Temple UniversityJames E. BeasleySchool of LawLaw School andAlumni NewsNovember 2014Temple Law isTempleESQ.AdvocacyMessage from the DeanThe beginning of the academic year at Temple LawSchool is always an exciting time, one filled with newbeginnings that have been made possible by thesupport and generosity of our graduates and friends.That excitement is especially present this year, and Iam deeply grateful to the individuals, law firms,granting agencies, and corporations that have joinedtogether to support our law school. I am proud toreport that 100% of our faculty and many membersof our staff are included among our community ofsupporters, and that their gifts, together with thedonations from 80% of the Class of 2014, haveresulted in new funds for student scholarships.I am also proud of, and personally moved by, theoutpouring of contributions to the Eddie OhlbaumFund. Those of you who knew Professor Ohlbaumknow that being in his presence was to be inspiredand changed for the better. Temple Law School hasbeen changed for the better by his service and isproud to carry on his legacy. Your gifts to the fundestablished in his honor are a testament to what hasnot changed and that which will define our pathforward: our enduring commitment to excellence inadvocacy and vision for the future.As you will read in this issue, that vision is thriving.The J.D. and LL.M. programs continue to give ourstudents an unparalleled foundation in the advocacyskills that form the essence of lawyering in anypractice setting. Our National Trial Team continues toexcel in regional and national competitions. Our J.D.students enjoy more experiential learningopportunities than ever before, not just through thetrial advocacy programs, but through the ShellerCenter for Social Justice, the PA Innocence Project atTemple Law, and our rich array of clinicalexperiences. And at the helm, as interim Director ofAdvocacy Programs, stands our own Professor DavidSonenshein, a nationally recognized expert in trialadvocacy. I am proud that Professor Sonenshein hasagreed to serve in this role and I am excited aboutwhat the future holds for Advocacy at Temple Law.Thank you for your support of Temple Law School.JoAnne A. Epps, DeanDean Epps with Morris Dees of the Southern Poverty Law Center (left) and FredLevin of Levin, Papantonio at the opening reception of the National Trial LawyersHall of Fame (see page 7) .“For 30 years, David Sonenshein has been a pillar of the trialadvocacy program at Temple Law,” says Dean Epps. “In addition tohis nationally known work as an expert on evidence, David has beeninstrumental in building the trial advocacy curriculum and making it what it is today. The program could not be in better hands.” “I’m honored by Dean Epps’ faith in me,” says Sonenshein, “and by the opportunity to serve the law school in this role. But theprogram isn’t just in my hands. Temple Law has an outstandingadvocacy faculty, including my longtime colleagues AnthonyBocchino and Lou Natali, Dean Epps herself, and our newestaddition from the U.S. Attorney’s office, Lauren Ouziel. I couldn’t ask for a better team as we move forward with the advocacyprogram at Temple Law.” In addition to the full-time faculty, Sonenshein will have thesupport of Temple Law’s extensive roster of adjunct faculty, which includes federal judges and seasoned lawyers from privatefirms, district attorneys’ offices, and defender associations across the region. He will also work closely with accomplishedprogram directors Sara Jacobson (J.D. program),Barbara Ashcroft (LL.M. in Trial Advocacy program),and Jen Bretschneider (Experiential Programs) andwith Herb Kolsby, who helped to establish the LL.M. in Trial Advocacy and continues to teach in theadvocacy program.Sonenshein replaces the longtime director, EdwardD. Ohlbaum, who passed away in March 2014.Ohlbaum, who headed the program from 1989 until his untimely death, is also credited with launching thenational championship trial team and founding thenation’s first LL.M. in Trial Advocacy program. DuringOhlbaum’s tenure, Temple Law became a nationalpresence in trial advocacy, and for twenty years hasbeen consistently ranked in the top three schools in the country for trial advocacy by U.S. News andWorld Report. The programs Sonenshein will lead include both theJ.D. and LL.M. advocacy curricula, as well as the vastarray of external clinical courses and experientialopportunities offered at the law school. Sonenshein anticipatesbuilding on current areas of excellence while