Around Syracuse Law

Alumni Return to Campus to Enrich 2022 Orientation and Summer Residency Programs

September 14, 2022

Thank you to alums and friends who took time out of their schedules to participate in our August Orientation and JDi Residency programs. The line-up included:

In a Fireside Chat moderated by Assistant Dean of Career Services Lily Hughes, Nazak Nikakhtar L’02, G’02 discussed her career path and the opportunities that led her to her current post.
Kim Wolf Price L’03 and Stephanie H. Fedorka L’17 led a panel on “DEI in Practice”.
Michael Kiklis L’93 and his business partner, Kimani Clark, visited students at the Innovation Law Center (ILC) and shared their wisdom and words of advice with the incoming JDinteractive (JDi) class.
Katherine Martin L’99, Managing Director at Rock Creek Global Advisors LLC moderated a discussion with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce as the keynote event of the Crypto and Digital Assets Class.
Leadership Greater Syracuse Representative Ronnie White L’13, SULAA Board President Colleen Gibbons L’17, President and CEO of Visit Syracuse Danny Liedka, Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY Representatives Mary John and Adam Martin L’20, and Onondaga County Bar Association Executive Director Jeff Unaitis welcomed the incoming classes and shared the many ways in which students can get involved in our Syracuse community.
Four panels of alumni welcomed the JDi Class of 2026, offering advice on law school and work/school balance and exchanging stories of their journeys.

Syracuse University College of Law Welcomes New Students at its 2022 Convocation

September 12, 2022

“Only once in American history has one school had its graduates serving simultaneously as the local mayor, the state’s governor, its member of Congress, and as President of the United States. That school is Syracuse University in 2022.”
Chancellor Syverud

On Aug. 15, 2022, Syracuse University College of Law welcomed 241 new students at its Opening Convocation ceremony held at the National Veterans Resource Center on the Syracuse University campus. The NVRC represents SU’s steadfast and long-standing commitment to cultivate and lead innovative academic, government, and community collaborations positioned to empower those who have served in defense of the United States.

The new student body includes 144 students in the residential juris doctor program (Class of 2025); 95 students in the online JDinteractive program (Class of 2026); 22 LL.M. students from eight different countries (Class of 2023), three S.J.D. students from Brazil and India (Class of 2025), four visiting scholars, three-semester exchange students, and three international students in the two-year J.D. program.

The students heard from Syracuse University Chancellor and President Kent Syverud, College of Law Dean Craig M. Boise, and the Honorable Nazak Nikakhtar L’02, G’02, Partner at Wiley Rein LLP, Chair of the firm’s National Security practice, and Co-Chair of the Foreign Investment practice (CFIUS/Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States). Nikakhtar specializes in international trade national security law, global competition policy, and supply chain resilience.

As we emerge from the global pandemic, returning to old norms and learning to live with new ones, Chancellor Syverud highlighted the historical fact that “only once in American history has one school had its graduates serving simultaneously as the local mayor, the state’s governor, its member of Congress, and as President of the United States. That school is Syracuse University in 2022. And, for the first time, this University is simultaneously welcoming four new Tillman Scholars – three of them College of Law students. The Tillman Scholarship is the most prestigious scholarship award for US service members, veterans, and military spouses. Our large number of Tillman Scholars, like our large enrollment of veterans in this college, reflects our University’s tradition and mission to be the best University in the nation for veterans and military-connected students.”

Addressing the students, Dean Boise advised, “Now is an appropriate space to reflect on your ’future moment.’ For there are many unprecedented challenges — and opportunities — that await your bright minds, sharp skills, and a deep sense of justice: climate change and human security, threats to public health and community wellness, justice for communities of color, and the rights of vulnerable populations, the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II, and its impact on our planet and our nation, supply chain challenges and global trade imbalances, and the respect for the rule of law and democracy abroad and here at home. And, of course, the challenges and opportunities that come with economic prosperity, innovation, and technological advances, such as artificial intelligence and drones.

“Our faculty are leading experts in these topics … and more! They, and the laws that impact them, will come alive for you in the classroom. I know, that at Syracuse Law, we will inspire you, prepare you, and help you gather and hone the tools to shape lives and change the world. That is our commitment to you because we know that’s why you are here.”

