Indiana Law Annotated Vol. 14 No. 5 February 9, 1998

Indiana Law Annotated Vol. 14 No. 5 February 9, 1998

Table of Contents

• Spotlight on the Law School Community
• News from Faulty
• News from Student Affairs
• News from the Recorder
• News from Career Services
• Letter to the Editor
• News from Student Organizations
• Events
• Announcements
• Calendar
• Notes from Tokyo

Spotlight on the Law School Community

DOROTHY (DODIE) BOWMAN: FULFILLING THE LAW SCHOOL'S MISSION

Staff members like Dorothy Bowman provide the support that allows our faculty to excel in scholarship and teaching. As a senior faculty secretary, she manages the academic affairs of 4 full-time faculty, 7 adjuncts and 2 lecturers. This involves overseeing the preparation of manuscripts, court documents, correspondence, course materials, as well as travel and meeting arrangements.

When people call the law school, Mrs. Bowman is one of the first people they encounter. As the person who answers the law school's Information Line, she greets numerous callers throughout the day, directing their inquiries to the appropriate person or office.

In addition, she plays an integral role in coordinating the Trial Process Program. Mrs. Bowman created the original mailing list of trial lawyers and judges who critique students' trial performances. The list now contains 1500 participating lawyers and judges. During the Trial Process Program, Mrs. Bowman corresponds with 50-60 of these participants. Students who have benefitted from the program can thank Mrs. Bowman for her help in making it run efficiently.

While Mrs. Bowman prepares manuscripts, directs phone queries and works with Trial Process participants, she still manages to maintain her sense of style and humor.

Humor and verve characterize Dodie (the name she goes by), a person who loves romantic movies, soft music and as her twenty years here have shown working at the law school.

KOSTAS A. POULAKIDAS RECEIVES ELLIOT R. LEWIS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS LAW SCHOLARSHIP

Kostas A. Poulakidas, 2L, has been selected to receive the 1998 Elliot R. Lewis International Business Law Scholarship. Kostas will attend the ABA's International Law Forum in Scotsdale, Arizona in February. Congratulations to Mr. Poulakidas.

News from Faculty

Professor David Fidler was recently involved in an effort to enforce international health law through electronic mail technology. In early January, the European Community imposed an import ban on fresh fish originating in East Africa because East African countries were suffering outbreaks of cholera. A fish merchant posted an e-mail stating that this ban would cause thousands of job losses in East Africa. The merchant posted the message on ProMED-mail, a global electronic mail conference that serves as an early warning system for infectious disease outbreaks. Professor Fidler then posted an analysis of the EC import ban under the International Health Regulations and the World Trade Organization's Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures and argued that the EC ban was a violation of both international legal agreements. An official in DGV at the EC in Brussels then used ProMED mail to post a response to Professor Fidler's arguments. Professor Fidler posted a counter-response, again arguing that the EC was in violation of international law under the IHR and WTO rules. After this exchange, the EC dropped its import ban on fresh fish from East Africa. Individuals who work with ProMED-mail believe that the exchange on ProMED-mail played a role in the EC's policy change.

Professor Cate's book, Privacy in the Information Age, received an Honorable Mention as the Association of American Publishers Best New Professional/Scholarly Book in Law.

News from Student Affairs

SUMMER B710 INDEPENDENT CLINICAL PROJECTS

First and Second Year students interested in a summer experience with the US Attorney's Office in Louisville (interviewing here on February 12), the Department of Environmental Management and Environmental Adjudication Office (both Indianapolis), and the Utility Consumer Counselor's Office (Indianapolis), among some others should see Dean Fromm as soon as possible.

BAR REVIEW COURSES

Seniors and graduating LLM/MCL students who wish to take the New York or Illinois state bar exams this summer and wish to take a possible Bar Review course here for those states should call 800-621-0498 ext. 282 and speak with Ann Glynn about your interest. Assuming adequate interest, there will be bar review courses.

MULTI-STATE PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITY EXAM

One more notice for second and third year students: The MPRE exam will be held here on Friday, March 13. There will be a Bar Review on Saturday, March 7, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. See your BAR/BRI student reps in the lobby on February 10 to sign up for the review. The applications to take the exam are available in Room 024. The early deadline for the standard $48.00 application fee is February 13. The fee is $96.00 for those applying between February 14 and March 4.