expanding other areas to reflect the changing landscape of legal practice. “Not every law student will become a trial lawyer,” saysSonenshein. “But every law student will become an advocate, andwill need the skills that our advocacy courses develop. Every lawyer,whether involved in transactional, litigation, or policy work, employsadvocacy skills every day.” Temple Law’s current curriculum in advocacy includes not only Introduction to Trial Advocacy, the Integrated Trial AdvocacyProgram, and the Advanced Advocacy courses, but also courses inarbitration, mediation, negotiation, and client counseling as well asthe innovative first-year courses Litigation Basics and Introduction to Transactional Skills. “While we have been a leader in trial advocacy for many years,we plan to enhance our offerings in the skills required in other formsof dispute resolution both inside and outside the litigation process,”Sonenshein explains. “Even in the context of litigation, we recognizethat the vast majority of disputes are settled outside of trial, and that these processes require specialized advocacy skills. We’recommitted to teaching our students those skills with the samedemand for excellence on which Professor Ohlbaum built theoriginal trial advocacy curriculum.” A graduate of Cornell University and the New York University Law School, Sonenshein has taught at Boston University, DePaulUniversity, and George Washington University Law School. Heteaches classes in evidence, criminal procedure, and civilprocedure. An engaging and compelling presence in the classroom,Sonenshein has received the Outstanding Professor Award at bothDePaul and Temple Law Schools a total of six times. In 2004,Professor Sonenshein was honored as one of Temple University’sfinest teachers, receiving the University’s Lindback Award forOutstanding Teaching. In 2007, he was awarded the university’sprestigious Great Teacher Award.The co-author of more than ten books on evidence, includingPrinciples of Evidencewith the late Irving Younger, Sonenshein has performed training in trial advocacy at America’s premier lawfirms and government agencies, including the U.S. Department ofJustice. For almost 25 years, he has conducted training in evidencefor recently confirmed federal judges at the Federal Judicial Center.One recent training, which Sonenshein conducted for the FederalJudicial Center as an online evidence webinar, reached an audienceof approximately 1200 viewers at 400 sites around the U.S.—among the largest online audiences ever, according to the FJC. David Sonensheinto head AdvocacyProgramsDean JoAnne A. Epps has announced thatDavid Sonenshein, Jack E. Feinberg Professor of Litigation, will serve as the interim Director of Advocacy Programs.2 • TEMPLE ESQ. NOVEMBER 2014A brief informal survey of some Temple-trained advocatesfrom recent decades reveals a host of common themes inresponse to the question: What inspires and nurturessuccessful advocates? While our respondents cite a variety ofreasons for becoming trial lawyers, many had participated inmock trial in high school or in law-related programs in college.Laura Carlin Mattiacci ’02,a partner at Console LawOffices in Philadelphia, was inspired to become a trial lawyerduring her junior year of college when she read NelsonMandela’s autobiography, A Long Walk to Freedom.“Itchanged my life,” remembers Mattiacci. “At the time I was abiochemistry major, but after reading that book and seeinghow he was able to go from being born in a hut to using a lawdegree to bring freedom to an entire people, I took the LSATand applied to law school.”Morgan Lewis partner Nathan Andrisani ’95also discoveredthe law through a book, and then came to understand the lawthrough his close relationships with professors. “Thecharacter Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbirdfirst put theseed in my head,” says. “During law school, I began to learnand better understand from Professors Eddie Ohlbaum andLou Natali, and trial team coach Bill Bowe, what it meant tobecome a trial lawyer.”They came from across the country to study at Temple Law. Many found Philadelphia an excitingcity in which to build a career and sink roots, while others have migrated away, lured by career,family or adventure. They counsel, litigate, defend, negotiate, arbitrate. What do they have incommon? They advocate. Trial teamparticipants from2013-2014. Careers in AdvocacyWhere is she now?CAROLINE POWER ’14Today:Associate at Dechert,Philadelphia, PAWhat she learned . . .