News

Professor Roy Gutterman L’00: The Right to Vote Is “The Essence of a Democratic Society”

Professor Roy Gutterman

(Syracuse Post-Standard | Oct. 22, 2020) Four years ago, more than 130 million Americans voted in the presidential election. Through the swirling chaos of this year’s election, experts predict an even more robust voter turnout.

So far, two weeks before the election, 25 million have already voted, largely attributed to both the heightened interest in the election and the Covid-19 crisis. Locally, early voting opens on Saturday at six locations throughout Onondaga County. Whether it is braving lines and social contact at a polling places on Nov. 3, or casting an absentee ballot by mail, will you be one of those voters?

Though much of the attention is focused on the presidential election, and for good reason, there are congressional and state legislative races and local elections on the ballots. The “down-ticket” races and issues may lack the glitz, glamour and gore of the national election but they still play an important role in the democracy and governmental operations. The lower-ticket races determine everything from the composition of Congress to your local government officials, as well as special ballot issues.

The right to vote has been a hard-fought right that embodies the most basic part of the democratic system: choosing the people and officials who will design, set and enforce laws and public policy, and defining what our society stands for. The right to self-governance through public participation — voting — is so vital, the Constitution and a body of federal and state laws ensure and protect the right to vote …

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Professor Roy Gutterman L’00 Challenges Recent “Censorship” by Social Media

Professor Roy Gutterman

(WAER | Oct. 16, 2020) A Syracuse University Newhouse Professor is questioning decisions by Facebook and Twitter to limit access to an article that contained unverified sources and information about Joe Biden’s son.  

“Regardless of how you feel about the story, its sourcing, or even the politics behind it, it’s not a favored practice for many of us to have other people decide what we can and can’t read or view.” said Roy Gutterman, the Director of the Tully Center for Free Speech. “I’m kind of disappointed to see that this article was going to be blocked. I’m always in favor of letting consumers and citizens make judgements on their own” …

Listen to the segment.

Professor Peter Blanck: Absentee Ballots Should Be Accessible, Especially During COVID-19

Professor Peter Blanck

An accessible absentee ballot is crucial for blind and disabled Iowa voters, advocates say — especially in COVID-19 era

(Ames Tribune | Oct. 9, 2020) Don Wirth has been legally blind for 25 years. At 70 years old, he’s at higher risk for COVID-19, so instead of going to the polls and using an accessible voting machine, he voted absentee during the primaries. His wife filled out the paper ballot for him.

“I have great confidence that she’s going to fill it out the way I want her to,” Wirth, of Ames, said. 

But Wirth knows not all blind or otherwise disabled people have a loved one they can trust to help cast their vote. And, he believes, no Iowan should be forced to surrender their privacy to exercise their constitutional right. 

“Why shouldn’t we have the same access that sighted people do when there are solutions out there that are readily available?” Wirth said …

… Peter Blanck, a law professor at Syracuse University, disagrees. Blanck has written multiple books on the ADA, served on various federal disability commissions and edits the Cambridge Disability Law and Policy Series.

“Title II of the ADA requires state and local governments to provide meaningful and equal access to all the services that they provide,” Blanck said. “A reasonable accommodation would not have to be approved through the Legislature because that’s required under (federal) law” …

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3Ls Alex Eaton and Tyler Jefferies Prevail in the 2021 Grossman Trial Competition

The team of 3Ls Alex Eaton and Tyler Jefferies, arguing for the defense, won the 43rd Annual Lionel O. Grossman Trial Competition held virtually on March 25, 2021. Jeffries also won Best Advocate. The prosecution team of 2Ls Will Hendon and Nate Kelder were the other finalists for this Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Honor Society (AHS) intramural competition, held virtually for the first time in its history.   

The Hon. Glenn T. Suddaby L’85, US District Court Judge for the Northern District of New York, was the presiding judge for the final round. The Hon. Rodney Thompson L’93 and the Hon. Bernadette Roman-Clark L’89 joined Judge Suddaby on the bench.

The teams argued the case of District of Orangeville v. Logan Dunn. “This was a double homicide charge where two little girls were killed in a house fire, believed to be started by the defendant, the girl’s adopted father who never wanted children,” explains 3L Joseph Tantillo, AHS Executive Director. “The defense prevailed in proving the innocence of their client, in particular by an excellent cross-examination of the prosecution’s expert witness, which demonstrated the flaws in her fire investigation techniques.”

Tantillo continues, “Trial is the most difficult type of advocacy to perform over Zoom, and our competitors did a wonderful job. The final was one of the best we’ve seen in years, and the judges echoed that sentiment. Congratulations to the winners and thank you to everyone who made the competition a great success.”

Praising the student advocates at the end of the competition, Judge Suddaby said, “I’ve been doing this a long time, since law school. I’ve judged a lot of moot court competitions; the four of you are four of the best I’ve ever seen. Those were the two best opening statements in a moot court competition since I’ve been doing this … I’m just so impressed with all of you; you have a great future ahead of you.”

Syracuse University College of Law Introduces “Third Year Away” Option for Residential J.D. Students

Starting with the Class of 2023, students in Syracuse University College of Law’s residential J.D. program will have the option of spending their third year entirely off-campus while still taking courses from College of Law faculty. Specifically, students in good standing will have the option to enroll in the “Third Year Away” program, which will allow them to satisfy their remaining requirements for graduation by completing a supervised externship in a legal practice setting and by taking up to 12 credits of interactive online courses.  

