News

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—WVU Law has nominated 3L Amanda Demmerle for the prestigious Burton Distinguished Legal Writing Award for Law Schools.

Demmerle was chosen for her Note, “Pain in the Ash: How Coal-Fired Power Plants are Polluting Our Nation’s Waters Without Consequences,” which was published in the December 2019 West Virginia Law Review (122 W. Va. L. Rev. 289).

A Note is a student-authored academic article that discusses and analyzes a legal issue.

In her Note, Demmerle argues that the Clean Water Act is currently the best way to regulate water pollution caused by coal ash impoundments in the United States. She discusses options within the Clean Water Act, and each option's likelihood of success, to hold coal ash impoundment operators liable and reduce water pollution.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—A team from WVU Law has advanced to the national round of the American Bar Association’s Labor and Employment Trial Advocacy Competition.

Michael Hicks, Lauren Mahaney, Kenshandra Mitchell and Holly Netz, all third-year law students in WVU Law’s Marlyn E. Lugar Trial Association, recently competed in the competition’s regional round in New York City. They won three trials in a row to reach the regional final before falling to St. John’s University School of Law. 

As a New York finalist, WVU Law will now compete against seven other law schools in the national Labor and Employment Trial Advocacy Competition to be held in January in New Orleans.  

>>Read about their out-of-the-ordinary trip to NOLA

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—The West Virginia University College of Law has joined a national campaign focused on well-being in the legal profession.

The college is one of the first 26 law schools in the country to sign the American Bar Association's Well-Being Pledge. The program brings attention to ways to improve the health and well-being of lawyers and law students. 

Research shows that lawyers struggle with addiction and mental health problems at rates much higher than the general population and other professionals. To encourage those in need to seek help, WVU Law is working to change attitudes and eliminate bias related to addiction and mental health.

“We are making the wellness and mental health of our students a priority in our programming,” said Tina Jernigan, assistant dean for student life. “The statistics on substance abuse and mental health in the legal field are staggering, and we can no longer accept the status quo. By signing on to the pledge, we are committed to wellness in our student body and the legal profession.”

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—A team from the West Virginia University College of Law recently won the best brief award on the way to a quarterfinal finish in a regional round of the National Moot Court Competition.

The college’s National Moot Court Team is made up of third-year law students Britany Dolan, Emily Ford, Julian Pecora, Garrett Spiker and Chris Weed. They competed in two groups at the National Moot Court Competition Region IV Round held at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit in Richmond, Virginia, in November.

Ford, Weed and Pecora won the best brief award, beating teams from 18 law schools from Kentucky, North Carolina, and Virginia. It is WVU‘s first best brief award at this competition in more than 20 years.

Spiker and Dolan were among the top eight teams to reach the regional’s quarterfinal round. They are the third WVU Law team in 10 years to advance that far in the National Moot Court Competition.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va.—Students at the West Virginia University College of Law have helped a U.S. Navy veteran receive a discharge upgrade.

“Our client now qualifies for a range VA benefits including healthcare, disability compensation, pension, and home loans,” said Jed Nolan, director of the Veterans Advocacy Law Clinic.

The client was discharged unfavorably in 1986 after being diagnosed with a mental health condition. Nevertheless, he experienced success in school and work following the discharge, according to Nolan

The clinic requested the veteran’s discharge status be upgraded to “General, Under Honorable” because the behavior that led to his discharge was a direct result of service-related issues. Students in the clinic also argued that the discharge upgrade was in the interest of justice because the Navy had failed to provide him with adequate treatment, which impacted his ability to serve. This fall, the Board of Naval Corrections concurred.