“It’s not enough to just knowthe right legal theory if youcan’t present that in a clearand compelling way, whetheryou’re presenting to a jury, ajudge, or a supervisingpartner.”TEMPLE ESQ. NOVEMBER 2014 • 3JUDSON AARON ’91Today:Partner at Conrad, O’Brien in Philadelphia, Chair of the whitecollar defense and governmentinvestigations groupGetting there:Spent ten years as a federal prosecutorABBY (SULLIVAN) YATES ’93Today:Chief legal advisor and compliance officer forEthosEnergy in Houston, TX Getting there:Worked in litigation departments in severallarge firms before going in-house with EthosEnergyWHERE ARE THEY NOW?Where is he now?NATHAN J. ANDRISANI ’95Today:Partner, Morgan Lewis in Philadelphia,Litigation practice focuses on the criminaldefense of individuals and companies Getting there:Spent four years as an Assistant District Attorney in Philadelphia What he learned . . .“Preparation and attention to detail. EddieOhlbaum used to quote former Brooklyn DodgersGM Branch Rickey in saying ‘luck is the residueof design.’ We learned that the more and betterwe prepared for trial, the more ‘luck’ we wouldhave in the verdicts.”JUDY LEONE ’84Today:Managing partner of Dechert in Philadelphia; leads teams in the defense of individual and class actions involving product liability,consumer fraud, warranty, negligence, and misrepresentation claimsGetting there:Started at Dechert following graduation NANCY CONRAD ’89Today:Partner at White and Williamsin Lehigh Valley, PA , Chair of theLabor and Employment Group andEducation Law GroupGetting there:Worked as a schoolteacher and counselor before law school Why did they choose Temple?They say they chose Temple Law because of its reputation for excellencein preparing trial lawyers. “I went to law school to become a trial lawyer,”says personal injury attorney John A. Mattiacci Jr. ’02.“I went to Templebecause it had the best reputation for trial advocacy.”“I decided to become a trial lawyer prior to law school, which is whyTemple Law School (which at the time was ranked the #1 trial advocacyprogram in the country) was my top choice of law schools,” says NewYork State Deputy Secretary and Counsel for Civil Rights Alphonso B.David ’00.What did they find once they got there?All the practicing attorneys we surveyed shared the certainty that TempleLaw School—and participation in the Trial Advocacy Program and otherexperiential learning experiences—were critical in shaping their lawschool experience and providing the skills they needed to hit the groundrunning. Alphonso David ’00 is emphatic: “My experience at Temple didnot disappoint and in fact provided me with all of the requisite analyticaland presentation skills to enter into a courtroom on day one.”“The most important skill I learned at Temple Law was how to thinkand act like a trial lawyer, through my experience both on the Trial Teamand in the Trial Advocacy Program,” says Duane Morris partnerLawrence Pockers ’99.Former trial team participant Judson Aaron ’91put it this way: “Temple’s Trial Advocacy Program gave me the practicalskills—how to open and close to a jury, put in documentary evidence,conduct an effective cross-examination, develop a compelling theory ofthe case, identify the evidentiary issues, strategize a case to win at trial—that I would need as a practicing lawyer.” Arizona Assistant U.S. AttorneyChristine Ducat Keller ’03agrees. “Those types of skills give you theconfidence to take difficult cases right after graduation because youknow you’ve been tested by good lawyers already.”VICTORIA (SCHARUDA)MOSCHELLA ’92Today:Tyco International,Princeton, NJ, Senior CorporateCounsel, Strategic Sourcing andReal EstateGetting there:In-house positionsat Bristol-Myers Squibb Companyand Brach’s Confections, Inc.4 • TEMPLE ESQ. NOVEMBER 2014Close working relationships with faculty were cited as a critical factor.Many claim the longtime head of Trial Advocacy Programs EdwardOhlbaum (deceased in 2014) and other longtime professors such asAnthony Bocchino, David Sonenshein, JoAnne Epps and JenBretschneider as personal mentors.“My time on trial team with Professors Eddie Ohlbaum and JenBretschneider solidified my commitment to trial advocacy,” says CarolynPower ’14,now a first year associate at Dechert. “My classes with KenJacobsen sparked my interest in complex civil litigation.”John Mattiaci agrees. “Being a part of Temple’s National Trial Teamwas invaluable. I cannot express how fortunate I was to be taught thecraft of trial advocacy by people like Eddie Ohlbaum and Marissa BoyersBluestine, and to have been a part of such a successful, elite program.”