News for alumni and friends of Indiana Law
May 2022
In this issue:
Dean Parrish moving to UCI; Ochoa to serve as interim
After more than eight years at the helm, Dean Austen Parrish is stepping down from the deanship to take on the same position with the University of California, Irvine School of Law. Executive Associate Dean Christiana Ochoa has been named interim dean starting July 1. Ochoa is the Class of 1950 Herman B Wells Endowed Professor at the Law School and serves as the founding academic director for the IU Mexico Gateway, IU’s office in Latin America. She is the first Latina to hold a decanal title at the Law School. Parrish, one of the longer-tenured deans in the history of the Law School, will leave a legacy in Bloomington.
“The Maurer community has been nothing short of amazing since my family and I first moved to Bloomington,” Parrish said. “I want to thank all of the faculty, staff, alumni, and most importantly our students, for their incredible support over the past eight years. While I’m sad to be leaving Indiana, I know the Law School is well positioned for continued success.”
Read more about Dean Parrish’s legacy at Indiana Law, and more about incoming Interim Dean Christiana Ochoa.
Alumna Doris Pryor '03, nominated to Seventh Circuit
President Joe Biden announced three judicial nominees on May 25, including the Hon. Doris L. Pryor—a 2003 graduate of the Law School—to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Judge Pryor would make history, becoming the first judge of color to ever serve on the Seventh Circuit from Indiana. Read the White House announcement.
Five inducted into ALAF
The Law School bestowed its highest honor on five alumni with the induction of Harry Gonso '73; Andy Mallor '74; Judy Waltz '81; and Charlotte Westerhaus-Renfrow '92 into the school's Academy of Law Alumni Fellows. Hon. Rudy Lozano '66; was inducted posthumously. Photos from the event are below.
Aneil Kovvali to join Indiana Law this fall
The Law School will add to its faculty ranks this fall with the arrival of corporate law and governance scholar Aneil Kovvali. Kovvali, currently a Harry A. Bigelow Teaching Fellow and Lecturer in Law at the University of Chicago Law School, will bolster a nationally recognized business and corporate law program in Bloomington. “It’s an amazing intellectual community,” Kovvali said of his decision to join Indiana Law. “The faculty includes leading experts in a broad range of important fields, and it’s also a faculty that is willing and eager to try unconventional approaches and consider new ideas.” Read more about Prof. Kovvali.
Law article by Prof. Rob Fischman selected for Land Use & Environmental Law Review
After two rounds of peer review, Indiana Law Professor Rob Fischman’s “Collaborative Governance Under the Endangered Species Act: An Empirical Analysis of Protective Regulations” has been judged one of the five best environmental law articles published in 2021. The Land Use and Environment Law Review will reprint the article, originally published in the Yale Journal on Regulation. Fischman co-authored the article with conservation biologist Vicky Meretsky, from Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs and Environmental Protection Agency Senior Assistant Regional Counsel Matthew Castelli '15.
The Maurer Shop offers apparel, accessories
Anyone wanting to show their Indiana Law pride has a number of options thanks to a new online store launched earlier this month. The Maurer Shop has high-quality apparel, accessories, drinkware, and more. We will continue adding inventory, and welcome any suggestions for future products (email Mary Edwards with your ideas). Orders are processed and shipped from the Law School. Please pass on the link to the shop to anyone who might be interested in purchasing Maurer merch.
Applegate recognized for excellence in family/divorce law research
Prof. Amy Applegate was presented with the Stanley Cohen Distinguished Research Award last week at the annual conference of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts. Sponsored by the Oregon Family Institute, the award was created to recognize outstanding research and/or research achievements in the field of family and divorce law. Applegate directs the Law School’s Viola J. Taliaferro Family and Children Mediation Clinic, and she and colleagues have conducted extensive research on family law issues, focusing on families experiencing parental divorce or separation. The award is named for the late Dr. Stanley Cohen, founding member of AFCC who served as executive director and co-editor of the Family Court Review.
Recognizing the Class of 2022
For the first time since 2019, the Law School's annual graduation ceremony occurred in person at the Indiana University Auditorium. The school honored 173 JD and 22 Graduate Legal Studies students. The Hon. Jed Rakoff, senior U.S. District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, served as the guest speaker, while Prof. Charlie Geyh delivered remarks on behalf of the faculty. Blaire Mikesell '22, and Conor Bonfil MCL'21, spoke on behalf of the graduating JD and GLS students, respectively. See photos from the ceremony below.
Faculty, staff, and student news
Read In the media for faculty quotes and op-eds in state and national media.
- Profs. Kevin Brown and Ken Dau-Schmidt's "Racial and Ethnic Ancestry of the Nation's Black Law Students: An Analysis of Data from the LSSSE Survey" was published.
- Prof. Dan Cole was named senior research fellow by the Ostrom Workshop.
- 3L Ethan Dawson was one of 22 students selected for the American Constitution Society's Next Generation Leaders Program.
- DEI Director Laura Fonseca was honored with the IU Latino Faculty and Staff Council Distinguished Staff Award.
- Prof. David Gamage's "Tax Now or Tax Never: Political Optionality and the Case for Current-Assessment Tax Reform" (with co-authors) was published in the North Carolina Law Review.
- Prof. Charlie Geyh delivered the keynote address at a Federal Judicial Center conference.
- Kat Grant '22, is one of 84 recipients of a 2022 Equal Justice Works Fellowship.
- Prof. Bill Henderson joined the advisory board of Legal Innovators.
- 2L Brian Hills was honored with the International Association of Privacy Professionals' Annual Westin Scholar Award.
- Prof. Jody Madeira is featured as a legal commentator in the Netflix documentary Our Father. Audiences around the world have seen the film, which ranks in Netflix's top-10 most-watched films since its release.
- Prof. Donna Nagy testified before the U.S. Congress Committee on House Administration's hearing on congressional stock trading in April.
- Dean Austen Parrish will participate in "The Future of Sanctions: Law and Diplomacy" at Harvard's Weatherhead Center for International Affairs on June 3.
- Staff Merit Awards were presented to Sandy Ault, Ashland Zimmerman, the Jerome Hall Law Library's Amanda Morton, and Paul Styles.
- Prof. India Thusi's "Policing is Not a Good" is forthcoming in the Georgetown Law Journal.
- Prof. Tim Waters presented "The Right to Depart: Questioning Assumptions about Secession and Imagining Possibilities" at Liechtenstein Institute on Self-Determination.
- Prof. Deb Widiss' "Pregnant Workers Fairness Acts: Advancing a Progressive Policy in Both Red and Blue America" is forthcoming in the Nevada Law Journal.
Class notes
Keep up with your classmates and submit your own news at our class notes page.
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