Marquette Law School – Page 184 – Marquette University Law School Faculty Blog

Restorative Justice Conference to Focus on Clergy Sex Abuse

Post author:Janine P. Geske
Post published:March 12, 2011
Post category:Marquette Law School Speakers at Marquette

It is not just an American problem – it is an international issue for the Catholic Church. This year’s Marquette Law School Restorative Justice Conference on April 4 & 5, 2011, will focus on Harm, Hope, and Healing: International Dialogue on the Clergy Sex Abuse Scandal.

Those attending will be able to hear the stories of victims as well as those who are working with victims from Boston, Ireland, and Australia. Also a group of clergy will speak from the heart about what they have learned.

Marquette Law School’s Restorative Justice Initiative (RJI) is a unique model demonstrative of the university’s commitment as a Catholic, Jesuit institution to promote excellence, faith, leadership, and service. RJI educates law students as leaders who can bring together victims, offenders, and other community members to focus on resolving harm and conflict in our communities. Whereas the traditional justice system is retributive in nature, restorative justice is a process that creates a safe environment for dialogue, helping communities share their experiences. The process has been shown to decrease recidivism, create cost efficiencies in the court system, provide improved outcomes for clients and victims, and change the face of judicial practice in the resolution of crime.

Looking Ahead on the Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection Path

Post author:Alan J. Borsuk
Post published:March 7, 2011
Post category:Business Regulation Marquette Law School Speakers at Marquette

The passage last year of a new federal law covering lending and credit transactions for consumers will provide stronger protection, but questions about how it will be enforced and what it will actually mean are just beginning to be answered.

That was the overall theme of the 2011 Public Service Conference held at Eckstein Hall. The conference, New Directions in Consumer and Community Financial Protection, brought together prominent federal and state authorities on the subject and provided an up-to-the-minute look at the implementation of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.

“Dodd-Frank created a floor, not a ceiling, for consumer protection” noted Kathleen Keest, an expert on consumer protection law from the Center for Responsible Lending. The new law reverses some of the federal preemption rules that were in effect prior to its passage, providing state attorney generals with increased enforcement authority with respect to many consumer protection laws.

Borsuk Honored for “Building a Better Teacher” Series

Post author:Michael M. O'Hear
Post published:March 1, 2011
Post category:Education & Law Marquette Law School Media & Journalism

Alan J. Borsuk, senior fellow in law and public policy at the Law School, was named a winner Monday in a major national education journalism competition. Borsuk was honored for his role in the project, “Building a Better Teacher,” which ran on the front page of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel for eight consecutive Sundays in November and December.

The Education Writers Association, a national organization of education journalists, named the project the best series of 2010 by a large publication. The series resulted from collaboration between the Law School; the Hechinger Report, an education journalism organization that is part of Columbia University; and the Journal Sentinel, including reporters Amy Hetzner, Erin Richards, and Becky Vevea.

Borsuk helped design the plan for the series and wrote three of the eight pieces. Borsuk, a longtime reporter and editor for the Milwaukee Journal and Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, joined the Law School staff in 2009. He writes and edits pieces for Marquette Lawyer magazine, writes for the Law School’s web pages, and is involved in a variety of public policy activities. He also writes a Sunday column on education for the Journal Sentinel.

The education writers’ contest is judged by experts who are independent of the publications that enter. This year’s judging was directed by Tamara M. Cooke Henry, of the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland.

The series can be found at http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/111494694.html.