The class of incoming J.D. students has an undergraduate Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.55 for the 50^th percentile, which is the highest seen at the College of Law in over 10 years. The 75^th percentile GPA of 3.75 and 25^th percentile GPA of 3.21 are also higher than the incoming class of 2021. The incoming class is comprised of 25 veterans/active duty military members, 10 more than the incoming class of 2021.

Nikakhtar offered words of encouragement from the perspective of a graduate, saying, “Syracuse will give you a wonderful, top-notch education. It will train you to master the law, it will teach you how to write persuasively, think analytically, and it will teach you grit. Embrace it. You will have good days and challenging days and they will all pass. Learn, learn as much as you can, because one day you will draw from the information you’ve acquired over these few years.

“Whether you want to be law partners, professors, judges, politicians, career diplomats, business executives, stay-at-home parents, or part-time anything. Whatever you want to be, you will develop important building blocks here. The foundation of modern democracy is based on the American legal system, and it is the greatest legal system in the world. It may not be perfect, but when you learn it, you can fix it. Fundamentally, the knowledge of the law is one of many things that will enrich you as a person. And it’s something that will stay with you forever.”

Overview of Incoming J.D. Students*

Class size: 241

J.D. Residential: 144
JDinteractive: 95
J.D. Residential Transfer: 2
J.D. Two-Year: 2

LSAT Scores

75th: 160
50th: 157
25th: 154

Undergraduate GPA (uGPA)**

75th: 3.75
50th: 3.55***
25th: 3.21

Higher Degrees

Master’s Degrees: 47, including in business, education, and nursing
Ph.D.s: 4
1 Doctorate of Nursing
M.D.s: 4

Diversity

Average Age: 28
Gender: 100 male, 133 female
Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC): 31% (75 students)
First-Generation Students: 67

Military-Affiliated

Veterans/Active Duty: 25****

Geography

States Represented: 33
Countries Represented Other than US: 10 (the Northern Mariana Islands, and ten other nations: Brazil, Canada, China, Cuba, Germany, Greece, India, Saint Lucia, South Korea, and the United Arab Emirates)

Overview of Incoming LL.M. and S.J.D Students

22 new LL.M students from 8 different countries: Brazil, China, the Dominican Republic, Egypt, Mexico, Nepal, Nigeria, and Pakistan
3 S.J.D. students from Brazil and India, one of whom is an alum of the LL.M. program
3 exchange students from the University of Florence and the University of Rome (Tor Vergata), Italy
4 visiting scholars from Brazil, Poland, and South Korea

*Statistics are as of August 17, 2022

**The Undergraduate GPA numbers are all higher in 2022 compared to 2021 numbers

***A median GPA of 3.55 is the highest average in over 10 years

****10 more Veterans than the incoming class of 2021

Rising 3L Hayley Rousselle Takes Second Place in AEJMC Writing Competition

July 12, 2022

Rising third-year law student Hayley Rousselle has won second place in a writing competition organized by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication Law and Policy Division, the accreditation group for communications and journalism schools and colleges. Rouselle will present her paper—“Social Media and the Economy of Hate.”—on an Aug. 4, 2021, panel during AEJMC’s virtual conference.

“Hayley wrote her paper for my Media Law 737 class last fall and we worked pretty closely getting it ready for the competition,” says Professor Roy Gutterman L’00, Director of the Tully Center for Free Speech. “The law division has some of the top media law scholars in the country. The competition is pretty tight.”

Rouselle explains that her paper addresses Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, which grants social media companies immunity in making good-faith efforts to regulate content on their platforms.

“However, this legal norm does nothing to encourage transparent, consistent, or effective regulation of harmful content such as hate speech,” Rouselle observes. “Instead, Section 230 has left social media companies in a position where they can go unchecked in profiting from the harmful content they often claim to prohibit.” Her article examines how Congress can amend Section 230 to best incentivize social media companies to enforce their policies that prohibit hate speech.

