Memphis Law : Spring 2015

A publication of the University of Memphis

Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law

Spring 2015 | Issue 3

The University of Memphis, a Tennessee Board of Regents institution, is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action University. It is committed to education of a non-racially identifiable student body. UOM599-FY1415/5M EM Printing

To submit story ideas, alumni updates,

or for other ML related inquiries, please

contact Executive Editor Ryan Jones at

[email protected].

DeanPeter V. Letsou

Executive EditorRyan Jones

Contributing WritersLynda Black

Ryan Jones

Toby Sells

Faculty News EditorKatharine Schaffzin

PhotographyJustin Fox Burks

Chip Chockley

Rhonda Cosentino

Ryan Jones

Cover Designarcher>malmo

Published ByThe University of Memphis

Cecil C. Humphreys School

of Law

1 North Front Street

Memphis, TN 38103

(901) 678-2421

memphis.edu/law

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But while these programs are new, the commitment of our school and our students to Memphis is long-standing. We are among the few law schools that include pro bono activities among our graduation requirements, and I’m proud to say our students have met and far exceeded their service goals, with 2L and 3L students having provided nearly 14,000 hours of service as of this writing. Their activities range from helping elderly and low-income residents prepare advance care directives, to organizing and running a clinic to help low-income Memphians file their taxes, to assisting local firefighters and police officers with wills and durable powers of attorney.

But perhaps most impressive of the students’ pro bono efforts is the student-organized Alternative Spring Break (ASB) Program, now in its sixth year, where more than 70 law students from Memphis and around the country contribute their spring breaks to helping Memphians with legal issues, including juvenile delinquency advice, pro se divorces and immigration matters.

We’re proud of the city we call home and we’re committed to making it an even better place to live, work and learn.

Cordially,

Peter V. Letsou Dean

During the month of January, Memphis Law students engaged in a unique outreach effort: the “30 days of Guthrie,” a social media campaign designed to bring NBC’s “TODAY” show host (and lawyer), Savannah Guthrie, to Memphis to speak to the Class of 2015. The students did not send a traditional invitation to Ms. Guthrie. Instead, they posted daily social media messages with the hashtag #Guthrie4Graduation, telling Savannah, with photographs from around our city, why she should visit Memphis. There were 30 days, 30 photo messages – from St. Jude, to STAX, to the cockpit of a FedEx jet – all conveying the same sentiment: the students’ enthusiasm for their law school’s home, the city of Memphis.

With our move to downtown Memphis in 2010, Memphis Law, now more than ever, has truly become the University FOR Memphis. We are located at the zero milestone marker for Memphis, so all distances to Memphis are literally measured to our front door. We’re just blocks from attractions old and new, from Beale Street, to FedExForum®, to the soon-to-open Bass Pro Shops at the Pyramid (which I’m looking at as I write these words). And we’re committed to giving back to the city that has provided us with such a magnificent home.

I could go on about how we’re combining innovative educational programs with service to Memphis, but because of space limitations, I’ll highlight just two. In January, we announced our new Neighborhood Preservation Clinic in partnership with the Memphis City Attorney’s Office. A first-of-its-kind program, this new clinic will force owners of neglected and abandoned properties to remove the blight that mars some of our neighborhoods. Also, in January, we inaugurated our new Healthy Homes Partnership. Spearheaded by Memphis Law and LeBonheur Children’s Hospital, this partnership will allow students to work with community partners for policy and regulatory change with a goal of increasing access to healthy housing and ensuring that every child in Memphis grows up in a safe and healthy home.

The University FOR Memphis DEAN’S LETTER

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LAW & GARDEN:Urban Agriculture in MemphisBY TOBY SELLSThe seeds have been sown for the future of agriculture in Memphis. Urban

farming has become increasingly popular in America’s major metropolitan

centers. It gives cities a way to deal with vacant lots, revitalize entire

neighborhoods, and provide job skills and nutrition to city residents often

struggling with poverty and a lack of access to fresh produce. Memphis

has an impressive number of organizations at the forefront of this urban

agricultural movement, but for years, its progress was slowed by the

lack of recognition of urban agriculture as a legitimate land use under

Memphis’ city ordinances.

SHARING THE ROAD:Shifting Gears in a Ridesharing WorldBY RYAN JONES With ridesharing services Uber and Lyft entering the market with a

resounding splash, the future of urban transportation is being reshaped

in Memphis and across the country. Lawmakers are therefore faced with

trying to regulate and police an industry that is trying to set its own rules.

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CONTENTS

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FEATURES

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23 BUILDING A LEGAL HISTORYBY RYAN JONESThe buildings in Memphis tell a story about our legal community

that delves into the city’s history and takes us all the way up to the

present day. There is a progression of the legal community and its

history that can be seen through our wonderful buildings, each of

which has its own story to tell.

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TRUE BLUE INTERVIEWMichael Joiner (JD ‘09) took a number of different roads on his

way to becoming an attorney. With stops in Montreal, Quebec City,

Washington, Florida, the University of Mississippi, Frayser, and

ultimately back in Memphis, Joiner has a well-traveled and

diverse résumé with a breadth of experiences to go along with it.

SETTING THE BAR: Memphis Law Alumni Class Notes

FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

FACULTY MATTERS:A Family Concept(ion)BY LYNDA BLACKA Look at the Changing Concept of the Family and

How it is Legally Defined

DIVISIONS

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BRIEFS:News + Events

Back to School at Inns of CourtBY RYAN JONESThe Leo J. Bearman Sr. American Inns of Court recently began a unique

partnership with the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law in order to develop

interesting and educational programming and foster collaboration between

Inn members and the law school. The result was a yearlong program with a

theme of “Back to School: A Professor’s Perspective.”

#GUTHRIE4GRADUATIONBY RYAN JONESIn November 2014, Student Bar Association (SBA) members decided to

make a concerted effort to get the attention of “TODAY” show host and

former NBC News legal analyst, Savannah Guthrie, in the hopes of having

her speak at their May 2015 graduation. The result was an in-depth, two-

monthlong social media campaign that galvanized the student body and

showcased the entire city of Memphis.

STUDENT PROFILE:20 Questions for 20 Students ML asked 20 students to answer a set

of questions about their law school

experiences, as well as their thoughts on

Memphis itself. The answers ML received

are as intelligent, unique, humorous, and

diverse as our students themselves. Read

on to get a better idea of what it means

to have the true Memphis Law experience.

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BRIEFS: NEWS + EVENTS

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HOUSING ADJUDICATION CLINIC IN THE TOP 15The Housing Adjudication Clinic was named

one of the Top 15 Most Innovative Clinics in

the nation by The National Jurist and preLaw

Magazine. This award-winning clinic places

students in the unique standpoint of an

administrative hearing officer, where they do

fieldwork involving research, investigation, and

drafting written opinion rulings on administrative

appeals in the Memphis Housing Authority’s

Housing Choice Voucher Program. With unique

clinics being nominated from over 75 different

law schools across the country, Memphis Law’s

Housing Adjudication Clinic ranked in the top

15 nationally, with a special designation in the

category of low-income assistance.

HEALTHY HOMES PARTNERSHIPThe University of Memphis Institute for

Health Law & Policy (“iHeLP Memphis”) and

Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital launched the

Healthy Homes Partnership with a special

kickoff event in January. Memphis Mayor A C

Wharton proclaimed, along with Shelby County

Mayor Mark Luttrell, Jan. 15, 2015, as “Healthy

Homes Day in Memphis.”

This partnership will help eliminate

environmental and safety hazards in housing;

promote collaboration among housing and legal

services agencies and health care providers; and

advance best practices and strategies, including

policy and regulatory changes to increase the

availability of and access to healthy housing for

all Memphis-area residents.

2015 ALTERNATIVE SPRING BREAKThe Public Action Law Society (PALS) hosted

the 2015 Alternative Spring Break Program in

March. This year’s weeklong program focused

on the theme, “Exploring the Legacy: From Civil

Rights to Human Rights.” The program featured

five specialized pro bono tracks: Family Law –

Pro Se Divorce; Immigration; Criminal Defense;

Research and Writing – LGBT Rights; and Elder

Law – Advanced Directives.

RICE, AMUNDSEN, & CAPERTON FAMILY LAW SCHOLARSHIPThe University of Memphis School of Law joined

the law firm of Rice, Amundsen & Caperton, PLLC,

in celebrating the establishment of the Rice,

Amundsen & Caperton Family Law Scholarship at

the University of Memphis. The scholarship will be

awarded yearly to students enrolled at Memphis

Law who exemplify academic merit and who have

completed the course in family law. In addition,

the recipients will be offered an intern position

with the law firm for the summer following the

awarding of the scholarship. A reception was

held at the law firm’s offices to celebrate the

establishment of the scholarship.

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TENNESSEE WESTERN SECTION COURT OF APPEALS AT MEMPHIS LAWThe Tennessee Western Section Court of

Appeals held oral arguments in the law school’s

historic courtroom for two days in late February.

BUILDING BLOCKS FOR A BETTER COMMUNITYThe University of Memphis Institute for Health

Law & Policy held its second annual symposium,

“Building Blocks for a Better Community,” in

March. The symposium focused on the critical

ties between community development and

health, joining national experts with local leaders

to learn more about the issues surrounding

how health care and policy relates to a safe and

economically strong community. The symposium

featured presentations from well-known experts

such as Sharon Z. Roerty, MCRP, senior program

officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation;

Marice Ashe, JD, MPH, founder and CEO of

ChangedLab Solutions; as well as Elizabeth

Tobin-Tyler, JD, MA, assistant professor of family

medicine, Alpert Medical School and assistant

professor of health services, policy and practice

at Brown University School of Public Health.

NAHON, SAHAROVICH & TROTZ PLC LAW FIRM SCHOLARSHIPNahon Saharovich & Trotz PLC recently

completed their pledge to endow the Nahon

Saharovich & Trotz PLC Law Firm Scholarship.

Corey B. Trotz is a 1990 graduate of Memphis

Law. The award will be given to a returning

Memphis Law student who is in their third year

of law school, has demonstrated an interest or

desire to advocate for personal injury victims,

and who is in the top third of their respective

class and/or a member of the Law Review,

and/or has past, present or pending service

in a judicial office.

TENNESSEE CRIMINAL COURT OF APPEALS AT MEMPHIS LAWThe Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals

conducted oral arguments in the law school’s

historic courtroom in February. In addition

to hearing arguments, the judges allowed a

15-minute Q&A session between students and the

attorneys immediately following each case. The

judges also had lunch with a group of Memphis

Law students while at the law school.

Memphis Law alums Tracy Alcock (Bradshaw)

(JD ‘11) and David Camp (JD ‘89) both argued

before the Court while it held session at the law

school. Ms. Alcock is an assistant attorney general

in the Criminal Justice Division of the Tennessee

Attorney General’s Office in Nashville, and Mr.

Camp is a partner at the law firm of Camp &

Camp, located in Jackson, Tenn. Mr. Camp’s son,

Alex, is currently a 2L at Memphis Law.

ELDER HEALTH LAW ADVOCACY CLINIC LAUNCHEDMemphis Law launched the Elder Health Law

Advocacy Clinic in spring 2015. The new clinic

provides students with the opportunity to focus

on substantive health law while representing

elderly clients in need of legal assistance to

address health care issues, such as execution

and administration of advance health care

directives, access to quality health care and long-

term care, eligibility for Medicare and TennCare

Choices, long-term care insurance, diminished

capacity and conservatorship, Social Security

and Supplemental Security Income Disability,

resident’s rights in long-term care facilities,

discharge planning, end of life and hospice care,

and medical futility.

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BRIEFS: NEWS + EVENTSTHE HONORABLE JANICE HOLDER RECEIVES INAUGURAL PRO BONO PAL AWARDFormer Tennessee Supreme Court Justice

Janice Holder received the inaugural Pro Bono

PAL Award from the Public Action Law Society

at their annual Alternative Spring Break silent

auction and fundraiser.

