Admitted Students Weekend, Patiño Banquet, and Neumiller Competition

Admitted students weekend got off to a great start on Friday evening with a well-attended reception at the Boutin Jones law firm in Sacramento.  Steve Boutin '72 and Kim Lucia '09 gave great pitches for the school.  Incoming King Hall Alumni Board President Gage Dungy '03 was there, too. I met several admitted students and shared with them information about our great academic environment, accessible faculty, and the sense of community at King Hall.

Also on Friday evening was the 2013 Patiño Banquet, the annual celebration of the La Raza Law Students Association (LRLSA). I sat with Professors Miguel Mendez, Cruz Reynoso, and Amagda Perez and her husband Alvaro. Judge Emily Vasquez also sat at our table and generously gave her time to have a picture taken with every graduating LRLSA member.  Highlights of the evening included Professor Reynoso's excellent keynote speech, and the presentation of the Lorenzo Patiño Community Service Award to Monica Crooms '13. Monica has a long history of public service, including two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in Albania, and active participation in King Hall organizations including HALO, ACLU, LSA, and KHLF.  Overall, the Patiño Banquet was a great event!

On Saturday morning, our admitted students weekend continued with a full day of activities at King Hall and the UC Davis campus. Students attended information sessions on the first-year curriculum, career services, our academic success program, financial aid, student life, and public interest law. I had great conversations with admitted students and was pleased to see that so many faculty members attended at various times throughout the day. I saw Cruz Reynoso, Rex Perschbacher, Alan Brownstein, and Lisa Ikemoto, among others. After lunch, students took a walking tour of King Hall and the larger campus. Then they joined dozens of our current students at a closing reception in the student lounge. The current students also invited admitted students to join them for drinks at De Vere's Irish Pub later that evening. It was great to spend time with so many members (and potential members) of the Class of 2016!

I wrapped-up Saturday at the Moot Court Board's 44th Annual Irving L. Neumiller Memorial Moot Court Competition in our Kalmanovitz Appellate Courtroom. I had the pleasure of introducing the five distinguished jurists who heard the arguments: Justice Walter Carpeneti, Alaska Supreme Court (a friend of Professor Ed Imwinkelried); Justice Elena Duarte, California Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District; Justice Louis Mauro, California Court of Appeal, Third Appellate District; Judge Kimberly Mueller, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California; and Judge William Shubb, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. Attorneys from the law firm of Neumiller & Beardslee were in attendance; I thanked them for their support of our competition. The four oral advocates did a truly outstanding job, and the judges were impressed. In the end, the team of Joseph Uzarski and David Carl emerged victorious over Rebecca Dreyfuss and Sterling Elmore. It was an excellent way to wrap-up a busy 24-hour stretch of King Hall events!