For the Record: Faculty Lectures, CDC Citation, Advice for Law School Applicants

March 23, 2021
Arizona Law exterior at dusk

Catch up on recent University of Arizona Law faculty accomplishments, including awards, new positions and media coverage.  

News 

Bennett and Child and Family Law Clinic Students Receive 2020 Attorney of the Year Award at Pima County Juvenile Court 

Professor Paul Bennett and the Child and Family Law Clinic students received the 2020 Attorney of the Year Award at Pima County Juvenile Court. The award winner is selected by the Pima County Court Special Advocates. 

Pidot Delivers Distinguished Public Lands Lecture at the University of Kansas School of Law 

Professor Justin Pidot delivered the Distinguished Public Lands Lecture at the University of Kansas School of Law on March 9, 2021. He presented “Protecting Sacred Lands and the Bears Ears National Monument."  

Pidot was recently appointed as general counsel to the White House Counsel of Environmental Quality.  

Jane White Paper Cited in CDC Federal Moratorium 

In late January, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ordered an extension of the federal moratorium to temporarily halt residential evictions to prevent the further spread of COVID-19. The moratorium cited professor Stacy Rupprecht Jane’s white paper, The COVID-19 Eviction Crisis: an Estimated 30-40 Million People in America Are at Risk.  

Massaro Featured in Jotwell, Lectures on Pandemic and the Constitution  

Dean Emerita Toni Massaro 's article, "Free Speech and Democracy: A Primer for 21st Century Reformers" was reviewed by in Jotwell by former Vanderbilt Law School Dean Edward Rubin.

In February, Massaro delivered a public lecture on pandemics and the Constitution at the San Diego State University Osher Lifelong Learning Institute.  

Massaro was also a guest lecturer on the same topic at Stanford University, speaking to medical students and other health care professionals interested in shaping and securing cooperation in enforcing pandemic health and safety protocols 

Sklar to Present at 2021 US Congress Festival of Biologics 

Health Law professor Tara Sklar will speak on March 30, 2021, at the 2021 US Congress Festival of Biologics. She will present: Can the U.S. Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act Achieve Its Promise? A Decade Review.  

Her talk will help those in attendance become familiar with the Biologics Price Competition and Innovation Act (BPCIA), its intent to increase market competition, and progress to date. Teach more about the FDA abbreviated pathway for approval of biosimilars created under BPICA and implementation of the FDA Biosimilars Action Plan. As well as consider proposed recommendations to support the stated promise of BPCIA, which is to lower the price of biologics via increased market competition, by improving transparency with disclosure of biologics manufacturing information.   

In the Media  

Some Indigenous history is preserved in stories, songs and ceremonies that are passed down orally. A group of Indian law scholars argues that knowledge should be admissible as court testimony. Professor emeritus Robert Hershey weighs in.  

What Native American Law Applicants Should Know 
U.S. News & World Report 
March 8, 2021 

Law schools provide many resources and opportunities for future lawyers from Native American communities. Professor Robert Williams provides his input on what Native American law school applicants should know. 

The federal district court in Arizona has been struggling to keep up with a growing caseload and needs more judges to keep up. Professor Andrew Coan tells Cronkite News that the "crisis of volume" courts face is a political as well as a logistical one. 

Arizona Law Associate Professor Eunice Lee provided commentary for SCOTUS Blog on two consolidated asylum cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court this term. Lee recapped the case on credibility, persuasiveness and truth in asylum seekers’ testimonies and when to treat asylum seekers’ testimony as credible.  

Is A Legal Reckoning Coming For Alex Jones? 
Above the Law 
Feb. 16, 2021 

Arizona Law professor Derek Bambauer discusses the amicus brief he joined for the defamation lawsuits against Alex Jones brought by parents of Sandy Hook victims. 

The pandemic has brought economic pain to many Americans. Mackenzie Pish from Arizona Law's Innovation for Justice Program discusses why evictions have hit the most vulnerable members of the community harder. 

An article by Laptop Mag investigates whether people can use their laptops to play classic video games. Arizona Law professor Derek Bambauer, who teaches courses on internet law and intellectual property, talks about infringement. 

State courts are adopting online dispute resolution as a platform that can help parties resolve everything from traffic disputes to small claims lawsuits—without ever setting foot in a courtroom. Professor Stacy Rupprecht Jane discusses ways in which court leaders can test the usability of their systems.  

While some researchers are using scientific methods designed to test new drugs to evaluate access to justice, activists say randomizing "treatments" like legal aid and bail is unethical. Arizona Law professor Chris Griffin weighs in.  

Episode 14: Paper Chase, with Marc Miller and Allison Regan 
May the Record Reflect (Podcast)  
Jan. 8, 2021 
 
Dean Marc Miller was a guest on the National Institute for Trial Advocacy’s podcast, "May the Record Reflect,” where he offered perspectives on being a successful law student and young lawyer against a daunting backdrop of COVID, layoffs, and societal change.