LAW REVIEW EDITORIAL BOARD 2014-2015The incoming editorial board for volume

46 of The University of Memphis Law Review

is as follows:

Greg Wagner, Editor-in-chief

Sarah Smith, Managing editor

Ben Lewis, Senior articles editor

MK Smith, Senior notes editor

Quynh-Anh Dang, Research editor

Kelly Gray, Business editor

Kelly Masters, Symposium editor

Jordan Cash, Articles editor

Sydney Eason, Articles editor

John Floyd, Articles editor

Bill Pannell, Articles editor

Phoebe Dossett, Notes editor

Lorrie Hayes, Notes editor

Patrick Quinn, Notes editor

Matt Schwimmer, Notes editor

Jake Strawn, Notes editor

Sam Wright, Notes editor

ANNUAL FRANCIS GABOR MEMORIAL LECTUREThe Annual Francis Gabor Memorial Lecture

took place in the historic courtroom in February.

The special guest speaker was Dr. Ralph Wilde

(University College London), who gave a lecture

titled “Dilemmas in Promoting Global Economic

Justice Through Law: A Case Study of the

‘Maastricht Principles on the Extraterritorial

Obligations of States in the Area of Economic,

Social and Cultural Rights’ and Their Associated

Commentary.”

MOCK TRIAL TEAM EXCELS AT REGIONALSThe Memphis Law Mock Trial Team performed

well at the National Trial Competition Regionals.

The Mock Trial team of Josh Bradley (3L),

Brian Burns (2L), and Darius Walker (2L) won

each of their three preliminary round trials,

defeating teams from the University of Kentucky,

Washington University in St. Louis, and the

University of Arkansas-Little Rock. Advancing

undefeated to the quarterfinals as the third-

ranked team (out of 28 teams overall), the

team bested Belmont to advance to the

semifinal round.

The Mock Trial Team of Paige Munn (3L), Ethan

Page (3L), and Justin Prescott (2L) dropped a

close opening trial to the University of Kentucky.

The team then reeled off consecutive wins

against University of Louisville and University of

Arkansas-Fayetteville.

MOOT COURT TRAVEL TEAMS The Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Team

represented the Black Law Students Association

Southern Region at the National Competition in

the spring.

After three very competitive preliminary rounds

in the regional competition, our students went

on to beat out 12 teams for second-place finalist

in the region, securing a spot at the National

Competition. Students Brittany Williams, Joe

Smith, Jana Mitchell, and Crystal Johnson were

the team members. They were coached by

Bridgett Stigger and Professor Demetria Frank.

The Fredrick Douglas Moot Court Team also

represented the law school well, finishing fourth

in the region. Law students Ariel Anthony

and Aurelia Patterson made up one team,

with students Jarrett Spence and Jerrick

Murrell composing the second. Both teams

were coached by Andre Mathis.

The Duberstein Moot Court Team of Martha

Crowder, Brad Reasonover and Ross Smith

won first place at the Duberstein Regional

Competition in Las Vegas, Nev., in February.

3L Ross Smith won Best Oral Advocate in

the regional competition. Deniger Cobb,

Meagan Jones, and Lacy Ward (brief writer)

also competed.

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CHESNEY MCAFEE JOINS CAREER SERVICES OFFICEChesney McAfee joined

the Memphis Law

Career Services Office

as a law school counselor. She is a Memphis Law

alumna who brings a great deal of experience

to the position, with legal experience in both

criminal and civil litigation and a wealth of

knowledge from running her own solo practice

for the past 13 years.

ROBERT L.J. SPENCE JR. ESTABLISHES MOOT COURT AWARDRobert L. J. Spence Jr. recently established an endowed student award to be awarded to a student

for achievement in moot court competitions. Mr. Spence is a 1986 graduate of Memphis Law and the

managing partner of the Spence Law Firm. He is also a member of the University of Memphis School

of Law dean’s advisory board.

BLSA PANELIn February 2015, the Black Law Students

Association (BLSA) held their Civil Rights

Panel. This panel focused on the struggles of

the civil rights movement and how the law

has progressed since that era. In addition, the

panelists shared their personal experiences that

they endured during that time and today as

attorneys, judges, or public figures. The panel

was moderated by the United States Attorney

for the Western District of Tennessee Edward

Stanton III, and featured Judge D’Army Bailey,

Attorney Charles E. Carpenter, Attorney David

Caywood, and former Memphis Mayor Dr. Willie

Herenton as the panelists.

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HEALTH LAW SPEED NETWORKING EVENTThe Memphis Law Career Services Office and the

Institute for Health Law & Policy hosted a speed

networking event recently for those interested

in health law. Over 25 attorneys from a variety

of health law backgrounds participated in the

event in which students interacted with the

attorneys in a “speed dating” type of question

and answer format. Attorneys from St. Jude

Children’s Research Hospital, Regional One

Health (formerly the Med), and many prominent

local firms took part in the event.

LAW REVIEW ANNUAL SYMPOSIUM FOCUSES ON VETERAN’S ISSUESThe University of Memphis Law Review’s Annual

Symposium, “in re Valor: Policy and Action in

Veteran’s Legal Aid,” was held in late March

2015. The symposium focused on a variety of

policy issues surrounding veteran’s affairs, as

well as what is being done to help veterans, both

nationally and here in the Mid-South.

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BRIEFS: NEWS + EVENTS

The Inns of Court is an organization of attorneys

and judges who share the goal of promoting

professionalism, civility, and ethics in the

legal profession. The local chapter, The Leo J.

Bearman Sr. American Inns of Court, recently

began a unique partnership with the Cecil C.

Humphreys School of Law in order to develop

interesting and educational programming for

this year and foster collaboration between Inn

members and the law school. The result was

a yearlong program with a theme of “Back

to School: A Professor’s Perspective,” which

involved Inn teams collaborating with members

of the law school faculty as they addressed a

particularly relevant area of interest or case.

Each team also included two law students,

who presented a “case comment” about the

respective cases and topics being discussed,

with the participating professors delivering

more in-depth remarks about the cases and

subject matter — resulting in many riveting and

entertaining presentations and discussions.

It was a true success, connecting law school

faculty with esteemed members of the legal

community.

This year’s unique collaboration and theme were

introduced and planned by the Honorable Diane

Vescovo, this year’s programming chair for the

Memphis Chapter of Inns of Court.

The 2014-2015 season was composed of the

following programs and law school participants:

Team 1: “Reflections on the Judicial Elections,”

by Professor Steve Mulroy, with students Martha

Crowder and Alex Hall

Team 2: “To Heller or High Water: Gun Laws and

the Constitution,” by Professor Andrew McClurg,

with students Robert Clapper and Lacy Ward

Team 3: “Don’t Feed the Trolls: A Case For and

Against Patent Reform,” by Professor Jeremy

Bock, with students De’Antwaine Moye and

Lauren Winchell

Team 4: “The Impact of the O’Bannon Decision

on NCAA Recruitment,” by Professor Daniel

Schaffzin, with students Courtney Sharp and

Justin Steele

Team 5: “Probate: How to Catch a Thief,” by

Professor Ralph Brashier, with students Ross

Smith and Jarrett Spence

Team 6: “The Shifting Landscape of American

Educational Law,” by Professor Daniel Kiel, with

students Aurelia Patterson and Erica Tamariz

Team 7: “Medical/Legal Partnerships: Providing

Holistic Care for Medical and Legal Needs,” by

Professor Amy Campbell, with students Nick

Margello and Kyle Turner

BACK TO SCHOOL AT INNS OF COURT

CITY OF MEMPHIS & MEMPHIS LAW ANTI-BLIGHT CLINICMemphis Law’s new Neighborhood Preservation

Clinic was unveiled at a joint news conference

with City of Memphis Mayor A C Wharton in

January. The City of Memphis Law Division and

the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys

School of Law launched the Neighborhood

Preservation Clinic to expose law students to

the complex legal issues surrounding property

abandonment, neglect, and blight.

Under the supervision of City of Memphis Staff

Attorney Steve Barlow and Professor Danny

Schaffzin, students will investigate property

ownership and conditions, communicate with

field code-enforcement professionals, prepare

civil lawsuits, and prosecute neglectful owners

seeking compliance with property maintenance

and other housing and building standards.

Partnering with the Memphis City Attorney’s

Office, the students will handle cases before the

Shelby County Environmental Court. The first-

of-its-kind experiential learning collaboration will

expose law students to the legal, economic, and

social challenges arising from blight in Memphis.

The news conference itself culminated in the

demolition of the long-blighted Executive Inn

Motel at 3222 Airways Blvd., which served as one

example of the types of blight that the clinic’s

students and attorneys will strive to eliminate

from the Memphis community as a result of this

unique partnership.

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#GUTHRIE4 GRADUATION

In November 2014, Student Bar Association (SBA) members decided to make a concerted effort to get the attention of “TODAY” show host and former NBC News legal analyst, Savannah Guthrie, in the hopes of having her speak at their May 2015 graduation. The result was an in-depth, two-monthlong social media campaign that galvanized the student body and showcased the entire city of Memphis. The students went to great lengths to show Savannah that Memphis was a tremendous city that anyone would want to visit, and one that they were extremely proud to show to her (and the world).

STAGE 1The campaign began with the “Guthrie Board,” a wall displayed in the law school student lounge where students wrote messages about why Memphis and the law school were wonderful and why she should come join them at graduation. They then pinned

those messages to the board, took a photo of it and posted it to Twitter, Instagram, and/or Facebook, tagging Savannah Guthrie in the process and using the hashtag #Guthrie4Graduation. This stage of the campaign took place the entire month of December and resulted in a quick response from Savannah and her assistant. After letting us know that she “respects the students’ hustle,” Guthrie said to keep at it.

STAGE 2As the new year started up, so did the next stage of the campaign. January saw the beginning of the “30 Days of Guthrie” project, which involved a daily photo throughout the month of January featuring a different Memphis Law student at a uniquely Memphis sight. Student participation, excitement and engagement were running at full steam. It was clear that everyone was excited for Savannah, but it was also evident that the school had

come together in a special way to showcase their enthusiasm and love for the Bluff City.

WRAP-UPUltimately, the law school heard back from Savannah in early February with the sad news that she couldn’t make it to the Class of 2015 commencement in May. However, she made a personalized video for Memphis Law students expressing her love of the campaign and including words of encouragement for these future attorneys. She even made sure our students got some national love, with a series of tweets from the official “TODAY” show account and a story about the campaign itself featured on the “TODAY” show website.

We are incredibly proud of the students involved in this social media campaign and want to share the students’ excitement about their city with our readers. Please enjoy the full experience of the #Guthrie4Graduation campaign!

BY RYAN JONES

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1. If you could choose any profession besides the law, what would it be and why?

“Wildlife biologist. After spending the last three years inside a building, an office in the middle of the woods seems like a pretty good idea.” – Rob Clapper, 3L

2. Why did you go to law school?

“I was attracted to the field of law because I have a strong passion for helping people, my peers and others less fortunate. I am strongly involved in my community, my church and the city itself, because I am committed to making Memphis a better place for current and future generations. I chose to specifically attend law school in Memphis because of my strong ties to the city and to build a strong foundation that can be used to successfully take the city to heights it could not have previously imagined reaching.” – Corbin Carpenter, 2L

TWENTY QUESTIONS FOR 20 STUDENTS

ML asked 20 students to answer a set of questions about their law school experience, as well as their thoughts on Memphis itself. The answers ML received are as intelligent, unique, humorous, and diverse as our students themselves.

Read on to get a better idea of what it means to have the true Memphis Law experience.

