News

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — The West Virginia University College of Law is going to give a tuition break to residents of other states who graduate from any college or university in West Virginia.

Beginning fall 2017, non-residents who graduate from a public or private higher education institution in West Virginia will be eligible for in-state tuition at the WVU College of Law.

To qualify for the new Loyalty Tuition Program, students must earn a bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree from an accredited college or university in the state.

The program is about creating opportunities for law students who already have strong ties to West Virginia, according to Gregory Bowman, dean of the College of Law.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA— The National Jurist has named West Virginia University College of Law a top 20 Best Value Law School.

“The ranking reinforces the work by faculty and staff to help our students prepare for their futures and start meaningful legal careers,” said Gregory W. Bowman, dean of the College of Law. “Our value is demonstrated by our high employment rate and low student debt.”

The employment rate for the WVU Law Class of 2015 is 80 percent, which is 10 points higher than the national average. The figure is for full-time, long-term Bar Passage Required and J.D. Advantage jobs. 

WVU Law also awards more than $2.9 million a year in scholarships and grants to help keep student indebtedness to approximately $25,000 lower than the national average.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — More  WVU Law students will benefit from scholarship funding thanks to the generosity of two Charleston, West Virginia, attorneys.

Lawyers David Hendrickson and Scott Long have pledged $25,000 to the College of Law Class of 1982 and 1983 Scholarship. Hendrickson is a 1982 graduate; Long earned his degree in 1983. They are partners in the law firm of Hendrickson and Long PLLC. Both made the gift in hopes of inspiring more giving to the WVU College of Law.

Hendrickson has provided support to the  WVU Alumni Association,  WVU Athletics and  WVU School of Nursing in recent years, but now is eager to make a contribution to benefit WVU law students.

“Our firm is pleased to be able to help insure the ability of future WVU students to complete their law degrees,” Hendrickson said. “We hope this matching grant will encourage the law school classes of 1982 and 1983 to contribute to the same cause.”

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — Jenny Thoma, a 2016 graduate of the WVU College of Law, is a winner of the inaugural Public Interest Award from Equal Justice Works for her commitment to public service.

Thoma was selected out of more than 30 students from 26 laws schools in the Southeast. Equal Justice Works is a national organization based in Washington, D.C., that helps law students and lawyers provide effective representation to undeserved communities and causes.

A native of Moorefield, West Virginia, Thoma is the past president of WVU Law’s Public Interest Advocates (PIA). Among her accomplishments, she led PIA’s successful effort to raise $31,000 for fellowships for students to work in public interest law this year.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. -- While the federal Clean Power Plan, and its impact on reducing use of coal to cut carbon dioxide emissions from power plants presents a double whammy for West Virginia, a new report suggests the impact can be lessened if policymakers take advantage of the state's unique circumstances and leverage its strengths.

"West Virginia is fortunate in that it has tremendous energy resources in addition to coal, and these other resources —including natural gas, renewable energy (wind, solar, hydropower), and energy efficiency – are relatively untapped," says the report from the Center for Energy and Sustainable Development at the West Virginia University College of Law and Downstream Strategies LLC.

"Implementing the legislative and regulatory policy recommendations in this report would create a climate that promotes new investment in renewable and distributed generation technologies, energy efficiency, and natural gas-fired generation," the report said.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency EPA issued its Clean Power Plan last August. The rule identifies a series of pollution reduction measures to lower carbon dioxide emissions from the U.S. power sector by 32 percent from 2005 levels by 2030.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — The West Virginia University College of Law is hosting a free Veterans Advocacy Boot Camp for attorneys and veterans service officers on Tuesday, August 16.

The program runs from 8:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. in Room 141 at the College of Law. It is also being webcast. Registration is required.

The Veterans Advocacy Boot Camp will provide training and orientation for those interested in assisting veterans with a variety of legal needs. Participating attorneys can earn 6.0 hours of Mandatory Continuing Legal Education credit, approved by the West Virginia State Bar.

The sessions will be led by members of Washington, D.C.-based Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program and is co-sponsored by the West Virginia State Bar Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — WVU Law professor Anne Marie Lofaso has written an amicus brief on behalf of NFL quarterback Tom Brady in the “deflategate” scandal.

Lofaso drafted the brief on behalf of labor law professors and industrial relations experts who question NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell's role in the case’s arbitration. They assert that the commissioner is “an angry arbitrator who does his own brand” of justice.

In 2015, Goodell handed Brady a four-game suspension for his role in using underinflated balls during the AFC Championship game. The suspension was later overturned by a lower court judge. This April, however, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit ruled in favor of Goodell and the NFL, reinstating Brady's suspension.

After that loss, Brady's legal team sought the assistance of Lofaso and other labor law experts as part of their request for a rehearing before the full Second Circuit.