Rebeca Puente Chavar L’27 prevailed over Nicholas R. Hardy IV L’27 in the 15th Annual Hancock Estabrook First Year Oral Advocacy Competition.
The competition was judged by the Hon. Thérèse Wiley Dancks L’91, U.S. Magistrate Judge for the Northern District of New York; S. Alexander Berlucchi L’18, an associate at Hancock Estabrook; Michelle Whitton Cowan L’07, Managing Attorney, AmTrust Financial Services Inc.; and Gabriela Groman L’23, an associate at Hancock Estabrook.
Thirty-three first year students participated in the competition.
We are honored to have Frank Ryan IV ’90, L’94, Americas Chair, Global Co-Chair, and Co-CEO of DLA Piper and a Member of our Board of Advisors, as our Commencement speaker!
Ryan leads one of the world’s largest law firms, with lawyers in more than 40 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific. Throughout his legal career, Ryan has handled numerous high-profile matters in various areas and is known as a go-to strategist for some of the world’s most sophisticated media and sports corporations.
He is a member of the Legal Service Corporation’s Leaders Council, the nation’s largest funder of civil legal aid programs for low-income people, and sits on the Board of Directors for Beat the Streets NYC, an organization dedicated to mentoring NYC student wrestlers (Ryan was a member of Syracuse University’s Wrestling team as an undergraduate.) Ryan is a Founding Partner of the Legal Elite Athlete Pipeline Scholarship Program (LEAP), a DLA Piper initiative aimed at supporting student-athletes in their pursuit of legal careers through scholarship aid and educational guidance.
“New lawyers are joining the practice of law at an exciting time, with technology enabling lawyers to work smarter and faster, and clients relying on their lawyers more than ever for strategic advice at the highest levels of business,” Ryan said. “At the same time, there are important legal questions yet to be explored about how our government functions, where the boundaries of individual rights lie, and how our laws will adapt to changing technologies such as AI. I look forward to speaking with Syracuse Law grads about all that awaits as they embark on their legal careers.”
It is an honor to welcome Ryan back to the College of Law, and we are excited to hear his inspirational message in the JMA Wireless Dome on Friday, May 9.
Mercy Renci Xie LL.M.’20, who is currently pursuing an S.J.D. at the College of Law, recently had papers selected to be presented at Stanford’s Law & Humanities Workshop and the 2025 Law & Society Annual Meeting.
She will present her paper “Guanxi Paradox in Chinese Relational Legal Consciousness” at the Law & Humanities Workshop at Stanford University on June 9-10.
Her paper “Navigating Power Dynamics: Contingent Second-Order Legal Consciousness of Chinese Disabled People,” was selected to be presented at the 2025 Law & Society Annual Meeting in Chicago May 22-25.
Alex Styrt ’22, L’25 (left) with Premier client Jacory Croskey-Merritt (2025 NFL Draft Prospect) and agent/general counsel at Premier, Wyatt Mumfrey.
Alex Styrt ’22, L’25, is on the fast track. A 3L at Syracuse University College of Law, he is also founder and CEO of Premier Athlete Agency, a full-service sports agency representing elite athletes. The business is based in San Diego, California, and, thanks to Syracuse Law’s Orange Flex program, Styrt is able to live on the West Coast while finishing his law degree.
Styrt always wanted to be a sports agent, so he decided a degree in business followed by law school was the way to go. Typically, it would take seven years of school to get his career started, but then he found Syracuse University offered one of the country’s only 3+3 BS/JD programs. This accelerated program allows qualified students to earn a bachelor’s degree at the Martin J. Whitman School of Management in only three years and then, upon acceptance, get a jump start at Syracuse Law.
“The opportunities to get an undergraduate degree in three years and go right into Syracuse Law, along with the Orange Flex program, have let me accelerate my dream career, grow my agency and become a lawyer—all by age 24.”
