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W I N T E R 2 0 1 3

ICONLEX

JOURNEYS

Tom VanKirk:A Career

Well‐Planned

First‐year Students Share their Journeys

to the Law School

Ira Wagler:All that you Can’t

Leave Behind

to and from

The Law

Lewis Katz BuildingUniversity Park, PA 16802-1017

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

ALUMNI & REUNION WEEKEND 2013Celebrating reunions for classes ending in 3 and 8

Friday, September 27 and

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Lewis Katz HallCarlisle, PA

ANNUAL ALUMNI CLE & TAILGATE

BLUE-WHITE WEEKEND

Saturday, April 20, 2013 Lewis Katz BuildingUniversity Park, PA

Save the Dates

P406_cv_Layout 1 2/18/13 11:57 AM

Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • Winter 2013 51

ing Star" by Law & Politics Maga‐zine. She concentrates her practiceon medical malpractice, aviation,product liability, and toxic tort mat‐ters.

Lauren Abbott ’05 joined thePhiladelphia office of Reed Smith,LLP, where she is a member of thefinancial industry group.

Brooke E.D. Say ’05 of Stock andLeader, LLP in York, PA, has beennamed to the Pennsylvania RisingStars list as one of the top up‐and‐coming attorneys for 2012.

Kerry May ’07joined thePhiladelphia of‐fice of Rawle &Henderson, LLP.She concentratesher practice on

the defense of commercial motorvehicle companies and their insur‐ers. She began her legal career as ajudicial law clerk for the HonorableCarol L. Van Horn in the FranklinCounty Court of Common Pleas.

Ethan K. Stone ’07 opened the LawOffices of Ethan K. Stone in CampHill, PA, a general and personal in‐jury practice.

Jonathan L.Phillips '08foundedJonathanPhillips, P.C., anI.T.‐focused crim‐inal defense and

civil litigation firm in Northern Vir‐ginia. The opening of the solo pri‐

vate practice comes on the heels offour years of service as an assistantcommonwealth attorney in FairfaxCounty, VA.

Brian Mains ’10 joined the Harris‐burg law firm Skalatos Zonarich, LLC.

After completing a clerkship in theOffice of the Governor of New Jersey,Hillary Hewitt ’11 was promoted toassistant counsel to Governor ChrisChristie.

Daniel L. Puskar ’11 joined TuroRobinson in Carlisle, PA, in November2011. He focuses on criminal defense,civil litigation, and contract law.

Hannah Suhr ’11 joined The MorganLaw Firm in June 2012. She is thefirm’s chief ARD attorney and appel‐late advocate.

Adam R. Hracho ’11 is serving inthe U.S. Air Force JAG Corps andwelcomes those interested in theJAG Corps to contact him for addi‐tional information.

Kevin J. Hayes ’12, PSU ’09 recentlyjoined Mette, Evans & Woodside asan associate. He will concentrate hispractice on litigation, banking, andbusiness law.

Christopher L. Ryder ’12 joinedStock and Leader, LLP, in August2012 and is a member of the firm’senvironmental law group, focusinghis practice in the areas of federaland state environmental and agri‐cultural laws, municipal law, and re‐lated regulatory actions.

D. Fenton Adams ’49South Padasena, Florida

Joseph J. Armao III ’75Tiboron, California

Jack H. Barton ’53York, Pennsylvania

Charles L. Board ’49Hockessin, Delaware

Patrick Lee Boyle ’04Vancouver, Washington

Ralph G. Clouser ’49, PSU ’43Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Karen M. Cunningham ’83 Elsmere, Delaware

Francis “Joey” Goulart ’11Ebensberg, Pennsylvania

Roger J. Hertz ’69Bowie, Maryland

The Hon. Jeffrey Edward Leber ’72

Manns Choice, Pennsylvania

John “Jack” P. Merlo ’73Indiana, Pennsylvania

William D. Morgan ’53Bradenton, Florida

The Honorable John W. Keller ’51

DuPage County, Illinois

Joseph Zaffiro ’40Wyomissing, Pennsylvania

IN MEMORIAM

IN MEMORIAM EDWIN KLETT

Edwin L. Klett ’62 passed away inMount Lebanon, PA, on October 7, 2012. A graduate of Bucknell University andThe Dickinson School of Law, he in‐spired all five of his children—David S.Klett ’87, Lauren Klett Kroeger ’89,Krista Klett ’08, and Kirk T. Klett ’10,and Keenan L. Klett ’11—to pursue careers in law. He is survived by hiswife Janis and four granddaughters.

Klett was a partner at Eckert, Sea‐mans, Cherin & Mellot LLC beforefounding Klett, Rooney, Lieber & Schor‐ling in 1988, which then merged withBuchanan Ingersoll PC. He specializedin trial work, corporate law, banking,securities, and business matters, ap‐pearing on the Pennsylvania SuperLawyers list every year since 2006. Heserved on the Board of Counselors forThe Dickinson School of Law and aspresident of the Academy of TrialLawyers of Allegheny County.

“Ed always will be rememberedbecause he gave back to the professionand the community—and never be‐cause it enhanced his practice but because as he said’ lawyers should.’ I served with him on the Board of theDickinson School of Law, the Pennsyl‐vania Civil Rules Committee as well asmany Pennsylvania Supreme Court adhoc Committees where his judgmentand talent were known and soughtafter. Truly, Ed was a great lawyer andwill be missed by all of us because ofhis commitment and leadership,” saidWilliam R. Caroselli ’66.

LEXICONFeaturesMEET THE PENN STATE JOURNAL OF LAW

AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS 14

A new open access journal occupies the space

between law and international affairs.

PERSONAL STATEMENTS 16

Eight first-year students share their journeys to the

Law School.

A CAREER WELL-PLANNED 25

Tom VanKirk ’70 explains the value of strategic planning.

AN UPHILL CLIMB 28

John “Jack” C. Clough ’65 recounts a six-mile hike to

plead his case before Justice William O. Douglas.

THE MIND UNDER THE HAT 31

Jane Alexander ’54 looks back on fifty years of legal

practice.

ALL THAT YOU CAN’T LEAVE BEHIND 33

Ira Wagler ’97 pens a best-selling memoir on leaving

the Old Order Amish community.

EXCERPT OF GROWING UP AMISH 34

FOREVER FRIENDS 36

One room assignment in Carlisle sparked a friendship

of a lifetime for Marion Welp ’96, Mercedes Guzman ’96,

and Jacqueline Busterna ’96.

16

31

33

36

Lexicon is published for alumni, students, faculty, staff,

and friends of The Dickinson School of Law of The Penn-

sylvania State University. Correspondence may be

adressed to the editor at [email protected].

Portions of this magazine may be reprinted if credit is

given to The Dickinson School of Law, Lexicon, and the

author.

P406_cv_Layout 1 3/4/13 1:32 PM

This publication is available in alternative media on request.

The Pennsylvania State University is committed to the policythat all persons shall have equal access to programs, facili‐ties, admission and employment without regard to personalcharacteristics not related to ability, performance, or qualifi‐cations as determined by University policy or by state or fed‐eral authorities. It is the policy of the University to maintainan academic and work environment free of discrimination,including harassment. The Pennsylvania State University pro‐hibits discrimination and harassment against any person be‐cause of age, ancestry, color, disability or handicap, geneticinformation, national origin, race, religious creed, sex, sexualorientation, gender identity, or veteran status and retaliationdue to the reporting of discrimination or harassment. Dis‐crimination, harassment, or retaliation against faculty, staff,or students will not be tolerated at The Pennsylvania StateUniversity. Direct all inquiries regarding this Nondiscrimina‐tion Policy to the Affirmative Action Director, The Pennsylva‐nia State University, 328 Boucke Building, University Park, PA168022‐2801: tel. 814‐863‐0471/TTY. U.Ed. LAW 13‐33

EDITOR

Crystal L. Stryker ’04

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Joshua Bam ’13

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Kelly Rimmer

DIRECTOR OF ALUMNI RELATIONS

Robin Fulton

EDITORIAL BOARD

Jaime Bumbarger ’10Attorney, MidPenn Legal Services

Professor Harvey Feldman ’69

Wanika Fisher ’13

Ellen Foreman Director of Marketing and

Communications

Jessica Holst ’98Attorney, MidPenn Legal Services

Professor Marie T. ReillyAssociate Dean for Academic Affairs

Professor Megan Riesmeyer ’03

Professor Victor C. Romero

CONTRIBUTORS

John C. Clough ‘65Ellen ForemanRobin FultonPamela KnowltonJames PuckettKelly Rimmer

PHOTOS

Ian Bradshaw PhotographyEric FelackJadrian KlingerPamela KnowltonMike Morgan PhotosPeter Olson PhotographyCarl SocolowMaryland State Bar AssociationMary Szmolko

3

13

41

46

7

DepartmentsFrom the Dean 2

By the Numbers 3

In Brief 4

On Campus 6

The Docket 9

Alumni News 12

Featured Faculty Scholarship:

Location, Location, Location: Using Cost of

Living to Achieve Tax Equity 38

Why I Teach: Q&A With Bill Fox 41

Faculty Highlights 43

Why We Give 46

Class Notes 48

In Memoriam 51

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 1

The theme of this issue is jour-neys to and from the law. As youmay know, I am about to embark ona new journey of my own, as dean ofPeking University’s School ofTransnational Law. My assignmentthere will be to continue the work ofbringing American-style J.D. legaleducation to the People’s Republic ofChina, alongside a traditional Chi-nese law Juris Master. The opportu-nity interests me because of itsuniqueness and my longstanding in-terest in Asian affairs and cross-bor-der law practice. Peking University isChina’s best, so the potential impacton the future of international lawpractice and U.S.-China relations issignificant. The experience will dove-tail with our efforts to expand the in-ternational footprint of TheDickinson School of Law.

My experience at Penn State hasbeen rewarding beyond my expecta-tions. We have achieved much as alaw school, thanks to the excellence,diversity, and dedication of our fac-ulty, staff, students, and a very sup-portive University. Ouraccomplishments include the cre-ation of a new Law School campuson Penn State's flagship UniversityPark campus, the appointment ofmore than 50 internationally

renowned scholars and advocates,dramatic improvements in studentbody diversity and academic creden-tials, a $130 million investment in el-egant new LEED certified facilities, asignificant expansion of the LawSchool's international programs andcurriculum, a clinical education andexperiential learning program sec-ond to none in the United States,and the development of a nationallyacclaimed distance education pro-gram made possible by specially de-signed classrooms equipped withadvanced audiovisual technology.We all should be proud of these dis-tinctions.

As I leave, The Dickinson Schoolof Law begins the next phase of itsjourney as two separate law schoolsoperating under the Penn State Uni-versity banner. This new directionwill allow our Carlisle and UniversityPark campuses to pursue the strate-gies each needs to be successful in anenvironment very different from theone that existed when the mergertook place. Each school will have anew dean to navigate the challengesahead and I look forward to celebrat-ing the new milestones of each.

With thanks and my very bestwishes.

F R O M T H E D E A N

2 Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • law.psu.edu

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:12 PM Page 2

6 Number of miles John Clough ’65 hiked,

in courtroom attire, to petition Supreme

Court Justice William O. Douglas, who was

sitting as the Circuit Justice for the Ninth

Circuit (See page 28)

8 Months Nicole

Anderson ’14 has

to learn Mandarin

in Taiwan, where

she is studying as

a Boren Fellow

(See page 4)

10,074Downloads of

articles published by

Penn State Journal

of Law and Interna-

tional Affairs as of

January 15, 2013

(See page 14)

B Y T H E N U M B E R S

They passed bar

exams in 25 states

nationwide with an

overall pass rate

of 91%.

The CLASS of 2012EXCELLED on their

BAR EXAMS


P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 3


Law School Named One of 20 Most Innovative by National JuristThe Law School’s connection with the PennState School of International Affairs and theability for a law student to earn a J.D. andM.I.A. in just four years landed Penn State Lawon the National Jurist list of 20 most innova-tive law schools, published in the September2012 issue.

PDAA Rings in its 100th Birthday The Pennsylvania District Attorneys Associa-tion hosted its centennial celebration on cam-pus in September with a panel on the role ofthe modern prosecutor. Pennsylvania SupremeCourt Justice J. Michael Eakin ’75moderated the panel.

Nancy Welsh Tapped toLead Dispute ResolutionMagazineNancy A. Welsh, WilliamTrickett Faculty Scholar andProfessor of Law, has replacedHarvard Law School ProfessorEmeritus Frank E.A. Sanderas editorial board chair. Shewill be joined by co-chairJoseph B. Stulberg, theMichael E. Moritz Chair in Al-ternative Dispute Resolutionat Ohio State’s Moritz Collegeof Law. Published quarterlyby the American Bar Associa-tion, the magazine covers de-velopments, news, and trends

in dispute resolution.

U.S. Marine Nicole Anderson ’14Selected for a Boren FellowshipHaving finished U.S. Marine CorpsOfficer Candidate School and one year of lawschool, Nicole Anderson ’14 has another chal-lenge in mind: learning Mandarin Chinese ineight months. She is a 2012-2013 Boren Fellowat National Taiwan University. The fellowshipprovides funding for Anderson to take 415hours of language instruction in addition to anindependent study course, classes in maritimeand international law, and volunteer work. TheLaw School and National Taiwan Universityhave an exchange agreement; Anderson’s cred-its from NTU will count toward her law degree.

National Taiwan University

Nicole Anderson

Nancy Welsh

I N B R I E F

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:12 PM Page 4


CIA Legal Chief Talks About Balancing Security and Liberty

Stephen W. Preston, chief legalcounsel to the CIA, spoke with stu-dents in an exclusive closed-doorsession about national security and

CIA recruitment. “Students were ex-tremely privileged to have an opportu-

nity to talk directly with the generalcounsel to the Central Intelligence Agency," said ViceAdmiral (Ret.) James W. Houck, DistinguishedScholar in Residence, who was instrumental in bring-ing Preston to the Law School. “This was a rare oppor-tunity for Penn State students to gain insight into thereal world challenges of ensuring that our governmentstrikes the right balance between security and liberty.”

Civil Rights Appellate Clinic Students are Waiting on SCOTUS Clinic students wait for a decision in Vance v. BallState University, which could have a widespread im-pact on how employment discrimination cases arehandled nationwide. At issue is who qualifies as a su-pervisor under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.Representing the National Employment Lawyers Asso-ciation and AARP, the Clinic filed an amicus brief ar-guing that the Supreme Court should adopt as its ruleof law the guidance set forth by the EEOC on how todefine who is a supervisor for Title VII purposes.

The Civil Rights Appellate Clinic was

appointed as amicus in a suit under the

Americans with Disabilities Act last

semester. In the months following the

Third Circuit’s appointment, clinic

students Heather Bennett ’13, Jessica

Brown ’13, Alexander Kahn ’13,

Christopher Polchin ’13, Ramandeep

Singh ’13, and Mallary Willatt ’13, as well

as clinical fellow Wes Corning ’12,

parsed their way through nearly 1,400

pages of transcripts, examined exhibits,

and analyzed pre- and post-trial briefs to

gain a better understanding of the issues

involved. While not officially represent-

ing the plaintiff, who had been success-

ful at the trial court level, the clinic is

representing her interests and the

correct rule of law in the amicus brief.

“You’re basically a party without being

bound to represent all of her interests.

You operate under party rules,” explained

clinic director Professor Michael Foreman.

Clinic Acts as Friend to theThird Circuit Court of Appeals

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 5

Clark AsayJ.D., Stanford Master’s in Philosophy, CambridgeB.A., Brigham Young University

Clark Asay studies the Internetand technology, particularlywhether laws around opensource software and informa-tion privacy and whether theyhelp or hinder innovation.Prior to his academic career hewas corporate counsel forLab126, an Amazon companythat develops and designs con-

sumer electronic products such as the KindleFire. Before that he was an associate in the Tech-nology Transactions Group at Wilson SonsiniGoodrich & Rosati.

