Property Law in Kharagpur, India. She taught the course with Professor Uday Shankar.
“Collaborating on the course deepened our understanding of the context for scaling up renewable energy in the U.S. and India,” Outka said. “Climate change is a global issue, and every country has to approach climate mitigation in ways that work for its unique circumstances.”
The course was funded by the Global Initiative for Academic Networks, an effort by the Indian government to foster international connections through its higher education system. Shankar invited Outka to provide international context for India’s renewable energy law policies and to offer comparative legal perspectives.
“This is a really interesting time for energy law. Virtually every country in the world shares a goal to decarbonize the electricity system and shift to low-carbon sources,” Outka said.
The first three semesters of my law school career often focused on answering questions: making sure I considered as many arguments in favor of my position as possible, considering the counterarguments, and then articulating why my arguments were better supported by the law.
Then, 18 months into my time at KU Law, I joined the first cohort of students in the Mediation Clinic. As a clinic student with an aspiration to litigate, I had a lot of breakthroughs over the course of the semester about how I can best represent my future clients when we get to mediation (where, undoubtedly, we will spend more time than a courtroom). But my first breakthrough was this: I’d spent so much time in law school answering questions, that I hadn’t thought about how to ask them.
The
Mediation Clinic trains law students to serve as mediators, and good questions
are a crucial tool for any mediator. Throughout my time in the Mediation Clinic,
I learned how to come into a conflict I had very little background on and help
the parties reach a meaningful solution. To do so, I would ask the parties
alternating questions – starting broad and open-ended, then moving toward
specific – so I could ascertain my own sense of the case. This was so
challenging to me, but valuable. In an adversary environment, we teach
ourselves to be zealous advocates for one client. This means we often don’t
think enough about the merits of the other side’s argument. As a mediator who
is ethically bound to be neutral, I couldn’t simply treat one side’s position
as a counterargument to be torn down. I had to test my patience and critical
thinking to explore the problem until I had a comprehensive sense of how both
sides viewed their positions and how they envisioned a positive outcome.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to help them!
And while asking great questions was a critical skill for serving as a mediator, I know it will also serve me well in my attorney role. Professor Shawn Watts, director of the Mediation Clinic, likes to tell us that a lawyer, “can make or break a mediation.” Having learned about the mediation process, and seen in dozens of situations what it takes to make a deal, I will be confident going into a mediation that I can zealously protect my client without being obstructive to the resolution process. To do this, it will be critically important to know the true strengths and weaknesses of my client’s case – both legally and factually. My first step toward doing so will be in-depth interviews with my client designed to get as comprehensive a picture of a case I attempt to get as a mediator. In the long run, I will protect better by knowing all sides of the story, rather than just the best version of her side of the story.
First Generation Professionals seeks to promote a positive atmosphere at the University of Kansas School of Law for law students who are first generation college students or first-generation law students. Our objectives are to build community among aspiring first generation legal professionals, promote strong ties between the organization, other student organizations, law faculty, students and staff and the legal community at-large through outreach and networking events, and to provide members with professional etiquette and to encourage members embrace their unique background.
Congratulations on beginning or continuing your journey towards becoming a lawyer! We hope this list and our presence in Green Hall can help alleviate some of the stresses associated with law school. Good luck with the semester and Rock Chalk!
Don’t rent your Bluebook! Go ahead and buy it. You’ll use it throughout your time in law school.
Most events during the lunch hour offer free lunch.
Come in with an open mind.
Get involved with organizations you’re passionate about.
Try to meet someone with the same laptop charger as you because you might forget yours at home.
Beware of the Starbucks vending machine.
Make sure to buy your parking pass as soon as you are able to!
Don’t be afraid to turn people down.
It’s helpful to review outlines from older students, but you learn more when you make your own outline.
Some people like studying for finals in groups. Some people do better on their own. Find what works for you.
You don’t need to dress up every day.
Try to get a hold of an outline early in the semester to review.
Reading cases DOES get easier.
You don’t need to buy supplemental books, free access online.
Do your best to not procrastinate.
DO take breaks and find a balance for yourself.
Take advantage of extracurriculars early.
Do traffic court early on. You tend to have more time first semester.
Be on time to classes. Professors notice when you are consistently late.
Don’t get discouraged.
If you want to save money on books, try buying used books from upperclassmen or online.
Try to review exams with your professors after first semester.
When the weather is nice outside, try to find a table on campus and do some homework. (This gets you away from Green Hall for a while and you still get to enjoy our beautiful campus!)
Participate in class! Professors will notice and appreciate when you do.
Pantyhose are your friend (for on-campus interviews or when you have to dress business professional).
Invest in a steamer!!
Get a lint roller.
Put big events/final exam times in your planner.
As you approach finals, make a study schedule and stick to it.
Check your email!
Keep an extra sweater at the school (it gets chilly sometimes).
Layers are the way to go. Some rooms are hot, and others will be freezing.
Pay attention to the orientation events during the school year because it will give you a lot of useful information for interviews (and there is food).
Keep track of deadlines.
Get a head start on revising your resume over winter break.
Since its launch in 2008, the KU Law Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP) has provided free legal assistance to thousands of low-income patients at area hospitals while offering hands-on training to law students.
Lou Mulligan, Earl B. Shurtz Research Professor and director
of the MLP program, said the MLP benefits its host sites, its patient-clients
and its student interns.
“Our patient-clients lives have improved, and our students
receive a high-caliber and unique live-client educational experience,” Mulligan
said.
Staffed by licensed attorneys and KU law students, the MLP provides assistance to patients referred by medical partners in Kansas City at the University of Kansas Medical Center, University of Kansas Hospital, University of Kansas Cancer Center, the JayDoc Free Clinic, and in Lawrence at LMH Health. The program is part of a national movement of hospitals integrating legal services into patient care.
