News

Professor Deirdre Smith, Director of the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic at Maine Law, and four law students participated in Access to Justice Day, held March 7 at the State House Hall of Flags in Augusta.

The annual event highlights the work of the Clinic as well as other legal aid providers in Maine, including Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project, Maine Equal Justice Partners, Volunteer Lawyers Project, and Legal Services for the Elderly. These agencies and programs offer help to Mainers who cannot afford to hire lawyers for assistance with matters ranging from foreclosure assistance to child custody disputes.

Smith said Access to Justice Day provides a chance for her to discuss the work of the Law School Clinic with state legislators, and to make sure the officials know that Maine Law’s Clinic is a resource for constituents.

Because it is a program of the state’s public law school, the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic plays a unique role within the framework of legal aid in Maine. Founded in 1970, the Clinic provides legal services to low-income clients. Selected third-year law students, known as “student attorneys,” are specially licensed by the state and the federal courts to represent those clients. Students work collaboratively and under the close supervision of Maine Law faculty members and other instructors.

Student attorneys who joined Prof. Smith at Access to Justice Day were third-year students Shawn Walsh and La-Qiana Adams-Perez.

The Clinic fulfills a dual mission. Law students receive intense, hands-on experience as they represent real clients and navigate the complexities of the court system. The state receives help with a critical public service: access to justice for all, regardless of wealth or status.

“Our justice system works best for everyone when all parties have access to legal representation,” Smith said.

“Many people are surprised to learn that most low-income people who need an attorney for a civil legal matter aren’t able to obtain those services, because legal aid programs don’t have the resources to meet the need. As a result, every day there are scores of Maine residents who are denied equal access to justice.”

Maine Law’s General Practice Clinic, Prisoner Assistance Clinic, Juvenile Justice Clinic, Refugee and Human Rights Clinic, and Domestic Violence Program operate under the umbrella of the Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic. The Intellectual Property Clinic operates within the Law School’s Center for Law & Innovation.

Alison Beyea, Director of Admissions and an adjunct professor in juvenile law at the University of Maine School of Law, was interviewed for a news story that appeared on March 15 in the Portland Press Herald.

The story, written by Press Herald staffer Eric Russell, focused on a competency hearing for an 11-year-old girl who faces a charge of manslaughter. Kelli Murphy of Fairfield is accused of killing 3-month-old Brooklyn Foss Greenway, who died in July. Murphy is the youngest person to be charged with manslaughter in at least 25 years in Maine, Russell reported.

Beyea commented on the unique nature of juvenile proceedings, and on the judge’s decision to close the competency hearing to the public.

“Because the law is silent on public access to juvenile competency hearings, Beyea said, judges likely will make decisions case by case, at least until the Maine Supreme Judicial Court is asked to rule on the question. Murphy’s case appears to be the first test of the new law.”

Beyea, a 1997 graduate of Maine Law, joined the Law School as Director of Admissions in the fall of 2012. A former staff attorney at Pine Tree Legal Assistance, Beyea co-founded KIDS Legal, a statewide legal assistance program that helps low-income children in Maine.

Professor Dave Owen, an environmental law expert at the University of Maine School of Law, will speak to lawmakers and legislative staffers this month at a national conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C.

Owen is one of four professors nationwide invited to present at the Environmental Law and Policy Annual Review Conference on March 22. The others are David Adelman and Ian Duncan of the University of Texas, and Barton Thompson Jr. of Stanford.

The general concept of the conference, organized by the Environmental Law Institute and Vanderbilt University Law School, is to highlight some of the most innovative ideas and solutions in the field of environmental law and present them to policymakers.

Owen’s presentation is based on an article he published last year in the Florida Law Review. The piece examines government practices related to the Endangered Species Act, a landmark environmental law passed in the 1970s. It’s a controversial law, in part because of its mandate for protection of critical habitat. For example, environmental advocates have sought to use the law as a basis for curbing greenhouse gas emissions, while industries have argued against such a broad interpretation of the law.

