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University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class

Past Symposia


Event Description / Multimedia Resource
Fall Symposium: October 11, 2007   Topic: Maryland Legal Services Corporation 25th Anniversary Symposium: Recognizing Twenty-Five Years of Accomplishments and Setting an Agenda for the Future

Conference Agenda (pdf)
Part One (video)
Part Two (video)
Part Three (video)
Part Four (video)

Program Description: The Maryland Legal Services Corporation (MLSC) was established by the Maryland General Assembly in 1982 to raise funds and grant nonprofit organizations civil legal assistance for low-income persons in Maryland. Since its inception, MLSC has awarded over $100 million to help provide public services to Maryland families in more than 1.4 million legal matters. MLSC also helped establish the Cardin clinical law requirement at the University of Maryland, which is one of only two U.S. law schools that require its students provide legal services to people who lack access. This symposium recognizes MLSC’s milestones and accomplishments, discusses how MLSC can improve access to justice, and sets an agenda for the future of public interest law.

Spring Symposium: March 28, 2007   Topic: "Searching for Harmony" - An Examination of Race-Based Classifications

Welcome
Panel 1
Panel 2

Program Description:The University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class hosted its annual Spring Symposium on March 28, 2007 in the Ceremonial Moot Courtroom. This event, which addressed race-based classifications, brought together professors, practitioners, and policy analysts from across the ideological spectrum to address the continued use of race-based classifications in the context of affirmative action and racial profiling. The event included Angela Ciccolo of the NAACP who delivered a keynote speech, a spirited debate between Professor Darren Hutchinson of American University’s Washington College of Law and Chris Hajec of the Center for Individual Rights on the proper role of affirmative action, and a discussion including Professor Jayesh Rathod of American University’s Washington College of Law, Professor Kathie Barnes of Washington University Law School and Julie Fernandes of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights on racial profiling in a post 9/11 world.

Fall Symposium: November 16, 2006   Topic: Breaking Barriers: Current Issues Relating to Women, Labor and the Law.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Program Description: The University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class hosted its annual Fall Town Hall on November 16, 2006 in the Ceremonial Moot Courtroom. This event, which addressed continuing issues relating to women in the workplace, brought together a diverse group of practitioners and policy advocates to address the continued advancement of women in the workplace and efforts to address the problem of trafficked women. The event included Lauren Rikleen of Bowditch & Dewey in Boston as the keynote speaker.  Mrs. Rikleen discussed her new book “Ending the Gauntlet:  Removing Barriers to Women’s Success in the Law” and efforts to increase women’s success in law firms.  The first panel addressed the continued advancement of women in the work place and included Kate Kahan of the National Partnership for Women and Families, Professor Meredith Render of University of Maryland School of Law, and Pam White of the law firm Ober|Kaler.  The second panel discussion changed gears and focused on efforts to address the problem of trafficked women and included Carol Angel, formerly of Legal Momentum, Elizabeth Keyes of CASA of Maryland, Inc., and Irena Lieberman of the American Bar Association’s Immigration Pro Bono and Bar Activation Project.
Spring Symposium: April 11, 2006   Topic: God's Law in the People's Law: A Discussion of Contemporary Issues Arising from Religion and The Law.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Program Description: The journal brought together a diverse group of academics and practitioners to discuss the role religion plays in the law, a comparative study of religion and the law, and the legal issues surrounding religion in public schools. Speakers included Dr. T. Jeremy Gunn of the ACLU, Prof. Gary Gildin of the Dickenson Law School at Penn State, Prof. Lucia Silecchia of the Columbus School of Law at Catholic University, Prof. George Taylor of the Univ. of Pittsburgh School of Law, Profs. Leigh Greenhaw and Martin Borowski of Washington Univ. School of Law, Richard Katskee of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Prof. Robert Vischer of the Univ. of St. Thomas School of Law, and Prof. Jay Wexler of Boston Univ. School of Law. Members of the Univ. of Maryland School of Law faculty moderated the event.

Fall Town Hall: November 10, 2005   Topic: Broken Fences: Legal and Practical Realities of Immigration Reform in the Post-9/11 Age

 View Part 1
 View Part 2

Program Description: The journal brought together policy and legal experts to discuss various approaches and issues related to immigration reform. Speakers included Jeanne Butterfield, American Immigration Lawyers Assoc., Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia, of the National Immigration Forum, Chris Nugent, of Holland & Knight, Ryan Ellis, of Americans for Tax Reform, Rajeev Goyle, of the Center for American Progress, Prof. Susan Akram, of Boston University, Kim Propeack, of CASA de Maryland, and Lory Rosenberg, of Immigration Defense and Expert Assistance.

Spring, 2005 Symposium   Topic: Correcting the Correctional System: Evaluating and Implementing the kennedy commission's Recommendations on Alternatives to Incarceration.

Program Description: On April 14, 2005, the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class, in conjunction with the Clinical Law Program, hosted its annual Spring Symposium that focused on the implimentation of the Kennedy Commission's Recommendations on Alternatives to Incarceration. In the summer of 2003, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony M. Kennedy gave a presentation to the American Bar Association's Annual Conference in San Francisco highlighting "inadequacies - and the injustices - in our prison and correctional systems." In October 2003, American Bar Association President Dennis Archer formed the Justice Kennedy Commission, to review and evaluate America's prison systems. After nearly a year of evaluations and hearings, the Commission has concluded that the nation's criminal justice system relies too heavily on incarceration as the only punishment, and other alternatives must be found. Participants in the event included Stephen Salzburg, Professor of Law at the George Washington University Law School and chair of the Kennedy Commission, George Kelling, professor at the Rutgers-Newark School of Criminal Justice and a proponent of the "broken windows" theory of crime prevention, Adam Mansky, Director of Operations, Center for Court Innovation in New York, and Mary Ann Saar, Secretary of the Department of Public Safety & Correctional Services for the State of Maryland.