“I always wanted to use my words to make a positive difference in people’s lives. Law is a poetic dance that requires you to paint some vivid factual pictures to get your point across.” – Brandon Boykin, 2L

3. What was your most interesting job prior to law school?

“For sheer variety of challenges: assistant dean of students at the University of Virginia, where I dealt with judiciary and honors adjudication in a student-self-governance context; helped craft responses on such issues as on-campus solicitation, use and abuse of technology, and freedom of expression; performed on-call emergency duties; and did Hispanic/Latino student programming and support.” – Pablo J. Davis, 1L

4. What’s the most embarrassing moment (yours or a classmates) that you’ve witnessed in class?

Seven different students replied with the same answer to this question, so it is clear to ML that it struck a chord. The consensus is that getting asked to leave of Professor Alena Allen’s Torts class is the height of terror and embarrassment. Seeing that two of the students surveyed actually experienced this law school phenomenon, ML feels that it’s safe to say that Professor Allen’s message of preparedness and professionalism has soundly resonated with the students.

5. If you could be any local attorney or legal professional, who would it be and why?

“Maureen Holland. She’s the local attorney handling the Sixth Circuit case going before the Supreme Court of the United States right now in order to fight for marriage equality. I hope one day to create that level of change in our society.” – Sarah Smith, 2L

6. What was your favorite class?

“My externship with the city of Memphis Anti-Blight Litigation Unit. I never thought I would be interested in working with a municipality, (Property and I never really got along during my 1L year) but the externship was extremely interesting. Each week was different and I truly appreciate the experience.” – Brittany Williams, 2L

7. Who is your best-dressed classmate?

Male – Corbin Carpenter Female – Martha Crowder

Also Mentioned: “Greg Wagner. His beige slip-on, faded shoes and hooded sweatshirts are outfits no one can compete with.” – Kelly Gray, 2L

“Logan Klaus. The guy wears flip-flops with suits. He is either very brave or has just stopped caring.” – Rob Clapper, 3L

8. What/Where is your favorite spot to study in the building?

“I think they should rename the study area in the student lounge to the Eason, Dossett, Quinn, Battle, Woods, and Vaught Room, because we spent so much time in there during our 1L year. If you wanted to use that room, too bad. I’ll probably donate to make that name change happen.” – Preston Battle, 2L

9. Most amount of time you’ve spent studying for an exam and which exam was it for?

ML was overwhelmed with one particular response to this question. It’s

AURELIA PATTERSON

BRANDON BOYKIN

ROB CLAPPER

MK SMITH

COURTNEY SHARP

ERICA TAMARIZ

GRANT KEHLER

JARRETT SPENCE

JUSTIN STEELE

KELLY GRAY

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clear that Professor Brashier’s exams elicit a new level of panic for students, resulting in what we hope is subsequent expertise in time management and study skills. The term “PTSD” was mentioned once or twice, and it does not seem uncommon for students to start dreaming about Decedent’s Estates after endless hours of studying.

10. Most overwhelming moment of law school?

“Trying to read Pennoyer v. Neff for our second Civil Procedure class. I went home in tears because I couldn’t understand a word of the opinion!” – Martha Crowder, 3L

“During my Civil Procedure 1 exam, there was a group of questions in which each answer depended on the previous answer. My entire body got hot, knowing that if one answer was wrong, they were likely all going to be wrong. Tears began to form and I knew I was about to cry, but I had to pull myself together. If I started crying, there would be no way I could stop and finish the exam in time. I gave myself a quick pep talk and moved past the question. Thankfully, I passed the exam.” – Aurelia Patterson, 2L

11. Who is the most ambitious student in your class?

Multiple students believe Kimbra Ratliff to be on her way to amazing things, with several of them listing her as impressively ambitious. We’re excited to see all of the great things she accomplishes!

12. Which classmate were you most inspired by during law school and why?

“Every time I see Luke Pruett, he has a smile on his face and is supportive regardless of what you’re doing. He drives from Jackson, Tenn., every day for law school and has still managed to raise two great kids. Kudos to his wife, April, as well!” – Ross Smith, 3L

(An incredible number of students pointed to their peers who are currently raising children while also excelling at law school. It seems that the admiration for law students who are also devoted parents is widespread amongst our students.)

13. What’s your favorite Memphis bar/restaurant since you’ve been in law school?

You thought the answer would be Bardog, didn’t you? Well it’s a bit more complicated than that, according to Lacy Ward.

“Let me break it down by region:”

1. Midtown, circa 2010: Yosemite Sam’s (RIP). Current law students really missed out on my former favorite bar.

2. Downtown: Bardog.

3. Midtown, current day: Bayou. I love it. It’s such an Overton Square classic.

4. Cooper Young – Young Avenue Deli.

5. East Memphis: Hog and Hominy.

6. Edge/Medical District: High Cotton Brewery, where law and beer collide, allegedly.” - Lacy Ward, 3L

14. Who is your favorite professor?

Male – Professor Ralph Brashier Female – Professor Alena Allen

(While Professors Brashier and Allen elicit the most stress, fits of crying and night sweats for their rigorous exams and classes, it also seems that our students appreciate the hard work and high standards that they expect.)

15. Biggest purchase while in law school?

Students submitted a plethora of similar answers here, all centered on one main purchase, but ML thinks that MK Smith summed it up best:

“Books. UGH.” – MK Smith, 2L

16. What is your favorite memory (so far) of your time at Memphis Law?

“Definitely being proposed to here. My fiance and I met at Memphis Law when we were assigned to the same section our 1L year, so it was only fitting that he would propose here at the law school. He recreated my class schedule from that year, with me “attending” each class and getting a special note or gift in each classroom. We finally ended up on the second-floor terrace where there was one more book waiting for me! Once I finished reading through my tears and laughter, he got down on one knee. His parents were there and he had arranged to FaceTime with my mom so they could all watch the whole proposal. Of course I said yes and now Memphis Law is a much sweeter place to go to school!” – Courtney Sharp, 3L

17. What was the most intimidating moment of law school for you?

The submissions came down to a close race between being called on by Professor Allen during the beginning of 1L year (she apparently memorizes names and faces well in advance of the first day of classes), the freshman moot court competition, and orientation. All honorable and understandable choices.

18. What is your favorite thing about Memphis the city?

One of the great things about the students at Memphis Law is that they truly love being here. Memphis is near and dear to all of them and the pride

they show for the city was evident in these answers. The following reply says it well.

“The pride that people have in our city and the desire to make it a better place, despite any outside criticisms that the city receives. Also, the FOOD!!!” – Erica Tamariz, 3L

19. Most stressful exam of law school for you?

Far and away, Professor Brashier’s exams secured their place in our students’ collective minds as veritable institutions of stress and anxiety.

20. The funniest thing you’ve seen while at Memphis Law?

ML received a wide variety of answers to this question (many that ought to remain private), so we’ve selected two responses fit for publication and that share a similar theme: dancing.

“Seeing Professor Bock’s dance moves at Flaw Review made me laugh so hard, I am pretty sure I started crying!” – Preston Battle, 2L (Similar statements were echoed by Brandon Boykin and Sarah Smith).

“Preston Battle doing the Booker T. Washington cheer while dressed in a cheerleader outfit in evidence class on Halloween. If you haven’t seen it, a 2L will gladly show you the video.” – Kelly Gray, 2L (This video is obviously worth watching, since MK Smith also submitted the same answer).

LACY WARD MARTHA CROWDER CORBIN CARPENTER PRESTON BATTLE ROSS SMITH

LUKE PRUETT MEAGAN JONES PABLO J. DAVIS BRITTANY WILLIAMS SARAH SMITH

1313

FOR YEARS NOW, urban

farming has become increasingly popular in

America’s major metropolitan centers. It gives

cities a way to deal with vacant lots, revitalize

entire neighborhoods, and provide job skills

and nutrition to city residents often struggling

with poverty and a lack of access to fresh

produce. Memphis has an impressive number

of organizations at the forefront of this urban

agricultural movement, but for years, its progress

was slowed by the lack of recognition of urban

agriculture as a legitimate land use under

Memphis’ city ordinances. Urban farms in

Memphis operated in a gray area of uncertainty,

with no real legal recognition and assistance to

help them succeed.

However, the seeds have been sown here in the

Mid-South, which will result in a rich harvest for

years to come.

If you’ve been here long enough, you’re familiar

with the rich and fertile fields of the Mississippi

Delta. It spills south from the lobby of the

Peabody Hotel, all the way down to Catfish Row

in Vicksburg, Miss. (as the old saying goes).

The Delta has been long touted as the best place

in the world to grow cotton. Riverboats — packed

to the rafters with fluffy bales of the stuff — plied

the Mississippi River just to reach the open outcry

markets of Memphis. It had such an impact here

that some would still argue today that cotton

built this town.

But even now, drive I-55 north or south from

Memphis when the weather gets warm and

you’ll see brown-and-green plots of flat land

big enough to swallow a dozen football fields.

Farmers there still grow cotton, rice, soybeans,

corn, and much more.

You may have been here long enough, too, to

know that cutting-edge agricultural research is

conducted in the fields and hot houses inside

Shelby Farms Park (it’s where the “farms”

by Toby Sells

14

part of the name comes in), especially around

Agricenter International.

However, to many Memphians, that’s all “way

back then” or “way out there,” in the past or

beyond the bright lights and concrete of the

city limits. Agriculture doesn’t touch their lives,

except at the grocery store and that’s only if they

really think hard about it. But someday soon,

they’re likely to think twice about all of that.

Agriculture is back in the buckle of the grit-and-

grind belt, the home of the blues, booze, and

barbecue. The movement has a cadre of skilled,

vocal, powerful, and passionate supporters

who have built sophisticated organizations and

partnerships between them to ensure agriculture

and horticulture remain a part of this city’s DNA.

The Fresh Food Movement and Urban Agriculture Gardens began cropping up inside Memphis

city limits a few years ago, alongside the arrival

of the fresh food movement here. It’s a tough

time to label with an exact date, but consider as

landmarks the 2001 establishment of one of the

first community gardens here in Orange

Mound and the 2006 opening of the

Memphis Farmers Market.

The most basic tenant of the fresh

food movement is that fresh food

is best — best for your body,

best for the environment, best

for the local economy, and

best for the community. From

this movement we also got

farm-to-table restaurants and,

of course, farmers markets.

Many said Memphis was late

to the party on this fresh food

movement, as towns around it

(like St. Louis or even Fayetteville,

Ark.) had been building their fresh

food infrastructure for years in things like

farmers markets, restaurant co-ops, and more.

Once the movement arrived, though, Memphis

urbanites started looking differently at parking

lots, vacant or abandoned pieces of urban

property, their backyards, and front yards. They

started to remember there was soil — good,

fertile soil — under the grass or asphalt there.

Then, they’d scrape the earth, dig straight rows,

and plant seeds. With a little water and sunlight

(and sweat), they’d soon have vegetables, flowers,

and herbs growing a stone’s throw from a corner

store, a Superfund site, or the Pyramid.

But the fledgling movement (as many do) ran

into trouble with the law.

Law and GardensTwo things happened: The Shelby County

Land Bank was created and began to

sell off county-owned properties. Many

were interested in buying them especially

for community gardens. That’s where

their hearts and dreams ran up against the

government.

The city code simply didn’t allow the gardens,

said Josh Whitehead, Memphis Law alum and

director of the Memphis and Shelby County

Office of Planning and Development. His office

didn’t really know how to process the requests

but they kept coming.

At the same time, he and his team were working

on the new Unified Development Code (UDC),

the blanket zoning code for Memphis and

unincorporated Shelby County. To address the

issue of urban gardens, Whitehead said they

simply changed the code to allow them in every

zoning district.

“So, now you can notice little gardens

throughout the city,” Whitehead said “That’s

because they’ve gone from impossible, in this

huge zoning process to get them done, to now

being permitted.

15

“That obviously came from the community. They

wanted to do these things and we were kind of

telling them ‘no.’ Well, we were telling them ‘no’

through our regulations.”

