Sign Up to Mentor a 1L!
The Law School’s Comprehensive Advising Program (CAP) ensures that our incoming students feel connected and supported throughout their time in law school. Through CAP, our 1L students are assigned four mentors — a faculty advisor, a student mentor, an alumni mentor, and a Career Services counselor — each playing a pivotal role in helping our students succeed in the classroom and beyond.
If you are interested in participating this fall as an alumni mentor and have not already signed up, please register here. Ideally, you and your mentee will establish a relationship that will last throughout the student’s time in law school and beyond. We will use the responses from alumni mentors and student mentees to match preferred practice areas and locations, along with other factors, to ensure that the relationship is valuable for both parties.
Contact Amber Brackett at abrackett@law.ua.edu for more information.
Join us to celebrate Irving Silver (‘65)!
Dean Bill Brewbaker and the Alabama Law Alumni Society invite you to the alumni awards reception on July 14 at the U.S. District Courthouse for the Southern District of Alabama in Mobile to honor Irving Silver (‘65) as he is inducted into the Alabama Lawyer Hall of Honor. Click here for more details and to RSVP!
Later that week, our final Hall of Honor inductee, Bob McCurley (‘66), will be recognized during the Alabama Law reception at the Alabama State Bar annual meeting. If you would like to attend the reception but are unable to RSVP through the Bar, please email Cindy Rice to RSVP.
Congratulations, Class of 2026!
On Sunday, May 3, the Law School awarded 129 Juris Doctor degrees, with an additional two students receiving their Master of Business Administration, during the Class of 2026 commencement ceremony at Coleman Coliseum.
Tom Lichtel performed the National Anthem, outgoing SBA President Madeline Martin offered a reflection for the class, and Sav Miles delivered the valedictory address. Gail Johnson, longtime friend of the Law School and mentor to Alabama Law students, delivered the commencement address, and UA President Peter Mohler and UA System Trustee Karen Brooks also joined in the celebration. Click here to view photos and read more from the ceremony.
Gifts
Recognition of gifts of $5,000+ over the past month
Mr. and Mrs. Matthew C. McDonald (‘85) contributed $50,000 to support a professorship in Civil Rights Law.
Helene W. Hibbard (‘81), with the Community Foundation of West Alabama, contributed $10,000 in honor of Sue Thompson (’72).
Theodore (’84) and Gail Mills (’85) contributed $5,000 to the Path Makers Legacy Plaza.
The following alumni and friends (not mentioned above) either made or renewed an annual giving contribution to the Alabama Law Alumni Society this month. Visit www.give.ua.edu to make or renew your contribution.
Betty J. Burroughs
Johnathan L. Butler (‘00)
Timothy O. Coyle (‘92)
Laura L. Crum (‘82)
Hon. Darryl G. Geary (‘90)
Christopher R. Kelley (‘00)
Jon N. Loupe (‘05)
Jennifer W. Pyle
James H. Richardson (‘78)
Cynthia Ross-Zenick
Caroline J. Strawbridge (‘97)
Rhojonda Thomas (‘14)
Jason C. Wear
Lillian R. Weeks
Nicolas J. Wilson (‘15)
Class Notes
Keep us in the loop! Please send any updates to media@law.ua.edu.
Vernon Barnett (‘97) retired as Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Revenue after nine years of service.
Robert V. Baxley (‘16) joined Baker Donelson’s commercial litigation practice group as a shareholder in Birmingham.
Gregory S. Cusimano (‘68) published his new book, Seeds for Success: Proven Principles of Persuasion, through the American Association for Justice Press.
Jill Dutmers (‘18) joined Amazon Web Services as corporate counsel in Arlington, Virginial.
Scott S. Frederick (‘13) joined Bradley’s real estate practice group as a partner in Birmingham.
Betty E. Holt (’25) joined Dominick Feld Hyde’s trust and estates practice as an associate in Birmingham.
Brenna Johnson (‘23) joined Bass Berry & Sims’ corporate and securities group as an associate in Birmingham.
