The College of Law Continues Its Partnership with the J&K Wonderland Foundation and the JAF Foundation.
In 2019, the College of Law announced two new scholarship programs to enable and encourage talented law students from around the globe to pursue the advanced study of disability rights, policy, and law at Syracuse University. As a measure of their programs’ success in their first year of deployment, both the JAF Foundation and the J&K Wonderland Foundation renewed their scholarship programs for the 2021-2022 academic year.
Meet the 2020-2021 J&K Wonderland Foundation Scholars
Two students have been named this year’s J&K Wonderland Foundation Scholars: LL.M. student Kwabena Mensah, from Ghana, and J.D. student Matthew Yanez, from California.
“I fully realize how urgent the need is for me to further my studies so as to combat rampant violations of human rights and discrimination.” —Kwabena Mensah
Mensah’s multi-disciplinary background combines his legal education and passion for human rights with his experience as a broadcast journalist, to tell the stories of marginalized people and persons with disabilities in Ghana.
“By the kind courtesy of the J&K Wonderland Foundation scholarship, it is possible for me to pursue my master of laws degree. I am profoundly grateful for this timely and generous gesture amidst the global pandemic,” says Mensah. “I have benefitted from the scholarship award immensely given my desire to pursue a specialization in disability law, yet it wasn’t until I began that I fully realized how urgent the need is for me to further my studies so as to combat rampant violations of human rights and discrimination against the disabled worldwide.”
In 2016, motivated by his observations of the injustices against persons with disabilities, Mensah founded Spread Love Home & Abroad, an NGO that provides mentoring and skills-training to visually impaired persons who desire to enter the workforce. A master’s degree in law will not only open new professional opportunities for Mensah to advocate for the marginalized and vulnerable as a barrister, it will also qualify him to enter academia and teach future generations of disability and civil rights lawyers in his home country.
Mensah reports that after beginning his LL.M. studies at the College of Law, the National Council on Persons with Disabilities in Ghana invited him for a consultation on amending the Disability Law of Ghana (Act 715). He also has been made one of six steering committee members to direct a broad consultation on the preparation of a global report to the United Nations about the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).
In other words, Mensah’s College of Law studies are already paying off, and they are yielding exactly the results the J&K Foundation hoped to achieve through its scholarship program—a deep impact in his field, in service of persons with disabilities.
“I intend to use the benefits of this scholarship toward a career in public service focused on the issues I care the most about.” —Matthew Yanez
Matthew Yanez, a Class of 2023 J.D. candidate, is a young disability advocate who is determined to create an inclusive and equitable world for all. Before law school, Yanez worked with several non-profit groups in the field, including the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, the National Association of the Deaf, and Arc of the United States.
Yanez also completed a Disability Law Fellowship with the Coelho Center at Loyola Law School, Los Angeles. The Coelho Center’s mission is to cultivate leadership and advance the lives of people with disabilities by, among other things, working to create a pipeline of lawyers and leaders among people with disabilities.
“My journey to law school has been a bumpy road, but my passion for disability rights has never been stronger,” says Yanez. “Thanks to the generosity of the J&K Wonderland Foundation, I’m able to focus on securing summer internships and preparing for my career in law instead of worrying about how I will pay for next semester’s tuition. For people who have never been able to see themselves as legal professionals, this scholarship gives us validation on our own self-worth.”
In addition to his J.D., Yanez will pursue a joint master of public affairs degree at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Policy. He hopes his degrees will give him the tools he needs to help dismantle and eradicate injustices that people of color, people with disabilities, and other vulnerable populations face.
Yanez continues, “I intend to use the benefits of this scholarship toward a career in public service focused on the issues I care the most about. By not having to worry about student loans, I can invest my full attention towards a future of advocacy for equitable and inclusive public policies. My goal is to one day work with the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice. With the help of this scholarship, I am one step closer to realizing that goal.”
In addition to your financial gifts, loyal and engaged Orange alumni help their alma mater in many other ways—from hiring graduates and hosting externs, to guest lecturing and teaching, to coaching and judging advocacy teams.