Other changes to the city code included allowing

farmers markets, mobile food markets, and

allowing residents to raise chickens in their yards.

All of these changes were “cutting edge,” said

Maura Black Sullivan, another Memphis Law

alum and the deputy chief administrative officer

for the city of Memphis, and put the city out in

front of the “fresh food wave.”

“To be able to have urban gardens set up on

vacant pieces of land throughout the city,

it’s important,” Sullivan said.

“It’s important in these

neighborhoods where

kids have never seen

beans grow. Now

they can actually

walk down to

that once-vacant

land or that

once-dilapidated

home and see

beans growing and

tomatoes growing and

know what that’s about.”

An Organized FrontMore people entered the fresh food movement

here and they brought more ideas.

The Mid-South Peace and Justice Center founded

GrowMemphis in 2007 to help coordinate

the efforts of anyone wanting to produce a

community garden. These gardens now number

in the double-digits and are spread across

Memphis from Central Station and Whitehaven,

to Binghampton and Rhodes College.

Markets came quickly, too. The Memphis

Farmers Market opened in 2006. The Cooper

Young Community Farmers Market opened

in 2010. The South Memphis Farmers Market

opened just last year. More than 15 are now in

operation, stretching from Hernando, Miss., to

Millington, Tenn. and from Collierville, Tenn. to

West Memphis, Ark.

In short, the fresh food scene exploded here.

But, Caitlin Dupuigrenet, manager of the Cooper

Young Community Farmers Market, said while

the farmers market movement in Memphis was

new, the idea had thrived in smaller towns all

around Tennessee.

This notion is backed up with a 2006 study by

the state-run Center for Profitable Agriculture.

The report found that nearly 40 percent of

the 55 farmers markets it sampled had been in

operation for 20 years or more.

In addition, Dupuigrenet said the new movement

is like a step back, not forward, to a time when

people bought peaches at the roadside stand and

tomatoes directly from the farmer. And there is a

reason for it, she said — the recession.

“The economic hardships that have occurred

made people spend more time at home and work

more on the local economy,” said Dupuigrenet.

“Farmers markets are a great way to do that. You

know where your money is going and you get to

see and interact with the person your money is

supporting.”

But more ideas came for the fresh food

movement, beyond gardens and farmers markets.

Others started thinking about applying the new

but existing fresh food infrastructure to address

food security (or ensuring Memphis had enough

to eat), food deserts, economic development,

and sustainable living.

The efforts were a patchwork, only because it

was new. But the creation of the Food Advisory

Council for Memphis and Shelby County

(FACMSC) sought to sew the patches into a quilt.

“All these different efforts started in all these

different parts of town,” said Sullivan, a member

of the Food Advisory Council. “So, the FACMSC

came together to ensure everyone had a forum,

to be able to talk to each other and to find the

holes in what was being provided.

“We wanted to make sure of what we were doing

and make sure we were doing it on a citywide

level and to position us to be able to advocate at

the state.”

The council has done just that. It is also a part

of the Tennessee Food Policy Council, which

coordinates the efforts of all food councils across

the state to advocate for fresh food policy.

The Hidden Commerce of Local Agriculture America has a secret romance with farming.

The independence of it, the aesthetic, planting

with hope, and then literally harvesting the fruits

Maura Black

Sullivan

16

of our labors — it all has an allure. But at its core,

(and it doesn’t get more American than this),

farming is a business.

Its lifeblood is money. Its veins are the crossroads

of commerce. For many local farmers, these

crossroads are, of course, the public farmers

markets spanning the city. But there’s a huge,

hidden marketplace for local farmers: the

backdoors of some of Memphis’ best restaurants.

On Saturday mornings, Felicia Willett’s

Pathfinder SUV used to look like a “clown

car.” Willett, the owner and executive chef of

downtown’s Felicia Suzanne restaurant, would

stuff the car with a week’s worth of produce from

the just-opened Memphis Farmers Market.

She had grown used to farmers selling their food

at the backdoors of the New Orleans restaurants

where she’d earned her stripes. But they just

didn’t come in Memphis. So, it was either rely

on wholesalers like Sysco or U.S. Foods, or load

up her clown car on Saturday mornings. But no

more.

“Finally the farmers asked if they could sell me

more food if they came to me on a Tuesday and

I said, absolutely,” Willett said. “And now the

farmers have gotten better organized with the

restaurants.”

She said she still goes to the farmers markets to

see what is available for the next week. But to get

the food physically to her restaurant, she uses

her cellphone, not her Pathfinder. Fresh, local

food for her customers is but a text message away

and more local growers are showing up at the

backdoor of her restaurant to help her put food

on the table.

“It’s been amazing to see in the last 13 years

where this area has evolved as far as the farmers

being a huge part of the restaurant,” Willett said.

One of those farms here is True Vine Farm

in Rossville, Tenn., where Lisa Hart and her

husband, Frank, grow about four acres of

specialty vegetables. She said restaurant sales

are now about half of their sales and the rest

come from farmers markets, and a Community

Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program.

She prefers selling to restaurants, she said, but

there’s a finesse to it.

“I go to the backdoor and cold call them all the

time,” she said. “But you have to be able to read

when they’re busy and when they’re not busy. If

they’re having a personal bad day, you don’t want

to try to sell them something different. You want

to drop off their order and get out of their hair

because they’re running their business, too.”

Local farming has long been on the mind of Ben

Smith, the owner and chef of Cooper Young’s

Tsunami restaurant, ever since he got two free

cases of heirloom tomatoes from a Ripley farmer.

He told Smith he “couldn’t give them away”

because everyone wanted that famous, perfectly

round Ripley tomato.

Smith hauled the tomatoes — Mexican Midgets

or Zebra Stripes, maybe — promptly back to his

Cooper Young kitchen and got to work. He sliced

them up, put them on a plate and drizzled them

with olive oil, basil, and cracked black pepper. He

sold out of the tomatoes in a couple of days, “and

everyone thought I was the genius.”

“To me, it’s always seemed evident that the

hardest working people in the whole food

distribution chain are the farmers, the people out

there every day, getting their hands dirty, fighting

the weather, out in the cold, and out in the heat,”

Smith said. “The whole other end of that chain

is the chefs. We slice up a few tomatoes and put

them on a plate and we’re geniuses. We get all

the credit. I don’t think that’s fair.”

Farmers of the FutureWes Riddle pointed to a huge plot of brown land.

“We can go all the way back to that house out

there,” Riddle said, pointing up to a white,

clapboard structure in the distance. “So, we

probably have about 10 acres out here for us.”

The way Riddle looks at it, that 10 acres is a

classroom. He’s a co-founder of Roots Memphis

Farm Academy, which seeks to train farmers not

only in growing crops, but in growing a business

— a good and sustainable business.

His classroom is that 10-acre tract of farmland

Cont’d on pg 31

Mary Phillips Riddle, co-

founder and co-executive

director of Roots Memphis.

Roots seeks to train farmers

not only in growing crops, but

in growing a business - a good

and sustainable business.

17

technology, sleek marketing, and competitively

affordable services. But because of the quick

and enthusiastic acceptance of these companies,

lawmakers are faced with trying to regulate and

police an industry that is trying to set its own rules.

Uber and Lyft state that they are not like

taxi companies. Rather, they contend they

are technology companies that contract with

independent “partners” to do the driving, with

SHARING the ROADShifting Gears

in a Ridesharing World

IN MEMPHIS, it is nearly

impossible to get from one place to another

without hitting traffic. Despite recent strides

in bike lanes and new visionary leadership at

Memphis Area Transit Authority (MATA), we still

are not a city known for efficient or easy-to-use

public transportation. It’s not surprising, then,

that many have been looking for an easier means

of transportation. With ridesharing services Uber

and Lyft entering the market with a resounding

splash, the future of urban transportation is

being reshaped in Memphis and across the

country.

Uber and Lyft are finding quick success due to

a lack of existing or desirable services from the

taxicab industry, and their ability to appeal to

a younger demographic with their app-based

By Ryan Jones

18

well-designed and secure apps as the interface a

consumer uses to find one of these partners for a

ridesharing transaction. Accordingly, both Uber

and Lyft feel they should not have to follow the

same rules and regulations as traditional taxicab

companies.

It’s been a fast start and successful strategy for

both companies, especially Uber. San Francisco-

based Uber, less than six years old, has expanded

to 54 countries and 250 cities around the world,

according to its website. The Wall Street Journal

reported in December that Uber was valued at

more than $40 billion.

Lyft operates in 60 American cities, but none

overseas. It has been in talks to raise about

$250 million in new financing, putting a $2

billion valuation on the three-year-old start-up.

This represents a 100-percent increase in value

over the last year for the smaller of the two

ridesharing services.

How It WorksDrivers sign up to be independent partners

with both Uber and Lyft. They access customers

through a smartphone app, already uploaded

on customer phones or mobile devices, which

provides the partner with the customer’s location

and credit card information for payment. The

customer logs into the app and requests a ride

from the nearest available driver, the company

takes approximately 20 percent of the charge

off the top, and the driver keeps the rest.

This arrangement has the added benefit of

eliminating both the need to carry cash and the

surprise of a high fare. It’s safer for the drivers

and more convenient for customers.

Drivers themselves are responsible for all of

the upkeep and operational expenses of their

vehicles. But few drivers carry commercial

insurance for their vehicles, raising the possibility

of insurance fraud for not disclosing the

innovative and easy-to-use rating system to parse

out the bad drivers from their systems. Customers

can see the ratings of these drivers before

agreeing on a pickup or fare and can then rate

the drivers after their ride is over. At the same

time, drivers can select what fares they want to

accept, what areas of town they want to serve, and

what hours they want to work.

A Roadmap of IssuesTaxis are one of the most iconic and easily

recognizable symbols of city life. Successfully

hailing a cab in a big city is one of the ways to

show you’ve “made it” as a true urbanite. Yet for

all of their stature in America’s urban lore, the

taxicab industry is being quickly outpaced and

overwhelmed by these new competitors and their

fans, particularly in cities like Memphis that have

been underserved by taxis and other forms of

public transit.

Many of the complaints lodged against

ridesharing services pertain to safety, permits,

background checks, insurance, and registration

fees. Taxicab drivers in Memphis must comply

with all of those details and fees. But taxi industry

representatives here say that Uber and Lyft have

gotten a free pass, by operating beyond the reach

of the city’s traditional rules and regulators, like

the Memphis Transportation Commission, which

has oversight over the rest of taxi industry.

In Memphis as of this writing, a taxi driver would

have to undergo a fingerprint-based background

check, carry a commercial insurance, and pay

a number of expensive registration fees before

being permitted to operate. Uber and Lyft

drivers, however, are not required to register

their vehicles with the city, pay traditional

registration fees, or go through city-led

background and safety checks. The companies

themselves conduct their own background

checks, which they claim are more rigorous than

commercial use of their vehicles.

Both Uber and Lyft drivers are required to have

a valid driver’s license, up-to-date insurance, and

a DMV background check, criminal background

check, and car inspection. For Uber, drivers must

be at least 23 years old and have a four-door

car, 2003 or newer. For Lyft, drivers must be at

least 21 years old and have a four-door car, 2001

or newer. Additionally, both companies use an

Uber customers log into the app and request a ride from the nearest available driver; the company takes approximately 2 percent of the charge off the top and the driver keeps the rest.

19

most cities’ efforts, and drivers carry their own

insurance on their vehicles.

The ridesharing industry got off to a bumpy

start in Memphis. In the summer of 2014, the

Memphis International Airport informed Uber

and Lyft that their drivers would not be allowed

to pickup or dropoff customers at the airport

and issued cease and desist letters to Uber and

Lyft, which both companies ignored. Talks and

negotiations finally began, but as in other cities

across the nation, it has not been as fast or easy to

adapt existing policies and regulations to the new

ridesharing industry.