—Alex Styrt ’22, L’25
At Whitman, Styrt majored in entrepreneurship and emerging enterprises (EEE). He was encouraged by his professors to take the plunge and start his own business in the developing area of NIL (name, image and likeness), which allows NCAA athletes to be paid for endorsements, appearances and other opportunities. He says the support system from the school “played a big part in his success,” even allowing him to use the work he was doing to establish the agency to fulfill course credit requirements.
“Getting the business running before starting law school made all the difference. Once I was a 1L, I don’t think I would have had the time to get it done,” Styrt says.
Alex on the field at the Hula Bowl in Orlando, Florida.
In 2022, he graduated from Whitman after just three years and started at Syracuse Law that fall with a focus on sports, entertainment and intellectual property. Styrt went to law school with the intention of building skills like negotiating, client advocacy and an overall knowledge of the law to help him better represent athletes for everything from endorsement deals to player contracts.
Styrt spent his first two years at Syracuse Law juggling classes while keeping his business growing over calls, texts and Zoom. But in 2L, Barry Weiss, special advisor to the Office of Career Services, suggested he look into Syracuse Law’s Orange Flex program, which allows qualified 3Ls to take their last year of classes online through the School’s JDInteractive program.
Alex with with Premier client, Nasir Wyatt (University of Oregon) at Mater Dei signing day in Santa Ana, CA
“Orange Flex was perfect for me,” he says. “I’m spending my 3L year in San Diego taking my courses online, while running my business full time. I’ve made a lot of sacrifices and put in plenty of 14 hour days jumping from classes to client calls, but the progress growing the company in just the past six months has been worth it. It’s my passion.”
His first client was signed by the San Francisco 49ers three years ago, when Styrt was only 21. Since then, the agency has expanded its client base to players drafted by more than a dozen NFL teams, as well as made inroads into women’s college basketball, beach volleyball and soccer. Styrt has worked with NFL athletes such as Jared Goff and Kerby Joseph, as well as artists such as Wiz Khalifa and Heembeezy. Most of Styrt’s time is spent working with his team at the agency, as well as representing athletes and their families in off-field business and marketing opportunities. He has negotiated endorsement deals with brands like Oakley, Alo, Bose, Fiji Water and Bulgari.
Alex with Tayler Hawkins (San Francisco 49ers) at the Versace Store in San Diego.
When Styrt graduates in Spring 2025, he will focus solely on the agency, but, to him, it’s become about so much more than just business. Styrt has become close with his clients and their families and says he “feels blessed to have developed great relationships that will last beyond football. They are family now.” He also credits his friends and own family who have been there since the beginning.
As his agency succeeds, giving back is important to Styrt, and he encourages his clients to give back, as well. Annually, Premier’s college athlete clients partner with Oakley to support the Boys and Girls Club through a holiday event where athletes sign autographs, take pictures and wrap gifts. Styrt assisted his client Cameron Young of the Seattle Seahawks with creating a bike drive where he gave away over 100 bikes to kids from his community in Crosby, Mississippi. And, currently, Premier is supporting client Josh Karty of the Los Angeles Rams, in his chosen charity for the NFL’s My Cause My Cleats—The American Cancer Society—by matching donations made in his name.
Alex (left) with Cole Singer (agent at Premier), Wyatt Mumfrey (agent and general counsel at Premier) at the Hula Bowl in Orlando, Florida.
Today, Premier is a full-service sports agency operating remotely with more than 30 team members, including in-house legal counsel and some employees recruited from Syracuse University. As of December 2024, Premier is providing legal services and business and marketing representation to over 40 clients across the NFL, NCAA and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
“Of course, I want to continue scaling the agency, but, the more I do this, the more it’s important to build a reputation as a person of character who cares about the athletes I work with and their families,” he says, noting that he specializes in setting up clients for their lives after football, something often overlooked with NFL players.
While Styrt acknowledges that becoming a sports agent is very competitive, he believes he has found his niche and is eager to see where it takes him.