“Syracuse prides itself on a robust and innovative curriculum,” says College of Law Dean Craig M. Boise. “The College is now adding a new option for incoming students that will enhance our ability to provide them with both the doctrinal knowledge and the practical and professional skills necessary for the 21st-century legal profession.” 

The Third Year Away Program builds on the College’s established Externship Program, which features placements and accompanying seminars in London, New York City, Philadelphia, Atlanta, San Francisco, and Washington, DC—with plans to add more locations throughout the United States and beyond. The Externship Program leverages the College’s global alumni network to offer semester-long placements accompanied by faculty-led, substantive seminars focused on building professional skills.

The new option also capitalizes on the College of Law’s JDinteractive (JDi) program, the nation’s first ABA-accredited, fully interactive, online J.D. program. As part of the JDi program, the College of Law already offers an array of online courses in addition to intensive residential courses. Each online course consists of live class sessions and self-paced class sessions taught by the College of Law’s faculty. The JDi infrastructure, which allows the College to teach and support JDi students around the world, will allow the College’s residential J.D. students enrolled in the Third Year Away Program to participate in the academic, intellectual, and social life of the College when off-campus.

“Increasingly, our J.D. students gain valuable skills and professional experience by working as externs in judicial settings, law firms, corporate legal departments, government agencies, and non-profits,” adds Dean Boise. “By allowing students to participate in externships across the nation, while still taking doctrinal classes with our faculty through online courses, we are providing them the opportunity to learn both the substance and the skills they need for success. With Third Year Away, we are truly breaking new ground in legal education.”

“Third Year Away capitalizes on two of the College of Law’s strengths: our first-rate online classes and our far-reaching Externship Program,” says David M. Levy Professor of Law and Faculty Director of Online Education Nina Kohn. “While other law schools are contemplating ways to add remote learning options that increase flexibility for their upper-class students, with JDi fully underway, Syracuse already has the infrastructure, the courses, and the faculty expertise to make it happen. Moreover, Third Year Away allows students to get a jump start on their careers by combining their doctrinal coursework with field placements in the communities they seek to work in post-graduation, affording them greater opportunity to develop and strengthen professional networks that can help accelerate their job opportunities.”

Prospective students who wish to learn more about Third Year Away should contact the Office of Admissions and Financial Aid by phone at 315.443.1962 or by email. All other inquiries should be directed to Director of Communications and Media Relations Rob Conrad at 315.443.9536.

Adam L. Bailey L’95

The participation of Adam Leitman Bailey L95 in Professor Deborah Kenn’s Housing and Finance clinic convinced him of one thing: he was going to work in real estate law and nothing else. ”Adam was an exceptional student, extremely passionate about the work in the clinic, and committed to providing high-quality representation to his clients, “Kenn says, “I remember his interest in real estate law and the clinic’s practice in affordable housing development. But, above all, I remember a devotion to excellence in every endeavor he would undertake as a student attorney.

More than a decade into his career, Bailey is the owner of his own law firm-the 16-attorney, AV-rated real estate law firm Adam Leitman Bailey P.C. He credits Kenn with opening his eyes to the field that he says offers many opportunities to directly affect people’s lives. “She demonstrated the importance of real estate not only as an intellectual adventure, but also necessary to fight poverty in the world. I learned that I could improve people’s lives through real estate, and I have not forgotten that lesson from her clinic, where we put this into practice. Her clinic is where I did my first closing, opened not-for-profit corporations for lower income businesses, and advocated for our pro bono clients’ rights.”

Bailey, named a “Super Lawyer” by Law & Politics magazine, has prevailed in some of New York’s most important real estate cases, including a noteworthy appellate division decision involving an interpretation of the recording statute and an important case that set new rules for commercial real estate joint venture agreements. ”Adam Leitman Bailey has been instrumental in transitioning Edison into the 21st century,” says Steven Rosefsky, a former general counsel of a large developer. “We have never lost a case with Adam. Adam, in particular, and his firm have been involved in an array of complex litigation matters, transactional matters, leasing matters, and in every instance, I am happy to say Adam and his firm have excelled in all areas of the practice of law.”

A commercial lease agreement he drafted a few years ago caught the eye of Bob Blumberg, chief executive officer of BlumbergExclesior, Inc., a leading supplier of online law forms. Bailey and another attorney in his firm, Dov Treiman, were selected to draft new comprehensive lease forms used by almost every landlord in the United States and in more than 70 percent of residential leases signed in this country.

Bailey graduated from New Milford High School in New Jersey and was invited to deliver the commencement address this past spring, where he received the school’s Distinguished Alumni Award. He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Rutgers College before coming to Syracuse. “I was lucky to go to Syracuse; the teachers were really there for us,” he remembers. The support from faculty as well as tight friendships with law school friends made for a wonderful experience, he says. ”And when I started practicing,” he adds, “I saw how prepared I was to be a lawyer.”

Bailey’s goals? “I want to have the best law firm in the United States,” he says. He is also writing a book. The topic of course, real estate: “how to buy a home,” he says, “and how to do it right.”