Every way you contribute makes a difference for our students, not least in the personal professional bonds that are formed among generations of Orange lawyers.
Here we offer a few vignettes about how alums have been offering their time and talent in the past year, and why they do it.
HIRING INTERNS
Welcome to the Future
Pearl Rimon L’14
Pearl Rimon L’14 says she has a “legal job of the future.” That description might be a little tongue-in-cheek, but consider this: her employer—San Francisco-based Rocket Lawyer, a cloud legal service for which Rimon is a Senior Legal Researcher—actually has seen significant growth in business during the coronavirus pandemic. “When everything goes online, that’s when we shine,” says Rimon.
The pandemic also changed Rocket Lawyer’s hiring practices, and Rimon was in a position to look beyond the Bay Area for a summer intern, the best candidate who could assist Rimon remotely, from any location. She reached out to Interim Director of Career Services Sam Kasmarek and together they tapped 3L Dominique Kelly for the job. “Dominique has been great and is staying on through December,” says Rimon, adding that Kelly helps her with the task of ensuring that Rocket Lawyer’s more than 1,000 legal templates are both legally sound and optimized for their clients.
3L Dominique Kelly
One project the pair is currently working on is a new campaign for small business owners, self-employed individuals, and others looking for tax advice. “I would have loved to have done this kind of internship when I was a 3L,” admits Rimon, “because it would have combined my passion for technology and the law.”
In addition to your financial gifts, loyal and engaged Orange alumni help their alma mater in many other ways—from hiring graduates and hosting externs, to guest lecturing and teaching, to coaching and judging advocacy teams.
Every way you contribute makes a difference for our students, not least in the personal professional bonds that are formed among generations of Orange lawyers.
Here we offer a few vignettes about how alums have been offering their time and talent in the past year, and why they do it.
OFFERING CAREER ADVICE
The Optimism and the Energy
There’s an energy about the students that I love,” says Kristen Smith L’05. “It reminds me of what was exciting about law school—the optimism and the energy. It’s good to be around.”
That’s just one of the reasons why Smith, Corporation Counsel for the City of Syracuse, likes to help out with College of Law Orientation. In fall 2020, she was asked to join the student/alumni roundtable and break-out sessions to introduce the incoming class of JDinteractive students to Orange Nation.
“This was my second time helping out at JDi Orientation,” says Smith. “In 2019 it was in Dineen Hall, but this time it was via Zoom. In addition to an open forum, I discussed law school and legal careers. I was very impressed with the technology.”
The students, recalls Smith, asked questions about study habits, how externships work for students with full time jobs, and whether or not an online program graduate will be able to find employment.
Addressing this last question, Smith reminded students that there isn’t much data on employment for online program graduates, “but as long as they have a strong academic record and do well, employers will look at their credentials. Besides, now that law schools are online due to the coronavirus pandemic, a fully online law degree will be less unusual.”
Not only does Smith enjoy the energy and optimism of the matriculating students, she also likes staying connected to her alma mater. “I think that graduates have to stay connected for the sake of the classes that come after us,” she observes. “It’s an important thing to do for an institution we care about.”
In addition to your financial gifts, loyal and engaged Orange alumni help their alma mater in many other ways—from hiring graduates and hosting externs, to guest lecturing and teaching, to coaching and judging advocacy teams.
Every way you contribute makes a difference for our students, not least in the personal professional bonds that are formed among generations of Orange lawyers.
Here we offer a few vignettes about how alums have been offering their time and talent in the past year, and why they do it.
HIRING CLERKS
The Great Experience
Erin Lafayette L’13 (left) is a prime example of why it’s a great idea for students and graduates to keep in touch with the Office of Career Services. She happened to inquire about openings at just the right time in late 2013 when alumnus the Hon. Robert D. Mariani L’76, US District Judge of the US District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania, was looking to hire new clerks.
“I was living in California when I contacted Career Services and learned that Judge Mariani had lost a clerk,” recalls Lafayette. “So I sent in my résumé and was called in for an interview. That was in January 2014. I started two weeks later.”