“The program was a tutorial in everything that a trial lawyer needed to know from A-Z, which then allowed students to practice the skills that they had learned live in front of well-known local trial lawyers and judges,” says senior attorney for Tyco Victoria Moschella ’92, “It was not only critical to my developmental as a lawyer, but it also has provided me with some of my fondest memories as a law student.”Recent alumna Brittne Walden ’14mentioned the importance of supportive classmates. “It’s hard to be unsuccessful when you work hard, are passionate, and surround yourself with supportivepeople,” says Walden, who is now working as a Philadelphia AssistantDistrict Attorney.One trial team member had a uniquely positive experience. “We hadthe same four-person trial team for two years. We were great friends thenand still remain so to this day,” says Laura Carlin Mattiacci ’02. “I’ve alsobeen married to one of them (John Mattiacci ’02) for 11 yearsand we have three kids.”What they learned . . . in brief“The most successful people . . .are the oneswho aren’t afraid to roll up their sleeves andactually do the work.”—Victoria Moschella ’92“Be rigid in your preparation but flexible inyour approach.”—Christine Ducat Keller ’03“The most important thing I learned in law school was to be yourself as anadvocate. . . . Judges and juries don’t want tobe fooled by talented performers, they wantto be convinced by persuasive advocates. . . .Also, out-prepare everyone else.”—Catherine Cramer ’13LAWRENCE H. POCKERS ’99Today:Partner at Duane Morris in Philadelphia, focuses on non-compete, trade secrets and unfaircompetition casesGetting there:Joined Duane Morrisimmediately after law schoolALPHONSO B. DAVID ’00Today:Deputy Secretary andCounsel for Civil Rights,Office of the New York StateGovernor; Adjunct Professorof Law at Cardozo Law SchoolGetting there:Clerked forHon. Clifford Scott Green inthe United States DistrictCourt for the Eastern Districtof Pennsylvania; served asDeputy Commissioner andSpecial Counselor at the NewYork State Division of Human Rights, as a litigationassociate at Blank Rome, and as a staff attorney atLambda Legal Defense and Educational Fund KEVIN TOTH ’98Today:Executive Vice President,Chief Operations and StrategicOfficer of Nelson Brown & Co. in Blue Bell, PA and New York;leads the global business operationsfor this international insurance law firm and develops the firm’sstrategic direction for growth andclient serviceGetting there:Served in keyexecutive positions for HarleysvilleInsurance, including senioroperating executive for thecompany’s independent agencyoperations in the Mid-Atlantic and NortheastMARISSA BOYERS BLUESTINE ’95Today:Legal Director,Pennsylvania Innocence Project Getting there:Worked for morethan 10 years as an AssistantDefender with the DefenderAssociation of Philadelphia, andfor several years as a litigationassociate at Duane MorrisTEMPLE ESQ. NOVEMBER 2014 • 5BRITTNE WALDEN ’14Today:Assistant DistrictAttorney, Philadelphia JOHN A. MATTIACCI JR. ’02Today:Law Offices ofJohn T. Dooley inPennsauken, NJ,representing plaintiffs in construction accidents, productliability cases, motorvehicle accidents, and premises liability claimsGetting there:Has practiced personal injurytrial law in Pennsylvania and New JerseyLAURA CARLINMATTIACCI ’02Today:Partner atConsole Law Offices inPhiladelphia; lead trialcounsel for the firm’smost significant casesWhere is he now?NIPUN PATEL ’08Today: Senior associate in Reed Smith'sCommercial Litigation Group in Philadelphia;has assumed both first and second chairresponsibility in extensive trial and appellate workGetting there:Joined Reed Smith immediatelyafter law school What he learned . . .“The key to effective advocacy is leading withyour strongest arguments and keeping yourtheory of the case simple and understandable.The professors at Temple, especially EddieOhlbaum and Maureen McCartney (now anAssistant United States Attorney) ingrained theseideas in our mind from day one of the trialadvocacy program.” CHRISTINE DUCAT KELLER ’03Today:Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona, focusing on violent crimes andhuman traffickingGetting there:Worked at CozenO'Connor for five years MICHAEL TRUNK J.D. ’99, LL.M. ’08Today:Partner at Kline & Specterin Philadelphia, practices personal injury law representingcatastrophically injured clientsGetting there:Worked at Dechert CATHERINE CRAMER ’13Today:Litigation Associate atCasarino Christman Shalk Ransom & Doss in Wilmington, DE Getting there:Earned a Certificate inTrial Advocacy and Litigation in 2013Advocacy as a lifelong skillLawyering, as all of our respondents agree, is not just about courtroomskills, it’s about being an advocate in all aspects of representation. “Thething that makes Temple’s Trial Advocacy program so excellent is that itteaches skills that are useful for successful advocacy throughout the lifeof the case,” says Wilmington litigator Catherine Cramer ’13.