LOANS FOR 1998-99

Now is the time to focus on making sure that you submit your FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) renewal form. If you have not received your renewal form (or you are a new borrower), you should fill out a new application form (available in Room 024 and the Financial Aids Office). The deadline for priority consideration (i.e., to insure that your loans are available in a timely manner) is March 1. The Financial Aids Certification (FAC) form is not required for loans for the academic year. However, it is required for loans you may wish to receive for this SUMMER. Again, forms are available in both offices. Private loan applications for amounts in excess of $18,500 are not yet available. You will receive notice when they are. See Dean Fromm if you have any questions.

EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FELLOWSHIP APPLICATIONS

Applications to be considered for an EOF are available in Room 024. These fellowships are awarded to students who, for one reason or another, have been unable to fully develop their scholastic abilities, and thus have not performed as well as they think they could.

NO SMOKING / SMOKING POLICY CHANGE

A few years ago Indiana University enacted a policy prohibiting smoking in university buildings. Since that time people have had to go outside to smoke. Although this solved many problems within university buildings, it has created some additional problems at the law school.

Smoking outside the law school student lounge entrance is one of the problem areas. There is a large intake vent in the covered area outside the student lounge. When people smoke in this area, the smoke is drawn into the building and creates a significant problem in parts of the law library and law school. Accordingly, smoking is prohibited in the covered area outside the student lounge. This has not solved the problem satisfactorily because the intake fans still draw smoke from outside the covered area. University officials indicate that moving or adjusting the intake fan and vent is not a viable solution.

The second problem area is in front of the law school building. Many complaints have been received by SLA (Student Law Association) members and others about people smoking in this area. The strong odor and smoke from cigarettes and cigars are very unpleasant for those entering and leaving the building. Also, cigarette butts that are left all over the ground create an unsightly appearance.

In response to these problems, smoking will now be limited to the patio area on the southeast side of the law school, accessed by the door across from the main entrance to the library and adjacent to the central stairwell door. No smoking will be allowed at the main entrance to the law school or anywhere in the vicinity of the student lounge north entrance (including the area immediately outside of the covered portion of the entrance). We appreciate your cooperation with enforcing this policy. If you have any questions, please see Dean Fromm or your SLA representative. Thank you.

SUMMER STUDY ABROAD PROGRAMS

A few spaces remain for the SPEA-sponsored summer programs in Paris and Brussells (May 18-29) and in Bonn, Frankfort, and Geneva (May 31-June 12). Each program is worth two credits. Applications are available in Room 024.

PRESIDENTS' COUNCIL MEETING

There will be a brief meeting of all presidents and chairs (or a designee) of law school organizations on Wednesday, February 16, at noon, in Room 120.

SCHOLARSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP APPLICATIONS FOR 1998-99

Application forms for next year will be available in Room 024. The deadline for applying will be in early April.

News from the Recorder

Indiana State Bar applications for the July exam are available in the Recorder's Office. The mailing deadline for the application is April 1, 1998.

All tentative May and August 1998 graduates need to complete a graduation data form available in the Recorder's Office. This form includes data for our graduation list and bar certification data. Please complete this form no later than February 13.

News from Career Services

FROM LAW STUDENT TO LAWYER

Representatives from three major law firms in Indianapolis will share their insight on employer expectations of new attorneys. Topics will include hourly billing, keeping a calendar, receiving feedback, social and community obligations, office demeanor, dealing with supervisors and more. Be prepared for your new career. The visiting lawyers will share their insights with students on Thursday, February 26 at noon in Room 122.

STATE COURT CLERKSHIPS

Current clerks with the Indiana Court of Appeals will talk about the benefits of clerking at the state court level, post-graduation. The discussion will include how to apply to the courts, and interview strategies. Court clerks will discuss their experiences, Wednesday, March 4 at 12:15 p.m. in the Moot Court Room (Room 123).

JUDICIAL CLERKSHIP MAIL MERGE

If you are in the process of sending judicial clerkship applications please take note. The disk you provide the faculty secretaries for the purpose of recommendation letters must be formatted with two fields only, the name and address of the judge as the first field and the salutation as the second. The disk of the Federal Judiciary that was available in the Computer Lab was a commercially available disk which was not formatted for the purpose of sending faculty recommendation letters. The information on this disk can be utilized, but must be formatted properly and include the proper salutation (e.g., Dear Judge. . .,Dear Justice. . .,Dear Chief Justice. . .). If you have any questions regarding the formatting of your merge mail and proper salutations, please see either Kathleen or Christine.