Lafayette says that Judge Mariani had been on the bench in Scranton, PA, for two years at that point and decided to turn to his alma mater for law clerk candidates. “He also hired Matt Clemente L’14. Matt was hired before me, but I was the first to start. After six months of being a term clerk, it became a permanent job.”
Since Clemente and Lafayette, Judge Mariani has hired Dana Nevins L’16, Carly Rolfe L’20 (pictured, at right), and Kathrine Brisson L’20. “Judge Mariani likes to hire Syracuse graduates because of the great experience he had at the law school and because of what he got out of his education,” explains Lafayette. “Syracuse professors taught him what he needs to know, he tells me.”
Lafayette says that the variety of cases—civil rights, personal injury, constitutional matters, and first and fourth amendment issues—is part of what makes her work so satisfying.
As any clerk knows, that broad docket means plenty of research, reading, and drafting so the court runs smoothly and the judge has the information needed to pass orders and opinions.
“My advice to students looking for a clerkship is focus on your writing skills,” she observes. “You must be able to write clearly, processing information and cases so you can synthesize what you learn and get to the point.”
In addition to your financial gifts, loyal and engaged Orange alumni help their alma mater in many other ways—from hiring graduates and hosting externs, to guest lecturing and teaching, to coaching and judging advocacy teams.
Every way you contribute makes a difference for our students, not least in the personal professional bonds that are formed among generations of Orange lawyers.
Here we offer a few vignettes about how alums have been offering their time and talent in the past year, and why they do it.
JUDGING ADVOCACY COMPETITIONS
This Is a New Era
Joanne Van Dyke L’87
By all reckoning, the second annual Syracuse National Trial Competition—held online Oct. 16 to 18, 2020—went extremely smoothly.
That’s down to the organizational skills of Director of Advocacy Programs Todd Berger, long-time coach Joanne Van Dyke L’87, and Advocacy Program students; technology that enabled online argument and scoring; and scores of volunteer alumni who help to fill an awe-inspiring 150 judge and evaluator spots.
To fill that many positions, Van Dyke turned to Advocacy Program veterans. “We had alum evaluators from California, Florida, Texas, and Georgia—from all over the country,” explains Van Dyke, acknowledging the silver lining that virtual competition affords. “The fact we were able to bring back former students as judges and evaluators was huge. It was great to see them and their enthusiasm.”
Van Dyke adds that she received many emails and thank you cards after the tournament. “Former students said judging SNTC made them feel as though they were back in law school!”
Kaylin Grey L’06
One of those enthusiastic alums was Kaylin Grey L’06. “The tournament was really well run, and I had a blast,” Grey says. “I judged three rounds, and I couldn’t get enough!”
Now a partner in the Miami office of MG+M, Grey coached Syracuse trial teams when she lived in Rochester after graduation, and she was hoping to return to Syracuse to help judge SNTC in-person. “I missed coaching trial teams, so I’m grateful I could get involved this way,” she says. “I was able to reconnect with people I hadn’t seen in a long time.”
According to Van Dyke, engaging the Advocacy Program virtually has inspired some SNTC judges to get even more involved with the Advocacy Program, coaching teams and judging other competitions remotely.
“I will continue to help out,” says Grey. In fact, since SNTC she has coached Syracuse Tournament of Champions and National Civil Trial Competition teams.
Collaboration software isn’t just revolutionizing advocacy tourneys, adds Grey. “I’ve told the young advocates that online is the new thing. Recently, I’ve been doing virtual depositions and evidentiary hearings—this is a new era.”
In addition to your financial gifts, loyal and engaged Orange alumni help their alma mater in many other ways—from hiring graduates and hosting externs, to guest lecturing and teaching, to coaching and judging advocacy teams.
Every way you contribute makes a difference for our students, not least in the personal professional bonds that are formed among generations of Orange lawyers.
Here we offer a few vignettes about how alums have been offering their time and talent in the past year, and why they do it.