***

Seth ChertokJ.D., University of PennsylvaniaB.A., University of Chicago

Seth Chertok joined the Law School from Morrison & Foerster LLP in San Francisco,where he worked on the corporate, business andsecurities matters. He is interested in the impactof Title IV of the Dodd-Frank Act and relatedSEC rules on investment advisers and plans toexpand his scholarship to include torts andmergers and acquisitions.

“JoiningPenn Statehas givenme the op-portunity toexpand thefocus of myresearchfrom corpo-rate and se-curities lawto includetort law.The high-

light of my year has been becoming an expert intort law, and rekindling my love for a subjectthat I left behind in law school.”

***

Lt. Gen. (Ret.) James DubikM.A., Command and General Staff CollegeM.A., Johns Hopkins UniversityB.A., Gannon University

Lt. Gen. James Dubik accepted the GeneralOmar N. Bradley Chair in Strategic Leadershipin July and shares his cross-cultural and leader-ship experience with law and international af-fairs students. Before retiring from the Army in2008, Lt. Gen. Dubik commanded I Corps inIraq and the Multinational Security TransitionCommand. He was the senior U.S. official re-sponsible for training and equipping the Iraqimilitary and police forces. He also commanded


NEW SCHOLARS JOIN LAW SCHOOL FACULTY

New faculty members joined the Law School this year, bringingtheir perspectives on law, life, leadership, the practice of law, andeverything in between.

O N C A M P U S

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 6


the I U.S.Corps inFort Lewis,Washing-ton, wherehe was re-sponsiblefor training40,000 sol-diers forwar and de-veloping orcontinuingmilitary re-lationships

with Korea, Japan, and Thailand. The Omar Bradley Chair is a joint initiative

among the United States Army War College,Dickinson College, Penn State School of Interna-tional Affairs, and the Law School designed toadvance the study of strategic leadership and en-hance civilian-military dialogue.

***

VADM (Ret.) James W. HouckLL.M., Georgetown University Law CenterJ.D., University of Michigan Law SchoolB.S., U.S. Naval Academy

Vice Admi-ral JamesW. Houckretiredfrom hisposition asthe 41stJudge Ad-vocate Gen-eral of theU.S. Navyand joinedthe LawSchool a

few days later as a Distinguished Scholar in Res-

idence. He focuses his teaching and scholarshipon international and national security law as wellas maritime law and policy.

After graduating from the U.S. Naval Acad-emy, he qualified as a surface warfare officeraboard a destroyer before attending the Univer-sity of Michigan for his law degree. Among hisassignments as a Navy JAG, he served as DeputyLegal Counsel to the Chairman of the JointChiefs of Staff, and as principal legal counsel tothe Commander, U.S. Atlantic Fleet, and theCommander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Com-mand in Bahrain. VADM Houck also served inthe Navy’s Office of Legislative Affairs, and hasbeen a Navy prosecutor and defense attorney.

***

James PuckettLL.M., New York UniversityJ.D., B.A., University of Virginia

Tax scholar James Puckettis a fan of distributive jus-tice. “I examine perspec-tives on how resourcesshould be distributed in so-ciety and their implementa-tion in the tax system,” hesaid. “This is an interdisci-plinary approach, and itsometimes challenges clas-sical notions of happiness,such as the idea that everyone maximizes theirhappiness if left alone.” His recent research focuseson personal expenses and how the tax code treatsdifferently situated people. He pays close attentionto low and moderate-income taxpayers.

Prior to his academic career, Puckett was a taxassociate at the Washington, D.C., office of Fried,Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP,where he analyzed tax aspects of mergers, acqui-sitions, spin-offs, private equity, and financialproducts.

Carl

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P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 7

A recent Gary Gildin Advocacy class startedwith a game of catch—with an imaginary ball,led by Noel White and Henry Everett, membersof the Actors from the London Stage. The exer-cise was designed to get students to center them-selves and connect with the present.

It’s all about presentation, according toWhite. “The ability to be in the present is themost important skill an actor has in his toolbox,”he said. “The key to a winning performance forboth lawyers and actors is not just about whatthey say, but how they say and present it.”

“One very useful tool they taught us was howto individually look at each member of the audi-ence (jury) and make meaningful, but friendly,eye contact,” said third-year student SarahHyser. “I think that’s an important tool to havebecause too often as young lawyers we are intim-idated in the courtroom, and I think we pass thaton to the jury if we’re not careful. The actors re-layed that it’s important to be professional butalso inviting in your demeanor, because youwant to embody someone who others want to lis-ten to.”


ALL THE WORLD’S A STAGEShakespearean Actors Visit Advocacy I

Advocacy students learn the importance of warm‐up exercises to release tension.

O N C A M P U S

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 8

The Docket February 28, 2013Hon. Sylvia H. Rambo Award Ceremony

honoring Ramona E. Romero, General Counsel,

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Lewis Katz Hall, Carlisle • 6:00 p.m.

March 14, 2013Law & Education Day

A discussion of issues in education law with Pro-

fessor Lucy Johnston-Walsh ’97, Hon. Cheryl

Allen of the Pennsylvania Superior Court, Stuart

Knade, and David Andrews

Lewis Katz Building, University Park • 9:00 a.m.

March 15, 2013“Developing the Trial Story: Lessons from Think-

ing Fast and Slow and the Art of Filmmaking”

organized by Professor Gary Gildin

Lewis Katz Hall, Carlisle • 9:00 a.m.

April 5, 2013“Developments in Forensic Science and the Law,”

featuring the basics on forensic DNA and pattern

evidence analysis, best practices for treatment

and inclusion of forensic evidence, and a discus-

sion of recent and upcoming cases before the

Supreme Court.

Lewis Katz Building, University Park

April 20, 2013Alumni CLE & Tailgate

Blue-White Weekend

Lewis Katz Building, University Park

April 29, 2013U.S. Supreme Court Admission Ceremony

Supreme Court Building, Washington D.C.

8:00 a.m.

Visit law.psu.edu/events to register.


After learning several warm-up tech-niques, including how to relax, breatheproperly, and improve posture with animaginary string, student “volunteers”were summoned to center stage to deliveropening statements for an advocacy as-signment. “I felt pretty silly doing all ofthe warm-up exercises but was surprisedat how much more comfortable I feltspeaking in front of everyone, after I hadtaken the time to center myself and focuson my breathing,” Hyser explained.

Sound Advice

Following each student presentation,classmates critiqued one another’s per-formances while actors Everett and Whitesuggested methods for improving their de-livery. Students were then given a secondchance to present their cases.

“Acting helps individuals increasetheir self-awareness and expression; im-prove their memorization skills; and con-trol and alter their posture, body language,and tone of voice,” explained White. “Byimproving public speaking skills, law stu-dents will improve self-confidence. Confi-dence, and of course hard work andpreparation, are key to success whetherit’s on stage or in a courtroom.”

AFTLS is based in England with aca-demic tours through the national outreachprogram of Shakespeare at Notre Dame.Each residency is highlighted by perform-ances of a full-length Shakespeare produc-tion. During their visit to Penn State,which was arranged by the Center for Per-forming Arts at Penn State, the five-mem-ber ensemble also visited several theatreand English classes and performed TheMerchant of Venice.

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:28 PM Page 9

Lisa Hook ’83, president and CEO ofNeustar, Inc., talked with students and facultyabout her career and opportunities created forlawyers by the digital age. Hook visited with lawstudents in University Park on October 16, 2012,when she was in town to accept the Penn StateAlumni Fellow Award, the most prestigious awardgiven by the Penn State Alumni Association, inrecognition of outstanding work in her field.

She described the attributes she considersmost helpful for a career in the tech world: critical thinking, the ability to sift through vastquantities of information and develop a salientargument, creativity, and a willingness to takeup a challenge.

“What we need to innovate,” Hook said, “isglobal certainty. The rule of law creates cer-tainty.” Hook pointed out that there is substan-tial work to do in resolving the many areas of“uncertainty” in the digital world—specificallysecurity, privacy, and copyright. Her presenta-tion is available for review in the multimediaarea of the Law School website: law.psu.edu/multimedia.

With more than twenty-five years of seniorexecutive experience spanning the communica-tions, media, and entertainment industries,Hook has held leadership positions at a numberof Fortune 500 companies, including presidentof AOL Broadband and AOL Anywhere; chief op-erating officer for Time Warner Telecommunica-tions, and chief counsel for Viacom Cable. Shewas a partner at Brera Capital Partners, LLC, aNew York-based private equity fund, and man-aging director at Alpine Capital Group, LLC.

Hook serves on the boards of directors ofReed Elsevier PLC (a FTSE 100 Company) andReed Elsevier NV; is a director of the OceanFoundation; and serves on the Board of Directorsof the Greater Washington Board of Trade. Pre-viously, she served on the boards of Covad Com-munications Group Inc., Time Warner TelecomInc., National Geographic Ventures, and K-12,Inc., and on the Board of Trustees of the Na-tional Public Radio Foundation.

In 2011, President Barack Obama namedHook to the National Security Telecommunica-tions Advisory Committee, a group that advisesthe White House on national security and emer-gency preparedness issues relating to telecom-munication services.

CEO LISA HOOK EXPLAINS HOW LAWYERS

ARE NEEDED TO CREATE CERTAINTY IN

DIGITAL ECONOMY


Mike Morgan Photos

O N C A M P U S

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:12 PM Page 10


Sense of PlaceArchitizer, a blog dedicated to architecture, named Lewis Katz Buildingto its list of “Top 10 University Buildings that Actually Make you Wantto go to Class.” Lewis Katz Building was in company of Centro tecno-logico San Joaquin in Santiago, Chile; Library Technical University inDelft, Netherlands; and the Deichmann Center for Social Interaction &Spitzer-Salant School of Social Work at Ben-Gurion University of Negevin Beer-Sheva, Israel.

Katherine Parr and Chad Zimmermann, both mem-bers of the Class of 2012, were married at the PennsylvaniaState Capitol by Justice J. Michael Eakin ’75 on No-vember 12, 2012. They brought the bridal party to TrickettHall to capture a few memories.

Lawyers from Belgium, Brazil, Cameroon, China, France,Germany, India, Iraq, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea,Lebanon, The Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Palestine,Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, Poland,Tanzania, Panama, Togo & Uzbekistan arrived at the LawSchool for LL.M. study in August 2012.

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:12 PM Page 11

The U.S. Senate confirmed the nominationof Matthew W. Brann ’90 to the U.S. DistrictCourt for the Middle District of Pennsylvania onDecember 27, 2012. Brann joins the company of Judge Christopher Conner ’82 and JudgeJohn E. Jones III ’80, who also sit on the U.S.District Court for the Middle District of Pennsyl-vania, and senior judges William W. Caldwell’51, Edwin M. Kosik ’51, and Sylvia H.Rambo ’62.

Prior to his nomination, Brann was a part-ner at Brann, Williams, Caldwell & Sheetz,where his practice focused on tort, contract,commercial and real property litigation, and es-tate planning and probate matters. As a law stu-

dent Brann was editor-in-chief of the DickinsonJournal of International Law, which is now thePenn State Journal of Law and InternationalAffairs. In addition to his legal work, Brannserved on the Board of Directors of MarthaLloyd Community Services, the Board of Direc-tors of the Five Rivers Council of the Boy Scoutsof America, and the Board of Trustees of theGuthrie Healthcare System. He is a 1987 gradu-ate of the University of Notre Dame.Paul V. Carlin ’70 was recognized by Mary-land’s Daily Record as one of its Most AdmiredCEOs among nonprofits with annual revenue ofless than $10 million. The award ceremony tookplace in Baltimore on September 13, 2012.


U.S. SENATE

UNANIMOUSLY

CONFIRMS MATTHEW

W. BRANN TO FEDERAL

BENCH

A L U M N I N E W S

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:29 PM Page 12

PENNSYLVANIA BAR

ASSOCIATION HONORS

SAMARA GOMEZ

Phot

o by

Jadr

ian

Klin

ger

Samara A. Gomez ’07 is assistant counselfor the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency,where she works on affordable housing, Low-In-come Housing Tax Credits, consumer lending,community development programs, tax, foreclo-sure, real estate, employment matters, contracts,and procurement. In May she received theMichael K. Smith Excellence in Service Award inrecognition for her efforts to establish a pilot barpassage program for the Young Lawyers Divi-sion of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.Launched in 2011, the program pairs lawyermentors with bar candidates who would likehelp preparing for the essay portion of the barexam.

Gomez is a graduate of Howard Universityand was a Family Law Clinic student.

The Most AdmiredCEO award recognizesMaryland business execu-tives for tremendous ca-reer accomplishments.

Carlin has served asexecutive director of theMaryland State Bar Asso-ciation since 1985. Underhis direction, MSBA hasseen its membership growexponentially. Carlin’sfocus on access to legal serv-ices for underprivileged groups, something he identi-fies as the organization’s “core value,” led to theestablishment of the Pro Bono Resource Center ofMaryland.

Carlin previously held the position of president ofthe National Association of Bar Executives and washonored with its Bolton Award for Professional Ex-cellence in 1996. The Bolton Award honors an execu-tive who “demonstrates outstanding professionalleadership and effective management skills and dis-plays humanitarianism, character, congeniality, andservice to the community.”

Following graduation from The Dickinson Schoolof Law, Carlin became director of legal services forthe Philadelphia Bar Association in 1975. He laterserved as the District of Columbia Bar’s director ofpublic service activities and as executive director ofthe Bar Association of Baltimore City and the Con-necticut Bar Association.

PAUL V. CARLIN

RECEIVES MOST

ADMIRED CEO AWARD

Photo: Maryland State Bar Association


P406_P406 2/8/13 3:29 PM Page 13

The PENN STATE JOURNAL of LAWand INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

CONTRIBUTORSP.J. Crowley, Anne‐Marie Slaughter, Flynt Leverett,Ronald Deibert, Harold James and other leading

thinkers in the fields of national security and foreignpolicy contributed to the current issue.

SCOPETo promote scholarship and public commentary

at the intersection of law and international affairs. Its online format provides a forum forscholars and policymakers to explore global

challenges as they unfold.

STAFF

JLIA is jointly edited by students of Penn State Law and the School of International Affairs

Anne‐Marie Slaughter“The Big Picture: BeyondHot Spots & Crises in Our

Interconnected World”

Flynt Leverett “The Balance of Power: Public Goods,

and the Lost Art of Grand Strategy:American Policy toward the Persian Gulf

and Rising Asia in the 21st Century”

PJ Crowley “The Rise of Transparencyand the Decline of Secrecy

in the Age of Global and So‐cial Media”

WATCHJLIA hosted The U.S.‐Iranian Relationship and the Future of International Order on February 15, 2013. The sym‐

posium examined the nature of the current U.S.‐Iranian relations and explored how the two states’ strategicchoices will affect the international order in the future. The program featured Hillary Mann Leverett of Yale

University’s Jackson Institute for Global Affairs, Ambassador Richard Butler of Penn State’s School of Interna‐tional Affairs, Daniel Joyner of the University of Alabama School of Law, Vice Admiral James Houck of Penn

State Law and Penn State School of International Affairs, Mary Ellen O’Connell of the University of Notre DameLaw School, Flynt Leverett of Penn State’s School of International Affairs, and other distinguished scholars.

http://law.psu.edu/multimedia

READ: http://elibrary.law.psu.edu/jlia/ No login required.

WATCH: Watch recent programs online, including:

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:30 PM Page 14

Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • Winter2013 15

FROM THE LAST ISSUE

In a world increasingly animated by the Internet, Facebook,Twitter and cellphone cameras—as politicians are discover‐ing—what might be considered secret or privileged is visibleto more people. People are sharing what they see and hearand think with a wider audience, and acting and reacting inreal time. . . . In this real‐time, complex and unpredictableenvironment, the temptation within government is to com‐municate less. In fact, it needs to communicate more. Goingforward, the United States will never act alone. Whatever itdoes, billions will be watching, and reacting, in real time. Ifthe United States fails to keep pace, it will struggle to gainthe international understanding and support required to suc‐ceed. Global public opinion is becoming more strategic. TheUnited States cannot afford to lead from behind.

