Paper by Prof. Payne and Prof. Fortson presented by Prof. Fortson at Law and Society meeting

Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., Ph.D., and Prof. Troy C. Payne, Ph.D., Justice Center faculty, recently co-authored a paper which Prof. Fortson presented at the 2016 Law and Society Association Annual Meeting. 

The paper is titled, "The Effect of Legal Counsel on Outcomes of Custody Determinations." The paper discusses results from the study of child custody cases in family law court in Palmer, Alaska involving represented and unrepresented parties.

The Law and Society Association is an interdisciplinary scholarly organization committed to social scientific, interpretive, and historical analyses of  law across multiple social contexts.

Justice major/UAA Honors College student presents at Law & Society Conference

Ruddy Abam at her presentation.

Ruddy Abam, Justice BA '15, presented at the Law & Society Conference in Seattle in May.  Ruddy received a UAA Honors College Discovery Grant to assist with her travel for the presentation. Dr. Cory Lepage, Justice faculty, was her Honors College advisor.

Ruddy discussed "Preventing Neighborhood Factors of Crime and Delinquency: The Efficacy of Early Childhood Community Intervention Programs." The panel theme was Instability, Change and Contingency in Crime and Deviance.


Dr. Lepage, as well Prof. Kristin Knudsen, J.D., and Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., Ph.D., also presented at the conference.

Justice faculty present at Law & Society Conference

Dr. Cory R. Lepage, Prof. Kristin Knudsen, J.D., and Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., Ph.D., presented at the 2015 Law & Society Annual Conference in Seattle in May.

Presentations:

Prof. Fortson  (center) and other presenters on his panel:
(l to r) Veronica Flynn, Australian National University, and
Sonia Lawrence, Osgoode Hall Law School of York University.

"The Effectiveness of Tribal Courts in Alaska in Reducing Recidivism: Researching the Potential and Efficacy of Alternate Forms of Adjudication and Sentencing"
Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., Ph.D., and Dr. Cory R. Lepage
(Panel theme: Indigenous Responses to the Promise and Pathos of "Protecting the Vulnerable")




"The Role of Justices in Rural Courts: An Explanation of How the Self-Perception of Professionalism and Legitimacy Influences Their Future"
Dr. Cory R. Lepage
(Panel theme:  The Future of Judging)

Dr. Lepage discussed reform efforts in rural courts.

 
"Talking Judges: Framing a Political Debate Over a Judicial Nominating Commission"
Prof. Kristin Knudsen, J.D. and Dr. Cory R. Lepage 
(Panel Theme: The Composition of Judicial Institutions)

L to r: Dr. Lepage and Prof. Knudsen outside their session room.

 














Topic Chairs:
Going Beyond Judicial Decisions
Prof. Kristin Knudsen

Prof. Knudsen moderates a session on judicial decisions.

The Law and Society Association, founded in 1964, is a group of scholars from many fields and countries, interested in the place of law in social, political, economic and cultural life. Members bring training in law, sociology, political science, psychology, anthropology, economics, and history as well as in other related areas to the study of sociolegal phenomena.

Justice Center participates in Alaska Court System and Alaska Bar program for Anchorage secondary school social studies teachers

Alaska Supreme Court Justice Dana Fabe (seated center) with secondary school teachers and
volunteer attorneys in the Alaska Supreme Court courtroom at the close of the day's program.

Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D.,  and Prof. Kristen Knudsen, J.D.,  Justice Center Legal Studies faculty, participated in the "Justice for All Social Studies Secondary Field Trip" on August 15. About 40 secondary school social studies teachers from Anchorage toured the Supreme Court courtroom, met and heard from Supreme Court Chief Justice Dana Fabe, and listened to a panel of judges including Presiding Judge William Morse, Judge Patrick McKay, and Judge Leslie Dickson.  The group also observed Wellness Court where Judge David Wallace presided, and met with volunteer attorneys as part of the Attorney Connect program.

Prof. Knudsen (r) talks with teachers and another volunteer
attorney, Sue Urig, about the Attorney Connect program.

