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Legal Writing, Reasoning and Research Summer 2016 From the Chair Inside this issue: From the Chair 1 Here I am sitting in my chair wondering how the Blackwell Award Winner: 2 heck I got to be Chair. And what it is I am sup- Collen Barger posed to say to the over 900 members of our Sec- AALS LWRR Section Award 3 tion. Winner: Suzanne Rowe I still don’t know about the first, but on the sec- Reimagining the Curriculum 4 ond, I just got back from the Global Legal Skills to Address Student Needs and Bench and Bar Demands (“GLS”) Conference in Verona. I noticed, not for the first time, that when I am surrounded by Legal Summer Mojo: Teach an 5 Writing Professors, I smile a lot. This is true Advanced Course whether I am at a small, one day conference, or a From the LWRR Outreach 5 multi-day, multi-track conference like those of the Committee GLS, Legal Writing Institute (“LWI”) and Associ- Pedagogy for New Law 6 ation of American Law Schools (“AALS”). It is School Teachers: What true regardless of whether the colleagues at the Every Law Professor Should Know About How Students conference are U.S. Professors only or a mix of Learn domestic and international ones like at GLS. The Bob Brain 2017 Annual Meeting LWRR 7 reason, I believe, is that we are a group that is fun Clinical Professor of Law, Loyola Section Programs (Tentative) to be around -- thoughtful, compassionate, dedi- Law School, Los Angeles cated, and funny. Summer Mojo: Accentuate 7 them not only to benefit our students from other the Positive In that regard, I don’t know that we give ourselves cultures, but to make domestic JD students more Best Practices for Supervising 8 enough credit (and our continuing battle for status aware. (It seemed like everyone in the audience Seminar Papers and Other proves that if we don’t give ourselves credit, no already knew, or at least had heard of, “The Five Scholarly Writings one else will). We have confidence, but not ego; Habits of Fill-in-the-Blank,” but as is typical of Summer Mojo: Get Away to 9 are reflective without being boring; and show new, cutting edge research, I had not. When do Get it Back compassion without fawning. you people find the time to learn this stuff??). Summer Mojo: Hot Fun in 10 Some recent examples from GLS prove my point. the Summertime and Think- Mimi Samuel and Laurel Oates (both from Seat- ing Ahead to the Fall Kathryn Fehrman (Southwestern) and Kathryn tle) taught us to evaluate whether we were rela- Mercer (Case Western) made a presentation that Upcoming Conferences 11 tionship or categorical thinkers, weaving in funny made us search inside for our values, and demon- stories like how, while teaching in Uganda, after 2016 LWRR Section Com- 14 strated how, once we get our students to do the politely declining to write a speech for the Ugan- mittee Assignments same, they can better read for policy. In soliciting dan Chief Justice who was to introduce them at comments from the crowd, they made sure every- Section Leadership 15 an event, being told that it wasn’t a request and one’s view was heard and complimented. the speech was due the next day. There were Anne Goldstein and Lynn Su (both from New many, many more examples. York Law School) spoke about “The Five Habits (continued p. 2) of Cross-Culture Lawyering” and how we can use Page 2 Legal Writing, Reasoning and Research 2016 ALWD-LWI Thomas Blackwell Award Winner: Colleen Barger The Association of Legal Writing Direc- The Blackwell Award Committee tors and the Legal Writing Institute pre- agreed that Coleen exemplifies these sented the 2016 Thomas F. Blackwell qualities. Its award announcement Memorial Award for Outstanding noted that Coleen has inspired thou- Achievement in the Field of Legal Writ- sands of students; she has mentored ing to Coleen Miller Barger, Altheimer legal writing colleagues across the Distinguished Professor of Law Univer- country; she is a co-founding editor of sity of Arkansas at Little Rock William the Journal of Appellate Practice and H. Bowen School of Law Process; and she has made exceptional This prestigious award is presented annu- contributions to ALWD, LWI, and ally to a person who has made an out- legal writing educators through her standing contribution to improve the work on various editions of the field of Legal Writing by demonstrating ALWD Citation Manual and the an ability to nurture and motivate stu- ALWD Companion as well as her dents to excellence, a willingness to help service as a Board member for both other legal writing educators improve ALWD and LWI. their teaching skills or their legal writing programs, and an ability to create