“The opportunities to get an undergraduate degree in three years and go right into Syracuse Law, along with the Orange Flex program, have let me accelerate my dream career, grow my agency and become a lawyer—all by age 24,” he adds. “The whole experience at Syracuse has definitely been a win for me!”
Postgame pic with Premier client Kevin Marks Jr. (Los Angeles Chargers) at Sofi Stadium in Los Angeles, California.
Early in his legal career, Gabriel Sepulveda-Sanchez L’11 worked with an insurance defense firm, where he represented insurance companies in personal injury lawsuits. In some ways, however, it made him uneasy to work in an area that undervalued people’s injuries. When his father brought a wrongful death case to his attention, he passed it along to another attorney with experience in this type of law, lending a hand with the case on weekends. Soon, Sepulveda-Sanchez realized that he felt more fulfilled helping injured people and families who had suffered a loss than he did trying to minimize costs for insurance companies. So, with only six months of living expenses in his bank account, he started passing out his business cards and founded his own personal injury firm, Sepulveda Sanchez Accident Lawyers, in 2015.
“If you told me at age 25 that I would one day own my own law firm, I wouldn’t have believed it. But, I made it happen.”
—Gabriel Sepulveda-Sanchez L’11
This November, Sepulveda-Sanchez was recognized for his entrepreneurial spirit as a recipient of a 2024 ‘CUSE50 award, which honors the top 50 fastest growing alumni businesses owned or led by Syracuse University graduates. He is honored to be recognized by the University and credits his time at Syracuse University College of Law for helping him build a strong legal foundation.
“If you told me at age 25 that I would one day own my own law firm, I wouldn’t have believed it,” he says. “But, I made it happen. The award is a beautiful honor that makes me feel so pleased to be a part of a great University and Law School. And, it was so cool to come back to campus and meet other successful entrepreneurs from so many different fields who were also recognized at the event.”
“Syracuse Law trained me to think critically. It taught me how to study, gave me confidence and helped me find a network of friends and colleagues, many of whom I still have today.”
—Gabriel Sepulveda-Sanchez L’11
Sepulveda-Sanchez chose Syracuse Law because he wanted an experience somewhere completely different from his native California. “I took a big chance moving across the country to Upstate New York to go to law school, but I like a challenge,” he says. “It was the right decision. Syracuse Law trained me to think critically. It taught me how to study, gave me confidence and helped me find a network of friends and colleagues, many of whom I still have today.”
Currently, Sepulveda Sanchez Accident Lawyers has four attorneys, 20 staff members and offices in Los Angeles and Stockton, California; as well as a satellite location in New York City. The company represents those seriously injured in obtaining justice by maximizing their settlements or verdicts in the courtroom. Sepulveda-Sanchez is fulfilled by being able to help those who might not be able to navigate the complexities of the insurance system on their own.
“We become really close to our clients and work hard to make sure they have the financial means to recover from their injuries, pay their medical expenses and still support their families,” he says. “And, we also look out for our clients when they do receive a cash award, particularly a large one, by helping them create a structured settlement, so they can make their money last. Most people aren’t used to getting a large amount of money all at once, and that can result in some impulsive spending or bad financial advice from others. In some ways, we work to protect our clients from themselves and make sure their settlements will last for a long time.”
Sepulveda-Sanchez acknowledges the negative stereotypes that can sometime go along with being a personal injury lawyer, noting that the billboards and advertisements with memorable jingles and slogans are the reality of working in such a competitive field. But, he is proud of what he does because he knows that he is really changing people’s lives for the better.
“It’s all funny to people until they have a life-changing injury and need a lawyer to help them,” he says. “Then, they have a whole different view of what we do.”