In his article, Owen concludes that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Marine Fisheries Service and federal judges continue to provide substantial habitat protection based on provisions of the Endangered Species Act. However, Owen notes some problematic examples in which agencies and judges have veered away from the statute. His findings will likely have an impact on legal strategies used by environmental lawyers.

At the March 22 conference, Owen will present his article, and then three other speakers will give their own opinions of his work. Those speakers are David Hayes, Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Interior; Michael Senatore of Defenders of Wildlife; and Andrew Turner, a lawyer with Hunton & Williams.

University of Maine School of Law students have published the latest volume of the Maine Law Review, featuring scholarly works of professors from Notre Dame Law School, Harvard Law School, the City University of Hong Kong, and others.

The publication of Volume 65:1 was announced by Editor-in-Chief Agnieszka Pinette. Other leaders of the editorial, production and writing teams were Benjamin Donahue, Charles Boyle, Nicole Bissonette, Daniel d’Alessandro, David Sorensen, Benjamin Birney, Katherine Lybrand, Hannah McMullen, Holly Doherty, Kasia Park, Tamlyn Frederick, Ashley Arra and Michael Beers.

The articles, speeches and student pieces can be accessed online at www.mainelawreview.org. Pinette also recently announced the election of Amy Olfene as the next Editor-in-Chief of the Maine Law Review.

Law students began publishing the Maine Law Review in 1908, at what was then the University of Maine College of Law in Bangor. The review ceased publication when the school was closed in 1920. Students resurrected the publication during 1962-63, the first academic year of the modern University of Maine School of Law in Portland.

Six of the 12 members of a judicial screening panel, announced this week by Maine’s Congressional delegation, are graduates of the University of Maine School of Law.

The panel will assess candidates to fill an upcoming judgeship vacancy on the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine. The Hon. George Z. Singal is scheduled to take senior status on July 31.

Democratic U.S.Reps. Mike Michaud and Chellie Pingree, and Independent Sen. Angus King announced the members of the panel on Feb. 4.

Chairing the panel will be Peter DeTroy, Maine Law ’72, of Norman, Hanson & DeTroy in Portland. Other Maine Law alums on the panel include Deirdre M. Smith, ’94, Professor of Law and Director of the Law School’s Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic; Joseph Baiungo, ’92, attorney in Belfast; Michael T. Bigos, ’03, attorney at Berman & Simmons in Lewiston; James Case, ’74, attorney at McTeague Higbee in Topsham; and Patricia Peard, ’88, attorney at Bernstein Shur Sawyer Nelson in Portland.

“We’re honored that such an experienced and diverse group of Mainers has agreed to serve on this screening panel,” the delegation members said in a news release. “We’d like to thank them for their service, and we’re confident they’ll be instrumental in helping us make a highly qualified recommendation to President Obama.”

The deadline for candidates to submit application materials for consideration by the screening panel is Friday, Feb. 22, at 5 p.m. All interested candidates should submit a cover letter highlighting qualifications, a resume, and three letters of recommendation to judicial@mail.house.gov.

Professor Jennifer Wriggins, the Sumner T. Bernstein Professor of Law at the University of Maine School of Law, recently contributed a guest column to Jurist, one of the nation’s most widely read legal news websites.

Prof. Wriggins’ column describes the legalization of same-sex marriage in Maine through a citizens’ initiative as a significant milestone and model for other states seeking to legalize same-sex marriage. Here’s an excerpt:

“Just after midnight on December 29, 2012, same-sex couples became eligible to marry in Maine, and marriages celebrated elsewhere will be valid in Maine. How did the nation’s most rural state come to support marriage licensing for same-sex couples by a margin of 53 percent to 47 percent in November, particularly after voting against marriage in 2009? This vote came from a citizens’ initiative petition for a law which had been signed by over 105,000 voters and certified by the state’s secretary of state. Of the three states that passed marriage measures in November, Maine’s was the only initiative. Citizens in Maryland and Washington state also voted, as did citizens in Maine’s 2009 referendum, whether or not to repeal a legislative enactment.”

Professor Wriggins’ full column in the Jurist is available here.