—P.J. Crowley“Wikileaks: One Year Later”

Cyberspace—the global environment of digital communica‐tions—surrounds and embodies us entirely, 24 hours a day, 7days a week. We are always on, always connected: emailing,texting, searching, networking, and sharing are all now ascommonplace as eating, breathing, and sleeping. . . . Butthere is a dark side to cyberspace—hidden contests and mali‐cious threats—that is growing like a disease from the inside‐out. . . . As ominous as the dark side of cyberspace may be,our collective reactions to it are just as ominous—and caneasily become the darkest driving force of them all should weover‐react. . . . We are at a watershed moment, where deci‐sions could take us down a path where cyberspace continuesto evolve into a global commons that empowers individualsthrough access to information, freedom of speech and asso‐ciation, or down another towards its eventual demise. Devel‐oping models of cyber security that deal with the dark side,while preserving our highest aspirations as citizens, is now anurgent imperative on a planetary scale.

—Ronald DeibertThe Growing Dark Side of Cyberspace ( . . . and What To DoAbout It)

ON-LINE REVOLUTION—

LAW JOURNALS GO DIGITAL

2009Law Librarian gro up calls for ending publication

of law reviews in print format.

2011Penn State begins working with Digital Commons

to create e‐library and first fully online journal.

2009-2012 Growth of online journals at Digital Commons, one of

several digital publishers.

2009 2010 2011 2012

2012Penn State launched JLIA, a multimedia experience.

KEEP READING AT:ww.elibrary.law.psu.edu/jlia

LOOK FOR UPCOMING ISSUES:A collaborative effort with the Folke Bernadotte Academyexploring the policy implications resulting from analyticalresearch on peacemaking

An examination of the evolution and future of the field ofinternational criminal justice on the tenth anniversary ofthe International Criminal Court

Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Qtr 1 Qtr 2 Qtr 3 Qtr 4 Qtr 1

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Source: Digital Commons

Number of subscribers to top eight law journals

Source: Twenty‐Five Year Decline in Law Review Subscriptions, Law Librarian Blog, Febrary 18, 2009

Subscriptions to Law Journals in Decline

What is digital publishing?

• JLIA is in good company. Most major law schools are launching or have launched digital journals.

• Publishing online means that scholarship will be highly discoverable, generating more traffic and more downloads.

• Studies indicate that open access scholarship receives higher citation counts than non‐open access scholarship.

• More visibility, more usage, and more dissemination—leads to more recognition of the Penn State Journal of Law and International Affairs.

• Redundant printed journals add costs to library budgets,take up physical space, and have a deleterious effect on the environment.

Source:Durham Statement on Open Access to Legal Publishing, 2009; Journal Publishing: Libraries Making a Difference, University of South Florida, 2012; Digital Commons

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:16 PM Page 15

Meet The Class of2015

By LSAT and GPA they comprise one of the most qualified classes

we’ve ever admitted. But who are these 164 people who have

chosen to dedicate the next three years of their lives to studying law?

Eight first‐year students share their journeys to law school.

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Immigrant, refugee, Armenian, American,daughter, friend, student, hopeful; these are thenames to which I answer, given to me by experi-ence and circumstance. Born in Soviet Armenia,I am a child of refugees, who, fearing for theirlives, left their home in Azerbaijan and spent mylifetime building a new one. After escaping agenocide twenty years ago that has not yet beenrecognized, and may never be, my parents in-stilled within me a burning ambition to succeedand make my circumstances my own. Difficultand never what one could call “normal,” mychildhood memories are highlighted by embar-rassment over my parents’ accents, shame overbeing an immigrant, shame over trying to hideit, a struggle to merge and reconcile two cultures,and stretches of poverty. I have fought for eachof my names so that they are no longer justnames; schoolyard taunts and teases or the in-ability to afford the latest and greatest, the newand improved, served only to brand them inshining letters on my heart. I am many, and theyare one. As Whitman said far more eloquentlythan I, “I am large, I contain multitudes.”

The battles of my young life and the sight ofmy parents’ battles have taught me lessons andgiven me an understanding of the world I wouldnot be privy to without them. I know that onecannot guarantee the circumstances of one’s life;one must do the best to prepare for the stormbut bend to the wind (like my parents, the doc-tor and the professor, who no longer practicetheir professions but who learned English andnew trades). I know that even after all the hardwork has been done, one must thank lucky starsand kind people, like when the U.S. Embassyopened its doors after we spent a year in arefugee camp. I know that after everything isgone, there is determination and there is perse-verance (like my parents’ new house, boughtnearly twenty years after locking the door totheir old one for the last time). I am grateful tohave learned these lessons; and though it wouldbe disingenuous to say that I am glad these

things happened, I am glad of who I became be-cause of them.

Law school will allow me to pursue interna-tional and humanitarian law in order to affectthe legal processes of the world that have so af-fected my life. I hope to bring aid and comfort toothers, inspired by and as a thank you to thosewho did so for my family. Perhaps I am meant todo it, perhaps my experiences have nudged metoward it, but upholding the words of justice inan unjust world is my calling.

SUSANNA BAGDASAROVA

Hometown: Born in Yerevan, Armenia; raised inCamp Hill, Pennsylvania

Degree: B.A., History and Political Science, University of Pittsburgh

Work experience: Intern, Dress for Success inHarrisburg, PA; Intern, Boyle, Autry andMurphy in Camp Hill, PA.

For fun: Reading, traveling, and painting

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My experience working in a girls’ shelter inCosta Rica—and my experience with their inef-fective legal system that provided no measure ofjustice to any victims of violent crime—made merealize how often people are treated as subhuman.My own family had been treated unjustly. Mymaternal grandmother told me about the hard-ships she and my grandfather experienced inDallas, Texas, during the 1960s. My grandmotheris white and my grandfather is an African Amer-ican who played drums for the house band at aclub that my grandmother frequented. At thistime miscegenation laws were still in place in Texas to keep interracial relationships from oc-

curring, but my grandparents kept their rela-tionship a secret to avoid prosecution. It wasn’tuntil 1965, when my grandmother was pregnantwith my uncle, that they were forced go publicwith their relationship. When my grandmotherwent into labor my grandfather took her to thehospital, only to be told by the doctors that theywould not deliver a biracial baby. They traveledhospital to hospital, until they finally found adoctor that agreed to the delivery. After myuncle was born the nurses wrapped him innewspaper, because they didn’t think he deserveda blanket, and told my grandparents to leavethrough the back doors because they didn’t wantother patients to know that they had helped an in-terracial couple.

It has been my exposure to the corrupt judi-cial system in Costa Rica and my family’s con-nection to unjust laws in America that haveinspired me to become an attorney. I believe thateveryone, despite their nationality, race, creed,or sexual preference, is entitled to the funda-mental humane liberties of equality and a lifefree of prosecution. As a future attorney, it is mygoal to one day to be able to secure such libertiesfor those who have been victimized and are needof defense. Admission to the Penn State Dickin-son School of Law and its foc us on public servicewill allow me to develop the skills needed to pro-tect and ensure these essential liberties.

“After my uncle was born thenurses wrapped him in newspaper,

because they didn’t think he deserved a blanket, and told my

grandparents to leave through theback doors because they didn’t

want other patients to know thatthey had helped an interracial

couple.”

RONALD BRYAN BRASHEARS

Hometown: Austin, Texas

Degree: B.B.A., Edwards University

Work experience: Volunteer at a shelter forvictims of domestic violence in Costa Rica

For fun: Playing guitar


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For the past eight years I have been a stu-dent and an activist in the movement towardsending sexual and domestic violence. It mayseem like an impossible goal to many, but as amovement we have a dream of creating theworld we want to live in, one without sexual anddomestic violence, and it is my commitment tothe achievement of this dream that will continueto push me forward through any adversity I mayface. As an attorney I will hold the tools andcredibility necessary to continue working towardmy goal of contributing to the movement.

Since the age of 14, I have worked veryclosely with sexual and domestic violence victimsof all ages. I began by founding a nonprofit organization called A.C.H.E. (Abused ChildrenHeard Everywhere), which aims to support vic-tims and encourage them to share their storywith the hope that doing so will give other sur-vivors the strength to do the same. Upon my arrival at UCLA, I quickly recognized that therewas a need for college students across the stateto come together and felt by combining effortswe could increase the efficiency of work done at

each of our schools. Consequently, I helped tocreate and became vice chair of S.P.E.A.C. (Stu-dents Preventing, Educating, and Acting in Cali-fornia), the first coalition of students working onissues regarding sexual, gender, and domesticviolence on each University of California cam-pus. In addition to these organizations, I spent ayear working with victims of sexual and domes-tic abuse as a part of the prosecution team in theFamily Violence Division of the Los AngelesCounty District Attorney’s Office. I have listenedto hundreds of victims share their stories, learnedthe ins and outs of the criminal justice system,attended conferences to learn from experts inthe field, and have supported victims in interviewswith law enforcement and attorneys, andthrough countless trials, at times even sitting withyoung children while they take the stand. I am100 percent committed to the work I do anddedicated to making a difference in any and everyway possible.

Attending law school is my next step. Thereis no doubt in my mind that it is the field I ammeant to go in to and after all of my experienceworking with sexual and domestic violence, Icannot imagine doing anything else. I know thatI can make a difference and can handle workingwith intense cases that most others would notwant to even touch. To me, law is a commitmentto improving society, and that is a fight I willnever give up on.

COURTNEY KIEHL

Hometown: Fremont, California

Degree: B.S., Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles

Work experience: President and Co‐founder, A.C.H.E. Founda‐tion (Abused Children Heard Everywhere); Victim ServiceRepresentative Assistant, Los Angeles County District Attorney’sOffice Victim‐Witness Assistance Program

For fun: Traveling, cooking, baking.

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If you look for an illustration of “persevering,”you would probably found a picture of me there,since I am the kind of person who could devote100 percent energy to what I do. Ever since myentrance into Law School of China University ofPublic Law, I have been immersing myself intolegal study. Access to branches of law, and mis-cellaneous cases endowed me with a wealth oflegal knowledge, and fostered my logic and di-alectical ability. With a sound legal basis, I actively joined legal practice, wishing to learnmore outside the classroom. In the medical de-partment of Lanshi Hospital, in handling realmedical disputes, I barely slept in the two andhalf days as I assisted the lawyers in collectingevidence, discussing the strategies and workingout the defense. In the summer of my junioryear, I began an unforgettable practice inChangping People’s court. I organized files, pre-pared legal documents, sent indictments andcourt verdicts, and guided clients on the legalprocedures, their rights and so on. In my sparetime, I also took the initiative to read the cases.Dozens of cases, big or small, deepened my un-derstanding about law’s function, and how judgesdecided the facts and responsibilities and thecriminal procedures. Meanwhile, the close inter-action with the criminals taught me the impor-tance of legal publicity, the obligation to protecttheir rights and motivated me to apply law im-partially in the future.

In August 2011, for my academic excellence,I won the honor of exchanging in American Uni-versity through Washington Semester Program,broadening my horizon to international law.Over five months’ study and practice in America,I have been greatly enchanted by the Americaneducation. Penn State Law, for the unmatcheddepth in international law, rich curriculum, andclinics and externships, attracts me most. Mean-while, extracurricular activities such as law re-views, journals, and moot court also contributeto my improvement of professional skills. I be-

lieve such efforts made would make Penn StateLaw an ideal place to pursue my legal study. Iam also fully aware of the challenges associatedwith studying in a renowned university like thePennsylvania State University, and I will dedi-cate as much as it takes to become a better stu-dent and a better legal professional.

YUN LI

Hometown: Beijing, People’s Republic of China.

Degree: First degree in law, China Universityof Political Science and Law

Work experience: Intern, Criminal Court ofChangping; Intern, Medical Department,Lanzhou City Hospital

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Midway through my freshman year at the Uni-versity of Houston, the idea started off as a joke.One night my friend Jess and I were smoking ci-gars at one of our favorite Houston shops. Jessmentioned that there was not a single real tobac-conist in College Station, and I jokingly told himhe should open up a store. “We should open up astore,” he corrected me. Three hours later ourjoke had evolved into fifteen pages of budgeting,store design ideas, and a huge network of con-tacts in a yellow legal pad.

The cigar industry is like a family, and severalshop owners in Houston were happy to sit downwith us and lay out the hard facts. Antoinette,who ran a store with her husband, told us, “a few

people in the business see new stores as cuttinginto their piece of the pie but most of us realizethat new stores only make that pie bigger.” Wewere put in contact with sales representatives,state tax offices, and given a step-by-step designof what would be necessary. We brought our re-spective folks a business proposal and a budget,we incorporated, and they quickly co-signed on asmall business loan. Six months later we signedthe lease to our 2,400 square-foot retail space.

Through three years of operation we en-countered successes and failures. One employeehad been with us for nearly a year and a halfwhen we discovered that he had stolen severalthousand dollars. I took this as an opportunity toexamine where I was not doing my job wellenough, and from then on our accountant wasshocked at how airtight we kept our books. Thelong hours and never-ending flurry of paperworkgave me a lesson on organizing my professionallife down to the smallest details.

Owning a successful business at such ayoung age also earned us the respect of our com-munity, as our customers watched two guys intheir early twenties work sixty to eighty hourweeks while attending school full-time. Dealingwith clients twice my age—clients who took meseriously—built my confidence and gave me theability to speak clearly and knowledgably aboutmy area of expertise.

This level of commitment came at a cost—Iwatched my “traditional,” college-aged friendsgraduating year after year as I floundered awayat community college, and I realized that I neededto make education my highest priority. I had along heart-to-heart with Jess about turning overmy half to him. It was hard to walk away from theshop, but it was made bearable by realizing that Ihad given it my all and come out of it a success.After returning to the life of a full-time student, Ilearned to love my academics as much as I lovedowning and running our business. I am also happyto say that Cavalier Cigars has continued to grow,just as it helped me to do the same.


SEAN MILLER

Hometown: Houston, Texas

Degree: B.A., History, Political Science,University of Houston

Work experience: Co‐founder, Cavalier Cigars

For fun: Learning to play golf

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I am the volunteer coordinator, a crisiscounselor, and a court advocate at the CapitalArea Family Violence Intervention Center, Inc.One client in particular will probably stick withme forever.

I’ll call her Annabel. Annabel was a motherand wife who came to Louisiana from her homecountry several years ago, though she hadn’t yetpicked up the language. We communicatedthrough an interpreter. Her husband, also fromthe same country, had lived in Louisiana sincehis childhood. The level of control her husbandhad over her was unique. He did not allow her togo anywhere without him (which was why shedidn’t speak English after years in the UnitedStates). He controlled the way she walked, howoften she blinked, and how she interacted with

her children. The onlyplace she was allowedto go to on a regularbasis was church—with him, of course.Once, at church, oneof their children criedfor Annabel to pickher up. Her husbandforbade this becauseit would require herto bend over in pub-lic and because itwould require her toshow affection to thechild, something helimited. Her husbandslapped the little girl,and she began tobleed. Annabelwalked her daughterto the bathroom toclean her up, where afellow parishionerhelped them.

A Spanish-speaking couple in

Annabel’s congregation came to her aid and tookher in. They kept her safe. I met her at court,and when I first spoke with her, I recall feelingsurprise at how pretty she is. From far away, sheseemed dowdy. Her hair was in her face and shewas wearing an ankle-length skirt and button-down shirt in various shades of brown and beige.But up close, I saw she was young, with a prettysmile, though I didn’t need the interpreter to tellme how anxious she was.