Memphis City Councilman Kemp Conrad has

been a key figure in the local efforts to find a

middle ground. Conrad worked for months to

finalize the details of a proposed ordinance and

amendment that would update taxi and limousine

regulation for the new transportation era.

“It would be an absolute travesty if we lose

these services here,” said Councilman Conrad.

“It would be devastating to Memphis and our

citizens. These services have just become a basic

expectation amongst business travelers, young

people, and tourists when visiting or considering

relocating to a major city like Memphis.”

One problem area involves the submission of

drivers’ personal information to the city. Both

Conrad and the ridesharing representatives

have said it’s unrealistic to expect Uber and Lyft

drivers to meet the same standards as taxi and

limousine drivers, because they are often just

part-time employees with other full-time jobs.

Chelsea Wilson, a spokeswoman for Lyft, said

they worked with the city to help draft the

ordinance.

"We're not opposed to regulation. We want to

make sure that any regulations recognize the

difference in our model and understand that our

drivers are not professional drivers," Wilson said

in a recent interview with the Memphis Flyer.

"They're everyday residents who are able to, after

passing our rigorous background checks, drive

when they have the time, to make ends meet."

Uber and Lyft already require more stringent

background checks than the city requires,

according to company representatives. The city

would prefer to use fingerprints to check for

criminal records, but Uber and Lyft’s current

method of using credit checks lets the company

know both criminal records and pending crimes.

“We are not anti-regulation in any capacity,” said

Billy Guernier, GM for Regional Expansion at

Uber. “We are simply for regulation that makes

sense. In a lot of cities, it is just a case of the

laws having to adapt to transportation network

companies as a new entity that does not make

sense in the old structure of their regulations.”

As the ordinance currently stands at the time

of this writing, ridesharing providers would be

required to certify under oath that they had

performed background checks, and would

also make personnel records available to the

city on request, according to Conrad. The new

ordinance would also set up a standard insurance

model that all ridesharing services must follow

and would ban the drivers from accepting on-

the-street hailing, meaning that all fares must

come through the companies’ smartphone-based

apps. Additionally, to operate in Memphis, Uber,

Lyft and other ridesharing companies will have

to pay a $15,000 registration fee every calendar

year except the first, which will be pro-rated.

Ridesharing companies also will have to “provide

for and require” the annual inspection of their

drivers’ vehicles and give the city annual reports

showing rider pickup and dropoff patterns, cost

of trip and length of trip.

In addition to being a popular service for young

professionals and law students, ridesharing

services also serve as an easy way to supplement

income for those with spare time. However,

Memphis City Councilman Kemp Conrad has been a key figure in the local efforts to find a middle ground with ridesharing services.

20

Cont’d on pg 30

stricter regulations and increased costs could

bring about a decrease in the amount of drivers

locally. “If Memphis enacts laws and fees that

make my costs increase, or cause Lyft to pay me

less, then I might not drive for them anymore,”

said Memphis Law 1L and part-time Lyft driver,

Charlesa Stoglin. “Drivers pay for their own gas

and car maintenance, so the lower I can keep my

overhead costs, the better.”

Catching a Ride in Other CitiesLocal and state governments across the nation

are attempting to grapple with the same

issues. Some, such as St. Louis and Ann Arbor,

Mich., have taken a stance similar to Memphis,

issuing cease and desist orders, impounding or

towing vehicles, and issuing fines to the drivers

themselves. Others have taken the decidedly

opposite approach and made concerted efforts

to provide Uber and Lyft free rein to operate as

they see fit. For instance, North Carolina recently

passed a law prohibiting cities and municipalities

from regulating “digital dispatch” services,

thereby permitting the new ridesharing services

to freely operate anywhere in the state without

adhering to existing taxicab ordinances. Other

cities fall somewhere in the middle.

ChattanoogaAs in Memphis, Uber took Chattanooga by storm

with no regard for existing laws and regulations,

with the familiar argument that they did not

fall into the traditional category of taxi services.

The local police department decided to delay

citing drivers until the local City Council could

consider legislation.

The Chattanooga City Council approved new

rules for both taxis and ridesharing companies.

That legislation created new guidelines for

companies like Uber and Lyft, while adapting

and loosening some existing rules that apply to

taxicab companies. Under the new legislation,

ridesharing services must now adhere to 22

different guidelines for operation, such as

displaying a decal or logo, and the companies will

be required to pay an initial $5,000 application

fee, then a $3,500 fee per year after that,

substantially higher than what taxi companies

pay.

Chattanooga also formed a Passenger Vehicles

For Hire Board to regularly audit a sample of the

ridesharing company’s records and to inspect

drivers’ insurance records, background checks,

and vehicle inspection reports. The board also

has the authority to investigate complaints

against individual drivers. The Chattanooga City

Council plans to review this new ordinance after

six months and again after a year.

PortlandOn paper, Portland and Uber seem like a perfect

match. The city is tech-savvy, trendy and popular

amongst a younger and creative demographic,

while not being quite dense enough to need

or support citywide, blanket, taxi coverage.

Residents, and city leaders, often praise the new

“sharing economy,” with Portland Mayor Charlie

Hales even writing an op-ed for the Oregonian

touting the city’s support for the idea. “Portland's

sharing economy began more than 100 years

ago. From our renowned library system to our

pioneering of open source code, Portlanders

have lived the ethos of the sharing economy

for decades. Our values reflect our love of

community and our neighbors, our progressive

nature and our willingness to try new things,” says

Hales in his Oregonian editorial. “The sharing

economy is rooted in those same old values,

married to new technology.”

It is therefore surprising that Uber has found

Portland to be its most challenging market.

Uber and Portland first started discussions

in the summer of 2013, but their contact was

still very limited more than a year later. After

initial attempts at legislative change stalled

in September 2013, Uber moved on to easier

markets nearby, such as Vancouver, Washington,

just across the Columbia River from Portland.

In fall 2014 however, Uber began to take a

renewed interest in Portland. Beginning with the

launch of their services in four Portland suburbs

– Beaverton, Tigard, Gresham, and Hillsboro

– Uber’s presence in and around the Rose City

began to bloom. The most popular destination

for these suburban rides was metro Portland,

meaning that riders could get into the city via

Uber, but not back out. This led suburban and

Vancouver residents to turn up the pressure on

Portland officials to allow Uber to operate within

the city itself. Portland was surrounded.

In early December 2014, Uber used this

groundswell of citizen support as a catalyst for

announcing that it was going forward with a

launch of its full Uber service in Portland on

Dec. 5. Uber, however, encountered especially

strong opposition from Portland officials. The

city announced that Uber drivers would be fined

at amounts starting at $2,250 for the first offense,

with the company itself facing a $1,500 fine for

each driver the city catches in the act of breaking

the law.

Only a few days after Uber’s Portland launch,

the city formally sued the company, asking a

Multnomah County judge to order the company

to stop operating until City Hall granted Uber

permission. Rather than mounting an offensive

while continuing operations, however, Uber

opted to negotiate a truce. In a first-of-its-kind

outcome, Uber agreed to remove its services

from Portland for three months to give city

officials time to rewrite rules that would govern

the new ridesharing and the traditional taxi

21

Beginning with stints at the University of Florida

and Alcorn State for baseball, Joiner completed

his undergraduate degree in Memphis at

Lemoyne-Owen College and then transitioned

into a job as a French teacher at Frayser High

School while he worked on his master’s degree

in education leadership at Ole Miss. Soon after

graduating from Ole Miss with a 4.0 GPA, baseball

once again beckoned to him and he moved to

Washington to work as an athletic director.

After several years as an athletic director and

teaching in the Pacific Northwest, Joiner was

presented with an opportunity to travel across

the United States and Canada, with a particular

emphasis on the French-speaking provinces of

Canada. Working as a long-haul truck driver

for a trucking and transportation company, his

French would serve him well — traveling to the

smaller towns outside of Montreal and Quebec

City. During these commutes, he had much time

to contemplate his future and realized he had a

true passion for settling arguments and disputes

and the law itself. He decided to head back

to the Mid-South and attend law school at the

University of Memphis. Here, he excelled both

academically and extracurricularly, receiving

a number of prestigious scholarships, being a

member of the Law Review, and serving as the

Chief Justice of the Moot Court Board.

Since 2009, Joiner has worked for the law firm

of Rainey, Kizer, Reviere & Bell in the areas of

litigation, employment law, insurance coverage and

general insurance defense. He’s also an involved

board member of the University of Memphis

School of Law Alumni Chapter and on the regional

board of directors for his fraternity, Kappa Alpha

Psi. Perhaps most important of all, he’s a devoted

father to his 15-year-old daughter, Jamya.

TRUE BLUEINTERVIEW

MICHAEL JOINER (JD ‘09) took a number of different roads on his way to becoming an attorney. With stops in Montreal, Quebec City, Washington, Florida, the University of Mississippi in Oxford (Ole Miss), Frayser, and ultimately back in Memphis, Joiner has a well-traveled and diverse résumé with a breadth of experiences to go along with it.

MICHAEL JOINER

(JD ’09)A

B

C

22

Family is an important part of Joiner’s life.

His daughter, Jamya, is very active in a

variety of extracurricular activities that keep

them both very busy.

Michael is currently an active member of seven

bars: Tennessee, Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri,

Kentucky, Alabama, and Washington, D.C. He

took and passed all of the bar exams within a

two-year period after law school.

A proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi

fraternity, he is member of the Southwestern

Province board of directors and represents

the state of Arkansas for Kappa Alpha Psi.

While in law school, he was a member of the

Student Bar Association (SBA), of which he

served as VP during his 2L year, was the chief

justice of the Moot Court Board and a member

of Law Review. He also won the freshman moot

court competition during his 1L year.

He excelled both academically and

extracurricularly, and was recognized during

his 3L year for his hard work, winning the

Outstanding Pupil Award from the Leo

Bearman Jr. American Inns of Court.

A great deal of his work at Rainey Kizer focuses

on workers’ compensation issues in Mississippi

and Tennessee. It’s the kind of work that Joiner

finds fascinating and always evolving.

A

B

C

23

BY RYAN JONESThe buildings in Memphis tell a story about our legal community that delves into the city’s history and takes us all the way up to the present-day. From imposing historical structures like the Shelby County Courthouse and the former U.S. Customs House and Federal Courthouse, to Burch Porter’s renovation of the Tennessee Club Building, the law school’s new home downtown, and the recent eastern migration of firms like Butler Snow into modern offices in areas that were once far-flung suburbs of Memphis — there is a progression of the legal community and its history that can be seen through our wonderful buildings, each of which has its own story to tell.

This building opened in 1925 as the Criminal Courts Building, housing two divisions of Criminal Court, a 300-bed county jail, and various offices. The limestone exterior features several design elements of the Renaissance, including massive scrolls at the setback for the upper floors modeled on those at the Church of Santa Maria Della Salute in Venice. Interior hallways and central staircase are faced with pink-and-dark-cedar Tennessee marble. Notorious criminals incarcerated here include “Machine Gun” Kelly, the FBI’s 1933 “Public Enemy No. l” and James Earl Ray, convicted assassin of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. After the Shelby County Criminal Courts and jail moved from here in 1982, this National Register Historic District building stood empty until 1998, when extensive renovations were completed and it reopened as the Shelby County Archives and Hall of Records.

Designed by Architect James Gamble Rogers and dedicated on Jan. 1, 1910, the Shelby County Courthouse is the largest and most ornate in Tennessee. Until 1966, this Neoclassical building housed the executive and legislative chambers of Memphis and Shelby County Government, as well as state and local courts. Beginning in 1984, an eight-year renovation resulted in refurbished courtrooms and offices for Circuit, Probate, and Chancery Courts and the Civil Division of General Sessions Court. Many fine details were preserved and augmented, including mahogany doors and paneling, brass door knobs embossed with the County seal, and walls, pilasters, and flooring comprised of seven varieties of marble.