HOSTING EXTERNS
Communication Is the Key to Success
Cisco Palao-Ricketts L’03
For Cisco Palao-Ricketts L’03—a Partner in US Employee Benefits and Executive Compensation at DLA Piper and a member of the College of Law Board of Advisors— contributing to the College of Law’s success begins with staying in touch with your alma mater. In Palao-Rickett’s case, that engagement led to a new externship opportunity for students at DLA Piper, one of the world’s largest and best-known law firms.
“This new externship came about because Dean Boise visited the West Coast to meet with alumni,” says Palao-Ricketts. “We met over lunch to discuss how the school is doing. By being communicative like this, you can find out many different ways you can help.”
Palao-Ricketts took the initiative to create an applied learning opportunity at DLA Piper for Syracuse students passionate about learning tax law at a multinational law firm that represents leading companies across many industries.
To Palao-Ricketts, Syracuse’s tax program—and dedicated teachers such as professors Robert Nassau and Greg Germain—consistently produces strong graduates. “I told Dean Boise it would be good to let tax students showcase their wares at DLA Piper.”
3L Ki-Jana Crawford
The first DLA Piper extern to take on this formidable challenge—in spring 2021—will be 3L Ki-Jana Crawford, an Illinois native with an undergraduate degree in finance and business administration from the University of Kentucky and an Assistant Notes Editor at Syracuse Law Review.
“Ki-Jana is a very bright student with a strong academic background and a strong interest in doing tax law,” says Palao-Ricketts. “This externship will be a great opportunity for him to earn credits and gain practical experience. It will be very useful to him.”
Palao-Ricketts adds, “I cannot tell you how quickly I would have been in line if this externship had been available to me!”
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, DLA Piper offices in Palo Alto—where Palao-Rickets is based—won’t return to in-person business until at least Jan. 1, 2021. “So we’ve adjusted the externship to be done remotely, but the projects we work on won’t change,” Palao-Ricketts explains.
Echoing his advice for alums looking to help the College, Palao-Ricketts says online communication between extern and supervisor will be the key to success.
In addition to your financial gifts, loyal and engaged Orange alumni help their alma mater in many other ways—from hiring graduates and hosting externs, to guest lecturing and teaching, to coaching and judging advocacy teams.
Every way you contribute makes a difference for our students, not least in the personal professional bonds that are formed among generations of Orange lawyers.
Here we offer a few vignettes about how alums have been offering their time and talent in the past year, and why they do it.
Every semester, College of Law students in the Innovation Law Center (ILC) benefit from the extensive expertise and broad experience of practitioners who supervise student research projects for real-world clients.
Often those practitioners are drawn from the ranks of alumni who have graduated from the College’s preeminent technology commercialization and intellectual property (IP) law program. One such adjunct professor is Brian Gerling L’99, Senior Counsel for Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC (BSK).
“I found it fascinating”
At BSK, Gerling’s practice focuses on intellectual property, data privacy, cybersecurity, and economic development in the beverage, environmental, and plastics industries. He also is engaged with the autonomous systems industry, serving as legal advisor to local unmanned aerial vehicle businesses.
As an adjunct professor, Gerling oversees one of ILC’s experiential learning practicums, working with students, as well as ILC clients, to research the technical, legal, and business aspects involved in bringing new technologies to market.
When did he first become interested in technology? “Even as a kid, I was curious how or why things worked,” recalls Gerling. “Whether it was electricity or the human body, I found it fascinating, and that’s what led me down the path to a degree in biology.”
During that process, Gerling studied medical and laboratory processes and equipment, which are often the result of innovative technological advancements. While studying for his undergraduate degree, he “discovered that I could marry my passion for biotechnology and the law, and that’s what brought me to Syracuse to focus on IP law.”
“[Students’] intelligence and eagerness to learn is kinetic. It is just a different vibe and energy from working with – or against – other attorneys.”
Hagelin and Rudnick: “True gentlemen”
Gerling’s reason for giving back to his alma mater—and specifically the Innovation Law Center—primarily came from wanting to settle back in Central New York after living away from the area after graduation.