The Attorney Connect program is a new project of the Alaska Bar's Law Related Education (LRE) Committee. The goal is to create a liaison between the schools and attorneys who are interested in legal education for their students. The volunteer attorneys will support teachers who have a legal question, need a presenter for a class, want to check their facts or law, or who otherwise need legal assistance in educating students on law-related subjects. The teachers were introduced to this new program and volunteer attorneys assigned to schools.  Prof. Kristen Knudsen will be the liaison to alternative schools in the Anchorage School District.

Prof. Fortson (standing) listens for questions from secondary school
teachers about the Alaska Youth Law Guide .

As part of the Attorney Connect agenda, Prof. Fortson made a presentation to the teachers about the Alaska Youth Law Guide -  a project of the LRE Committee of the Bar Association. The online guide helps teens and young adults understand the law and how it may affect them. It includes general information about many of the legal issues youth are likely to encounter, and some resources for getting more information or assistance.

The event was sponsored by the Alaska Bar Law Related Education Committee, the Alaska Court System, and the Anchorage School District.

Dr. Lepage and Prof. Knudsen speak at Law and Society Conference

L to r: Prof. Knudsen, J.D. and Dr. Lepage at the conference.

Dr. Cory Lepage and Prof. Kristin Knudsen, J.D., Justice Center faculty, made presentations at the 2014 Law & Society Conference in Minneapolis on May 28 - June 1:

• "The Strength of the Ox: Self-Perceptions of Professionalism and Legitimacy among Lay Judges in the Rural U.S." Prof. Kristin Knudsen, M.J.S., J.D., and Dr. Cory Lepage, co-authors.  Presented by Prof. Kristin Knudsen.

• "Conceptualizations of Justice by Adjudicators: An Examination of Perceptions and Satisfaction by Justices in Rural Courts."   Presented by Dr. Cory Lepage, author.
  

• Panel: Exploring Methods in the Study of Access to Justice. Dr. Cory Lepage, Chair

The Law and Society Association, founded in 1964, is a group of scholars from many fields and countries, interested in the place of law in social, political, economic and cultural life. Members bring training in law, sociology, political science, psychology, anthropology, economics, and history as well as in other related areas to the study of sociolegal phenomena.  

Prof. Fortson volunteers at statewide mock trial competition for high school students

L to r: Volunteer evaluators Sharon Marshall, D.A.'s Office
and Prof. Fortson listen to opening argument.

Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., Justice faculty, is the State Coordinator for the Alaska High School Mock Trial Competition. At this year's 25th annual competition, he was one of 70 judges, lawyers, and non-lawyer volunteers for the event held in Anchorage at the Boney Courthouse on February 27 - March 1.  The competition is sponsored by the Young Lawyers Section of the Anchorage Bar Association, the Law Related Education Committee of the Alaska Bar Association, and the Alaska Court System.

Judge Jennifer Stuart Henderson, District Court, swears in witnesses.

The Alaska High School Mock Trial Competition consists of teams of 6 to 9 high school students competing in simulated trials based on a fictional problem drafted by the competition organizers. Nearly 50 students from 7 schools in Anchorage, Sitka, North Pole, and Wasilla participated. The West Anchorage High School team prevailed over Sitka High School in the finals and will go on to compete in the National High School Mock Trial Competition in Wisconsin in May.

Magistrate Judge Suzanne Cole waits for the cross-examination of a witness.

Each year, the preliminary rounds are judged by attorneys from the Anchorage legal community, and the semifinals and finals are judged by sitting and retired judges from the Alaska and Federal Court Systems.

In addition to volunteers at the event, high school teachers and lawyers volunteered to coach teams in preparation for the competition. Volunteer lawyer coaches included Florina Altshiler, District Attorney's Office, Anchorage and Jude Pate, Public Defender Agency, Sitka.

Organizers for the competition included Lars Johnson, Alaska Public Defender Agency; Kimberly Tsaousis, Office of Public Advocacy; Brittany Goodnight, Alaska Public Defender Agency; and Bonnie Calhoun, Alaska District Court Law Clerk.

