School Notes: Yale Law School
May/June 2007

Law School mourns first African American woman graduate

Jane Matilda Bolin, the first African American woman to graduate from Yale Law School and the first in the country to become a judge, died January 8 at age 98. (See Milestones, March/April 2007.) Bolin earned her LLB from Yale Law School in 1931. In 1939, she was sworn in as judge of the Family Court of New York, where she served for 40 years. "Judge Jane Bolin entered new environs fearlessly, exploded old myths, and helped transform American law with her pioneering spirit," said Dean Harold Hongju Koh. "Yale Law School, and our students whose paths she made possible, will always honor and remember her remarkable grace and courage." Bolin was presented with the Yale Law School Association's Medal of Merit in 1994. Her portrait hangs in the Law School.

New clinic plays first major role in a U.S. Supreme Court case

In February, Yale Law School's Supreme Court Advocacy Clinic tackled its first U.S. Supreme Court case as counsel for one of the named parties. The clinic represented the Freedom From Religion Foundation in the high-profile Establishment Clause case, Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation.

Begun in fall 2006, the clinic allows students to work on real-life legal cases pending before the court. Clinic students filed a merits brief in Hein v. FFRF on February 2. "At first, it seemed like every other brief we have written in law school," said third-year student Terri-Lei O'Malley. "But the closer it got to the very last minute the brief could be sent to the printer, the more it sank in -- this is the big league!"

At issue in the case is whether taxpayers -- FFRF's members -- may sue to challenge a White House-sponsored program that is alleged to unconstitutionally aid religious groups with general federal funds, not funds specifically earmarked for the program by Congress. Oral arguments were heard on February 28, and the court was expected to rule by June.

"Legally Female" conference addresses concerns of women in the law

A national conference at YLS, hosted by the campus group Yale Law Women, brought together attorneys, judges, law school professors, and law students to discuss issues that affect women in the law. The goals of the March 31 symposium were to spark cooperation among women working in various practice areas and institutions, and encourage discussion among lawyers in private practice, publicinterest lawyers, law professors, and students. Panels focused on such topics as: women lawyers of color, gender and global engagement, women in legal academia, women attorneys in private industry, and how technology is changing the role of women in the law. Janet Bond Arterton, U.S. district judge for the District of Connecticut, gave the keynote address.

A highlight of the conference was the official launch of the new weblog Ms. JD (www.ms-jd.org), which aims "to provide a forum for dialogue and networking among women lawyers and aspiring lawyers." Conference co-chair Julia Simon-Kerr ’08JD believes "the new blog will be a global meeting place for women in the profession."