Fall, 2004 Town Hall   The Sway of the Swing Vote: Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and Her Influence on Issues of Race, Religion, Gender and Class
 View the meeting

Program Description: In Fall, 2004, the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class, in conjunction with the Women, Leadership & Equality Program at the University of Maryland School of Law presented an academic symposium addressing the role of gender in the jurisprudence of Sandra Day O'Connor. The interdisciplinary symposium was held as the journal's annual Town Hall and featured four panelists, Drs. Barbara Palmer and Diane Lowenthal of American University, Professor Stephen Gottlieb of Union Law School, Albany, and Professor Marley Weiss of the University of Maryland School of Law. The symposium was moderated by Professor Jana Singer.


Spring, 2004 Symposium   The Death Penalty in the United States: Exploring Modern Implications
 View Part 1 of the symposium
 View Part 2(a) of the symposium
 View Part 2(b) of the symposium
 View Part 3 of the symposium
 View Part 4 of the symposium
 View Part 5 of the symposium

Program Description: In Spring, 2004, the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class engaged academics, practitioners, legislators, and others who have experienced the impact of capital punishment in America in a day-long symposium. Issues discussed were the history and sociology of the Death Penalty, procedural aspects of capital punishment in Maryland, the effect of race, the impact of DNA testing, mental health issues, and recent events involving juveniles and the Death Penalty. The University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class was fortunate to have Kirk Bloodsworth, exonerated Death Row inmate as one of our esteemed panelists. Professor Raymond Paternoster's report on the effect of Race and the Death Penalty was published in the Spring, 2004 volume of the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class.


Fall, 2003 Town Hall   Topic: Redefining Family, Redefining Society: The Transformation of Legal Perspectives on Sexuality

Program Description: Our Fall, 2003 Town Hall confronted issues related to recent activity in legislation and case law regarding family law and same-sex couples. Our panelists discussed the legal rights conferred by marriage, and offered a balanced perpective on both the preservation of "traditional families" and the interests of same-sex couples in achieving legal parity with opposite-sex families. Articles from Liz Seaton, Human Rights Campaign, and Joshua Baker, Marriage Law project appear in the Spring, 2004 issue of the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class.

Spring, 2003 Symposium   Topic: Access to Justice
 View Part 1 of 2 of the symposium (Real Media)
 View Part 2 of 2 of the symposium (Real Media)

Program Description: While the U.S. Supreme Court has held that the Sixth Amendment guarantees indigent defendants the right to court-appointed counsel in criminal cases, those who cannot afford counsel in civil cases lack the right to government-funded representation. Although appointed counsel is not mandated in civil cases, there have been myriad proposed solutions to increase legal access to the poor. For example, some propose a mandatory pro bono system, while others call for the expansion of existing legal service corporations. Additionally, others have proposed alternative dispute resolution or other processes whereby attorneys would play a lesser role, decreasing the need for additional funding. Also, many states have established Income on Lawyer’s Trust Accounts (IOLTA) funds, which are a major source of financial support for legal services providers. The constitutionality of the use of IOLTA funds is being challenged in the Supreme Court.

The University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class hosted a symposium that addressed Access to Justice in Maryland. Part I focused on the then-current state of legal services and the possible expansion of representation to indigents in civil cases. In particular, the panel discussed the constitutionality, feasibility and benefits of extending government funding to indigents in civil matters. Part II addressed other means of resolving legal disputes such as Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) as well as the debate over allowing lay persons to have more autonomy in litigating their claims with less assistance from counsel.

Fall, 2002 Town Hall   Topic: Reparations
  View the meeting (Real Media)

Spring, 2002 Symposium and Radio Documentary   Topic: "Forgotten Voices:" Women in the Criminal Justice System
 Listen to the project (Real Media)

Program Description: The number of women incarcerated in America continues to rise. This presents a growing need to recognize that the incarceration of women raises many difficult issues that are different from those involving the incarceration of men. On March 14, 2002, the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class sponsored a symposium to discuss these issues. This event corresponded with the broadcast of the radio documentary titled "Forgotten Voices."

"Forgotten Voices" was co-produced by the University of Maryland Law Journal of Race, Religion, Gender and Class and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County's Music Department and included interviews with women detained at the Baltimore City Detention Center. The inmates and staff told their stories and discussed the availability and effectiveness of rehabilitative services both in BCDC and in their communities. The project gave a valuable and intimate depiction of one facility's treatment of its female inmates.

Fall, 2001 Town Hall   Topic: Legislating Morality: The Problem of Moral Right and Legal Rights
Program Description:This symposium provided a forum to discuss the role of lawmakers in legislating morality. As the moral culture of the United States is considered pluralistic, the forum discussed the permissible scope of moral beliefs as reflected in the laws of the land. Because many different moral communities comprise American society, this leads to fundamental disagreements about issues that engage courts and legislators. These disagreements may be based on religious values and/or principles. Citizens and theorists often accept the fact legislators make moral judgments and, at times, must enact them into law. This forum explored varying perspectives surrounding the conflicts between these moral and legal rights.

Fall, 2001 Special Town Hall   Topic: The New Freedom: The Effects of Recent Anti-Terrorism Legislation on Religious and Ethnic Minorities

Fall, 2001 Town Hall   Topic: Policing Under O'Malley: The Baltimore City Police Department Town Meeting

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Copyright © 2008, University of Maryland, School of Law. All Rights Reserved