L to r: Organizers - Brittany Goodnight, Public Defender Agency;
Bonnie Calhoun, District Court Law Clerk; Kimberly Tsaousis,
Office of Public Advocacy; Lars Johnson, Public Defender Agency

Justice faculty invited to Law and Society retreat

Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D. and Dr. Cory R. Lepage, Justice faculty, were among the law and society scholars affiliated with West Coast U.S. and Canadian institutions invited to attend the Fifth West Coast Law and Society Retreat at the University of Washington in Seattle in September. 

The purpose of the retreat was to discuss: (1) substantive questions emerging at the leading edges of the law and society field, (2) the state of the field as an academic discipline, and (3) the role of law and society scholarship in identifying and shaping dialogue around new legal challenges. 

Justice faculty present at Law and Society Conference in Boston

Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D., and Dr. Cory Lepage presented at the 2013 Law and Society Conference in Boston in May 30 - June 2.  Dr. Lepage discussed "The Future of Justice Courts" and the continuing need for justice of the peace and magistrate courts. His presentation focused on research on courts in the state of New York.

Prof. Brandeis discussed "Marijuana, Privacy, and the Alaska Constitution: The Continuing Validity of Ravin v. State" for the session on Controversies in American Constitutional Law.

Prof. Brandeis teaches courses on American government, constitutional law and civil liberties, and is a frequent speaker on constitutional law and other legal issues. Prof. Brandeis also maintains a private law practice through which, subsequent to the date of this conference, he provided legal representation in administrative agency proceedings for the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska.


Dr. Lepage also chaired two session on international courts, and he presented a book review on Workplace Resolution by Elizabeth Hoffman, University of Pennsylvania.

The Law and Society Association, founded in 1964, is a group of scholars from many fields and countries, interested in the place of law in social, political, economic and cultural life. Members bring training in law, sociology, political science, psychology, anthropology, economics, and history as well as in other related areas to the study of sociolegal phenomena. 

Prof. Periman demonstrates features of online Alaska Youth Law Guide

The Alaska Court System is distributing this
poster statewide to publicize the guide.
It was designed by Barbara Hood, Communications
Counsel for the Alaska Court System.

The Alaska Youth Law Guide: A Handbook for Teens and Young Adults, a web project of the Alaska Bar Association Law Related Education (LRE) Committee, is now online, and efforts are ramping up to get the word out about this great resource.
  
Prof. Deb Periman, J.D., chair of the drafting subcommittee for the guide, and Krista Scully, Alaska Bar Association Pro Bono Director, made a recent presentation to the Anchorage Youth Development Coalition on the features of the guide.  Prof. Periman also recently spoke to the Anchorage Youth Court about the guide.

The guide has chapters on

• Law Enforcement
• Sex, Drugs & Rock n' Roll
•  Entering the Real World
• Cars and Guns
• Family Life
• Schools
• Courts

The goal of the guide is to help young Alaskans understand the law and how it may affect them. It provides general information about many of the legal issues teens and young adults are likely to encounter, and resources for getting more information or assistance.

Art work was selected from entries in the 2011 "Justice For All" art contest sponsored by the Alaska Court System and the Alaska Bar Law Related Education Committee.  

Prof. demonstrates features of the guide to the Anchorage Youth Development Coalition.

 Below: Bookmarks with the URL for the guide are part of the advertising campaign. The bookmark was developed by Krista Scully, Pro Bono Director for the Alaska Bar Association.

Prof. Fortson volunteers as trial judge for 2013 statewide high school mock trial competition

Prof. Fortson, as presiding judge, listens to arguments.

Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., Justice faculty, volunteered to act as a presiding judge at the recent statewide 2013 Alaska High School Mock Trial Competition in Anchorage at the Boney Courthouse.  The competition is sponsored by the Young Lawyers Section of the Anchorage Bar Association and the Law Related Education Committee of the Alaska Bar Association.

L to r: Volunteer lawyer coordinators Kimberly Tsaousis, Office of
Public Advocacy; and Lars Johnson, Alaska Public Defender Agency.

Seven schools from Southeast Alaska up through the Interior fielded 8 teams for the event. The West High School team of Anchorage prevailed and will go on to compete in the National High School Mock Trial Competition in Indianapolis in May.