The trial was the most emotionally wrench-ing experience of my professional life. Annabelhad to recount the physical, emotional, and sex-ual abuse she encountered during her marriage.After a trial that lasted two afternoons, the judgegranted an unusual order: the husband was pro-hibited from coming near her and their children.The order allowed Annabel to legally move awaywith her children. She and the children now livethousands of miles from the man who made herlife such hell, with family she had been preventedfrom seeing for years.

Two weeks after the trial, Annabel was backin court for alimony and child support. I did notrecognize the woman I saw that day. She wassmiling, she looked at me when I spoke to her,and she seemed comfortable, almost jubilant.When I said good-bye as she was leaving, shehugged me and said “Thank you”—her one Eng-lish phrase. Annabel is one of the few happyendings I’ve seen.

Because of the free representation she re-ceived from the attorneys with whom I work, herlife has changed. My experiences thus far haveled me to the decision to apply for law school.With a law degree, I would be able to do my partin making the world a better place—not just forvictims of domestic violence, but for everyone.My eyes have been opened to a variety of legalissues faced by people who are members of op-pressed groups, and I have the desire and theability to assist them.

SUMMER SWANSON

Hometown: Hammond, Louisiana

Degree: B.S., Psychology,Louisiana State University

Work experience: Volunteer Coordi‐nator, Capital Area Family ViolenceIntervention Center

For fun: Hiking, cooking, and reading

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Two years ago I graduated from college and

returned home to Saudi Arabia to work in a

major oil company, Saudi Aramco. As I started

my professional experience, I realized how little

my knowledge from school helped. Much of the

academic information I had acquired became

outdated in the rapidly evolving industry. There

were so many new technologies to discover and

new methods to master. However, before I got

the chance to panic, I was told by my supervisor

that I displayed high potential. This made me

even more confused as I did not have the experi-

ence or the up-to-date knowledge to display any-

thing. It did not take me long though to figure

out what he really meant.

As I came to understand my strengths, I

started to effectively utilize them at work. I use

my strong English language and writing skills to

write instructions and procedures for the

processes we go through. I wrote the department’s

complex budgeting procedures that passed the

corporate auditing process in 2010. Due to my

attention to detail, I was nominated to work on

multiple analytical projects like KPIs (Key Per-

formance Indicators) with a team of petroleum

engineers. I make use of my communication

skills and international cultural experiences to

successfully interact with the multinational body

of employees we have as I work in teams within

and outside of Saudi Aramco.

One interesting part of my work is reviewing

operational contracts. I am one of a few employees

in our department who has the petroleum engi-

neering technical background combined with a

strong mastery of the English language to qualify

for such extensive reviews of dry and long con-

tracts. An example of this is Halliburton’s LSTK,

Lump Sum Turnkey, contract with Saudi Aramco

in 2010. I was on the committee that reviewed

the multi-million dollar contract. We spent

many late nights at work making sure that the

contract covered all operational requirements

for our company with the help of the company’s

lawyers to clarify the legal language. After the

company signed the contract we started to see

the effect of our work on multiple levels, as the

drilling operations between the two companies

were so successful that an extension of the con-

tract is expected to be done in 2012.

I was fascinated by the lawyers’ work and

how their contribution affected our deal with the

other company in order to maximize our profit

while making sure both sides got a fair deal. I ex-

pressed my desire to join the company’s law pro-

gram and was approved to pursue a J.D. on a full

scholarship. I am very motivated and excited to

be on the lawyers’ side of the table next time I

am negotiating a contract for Saudi Aramco.

TALAL AL UFAISAN

Hometown: Ad Dammam, Ash Shariqiya,Saudi Arabia

Degree: B.S., Petroleum engineering,University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Work experience: Petroleum Engineer

For fun: Solving puzzles of all kinds,watching soccer


P406_P406 2/22/13 10:00 AM Page 23


At high school graduation I had my lifeplanned: private undergraduate college, ArmyROTC, active duty, and law school, focusing onissues in women’s justice and child advocacyduring my inactive duty. And then three weekslater I was grappling with the biggest decision I

had ever had to make: what to do about my sur-prise pregnancy. After many tears, carefulthought, and intense self-reflection, I altered theplans I had so meticulously outlined for myselfand began my new life as a working, studentmother.

That decision affected much more than Iimagined it might. My daughter is a shining lightfor everyone who knows her. She made me afighter. I fight for her, for me, and I fight for thatin which I believe. She made me devoted to her,to myself, and to a world that no longer systemi-cally denies women and children justice andprotection. Nothing that I do is for me alone. Iam her example. I am Mommy. I hope that shepays attention.

She will never see me stop. Through a diffi-cult pregnancy at 18, a brief cancer scare at 20,and bills to pay all the while, I made it this far. Imade it for her. But I am not finished. Whilenearly all of my original life plans have changed,one thing has always remained a beacon on thehorizon: law school. I have dreamed of it formost of my 25 years. She will not, nor will any-one else, see her mother give up, give in, fallaway, or make excuses. She will watch her

mother walk to her dreams, become a prosecu-tor, and fight for those who need to be foughtfor. I pray she takes notice that I have shownevery person who has ever told me I can’t, that Ican. I have allowed nothing to stop me. I am lov-ing, I am strong, and I am exactly who I am sup-posed to be, going exactly where I am supposedto go, to do exactly what I am supposed to do.

MEGAN WELLS

Hometown: Elkland, Pennsylvania

Degree: B.A., Philosophy, Mansfield Universityof Pennsylvania

Work experience: Manager, Dandy Mini Mart

For fun: Hunting, fishing, and taking wine tours

“My daughter is a shining light for every-one who knows her. She made me a

fighter. I fight for her, for me, and I fightfor that in which I believe. She made medevoted to her, to myself, and to a world

that no longer systemically denies womenand children justice and protection.”

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:30 PM Page 24


If Tom VanKirk’70, could pointto only one man-agement practicethat has led tothe successes hehas experiencedin his career, itwould have to bestrategic planning.“Buchanan

(Ingersoll & Rooney) was one of the first lawfirms to develop a strategic plan back in 1985,”VanKirk remembers. At the time, he was chief op-erating officer and the firm was trying to deter-mine the geographic region in which it was tobecome a leader. “We decided we wanted to be adominant firm in the Commonwealth of Pennsyl-vania. We could have gone in a more regional di-rection but that initial plan served us well.”

Over the course of the next twenty-five years,Buchanan updated its strategic plan every threeyears and developed operating plans each year. Inhis first year as CEO, VanKirk said he ledBuchanan through another strategic planningprocess and the resulting plan led the firm tofocus on “delivering what the client wants and notnecessarily what we wanted to deliver. That againworked well for us.” Today the Pittsburgh-basedfirm is ranked 115 by American Lawyer with morethan $250 million in revenues.

VanKirk had been at Buchanan for forty-oneyears and was in his last year as chairman of thefirm when he got the call from Highmark, Inc., a$15 billion in revenue diversified health and well-ness company based in Pittsburgh that serves 34.4 million people across the United States throughits businesses in health insurance, dental insur-ance, vision care, information technology, and in-tegrated health care delivery. “I joined as chief

HIGHMARK CHIEF LEGAL OFFICER

TOM VANKIRK ’70: A Career Well-Planned

By Ellen Foreman

continued on page 26

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:16 PM Page 25

26 Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • law.psu.edu 26 Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • law.psu.edu

Career Highlights

‐ Liberal arts degree from Bucknell

‐ Began law school in 1967 during the Vietnam War; Future Pennsylvania Governor TomRidge was his classmate

‐ Joined the Superior Court of Pennsylvania for a one‐year clerkship with Justice Robert Jacobs

‐ Joined Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney in 1971; elected COO in 1985, CEO in 2003, and Chairman in 2009

‐ Appointed Highmark Chief Legal Officer and Executive VP in 2012

Serves the following organizations:

Pittsburgh Cultural Trust United Way of Allegheny CountyPennsylvania State Economy League Women and Girls FoundationPennsylvania Business Council University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute YMCA of Greater Pittsburgh Board of Trustees at the University of Pittsburgh

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:30 PM Page 26


legal officer and executive vice president and amone of seven direct reports to the CEO, so therole is a real part of the overall management thatis shaping the direction of the company,” he said.

Less than a month after starting the job,Highmark’s CEO became embroiled in a scandalthat led to the CEO’s termination. “It was amaz-ing how quickly the senior management teamjust started meeting every other day and goingabout their job keeping the strategic direction inplace. I was very proudof the board for actingas quickly as they didand taking the actionthat I definitely thoughtwas important and nec-essary for the com-pany,” he said. Hepointed out that it wasthe strategic plan thatenabled the organiza-tion to move forward.“It wasn’t the CEO’sstrategic plan, it wasHighmark’s strategicplan and that is whatenabled us to continue.”

What made VanKirk attractive to Highmarkwas his experience in handling high-profile anti-trust and corporate takeover cases which oftenhad him dealing with boards, CEOs, and COOs.“They also wanted someone who knows theirway around the community and who knew High - mark. I have admired what Highmark is tryingto accomplish in developing an integrated deliv-ery network and reaching out and trying to savea local hospital system.”

Looking ahead, VanKirk believes it is impor-tant for students and recent graduates to be veryfocused on what they want to accomplish and todo everything possible to support that objective.“There are lots of opportunities for law schoolgraduates, but they have to stop enrolling in law

schools thinking that 75 percent of them will get$125,000-a-year jobs.” As a hiring managerVanKirk said he relies a lot on a personal inter-view. “If a person has passion and enthusiasmfor something they want to do, that’s what I lookfor. Over and above that, academics are impor-tant, but I don’t put is much credence in onlyhiring from the top 5 percent. I’m willing toreach down as far as the top 40 percent so longas their resume indicates that they have had

other experiences.”VanKirk looks back

on his own decision toattend law school. “Iwas weighing an offerof $6,800 and a carfrom P&G against at-tending law school. Itseemed almost impossi-ble to pass up. But Imade the right decision.”He said he appreciatedthe small class sizes atDickinson and the prac-tical approach to lawhis professors, like Lou

Del Duca, proffered. “I learned to look at statuesin the context of where and why they werepassed, and it helped me to understand what thelaw was intended to accomplish.…it was alsonice to be in a safe community and close to op-portunities to work part-time.”

Now that VanKirk has switched chairs and ispurchasing legal services, his perspective haschanged as well. “When I was with Buchanan, Iwould have wanted clients to use Buchanan ex-clusively. I can see why you turn to differentfirms for their particular skills, and it would befoolish just using one firm. Not every case is amajor case, and you ought to look for a lowerprice firm to do those tasks,” he said, concludingwith a laugh, “And I do hate paying legal bills.”

I have admired whatHighmark is trying to accomplish in develop-

ing an integrated delivery network and

reaching out and tryingto save a local hospital

system.”

“

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28 Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • law.psu.edu 28 Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • law.psu.edu

In August of 1970, I was ayoung lawyer and director ofthe Trial and Appellate Divi-sion of the Legal Aid Societyof Multnomah County inPortland, Oregon. It was aturbulent year. Authoritiesaround the country used riot

batons to hit anti-war protesters, mostly youngpeople, with overhead strikes; blood literallyflowed in the streets. Four anti-war protesterswere killed at Kent State on May 4. PortlandState University students protested on May 11,and police used batons first as prods and then asclubs. The ACLU was concerned that this use ofexcessive force was reflective of a settled patternand, unless enjoined, would continue at theforthcoming national American Legion conven-tion planned with speaker President RichardNixon set for August 30.

The ACLU first applied for federal injunctiverelief, which was denied. It next appealed to theNinth Circuit Court of Appeals. Although the

Court agreed to expedite the appeal, the ACLU’sapplication for an injunction pending appeal wasdenied. Time was running out. ACLU lawyerssought preliminary injunctive relief fromSupreme Court Justice William O. Douglas asthe Circuit Justice for the Ninth Circuit. In mid-August, I was asked to work with them throughthe application process.

In days, the team of ACLU attorneys and Iput together a petition. When I called the courtto arrange presentment of the petition to JusticeDouglas in chambers, I learned that he was va-cationing at his cabin in Goose Prairie, Washing-ton, which was then a small crossroads nearYakima about a three-hour drive from our of-fices in Portland. There was one small hitch:Douglas’ cabin had no telephone. Justice Dou-glas was legendary for entertaining motion ap-plications for one type of relief or another at hisGoose Prairie retreat. Many such stories werefloating around the Northwest legal communitygossip network. The protocol for such effortswas to just show up on his doorstep and ask.

AN UPHILL CLIMB:Emergency Petition Sets Lawyers in MotionBy John H. “Jack” Clough ’65 * © J.H. Clough, 2012

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Given the action of the police during the lastprotest at Portland State University, we wereconcerned that a Convention protest, if it oc-curred, would result in an even greater blood-bath. We finished the Petition on August 28, twodays before the start of the American LegionConvention. We decided to follow the “show upon his doorstep” protocol. Opposing counsel in-structed us to say they opposed our motion butdeclined to join usat Douglas’ cabin.Five of us piled intotwo cars and headedfor Goose Prairie.

When we ar-rived the cabin wasdark and dusk wasupon us. We in-quired at a localeatery and learnedthat Justice Douglashad just left on acamping trip twodays before. Hewould be gone tendays. Crestfallen, we found the local Forest Serv-ice Station and inquired as to Douglas’ where-abouts. The forest rangers were aware of theDouglas camping party and knew roughly wherethey were. They told us that they would havetheir plane up the next morning and would lookfor the campers and would have some word forus if we came back then. So we found a moteland stayed the night. As impoverished legal aidattorneys, none of us had much ready cash. Withthe help of a sympathetic motel owner and a fewroll-a-way beds, the five of us shared one room.

The next morning we were on the doorstepof the Forest Service office at the appointedtime. Indeed, Douglas’ group had settled in forthe day at a campsite on the slopes of Mt. Aix,about six miles from the end of a gravel roadinto the national forest. The Forest Service peo-ple supplied us with maps and directions. We

were told to follow a well-marked horse trail intothe woods and that the grade was not too steep.Naturally we decided to make the hike. Three ofus went on the search for Douglas because twoof us had to return to Portland to honor otherprior commitments.

We drove to the end of the road and foundthe entrance to the horse trail, totally unpre-pared for this venture. We had not brought a

change of clothes oreven an overnightkit. We were dressedfor a “day in court,”wearing suits andties and carryingbriefcases. Thegrade was generaland constant, butthe last two mileswere more like con-tinually climbingstairs, and it took uslonger than antici-pated to get to Dou-glas’ campsite. We

finally saw a large party of people and, as we ap-proached, we could sense a mix of surprise, an-ticipation, and apprehension. Clearly, the lastthing the campers would expect to see was threepeople in business suits walking into the camp-site. Justice Douglas was easy to spot, althoughhe held back under the large tarpaulin set up forgroup activities. Once we identified ourselves,Justice Douglas came over almost with a senseof relief, shook our hands, and asked, “What canI do for you fellows?”

It was quite an experience to see Justice Douglas in his element as an outdoorsman. Although he was a towering figure in the legalcommunity, he bespoke great personal strengthdressed in his red flannel shirt at a campsite inthe mountains. We explained our purpose, pre-


Given the action of the police during the last

protest at Portland StateUniversity, we were

concerned that a Conven-tion protest, if it occurred,

would result in an evengreater bloodbath.”

“


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sented our petition, and discussed the case forabout fifteen minutes. Douglas then reached formy briefcase, which I gladly gave him, and said,“I’ll read it tonight and leave my decision on thattree stump over there,” pointing to a large treestump in the middle of the meadow. “Come backtomorrow and pick it up.”

We thanked him and returned the way wecame. The next morning a colleague trekkedback to the spot and found my briefcase on thestump where Douglas said he would leave it, butthere was no sign of the camping party. Hepicked up my briefcase and noticed, as he waswalking away, that the fire pit was smoldering.He put out the fire completely before any dam-age had occurred. When he arrived back at themotel, we all gathered around to read the opin-ion. In a short, handwritten note, Douglas haddenied the petition. We were totally deflated. So,tired, grimy, and looking forward to a showerand clean clothes, we piled into our car anddrove back to Portland. In a word, we had donewhat we could and we were “stumped.”