In addition to his local roots, Gerling’s experience learning technology law under the late Professor Ted Hagelin drove his decision to get involved. While at the College of Law, Gerling says that he got to know Professor Hagelin through classes and by editing the Syracuse Journal of Science and Technology Law, and he marveled at not only Hagelin’s brilliant mind but also his character (“a true gentleman,” says Gerling).
“Professor Hagelin started the Technology Law Commercialization Program, the precursor to ILC, and he just left an indelible impression on me,” says Gerling. “I learned from him about navigating through legal issues, and even more about life. I have used the principles I learned while at the College of Law throughout my career.”
After a year or so back in Central New York, Gerling says he met ILC Director M. Jack Rudnick L’73 through local business circles. “After meeting Jack a couple of times, I thought to myself he was very much like Ted, a sharp legal mind and just a true gentleman,” says Gerling. “I then learned that he was running Professor Hagelin’s program. I discussed the ILC with Jack and ways that I could get involved, and here we are.”
“Really neat technologies”
When asked about his favorite part of joining the ILC team, Gerling says that his colleagues at the ILC are all accomplished, and it is just a joy to work with them. But he says his favorite part hands-down is working with the students. “Their intelligence and eagerness to learn is kinetic. It is just a different vibe and energy from working with—or against—other attorneys,” observes Gerling. “I look forward to class each week, and I enjoy and appreciate their perspectives on life and society. That is inspirational because it challenges me to be a more rounded educator and person.
Gerling says the companies that he and his students have worked on recently include technologies ranging from protecting energy grids, to biosensor masks, to unmanned aerial systems operations, “so the students have been exposed to a wide spectrum of really neat technologies.”
As far as adjustments due to COVID-19, Gerling’s team has had to navigate the challenges associated with a hybrid learning environment, but this format worked well in Gerling’s view. That success in this trying time, he attests, is a testament to not only to College and University leadership but also to the students.
Each year, your philanthropic engagement fills us with pride
In response to inquiries about how alumni giving to the College of Law stacks up by class year, in the 2018 Giving Book, we began publishing “The Big Board.” Here, starting with the Class of 1960, you’ll find a class-by-class giving participation breakdown, with arrows indicating an increase in percentage from last fiscal year, calculated by alumni who made gifts during Fiscal Year 2020 (July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020). You will also find lifetime giving by class, through June 30, 2020.
Annual giving is the lifeblood of the College of Law, and each year there are new successes to celebrate. Early in FY20, the classes of 1959, 1979, 1994, and 1999 kicked off reunion year class challenges with enthusiasm, boosting class participation rates and raising more than $65,000 from 72 donors.
Syracuse University’s third-annual day of giving in November 2019 saw another record performance, with 581 donors making gifts to Boost the ’Cuse, nearly 100 additional gifts compared to the previous year.
In spring 2020, we were filled with gratitude by the outpouring of empathy from alumni who wanted to support College of Law students during the COVID-19 pandemic.
’Cuse Law Cares—part of the larger Syracuse Responds COVID-19 student aid and relief initiative—raised more than $50,000 to provide emergency grants to students facing financial hardships. Thanks to many gifts from alumni and available grant funding, more than 200 of these emergency grants were awarded, and this work continues as the pandemic evolves. We are grateful to our many alumni who reached out with support during such a difficult time.
We are also grateful to the Class of 2020, which elected to make a special gift to ’Cuse Law Cares, as the University’s Class Act! senior class giving campaign was suspended due to the pandemic. Undeterred by the extraordinary events of 2020, the Class of 2021’s giving campaign is well underway, and class leaders are forging ahead with their philanthropic goals.
As we strive to overcome the new and unprecedented financial challenges for higher education, alumni support is particularly important. Your philanthropy fuels our innovation and progress. It helps us to build on what distinguishes our law school from the more than 200 nationwide. It propels our students into extraordinary careers such as yours. And gifts to the Law Annual Fund and scholarships assist our recruitment efforts by increasing selectivity and lowering class sizes.