Letter to the Editor

Letter to the Editor:
I must express deep concern and anxiety about the "Kiss the Pig" contest currently all the rage at the law school. My angst does not stem from any concern that the pig in question has not consented to its exploitation in a public display of affection, but from a deeper fear concerning the possibility of this innocent porcine-human smooch triggering a global pandemic of infectious disease. Swine are notorious carriers of the influenza virus, and scientific researchers recently discovered that a pig retrovirus can infect human cells. Retroviruses are bad boys in the microbial world (e.g., HIV is a retrovirus) because they are so sneaky in how they infect humans. In this case, a kiss is not just a kiss but a potential invitation to the fourth horseman of the apocalypse. I implore the law school leadership to call a halt to this contest in the name of world health and allow the little piggie to proceed safely and anonymously into the freezer section of the local supermarket. If the smooch must go on, then I implore the chosen faculty member to engage in safe and protected intimate contact with the pig. While such precautions may detract from the pleasure of the event, they may save Bloomington from being the epicenter of a global pandemic of porcine smooch syndrome.

Professor David Fidler

News from Student Organizations

PILF

PILF will be having a meeting on Wednesday, February 11 at noon in Room 120. We will be planning for the upcoming semester, and invite everyone to attend.

Kiss-A-Pig will be held on February 12 at noon in the Moot Court Room. Also this week, PILF will be having a candy sale where students and faculty can send kisses (hershey's) to others. The proceeds from our fundraiser will go toward summer fellowships for students doing public interest work.

WOMEN'S LAW CAUCUS GENERAL MEETING

Women's Law Caucus will meet this Wednesday, February 11, in Room 124 at 12:15 p.m. We will be voting on a few items of business and discussing plans for the Auction, so all members should please attend. In addition, if you have not yet paid dues for the semester, please bring a check with you to the meeting or place it in our treasurer's mailbox. Finally, all members are encouraged to attend auction committee meetings on Thursdays at 12:15 in the library lobby. The auction is fast approaching and Angela and Pavita would really appreciate your help.

PHI DELTA PHI: RUSH AND INITIATION WEEK

This week Phi Delta Phi will be holding rush events and spring initiation. All 1L's, 2L's, and 3L's who are not currently involved in a legal fraternity are invited and encouraged to attend. On Monday, February 9, stop by our information table from 12:00-1:00 p.m. On Tuesday, February 10, we will have a meeting at 12:15 in Room 120. Come get information and ask questions about the organization. On Wednesday, February 11, join us at the Crazy Horse at 7:00 p.m. We'll pick up the first round of beer. On Thursday, February 12, Dean Robel has agreed to join us for a movie night in the Faculty Lounge. We'll have pizza and watch a movie at 5:30 so you can get home in time for your favorite Thursday night shows. Finally, on Friday, February 13, we will have our spring initiation in the Moot Court Room. Initiation will be held at 6:30 p.m. We hope to have you join us.

Events

WOMEN'S REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS: THE LEGACY LEFT BY ROE V. WADE

WLC invites the law school community to a discussion on the topic of Women's Reproductive Rights: the State of the Law and Public Opinion in the Wake of the Roe Anniversary. The discussion will be facilitated by Dawn Wildric-Cole, Germaine Winnick Willett, and Professor Susan Williams, and will invite discussion and debate from all participants. Please join us on Thursday, February 12 at 12:15 p.m. in Room 120. Snacks and drinks will be served.

PATON SERIES PRESENTS ROBERT FERGUSON

Robert Ferguson, Professor of English and Law at Columbia is the next lecturer in the Paton Series. He will be lecturing on the evenings of Tuesday, March 3, in Education, Room 1120 at 7:30 p.m. and Thursday, March 5 at the same time and place. His overview topic is "Courtroom and Community in American Culture." Individual titles of the lectures are (1) "Watching Justice Fail: Spectacle and the Female Victim in Trials of National Transformation" and (2) "Seeing Justice Done: Ritual and Trial Performance in Television America."

BARRISTER'S BALL

The Law School's Annual Barrister's Ball will be held on Saturday, February 21, 1998 at Terry's Banquet & Catering in the upstairs formal dining room off of 17th Street. The attire is semi-formal, and a sit- down dinner will be served. There will be music, a cash bar and a lot of fun for the entire law school community. Dinner will be served at 7:00 p.m. Diners will have their choice of a beef, chicken or vegetarian entree. Tickets go on sale in the law school lobby on Monday, February 9 from noon to 2:00 p.m. daily through February 20. Tickets are $18.00 per person and $32.00 per couple. This event is sponsored by the Black Law Student's Association. We hope to see all of you there for a night of dancing and fun.