Meanwhile, the press had learned of our ex-ploits, and soon an article on the event appearedin The Portland Oregonian and was then pickedup by the wire services. Two weeks later, Timemagazine also ran an article in its People Sec-tion. We had no idea that what we did wouldever be noteworthy or remembered.

Several weeks afterward, I wrote to JusticeDouglas to apologize for interrupting his camp-ing trip and thank him for his time. I mentionedthe smoldering fire pit. Douglas wrote back tosay he would tell the wrangler that he should bemost grateful to us for ensuring the fire wascompletely out—adding a personal note that itwasn’t his party, he was only a guest. Later, Ihad an occasion to speak with Douglas’ wife,Cathy Douglas, who mentioned that the campingparty had at first thought we were reporters be-cause someone was making another effort to im-peach Douglas; the entire group was actuallyrelieved when we told them who we were andwhy we were there. These were politically dis-turbing times, the unrest of the Sixties was notyet over and no one, even Justice Douglas, wasimmune to rash actions.

As for the excessive police force we feared, itcame to nothing. The governor of Oregon author-ized a rock festival called Vortex I to play inMcIver State Park near Portland on the sameday as the American Legion conference. ThePortland State students must have preferred aparty and music to politics; most of them wereoff enjoying the concert. There were no incidentsat the convention.

Some thirty-four years later, I found myselfworking on the defense of an Albuquerque su-pervising police officer over the manner in whichhis police officers had conducted themselves indispersing an anti-war demonstration on March20, 2003, at the University of New Mexico(UNM). The situation at UNM was a far cry fromthat which occurred in Portland. However, ingeneral, police practices with respect to crowdcontrol have changed greatly for the better since1970. My ACLU experience enabled me to obtaina window to see the other side of the situation insuch issues of great moment.

*Member of the New Mexico State Bar (1987), Pennsylvania StateBar (1965), and Montana State Bar (1989). Former member of theOregon State Bar (1969‐2003), Arizona State Bar (1988‐2003) andthe Navajo Nation Bar (1987‐2003). He is now a practicing attor‐ney in Taos, New Mexico and may be reached [email protected].

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By Pamela Knowlton

After more than fifty years of practicing law,Jane Alexander’s advice to lawyers is the sameas it would have been when she was starting hercareer: “Conduct yourself professionally whereveryou go because you never know who you mightrun into.” Alexander has met Dr. Martin LutherKing Jr., Queen Elizabeth II, Prince Rainier ofMonaco, Wayne “The Great One” Gretzky, andevery president of the United States sinceFranklin Roosevelt.

“I have been very fortunate along the way inbeing at the right—or wrong—place at the righttime,” Alexander said. While she credits many ofher encounters to chance, others attribute herprofessional, considerate and respectful approachto making her stand out in a crowd—that and thedistinctive hats she wears.

From the age of 5, Alexander knew that shewas going to become a lawyer. Not because itwas a dream of hers, but because her grandfather,the magistrate of York County, told her so. “Oneday while I was playing with my dog in the yard,my grandfather who was chatting with his friendDr. Baker, head of the local school district, calledme over and said, ‘We’ve decided that you aregoing to be a lawyer. We know that womenaren’t supposed to be lawyers, but we’ll getaround that.’ That night at dinner Grandpa an-nounced to the family that I was going to be alawyer.” She remembers her grandpa standing 6feet tall with a handlebar mustache and beingquite a formidable presence. From that day on,her grandfather, Alexander Lehmer, requiredher to sit and listen to the cases he heard and

ruled on as magistrate. Afterwards, he’d explainwhy he ruled the way he did.

Education was important to Alexander’sparents. After graduating from high school, sheenrolled in the 3-and-3 law program at Dickin-son College and The Dickinson School of Law.She was one of five female students in her LawSchool class. While at Dickinson she became in-volved in the Intercollegiate Conference on Gov-

THE MIND UNDER THE HATJane Alexander ’54 shares her career path, professional advice,and the origin of her hat habit.

Career Highlights• First female from York County elected to the

Pennsylvania Legislature

• First female to join the York County Bar Association

• First female Deputy Secretary of Agriculture in Pennsylvania

• Founder and President of J&J Agri‐Products & Services, Inc.

• Vice President of Mesco, Inc., sewage disposal company


P406_P406 2/18/13 12:16 PM Page 31

ernment (ICG), was named gavel girl for her ex-ceptional debating skills, and earned a spot asone of two students in the country to be a repre-sentative to the United Nations.

Having learned of Alexander’s future careerpath, Dr. Martha Bailey, a family practitioner inDillsburg, Pennsylvania, gaveher some professional advice.“Never learn to type and alwayswear a hat.” The reasoning sheexplained was simple. “If youlearn to type, you’ll always betreated as a secretary—not a lawyer. And alwayswear a hat because if you wear a good hat and anice pair of shoes, nobody cares what is in be-tween.” From that day on, Alexander said shehas worn a hat.

Even the rules of the York County Court-house recognize that her hats are as much a partof her attire as the business suit she wears incourt, Alexander joked, “No one is allowed towear a hat in the courthouse except for religiousreasons or if you’re Jane Alexander.”

More than once Alexander’s hats have servedas conversation pieces with presidents of theUnited States. During one of Perle Mesta’s cock-tail parties in the Rose Garden, President JimmyCarter asked Alexander why she was wearingsuch a large hat. She replied, “Well, Mr. Presi-dent, I thought it was going to rain today and theflowers needed watering.” On another occasionwhile going through a reception line at a paradein Red Lion, Pennsylvania, President Lyndon B.Johnson asked Alexander if he could pet her hat.“I’m standing there with the president of theUnited States shaking my hand and petting myhat,” she said, laughing.

Developing the mind under the hatAlexander gives a lot of credit to the mentors

she encountered over the years. Through her ac-tivities as with ICG, Alexander met attorneyGenevieve Blatt, an active politician and formerPennsylvania Supreme Court Justice, who intro-

duced many high-rankingpoliticians.

Alexander’s courteous andprofessional treatment of peo-ple really took hold after a con-versation with Blatt, who told

her that it can be very lonely at the top. “I tookthat to heart. If I ever saw someone standing offto the side looking lonely, I’d go over and askhow they were doing. I met a lot of different peo-ple that way,” she said.

“You must be careful about how you chooseto treat people and situations in life,” Alexandersaid. Take, for example, Alexander’s awarenessthat a little humility goes a long way. During abusiness trip to Ethiopia, Alexander insisted onstaying in a small, locally run hotel as opposedto the Hilton that was originally reserved for her.From that point on, Alexander was treated likeroyalty, with a personal tour of Haile Selassie’sPalace, including the house pit where she was of-fered the chance to hand-feed four Ethiopianlions—an offer she respectfully declined. Thetrip ended with a farewell tea in the throneroom.

Alexander lives on Green Vistas farm inAdams County, Pennsylvania, with her 120-pound German Shepherd Gunther, who makessure she’s out of bed by 6:00 every morning.While Gunther no longer accompanies Alexan-der to work because of his size, she does shareher law office with a pesky parrot named Jake,who’s been with her for thirty-two years.

“Never learn totype and always

wear a hat.”


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By Crystal Stryker

Ira Wagler has tended cattle in the hills ofNebraska, lived with electricity and without, fitin among a family of eleven children, twice takenthe sacrament of confirmation as a member ofthe Old Order Amish, practiced law, and left itall behind.

And now, in his New York Times best-sellingmemoir, Growing up Amish, Ira Wagler ’97shares his story of ordering a life for himself.Wagler began blogging about his experiences in2007; Tyndale eventually approached him aboutwriting a memoir.

Wagler’s memoir begins in early childhood.He remembers that his mother, Ida Mae, wasuncommonly beautiful; his father, David, wasuncommonly intellectual. Contrary to commu-nity norms, David insisted on finishing grades 9through 12 through a correspondence program.He was especially well-read and soon became edi-tor and writer of Family Life, a community maga-zine, earning him a level of fame among hispeers. Seeking an environment with fewer re-strictions, David led his family in a move awayfrom Daviess County, Indiana, to a new OldOrder community in Aylmer, Ontario. WhenWagler was 15, the family relocated again toBloomfield, Iowa.

The mem-oir focuseslargely on hismother, Ida Mae(Yoder) Wagler,bearer in chief of thefamily’s decisions. She organ-ized the children. She wept when her youngestson walked to a one-room schoolhouse for firstgrade, stopping every 100 yards to turn aroundand wave to her. She stood heartbroken andcalled after that same son as he walked away atthe tender age of 17. Some of her children left inbroad daylight, with notice, carrying a suitcase.Others slipped out under cover of night. Ira leftboth ways. He dedicates his memoir to hismother, “who never wavered in her deep love forall her children, even—and maybe especially—for her wayward sons, who broke her heart againand again.”

After four attempts at life and work outsidethe Old Order ended and he returned home, Wa-gler became a full-fledged member of the com-munity, taking the sacrament of membership in1982. In his early twenties, he began courting awoman in the community and eventually pro-posed marriage. When the couple had to set a

ALL THAT YOUCAN’T LEAVEBEHIND: Ira Wagler ’97 pens a best-selling memoir on leaving the Old Order Amish community


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GROWING UP AMISHBy Ira Wagler

My father was a man of many gifts and skills. Farming was not one of them.He dutifully tilled the earth and planted the seeds

each year, and they produced. But his heart was not insuch work. And it showed about the farm. Fences in astate of semi‐repair, rusting skeletal hulks of old junk ma‐chinery parked about, willy‐nilly, in the field just south ofthe barn. We didn’t realize it then, but our farm was justplain trashy.

That’s not saying my father was a lazy man or that hedidn’t provide for the family. Far from it. Dad was a bornsalesman who loved the art of the deal. He sold nurserystock, fresh produce, and raised and sold purebred Lan‐drace hogs.

Dad was also a gifted dowser, or “water witch”—although he stridently rejected that label. Dowsing has always had a bit of a shady reputation. During the MiddleAges, it was even believed to be from the devil. All heknew was that he had the gift and he could use it.

***But when it came to passion and purpose, my father

was committed to the one true calling of his heart. He wrote.For decades he was a scribe for The Budget, a weekly

newsletter for the Amish and Mennonites, and he devel‐oped quite a large fan base. By the time I was born hewas already widely known throughout the vast majorityof Amish and Mennonite communities in North America—and even overseas. But after he cofounded Pathway Pub‐lishers in the late sixties and launched the monthlymagazine Family Life, his name became legend. Aylmerhad been well known before, but after the launch of Fam‐ily Life, it became something akin to a pilgrimage destina‐tion for Amish families from other communities.

Family Life was Dad’s baby. His dream. His impossiblevision. A magazine published by the Amish, for the Amish.To fund it, he mortgaged the farm (despite my mother’sprotests).

He must have seemed insane. Such a thing had neverbeen attempted before. But he plodded determinedlyforward. He placed ads for subscriptions in The Budget,formatted and published the inaugural issue, and then sent itout free to thousands of Amish households across theUnited States and Canada. Amazingly enough, it worked.Subscriptions poured in, eventually reaching thirty thousand.

***

Dad wrote steadily for manydecades, producing many thou‐sands of pages. Some of his stuffwas good, some was okay, andsome was, well, hard‐core Amishpolemics. Writing was his life’sfocus, and he neglected manyother important things in pursuit ofhis passion—including, to a largeextent, his wife and children. That’snot judgment. It’s just a fact.

He was a strong, driven man,and I deeply respect his accom‐plishments. But I wonder some‐times how far he could have gonehad he not been hampered byAmish rules and restrictions. Andwhether he could have found abroader audience for his writings.

I have often tried to imagine what my father wouldhave been like as a young man. Knowing him for thedreamer he is, I have wondered what he thought as helistened to his friends share local gossip and their meagerdreams and humble goals.

Like me, I am sure he was painfully aware of howmuch there was beyond the boundaries of his unsophisti‐cated world.

Perhaps, lured by the modern conveniences of thesurrounding society, he longed to drive one of the roaringroadsters that passed his plodding team and wagon inthe heat, leaving him strangled and choking in swirlingclouds of dust.

Perhaps, tempted by the throbbing dance musicwafting from the pool hall in town, he allowed himself tobriefly roam far and free from the mental chains thatbound him.

Perhaps at times he questioned his roots and hisbackground and the value of the traditions his eldersclung to so tenaciously.

Perhaps he chafed at the narrow confines of the simple,unquestioning Amish theology that demanded his abjectsubmissions to an ageless tradition that taught any otherpath would lead to eternal damnation in the fires of hell.

Perhaps all these things and more occurred, callingto him, daring him to forsake forever the seeminglysenseless traditions that confined him.

Perhaps.But unlike me, in the end, he chose to stay.

Taken from Chapter 7 Growing Up Amish by Ira Wagler. Copyright ©2011 by Ira Wagler. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers,Inc. All rights reserved.

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:31 PM Page 34

Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • Winter 2013 35Penn State University Dickinson School of Law • Winter 2013 35

date he realized that he just could not make thecommitment to an Old Order Amish future—children, farm work, and conformity—and thatleaving was his next step. “There is no humanpenance anywhere that can ever atone for thewrong I did to her that night,” he writes of thenight he ended their relationship. At the men-tion of her alias in the memoir, Wagler becomesquiet. “She is one of the three names I had tochange in the book. This has been emotionallyhard on her,” he said. The woman is now a mar-ried mother of eight. Wagler’s memoir ends afterhe leaves the Old Order for the last time.

Of the Wagler siblings, three remain in theOld Order community. Titus and Rosemary livewith their spouses and families, Titus in Bloom-field and Rosemary near the old family home inAylmer. His brother Joseph is a leader in anAmish community in Kentucky, chosen long agoto serve by a process recounted in the book—aprocedure best described as part prayer, partchance, and part popular vote. The other eightWagler siblings left the Old Order communityand live across the United States.

The JuristWagler enrolled at The Dickinson School of

Law in 1994. Wagler enjoyed the law school ex-perience, even if it was stressful from time totime. “I was and still am a libertarian,” he saidwith a smile. “I loved to rile up Les MacRae’sclass in land use. That was a lot of fun.” He ap-preciated the challenge of studying law. While hedid not have the benefit of a typical high schooleducation, he said that he felt that being a goodten years older than most of his classmateshelped. “In college, I think I was a little more se-rious, a little more focused than perhaps a typi-cal student,” he said. “In law school, everyonewas focused, so age had few advantages.”

He practiced for four years in Lancaster,Pennsylvania taking general civil litigation, adop-tion, and family law work. Soon after the practiceof law began, he felt a familiar sensation; hisdaily life was just not a good fit. “Somebody has

to be aggressive and get out there. It’s all so con-frontational. I just am not crazy about being thatperson. I don’t miss that at all.”

A Quiet LifeA friend of his opened a building supply

company and invited Ira to manage the business.Graber Building Supply is in Atglen, Pennsylva-nia, outside of Lancaster. Wagler handles sales,customer service, and a variety of other tasks.His day brings him into contact with all kinds ofpeople, and even a few stray fans who stop bythe office to request an autograph.

“This really is more my style, working withmy hands,” he said, during a tour of the ware-house on a cold and rainy fall day. At work, hekeeps his legal training under his hat. “I tell al-most nobody in business that I’m a lawyer. Itjust doesn’t come up. But I can write one heck ofa demand letter.”

Being a bestselling writer did not bring aradical lifestyle change for Wagler. He livesalone and blogs every two weeks. He may workon a sequel covering the last twenty years. “Itdoesn’t feel ready yet,” he said.