This past year, his firm helped a client receive the firm’s largest award to date—$10 million. Sepulveda-Sanchez explains that a security guard was driving home at midnight on the freeway when all he remembers is “hitting a brick wall and waking up in the hospital.” What he had actually hit was an 18-wheeler. Its airbrakes had failed, and the tractor trailer stopped in the middle of the dark road with no hazard lights to warn oncoming traffic.
“Our client never saw it coming, but the police tried to say that the client might have fallen asleep at the wheel,” explained Sepulveda-Sanchez. “He had extensive injuries to his legs, but we went to work and proved that the truck driver was at fault and got our client a structured settlement that will ensure he can make a full recovery and continue to support his loved ones. We became really close to the family and supported them throughout the process. That’s when you know the work you’re doing is really helping people.”
Sepulveda-Sanchez’s firm continues to grow, and since reconnecting with Syracuse Law and others at the University through the ‘CUSE50 event, he is eager to become more involved with his alma mater by speaking to students, mentoring or helping would-be lawyers any way he can.
“I tell people that while I passed the bar, it was Syracuse Law that really made me a lawyer—and I’m very proud of that.”
—Gabriel Sepulveda-Sanchez L’11
“I’m honored to have receive a ‘CUSE50 award this year as a graduate of the Syracuse University College of Law,” he says. “I tell people that while I passed the bar, it was Syracuse Law that really made me a lawyer—and I’m very proud of that.”
Dr. Amanda Higginson L’25 and Dr. Tobias Mattei L’25 are featured in the ABA Journal article “Jurist Doctors: Physicians Return to Law School for New Challenges.” The article examines the trend of physicians returning to school to obtain a law degree. Higginson and Mattei attended the College of Law’s hybrid online JDinteractive program.
Dr. Mattei, Chief of Spine Surgery and Associate Professor, Division of Neurological Surgery at St. Louis University, decided to attend law school during COVID-19 to assist in his review of potential legal cases and other instances where he was an expert witness.
Dr. Tobias Mattei L’25
“I just wanted to be smarter than the attorneys I was dealing with, to make sure I could understand the framework” of legal cases,” says the spinal cord specialist who has a few patent applications. “Very few doctors, especially neurosurgeons, have this special knowledge.”
Dr. Higginson, Associate Dean for Student Affairs, Clinical Sciences, and Clinical Professor of Pediatrics at the Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University, is a U.S. Navy veteran who used the GI Bill to attend the College of Law.
“Our office handles all of the policies surrounding the medical students,” she says. “I view those now in a slightly different way, in terms of the language used.”
Some people know from an early age that they want to be lawyers. For others, the path to a law degree comes later, shaped by life experiences and schooling. What is undeniable is that a J.D. degree offers incredible flexibility to chart a successful career, no matter the challenges or circumstances that come along the way.
That’s the experience of Danielle Wild L’15, an Associate Teaching Professor at Syracuse Law and a member of the Legal Communication and Research (LCR) faculty.
Wild’s path back to her alma mater—and into teaching—was not direct or fully intentional.
She originally planned to pursue a career as a forensic psychologist, earning a B.A. in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice at Roberts Wesleyan College (now University). During her undergraduate studies, she became more aware of and passionate about restorative justice, the Innocence Project, and wrongful convictions.
“When my interests started going in that direction, I decided to graduate early and gain experience in the legal field,” she explains. “Several professors encouraged me to consider law school. I worked as a paralegal for a year, and that confirmed I wanted go this route [to law school].”
While she applied to many law schools, she chose Syracuse Law to stay close to family and accommodate fast life changes. “I grew up in Syracuse, and my whole family is here,” she says. “I was living in Rochester when I decided I wanted to go to law school. I got married a month before starting law school while my husband was finishing graduate school. We decided we wanted to stay near family.”
That decision turned out to be a very fulfilling one for Wild. At Syracuse Law, she competed on the National Trial Team and was a member of the Moot Court Honor Society (now the Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Honor Society). Additionally, she served as the Secretary of the Justinian Honor Society, a Law Ambassador, and an editor on the Syracuse Law Review. As a 3L, she was a Legal Communication and Research Assistant to Professor Shannon Gardner.