BUILDINGA LEGAL HISTORYPHOTOS BY CHIP CHOCKLEY AND RYAN JONES

ORIGINAL SHELBY COUNTY CRIMINAL COURT (NOW SHELBY COUNTY ARCHIVES)

SHELBY COUNTY COURTHOUSE

24

Before 201 Poplar, there was 128 Adams.

The old Memphis Police Station — a six-story, marble-clad monolith — housed courts, police offices and the city jail from 1911 until 1982 when consolidation moved city and county services under the roof of the Criminal Justice Center at 201 Poplar. The historic building, with parts constructed in 1911, 1954, and 1961, now sits empty and awaits an enterprising and innovative individual or entity to return the northwest corner of Adams and Second to its former glory.

The two-story Greek Revival home was built in 1852 by C.G. Richardson. General Gideon Johnson Pillow, a general in the Mexican War and the Civil War, purchased the house in 1873. In 1880, Peter McIntyre, founder of the first glucose refinery in Memphis, purchased the home. The home has served as a law office for various Memphis attorneys and firms for many years.

The firm of Burch Porter & Johnson is located in what some might consider two of the most architecturally and historically significant buildings in the South. The Tennessee Club Building (130 North Court) was built in 1890, having been chartered 15 years earlier to establish a library and art gallery, foster scientific debates, and act as a social club. It was visited by many of the most prominent people of the time, including Presidents William H. Taft and Theodore Roosevelt. From the front steps, Carrie Nation made a speech condemning alcohol, and political boss E.H. Crump is said to have controlled the city from the dining room.

The Goodbar Building (128 North Court) also was constructed in 1890. In addition to its builder, Colonel William F. Taylor, past tenants have included the Overton and Overton real estate brokerage firm, whose principal, John Overton Jr., was the grandson of Judge John Overton, co-founder of the city of Memphis.

It has been home to Burch, Porter & Johnson since 1970.

Cont’d on pg 33

MEMPHIS CENTRAL POLICE STATION

THE PILLOW MCINTYRE HOUSE AT 707 ADAMS AVENUE

TENNESSEE CLUB/BURCH PORTER JOHNSON BUILDING

25

David C. Porteous was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 for real estate law. This is his third year for inclusion.

Richard Glassman has been admitted to the Litigation Counsel of America as a fellow. The Litigation Counsel of America is the trial lawyer honorary society, composed of less than one-half of one percent of American lawyers.

Hayden Lait has been named 2014-2015 Memphis Mediation Lawyer of the Year by Best Lawyers. Only a single lawyer in each practice area, in each community is honored as Lawyer of the Year.

David J. Harris, of the law firm Burch, Porter & Johnson, was selected for inclusion on the 2014 Mid-South Super Lawyers list in business administration.

The American Institute of Family Law Attorneys honored Larry Rice of Rice, Amundsen & Caperton, PLLC, as One of the Ten Best for Client Satisfaction for the second year in a row.

Dale H. Tuttle, shareholder in Glassman, Wyatt, Tuttle and Cox, P.C., has been selected for inclusion in the 2015 The Best Lawyers in America for his work in the practice area of insurance law. Mr. Tuttle practices primarily in the area of insurance law, insurance defense and products liability.

A. Wilson Wages and co-counsel received a unanimous decision from the Tennessee Supreme Court in West v. Shelby County Healthcare Center, successfully arguing that hospitals cannot maintain liens after bills are paid in full.

Pauline Weaver has been elected secretary of the Government and Public Sector Lawyers Division of the American Bar Association. Additionally, she was recently named as co-chair of the Women in Criminal Justice Committee for the Criminal Justice Section and chair of the Public Education Committee for the Individual Rights and Responsibilities Section, both of the ABA.

W. Kerby Bowling was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the fields of administrative/regulatory law. This is his third year for inclusion. He is also on the board of the National Foundation for Transplants.

Jim Miller was recently included among Top Lawyers by 5280, the city magazine in Denver. He currently maintains an ADR practice arbitrating and mediating nationally and internationally through the JAMS Denver, Colo., office.

Frank N. Stockdale Carney was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the area of employee benefits. This is his fifth year for inclusion.

Russell J. Hensley was selected to serve on the board of trustees for Christian Brothers University; selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the fields of corporate law as well as mergers/acquisitions law. This is his eighth year for inclusion.

The Association of Women Attorneys (AWA) selected Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Holly M. Kirby as the 26th recipient of the Marion Griffin-Frances Loring Award for outstanding achievement in the legal profession.

Danny Kail has been appointed the chief administrative officer of the Shelby County Criminal Court Clerk’s Office.

Barry Staubus was re-elected as district attorney general for the 2nd Judicial District of Tennessee (Sullivan County).

Joseph T. Getz was selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the fields of construction law and construction litigation. This is his fifth year for inclusion. He was named a 2014 Mid-South Super Lawyer in the field of construction law.

LeeAnne Marshall Cox, with Burch, Porter & Johnson, was selected for inclusion on the 2014 Mid-South Super Lawyers list in banking.

Russell Fowler has been named as associate director of legal aid of East Tennessee (LAET) and also currently serves as an adjunct professor of political science at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga.

Elizabeth (Beth) Stengel is currently serving as the 2014-2015 secretary of the Tennessee Association of Construction Counsel. As the immediate past chairman of the Tennessee Bar Association Construction Law Section, she is on the executive committee for the section; and selected as a 2014 Super Lawyer in field of construction law.

Les Jones, of the law firm Burch, Porter & Johnson, was named to the 2014 Top 50 Memphis Super Lawyers list, the 2014 Mid-South Super Lawyers Top 100 list, and the 2014 Mid-South Super Lawyers list in personal injury medical malpractice: plaintiff.

Lisa Rivera, former assistant U.S. attorney with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Tennessee, has joined Bass, Berry & Sims as a member in the firm’s health care fraud practice.

Caren Beth Nichol was selected by her peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America 2015 in the field of commercial litigation. This is her third year for inclusion. She was named a 2014 Mid-South Super Lawyer in the field of family law and a Family Law Power Player in MBQ magazine.

Joe Leibovich, a member of and employment law chair with Shuttleworth Williams, PLLC, has been appointed to the mediation panel for the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee. Mr. Leibovich was also recently selected to serve as easurer of the Labor and Employment Section of the Memphis Bar Association.

ALUMNI: SETTING THE BAR

1971

1972

1975 1983

1987

1989

1984

1988

1976

1977

1978

1980

1979

1981

1982

1995

1993

26

Michael J. Mills has joined Nashville metro area HALO Realty as a realtor broker specializing in sales of properties from couples divorcing or properties being probated in estates. Michael continues his law practice as general legal counsel for Brentwood-based Athens Title & Escrow.

Kevin Snider, founding attorney of Snider & Horner, PLLC, was recognized for the second year in a row, as one of the top trial attorneys in the United States by being selected for membership into The National Trial Lawyers: Top 100 Trial Lawyers. Also, Mr. Snider was selected for the sixth year in a row, for inclusion and listing in the highly esteemed Mid-South Super Lawyers magazine as a Super Lawyer. In addition, he has been awarded the highest attorney rating achievable (“AV”) by the Martindale-Hubbell Legal Directory which has recognized him as a highly respected and ethical member of the bar.

Tanja L. Thompson has been appointed as office managing shareholder of the Memphis office of the Littler Mendelson law firm.

Ronald T. Catelli became president-elect of the Monmouth Bar Association, and will become president in May 2015.

Jacob C. Zweig, of Evans Petree, was named Bankruptcy Counsel of the Year by TD Auto Finance, LLC, as part of the firm’s Creditor Rights/Insolvency Group. The award was given for superior overall performance and strategic bankruptcy litigation victories.

Kyle Cannon, of the law firm Glassman, Wyatt, Tuttle & Cox, P.C., was selected as a Rising Star in the area of workers’ compensation by Mid-South Super Lawyers for 2014.

Robert J. Fehse, of Evans Petree, was named Bankruptcy Counsel of the Year by TD Auto Finance, LLC, as part of the firm’s Creditor Rights/Insolvency Group. The award was given for superior overall performance and strategic bankruptcy litigation victories.

The American Institute of Family Law Attorneys honored Nick Rice of Rice, Amundsen & Caperton, PLLC, as one of the Ten Best Under 40 for client satisfaction for the second year in a row.

Kandace C. Stewart, of Evans Petree, was named Bankruptcy Counsel of the Year by TD Auto Finance, LLC, as part of the firm’s Creditor Rights/Insolvency Group. The award was given for superior overall performance and strategic bankruptcy litigation victories.

Keith P. Allen has joined the Schuerenberg Law Firm in Sikeston, Missouri.

Beth Buffington was selected by Super Lawyers magazine as a Rising Star in the field of family law in 2014.

L. Clayton Culpepper III was selected by Super Lawyers magazine as a Rising Star in the field of litigation in 2014.

Bert A. Echols, III, of Evans Petree, was named Bankruptcy Counsel of the Year by TD Auto Finance, LLC, as part of the firm’s Creditor Rights/Insolvency Group. The award was given for superior overall performance and strategic bankruptcy litigation victories.

Greg Pease, a member of Sherrard & Roe, PLC, in Nashville, was honored as a 2014 Mid-South Rising Star by Super Lawyers magazine in the areas of business/corporate law.

Lewis W. Lyons, of Glassman, Wyatt, Tuttle & Cox, P.C., was named a Rising Star in general civil litigation for the third consecutive year by Mid-South Super Lawyers and Memphis magazine.

Aaron J. Nash was named a shareholder at Evans Petree in September 2014 and named Bankruptcy Counsel of the Year by TD Auto Finance, LLC, as part of the firm’s Creditor Rights/Insolvency Group. The award was given for superior overall performance and strategic bankruptcy litigation victories.

Brian L. Yoakum was selected by Super Lawyers magazine as a Rising Star in the field of litigation in 2014; member of the board of directors of the Touchdown Club of Memphis, the executive leadership team of the Memphis Chapter of the American Heart Association, and the board of directors and the executive committee of Mid-South Spay & Neuter Services.

George V. “Harley” Steffens, IV was named a shareholder at Evans Petree in September 2014. He was appointed to the board of directors for the Mid-South Food Bank in January 2014.

Melisa Moore, of the law firm Burch, Porter & Johnson, was named as one of the Top 40 Under 40 for 2014 by the Memphis Business Journal.

Chase Fisher, as of fall 2014, has been working as in-house counsel for Community Health Systems.

Rachelle Gallimore-Scruggs has been named as the director of the Metro Office of Conservatorship Management for the department of the State Trial Courts for Nashville and Davidson County.

Roger Scruggs has joined the firm of Littler Mendelson as an associate attorney in their Nashville office.

Shea B. Oliver, of the law firm Burch, Porter & Johnson, was selected for inclusion on the 2014 Mid-South Rising Stars list in intellectual property litigation.

Steven Medlock and Drew Plunk recently founded the law firm of Beaty, Medlock & Plunk in Memphis, Tenn.

Tamara Davis Mills has been named as in-house counsel and compliance specialist for RINtrust.

As of September 2014, Chase Teeples has been serving as a judicial law clerk to the Hon. William O. Bertelsman, senior district judge at the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.

Jennifer Mayham was awarded the Law Student Volunteer of the Year Award, the state’s top award for law student pro bono work by the Tennessee Bar Association, at the 2015 Public Service Luncheon at the War Memorial Auditorium in Nashville.

2013

2010

2014

2006

1996

1997

2003

2005

2009

2012

2001

2004

1998

27

JEREMY BOCKProfessor Bock attended the second annual Roundtable on Empirical Methods in Intellectual Property at IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law. He was also a panelist at the Leo Bearman Sr. American Inn of Court program, “A Case For and Against Patent Reform.” Professor Bock also published an article in the University of Richmond Law Review, entitled “Does the Presumption of Validity Matter? An Experimental Assessment.”