Now, Wagler is the kind of person who fre-quents the local Pennsylvania Dutch diner andknows every server by name. He is not a parentbut relishes the role of being an uncle to fifty-ninenieces and nephews and attending all of theirgraduations, weddings, and other special eventsas he can. He takes a few media calls about hisbook and ponders the business of a sequel.

He has some advice for anybody who feelsstuck in life, in a way of thinking, or stuck in anyway. “If you don’t like it, leave. There’s a wholeother life out there.”


Ira Wagler ’97 enrolled at the Law School planning to help both Amish and“English” people with legal issues.

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By Pamela Knowlton

Sixteen years ago, Marion Welp, MercedesGuzman, and Jacqueline Busterna had little incommon, except one goal—earning an LL.M. incomparative law. One year together in Carlisleforged a friendship of a lifetime.

A snapshot of their time together during2012 Alumni & Reunion Weekend this past Sep-tember conveys the core of their friendship.Anxiously awaiting the arrival of her friends onthe steps of Trickett Hall Guzman exclaimed,“Here come my sisters,” as Busterna and Welpapproached. “It’s been a year since we last saweach other, but it seems like only yesterday. Weare as much sisters as if we were born into thesame family,” said Guzman.

Post-LL.M., Guzman, who was born in NewYork but lived in the Dominican Republic, andBusterna, who is from England, settled in theUnited States while Welp returned to her homein Germany. Guzman lives in Metuchen, NewJersey, and works as an attorney in the area ofcorporate law. Busterna, who lives in Pennsylva-nia and works primarily in New Jersey, is a sen-ior claim representative defending medicalmalpractice claims at Coverys, a medical profes-sional liability insurance company. Welp is sen-ior vice president and general counsel for thefashion company Esprit in Düsseldorf, Germany.

The Beginning

Guzman and Welp roomed across from eachother on campus and became best friends. “Wedid everything together. We had classes to-gether, studied together, and ate meals to-gether,” said Guzman. “After Marion got a car,we went on trips together.”

After spending some time with Guzman andWelp, Busterna decided she wanted to becomepart of the club. “I wasn’t invited in,” she joked,“but I managed to slowly poke my way into thefriendship.”

Welp recalls Busterna’s keen method ofworking her way into the friendship like it wasyesterday. “Jackie’s husband, Stephen Busterna,a 1982 J.D. graduate who she was dating at thetime, was an excellent cook so she would casu-ally invite Mercedes and me over for dinner.That was her way of conning me into giving hera ride home to Camp Hill,” Welp said.

“Since Marion agreed to drive me homefrom Carlisle to Camp Hill, I figured the least Icould do was feed her and Mercedes,” Busternajoked. Johannes Schulte ’96, an LL.M. stu-dent from Germany, often joined in the fellow-ship, too.

“We had each other in good times and badtimes,” said Busterna, who insisted that Guzmanand Welp be in the bridal party of her weddingto Stephen. Whether it was her legal trainingshowing through or the fact that she didn’t wantto spend money on a new dress, Welp’s accept-ance did not come without some negotiation.“Marion told me that she would love to be in mywedding but my bridesmaids’ dresses had to be

FOREVER FRIENDS:Catching up with Marion Welp, Mercedes Guzman & Jackie Busterna

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:16 PM Page 36


blue. She only had one dress, which was blue,and she had no intentions of buying another one.It was a small sacrifice to pay to have Marionand Mercedes be part of my day,” Busterna said.

For Busterna, who is from London, the pathto The Dickinson School of Law was an easy one.“I wanted to study law abroad, and I was tooscared to go somewhere I didn’t know anyone.My aunt lives here and told me to get on theplane. That’s how I ended up at Dickinson.”

The road was a little more circuitous forWelp. “In Germany, we have a code law system,so there is no arguing about cases. We don’t havea jury. We just talk professionally to the judge,”Welp explained. “Then I saw all these Americanmovies with people speaking to a jury. I foundthe element of psychology that is needed to talkto the jury very interesting, and I thought that itwould be useful in negotiating contracts.”

Welp learned about the AmbassadorialScholar Program through Rotary, which awards$15,000 a year for use in the United States in ex-change for some speaking obligations on behalfof the organization. “Thanks to a professor’s rec-ommendation, I got the scholarship,” said Welp,who explained that she would not have been able

to afford law school tuition without the scholar-ship. “When I told them that I wanted to use iffor a university, they picked Harrisburg as theterritory. That is how I ended up at Dickinson.”

After attending a large public university inGermany, enrolling at a law school with a popu-lation of approximately 500 was a welcomechange. “In Germany, I started with 1,500 studentsin my class. We didn’t even fit in the room. Weonly had seats for 600, so we needed to be therean hour early to get a seat. Being able to come toa small law school and live in the dorm was nicebecause it was all so personal,” Welp said.

Like Welp, Guzman chose Dickinson Schoolof Law because she was looking for a differentatmosphere. “Initially, I was planning to study inFrance for my master’s degree, because it’s a civillaw system and our system is based on the French.Then I thought, if I go there, it’s going to be thesame thing. When I started doing my researchlooking for schools, I found The Dickinson Schoolof Law. I liked the small town and safe atmosphere.I have never once regretted coming here.” Guzmandivides her time between New York City, whereshe works, and New Jersey, where she lives withher three kids and husband Paul.

“We are as much sisters as if we were born into the same family,” says Guzman, pictured with Jackie Busterna (center) and Marion Welp (right) at Alumni and Reunion Weekend.

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:31 PM Page 37


Featured Faculty

Scholarship

LOCATION, LOCATION,LOCATION:USING COST OF LIVINGTO ACHIEVE TAX EQUITY

James Puckett joined the Law School in 2012. A scholar of tax

administration and distributive justice, his research explores

the intersection of taxation and federal and state administra‐

tive law and professional responsibility, especially relating to

uncertain tax positions.

By James Puckett

All other things being equal, the federalincome tax ignores whether the taxpayer livesin a relatively affordable or expensive loca-tion. This approach can lead to unfairness;moreover, special deductions for the tax-payer’s actual living expenses, such as homemortgage interest and state and local taxes,do not solve the problem. Tax law scholarshave generally been quick to dismiss the eq-uity issues based on assumptions about tax-payer mobility.

Taxable income is subject to tax bracketswith rates currently ranging from 0% at lowincomes (counting the standard deductionand personal exemption together as a zero-rate bracket) to 39.6% at the highest incomes.The application of higher tax rates at higherincomes is known as progressivity. The pro-gressive rate structure is grounded in the fun-damental tax fairness norm that the taxburden should be “allocated among residenttaxpayers in relation to their taxpaying capac-ities, often referred to as the principle of abil-ity-to-pay.”

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The equity issue is whether it is fair to ignorewhat the taxpayer can afford to purchase withthe taxpayer’s income in determining the tax-payer’s ability to pay tax. Two workers who earnthe same salary may have different purchasingpower depending on where they reside. This isbecause the prices of housing, food, transporta-tion, and other living expenses vary from placeto place. The federal income tax generally disre-gards these variations. For example, a $50,000salary generally bears the same federal incometax burden in affordable Mississippi as in unaf-fordable Manhattan. Residents of high-costareas have claimed that their incomes are sub-jected to higher tax rates too quickly given theircost of living.

The idea that ability to pay should take thetaxpayer’s purchasing power into account hassomewhat carelessly percolated into the federalincome tax system. Inflation adjustments in-crease the standard deduction, personal exemp-tion, and the tax brackets to reflect purchasingpower. Such adjustments prevent year-to-yearincreases in income from pushing a taxpayerinto a higher tax bracket, if the taxpayer’s pur-chasing power has not changed. Inflation adjust-

ments are not, however, systematically appliedthroughout the tax system. Moreover, despitethe recognized importance of purchasing powerto ability to pay, the tax system generally has notextended the linkage to take into account differ-ences in purchasing power that depend onwhere—as opposed to when—the taxpayer earnsincome.

A comparison of incomes does not provide acomplete picture of inequality when local cost ofliving structures differ. A taxpayer in a low-costlocation may be wealthier at a lower income thana taxpayer in a high-cost location with a higherincome. Framing wealth in this way implicitlyvalues certain forms of wealth higher than oth-ers. Basic needs such as food, housing, andtransportation are important. This should not beundercut because some taxpayers in high-costlocations have better access to a warm, sunnyclimate or other local amenities.

Some would undoubtedly respond that if ataxpayer in a high-cost location feels unfairlytaxed, they could simply move to a low-cost loca-tion. But, particularly at low incomes, moving orstaying in place may not be a completely volun-


$106,316 in NYC

Compare a $50,000 Salary in Harrisburg, PA

$51,020 in Denver$79,057 in San Francisco

Salary information from CNN Money Cost of Living Calculatorhttp://money.cnn.com/calculator/pf/cost‐of‐living/accessed January 16, 2013

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:31 PM Page 39


tary decision. It is true that migration is possi-ble, and many people move even under financialdistress, but there are important challenges.Moving may involve significant fixed costs rela-tive to the means of a person who subsists pay-check-to-paycheck. Assuming she has themoney, how will a poor Bay Area resident pre-dict her job opportunities in Cleveland? What ifshe manages to move but does not actually se-cure the job of her dreams, or she misjudges thelocal cost structure? It seems unlikely that thegovernment will assist much if a move fails butwill charge her with the ability to move success-fully if she does not. Family and social connec-tions at home may make child care moreaffordable and may help with sharing othercosts, such as housing or transportation.

Even at higher incomes, relocation presentsa risk. Perhaps the costs of conducting a moveare less significant as income increases (or morelikely to be borne by a new employer), but theissue of predicting happiness at a potential newhome remains. How does the taxpayer confi-dently predict how a new social environmentwill work for her; how she will react to a differ-ent climate; how she will feel about being awayfrom family and old friends; intangible aspectsof a new job; and myriad other factors? If awhole family has to move, informational issues(predicting employment, happiness, or both, atthe new location) multiply.

Moreover, some living costs have little to dowith personal enjoyment. Living costs theoreti-cally comprise two components: productionamenities, which are valued by businesses, andconsumption amenities, which are valued byconsumers. Compensation may, therefore, par-tially adjust for production amenities. A skilledworker pursuing a high paying job, which is fun-damentally a productive endeavor, cannot optout of the weather or the local culture.

It would be unfair and incomplete to giveresidents of low-cost areas a free pass in thisanalysis. Even if residents of low-cost areas sac-rifice pleasure for purchasing power, they shouldbe taxed on their purchasing power. There doesnot, however, appear to be such a sacrifice; resi-dents of low-cost areas often appear to be hap-pier than residents of high-cost areas. Inaddition, it is quite possible that residents oflow-cost areas are getting more than what theypay for, because many low-cost locations arelow-density. Low-density locations may havesubstantial environmental externalities.

It is easy to assume, for purposes of analyti-cal clarity, that people will move with the windsof economic opportunity, but in the real world,people find themselves, if not literally tied to theland, at least tied to each other in ways that sig-nificantly complicate worker mobility. Notwith-standing these concerns, one might balk at theidea of a potential subsidy for consumer ameni-ties in high-cost areas. Past some income thresh-old, it may be more reasonable to assume thatthe taxpayer is simply paying for consumeramenities. This approach has the virtue of sim-plicity and would prevent abuse or the appear-ance of abuse. There is a risk to taxpayer moraleof an unfair subsidy, or even the appearance ofan unfair subsidy. This risk presumably in-creases as taxpayers at higher income levels re-ceive benefits. Taxpayers in or near poverty bylocal standards should receive a local cost of liv-ing adjustment, but whether the adjustmentshould extend beyond that income level is farmore debatable.

To read the complete article and its citations, please seeVolume 63 of the Alabama Law Review.

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William F. Fox is a Distinguished

Scholar in Residence. He holds an

LL.M. from Harvard Law School, a

J.D. from Catholic University of

America and a B.A. from George

Washington. Before coming to

Penn State, he was dean of

Catholic University of America

School of Law and served on that

faculty for 31 years. He is also a

member of the Centre for Energy,

Mineral & Petroleum Law and Pol‐

icy global faculty at the University

of Dundee, Scotland, a position he

has held for nearly 20 years.

How do you bring practice experience into the classroom?

That’s really important to me. I’ve always thought that if youcan illustrate some of the things you are teaching with stuff thatyou have actually done, it’s a very effective teaching technique.That way you don’t have to teach things in the abstract.

I hope that I give students a sense of judgment by showingthem how a fairly experienced practicing lawyer goes about mak-ing all the decisions that he or she is forced to make in handlinga case or a transaction. The longer I teach, the more I’d like tothink that it’s the judgment more than the doctrine that stickswith my students once they get into practice. Doctrine can be

WHY I TEACHQ&A with William Fox


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learned from books and lectures; teaching judg-ment is much more elusive and much more diffi-cult to convey in the classroom.

One aspect of my work as a practicinglawyer that I’m proudest of is the work I do withdisabled veterans. I just filed an amicus briefwith the Supreme Court on behalf of the widowof an Army veteran who’s having real problemswith the VA. I’ve been doing veterans work formore than 20 years. I was an enlisted man in theU.S, army infantry a long time ago. By coinci-dence I also happen to be a disabled vet, so forme the veterans’ work is both very emotionaland very rewarding.

What do you enjoy most about teaching?

It’s amazing how much I learn from the stu-dents particularly when I teach classes like nego-tiation and can watch them in action. It’sextraordinarily pleasing to watch students gofrom total beginners to fairly sophisticated al-most-lawyers. I do a lot of that in internationalbusiness law, a course that I refer to as a “bridgethe gap” course. In my upper level courses, I tryto get my students to stop thinking of them-selves as law students and start thinking ofthemselves as lawyers—a radically differentframe of mind. With the state of the legal markettoday, students have to make that transition awhole lot quicker than might have been the caseeven a few years ago. Increasingly, law firms andgovernment agencies don’t have a lot of time forapprenticeship training like they may have had40 years ago.

What is your favorite course to teach?

I don’t like just teaching one course. I liketeaching a variety of things. Dean Reilly has re-ally indulged me in that aspect and is using meas a kind of utility infielder. Since coming toPenn State in 2008, I’ve taught InternationalBusiness Transactions, Criminal Law, Criminal

Procedure, Contracts, Elements of Law, and Ad-ministrative Law. I’m also teaching a new coursein energy law. Being able to teach all thesecourses brings a smile to my face. It’s one of thenice things about being toward the end of my ca-reer rather than the beginning.

What advice would you give to young lawyers?

Hit the ground running and work really hardat making the transition from student to lawyer.Also, be ethical. You’ve got to have a sense ofethics. It’s why I teach a component of ethics inevery single course. In my courses, the ethics el-ement is required and non-negotiable.

What skills do you consider universal?

The ability to negotiate and the ability totalk to and get along with people. I tell all mylaw students, “It’s ok to read the books and mas-ter all the doctrine, but when you get into prac-tice, you are going to be absolutely amazed athow much of a successful practice involves deal-ing effectively with people.” Some of them al-ready know that. For others I think it’s a little bitof a tough transition—going from just readingcases in books to actually looking across thedesk and talking to somebody, dealing with aclient who’s scared or angry, and working withopposing counsel. That’s the people componentin the practice of law and it’s absolutely vital.

What do you do for fun?

Woodworking and flying airplanes. When Iwas on active duty I spent a lot of time sitting inHuey helicopters and occasionally jumping outof airplanes. For some reason, I always identi-fied with the pilots. So I took flying lessons rightafter I was discharged and have been flying offand on for almost 50 years. The woodworkingalways calms me down and keeps me sane.

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William E. Butler Jill EngleLouis Del Duca Amy Gaudion Gary Gildin

The Supreme Court of Ukraine awarded Profes-

sor William E. Butler, John Edward Fowler

Distinguished Professor of Law and Interna-

tional Affairs, its highest medal “For Fidelity to

Law” on October 26 at the U.S. Embassy in Kiev.