Wild remembers law school fondly: “I loved law school. I made the most of a variety of opportunities while here. I thrived, and as soon as I left, I missed it. A part of me always thought I’d return to academia, but I didn’t expect to teach until later in my career.”
After graduating, Wild worked at a criminal defense firm in Rochester for two years, handling a spectrum of criminal matters at trial and on appeal. Working at the firm ended up not being a good fit for Wild for various reasons, and when starting a family came into the picture, the flexibility of her J.D. became a lynchpin for her next career step: opening a solo practice focused on criminal appeals and post-conviction advocacy.
“I opened a solo practice because of the flexibility and autonomy it gave me. My first son was only a few months old when I left the firm. I quickly wrapped up my trial cases and focused on appellate work, which gave me more control over my schedule. What started as a necessity based on life circumstances turned into a successful practice. I carved out a niche in the Rochester area and earned a strong reputation. I received some offers to join other firms over the years, but I declined them because I couldn’t see myself practicing law any other way.”
While her practice continued to grow, along with her involvement in the Monroe County Bar Association, the call to return to law school beckoned in Fall 2022, when she was presented with an opportunity to join the Syracuse Law faculty as an adjunct professor. “The doors started opening to teach classes here and there. I loved it, and that led me to pursue a full-time position,” she says.
“I prioritize the mastery of skills alongside legal doctrine. I try to show students how what they’re learning translates into practice and informs the everyday work that lawyers do.”
—Danielle Wild L’15
That full-time position came to fruition in Spring 2024, when Wild joined the LCR faculty, also teaching courses in criminal law and advocacy. Wild draws on her experiences both as a firm lawyer and solo practitioner to shape her teaching.
“I prioritize the mastery of skills alongside legal doctrine,” Wild explains. “I try to show students how what they’re learning translates into practice and informs the everyday work that lawyers do. In my legal writing classes, for example, we work through a mock case over the semester. We begin with preliminary research to understand a discrete area of law, then engage in fact-gathering—such as a client consultation or other simulated exercise—before conducting additional research and refining our analysis. We translate that work into legal writing. I believe this approach helps students see legal analysis as an essential skill and understand how it fits into real-world practice.”
Wild and Setzer meet to discuss coursework in Dineen Hall.
Julian Setzer L’25 had Professor Wild for LCR II and was so impressed with her teaching style he is now taking her Appellate Advocacy class. “Professor Wild communicates her goals for the class very clearly since in law school, there’s not a lot of black and white, there’s a ton of gray areas. The assignment she has given us in the appellate class is very practical.”
“I identify with the level of professionalism and work ethic that it takes to be a professor, a practitioner, and a parent and at the same time be a decent human being. To do all that and smile through it is an admirable trait.”
—Julian Setzer L’25
Wild’s career path is a testament to the versatility of a J.D. degree—one that helped her find her way back to her alma mater and a place she loves.
“I identify with the level of professionalism and work ethic that it takes to be a professor, a practitioner, and a parent and at the same time be a decent human being. To do all that and smile through it is an admirable trait. And I think every law student should take Professor Wild to learn how to achieve that,” says Setzer.
What makes a good legal writer?
Being able to make your point clearly and concisely. Your reader should only need to read your work once to understand—and agree with—your analysis or argument.
I often tell my students to think of legal analysis like a lab report. Legal analysis is a thought experiment, and like a lab report, it must be meticulously structured and detailed so the reader can follow each step, replicate the experiment, and reach the same result.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit will hold oral arguments at Syracuse University College of Law on March 28 from 10 A.M. to 11:30 A.M. The oral arguments are free and open to the public. Seating is limited.