Carey Ng G’02, L’02 Elected Vice President of the Syracuse University Alumni Association

July 6, 2022

The Syracuse University Alumni Association (SUAA) has elected Carey Ng G’02, L’02 as a Vice President. Ng is an assistant district attorney in the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office who joined the SUAA Board in 2020.

Ng received the College of Law’s Law Honors Award in 2021 and served as Vice President from 2014 to 2016 and President from 2016 to 2018 of the Syracuse University Law Alumni Association.

Read more about SUAA’s new board members here.

Three College of Law Students Awarded 2022 Pat Tillman Foundation Scholarships

June 29, 2022

2022 Tillman Scholars from the College of Law

The Pat Tillman Foundation has announced its scholars for 2022 which includes three Syracuse University College of Law students: Natasha DeLeon (USMC Veteran), Amanda Higginson (Navy veteran), and William Rielly (Army veteran.) They join a fourth Syracuse University Tillman scholar, Anthony Ornelaz, Master of Fine Arts, College of Arts and Science, Air Force Veteran.

“Tillman Scholarships are extremely competitive and are only awarded to those who have made an impact through their service. I am both pleased and grateful that not one, but three College of Law students have been awarded Tillman scholarships for this year. Natasha, Amanda, and William are living extraordinary lives through their military commitments and now they are on the path to becoming extraordinary Orange lawyers,”
College of Law Dean Craig Boise

The three students are enrolled in the College’s JDinteractive (JDi) program. Reilly is in his second year, Higginson is in her first year, and DeLeon will start the program in the Fall 2022 semester.

An ABA-Approved Online Law Degree Program, JDi is taught by Syracuse University College of Law faculty to the same high standards as Syracuse’s residential J.D. program. JDi is designed for students who desire a high-caliber legal education with substantial flexibility, such as those with military commitments. The program combines real-time, live online class sessions with self-paced instruction, on-campus courses, and experiential learning opportunities.

Read this story for more information on the Syracuse University 2022 Tillman scholars.

Natasha DeLeon, USMC Veteran

Natasha DeLeon joined the United States Marine Corps to pursue her goal of serving others on a grand scale. As a Marine, she worked to deploy service members to combat locations in support of various operations. In 2014, she deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, where she aided in the return of over 120,000 service members to their families back home.

While serving in the Marine Corps, DeLeon began volunteering in San Diego’s foster care system as a Court-Appointed Special Advocate. This led her to pursue a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and work part-time at a group home for teen foster boys. Upon completion of her service, her passion for social work grew. DeLeon earned a Master of Social Work in 2019, while she also interned as a therapist. During this time, she lived in Togo while supporting her husband during his active-duty Marine Corps career. While in West Africa, DeLeon led physical self-defense courses for women in vulnerable positions and volunteered with non-profit organizations centered around eliminating gender-based violence.

Following their tour in Togo, DeLeon and her family moved to Colombia where she began working remotely as a paralegal for a private law firm. This is where she began to connect the injustices in the legal and social work systems. From here, DeLeon developed a passion for criminal defense and family law. She is pursuing a Juris Doctor degree so she can provide legal assistance and advocacy as an attorney.

Amanda Higginson, Navy Veteran

Adopted as an infant, Amanda Higginson’s upbringing in South Florida was anything but typical. Her father, who was shot and paralyzed in the Vietnam War, taught her about extreme resilience and persistence in the face of adversity. Wanting to give back to military medicine, Higginson received a Navy Health Professions Scholarship and earned her medical degree at the Alpert Medical School at Brown University. She completed her residency in Pediatrics at the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center Bethesda and served on active duty for seven years alongside her husband, deploying twice.

Currently the interim Associate Dean for Student Affairs at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, Higginson supports students on their journey to achieve their personal, academic, and career goals. She continues to practice general outpatient pediatric medicine, caring for children in a largely rural, underserved area. Choosing to enter law school as a mid-career physician, Higginson saw law school as an opportunity to enhance her advocacy for children particularly related to social determinants of health, as well as expand her knowledge of issues that impact the daily functioning of an academic medical center in order to more effectively advocate for her students. At the intersection of law and medicine, Higginson hopes to create structural change both at work and in her community to empower others to live, work, and achieve their goals at their full potential.