“You know why you’re asking a question in a deposition, and youknow why you’re asking it a certain way. You know why you’re suggestingthis case for a mediation rather than trial,” says Cramer. “You’re lookingat the potential evidence and thinking about what you want out, or in,and you know what motion you can file. From the Introduction to TrialAdvocacy classes through the Advanced level courses, combined withclasses like Advanced Litigation Strategies and Modern Depositions, andof course learning from amazing trial attorneys on the national trial team,at Temple you are able to develop skills that will make you an excellentadvocate at every step in the case.”Moschella knows from two decades of in-house experience howpreparing for law school trial competitions translates to advocacy in thebroadest sense of the word. “The most valuable skill that I learned in lawschool was to do what was necessary to achieve excellence. While on thetrial team, we practiced days, nights and weekends, at times grinding itout as a team until we felt comfortable that we would be able to performat our best at an upcoming competition.“To this day, I do whatever I need to do, no matter how long it takes,to achieve the best outcomes for my company. This skill comes inparticularly handy when I am negotiating complex, global agreementswith challenging suppliers. People say that the ‘devil is in the details’ andthose people would be right.”6 • TEMPLE ESQ. NOVEMBER 2014Civil rights legend Morrris Deesspeaks at Dean’s ForumSEPTEMBER 9, 2014Legendary trial lawyerMorris Dees, civil rights champion and co-founder of the Southern Poverty LawCenter, addressed a Dean’s Forum thatcoincided with the opening of the TrialLawyers Hall of Fame. Dees’ remarksfollowed introductory comments by trialattorney Fredric Levin, of Levin, Papantonio,Thomas, Mitchell, Rafferty, and Proctor.Speaking to a packed auditorium, Deesnoted first that the right to a jury trial in thiscountry preceded even the drafting of theConstitution, and was considered anessential element in the defense againsttyranny and the establishment of the ruleof law. He went on to identify what heconsiders contemporary tyrants: a criminaljustice system that imprisons andsometimes executes innocent persons; acorporate culture that elevates profit overpeople; and predators willing to exploit thedisenfranchised. Dees challenged thestudents in the audience to stand up forthe most vulnerable, using an oftenmisquoted passage from Shakespeare’sHenry VI: “If tyranny is to prevail,you mustfirst kill all the lawyers.”Atticus Finch inspires eminent trial lawyerChilton Varner delivers 2014 Kolsby Lecture in Trial AdvocacyOCTOBER 14, 2014Chilton Davis Varner, senior partner at theAtlanta, GA office of King & Spalding, said that the lessons learnedin To Kill a Mockingbirdserve as a powerful reminder of why shechose a life in the law. In the 2014 Kolsby Lecture in Trial Advocacy, titled Reflectionson Atticus Finch and Scout: Lessons Learned in the Law,Varnerreflected on passages in Harper Lee’s novel. She said she wasinspired by the courage of the central character, Atticus Finch, and real-life lawyers and judges who helped to dismantle racialsegregation in the South. Like Finch, Varner said, these men andwomen “solved problems, even the hard ones,” understanding that advocacy itself has power above and beyond the outcome of a case.Varner joined the law firm of King & Spalding in 1976 and became the first femalepartner in the firm’s litigation department and the first female to serve on the firm’smanagement committee. Varner practices in the firm’s Atlanta, GA office, where she is the senior partner on the product liability team, whichThe American Lawyerhas twicerecognized as one of the top three such practices in the country. She has been named to the short list of the best femalelitigators by the National LawJournal, Chambers, Law 360andBenchmark. Recently, Best Lawyersnamed her “Litigator of the Year” in her