The court session will be held in the Melanie Gray Ceremonial Courtroom in Dineen Hall, 950 Irving Avenue, Syracuse, NY 13244.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is one of the thirteen United States Courts of Appeals. Its territory covers the states of Connecticut, New York, and Vermont, and it has appellate jurisdiction over the U.S. district courts in the following federal judicial districts: District of Connecticut. Eastern District of New York. Northern District of New York. Southern District of New York, Western District of New York, and District of Vermont.
The U.S. Court of Appeals sits just below the Supreme Court of the United States in the judicial branch of the federal government.
“The Court of Appeals from the Second Circuit is one of the most influential courts in the country. It is of great honor for the College of Law to host the Court and provide our students, faculty, and the community at large an opportunity to see jurisprudence in action at the highest level,” says College of Law Dean Terence Lau.
The case and panel of judges will be updated by the Court on their calendar closer to the court session date.
Cameras and video recording devices are not permitted in the courtroom during arguments.
Brett VanBuren L’25 went to college at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point with the intention of serving his country. But, his college plans were sidelined by an injury that resulted in an honorable discharge. Still, he remained true to West Point’s mission of creating “leaders of character” who were “ready for a lifetime of service” on a new path that led him to Syracuse University College of Law.
After finishing his bachelor’s degree at Marist College and working in marketing in New York City, he enrolled at Syracuse Law in 2022. Today, VanBuren is a 3L who has made the most of his time at Syracuse Law, taking on leadership roles in several of the School’s societies, including president of the Corporate Law Society and treasurer of the Military and Veterans Law Society, the Intellectual Property Law Society and the International Law Society.
During the 2022-2023 academic year, he served as president of the Class of 2025. And, in 2023, VanBuren was issued the Unsung Hero Award by the Syracuse Student Bar Association (SBA) in recognition for the hard work and achievements in organizing many in-person and virtual events, volunteering at SBA functions and raising the most money in recent history for a first-year class at Syracuse Law. VanBuren is the former law school representative to the Syracuse University board of trustees, which is the highest appointed leadership position for a Syracuse Law student.
“I’m involved in a lot of activities. When I was a 1L, I was the person organizing a happy hour during orientation week, so we could all get to know each other, or, this year, planning the General Counsel Symposium through the Corporate Law Society that brought students together with alumni and other general counsels from across the country,” he explains. “I’m grateful that others see me as a leader and someone who will advocate for them or acknowledge that their complaints or ideas have been heard. I think it’s important to be a leader wherever you go.”
His original intention was to work in corporate law. But, it was Teaching Professor Elizabeth Kubala, director of Veteran and Military Affairs and Executive Director of the Betty and Michael D. Wohl Veterans Legal Clinic, who knew VanBuren had attended West Point and asked if he’d ever considered the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG). According to VanBuren, JAGs serve as lawyers in a wide range of legal roles for the Army, covering a wide gambit of topics. In a legal assistance capacity, JAGs help with divorce, child custody issues, immigration, writing wills and any other legal assistance that soldiers, veterans or their dependents need. They also handle administrative law issues related to labor and employment, environmental law, working with international partners, and issues related to laws or war and laws of armed contract, as well as criminal law and court-martials.
With his interest piqued, VanBuren was accepted into the highly competitive JAG Corps Intern Program, which only takes 30 1Ls each summer from across the country. Following his first year of law school, he spent the summer at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, where he helped soldiers and their dependents in the Legal Assistance Office. The following summer, he continued with the program, this time in Italy, where he was sent to Caserma Ederla, an Italian military base outside of Venice. There he worked with Italian legal authorities and assisted the commander of the U.S. 173rd Airborne Brigade, a contingency response force in Europe. He also enjoyed having the chance to soak up the culture of Italy during his three-month stay. These experiences convinced him that the JAG Corps would be an excellent career path for him. So, when VanBuren was recently offered a commission into the JAG Corps following the completion of law school, he was honored to accept.