Announcements

SUMMER FEDERAL COURTS CLINIC

Students in Federal Courts Clinic intern in the chambers of federal judges in Indianapolis. Students wishing to be considered for the clinic this summer should submit a resume and a writing sample to Dean Robel by February 16. For more information, please email Dean Robel at lrobel@indiana.edu.

SUMMER INTERNSHIPS---PAID AND UNPAID---WITH THE INDIANA ATTORNEY GENERAL

If you would like to be considered for a paid internship with the Indiana Attorney General's Office for the summer, you need to get your application in to the Office of the Chief of Staff, Dennis Lee, within the next week to 10 days. If you would like to be considered for an unpaid internship for credit, you need to get your resume to Dean Robel by February 20. Students are free to apply for a paid internship, and an unpaid internship if they don't get the paid one. Just let Dean Robel know that you have in fact also applied for a paid position.

PROFESSOR SEEKS RESEARCH ASSISTANT

Professor Orenstein needs a research assistant. Most of the research will concern evidence law. Please provide a resume and brief statement of interest (including hours you are available to work.) You may give these materials to Shawn Nolen in Room 252A.

Calendar

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10

...Phi Delta Phi Meeting, 12:15 p.m., Room 120.

...Sign up for March 7 Bar Review.

WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 11

...PILF, 12:00, Room 120.

...Women's Law Caucus, 12:15, Room 124.

...Phi Delta Phi at the Crazy Horse, 7:00 p.m.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 12

...PILF Kiss-A-Pig Fundraiser, 12:00, Moot Court Room.

...WLC discussion on Reproductive Rights: The legacy left by Roe v. Wade, 12:15, Room 120.

...Phi Delta Phi movie night with Dean Robel, 5:30 p.m., Faculty Lounge.

...US Attorney's Office, Louisville, interviews here. See Dean Fromm.

...Fee for applying for Bar Exam doubles

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13

...Phi Delta Phi initiation, 6:30 p.m., Moot Court Room.

...ELS Summer Internship applications due.

...Deadline for all tentative May and August 1998 graduates to complete a graduation data form.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 16

...Presidents' Council Meeting, noon, Room 120.

...Resume and a writing sample for Federal Courts Clinic interns to Dean Robel.

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20

...Resumes to Dean Robel for summer internships.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21

...Barrister's Ball, Terry's Banquet and Catering, 7:00 p.m.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 26

...Visiting lawyers share insights, noon, Room 122.

SUNDAY, MARCH 1

...Deadline, priority consideration for financial aid.

MONDAY, MARCH 2

...Sign up deadline for Law Library Interrogatories.

TUESDAY, MARCH 3

...Paton Series, Education, Room 1120, 7:30 p.m.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4

Court clerks discuss their experiences,12:15 p.m., Moot Court Room (Room 123).

THURSDAY, MARCH 5

...Paton Series, Education, Room 1120, 7:30 p.m.

FRIDAY, MARCH 6

...SLA Annual Casino Party.

SATURDAY, MARCH 7

...Bar Review, 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

MON.-TUES., MARCH 9-10

...Law Library Interrogatories.

FRIDAY, MARCH 13

...MPRE Exam.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 1

...Mailing deadline for Indiana State Bar applications for the July exam.

Notes from Tokyo

Joe Hoffmann
I hope that all of you had an enjoyable holiday season, and have now settled into a happy and productive new year!

Here in Tokyo, yesterday was celebrated as the first official day of spring, according to the old lunar calendar that was used in Japan prior to the Meiji Era (i.e., before the 1860's). Somehow, though, it's hard to believe that spring has actually arrived -- the cold and damp winter weather, combined with the notorious absence of insulation or central heating in Japanese homes and apartment buildings, still has me shivering and huddling under blankets to keep warm! On the other hand, I saw my first plum blossoms in a park just outside of Tokyo last weekend, so maybe winter won't last much longer after all...

Meanwhile, the countdown to the Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, has reached its last few days. The eyes of the world will soon be upon the city of Nagano, which is about eighty minutes by Shinkansen (bullet train) from Tokyo, along with several nearby smaller towns and villages where Olympic events will also be held. The so-called "Japan Alps" are truly beautiful, especially when blanketed by winter snow, and it should be a great couple of weeks -- everyone in Japan seems to be getting excited about the Olympics! As for me, I'll be traveling (along with my family) to Nagano on February 12 and 13 (that will be the evenings of February 11 and 12, Bloomington time) to watch women's ice hockey (U.S. versus Japan), Nordic combined skiing, and women's 500-meter speed skating. Watch for me on the TV -- I'll be wearing a garish, bright-orange-and-black ski jacket!