RALPH BRASHIERProfessor Brashier’s article, “Conservatorships, Capacity, and Crystal Balls,” was the lead article in the first issue of volume 87 of the Temple Law Review (fall 2014). The second edition of Professor Brashier’s book, “Mastering Elder Law,” was published by Carolina Academic Press in January 2015. In February, Professor Brashier and Shelby County Probate Judge Kathleen Gomes headed a legal-musical presentation on elder financial abuse, entitled “Probate: How to Catch a Thief,” before the Leo Bearman Sr. American Inns of Court.

AMY CAMPBELLProfessor Campbell published a chapter in the Handbook of Community Sentiment. Her chapter was entitled “Is There a Therapeutic Way to Balance Community Sentiment, Student Mental Health, and Student Safety to Address Campus-Related Violence?” She also made a presentation, entitled “Embedding a Longitudinal Experience in Public Health Law/Policy in the Academy & Community,” at the APHA 2014 annual meeting in New Orleans, Louisiana in fall 2014.

DONNA HARKNESSProfessor Harkness’s article, entitled “Bridging the Uncompensated Caregiver Gap: Does Technology Provide an Ethically and Legally Viable Answer,” was published in the spring 2015 edition of The Elder Law Journal.

D.R. JONESProfessor Jones was invited to be a speaker on copyright law at the Wake Forest School of Law Intellectual Property in the Digital Age Symposium. The symposium was in February 2015. Professor Jones discussed fair use issues and issues concerning the resale of digital works. Professor Jones’ article entitled “Law Firm Copying: An Examination of Different Purpose and Fair Use Markets” will be published in the winter issue of the South Texas Law Review. In February 2015, Professor Jones presented a paper topic, “Libraries, Contracts and Copyright” at the 2015 Works-in-Progress Intellectual Property Colloquium (WIPIP) held in Alexandria, Va., at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

DANIEL KIELProfessor Kiel recently had a chapter published in a book entitled “Law & Educational Inequality: Removing Barriers to Educational Opportunities.” His chapter, “Equity Through Differentiation,” examines the foundation and merits of

the claim that equity can be achieved by providing more individualized educational opportunities by granting greater autonomy to individual school leaders. The book was published in spring 2015.

BARBARA KRITCHEVSKYProfessor Kritchevsky gave a presentation entitled “Moot Court Judging: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly,” at the Moot Court Conference held at Marquette Law School. She was also a panelist at the same Moot Court Conference, serving on a panel entitled “Teaching Brief-Writing: Some Successful Approaches.” Professor Kritchevsky gave a talk on “Section 1983: The First 120 Years” at the Memphis Law CLE “Under Color of Law: Excessive Force and 42 U.S.C. Section 1983” held at Memphis Law School in the fall.

ERNEST LIDGEProfessor Lidge’s article, “The Necessity of Expanding Protection from Retaliation for Employees Who Complain about Hostile Environment Harassment,” was published in the Louisville Law Review. Professor Lidge also served as a presenter on a panel at the ABA Practice and Procedure Under the National Labor Relations Act Committee Meeting, Region VIII. The panel topic was “NLRB Rulemaking: Proposed Amendments to Election Procedures.” Professor Lidge was also a presenter at the Association of Administrative Law Judges Annual Conference, where he spoke on the topic, “Legal Ethics for Administrative Law Judges.”

ANDREW JAY MCCLURGProfessor McClurg’s article, “In Search of the Golden Mean in the Gun Debate,” will be published in volume 58 of the Howard Law Journal as part of a symposium, “Rights vs. Control: America’s Perennial Debate on Guns.” In fall 2014, Professor McClurg gave a presentation entitled, “To Heller High Water: Gun Laws and the Constitution,” to the Memphis Chapter of the Inns of Court.

STEVE MULROYProfessor Mulroy has an upcoming article being published in the Willamette Law Review, entitled “Sunshine’s Shadow: Overbroad Open Meetings Laws as Content-Based Speech Restrictions Distinct From Disclosure Requirements.” Professor Mulroy presented a paper in March at the Sorbonne in Paris, as part of the International Symposium on Freedom of Information & Governmental Transparency in the Open Government Era, University of Paris 1 Pantheon-Sorbonne. His paper, “Sunshine’s Chill: Overbroad American Open Meetings Laws and the Limits of Disclosure,” which takes a comparative approach, will be published in the book produced as part of the symposium.

IN THESE HALLS: FACULTY ACCOMPLISHMENTS

27

28

DANIEL SCHAFFZINProfessor Schaffzin’s essay, “So Why Not An Experiential Law School ... Starting With Reflection In The First Year,” was published in volume 7 of The Elon Law Review (winter 2014-15). Professor Schaffzin served on the Planning Committee for the Southern Clinical Conference at William & Mary Law School. At the conference he co-presented a concurrent session entitled “Is Subjective Assessment an Indispensable Cornerstone of Clinical Legal Education? Exploring the Role that Subjectivity Should Play in the Evaluation of Law Clinic Students.” Professor Schaffzin co-presented a concurrent session entitled “Excellent Public Housing Authority Approaches to Conducting Informal Hearings and Making Cost-Effective Use of Legal Services” at the National Association of Housing and Rental Organizations’ 2014 national conference & exhibition in Baltimore, Md. In October 2014, Professor Schaffzin co-presented a CLE entitled “Medical-Legal Partnership in Memphis.”

KATHERINE T. SCHAFFZINProfessor Schaffzin’s article, entitled “Beyond Bobby Jo Clary: The Unavailability of Same-Sex Marital Privileges Infringes the Rights of So Many More than Criminal Defendants,” was published in the University of Kansas Law Review. Professor Schaffzin was cited very prominently by the Supreme Court of New Jersey in the case O’Boyle v. Borough of Longport, as it broadly adopted the common interest doctrine. Professor Schaffzin was also elected as treasurer of the American Association of Law Schools (AALS) Section on Litigation and is serving as Provost’s Fellow for the University of Memphis during the spring semester.

CHRISTINA ZAWISZAProfessor Zawisza presented a session on “Children in the Courtroom” at the 40th annual meeting and conference of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary, held in Memphis last fall.

LEE HARRISProfessor Harris was

promoted to full professor in 2014.

DANIEL KIELProfessor Kiel was

awarded tenure in 2014.

FACULTY PROMOTIONS

*PreLaw, 2014

WHICH LAW SCHOOL BOASTS THE #1 RANKED

FACILITY?

Just five years after relocation, we’re proud that our Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law was named top facility in the nation.* But ask any U of M law student or graduate and they’ll tell you that here, an education is measured in more than world-class facilities. It’s measured in the kind of practical, real-world opportunities and experiences only Memphis provides.

Driven by doing.of

of

ALENA ALLENProfessor Allen was

promoted to associate professor in 2014.

29

FAMILYA

FAMILYCONCEPT(ION)

for adoption. For some, family creation is limited

by infertility, by the legal restrictions on marriage,

or by the absence of an available, adoptable

child.

Thanks to ART, family creation now requires

neither the cooperation of two fertile parents

nor an existing adoptable child. While a single

infertile individual may orchestrate the making

of a child using ART, ironically the number

of participants in the procreative process

has increased from the biologically required

minimum of two to as many as six. So which ones

of these various participants are family? Good

question. The law’s ability to allocate parental

rights and responsibilities is hampered by the

existing legal framework for parentage, which

is rooted in a two-parent paradigm of one mom

and one dad. With ART, the two-parent paradigm

is shattered.

When advances in science outpace revisions to

the domestic relations laws, strict application

of the law to novel facts may yield unfortunate

judicial decisions. One example is in the

determination of maternal parentage rights. Two

glaring flaws present in the parentage statutes of

most states have created, albeit unintentionally, a

statutory structure that fails to acknowledge the

parentage of the biological mother of a child who

used ART and surrogacy to create her family. The

first defect is the false conflict artificially created

between gestational mother and genetic mother.

Under the common law, a birth mother holds the

exclusive maternal rights. This rule makes sense

as long as we are comparing the rights of a birth

mother to strangers, but when we compare the

birth mother’s rights to those of the biological

mother of that same child, the inadequacy of the

rule demands scrutiny. The second defect is the

unequal legal status of male and female genetic

parents created by gender-specific paternity

statutes. Because there is no parallel to giving

birth for men, the law provides several routes

to parentage for men that are not available to

women. Together, these two imperfections have

mounted difficult legal obstacles for an intended,

genetic mother to secure her legal rights as

parent of her child unless she also gave birth to

the child.

Arguably, neither childbirth nor a genetic

link to the child should determine maternity

conclusively. ART requires that parentage laws

be modified to recognize the intent to parent.

One might assume that the deference to the

gestational mother would be revoked by a

surrogacy contract which clearly sets forth the

gestational mother’s role as birthing agent to

someone else’s child. However, in a recent case,

the Tennessee Supreme Court awarded shared

custody of a child created through ART to the

surrogate mother and the biological father

(whose sperm was used to fertilize the surrogate’s

egg). The Court did not recognize the parentage

of the intended mother (who with her partner

had hired the services of the surrogate). For

surrogacy to become a viable option for family

creation in Tennessee, the law must be modified

to permit the surrogate’s pre-birth waiver of

parental rights. Whether the Tennessee General

Assembly chooses to redefine parentage using an

intent test, a genetic test or a hybrid of the two,

what is clear is that comprehensive legislative

change is needed to clarify parentage in the case

of technologically assisted human reproduction.

FAMILY CREATION is certainly not what

it used to be. Assisted reproductive technology

(ART) has assisted not only the infertile couple

but also same-sex couples, singles, and older

individuals. What was once attributable to

exactly two individuals, scientifically required

to be one male and one female, parentage has

evolved scientifically (and must evolve legally) to

encompass a plethora of individuals claiming the

title of parent.

The essence of each of us may be captured by

various titles: friend, volunteer, lawyer, professor,

and author are a few titles that describe me.

But, when I am asked to describe myself, most

of the titles that come to mind relate to my

position in my family. I am a daughter, a wife,

and a mother. Being part of a family is extremely

important to me. The law controls who your

family is by delineating one’s blood relations, the

requirements for marriage, and the conditions

A Look at the Changing Concept of the Family and How It is Legally Defined

By Professor Lynda Black

Professor Lynda Black’s recent work in the Nebraska Law Review draws upon many of these issues and the impact the law will have on future definitions of family.

30

Cont’d from pg 20

industries. This was the first time Uber had

voluntarily left a market.

Uber and Portland city officials are currently

drafting these new regulations, with leadership

on both sides stating that Uber will be operating

in Portland by late spring.

Industry ResponseUber and Lyft have traditionally called upon

their loyal customers to serve as their loudest

voices, staunchest advocates, and most powerful

lobbyists. Their constantly expanding list of

smartphone-enabled customers provides an ever-

ready source of power for the companies when

they are in need of citizen support. But behind

the scenes, Uber and Lyft also employ highly-

paid and highly-powered professional lobbyists

to press their case in city halls and state capitals

across the nation.

Uber has hired an impressive team of former

state legislators, upper-level political operatives,

former political aides, and other well-connected

political movers and shakers. According to The

Washington Post, Uber has hired no fewer than

161 private lobbyists in at least 50 U.S. cities

and states, all in the last two years alone. This is

on top of the company’s already existing, and

growing, policy office.

Uber hired former White House adviser David

Plouffe to lead its lobbying efforts in the fall

of 2014. Plouffe has powerful connections in

Washington, D.C., the White House, and within

the national Democratic Party and is widely

regarded as the main engineer of President

Obama’s first presidential campaign.

Various states have already felt the impact of

Uber and Lyft’s lobbying efforts. Last summer,

the Illinois legislature passed a measure

requiring drivers who worked more than 36

hours every two weeks for the company to get an

official chauffeur’s license and commercial auto

insurance.