Hon. Alisha Ruffin May (‘00) was re-elected as Secretary of the Judicial Council of the National Bar Association.
Mary Martin Mitchell (‘10) was appointed Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Revenue by Governor Kay Ivey.
Jennifer S. Morgan (‘08) and her Little, Jaykuke, were selected as the 2026 Big and Little of the Year by the Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Central Gulf Coast, for which Jennifer also serves as a board member.
Stephen A. Opler (‘85) and Dr. Kimberly Vines (‘14) were named to the 2026 Legal 500 Atlanta Elite list.
Robert E. Pendley (’18) was elected a shareholder at Baker Donelson in Birmingham.
Philip D. Price (‘07) was named Best Civil Attorney, Best Criminal Attorney, Best Family/Divorce Attorney, Best Individual Attorney, and Best Overall Attorney in the 2026 Best of Cherokee County, Georgia, contest. His law firm, Price Law Group, was also voted Best Overall Law Firm.
Paul Rand (’13) joined the ACLU of Alabama as Senior Counsel.
Hannah M. Richard (’10) was named a partner at Clifford Chance in New York.
Lauren Rouse (’25) joined McDowell Knight Roedder & Sledge as an associate in Mobile.
Matt Taylor (‘07) joined Bennet Thrasher’s Mergers and Acquisitions practice as a new tax transaction advisory partner in Atlanta.
The following alumni were named to the 2026 Legal 500 Southeast Elite list:
Frank M. Caprio (‘90)
Jake M. Gipson (‘14)
Stephen H. Hall (‘98)
Jack W. Selden (‘81)
Faculty Notes
Professor Emeritus Bill Andreen was featured as the expert on an episode of Alabama Public Radio’s Simplified program to discuss environmental law and enforcement. Professor Andreen also published a revised chapter on Alabama Water Law in Volume 4 of the LexisNexis Waters and Water Rights treatise (3d ed. 2026, Kelley and Richardson eds.).
Professor Grant Christensen published his essay, The Return to Autochthonous Law, in the University of Chicago Law Review.
Professor Russell Gold presented on a panel regarding conviction integrity units in prosecutor offices at the 20th Annual Actual Innocence Conference hosted by the Center for American and International Law.
Assistant Dean Anita Kay Head was a panelist for Stacking the Deck in our Students’ Favor: Strategies to Bolster Belonging and Community During the Bar Preparation Process at the Association of Academic Support Educators annual conference with Lynn Hogewood, Jean Mangan, Margaret Samadi, and Alabama Law’s Assistant Director of Academic Support Kiana Wilson.
Vice Dean Joel Nichols was interviewed for an article about the religious history of Georgia for Religion Unplugged as part of their America 250 series.
Professor Ken Rosen published Judge-Led Bankruptcy Mediation Can be the Best Option in Law360.
Professor Tobie Smith’s article, Recidivism Jury Trials, will be published in the June issue of The Champion, the monthly publication of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers for its members.
Professor Sean Tu published Skinny Labels at the Supreme Court—Generic Competition, Patent Inducement, and Affordable Medicines in JAMA (with Frazer A. Tessema and Aaron S. Kesselheim) and Delisting of Pharmaceutical Patents Challenged by the Federal Trade Commission in JAMA Internal Medicine (with Jennifer Leon, Aaron S. Kesselheim, and William B. Feldman).
Professor Tu offered commentary in several outlets about Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA v Amarin Pharma, which was argued before the U.S. Supreme Court on April 29. He was interviewed on an episode of An Arm and A Leg, a podcast from Seattle’s NPR station focused on healthcare costs, about the practice of “skinny labeling” and its impact on consumers. He was also interviewed for articles in Tradeoffs, STAT News, Bloomberg Law (paywall), and Infosperber in Germany, and he published two op-eds about the case: Congress Must Repair USPTO’s Inter Partes Review Process in Law360 (paywall) (with Arti Rai and Aaron S. Kesselheim) and Congress Can Finally Stop Big Pharma’s Patent Abuse in DC Journal.
Professor Fred Vars published his new book, Through the Fire: How People with Mental Illness are Empowering Each Other.