Last weekend, together with a number of colleagues (including Professor Emeritus James D. Ghiardi and Professors Irene Calboli and Thomas J. Hammer), I attended the Justinian Society’s annual Columbus Day dinner. The society consists primarily of Italian-American lawyers and their families and meets at the Third Ward’s Italian Community Center (which, former Milwaukee County Circuit Court Chief Judge Patrick T. Sheedy, L’48, once remarked, might well have been the “Irish Community Center,” if it had not been for the Lady Elgin disaster in 1860). The evening included the Justinian Society’s honoring our colleague, Professor Daniel D. Blinka, with its annual “Jurist of the Year Award.” The award was presented by Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge John J. DiMotto, with citations also presented by Chief Justice Shirley S. Abrahamson and current Milwaukee County Circuit Court Chief Judge Jeffrey A. Kremers. One who does not know Prof. Blinka can get a sense, from this outline of Judge DiMotto’s remarks, of the remarkable way that Prof. Blinka devotes himself to teaching, scholarship, and service (see also this article from a previous alumni magazine). It was a privilege to be at the event, as well as to be Prof. Blinka’s colleague.

Last week’s highly successful Legacies of Lincoln conference at the Law School, co-sponsored by the History Department, generated much praise and many compliments from both participants and the audience.  For those unable to attend as well as those hungering for more insights about Lincoln, please visit the Law School’s website or consider attending the program described below.

On Saturday, October 10, 2009, the Wisconsin Lincoln Bicentennial Commission will commemorate the Bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln’s birth as well as the 150^th anniversary of Lincoln’s speech at the Wisconsin State Fair in Milwaukee on September 30, 1859. The keynote speaker for the event will be Orville Vernon Burton, emeritus professor of history at the University of Illinois and Burroughs Distinguished Professor of Southern History and Culture at Coastal Carolina University.  His most recent book is The Age of Lincoln.  

The Program will be held in Memorial Hall at the Milwaukee War Memorial Center from 11 am to 12:30 pm.  Members of Wisconsin’s 1st Brigade Band will perform Civil War period music beginning at 10:30 am. 

On their last day of the exchange program, October 2, the Chilean students visited an array of legal organizations working in the Milwaukee community. 

First, they visited the law firm of Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan LLP to meet with firm attorneys Hugo Rojas, Jeff Krill, Jean-Marie Feedham, and MULS graduate Natalia Minkel to learn about private law practice in Milwaukee and the nation as a whole.   The students were quite curious about the organizational structure of the associates and partners, and how they attract work.  Rojas explained that they rely mostly on word of mouth, pointing out that ethical guidelines limit aggressive forms of seeking new cases.  During the meeting, founding partner Jerry Gonzalez stopped by to greet the delegation and in particular mentioned the firm’s priority in assuring diversity among its attorneys, which only reflects the changing demographics of the country itself.

In the afternoon the students visited non-governmental agencies working with the Latino community in South Milwaukee. First, they visited Catholic Charities to learn about immigration work and the issues it raises, most notably the hardship faced by families that are often separated due to their immigrant status.   Attorney Barb Graham spoke of her tireless work to represent her clients, which frequently requires travelling to Chicago.  Afterwards, the students visited Centro Legal where Executive Director Heather Ramirez invited them to cookies and Alterra coffee.   The meeting featured staff lawyers Sam Levin and Jason Mishelow speaking about family law; and Mike Blater, criminal law. Board member Mike Balter also offered information about the organization, which offers legal services on a sliding scale.  The final stop was at Voces de la Frontera where the members of this association spoke of their grassroots movement to change policy in favor of immigrant and Latino populations, such as laws to allow for valid drivers licenses and fair wages.  They explained that their legal work (free clinics on Saturday) complement their activism to help stimulate broader policy change.

In the evening the Chilean delegation accepted the gracious invitation to attend the annual dinner of the MULS Hispanic Law Students Association which took place at Club Tres Hermanos  in South Milwaukee.  The festive event featured Mexican cuisine and conversation in both Spanish and English.  The Chileans sang songs along with the Mariachi band and demonstrated Chilean dances.  The occasion was a perfect ending to a full week of academic exploration.