William Rielly, College of Law, Army Veteran

William Rielly is an Army veteran and West Point graduate. His career has ranged from leading artillery units in Germany to executive roles at Microsoft and Apple. While working at Apple, Rielly started volunteering in California state prisons and found the incarcerated men he worked with wanted to be accountable for their actions and create a positive future. He discovered immense untapped potential among the incarcerated men and was inspired to leave his job at Apple and focus full-time on reform efforts in the criminal legal and parole system.

Rielly intends to change the parole and probation laws across the country to create pathways of redemption for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people so they can leverage their talents, achieve their full potential, and positively impact their communities. He intends to lead this innovation and create a better system through legal advocacy, changing the public’s perception of the issues, and enlisting advocates inside and outside the current system. The outcomes he foresees are better, safer communities; more highly qualified employees; and a criminal legal system of accountability and redemption.

Syracuse University College of Law Adds Terence Lau L’98 to its Board of Advisors

May 31, 2022

(Syracuse, NY | May 31, 2022) Syracuse University College of Law has added Dean of the College of Business at California State University, Chico, Terence Lau L’98 to its Board of Advisors, effective September 1, 2022. Lau has extensive experience as a lawyer and as a higher education leader, both domestically and internationally.

“Terence brings a unique, critical set of experiences to the College, as legal education continues to evolve at a rapid pace. His industry experience and his decades-long track record as a leader in higher education, particularly at the intersection of business and law, will certainly enrich our programs and practices,” says Dean Craig M. Boise. “By coming back to his alma mater as a member of our Board, Terence will help shape how we continue on our path to creating best-in-class 21st-century legal education.”

“On behalf of the Board of Advisors, I welcome Terence to our group and am looking forward to working with him on furthering educational excellence at the College,” says Board of Advisors Chair Robert M. Hallenbeck L’83. “His understanding of the challenges in higher education will greatly benefit the Board and College.”

“I am excited to give back to Syracuse Law, where I started my legal and academic career. The law school played an integral role in all facets of my professional life, and I believe what I’ve learned and experienced in academia will directly benefit the College,” says Lau. “Higher education continues to face myriad challenges that demand focus, creativity, and forward-looking solutions. I hope my involvement on the Board will help the College of Law meet those challenges.”

For the past four years, Lau has been Dean of the College of Business at California State University, Chico. Previously, Lau held several senior academic leadership positions at the University of Dayton School of Business Administration, including as Executive Director of Academic and Corporate Relations, at the University of Dayton China Institute; Associate Dean of Undergraduate Program; Department Chair, Department of Management and Marketing; Director, International Business Program; and Professor of Business Law.

Lau was also a U.S. Supreme Court Fellow, assigned to the Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Chief Justice, which aids the Chief Justice in his administrative, policy, and ceremonial responsibilities, among other tasks. Prior to his Fellowship, Lau was an attorney in Ford Motor Company’s International Practice Group and served as director of Ford’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Governmental Affairs.

Lau is the long-time editor of the American Business Law Journal and has written extensively on international business law topics in several law journals.

Lau received a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Wright State University in 1995 and his J.D. from Syracuse University College of Law in 1998.

Disability Law Fellow Nana Gochiashvili LL.M. ’22 Awarded Fellowship at Jindal Global Law School in Delhi, India

May 24, 2022

Nana Gochiashvili LL.M. ’22, Disability Law Fellow from the country of Georgia, was recently awarded a one-year fellowship at Jindal Global University, located in Delhi, India. Gochiashvili will serve as an Assistant Professor and Assistant Dean of International Internships at the Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) of O.P. Jindal Global University. This is a competitive position and prestigious fellowship, with an application process open to interested candidates from all over the world.

Beginning in July of 2022, Gochiashvili will begin her fellowship by teaching, conducting research, and overseeing and monitoring the planning, development, and implementation of new courses in disability law. She will also conduct independent research, participate in workshops, and present public lectures. Content for her courses will be based on content from disability law classes taught by Professor Arlene Kanter, Faculty Director of International Programs, which Gochiashvili participated in during her 2021-22 LLM year.