and Her nomination letters were extraordi- integrate new ideas for teaching and mo- nary. As one of her nominators not- tivating legal writing educators and stu- ed: “For nearly twenty-five years, dents. Coleen has represented our profession with the highest dedication and service in countless ways: as a teacher, schol- ar, mentor, board member, advocate, committee member, committee chair, and all-around leader of the legal writ- From the Chair, ing community.” continued Coleen Miller Barger accepts her award Another echoed this high praise: at the Blackwell Award Reception “Coleen . embodies the spirit of the award. I knew Tom Blackwell as a their students, motivate and sup- Summer conferences like this are one of genuinely kind person who loved his port young professionals entering the ways that I refresh my inspiration students, interacted heartily with his academia as teachers of legal writ- each summer and get my “mojo” back colleagues, and gave freely of his time ing, and give back enormously to for the new school year. We asked our to LWI and ALWD. [This award] our professional organizations. members how they do it, and have pub- should go to persons who nurture Colleen is that . person. “ lished some of their answers in this issue. If you are debating whether to come to an upcoming conference, like LWI in July or AALS next January, I hope you will come down on the “yes” side. You’ll learn things (if you are like me you will learn a lot) but more importantly, you’ll get to hang out with some cool people. And if we haven’t met, I hope you will introduce yourself. How will you find me? I’ll be the one with the big smile. -Bob Brain Teri Mc-Murtry Chubb and Linda Berger presenting the Blackwell Award to Coleen Summer 2016 Page 3 2016 AALS LWRR Section Award Winner: Suzanne Rowe At the 2016 Annual Meeting, the Section utive Committee for a number of years Presented its Annual Award to Suzanne and was Section Chair from 2006-2007. Rowe, the James L. and llene R. Hershner She continued to serve on a variety of Professor, Director of Legal Research and committees and most recently has served Writing Program, and Director of Extern- the section in a really special way with ships at The University of Oregon School the Committee on Committees. I want to of Law. Professor Rowe’s colleagues paid say a few words about this because it her an homage that moved many of those goes to the heart of her service. What is present to tears. Additionally, Past Sec- this section’s purpose? How do we fit in? tion Chair Jennifer Romig presented the What are our strengths and our weak- award with the following remarks. nesses as a section? Suzanne is one of the very best I’ve met in 15 years in this field at taking on these really hard questions. She thinks strategi- cally but she also comes at these kinds of questions with an open, creative mind. She knows the history and she’s not na- ïve, but she’s not bitter. She sees a lot of Suzanne Rowe during her colleagues’ possibilities organized around the core remarks at the award ceremony belief that this section has a special op- portunity. This section has a special op- is huge and overwhelming, but when portunity to learn from each other and Suzanne looks at it, and when she gather at very large hotels at the begin- looks at the AALS overall with all of ning of each new year. But there’s more the many voices and interests and than that. Every time I talk to her, I am conflicts within it, she sees opportuni- reminded that the Section has a special ty. So Suzanne, for your kindness, opportunity to make connections with your experience, your energy, your other colleagues and start conversations strategy, your dedication, and your with other disciplines within legal schol- service to the section over the years, I arship and legal education. This meeting say congratulations. Jennifer Romig with the LWRR Section Award Trophy Anyone who knows Suzanne won’t be surprised to know that she preferred not to speak here. She is one of the quietest and most humble members of our com- munity yet she is someone who has made an enormous impact with her scholarship and leadership, and her personal support of many, many people here today includ- ing me. I want to talk a little bit about Suzanne’s contributions to the AALS, and Joan Rocklin and Rebekah Hanley will talk about Suzanne’s work more generally. Suzanne has been involved with AALS for years, serving on almost every com- Joan Rocklin and Rebekah Hanley describing Suzanne’s mittee the Section has ever had at one accomplishments and leadership at the award ceremony point or another.

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