region. She is also theimmediate past President of theAmerican College of Trial Lawyers.Varner cautioned against one-dimensionality in attorneys,saying the “best lawyers and judgesare those who have a life enrichednot only by the law, but byenjoyments.” She confessed that asthe first woman litigator at her firm,she was exceptionally driven tosucceed at her practice and in thatpursuit sometimes lost sight ofoutside interests. Atticus Finch, she noted, “wasnot just a lawyer. He was a singlefather, a champion checkers player,and the best shot in the county.” Chilton Davis Varner with Dean JoAnne Epps (Gregory Peck asAtticus Finch in background) TEMPLE ESQ. NOVEMBER 2014 • 7Delaware Supreme Court Chief Justice delivers inaugural Kohn LectureNational Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame When the Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame went insearch of a physical location to showcase itsinductees, the Beasley School of Law atTemple University was a natural choice.Temple has long been known as a trainingground for skilled trial lawyers. Among thosehonored by induction into the Hall of Fameare Temple alumnus and benefactor JamesE. Beasley ’53 and the Hon. Sandra MazerMoss ’75, the Executive Director of TempleLaw’s Sheller Center for Social Justice. The Hall of Fame display, which includesoil painted portraits and interactivebiographies of the inductees, is located inthe lobby of the law school’s main building,Klein Hall. The exhibits act as an inspiringbackdrop for receptions, as well as forstudents who continue to relax and study inthe lobby between classes. The Hall of Fame was established by TheNational Trial Lawyers Association and TrialLawyers, Inc. “to honor trial lawyers whohave left an indelible mark on the Americanlegal tradition through a lifetime of service tothe American public, the Constitution andthe American trial bar.” Visitors can seeportraits of and hear taped interviews withthe 39 Hall of Fame lawyers, includingMorris Dees of the Southern Poverty LawCenter, Justice Thurgood Marshall, andClarence Darrow of the American CivilLiberties Union.Howard Nations of the Nations Law Firm inHouston, TX at an interactive display in theNational Trial Lawyers Hall of Fame. Nationsis one of 39 lawyers featured in the exhibit. Chief Justice Leo E. Strine Jr.The Harold E. Kohn LectureshipThe lecture, presented for the first timethis year, is named in honor of Harold E.Kohn, the Philadelphia lawyer who wasthe architect of the modern-day classaction. Kohn “brought many cases toprotect ordinary people and their rightsagainst government and bigcorporations,” remembers formerTemple Law dean Professor Robert J.Reinstein. “He was a remarkable man.”Kohn gained national attention forhis innovative civil antitrust practice inthe 1960s, successfully suing firmsranging from electronics manufacturersto the timber industry. Kohn also helpedto draft some of the federal court rulesfor class action cases and for theconsolidation of cases. Known by manyas the “grandfather of class actions,”he also took on cases involving the FirstAmendment, privacy, zoning andcommercial transactions. Kohn wasalso a member of Temple’s board oftrustees and a generous donor to thelaw school.OCTOBER 10, 2014 In the inaugural Harold E.Kohn Lecture, titled “Regular (Judicial) Order AsEquity: The Enduring Value Of The DistinctJudicial Role,” Delaware Supreme Court ChiefJustice Leo E. Strine Jr., made the case for “ajudicial mindset that favors regular order over theepisodic judicial grant of exemption from requiredprocedural expectation and the need to securecontractual rights at the bargaining table.” Chief Justice Strine is widely recognized as anauthority on matters of corporate law as well aslarger questions of governance in complexenvironments. Before becoming the Chief Justice,he served on the Delaware Court of Chancery asChancellor and Vice Chancellor. He holds adjunctteaching positions at the University ofPennsylvania, Vanderbilt, and UCLA Schools ofLaw, where he teaches various classes incorporate law. He is also a senior fellow of theHarvard Program on Corporate Governance, aswell as the Austin Wakeman Scott Lecturer in Lawat Harvard Law School. Chief Justice Strine hasserved as the special judicial consultant to theABA’s Committee on Corporate Laws since 2006.Jonathan Lipson, the Harold E. KohnProfessor of Law, offered introductory remarks.The text of Chief Justice Strine’s speech will bepublished in an upcoming issue of theTempleLaw Review.Next >