The bill overwhelmingly passed with bipartisan

support, as well as that of the taxi industry and

insurance company representatives, achieving

a veto-proof majority. Faced with losing the

lucrative Chicago market though, Uber brought

forth its lobbying team. After organizing a

successful email campaign aimed at Governor

Pat Quinn, as well as an 80,000-signature online

petition, Uber got involved in the gubernatorial

campaign, backing the Republican challenger,

Bruce Rauner (who eventually won the race),

and who publicly backed Uber. The lobbying

team included an attorney who represented

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel and other top

Democratic leaders, a former Illinois Republican

Party chairman, and the former chief of staff of

then current Governor Pat Quinn. Uber’s efforts

succeeded, when in August, Governor Quinn

vetoed the bill. Uber lobbyists scored another

victory when, instead of overriding the governor’s

veto, the legislature adopted a less severe (and

more favorable to ridesharing services) measure.

The new bill passed in late December.

Though it has less capital than its larger rival,

Lyft has not been standing idly by in the lobbying

efforts. On the federal level, Lyft has hired

two well-known Washington, D.C. lobbying

firms to help fight an upcoming battle with

Congress and the executive branch over how

ridesharing services and the taxicab industry will

be regulated. By pushing for federal legislation

to protect their business models, Lyft and Uber

could bypass local governments and avoid

expensive, repeated local-level political fights.

Uber and Lyft may also end up saving lives. A

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) report

reveals that increased ridesharing services can

save lives. According to the report, nearly four

in five (78 percent) respondents said friends

are less likely to drive after drinking when

ridesharing services like Uber operate in their

cities. Additionally, 93 percent of people would

recommend Uber as a safer way home to a

friend who had been drinking. In Miami, Uber

ridership is peaking at the same time of night

that historically has been the worst for drunken

driving. In Pittsburgh, demand for Uber spikes at

closing time for bars. In Chicago, three-fourths

of Uber trips on New Year’s Eve were requested

within one-eighth mile of establishments with

liquor licenses.

The Road AheadMemphis has a chance to take a forward-thinking

approach on the modern transportation debate,

a debate that is a much bigger issue than Uber or

Lyft. “Transportation is a critical issue here and

this is a very innovative way to address that issue,”

said Conrad. “Ridesharing services like these are

really helping to make car-pooling the norm.

It’s a huge opportunity to improve our public

transportation and gives us a unique alternative

to our public transportation system here, while

adding improved layers of safety as well.”

The rapid growth of ridesharing services

provided by companies such as Uber and Lyft

has been a clear signal to cities across the nation

that their citizens are not completely happy with

their existing taxi and public transportation

services. There will be a great deal of ongoing

discussion surrounding the ridesharing industry

as it continues to develop. Cities and their

leadership will continue to examine their existing

laws surrounding the transportation industry and

update and modernize them accordingly.

31

close to Agricenter International. Located on the

property is a barn for large equipment, a shed for

smaller equipment, and a long, steel-and-plastic

greenhouse that resembles huge, half-buried

pipe.

Inside the greenhouse were long tables topped

with thousands of black planting cells, some

sprouting tiny, four-leafed sprouts of chard, kale,

collards, and arugula. All of it was covered in

long sheets of frost cloths to keep out the cold

howling just outside the greenhouse.

In the back stood Liam Boyd, tall, young, and

bright-eyed. He was pushing tiny seeds of sorrel,

into tiny cups of black soil. He’s in his second

growing season as a Roots Memphis student with

sights on turning his grandfather’s land near

Eads into a working, profitable farm.

“As a kid, I just wished I didn’t have to go to

school and I just could do this,” Liam said,

nodding his head toward the work before him.

“I wouldn’t have to go to school and I wouldn’t

have to leave the farm. I’d just be able to stay on

the farm and make that my job.”

In its second year, Roots Memphis now has

eight students. Though maybe 20 students have

tried the program, some are cut. Before the

student-farmers ever hit the fields, they hit the

books. They first have to devise a sustainable

business model before they ever get their hands

in the dirt.

“We tell them, ‘you have to pencil a profit before

you can plow one’,” said Mary Phillips Riddle,

a Roots Memphis co-founder and co-executive

director. “They have to know what their farm is

going to look like and how it will support the

lifestyle that they want.”

Riddle called the business curriculum a “crash

course in small business planning,” but the

“number one indicator of success” in the Roots

Memphis program. It’s a deliberate move to

weed out potential students who just want to

grow, Riddle said, because the school’s goal is to

produce economically sustainable farms.

“It’s a really romantic movement because it’s

all based on ethics and values and a new way of

doing things that is healthier for everybody,”

Riddle said. “But making it work in terms of the

dollars and cents of the movement, there’s a

serious need for advancement and sophistication.

That’s what we’re trying to contribute.”

Also, he said, while the number of local growers

is increasing, a relatively small amount of the

food in Memphis is actually produced here.

Local food, he said, is better for the environment

because it’s not trucked in from far away, is

better for the economy because food dollars are

kept locally, and it’s better for the city because

consumers support locals and get to know their

food and farm practices.

And Roots Memphis student-farmer Liam Boyd

gets all that.

“I want to bring general prosperity to the area I

grew up in,” Boyd said. “It’s in the country, so if

you have a good job you have to drive to it … or

you go to college and try to get out of the whole

area.

“I want to prove, at least to myself, that you

can stay in that area and still make something

constructive.”

Food Deserts in the Fresh Food WorldThe 2008 Farm Bill defined a “food desert” as:

“an area in the United States with limited access

to affordable and nutritious food, particularly

such an area composed of predominantly lower-

income neighborhoods and communities.”

Anyone driving around Memphis has seen one.

There are usually dozens of houses, connected

with streets and sidewalks, a corner store and

a liquor store, and not much else. Your mental

map takes you to the closest grocery store and

you know that bananas (not banana Popsicles)

are pretty far away.

Back in 2011, the federal government sought to

map these areas across the country using 2000

census data and a 2006 directory of supermarkets

and large grocery stores. Looking at this data,

the western part of Shelby County is pocked with

food deserts. The desert farthest east was a swatch

of land bordered basically by I-40, the Wolf River,

and Whitten Road.

But let’s consider a Midtown tract bounded by

Cont’d from pg 16

32

McLean to the east, Watkins to the west, North

Parkway to the south, and Vollintine Avenue

to the north. The area scored points in the

report for low income, limited access to

a grocery store within a half-mile of

homes, and limited access to a vehicle.

Lots of children lived there at the time

and lots of seniors, too. This area is

right in the middle of our city but, if

you wanted fresh food in the area, you

really had to work for it.

Much has been done since the report

to quench food deserts here. Farmers

markets have opened in key areas. (The

South Memphis Farmers Market cut the

ribbon on a beautiful new facility in 2013.)

Another example is the Green Machine Mobile

Food Market, a farmers market on wheels that

brings fresh foods to food deserts around the city.

But how are we doing on the issue? It’s hard to

know. People come and go, so do some markets.

But it’s a question that fits into discussions of

what’s ahead for the fresh food movement and

urban agriculture in Memphis.

What’s Ahead?Well, when it comes to food deserts, Maura Black

Sullivan wants a map, much like the government

map from 2011, but better.

“I want a kind of heat map that shows you where

those holes are,” she said. “Cities now have

‘walkability scores.’ How cool would it be to get

your fresh food availability score? Well, there’s

got to be some cool way to say that.”

As for more farmers connecting with more

restaurants, the state government just recently

unveiled its Pick Tennessee Products Farm and

Restaurant Certification Program.

It will help those farmers find bigger, more local

markets and allow restaurants to serve fresher

food and market the Pick Tennessee Products

brand on their menus, signs, and more.

So far, Whitehead said current city codes are

serving the needs of urban growers. But new or

unforeseen needs are always in the offing, he

said.

“When it comes to agriculture and farming,

we have a pretty laissez faire, hands-off kind of

code,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean we can’t

further our code in the future.”

As far as the Memphis local food system is

concerned, Riddle said the infrastructure is

largely in place but consumers need to take a

leap of faith.

“We need folks to behave conscientiously and

choose what kind of city and community they

want to be,” Riddle said. “You can talk all day

about values and ethics and where you buy local.

But if your city is full of people who just want

to go to Chik-Fil-A all the time … that’s an an

actual choice about the kind of city they want

to live in.”

A Fresh Food Trend?The fresh food trend seemed to

(as trends do) come almost out of

nowhere. The volume is high on the

trend now. But will it get louder? Will

it fade away?

To almost everyone interviewed for this

story, the answer was, of course, fresh

foods (and farmers markets and farm-to-

table restaurants) are here to stay.

“It’s absolutely staying,” said Dupuigrenet, of

the Cooper Young Community Farmers Market,

“especially as people get used to this kind of

eating and for their children. It becomes a part

of life, not just a novelty of how we do things.”

Sullivan, with the city of Memphis and the local

food council, said if it lasts anywhere, it’ll be in

the South.

“We have the agricultural roots here and it’s so

close to us,” Sullivan said. “Just about everyone

in the South is a generation away from somebody

who either had a farm or had a huge garden at

their house. I don’t think people want to lose

that.”

Agriculture is in Memphis’ DNA. Make no

mistake about that. Though it went dormant

for a season, it was always there. It bloomed and

yielded fruit. Let’s watch this band of urban

pioneers turn over their fields and beds; watch

them produce fresh food for all of us, season

after season.

Local residents can

now get fresh fruits and

vegetables from locally

grown farms at the South

Memphis Farmers Market.

33

Our historic home. The building at 1 North Front Street in downtown Memphis has quite the legal and governmental pedigree. It has served as a U.S. Customs House, Federal Court House and central facility for the United States Post Office over the course of its lengthy history. Built in the early 1880s, with over 140,000 square feet, the Italianate Revival-style building was considered one of the most beautiful buildings in the South upon its construction.

In January 2010, Memphis Law relocated from the University of Memphis main campus to the building overlooking the Mississippi River in the heart of downtown. The extensive renovation retained much of the historic structure and architectural details: original Pony Express emblems, etched glass, brass window cages, wood beams with intricate hand-stenciled designs, door knobs engraved with the scales of justice, crown molding and Tennessee marble floors and columns. This attention to historical detail is coupled with the addition of innovative technology features installed throughout the building, as well as first-class library facilities and devoted legal clinic space.

UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS CECIL C. HUMPHREYS SCHOOL OF LAW

Built in 1963 and located on Civic Plaza, along with City Hall and other government buildings, the Clifford Davis and Odell Horton Federal Building is not as highly regarded architecturally as other buildings in the city, but it is a prime example of architecture of the 1960s and has long been a key piece of the legal infrastructure in the Mid-South. The building itself is named after former U.S. Congressman Clifford Davis and former U.S. District Judge Odell Horton, who practiced law in Memphis and eventually became a state Criminal Court judge and a Federal Bankruptcy Court judge, becoming chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee from 1987 to 1993.

As the Memphis community has grown over the years, it has steadily progressed eastward along Poplar Avenue. The legal community is no exception to this trend, with more law offices opening in East Memphis and beyond. Butler Snow is an example of one of the larger, modern offices here in Memphis, with an expansive footprint in the prominent East Memphis office complex, the Crescent Center. Butler Snow encompasses an impressive amount of both the fourth and fifth floors at the Crescent Center, with offices for over 60 attorneys, making it the second-largest law firm in the city. Sleek lines, impressive views, expansive boardrooms, and modern amenities abound at the firms Memphis home, an example not only of the city’s eastward growth, but also the legal community’s expansion beyond downtown.

CLIFFORD DAVIS AND ODELL HORTON FEDERAL BUILDING

BUTLER SNOW LLPCont’d from pg 24

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1 North Front Street Memphis, TN 38103-2189

PRESORTED Non-Profit Org

U.S. POSTAGE PAIDMEMPHIS, TN

PERMIT NO. 207