“My career path wasn’t the one I had originally planned, but it seems it is working out. Syracuse Law has been a big part of making my dream of being a lawyer come true, while at the same time helping me find my way back to the U.S. Army.”
—Brett VanBuren L’25
“I’m excited to work not only as a lawyer but also as an army officer. It forces me to not only be competent in my legal tasks but also my warrior tasks,” he explains, noting that while he doesn’t yet know where he’ll be stationed, he hopes to work his way up to be a brigade judge advocate, someone who serves as a general counsel to a brigade commander. “It’s really rewarding work assisting a commander in getting the mission done.”
VanBuren poses with classmates and professors outside the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland during the International Tax Law short course in 2024.
While VanBuren plans to stay with the Army for a while, his long-term goal is to be a general counsel for a Fortune 500 company. However, for now, he is concentrating on his studies as a 3L and passing the New York State bar exam, while continuing to be involved with various activities at Syracuse Law.
“My career path wasn’t the one I had originally planned, but it seems it is working out. Syracuse Law has been a big part of making my dream of being a lawyer come true, while at the same time helping me find my way back to the U.S. Army,” he says. ”I’m grateful for everyone here who was part of my law school experience.”
Luis “Lu” Weierbach L’25, a U.S. Army Captain, attended the Military Commissions proceedings at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba this past summer as an observer with the National Institute of Military Justice (NIMJ.) Weierbach was nominated to participate by Professor Elizabeth Kubala, a NIMJ Fellow, and submitted a paper to the NIMJ detailing his observations.
Weierbach flew to Guantanamo Bay along with other trial observers, family members of victims, and personnel from the Pentagon’s Office of Military Commissions. He observed a week of pretrial motions in the 9/11 Case, which is a joint trial of four men charged with crimes tied to the events that occurred on September 11, 2001. Weierbach observed motions from the defense to exclude evidence that the defense contends was derived from unlawful interrogations. Defense expert testimony included extensive evidence from Dr. Charles A. Morgan III, a clinical and forensic psychiatrist and an international expert in memory and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). These pretrial hearings were to determine whether the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Letterhead Memoranda (“memoranda”) that details the Defendants’ confessions will be admissible during the trial which has not yet been scheduled. For most Defendants, the memoranda are a substantial part of the Government’s body of evidence.
In a presentation recounting what impacted him the most, Weierbach encouraged others to put themselves in the place of the family members of the 9/11 victims. “Imagine the family members, boarding a plane with the team that is defending the detainees and the judge who makes the rulings. And imagine, too, the press, a huge organization that has its own tilt. Certain members of the press have advocated heavily for the detainees. Imagine being a family member and being in such close physical proximity to all these individuals on the flight there.”
Weierbach continued sharing his thoughts. “Then, imagine a week of interesting testimony with an expert who is suggesting key evidence against the accused should be excluded. Imagine yourself as a family member of a 9/11 victim being on the flight back with that witness.” Weierbach astutely shared these and other unusual aspects of the legal proceedings occurring in Guantanamo Bay that differ greatly from legal processes back on U.S. soil.
NIMJ was founded in 1991 to advance the fair administration of military justice and to foster improved public understanding of the military justice system. Following President George W. Bush’s order that authorized military commissions, NIMJ studied and commented on the procedures established to hold and prosecute detainees by the Department of Defense. NIMJ continues to appear regularly as amicus curiae in cases involving detainee issues, to publish reports related to the military commissions, and to educate the public on the military commissions through its website.
The Department of Defense invites a few non‐governmental organizations to observe military commissions in an effort to satisfy the right to a public trial. As part of this program, NIMJ has been sending observers to the military commissions at the U.S. Naval Base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, since 2008. While several other organizations observe the proceedings, NIMJ’s observations are unique because of the military justice background of NIMJ board members and fellows. NIMJ’s leadership includes former judge advocates, private practitioners, and legal scholars. NIMJ’s observers attempt to put the proceedings in the appropriate historical, legal, and military context.