Be sure to make your gift in time for next year’s participation report by donating today, and make sure to read next year’s Giving Book to see how your class did in FY21.
When we consider your legacy at the College of Law, one word comes to mind: resilience. Completing your final semester of law school virtually due to a global pandemic was probably not at all what you had envisioned, but your accomplishments have set a powerful example in strength and determination for those who follow in your footsteps.
As the incoming students to the College of Law, we represent three class years: the J.D. classes of 2023 and 2024 and the LL.M. Class of 2021. Seventy-three of us are enrolled in JDinteractive, 60 are first-generation college students, 32 of us are veterans or active-duty members of the military, and 28% of us identify as students of color. We represent 40 states and four nations, we hold a combined 47 advanced degrees, four of us hold Ph.D.s, and two of us are medical doctors. We’re proud to join the College of Law’s highly credentialed student body.
In addition to your academic achievements as law students, your philanthropy sets an example for future students. Please know that your support of the Class Act! campaign is an important part of the legacy you leave behind and another example you set.
Your individual gifts and the historic J.D. class gift to ’Cuse Law Cares in support of students impacted by the pandemic have been recognized prominently on the Class Act Giving Wall in the Travis H.D. Lewin Advocacy Commons in Dineen Hall. Rest assured: when our time comes, we will continue this proud tradition.
We hope to meet many of you in Dineen Hall or virtually next fall during Law Alumni Weekend 2021, or as interns and externs in your firms. All our best wishes to you as you launch your careers—and Go Orange!
Sincerely,
The J.D. Classes of 2023 and 2024, and the LL.M. Class of 2021
Crandall Melvin Professor of Law Emeritus Peter E. Herzog L’55 passed away on Nov. 4, 2020.
Professor Herzog had a distinguished career as a scholar and academic at the College of Law, where he spent 37 years teaching torts, international law, comparative law, and other subjects. He was widely published in these areas, at times with his wife Brigitte Herzog L’75 as a coauthor. He was also a visiting professor at the universities of Paris (Pantheon-Sorbonne), Dijon, and Fribourg. In addition to the Melvin Professorship, Professor Herzog was awarded the Chancellor’s Citation of Academic Excellence.
Born in Vienna, Austria in 1925, Professor Herzog studied at the University of Vienna before coming to the United States, where he earned his undergraduate degree from Hobart College, his LL.B. from the College of Law, and his masters of law from Columbia University. He began his legal career as a New York State deputy assistant attorney general. He then became an assistant attorney general before joining the College of Law as an assistant professor in 1958.
Professor Herzog was a mentor and inspiration to many law students with whom he stayed in touch long after their graduation. He was an avid supporter of the College of Law and our mission, and one permanent reminder of his generosity is the Law Library’s Peter Herzog L’55 and Brigitte Herzog L’75 Special Collections Room and the Reference Materials collection.
As the College of Law community mourns Professor Herzog, please share your memories and thoughts about him as a friend, colleague, scholar, and mentor by sending them to SU-Law@law.syr.edu.