On to more serious matters... While the U.S. media seems to have become almost totally fixated on the President's sex life (a subject that doesn't really interest the people here at all!), the news in Japan is all about the continuing series of scandals that has rocked the government and many major corporations. To put it mildly, Japan's white-collar-crime prosecutors have much more work than they can handle right now! The sokaiya (or corporate racketeer) investigations, about which I wrote last fall, have recently hit a number of new companies -- including Mitsubishi Electric, which only yesterday publicly admitted that it had been paying megabucks to the extortioners for years.

Even more troubling, however, is the fact that the vaunted Ministry of Finance (sometimes called the "Ministry of Ministries" -- high praise, in a society where the ministries virtually run the show) has been brought to its knees by scandal. In the past week, several top MOF officials have been arrested and charged with accepting bribes in exchange for revealing the dates and contents of supposedly secret investigations to the very financial institutions that were being investigated. In some cases, the MOF officials actually advised such firms on how to hide their financial losses so that the losses wouldn't show up in the firms' official balance sheets. In the wake of the scandal, the Minister of Finance and several of his top deputies have resigned, and one official even committed suicide (just up the road from my apartment building).

All of this has distracted attention from the "real" problem for the MOF, which is how to stimulate the Japanese domestic economy and thereby provide a needed financial boost for all of East Asia. If Japan doesn't shake off its current economic stagnation soon, there simply won't be enough customers in the world to buy the products of countries like South Korea, Thailand, and Indonesia, which are trying to recover from their devastating currency devaluations by increasing their exports. (The only other country that could absorb such increased East Asian production is the U.S. -- but that seems unlikely, given America's current protectionist political climate.) East Asia's smaller economies desperately need someone to buy their (suddenly much cheaper) products -- but, right now, Japan can't oblige, because it has so many of its own financial problems.

Incidentally, the public perception here in Japan is that the U.S. is altogether too cocky about its own healthy financial situation these days -- most Japanese people don't see the current East Asian financial crisis as any kind of indication that the "American way" is superior, and they certainly don't like to hear American critics and commentators suggesting such things. I can only imagine how such comments are being taken in places like Seoul, Bangkok, and especially Kuala Lumpur (where the Malaysian Prime Minister just loves to fan the flames of anti-American sentiment).

Speaking of other places in East Asia, I'm looking forward to making a couple of short trips outside of Japan next month -- to Hong Kong, where I'll be visiting one of our alums who's now teaching at the University of Hong Kong, and to Bangkok, where I'll be stopping in at two of the Thai universities that produce many of our best international graduate students, Thammasat University and Chulalongkorn University. More about those places in later installments...

Last week, I made a whirlwind speaking tour of Japan, almost from one end to the other. With the sponsorship of the U.S. Embassy, I delivered lectures about American federalism in Sapporo (far north), Osaka (middle), and Okinawa (far south/west), all in the space of about ten days. Not enough to induce jet lag, but certainly enough to keep me pretty busy!

In snowy Sapporo, I spent some quality time with Andrew Pardieck, a recent IU law graduate who's now studying for a Ph.D. in law at Hokkaido University, one of the top five law schools in Japan. Andrew is doing extremely well at Hokudai -- so much so that the faculty there actually offered him a position as a (temporary) visiting professor. For the moment, however, Andrew is content to remain a mere graduate student, and keep plugging away at his already book-length dissertation on alternative dispute resolution (in Japanese, of course). By the way, Andrew asked me to send his best to all of his friends back in Bloomington...

And, in sunny and warm Okinawa, I encountered -- to my great surprise -- a gentleman who was one of the very first international graduate students at the IU Law School, back in the early 1950's. Today, Akira Sakima is one of the most influential business leaders in Okinawa -- he's presently Chair of the local Chamber of Commerce -- but we spent most of our traditional Okinawan dinner together reminiscing about IU basketball (he arrived at IU Law School the same year that Don Schlundt led the Hoosiers to the NCAA title). Small world...

Well, it's time to wrap up this lengthy missive. Until next time, enjoy the winter weather, and root for those Hoosiers as they try to get ready for the inaugural Big Ten Basketball Tournament (yuck!).