The citation reads “for high professionalism, sig-

nificant contributions to the development of the

system of court organization and proceedings,

ensuring the protection of the rights and freedoms

of man and citizen, and in commemoration of

the 90th anniversary of the legal journal Law of

Ukraine”. Presiding at the event was Senior

Trial Attorney Mary K. Butler, on behalf of the

U.S. Department of Justice, and academician

Alexander D. Sviatotskiy, who presented the

medal on behalf of the Supreme Court of Ukraine.

Professor Louis F. Del Duca contributed a

chapter titled “Developing Global Transnational

Harmonization Procedures for the Twenty-First

Century: The Accelerating Pace of Common and

Civil Law Convergence—First Decade Update” to

Unification and Harmonization of Interna-

tional Commercial Law—Interaction or Dehar-

monization? (Kluwer Law International BV,

2012). Along with co-authors Albert Kritzer and

Daniel Nagel, he published a chapter titled

“Achieving Optimal Use of Harmonisation Tech-

niques In An Increasingly Interrelated Twenty-

First Century World—Consumer Sales: Moving

The EU Harmonisation Process To A Global

Plane” in Theory and Practice of Harmonisation

(Edward Elgar 2012). A chapter titled Unifica-

tion of Laws in Federal Systems—Italy: National

Report co-authored by Professor Del Duca and

his son Patrick, has been published in Federal-

ism and Legal Unification: A Comparative Em-

pirical Investigation of Twenty Systems. He

also published Facilitating a Cost Free Path to

Economic Recovery—Implementing a Global

Uniform Receivables Financing Law, co-au-

thored with Richard Kohn and Spiros Bazinas, in

the Uniform Commercial Code Law Journal.

Professor Jill Engle published “Promoting

the General Welfare: Legal Reform to Lift

Women and Children in the United States Out of

Poverty” in the University of Iowa Journal of

Gender, Race & Justice.

At the International Competition Network (ICN)

Advocacy Workshop in Paris in November 2012,

Professor Beth Farmer, McQuaide Blasko

Faculty Scholar Professor of Law and International

Affairs, worked with fellow panelists Seppo

Reimavuo, director of the Finnish Competition

Authority, and Shri S.L. Bunker, secretary of the

Competition Commission of India and modera-

tor Caldwell Harrop, Foreign Commerce Section

of the U.S. Department of Justice, to help define

the role of the ICN in competition advocacy.

Professor Amy Gaudion, Assistant Dean for

Academic Affairs, appeared on WHYY in Philadel-

phia to discuss the evolving role of the vice president.


F A C U L T Y H I G H L I G H T S

P406_P406 2/20/13 3:26 PM Page 43


David Kaye Flynt Leverett Hon. D. Brooks Smith

Professor Gary Gildin, Hon. G. Thomas andAnne G. Miller Chair in Advocacy, published“Cross-Examination at Trial: Strategies for theDeposition,” the lead article in the spring 2012issue of the American Journal of Trial Advocacyand “Redressing Deprivations of Rights Securedby State Constitutions Outside the Shadow ofthe Supreme Court’s Remedies Jurisprudence,”published in the Penn State Law Review. Hewas also selected as a fellow of the American BarFoundation.

Vice Admiral (Retired) James W. Houck, Distinguished Scholar in Residence at PennState Law and School of International Affairs,appeared before the board of directors of theNavy League of the United States on October 19to urge U.S. accession to the United NationsConvention on the Law of the Sea.

Professor David Kaye, Distinguished Profes-sor of Law and Weiss Family Faculty Scholar,published “Drawing Lines: Unrelated ProbableCause as a Prerequisite to Early DNA Collection”in the North Carolina Law Review Addendumand “Beyond Uniqueness: The Birthday Paradox,Source Attribution, and Individualization inForensic Science Testimony,” in the Oxford Uni-versity Press interdisciplinary journal, Law,Probability and Risk. He is a contributing authorof McCormick on Evidence, whose updated sev-enth edition is in press. Also in press are entriesfor two encyclopedias of forensic science; a

chapter on “Expert and Scientific Evidence” for aReader in American Law for Chinese Law Studentsbeing published in Chinese by Peking UniversityPress; essays on “Chimeric Criminals” in the Min-nesota Journal of Law, Science and Technology,and on “Likelihoodism, Bayesianism, and a Pair ofShoes” in Jurimetrics: The Journal of Law, Sci-ence, and Technology; and articles entitled “TheGenealogy Detectives: A Constitutional Analysisof Familial Searching” in the American CriminalLaw Review and “A Fourth Amendment Theoryfor Arrestee DNA and Other Biometric Data-bases” in the University of Pennsylvania Jour-nal of Constitutional Law. The U.S. SupremeCourt cited and pondered The New Wigmore, ATreatise on Evidence: Expert Evidence (2d ed.2011), a volume edited by Professor Kaye, inWilliams v. Illinois, decided on June 18, 2012.There was no majority opinion, but every one ofthe four opinions cited the treatise.

Professor Flynt Leverett, who holds a jointappointment with the School of International Af-fairs, appeared on Al-Jazeera English to discuss theSyrian opposition and has published Going toTehran: Why the United State Must Come toTerms with the Islamic Republic of Tehran.

The Hon. D. Brooks Smith ’76 and Profes-sor John Lopatka, A. Robert Noll DistinguishedProfessor of Law, published “Class Action Pro-fessional Objectors: What to Do About Them?”in the Florida State University Law Review.

James W. Houck

F A C U L T Y H I G H L I G H T S

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:16 PM Page 44


Professor Katherine Pearson appeared onWITF Radio Smart Talk to discuss her researchon nursing home debt collection and was quotedin the Wall Street Journal, FoxBusiness.com,and ABCNews.com. She also appeared on Aus-tralian national radio to discuss filial supportlaws.

Professor Robert Rains published “A Mini-malist Approach to Same-Sex Divorce: Respect-ing States that Permit Same-Sex Marriage andStates that Refuse to Recognize Them,” in theUtah Law Review. He has also written a chapterentitled “The American Bar Association RejectsCollaborative Law Guidelines: A Temporary Set-back or a Sign of Things to Come?” for the forth-coming book, Le Ragioni degli Altri: Mediazionee Famiglia tra Conflitto e Dialogo (Italy). Hisarticle “Marriage in the Time of Internet Minis-ters” has been reprinted in abridged format in aUkranian law journal.

The International Judicial Academy (IJA) ap-pointed Professor Catherine Rogers, Pauland Marjorie Price Faculty Scholar and Profes-sor of Law, to its board of directors. The non-profit organization provides education programsfor judges, court administrators, ministry of jus-tice officials, and other legal professionals fromcountries around the world. Earlier this year shetraveled with a group of U.S. federal judges toChina which included a visit to the SupremePeople’s Court. She is also working with IJA ontraining for Middle East and Palestinian judges.

Professor Stephen Ross, Lewis H. VovakisDistinguished Faculty Scholar, is on a sabbaticalresearch leave as a Sproul Fellow in CanadianStudies and visiting scholar at his alma mater,the University of California (Berkeley). Lexis/Nexis will be publishing his forthcoming case-book, Comparative Constitutional Law: A Con-textual Perspective, which focuses on the U.S.,Canada, Australia, and South Africa (with co-authors Heinz Klug from Wisconsin and HelenIrving from Sydney).

Professor Geoffrey Scott co-authored “Kryp-tonite, Duff Beer and the Protection of FictionalCharacters and Products in the Global Commu-nity,” in the Monash University Law Review.

Professor Samuel C. Thompson Jr., ArthurWeiss Distinguished Faculty Scholar, publisheda book on the economic plans of presidentialcandidates Mitt Romney and Barack Obama inwhich he analyzed the tax implications of eachcandidate’s policies.

Professor Laurel Terry, the Harvey A. Feld-man Distinguished Faculty Scholar, attended thefirst of its kind International Conference of LegalRegulators in September that ended with a com-mitment to set up an international network oflawyer regulators. Legal regulators from juris-dictions around the world met to exchangeideas, compare practices, and explore ways toimprove collaboration in the future.

Katherine Pearson Catherine Rogers Samuel C. Thompson Jr. Laurel Terry

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Four friends and Dickinson School ofLaw classmates made a pact as third-year students in September 1996: tonever cook a meal on their own.

Dave Farsiou, Wayne Mowery, JohnPhoebus, and Jeff Yelen, all members of theClass of 1997, lived on campus, bought a mealplan at Dickinson College, and created a sched-ule for lunch and dinner at various diners intown. “I am proud that I cooked not a singlemeal,” said Phoebus, who now enjoys a career incriminal defense and litigation in Crisfield,Maryland, and the surrounding area.

Fifteen years later, the 1997 classmates en-tered another pact: to create a scholarship bene-fitting Dickinson School of Law students ofsuperior academic achievement.

The group’s “ringleader”, Yelen, was seekingto make a meaningful contribution to the LawSchool when he conceived of the idea to pool re-sources and establish a scholarship fund. Yelen,who practices with Yelen Law Offices inWilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, recruited Phoebus,Mowery, an intellectual property attorney inState College, Pennsylvania, and Farsiou, a part-ner in the Philadelphia office of WoodcockWashburn LLP, to join him in making a sig-nificant commitment to the school. Together,the friends pledged to make lead gifts—a com-bined total of more than $40,000—toward thecreation of a student scholarship.

Although the group originally planned toendow the scholarship in their names, they soonagreed that by naming it for their class, theycould help to encourage classmates to also makesignificant commitments, particularly as theclass prepared to celebrate its 15th reunion inCarlisle last September. To promote the scholar-ship and assist with soliciting additional gifts,each agreed to serve alongside other classmateson their Class of 1997 Reunion Challenge Com-mittee. The foursome is asking classmates tomake a minimum pledge of $5,000, payableover a period of up to five years.

Phoebus encourages his classmates and fel-low alumni to think of their gifts as taking oneclient’s payment and using that to benefit theLaw School each year. “That’s how I think of it,”said Phoebus. “Fifteen years out, I’m glad to beable to do this. I am happy to give back to thelaw school that’s made me the lawyer I amtoday.”

Yelen, a longtime Law School volunteer andmember of the inaugural board of the newly established Dickinson School of Law Alumni Society, hopes that his classmates will see thescholarship as a way to make a tangible impact.He also hopes that their efforts will inspire otherindividuals and/or classes to find ways to giveback in recognition of the education that pre-pared them for their careers.

WHY WE GIVE:Class of 1997 Classmates Join Efforts to Endow Scholarship

G I V I N G

P406_P406 2/18/13 12:16 PM Page 46


Yelen emphasized that all gifts made to theLaw School benefit its students. “Sometimes peo-ple need a little push to think about the impor-tance of their law school and a way for them toget involved. I’m happy to say that I benefittedfrom this school and it’s worthwhile,” said Yelen,one of several members of his family to graduatefrom The Dickinson School of Law including hisfather, Sandor Yelen ’56; his uncle, BarryYelen ’66, PSU ’62; his brother, MichaelYelen ’95; and cousins Hannah Greenwald’98 and Rebekah Saidman-Krauss ’12.

Gifts and pledges to the Class of 1997Scholarship for Academic Excellence nowtotal approximately $54,000. The scholarshipwill be activated when the fund reaches $50,000in realized gifts, the minimum level required fora scholarship endowment. The scholarship willbenefit incoming and current students “who haveachieved superior academic records or who man-ifest promise of outstanding academic success.”

From left to right: Dave Farsiou, John Phoebus, Wayne Mowery,and Jeff Yelen, led a classwide effort to establish a scholarshipfund.

Ways to Give to The DickinsonSchool of Law: Making aPledge Commitment

Alumni and friends sometimes choose to make signifi‐

cant contributions to The Dickinson School of Law in the form

of pledge agreements. Pledges may be paid over not more

than five years; the fiscal year (and pledge year) runs from

July 1 to June 30.

Payments can be paid in equal or unequal installments,

as donors prefer and/or indicate on their pledge agreements.

Typically, payments are made on an annual basis, but pay‐

ments can also be made in quarterly, semi‐annual, or annual

installments. In order to qualify for automatic reminders to

be produced by the Office of Donor Services, annual pay‐

ments must be at least $500.

Pledge commitments are intended to reflect personal

commitments and investments in the Law School. Any match‐

ing gifts received will be designated to the same purpose

identified in a donor’s pledge agreement, but will not be ap‐

plied to outstanding pledge balances.

For more information on making a pledge commitment

or other ways to make a gift to The Dickinson School of Law,

please contact Kelly Rimmer, director of development and

alumni affairs, at [email protected] or 717‐240‐5217.

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:31 PM Page 47


1960sWilliam F. Hoffmeyer ‘61, seniorpartner of Hoffmeyer & Semmel‐man, LLP, has been named one ofthe top attorneys in Pennsylvaniafor 2012 by Pennsylvania SuperLawyers.

Marshall S. Jacobson ’62 was hon‐ored at the 167th anniversary din‐ner of Temple B’nai B’rith ofWilkes‐Barre. He is of counsel atRosenn Jenkins and Greenwald,where he has been a partner for42 years.

Gregory D. Saputelli ’68 of Ober‐mayer Rebmann Maxwell & Hip‐pel, LLP, has been named one ofthe top attorneys in New Jersey for2012 by New Jersey SuperLawyers.

At a November dinner, GroveStoddard ’66 was honored by hisConnecticut Law Firm Pullman &Comley, LLC, for over forty years ofpractice.

1970sJames S. Gkonos ’79, vice chair ofSaul Ewing’s insurance practice,has been selected to join themembership of the Federation ofRegulatory Counsel (FORC). He fo‐cuses his practice on insuranceand reinsurance regulatory mat‐ters, contract and treaty interpre‐tation and drafting, insuranceinsolvency, and reinsurance dis‐putes.

Jack Hannman ’73 writes that hestill lives in Unionville, ChesterCounty, PA. He is general counselat Goldberg, Meaniz, McCullen &Muth. He is an active member ofthe Chester County Bar Founda‐tion and serves on the pro bonocommittee.

Jane Lewis Volk ’76 of Meyer, Un‐kovic & Scott, LLP, in Pittsburghwas elected to the board of direc‐tors of the Pittsburgh Chapter ofthe National Association ofWomen in Construction. She willserve a one‐year term.

Mary Ann Ross ’79, a senior part‐ner with the Chester County lawfirm MacElree Harvey, has beennamed to the Pennsylvania SuperLawyers list as one of the top landuse/zoning attorneys in Pennsylva‐nia for 2012. Super Lawyers selectsno more than 5 percent of thelawyers in the state. Ms. Rossi’spractice includes zoning and landuse, real estate and commercial lit‐igation.

1980sMargaret J.Amoroso ’82 ofthe Pennsylva‐nia labor unionand employ‐ment law firmWillig, Williams

& Davidson, has been appointedas an interim member of theTownship Council of MiddeltownTownship in Delaware County, PA.

William J.Leonard ’84 ofObermayer Reb‐mann Maxwell& Hippel LLPhas been namedto the Pennsyl‐vania Rising

Stars list as one of the top up‐and‐coming attorneys in Pennsylvaniafor 2012.

Lieutenant Colonel Robert J. DeS‐ousa ’85, was Awarded the Meri‐torious Service medal by COLPatrick Barnett, Chief of Trial De‐fense, National Guard Bureau.Barnett presented the award toDeSousa, who is a traditional

Pennsylvania Guardsmen andserves in his civilian occupation asState Director for US Senator PatToomey, for DeSousa’s work in set‐ting up the first ever trial DefenseService in the National Guard.DeSousa set up a team of lawyersto provide National Guard Soldierswith defense services for ninestates including Pennsylvania. Thecitation reads, “…DeSousa consis‐tently demonstrated unparalleledleadership, professionalism, andjudgment…”

Delaware Superior Court Judge JanR. Jurden ’85 was awarded the2011 Outstanding Service to theCourts and the Bar Award. Theyearly award is presented to theDelaware judge or lawyer who “byexemplary service to the DelawareCourts and Delaware Bar has sub‐stantially assisted the Courts andthe Bar and strengthened publictrust and confidence in the State’scourt system and the administra‐tion of justice.” One of the manyreasons Judge Jurden received the2011 Award was for her leadershipin establishing the Superior CourtMental Health Court.