A supervising attorney and participating students meet with referred patients to assist with a broad range of civil legal needs. The MLP assists with dozens of different case types, including: advanced care planning, federal and state benefits denials, guardianships, protection from abuse orders, expungements, immigration matters, and housing issues, among others.
Growth in referrals
The program has seen rapid growth in patient referrals since
it started in January 2008 as the first MLP in Kansas. During the 2018-19
fiscal year, the KU Medical Center (KUMC) clinic received 940 referrals, a 10%
increase from the previous year.
In the past three years, the KUMC-based MLP has received more than 2,500 referrals. The program expects to top 1,000 referrals for the first time in the coming year, said Lindsey Collins, L’14, MLP managing attorney for the KUMC location.
“The MLP has established itself as an enduring partnership within the health system and, every day in our work, the need for pro bono legal services continues to reveal itself,” Collins said. “More and more, people need access to affordable, quality legal services to improve their health and wellness outcomes. The MLP helps meet that need.”
In 2016, the project expanded to LMH Health in Lawrence.
From its launch in August 2016 through July 2019, the LMH program received
nearly 800 referrals for over 1,000 different legal needs, with referrals
increasing each year.
In 2018, the MLP at LMH received 330 referrals for patients with 400 different legal needs, an increase of 75% from the previous year. This year, the MLP expects the referral count to reach 450.
MLP student intern experience
Each KU Law intern commits upward of 200 hours for each
semester they’re enrolled in the MLP field placement. Third-year law student
Blair Bohm describes her MLP field placement as “one of the most meaningful
experiences of law school.” During her internship, Bohm drafted documents, strengthened
her research and writing skills, and directly interacted with patients.
“Many of the clients at the MLP are experiencing significant
hardships,” Bohm said. “During these desperate situations, the thought of
having to seek help or hire an attorney could bring someone a substantial
amount of added stress. Through the MLP, we have the opportunity to step in,
help meet those clients’ needs and offer the services at no cost.”
The MLP is supported with funds from private donors, as well as gifts from LMH Health and the University of Kansas Health System. Those donations fund three staff attorney positions, plus supplies and professional development costs. They also cover needs such as phone interpretation services to assist clients who speak English as a second language.
To make a gift online, include “Medical-Legal Partnership Clinic” in the “other purpose” field.
Dr. Andrew W. Torrance is leading the intellectual property department at the Eli and Edythe Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, which is often referred to as the Broad Institute. Torrance is on temporary leave from his position as the Paul E. Wilson Distinguished Professor of Law at the University of Kansas School of Law.
The Broad Institute is a biomedical
and genomic research center located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Biological
scientists at the Broad Institute aim to improve human health through the study
and advancement of the human genetic code and the genetic basis of disease.
“The Broad Institute is perhaps the
leading scientific institution in the world. It is home to some of the most
influential biologists in the world,” Torrance said. “As Senior Director of
Intellectual Property, I lead a team of attorneys and other legal professionals
who protect technologies with patents, or where appropriate, open source them,
so their benefits are widely disseminated around the world.”
Torrance began this role on Aug. 26,
2019, and is on leave from KU Law to pursue this challenging and exciting
position.
When the Broad Institute reached out
to Torrance to offer him the position, he was eager to accept.
“It really was the professional
opportunity of a lifetime for me,” he said. “I am extremely grateful to Dean Stephen
Mazza, Chancellor Douglas Girod, Vice Provost for Faculty Development J.
Christopher Brown, and others in the KU administration for their generous
support of me in this new adventure.”
In his new role, Torrance looks
forward to immersing himself in guiding the Broad Institute in making sound
intellectual property decisions that further the Institute’s mission to benefit
the public good through improved understanding of biology and enhanced
treatment of disease.
“This experience is thoroughly disrupting
my entire understanding of intellectual property. It is certain to transform the way that I
think about my field,” Torrance said. “This will make me a better source of
information and experience for everyone – including students – in the future.”
As the head of intellectual property,
Torrance will help guide legal, bioethical, and business decisions relating to the
Broad Institute’s impressive portfolio of technologies, including gene editing.
“One of the interesting aspects of the
job will be to combine business, ethics, scientific strategy, policy, and legal
considerations of some of the technologies that will quite literally change
humanity in the future, and to do so in a responsible manner,” Torrance said.
At the Broad Institute, Torrance hopes
to develop a unique perspective on intellectual property law that he can pass
on everyone, including KU students, in the future.
Torrance joined the KU Law faculty as
an associate professor in 2005 and was promoted
to tenured professor in 2011. He teaches and conducts research in patent
law; intellectual property law; food and drug law; and biodiversity law.
He has given more than 100 scholarly
presentations at numerous universities, research organizations, governments and
intergovernmental agencies. He has also published more than 25 scholarly works.
His scholarship has appeared in such journals as the Yale Journal of Law and Technology, Stanford Technology Law Review, Columbia
Science and Technology Law Review and Berkeley
Technology Law Journal.
Torrance has a B.S. from Queen’s
University in Ontario, Canada
and an A.M., J.D. and Ph.D. from Harvard University.
Before coming to KU Law, Torrance taught at Harvard University, the University of Washington School of Law, the University of Toronto Faculty of Law and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Sloan School of Management. He has also served as Fellow in Law, Innovation, and Growth at Northwestern University School of Law and as a Manza Scholar at the DePaul University College of Law. In 2008, Torrance served as a policy advisor to then-presidential candidate Barack Obama on his Technology, Media and Telecommunications Committee.