“A Gentle Soul With a Brilliant Mind:” Remembering Professor Herzog
Professor Emeritus Peter E. Herzog L’55 and Brigitte Herzog L’75
I have very fond memories of Peter as a teacher, scholar, and friend. He exuded warmth and kindness. Peter had a brilliant mind. He was able to distill complex ideas and make them easily understood. He was a very gracious man and a delight to be around. —Professor Christian Day
Peter was a gentle soul with a brilliant mind. —Professor Arlene Kanter
Like others, Peter was my mentor to whom I will be eternally grateful. A man of giant intellect possessed of unsurpassed concern for his students and a charming sense of humor, he conspicuously displayed a sincere humility often lacking in men of such tremendous accomplishment. He will be long remembered and sorely missed. —Professor Gary Kelder
I grieve Peter’s passing. He had the finest mind of anyone I know. But even better than his mind was his gentle, kind, and loving personality. As a friend and colleague, I miss him. —Professor Emeritus Travis H.D. Lewin
Peter is probably number one on my all-time list of smartest people. He was Lexis before there was Lexis. You could ask him about a legal point, and he would say in his humble manner, “I believe there was a case on that in New South Wales in 1937. I believe the citation is …” And he would be correct. Peter taught me a lot as my teacher and long-time colleague. My condolences to Brigitte and family. —Professor Emeritus Thomas Maroney L’63
I had the pleasure and privilege to learn European Union law from Professor Peter Herzog, and I am proud to have followed his footsteps by teaching EU and International Law today. He will be missed, and he contributed tremendously to our community and many students’ careers and futures. —Professor Cora True-Frost L’01
I can only echo what others have said: Peter was learned, kind, and gentle, a model of what a law school teacher ought to be. We have lost a great and dear colleague. May he rest in peace. —Professor Emeritus William Wiecek
I first met Professor Herzog in the Fall of 1952 at the law school then situated in an edifice directly southwesterly from the Onondaga County Court House. Our entering class included a cohort of Hobart College alumni (including Bill Burrows, Walt Ferris, and Peter and Ty Parr). What little I knew about Peter as an emigre to the US must have originated from them.
Fast forward to the Spring semester of 1955. We were the only two students in a Labor Law Seminar led by Dean Ralph Kharas. We sat side-byside in front of his desk. Unlike a more rewarding class with Professor Robert Koretz, I can only say that both were most attentive to one another; I must have been a patient listener. As Editor-in-Chief of the Syracuse Law Review, he certainly passed judgment upon the trio of recent decisions I authored.
We had a classmate named Lauren Colby (Aka “Citations Colby” or just “Cites” for short). The meter maids policing prized parking spaces on the Montgomery Street side of the law school did a land-office business issuing overtime parking citations. During our first year, “Cites” owned an old fin-tailed goliath of a car. The next year, he was able to park his newer Crosley between otherwise “legally” positioned parking spaces.
Between classes, all of us would act as cheering witnesses to the tussles between the ticket issuers and law students. Peter’s sotto voice comment to me about “Cites” ingenuity was, “Detroit should know better!” —Lawrence M. Ginsburg L’55
My condolences to the Herzog family for the loss of Peter. He was a wonderful teacher who opened up my eyes to areas of the law I thought I’d never enjoy. Conflicts immediately come to mind. And, for those of us fortunate alums who had Peter as our teacher, who could ever forget that memorable voice? Thank you, Peter for influencing my life. Thank you for what you did for the College of Law. —Shelly Kurtz L’67
I graduated from the College of Law in 1969. Professor Herzog taught us Conflicts of Law. To say that he was brilliant is an understatement. Even though my classmates and I were mostly young and wet behind the ears, Professor Herzog’s cultured character and mind were very evident, even to us. May God rest his soul. —Kevin O’Shea L’69
I had Professor Herzog for Torts and Conflicts and enjoyed both courses. He was an excellent professor and a nice person. My condolences to his wife and family. —David B. Weisfuse L’73
I had Professor Herzog for first-year torts in 1979. Had a great experience in his class learning about torts and the famous railroad case. —Jay A. Press L’81
A real loss. He had a wicked and dry sense of humor. A great teacher. —Bob Genis L’83
Condolences to his family, I took his class back in 1982. —Clifford Feldman L’85
Professor Herzog was a mentor for all of the students in the International Law Concentration and International Legal Studies Certificate Program. His kindness, support, and availability to assist students were unsurpassed. His keen knowledge of Comparative Law and International Organizations made class more of enlightenment than scholarly endeavor. —Andrew G. Weiss L’87
My condolences to the family. I remember Professor Herzog as my Comparative Law Professor in 1987-1988. It was a very good class. He was an expert on the European Union, and I learned a lot about the law of various states. I also learned through the legal publishing academic world and law writing. The law school community suffered a big loss. —Ronald Nair L’88
It was an honor to have been taught by Peter. Thank you for your dedication to the law and teaching. —Elizabeth Morrow L’92
Professor Herzog was sterling intellect, an exceptional talent, and a fine human being—gracious, generous, and congenial. He was more than my teacher. He was my shining north star. I missed him when I graduated and left Syracuse in 1993, and I miss him even more now. Our lives have been made better for having known him. He now belongs to the ages. —Gerald T. Edwards L’93
Heard the sad news about the passing of Professor Herzog. He was my favorite professor at the College of Law and the central character in my favorite law school story.
