Category Archives: U.Miami

Good Stuff Happens

Two good things happened yesterday:

• The bill to provide a large public subsidy for the refurbishment of the the Miami Dolphin’s stadium died in Tallahassee. The combination of outrage over the fiasco of the Miami Marlins deal, and the fact that the team’s lead owner is a multi-billionaire seemed to scuttle it.

• Chartwell’s workers (UMiami dining hall workers) voted to unionize.

Posted in Florida, U.Miami | 6 Comments

Yet Another Law School Ranking

Given the source — AbovetheLaw.com — I would have been prepared to dismiss it out of hand. But Brian Leiter, who is a very discerning consumer of rankings, says that that the “ATL Top 50” is “not nuts and contains some useful information”. Coming from him, that is fairly high praise.

U.Miami Law comes in at 49th on the list — considerably higher than our usual US News rank, and right near the middle of the range (41-55) I would put us at if I were Ratings Czar. And Yale is #1, so they got that right too.

Posted in Law School, U.Miami | 1 Comment

No UM Food Workers’ Strike After All?

I was working up a long post on the looming food workers strike against Chartwells, which operates the food court and dining areas at UMiami, but it looks as if there may not be one. Responding, undoubtedly, to pressure from the U, Chartwells has agreed to the workers’ demand for a card check election regarding a union.

UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI STATEMENT ON UNIONIZING EFFORTS The University is aware of a possible work stoppage as part of a unionizing effort. Today, we have learned that Chartwells offered the union a card check, and the University is hopeful this will resolve the issues. The University assures the campus community that residential college dining halls and our food court operations will continue as scheduled through the remainder of the semester. The University values its faculty and staff, as well as employees of its contractors, including Chartwells.

This is very good news for the workers and for the rest of us. I would like to think that the faculty letter I and about 300 others signed, and the subsequent action by the UM Faculty Senate played at least a small role in this development.

Posted in U.Miami | 1 Comment

UMiami Law Students Doing Good

The Tampa Bay Times has a story about an “alternative spring break program” in which a group of UMiami Law students work in a mobile clinic to help undocumented long-time US residents get deferments from deportation. The story leads with my former Torts student and later research assistant:

Paulina Valanty arrived at the clinic for undocumented immigrants at St. Clement Catholic Church with more than a passing interest.

Valanty, 23, a law student at the University of Miami, used to live in the shadows, worrying about being deported.

“I was undocumented until I was 20. I was very afraid,” she said. “Any time I applied for anything and saw that little box that says ‘Social Security number,’ I was afraid. It was nerve-racking just looking at it.”

Valanty, who today is a citizen, regularly attends clinics like the one held at St. Clement on Tuesday to help young undocumented immigrants seek a change in their status.

Under a modification in federal laws last summer, undocumented immigrants who arrived here as children, brought by their parents, can apply for a deferment to avoid deportation.

Posted in Law: Everything Else, U.Miami | 15 Comments

Down Again (Resolved)

Law school faculty email is down … and so is the UM Law web site. They did a big server move Saturday night, and all was supposed to be well by Sunday.

But it isn’t.

Since most law school workstations are set up to rely heavily on the network, I hear they are not working either.

You can contact me at gmail.com using my firstname.lastname before the @. Or you can wait like the rest of us.

Update (3pm): Fixed at last.

Posted in U.Miami | Comments Off on Down Again (Resolved)

Innocence Project Handbook for Law Students

By Sarah MourerCongratulations to colleague Sarah A. Mourer who has just published her first book, Working in Innocence Programs: Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Innocence Work But Were Afraid To Ask.

Here’s part of the synopsis:

This book is written for anyone interested in the innocence cause. The problem of wrongful convictions is moving more and more into the public’s eye every day. This book is specifically written to guide a student or participant through an innocence program step by step. It covers everything from how not to get too worried about the clients to how to conduct a client interview. It really is everything you need to know to participate in an innocence program. It is also a valuable resource for those directing innocence programs or hoping to start one. It provides templates for forms and suggestions for best practices for procedures necessary to run an exemplary innocence program. It is a must for any student enrolled in a law school innocence program. It will help the students hit the ground running and allow programs to get help to the clients more efficiently. No other book on the market is available that encompasses all of the major issues for effective innocence work in one convenient place.

Posted in Civil Liberties, U.Miami | Comments Off on Innocence Project Handbook for Law Students