Over 40 lawyers, judges, and individuals in court-related occupations volunteered to assist with the event. Coordinators for the competition were volunteer lawyers Lars Johnson, Alaska Public Defender Agency, and Kimberly Tsaousis, Office of Public Advocacy.

Prof. Periman chairs drafting committee for Alaska Youth Law Guide - now online!

The Alaska Youth Law Guide: A Handbook for Teens and Young Adults, a web project  of the Alaska Bar Association Law Related Education (LRE) Committee, is now online.  Prof. Deb Periman, J.D., was chair of the drafting subcommittee for the guide; Prof. Ryan Fortson, J.D., was also a member of the law guide subcommittee. Former adjunct faculty member Virginia Rusch served as principal editor. Barbara Armstrong, editor of the Alaska Justice Forum; Toni Moras, former Alaska Justice Forum editor; and Legal Studies faculty members Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D. and Prof. Kristin Knudsen, J.D. were also among the more than 50 volunteers, lawyer and non-lawyer, who participated in this project.

 The website is a public education resource presented by the Alaska Bar Association Law Related Education Committee to help young Alaskans understand the law and how it may affect them. It provides general information about many of the legal issues teens and young adults are likely to encounter, and resources for getting more information or assistance. A number of other states also have youth law guides to assist young people in understanding and navigating the legal system.

Nearly 150 articles appear in chapters on Law Enforcement; Sex, Drugs & Rock n' Roll; Entering the Real World; Cars and Guns; Family Life; and Schools. Art work was selected from entries in the 2011 "Justice For All" art contest sponsored by the Alaska Court System and the Alaska Bar Law Related Education Committee.

Prof. Fortson among attorneys recognized at event for Justice Sandra Day O'Connor

Alaska Bar Board of Governors, volunteer attorneys, and committee members join
Justice Sandra Day O'Connor on stage after the program.
Front row seated l to r: Alaska Supreme Court Justice Walter Carpeneti, Alaska Bar Board of Governors
President Hanna Sebold, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor (Ret.),
Alaska Supreme Court Chief Justice Dana Fabe, and
member of the 1955-1956 Alaska Constitutional Convention Vic Fisher.
See below for full photo caption.

Prof. Ryan Forston, J.D., Justice faculty, was among the members of the Alaska Bar Association Law Related Education (LRE) Committee who were recognized for their ongoing work during a special event with U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor (Ret.) on September 5 at the Dena 'ina Center. The Law Related Education Committee is responsible for presenting programs and producing publications to aid the public in understanding the law and the legal system.

Justice O'Connor was in Anchorage at the invitation of the Alaska Court System to talk about, "Revitalizing Civic Education in America." In 2009, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor founded iCivics - a project to reverse Americans’ declining civic knowledge and participation, and to teach the next generation to understand and respect our system of governance.  While in Anchorage she was also scheduled to meet with students and teachers.

The audience listens as Alaska Supreme Court Chief Justice Dana Fabe
introduces Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

iCivics has a national leadership team of state supreme court justices, secretaries of state, and educational leaders and a network of committed volunteers in all 50 states. Alaska Supreme Court Justice Walter Carpeneti is the chair of the Alaska iCivics Committee.  Barbara Hood, Communications Counsel for the Alaska Court System, serves Alaska’s iCivics Coordinator. The  iCivics free website has 16 educational video games for students and adults and teaching materials for educators.