Michael Kahn ’85 is the co‐founder of ReelTime CLE, whichprovides continuing legal educa‐tion ethics courses and uses main‐stream films to facilitate dialogueand raise insights. Its programsfocus on the impact of stress onthe decision making process.

Verne R. Smith '85, assistant deanfor business and administration atWidener University School of Law,where he also teaches a course inanimal law, was recently reap‐pointed as chair of the Pennsylva‐nia Bar Association's Animal LawCommittee. He also serves on theexecutive committee of the Associ‐ation of American Law Schools'Animal Law Section. He welcomes

Send your Class Notes updates to [email protected]

C L A S S N O T E S

P406_P406 2/8/13 3:31 PM Page 48


hearing from Law School alumniwho have animal law questions orissues; he can be reached at [email protected].

Elaine P.Stanko ’85 hasjoined McNeesWallace andNurick LLC.Elaine hasgained her

legal experience with the local andregional law firms of Rhoda,Stoudt & Bradley, Roland & Schle‐gal, P.C. and Fox Rothschild LLP,where she developed many rela‐tionships with local lenders andcreated her niche in the areas of fi‐nancial services and general busi‐ness counseling. Elaine serves onthe Board of Trustees at The JanusSchool in Mount Joy, the Board ofDirectors of Easter Seals EasternPennsylvania and as an AllocationVolunteer for the United Way ofBerks County.

Frank Chmielewski ’86 authored"Reserving 101: An Introductionfor Defense Attorneys and Ad‐justers," for the August 2012 issueof Counter Point, the official publi‐cation of the Pennsylvania DefenseInstitute. He is director of assess‐ments at The Institutes, an organi‐zation dedicated to insurance andrisk management education andtraining.

Tom Profy ’86, a member of theestates and elder law practice atBegley Carlin and Mandio, LLP, re‐cently spoke to several RotaryClubs in Bucks County, PA, on “Es‐tate Planning Documents youCan’t Live Without!”

Melissa A.Scartelli ’87 ofScartelli Ol‐szewski, P.C.,has been rec‐ognized as oneof the “Top At‐

torneys in Pennsylvania,” by Amer‐ican Registry, LLC.

Catherine A.Christian ’88,past presidentof the New YorkCounty Lawyers'Association, washonored at aceremony re‐

cently for her role as NYCLA’s firstAfrican American, the youngestperson, and the second woman tobe inducted as NYCLA’s President.A portrait was created in herhonor. A member of NYCLA since1990, during her presidency (May2007‐May 2008), she was instru‐mental in helping to establish probono programs to assist formerlyincarcerated individuals with suc‐cessful reentry into the workforceand low‐income persons plaguedby consumer debt. She is an assis‐tant district attorney in the NewYork County District Attorney's Of‐fice where she serves as chief ofthe Alternative Sentencing Divisionand counsel to the Trial Divisionfor the Office of the Special Nar‐cotics Prosecutor.

The Hon. Nancy L. Ridgeway ’88was appointed to the SuperiorCourt of New Jersey on January10, 2012, and assigned to the Fam‐ily Division, Atlantic County.

David E. Schwager ’88 has beenappointed to serve on The Discipli‐nary Board of the Supreme Courtof Pennsylvania and has been

elected to serve on the board ofdirectors of the Pennsylvania BarInstitute. A partner at Chariton,Schwager & Malak in Wilkes‐Barre, PA, his practice focuses onreal estate, title insurance, real es‐tate taxation, business law, com‐mercial litigation, municipal law,and creditors’ rights.

1990sDenise M. Bierly ’90, PSU ’87 wasrecently named to a one‐year termas President of the AmericanAcademy of Adoption Attorneys,the national not‐for‐profit accred‐ited organization of lawyers,judges, and law professors whospecialize in adoption. Denise hasfocused her practice on family for‐mation for over 20 years and hasassisted with more than 2,000adoption and assisted‐reproduc‐tion situations. She is a parentboth by birth and adoption.

Julie L. Von Spreckelsen ’91 ofEastburn and Gray, P.C., a share‐holder in the firm’s Land Use andZoning and Family Law practicegroups, was recently elected tothe board of the Ambler AreaYMCA, a branch of the Philadel‐phia & Vicinity YMCA.

Daniel E. Cummins ’93 of theScranton, PA, law firm of Foley,Comerford &Cummins is theauthor of TortTalk. Editors ofthe ABA Jour‐nal announcedin their Decem‐ber edition that they have selectedTort Talk (www.torttalk.com) asone of the top 100 best blogs in theUnited States for a legal audience.


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Judith Watts ’94 has joined YergeyDaylor Allebach Scheffey Picardiin Pottstown, PA, where she willconcentrate her practice on crimi‐nal defense, family law, personalinjury, and administration of willsand estates.

Ronald P.Kalyan, Jr. ’95has joined Mc‐Nees Wallaceand Nurick LLC,and previouslypracticed with

the regional law firms of Stevens &Lee, P.C. and Fox Rothschild LLP,where he developed his well‐rounded real estate practice. Ronserves on the Board of Directors ofNeighborhood Housing Services ofGreater Berks County and is alsoprofessionally affiliated with theBerks County, Chester/DelawareCounty Home Builders Associa‐tions, and the Berks County RealEstate Investors Association.

Amy C. Foerster ’96, a partner inSaul Ewing’s commercial litigationpractice group and co‐chair of its

higher educa‐tion practicegroup, receivedthe NationalAssociation ofCollege andUniversity At‐

torneys’ (NACUA) “First Decade”Award for 2011‐2012. The FirstDecade award recognizes an indi‐vidual who has made extraordi‐nary contributions to NACUA inher first 10 years as a member. Shehas been a member of NACUAsince 2008.

Gregory S. Skibitsky, Jr. ’96 andGene M. Molino ’04 establishedSkibitsky & Molino, a general civilpractice located in Pittston, PA, inOctober 2011. Their firm focuseson personal injury, workers’ com‐pensation, family law, bankruptcy,civil litigation, municipal law andestate planning/administration.

Andrew L. Josephson ’97 has beenelected to the Alaska State Houseof Representatives, representingthe people of the 15th District.

Anson H. Asbury ’98recently pub‐lished two arti‐cles aboutaspects of hispractice area,

federal income taxation. The Jour‐nal of Accountancy published"Schedule UTP: The Early ReturnsAre In" and The Verdict, a publica‐tion of the Georgia Trial LawyersAssociation, published "Ten TaxTips for Every Litigator." Anson isthe founder of Asbury Law Firm lo‐cated in Atlanta, GA.

Matthew J. Kloiber ’99 earned anLL.M. in Trial Advocacy from Tem‐ple University in May 2012. He isan attorney with Michael J. O’Con‐nor & Associates in Frackville, PA,where he focuses his practice onpersonal injury law and nursinghome abuse. He recently com‐pleted the Leadership Lehigh Val‐ley program and serves on theboard of the Volunteer Center ofthe Lehigh Valley. He and his wife,Mary Ann, recently welcomed ason, Jack, who joins three oldersisters Anneliese, Bridgett, andKathryn.

David Zambito ’97 joined the Har‐risburg office of Cozen O’Connor,where he focuses on regulatoryand commercial issues involvingutilities. He practices before stateand federal regulatory agencies,representing clients in the energy,telecommunications, water, waste‐water, and transportation indus‐tries.

2000sLisa M. Bruderly’01, PSU ’89 alawyer at re‐gional law firmBabst Calland,was named by

Pennsylvania Super Lawyers maga‐zine as one of the top lawyers inPennsylvania for 2012. Ms. Brud‐erly was named in the environ‐mental section.

Eckert Seamans Cherin and Mel‐lott, LLC, elected Ryan B. Caboot’01 to partnership.

Matthew Esworthy ’01 of ShapiroSher Guinot & Sandler in York, PA,was recognized by the York DailyRecord on its list of “Very Impor‐tant Professionals Successful by40” 2012 Award.

Amanda Lorenz ’02 was namedpartner at Cozen O’Connor in Jan‐uary 2012. Her practice focuses oncommercial law, defense litigation,and product liability.

Jonathan K. Moore ’02 is anelected partner and of counsel atBlank Rome, LLP, in Philadelphia.He concentrates his practice in theareas of financial services and cor‐porate law.

Leah Copeland ’03, an attorneywith the 633rd Air Base Wing, Of‐fice of the Staff Judge Advocate,Joint Base Langley‐Eustis, VA, isthe Air Force’s 2011 LAMP (LegalAssistance for Military Personnel)Distinguished Service Award win‐ner, awarded by the American BarAssociation.

Terence N. Cushing ’03 recentlyjoined the law firm Quintairos, Pri‐eto, Wood & Boyer, P.A. as a part‐ner in the firm’s Phoenix office. Hispractice focuses on commercial lit‐igation including banking and realestate, product liability, and per‐sonal injury defense.

Kimberly Gill’ 03, associate inMorris Nichols’ trusts, estates andtax Group, was chosen for inclu‐sion on the 2012 Delaware RisingStars list.

Beth A. Johns ’05, an associate atRawle & Henderson, LLP, was se‐lected as a "2012 Pennsylvania Ris‐

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ing Star" by Law & Politics Maga‐zine. She concentrates her practiceon medical malpractice, aviation,product liability, and toxic tort mat‐ters.

Lauren Abbott ’05 joined thePhiladelphia office of Reed Smith,LLP, where she is a member of thefinancial industry group.

Brooke E.D. Say ’05 of Stock andLeader, LLP in York, PA, has beennamed to the Pennsylvania RisingStars list as one of the top up‐and‐coming attorneys for 2012.

Kerry May ’07joined thePhiladelphia of‐fice of Rawle &Henderson, LLP.She concentratesher practice on

the defense of commercial motorvehicle companies and their insur‐ers. She began her legal career as ajudicial law clerk for the HonorableCarol L. Van Horn in the FranklinCounty Court of Common Pleas.

Ethan K. Stone ’07 opened the LawOffices of Ethan K. Stone in CampHill, PA, a general and personal in‐jury practice.

Jonathan L.Phillips '08foundedJonathanPhillips, P.C., anI.T.‐focused crim‐inal defense and

civil litigation firm in Northern Vir‐ginia. The opening of the solo pri‐

vate practice comes on the heels offour years of service as an assistantcommonwealth attorney in FairfaxCounty, VA.

Brian Mains ’10 joined the Harris‐burg law firm Skalatos Zonarich, LLC.

After completing a clerkship in theOffice of the Governor of New Jersey,Hillary Hewitt ’11 was promoted toassistant counsel to Governor ChrisChristie.

Daniel L. Puskar ’11 joined TuroRobinson in Carlisle, PA, in November2011. He focuses on criminal defense,civil litigation, and contract law.

Hannah Suhr ’11 joined The MorganLaw Firm in June 2012. She is thefirm’s chief ARD attorney and appel‐late advocate.

Adam R. Hracho ’11 is serving inthe U.S. Air Force JAG Corps andwelcomes those interested in theJAG Corps to contact him for addi‐tional information.

Kevin J. Hayes ’12, PSU ’09 recentlyjoined Mette, Evans & Woodside asan associate. He will concentrate hispractice on litigation, banking, andbusiness law.

Christopher L. Ryder ’12 joinedStock and Leader, LLP, in August2012 and is a member of the firm’senvironmental law group, focusinghis practice in the areas of federaland state environmental and agri‐cultural laws, municipal law, and re‐lated regulatory actions.

D. Fenton Adams ’49South Padasena, Florida

Joseph J. Armao III ’75Tiboron, California

Jack H. Barton ’53York, Pennsylvania

Charles L. Board ’49Hockessin, Delaware

Patrick Lee Boyle ’04Vancouver, Washington

Ralph G. Clouser ’49, PSU ’43Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

Karen M. Cunningham ’83 Elsmere, Delaware

Francis “Joey” Goulart ’11Ebensberg, Pennsylvania

Roger J. Hertz ’69Bowie, Maryland

The Hon. Jeffrey Edward Leber ’72

Manns Choice, Pennsylvania

John “Jack” P. Merlo ’73Indiana, Pennsylvania

William D. Morgan ’53Bradenton, Florida

The Honorable John W. Keller ’51

DuPage County, Illinois

Joseph Zaffiro ’40Wyomissing, Pennsylvania

IN MEMORIAM

IN MEMORIAM EDWIN KLETT

Edwin L. Klett ’62 passed away inMount Lebanon, PA, on October 7, 2012. A graduate of Bucknell University andThe Dickinson School of Law, he in‐spired all five of his children—David S.Klett ’87, Lauren Klett Kroeger ’89,Krista Klett ’08, and Kirk T. Klett ’10,and Keenan L. Klett ’11—to pursue careers in law. He is survived by hiswife Janis and four granddaughters.

Klett was a partner at Eckert, Sea‐mans, Cherin & Mellot LLC beforefounding Klett, Rooney, Lieber & Schor‐ling in 1988, which then merged withBuchanan Ingersoll PC. He specializedin trial work, corporate law, banking,securities, and business matters, ap‐pearing on the Pennsylvania SuperLawyers list every year since 2006. Heserved on the Board of Counselors forThe Dickinson School of Law and aspresident of the Academy of TrialLawyers of Allegheny County.

“Ed always will be rememberedbecause he gave back to the professionand the community—and never be‐cause it enhanced his practice but because as he said’ lawyers should.’ I served with him on the Board of theDickinson School of Law, the Pennsyl‐vania Civil Rules Committee as well asmany Pennsylvania Supreme Court adhoc Committees where his judgmentand talent were known and soughtafter. Truly, Ed was a great lawyer andwill be missed by all of us because ofhis commitment and leadership,” saidWilliam R. Caroselli ’66.

LEXICONFeaturesMEET THE PENN STATE JOURNAL OF LAW

AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS 14

A new open access journal occupies the space

between law and international affairs.

PERSONAL STATEMENTS 16

Eight first-year students share their journeys to the

Law School.

A CAREER WELL-PLANNED 25

Tom VanKirk ’70 explains the value of strategic planning.

AN UPHILL CLIMB 28

John “Jack” C. Clough ’65 recounts a six-mile hike to

plead his case before Justice William O. Douglas.

THE MIND UNDER THE HAT 31

Jane Alexander ’54 looks back on fifty years of legal

practice.

ALL THAT YOU CAN’T LEAVE BEHIND 33

Ira Wagler ’97 pens a best-selling memoir on leaving

the Old Order Amish community.

EXCERPT OF GROWING UP AMISH 34

FOREVER FRIENDS 36

One room assignment in Carlisle sparked a friendship

of a lifetime for Marion Welp ’96, Mercedes Guzman ’96,

and Jacqueline Busterna ’96.

16

31

33

36

Lexicon is published for alumni, students, faculty, staff,

and friends of The Dickinson School of Law of The Penn-

sylvania State University. Correspondence may be

adressed to the editor at [email protected].

Portions of this magazine may be reprinted if credit is

given to The Dickinson School of Law, Lexicon, and the

author.

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W I N T E R 2 0 1 3

ICONLEX

JOURNEYS

Tom VanKirk:A Career

Well‐Planned

First‐year Students Share their Journeys

to the Law School

Ira Wagler:All that you Can’t

Leave Behind

to and from

The Law

Lewis Katz BuildingUniversity Park, PA 16802-1017

CHANGE SERVICE REQUESTED

ALUMNI & REUNION WEEKEND 2013Celebrating reunions for classes ending in 3 and 8

Friday, September 27 and

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Lewis Katz HallCarlisle, PA

ANNUAL ALUMNI CLE & TAILGATE

BLUE-WHITE WEEKEND

Saturday, April 20, 2013 Lewis Katz BuildingUniversity Park, PA

Save the Dates

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