Professor Jeffrey A. Maine, a tax expert who has taught at the University of Maine School of Law since 2003, was recognized by the Association of American Law Schools at the organization’s annual meeting in New Orleans earlier this month.

Prof. Maine, who has authored five books and numerous articles and reviews on the subject of taxation, was named Teacher of the Year at Maine Law for 2012. This accomplishment was honored at the AALS meeting. Prof. Maine was one of five tax professors who won Teacher of the Year awards at their respective schools. The other winners were Bridget J. Crawford of Pace, Leandra Lederman of Indiana-Bloomington, John T. Plecnik of Cleveland State, and Stephanie J. Willbanks of Vermont.

The AALS is a non-profit educational association of 176 law schools with over 10,000 law faculty in the United States. The purpose of the Association is “the improvement of the legal profession through legal education.” The AALS serves as the academic society for law teachers. Its annual meeting is the largest gathering of law faculty in the world.

Daniel J. Stevens, a 1988 graduate of the University of Maine School of Law, has been named partner at Pierce Atwood, one of the largest and most prestigious law firms in New England.

Stevens grew up in Presque Isle, Maine, and now lives in East Winthrop. While studying at the University of Southern Maine, and then at Maine Law, Stevens served as a combat engineer officer in the National Guard. He joined Pierce Atwood upon graduating from Maine Law in 1988. Stevens oversees Pierce Atwood’s office in Augusta, and his practice is focused on personal injury, medical malpractice, commercial, and probate litigation.

“He is known as a problem solver and is particularly adept at finding creative solutions to difficult cases,” Pierce Atwood said in a news release.

With more than 130 attorneys, Pierce Atwood is the largest law firm in northern New England. The firm has offices throughout New England and in Washington, D.C. Clients range from regional and local enterprises to Fortune 500 companies, multinational corporations, and state and foreign governments.

PORTLAND, Maine – Ann Robinson, Maine Law ’88, has been appointed as one of three attorneys from Maine to serve on the Uniform Laws Commission, a national nonprofit association of the 50 states and two U.S. territories.

Robinson is a partner at the Preti Flaherty law firm, and is Chair of the Government Affairs Practice Group. She was appointed to the Commission by Gov. Paul LePage. Robinson has been an advisor to LePage and was one of the co-chairs for his transition team.

Information about Robinson’s appointment was provided by Preti Flaherty:

“The Uniform Laws Commission, also known as the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws, works to generate and promote non-partisan legislation, with a goal of improving the consistency of laws across state lines. The stated mission of the Commission is to study and review the laws of the states to determine which areas of law should be uniform. There are only 300 members and all must be attorneys – Maine currently has three seats on the Commission.”

“In addition to her legal work, Ann has been active in public service. She is currently serving as a member of the Governor’s Judicial Review Committee, Maine Public Broadcasting Board of Trustees and the Maine State Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. Ann previously has served as a director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston, as a member of the Maine Human Rights Commission and as a Co-Chair of Governor LePage’s Transition Team.”

Laura Rideout, a 2012 graduate of the University of Maine School of Law, has joined the Preti Flaherty law firm as an associate, and will practice Environmental Law.

Preti Flaherty is one of the largest firms in northern New England, with more than 90 lawyers and offices in Portland, Augusta, Concord, N.H., Boston, Bedminster, N.J., and Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.preti.com. Rideout will work from the Portland office.

Rideout was a summer associate for Preti Flaherty in 2010 and 2011. She has interned at the United States Attorney’s Office, Appellate Division, for the District of Maine. Rideout also previously served as Assistant to the Director of the Center on Politics & Foreign Relations at Johns Hopkins University, Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies, in Washington, D.C.

A Maine native, Rideout earned her undergraduate degree in Political Science, with honors, at the University of California, Davis.

Rideout graduated, cum laude, from Maine Law in 2012. She was executive editor of the Ocean and Coastal Law Journal, competed in the Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition, and traveled to France in 2011 as a participant in Maine Law’s annual Franco-American Legal Seminar. Rideout lives in North Yarmouth with her husband, Seth.