Continuing her work in disability law, Gochiashvili will join Kanter on June 14-16 as one of five students to attend the Conference of States Parties Meeting on the Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities at the United Nations.

The College of Law mourns the passing of José Bahamonde-González L’92

May 23, 2022

“José lived his life with purpose, and he engaged in his profession with genuine intentionality to serve and advance the interests of justice for all people especially those whose voices were not heard within our legal systems. His legacy is one that should be emulated by everyone, and it will continue to serve as an example for students to whom he dedicated so much of life, passion, and energy,” Suzette Meléndez, Associate Dean for Equity and Inclusion

Bahamonde-González L’92 was the recipient of the 2020 College of Law Latin American Law Students Association Legacy Award.

Alexis Telga L’23 Named as Student Representative to the Board of Trustees

May 17, 2022

Alexis Telga L’23, a third-year law student in the College of Law, has been named as the law student representative to the Board of Trustees.

Among other students named to the Board from the Whitman School of Management, the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, and the College of Arts and Sciences, Telga will serve as a representative of the campus community and share diverse perspectives and insights with the Board and its various committees. She will also serve as a vital voice in helping the University implement strategic objectives in support of its mission and vision.

Telga is joined by academic dean representative Craig Boise, dean of the College of Law, as a representative to the Board of Trustees for the 2022-23 academic year.

College of Law Holds Commencement for Class of 2022

May 17, 2022

Students at the 2022 Commencement Ceremony

On Friday, May 6, Syracuse University College of Law held Commencement for its 199 J.D. and 33 LL.M. graduates. The event, the first in-person Commencement since 2019, featured the first cohort of graduating online J.D. students. Luke Cooper L’01 CEO of Latimer Ventures, Partner at Preface Ventures, and 2022 Visiting Scholar at the University of Maryland Baltimore was the Commencement speaker.

Syracuse University Chancellor Kent Syverud provided remarks and introduced the Hon. Theodore A. McKee L’75 Endowed Law Scholarship, thanks to the generosity of Board of Advisors Member Richard M. Alexander L’82, Chairman of Arnold & Porter, and his wife Emily. The scholarship will provide Syracuse Law students with the education and cultural context to enable them to carry forward the legacy of Judge McKee, who has served on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit for 27 years.

Professor Todd Berger was voted by the J.D. Class of 2022 as the recipient of the Res Ipsa Loquitur Award, given to a faculty member for “service, scholarship, and stewardship” to the students. Professor Richard Risman was voted by the LL.M. Class of 2022 as the recipient of the Lucet Lex Mundum Award, given to a professor who has made a significant impact on the successes and the experiences of the LL.M. students during their studies.

In his remarks to graduates, Cooper emphasized the importance of always embracing the most authentic pieces of ourselves and broadcasting how these strengths can play to our advantage in overcoming challenges. Reflecting on his personal journey, he also encouraged students to find their purpose and to find the “mud” that’s beneath and around all of us, and to ask themselves how they will help clear the mud and bring about a more inclusive world. “A great orator once asked, what’s most important… the flower… or the ground that grows it? In order for the flower to fully blossom and mature it must traverse a muddy path slowly, and with intention, bending it toward the light. That muddy path contains the secrets to its beauty… the secrets to its magic.”

Class of 2022 President Gabriella Kielbasinski remarked, “Class of 2022, we have struggled, and studied, and sacrificed for that idea of a career that we now get to pursue. We have lived through some historic, and sometimes exhausting moments, and while today is a great triumph, I also know that some of us feel like we just need a second to catch our breaths, but I have high hopes for our futures. Because, yes, these have been unprecedented times, but I believe that unprecedented times can only create unprecedented lawyers.”

LL.M. Student Bar Association Representative Sindy Perez Ospino said, “To my fellow LLM classmates, I want to acknowledge the unique challenges that we as international students sometimes face. But, in a year rocked by invasions, coups, human rights violations, and a pandemic, we must remember that we have to be resilient and continue fighting for our dreams, to speak up, and not give up. Thank you, LL.M. students, for showing me the meaning of kindness, resilience, and brotherhood. “