Sooner Lawyer Fall/Winter 2008 - OU College of Law - University of ...

The Magazine of The University
of Oklahoma College of Law
Sooner
L awyer
Fall/Winter • 2008/2009
OU Law Centennial
1909-2009
Inside Front Cover
OU Law Legacies
Generations of Excellence
Gary Lumpkin, ’74
Presiding Judge
Jane Teixeira, ’05
NCAA Attorney
Robin Cauthron, ’77
U.S. Judge
Ou Lawyers as authors: books worth reading

University of Oklahoma College of Law:
A Centennial History
1909-2009
by Bob Burke and Steven W. Taylor
Celebrate the Centennial!
The narrative account of the amazing first century of OU Law is embellished with 250 photographs of the
people who have passed through hallowed Monnet Hall and the OU Law Center. OU Law graduates have
greatly impacted the state and nation—the law school has produced hundreds
of governors, judges, legislators, and other public servants. In addition, OU
Law has produced the finest private practice, corporate, and government
lawyers to assist citizens of the state and nation in enjoying the rights of living
in a nation under the Rule of Law.
Available Fall 2009
Call Karen Housley (405) 325-0501
or email: khousley@ou.edu
E. B. Ross, David Kline, Tom Hamill and Bob
Ewing combine brain-power to edit the 1949
Oklahoma Law Review.

Andrew M. Coats
Scholarship Fund
Help the University of Oklahoma
College of Law open doors to many
more students by donating to the
Andrew M. Coats Scholarship Fund
established in 2002. We want to
build this fund which directly impacts
students—and impacts them immediately.
All donations to the Andrew
M. Coats Fund go directly to student
scholarships. The endowment
that these gifts create and build will
empower students for many years to
come. We appreciate your gifts.
Generations
To Our Alumni
I am proud of all that we
at the OU College of Law
have accomplished, but am
also very much aware of the
needs of our students.
Because of problems with
state support and the necessary
increases in tuition and fees,
it has become necessary for
students to bear more of the
cost of their education. While legal education at
the University of Oklahoma is still one of the best
bargains in America, many students must rely on
scholarships to complete their studies.
The Andrew M. Coats Scholarship Fund was
created by our faculty and staff to provide support
for worthy and needy students.
I write this in the hope that you might make an
extra tax-deductible donation this year to support
this important effort and to help me celebrate our
Centennial.
Gratefully yours,
Andrew M. Coats
Dean and Professor
College of Law
Non-Profit Organization
U.S. Postage
PAID
University of Oklahoma
Patrick A. Williams
2009 Annual Programs
Criminal Defense
Institute
Patrick A. Williams
November 7, 2008
Criminal Defense Institute
Sheraton Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
June 25-26, 2009
Reed Center
5800 Will Rogers, Midwest City
The University of Oklahoma
College of Continuing Education
1700 Asp Avenue, Room 209
Norman, OK 73072-6400
127-956300
Patrick A. Williams
Criminal Defense
Institute
June 26-27, 2008
Doubletree Hotel Tulsa
at Warren Place
The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution.
Printed and distributed at no cost to Oklahoma taxpayers.
Sponsored by the University of Oklahoma College of Law
in cooperation with the College of Continuing Education
Co-sponsored by the Oklahoma Indigent Defense System,
Oklahoma County Public Defender, Tulsa County Public Defender
and the Oklahoma Criminal Defense Lawyers Association
June 26-27, 2008
Doubletree Hotel Tulsa
at Warren Place

Monnet Hall
University of Oklahoma
College of Law Journals
Oklahoma Law Review
Subscription cost: Four issues per year $30
American Indian Law Review
Subscription cost: Two issues per year $30
Oklahoma Journal of Law and Technology
Online only at no charge: www.okjolt.org
Subscriptions must be prepaid.
Please send payment and subscription orders or questions to:
University of Oklahoma College of Law
2 | Sooner Lawyer Financial | fall/winter Services • 2008/2009 Office (405) 325-4798 • 300 Timberdell Road • Norman, OK 73019-5081

Fall/Winter
2008-2009
In This Issue
28 Richard D. Nix, ’85: Taking the Reigns
30 Winfrey Houston, ’51: Oklahoma Icon
32 Natalie Shirley, ’82: Into the Future with Oklahoma
70 Charles E. Geister, III, ’80: Charlie and the Community
71 The Comfort New York University Scholars
89 Ten Oklahoma Women
35 Ryan Kiesel, ’06: Working for the People
36 Lou Kerr: Philanthropy
38 Laura McConnell-Corbyn, ’87: Having it All
40 Michael A. Cawley, ’72: Noble Pursuits
43 Christopher M. Staine, 2L: BALSA Voices
44 Dana M. Deere, ’02: Building Strong Connections
46 Noah Zuhdi, 3L: A Champ in More Ways than One
49 Molly B. Neuman, ’05: The Practice of Law
50 Ruth Addison, ’07: Hard Work Pays Off
52 Glen Coffee, ’92: Coffee to Lead Oklahoma State Senate
54 Legacies of the University of Oklahoma College of Law
58 G. T. Blankenship, ’54: Oklahoma Regent
60 Gary L. Lumpkin, ’74: Court of Last Resort
62 Kelli Masters, ’99: Twin Twirler
Sooner La w y e r Authors
33 Craig Key, ’92: A Deadly Tug of War
34 Denzil Garrison, ’53: Honor Restored
39 Laurence J. Yadon, ’74: 100 Oklahoma Outlaws,
Gangsters, and Lawmen, 1839-1939
42 Greg Metzer, ’85: Rock Band Name Origins
47 Larry Derryberry, ’63: The Oklahoma Scranimal
In Every Issue
04 Witness Stand
05 Dean’s View
06 Law Briefs
48 Meet the Staff
72 Thank You Donors
75 Faculty
64 Guest Feature: Lessons in Ethics
66 Jane Teixeira, ’05: She Was Special
68 Robin Cauthron, ’77: The Best Job in the World
77 Alumni Notes
85 Books
The Magazine of The University of Oklahoma College of Law
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 3

the WITNESS
Stand
Fall/Winter • 2008-2009
University of Oklahoma College of Law
Andrew Coats, Dean
Mark Gillett, Associate Dean for Academics
Michael Scaperlanda, Associate Dean for Research
Liesa Richter, Associate Dean for Admissions
Stanley Evans, Assistant Dean for Students
David Poarch, Assistant Dean for External Relations
Sooner Lawyer Staff
Steve Rice, Editor
Jonella Frank, Contributing Editor
Susan Brassfield Cogan, Graphic Design, Contributing Editor
Ginger Wetz, Business Manager
Sooner Lawyer is published two times per year
by the University of Oklahoma College of Law.
Editorial office: 300 Timberdell Road, Norman, OK 73019
Attn: Steve Rice srice@ou.edu
(405) 325-2227 Fax (405) 325-0389
The University of Oklahoma College of Law is not liable for any loss that may
be incurred by a purchaser responding to an advertisement in this magazine. The
University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. This magazine is
published at no cost to the taxpayers of Oklahoma.
Copyright ©2009
by Steve Rice, Editor
100 years. 100 years 100 years! Punctuation does matter
– but no matter how you look at 100 years, in human
terms, it’s a long time.
My point here is of course that the University of
Oklahoma College of Law is indeed 100 years old this
year – 2009. 100 years ago, in 1909, the first class of students
headed off to class the same as they do today in some respects – still
carrying books, still worried about whether they would be called
on in class or not. Would they be prepared Sure, the gadgets have
changed – there’s the ever-present computer or cell phone today.
But pencils and pens and paper Still around. Blue books – still
hanging on. Fortunately, some things have really changed, like
retention rates. Remember the old stories about how you better
enjoy the company of the students sitting on either side of you
at orientation That’s because they both would be gone before
you ever saw commencement. Today 95-plus percent of your
orientation neighbors will be graduating with you. Women today
account for almost 50 percent of every class. Not 100 years ago.
Our Native American enrollment is the best in the country.
Our BLSA chapter is booming and the students are excelling in
every area. Our minority students are achieving bar passage rates
that exceed national numbers by meaningful percentages. No one
dreamed of this in 1909. 100 years can make a real and exciting
difference – an important difference.
Please do note on the inside front cover the efforts of two
gentlemen – Bob Burke and Justice Steven Taylor – they have
compiled a magnificent look at the last 100 years of OU Law. And
thanks to Dean Coats, it will be an affordable book. Many staff and
faculty around here have put in countless hours assisting in this
publishing effort – thank you one and all, and especially thank you
Bob and Steven, for helping create a lasting look at our last 100
years.
Spend a little time today, or tomorrow, just thinking about what
an accomplishment it is today to reach a milestone like “100 Years.”
It’s pretty extraordinary – wouldn’t it be nice to personally enjoy a
100-year birthday party. . . .
I close this column every time about the same way – please take
time to enjoy all the fun articles throughout this latest Sooner Lawyer
and thank you to our small but energetic staff – Jonella Frank, John
Lanig and Ellen King and especially Susan Brassfield Cogan, who
assists me daily in this huge effort, and of course to all the people at
OU Printing Services who make Sooner Lawyer a reality.
On to the next 100 years!
The College of Law does not discriminate against any individual on the basis of race, color, age,
religion, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability.
Created by the Oklahoma Territorial Legislature in 1890, the University of Oklahoma is a doctoral degreegranting
research university serving the educational, cultural, economic and health-care needs of the state,
region and nation. The Norman campus serves as home to all of the university’s academic programs except
health-related fields. Both the Norman and Health Sciences Center colleges offer programs at the Schusterman
Center, the site of OU-Tulsa. The OU Health Sciences Center, which is located in Oklahoma City, is
one of only four comprehensive academic health centers in the nation with seven professional colleges. OU
enrolls almost 30,000 students, has more than 2,300 full-time faculty members, and has 20 colleges offering
154 majors at the baccalaureate level, 160 majors at the master’s level, 85 majors at the doctoral level, 39
majors at the first professional level, and 18 graduate certificates. The university’s annual operating budget
is $1.46 billion. The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution. (3/09)
4 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

the DEAN’S
VIEW
by Andrew M. Coats
In 1909 – now 100 years ago – the College of Law opened its doors for the
first time. In his wonderful story of “The First Three Years,” Dr. Maurice
Merrill describes all of the tribulations which faced those early students
having to share the basement of the main University building with other
colleges, including the Music School. Monnet Hall was not completed
until 1912, the year of the first graduating class.
Over the next 100 years, the College became a great Oklahoma institution,
providing the state with leaders, men and women who have worked diligently to
make our lives better.
As we go into our Centennial year, the College of Law is among the best
public law schools in America. Our students are passing the Bar Exams of
Oklahoma, Texas, California, New York and other states in record numbers,
which shows that we are not only attracting outstanding students, but that those
students are getting a first-class legal education.
Of course, during our Centennial year, we are raising funds for scholarships
and for improvements to our building. We hope to reach $5,000,000 for our
Centennial Fund. We have already raised a little over $2,000,000 and are hopeful
of reaching our goal even in these most difficult times.
The tax deductible gifts to our endowed scholarship funds can be made over
several years and are desperately needed by our students. A legal education here
is still a real bargain in terms of tuition costs when compared to other law schools
across the country. It is, however, still a major financial challenge for so many of
our young people. I hope you will help.
We have had good response from those whom we asked and to become
members of the Centennial Council. The Centennial Council recognizes persons
or foundations making gifts of more than $50,000. I truly hope there are others
out there who can make gifts of that magnitude for our endowed scholarship
funds.
We have a number of important events celebrating our Centennial in the
months ahead. Stay turned for details.
You should mark your calendar for April 23, 2009, for our Centennial Golf
Tournament, our first Centennial event. It will be held at the Jimmie Austin
Golf Club here in Norman. Our tourney comes at a good time. The golf course
is being prepared for the National Publinks Championship, which will be held
there in August and should be in great shape.
All in all, your law school is alive and well. Come visit us when you are in
the area.
We would love to see you. If you haven’t been here in recent years, we would
be most happy to arrange a tour.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 5

LAW
Office of Professional & Career Development
BRIEFS
3L Week
Defense Research
Institute Law Student
Program
September 22 – September 26, 2008
This week was all about 3Ls. OPCD hosted
a 3L Boot Camp, counselling with 3Ls
exclusively.
3L Boot Camp
September 22 – September 24, 2008
3L Boot Camp is designed to do one thing—
throw your career development into high
gear! This event was open to third year
students who had not secured employment.
Students in attendance received a Boot
Camp workbook, heard from guest speakers
and received a mentor. The first day was
presented by Dr. Chris Howard, Rhodes
Scholar and Harvard MBA. Kelli Masters
led the program on day two..
Lunch & Learn: JD/MBA
October 1, 2008
Jon Starr, head of the Litigation Department
for the Tulsa office of McGivern, Gilliard
& Curthoys, discussed organizing a Defense
Research Institute (DRI) Law Student Program.
DRI is a national organization of more
than 22,000 defense trial lawyers.
November 11, 2008
Kyle Ferguson, ’99, Shareholder with Pearce Ferguson law firm in Plano, Texas, discussed
the JD/MBA joint degree program and its benefits for career placement and development.
Dr. Chris
Howard
Kelli Masters, ’99, of
Fellers, Snider, Blankenship,
Bailey & Tippens (center)
Kyle Ferguson, fourth from left
Lunch & Learn:
All About Chesapeake
September 17, 2008
The new OU Law Chesapeake Scholars
discussed working at Chesapeake Energy
Corporation, one of the 100 Best Companies
to Work For in 2008 as recognized
by Fortune Magazine.
6 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Office of Professional & Career Development
LAW
BRIEFS
Lunch & Learn:
RiskMetrics
October 15, 2008
RiskMetrics Group’s corporate officials
spoke on current market events and cutting
edge research.
RiskMetrics
is a provider
of risk management
and
c o r p o r a t e
governance
products and services to financial market
participants.
RMG consists of three primary business
units — risk management, ISS governance
services and financial research and
analysis, each with their own focus.​ The
risk management business provides insight
into the market and credit risk sectors of
a firm’s businesses through multi-asset,
position-based risk and wealth management
solutions.​
Lunch & Learn:
Successful
Interviewing Tips
November 10, 2008
Erika Blomquist, ’97, and Bill Morrison,
’98, partners with Haynes and Boone,
spoke on the “do’s and don’ts” of interviewing.
Both currently work with the
Dallas office of Haynes and Boone and had
great tips and advice to help students succeed
during the interview process.
Lunch & Learn:
Immigration Law
September 9, 2008
Nick Nevarez, Jr.,
an associate with the
Amarillo, Texas office
of Underwood, Wilson,
Berry, Stein & Johnson,
P.C., spoke about practicing
immigration law.
Sheila Barnes, ’02, David Van Meter, ’90,
and Angela Ailles Bahm, ’86
Lunch & Learn:
Work/Life Balance
October 29, 2008
Members of the Oklahoma Bar Association
Work/Life Balance Committee spoke
on accomplishing professional development
and growth while also achieving
fulfillment in your personal life.
Q & A with Navy JAG
October 1, 2008
Navy JAG answered the questions of students
interested in serving our country as
attorneys. Captain Waits covered topics
concerning military life, pay scales, travel
and military justice.
Jennifer Berry, Will Hoch, Adam Childers, ’00, David Sullivan, ’00, and
John Griffin
Lunch & Learn: Practice Areas Presentation
November 5, 2008
Attorneys with Crowe & Dunlevy provided an overview of various practice areas.
This session was designed to assist students in making more informed career choices.
Captain Kirk Waits
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 7

LAW BRIEFS
Office of Professional & Career Development
Clerkship Interviews
Q & A
August 27, 2008
Professor Steve Gensler and Professor
Liesa Richter offered interviewing tips and
advice for post-graduate judicial clerkship
applicants.
Networking Reception
September 18, 2008
The Oklahoma City law firm of Hartzog,
Conger, Cason & Neville hosted a networking
session for first-year law students.
Lindsey Mulinix and Charlie Geister, ’80
First OPCD Advisory
Board Meeting
Congratulations to OPCD’s (Office of Professional
and Career Development) Katie
Griffin and Marcus Bivines on surviving
dozens of on-campus interviews for students.
Everything went well and more than
150 students were interviewed. Of related
interest, OPCD Director Griffin managed
her first OPCD Advisory Board meeting at
Coats Hall – this committee brainstormed
ways to make OPCD a more effective
department in every aspect. It was a very
successful meeting – thank you advisory
board members, some of whom traveled
from Texas for the meeting.
Joe Harroz, former OU Counsel, Assistant
Dean David Poarch, ’77, and U.S. Attorney
for the Western District John Richter
Kevin Ratliff, Parker Folse, Brock Elmore
and Len Carson
Paige Bass, ’97, and Richard Walsh, ’92
8 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009
Leslie LaRue, ’94, and John Robertson, ’86
Katie Griffin, ’06, director of OPCD,
addresses the new board

LAW
BRIEFS
OU Law 2008-09 BLSA Chapter
The OU Law BLSA chapter shows up in Bell Courtroom for a group photo. The student organization
remains one of the law school’s most active.
“W” and Professor Cheryl Wattley
Legal Clinic Dresses
Up for Halloween!
October 30, 2008
Faculty and students from the OU Law
Legal Clinic held a full-dress Halloween
Party for disadvantaged children at
Andrews Park – witches, cheerleaders,
dancers, doctors – even President George
Bush showed up for this gala event! Clinic
Director Cheryl Wattley is obviously
enamored with guest George…. The highlight
of the evening was seeing which of
the Legal Clinic students could eat bobbing
marshmallows the fastest.
On a related matter, the Clinic also
gathered and collected an enormous pile
of dress clothes for a Clothes Closet at
the Cleveland County Courthouse. This
collection is now available (free) to any
Cleveland County Drug Court individual
that has court business but no real dress
clothes. Thank you Professor Wattley for
organizing the event, and thanks to the
students for gathering so many clothes.
Also, a thank you goes to Judge Tom Lucas
of Cleveland County. It took several hours
to unload the racks.
Leigh Ann Smothers
Leigh Ann Smothers and Alicia Curren-
Moore
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 9

LAW BRIEFS
Alumni Elected and Honored at OBA Annual Meeting
November 19-21, 2008
The 104th Annual Meeting of the Oklahoma
Bar Association was held in Oklahoma
City on November 19-21 at the Sheraton
Hotel. Twelve alumni of the OU College
of Law garnered a bit of the spotlight when
they were either elected to a governing
position in the OBA or were honored with
one of the awards presented during the
three-day event.
Elected to serve on the OBA Board of
Governors are Charles W. Chestnut, ’77,
Miami, Martha Rupp Carter, ’80, Tulsa,
Lou Ann Moudy, ’89, Henryetta and Steven
Dobbs, ’79, Oklahoma City. Jon K. Parsley,
’94, from Guymon, has served as presidentelect
during 2008 and will automatically
become the president in January 2009.
Bob E. Bennett, ’58, was awarded the
Joe Stamper Distinguished Service Award.
The award is presented to an OBA member
for long-term service to the bar association
or contributions to the legal profession.
Bennett, from Ada, has practiced law for 50
years.
Judge Doyle W. Argo, ’76, was the
recipient of the Judicial Excellence Award
for excellence of character, job performance
or achievement while a judge and service
to the bench, bar and community. He is a
magistrate judge for the U.S. District Court
Western District of Oklahoma in Oklahoma
City.
Judy Hamilton Morse, ’79, received
the Neil E. Bogan Professionalism Award,
awarded to an OBA member practicing 10
years or more who for conduct, honesty,
integrity and courtesy best represents the
highest standards of the legal profession.
Morse has practiced in Oklahoma City
with Crowe & Dunlevy since graduation
from OU Law and served as the firm’s first
female president and first female chair of its
litigation department.
The Alma Wilson Award was presented
to Renee DeMoss, ’84, for making a significant
contribution to improving the lives
of Oklahoma children. As president-elect
and then president of the Tulsa County
Bar Association, DeMoss developed a program
for at-risk children at a Tulsa middle
school where 90 percent of students lived
below the poverty line. She organized and
coordinated a career fair at the school, with
each grade concentrating on a particular
professional field. The sixth grade class
heard from individuals with jobs in the law
and government area. Additionally, a mentoring
program was implemented in which
lawyers volunteered to have lunch with a
student each week.
Judge Thomas S. Landrith, ’76, of Ada
was awarded the Trailblazer Award which
recognizes an OBA member who by their
significant, unique visionary efforts has had
a profound impact upon our profession and/
or community and in doing so, has blazed
a trail for others to follow. Ten years ago,
Landrith started a drug court program in
Pontotoc County which was the first rural
drug court in the nation. Initially, he faced
opposition within his county, but now the
program has proven to be successful and has
twice been named the Outstanding Drug
Court of the Year in Oklahoma.
The Earl Sneed Continuing Legal Education
Award for outstanding continuing
legal education contributions was presented
to Julie Simmons Rivers, ’92. A partner in
Family Law Solutions, P.C. in Oklahoma
City, she has for several years written and
presented the family law portion of the
OBA Recent Developments CLE Seminar.
She is active in the OBA Family Law Section
and is a past chair of the group.
Phil R. Richards, ’83, was honored
with the Maurice Merrill Golden Quill
Award for best Oklahoma Bar Journal article.
He practices in Tulsa with Richards &
Connor. The article for which he was
recognized, entitled “Oklahoma Bad Faith
Basics,” appeared in the August 8, 2008,
issue of the Oklahoma Bar Journal.
OBA President Bill Conger presented
David Swank, ’59, with the President’s
Award for Outstanding Service to the Oklahoma
Bar Association and in recognition
of his many years of faithful dedication to
the OBA Bench and Bar Committee as the
Reporter for the Revised Code of Judicial
Conduct for the State of Oklahoma. Swank,
David Ross Boyd Professor of Law, has been
a member of the faculty of the OU College
of Law since 1963. During that time, he has
served as dean of the College of Law and
interim president of the University of Oklahoma.
Blake Pinard, 3L, outstanding senior law
student and Dean Andy Coats
10 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

LAW
BRIEFS
Of Related Interest
Students Honored at OBA OU Law Alumni Luncheon
Keynote by Chancellor Glen Johnson, ’79
Randa Reeves, 1L
Jobby Matthew, 2L
Nicholas Jones, 3L
Assistant Dean Stan Evans, ’03, U.S.
District Court Judge Lee West, ’56, and W.
DeVier Pierson, ’57
The Oklahoma City Petroleum Club was
the site of the 2008 luncheon for University
of Oklahoma College of Law alumni
on Wednesday, November 19 during the
104th Annual Meeting of the Oklahoma
Bar Association. Following lunch, Assistant
Dean David A. Poarch welcomed the group,
recognized special guests and introduced law
faculty and staff in attendance. He encouraged
everyone to take, use and enjoy the
mugs commemorating the Centennial of
the College of Law which were on their
tables.
Poarch called on Renee DeMoss, ’84,
president of the Oklahoma Bar Foundation,
to present the Chapman-Rogers Scholarships
to three OU Law students. These
scholarships are presented annually by the
foundation to three students at each of the
three law schools in Oklahoma. DeMoss
presented $2,500 scholarships to 1L Randa
Reeves from Atoka, 2L Jobby Matthew of
Moore and 3L Nicholas Jones, Tulsa.
Next, Poarch introduced third-year
student Blake Pinard and presented to him
the OBA Outstanding Law School Senior
Student Award for 2008. Pinard, from
Oklahoma City, received his undergraduate
degrees in letters and economics from
OU. He is an articles editor for the Oklahoma
Law Review and has received numerous
American Jurisprudence Awards in law
school classes. After graduation, Pinard will
work as a law clerk for U.S. District Court
Judge Joe Heaton.
Justice Steven Taylor, ’74, was called
upon to discuss a book he has co-authored
with Oklahoma City lawyer Bob Burke. The
book commemorates the 100-year history of
the University of Oklahoma College of Law
and will be available in the summer of 2009.
Profits from the sale of the book will go to
the College of Law Centennial Scholarship
Fund.
Dean Andrew M. Coats followed and
spoke briefly about the Centennial of the
OU College of Law, mentioning planned
events, in addition to the book by Taylor
and Burke. He told of the recent visit by
the American Bar Association accreditation
site visit team on November 2-5. Coats then
introduced the keynote speaker, Glen D.
Johnson, ’79, chancellor of the Oklahoma
State System of Higher Education.
Johnson explained his job of leading
a higher education system comprised of
25 state colleges and universities and the
public agenda goals of his office. The stated
goals are to increase access and improve the
quality of public higher education for all
Oklahomans, to increase the number of college
graduates and to better prepare students
to meet the challenges of a global economy.
Johnson reported that enrollment numbers
Continued on page 12
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 11

LAW BRIEFS
Bill Foster Becomes a
Judge!
September 12, 2008
OU Law Professor Katheleen Guzman’s
husband, Bill Foster, became the first attorney
to be sworn in as a judge in the Bell
Courtroom. He was appointed to The
Oklahoma Workers’ Compensation
Court which administers the Workers’
Compensation Act. It is vested with
jurisdiction to determine claims for
compensation, the liability of employers
and insurers, and any rights asserted
under the Act. The Court’s mission is
to ensure fair and timely procedures
for the informal and formal resolution
of disputes and identify issues involving
work-related injuries. The Court
is a court of record comprised of ten
judges appointed by the Governor from
nominees, including the incumbent
judge, if any, presented by the Judicial
Nominating Commission.
Continued from page 11
have shown record increases and the majority
of graduates remain in the state, thereby
contributing to the state economy.
Johnson maintained that higher education
is the best investment a state can make.
For every appropriated dollar spent on higher
education, $5.15 is pumped back into the
state economy. However, the percentage of
the state budget devoted to higher education
has dropped. He attributes this decrease
in state appropriations to higher education
to two things: health care cost increases and
corrections. In 1988, 75.3 percent of the
higher education budget was paid by state
appropriations. In 2008, the percentage is
49.5 percent.
Johnson explained the “Putting Families
First” program, a tuition freeze plan for
Foster, who graduated in the top ten
percent of his class, earned his J.D. at the
University of Arkansas in 1992. Foster
and Guzman moved to Norman in 1993
from Philadelphia. He is pictured below
with children Will, 12, Jack, 10, and Ted,
7, and his wife Professor Katheleen Guzman.
the 2009-10 academic year which will freeze
tuition and mandatory fees at the current
level. Unlike other state agencies, higher
education has “scaled down” its request to
the Legislature. He explained that Oklahoma
institutions of higher education have
developed and put into effect cost-saving
initiatives that will result in an annual
savings of $31.2 million once fully implemented.
Coats thanked Johnson for his presentation
and his service to higher education
and the state of Oklahoma. Before concluding
the luncheon, Coats encouraged
everyone to attend the performance of the
play I’ll Do It! written by Associate Professor
Cheryl Wattley about Ada Lois Sipuel
Fisher’s three-year battle to gain admission
to law school.
What is Law Day
National Law Day is the outgrowth of an idea
conceived more than a half-century ago by a
small-town Oklahoma attorney, and it is now
celebrated nationally, and every year. Just
five years after the late Hicks Epton, ’32, a
Wewoka, Oklahoma, attorney came up with
the idea, President Dwight D. Eisenhower
issued a proclamation establishing May 1 as
Law Day. In 1961, Congress, by joint resolution,
declared it “a special day of celebration
by the American people in appreciation of
their liberties and the reaffirmation of their
loyalty to the United States of America.”
David and Molly Shi Boren Gardens at
Andrew M. Coats Hall
12 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

LAW
BRIEFS
Section Parties
The following photos were taken at 1L section parties at Professors
Swank and Tabb’s houses, respectively. A good time
was had by all and of course, the purpose is to give the 1Ls a
chance to get to know their section classmates better. Thank
you Ann and David Swank, and Diane and Murray Tabb for
your great hospitality.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 13

LAW BRIEFS
Nice Article on Clinic
Race Judicata
October 25, 2008
The 3rd Annual Race Judicata was held
on a spectacular Fall Saturday – more
than 50 runners competed in the 5K event
that began (and ended) in the parking lot
behind Coats Hall. Mark Myles, ’08, who
organized the races in 2006 and 2007 ran
in the event, coming in third (he’s not lost
his stamina in the real world!). While a
law student did not win the race, many of
them did run, some placing in the top ten
finishers. This is always a fun event – it
continues to draw more people every year.
Miguel Garcia, Brittany Capes, Mark
Myles, ’08
Aaron Jackson
The Oklahoma Daily ran a great article on
the OU Law Legal Clinic, September 19,
describing how dozens of students were
offering free legal representation to people
who cannot afford attorneys. In return, the
OU Legal Clinic gives OU College of Law
students the opportunity to experience law
in practice.
The office’s services are open to students
and members of the community
(three counties including Cleveland) who
meet pre-set requirements. Eligibility is
based on income, said Director Cheryl
Wattley. A family of four that makes less
than $40,000 per year or an individual
making less than $20,000 per year could
qualify.
The civil clinic is focused mainly on
divorce and family law cases, and each
intern works five to ten cases per semester.
The criminal clinic cases are evaluated on
an ongoing basis throughout the semester,
largely because a defendant cannot predict
if and when he or she will be arrested.
Cases might include possession of alcohol
or marijuana, DUIs, public disturbance,
simple assault and theft under $1,000.
All cases are covered by a legal intern
licensed by the Oklahoma Bar Association.
Interns must complete 50 hours of
law school. Once they begin representing
clients, they are supervised at all times by a
licensed attorney.
“We supervise before we go to court
– we plan everything and the students do
very well,” said Janet Roloff, staff attorney
for criminal cases. “I do observe them in
the courtroom, and if there is a problem
or something outside the scope of what we
discussed, I step in.”
14 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

LAW
BRIEFS
Constitutional Law Day Program
September 17, 2008
The distinguished panel explored the
importance of an independent judiciary
during a presentation titled “Safeguarding
Freedom: Is There an Assault
on the Independent Judiciary” Panelists
included Senior Federal Judge
Lee West, ’56, Andrew Tevington, ’85,
chief counsel to former Governor Henry
Bellmon and counsel to the Oklahoma
Corporation Commission, Ambassador
Edward Perkins, William J. Crowe
Chair and Executive Director of the
International Programs Center at OU
and Arnold Hamilton, editor of The
Oklahoma Observer. OU Law Professor
Randy Coyne was the moderator.
Coyne maintained that the struggle
for constitutional government continues
today. “In the midst of the so-called
‘war on terrorism’ and in the face of an executive branch many Americans fear is seriously
overstepping its constitutional authority, we can hope and pray for intelligent judges. But
we must doggedly insist that out courts remain independent and impartial,” he said.
The program is sponsored by the League of Women Voters Education Fund; the OU
College of Law; the University of Oklahoma Honors College; the ACLU of Oklahoma;
the Program on Constitutional and Legal Policy of the Open Society Institute and Common
Cause of Oklahoma. Additional sponsors included the League of Women Voters of
Norman; the League of Latin American
Citizens; the Peace House; the Peace Education
Institute; the Unitarian University
Community Church; the Norman Unitarian
Universalist Fellowship and the Interfaith
Alliance. A reception followed.
Professor Randy Coyne
Arnold Hamilton, Andrew Tevington, ’85, Ambassador Edward Perkins, Judge
Lee West, ’56 and Professor Randy Coyne
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 15

LAW
Blood Drive
BRIEFS
September 17, 2008
The College of Law held its semiannual
Blood Drive in the atrium.
Professor David Swank oversees the
blood letting! Thank you Professor
Swank for your many years of organizing
this.
Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals
October 8, 2008
Bell Courtroom was the scene for two appellate cases. The first, Compsource Oklahoma v.
L & L Construction Granite Farmers Cooperative, involved the contractual terms of a workmen’s
compensation policy of insurance. The second case was Gregory Ralph Wilhoit v. The
State of Oklahoma. The plaintiff Wilhoit, filed an action against the state seeking $175,000
for his wrongful conviction in a murder case. He was convicted of killing his estranged wife
and spent approximately four years on death row before his conviction was overturned by
the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals. Mr. