Category: Law News

• UA Law Student, Veteran Receives Tillman Scholarship

  Dan Walters, a graduate student pursuing JD/MBA degrees at The University of Alabama, is one of 60 students nationwide selected as a 2016 Tillman Scholar. Walters (’18) joined the U.S. Army when he was 18. While serving on active duty, his assignments included serving as an infantry platoon leader and a company commander to a unit of more than…

• Law School Announces The Business of Being a Lawyer Program

  The University of Alabama School of Law is pleased to announce the Business of Being a Lawyer program. The online video series addresses four topics: (1) economic trends in the legal profession and steps to adapt to the changes, (2) personal financial planning issues relevant to the lives of lawyers, (3) the science of emotional…

• Professor Vars: What Prince’s Death Teaches Us About Wills and Estates

  When Prince died without a will, lawyers and laypeople were stunned, wrote Professor Fredrick Vars in an op-ed for Al.com. “Did Prince really have no will? We cannot be sure, but concealing the existence of a will in Minnesota is harder than in most other states. These other states allow “holographic” wills.  A holographic will…

• Law School Ranks 14th Among Law Schools for Sending 2015 Graduates into Federal Clerkships

  The University of Alabama School of Law is ranked 14th in the nation for sending the highest percentage of 2015 graduates into federal clerkships, according to The National Law Journal. “Judicial clerkships are among the most coveted law jobs for many good reasons. To name just one, they give clerks a unique opportunity to learn about the…

• Law School and ABA Journal Announce Finalists for 2016 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction

       The University of Alabama School of Law and the ABA Journal are pleased to announce the finalists for the 2016 Harper Lee Prize for Legal Fiction. The three books chosen to compete for the prize are: “Allegiance” by Kermit Roosevelt, “Pleasantville” by Attica Locke and “Tom & Lucky and George & Cokey Flo” by…

• Professor Carroll Comments on Jury Selection in Hubbard Trial

  Jury selection in the ethics trial of Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard is scheduled to begin May 16, and Professor Jenny Carroll told AL.com she expects lawyers on both sides to place heavy emphasis on the jury selection process. Carroll, a public defender for 12 years in Washington, D.C., and in Seattle, said prosecutors have to…

• Professor Hamill Weighs in on Complaint Filed Against Chief Justice Moore

  Chief Justice Roy Moore has been suspended from duty and faces a trial before the Alabama Court of Judiciary after a complaint was filed last week. The complaint claims Moore “flagrantly disregarded and abused his authority” when he ordered the state’s probate judges to refuse applications for marriage licenses by same-sex couples. Moore opposes gay marriage…

• Law School Confers 145 Degrees; Judge Thompson Delivers Commencement Address

  Judge Myron H. Thompson reminded University of Alabama School of Law graduates they are following in the footsteps of lawyers who have transformed law in the state, the nation and around the world. “It cannot be overstated that you law graduates have completed not only one of the finest, top-tiered law schools in the country,…

• Professor Andreen Says Climate Change Has Increased the Need for Reforming the Approach to Nonpoint Source Pollution and Environmental Flows

  Professor William Andreen has published an article that explores the threats posed by climate change to our nation’s water resources.  The article, “No Virtue Like Necessity: Dealing with Nonpoint Source Pollution and Environmental Flows in the Face of Climate Change, 34 Virginia Environmental Law Journal 255-296 (2016), is available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=2743981. The Clean Water Act…

• Professor Carroll Comments on Bart Johnson Case

  The U.S. Supreme Court granted review, vacated the judgment and sent the case of Alabama Death Row inmate Bart Johnson back to the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals, after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in January that Florida’s sentencing program that allows judicial override in death penalty cases was unconstitutional. Alabama has a similar sentencing program….