It was in Professor Herzog’s Conflicts of Law class, a field in which he was one of America’s leading scholars. Born in Austria, he never lost his accent, and so he had a very distinctive way of speaking, like a German scholar out of central casting. The class before our conflicts class was a legal history class taught by Dean Michael Hoeflich.
As Professor Herzog is discussing a point of comparison between EU and US law, one of the secretaries from the Dean’s office appears in the back of the lecture hall, trying to get Professor Herzog’s attention.
Professor: “Can I help you?” Secretary: “Dean Hoeflich left his coat here and he has to be in Rochester in two hours for an alumni lunch.”
Professor Herzog sees the coat, picks it up and walks it over to the secretary.
Professor: (in his Austrian accent) “Vell, ve vouldn’t vant the Dean to be coatless ven he goes and begs the alumni for money.”
The secretary gasps while we all start laughing.
Professor: “Vell, that is vaht a Dean does, he goes and begs the alumni for money”.
Rest in peace professor, you touched a lot of our lives. —Anthony Calabrese L’93
I was sad to hear of the death of Professor Herzog. Back in the fall of 1990, I sat in the front row of Professor Herzog’s Torts class as a 1L. About midway through the semester, after reviewing a series of cases about slips and falls on railroad platforms (you know the cases!!)
Professor Herzog was met with two very different banana peels on his podium! One was old and brown, and the other quite fresh. It was in his moment of recognition about our engagement with what we were reading about, and his obvious pleasure at the gesture, that the wall of separation between professor and 1L students in their first semester began to crumble.
His obvious delight at this attempt at humor helped us see Professor Herzog in a new and very human dimension. This was so wonderfully helpful, and I will always remember it, as well as his warmth and humanity. We were probably in no position to see that earlier in the semester. It informed my law practice and my teaching!
In gratitude for all my professors who informed my practice. —Bruce Lee-Clark L’93
Professor Herzog was a true intellectual. I still have fond memories of taking his Comparative Law course in my final year at Syracuse. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and wit. Rest in peace. —Helen Moore L’94
I lived with Peter during my three years at Syracuse. He was a wonderful person and also my Torts professor. Accordingly, my first year Torts class includes some the fondest memories of my time at Syracuse with many funny stories from Peter at the top of the list. I specifically remember the story of recalcitrant donkey that illustrated the doctrine of last clear chance, while the donkey didn’t survive the story, Peter had the entire class in hysterics while learning a lesson I still remember to this day. I was lucky to have had him as a professor and also to have known him as a friend. My deepest sympathies to his family. —David Moffitt L’96
Professor Herzog was my professor for The Law of the European Community at the College of Law. I could tell as soon as he entered the classroom on the first day that I would like him.
As the semester went on, I was impressed with the breadth and depth of his knowledge and the kindness of his nature.
Through his stories and his teaching, he inspired me to want to study at The Hague Academy of International Law, where he once taught. Eventually, I was able to attend the academy and live in The Hague with my wife and our newly born son.
Professor Herzog was definitely one of those few people that I hoped I could stay close to following studies. I wrote to him asking for mentorship, and he and Brigitte were so kind to me and my family. We went from teacher/student to Professor Herzog being a mentor and friend to me. During visits, we would discuss law, travel, children, their children and grandchildren, and The Hague Academy that was so special to all of us.
Professor Herzog was one of the few favorite professors of mine in my entire life. I am grateful for the time I was with him in class and outside of the classroom, and, for the wisdom that he shared. He was truly a special man and scholar. Professor Herzog was truly a special man and scholar. —Dominic DePersis L’98