Full photo caption:
Front row seated l to r: Alaska Supreme Court Justice Walter Carpeneti, Alaska Bar Board of Governors President Hanna Sebold, U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor (Ret.), Alaska Supreme Court Chief Justice Dana Fabe, member of the 1955 -1956 Alaska Constitutional Convention Vic Fisher.
Back row seated l to r: LRE Committee Member Leslie Hiebert, volunteer attorney Kathy Keck, Anchorage School District Social Studies Curriculum Coordinator Pam Orme, LRE Committee Member Stephanie Galbraith-Moore.
Standing l to r: Alaska Bar Executive Director Deborah O’Regan, Board of Governors member Mike Moberly, former Board of Governors member and Alaska Supreme Court Justice Peter Maassen, Board of Governors member Alaska Supreme Court Justice Alex Bryner (Ret.), LRE Committee member Brooks Chandler, LRE Committee member Bryan Schroder, LRE Committee member Prof. Ryan Fortson, Superior Court Judge Peter Michalski (Ret.), LRE Committe Chair Barbara Jones, volunteer attorney Laura Fox, Board of Governors New Lawyer Liaison Leslie Need, Board of Governors member Blake Chupka, Alaska Court System Communications Counsel and Alaska iCivics Coordinator Barbara Hood. (Not pictured: LRE Committee members Prof. Deb Periman and Prof. Jason Brandeis of the UAA Justice Center.)

Prof. Brandeis and Dr. Lepage to present at 2012 International Conference on Law and Society

Prof. Jason Brandeis, J.D., and Dr. Cory R. Lepage will present at the 2012  International Conference on Law and Society in June. The conference includes the joint annual meetings of the Law and Society Association and the Research Committee on Sociology of Law (International Sociological Association), and is co-sponsored by the Canadian Law and Society Association (CLSA), the Japanese Association of Sociology of Law (JASL), and the Socio-Legal Studies Association (SLSA), UK.

Prof. Brandeis is part of a panel on "Perspectives on Privacy, Reputation and Constitutional Protection." He will present his paper, "The Continuing Vitality of Ravin v. State: Alaskans Still Have a Constitutional Right to Possess Marijuana in the Privacy of Their Homes" which discusses Alaska's unique personal-use marijuana laws that permit limited private marijuana use and possession.The purpose of the article is to clarify the current status of Alaska law governing personal use and possession of marijuana and to identify the future precedential value of the Ravin decision. The article chronicles the history and development of the Ravin Doctrine by summarizing significant judicial opinions and key pieces of legislation, discusses Alaska law governing personal use and possession of marijuana in light of the internal conflict between state court decisions and state statutes, and addresses the tension between state and federal marijuana laws.

Prof. Brandeis teaches courses on American government, constitutional law and civil liberties, and is a frequent speaker on constitutional law and other legal issues. Prof. Brandeis also maintains a private law practice through which, subsequent to the date of this conference, he provided legal representation in administrative agency proceedings for the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska. 

Dr. Lepage will participate as a panel member for "Role, Work, Reputation, and Perception of Judges."  His paper, "Legislative Changes to Justices of the Peace and Their Courts: A Comparative Analysis," examines the significant role that justices of the peace and their courts play in court administration and adjudication both in the U.S. and Canada.  The focus is on these quasi-judicial officers, their qualifications,  the selection process, identified concerns and problems, and recent attempts at legislative reform. This article reviews the justices' perception of these legislative changes and how these changes have impacted their courts, and looks at efforts to craft a model of reform for justice of the peace courts.

Dr. Lepage is also a discussant on the panel, "Trial Courts in Action," which includes papers on trial courts or trials in Brazil, Russia, Canada, and the U.S., and covers time and costs in Brazilian federal courts, comparison of witness co-operation agreements in the U.S. and the Netherlands, incarceration pursuant to support debt in Canada, and Russian arbitration courts.

The Law and Society Association, founded in 1964, is a group of scholars from many fields and countries, interested in the place of law in social, political, economic and cultural life. Members bring training in law, sociology, political science, psychology, anthropology, economics, and history as well as in other related areas to the study of sociolegal phenomena.

Prof. Brandeis attends Law and Society 2011 annual meeting

Prof. Jason Bradeis, J.D., Justice faculty, attended the 2011 Law and Society Association annual meeting in San Francisco in June.  This multi-disciplinary event brings together scholars from around the world to discuss  the place of law in social, political, economic, and cultural life.  Participants bring training from a variety of  backgrounds including law, sociology, political science, psychology, anthropology, economics, and history, as well as other areas related to the study of socio-legal phenomena. The association publishes the Law & Society Review, sponsors annual conferences and educational workshops, and fosters the development of academic programs in law and society around the world.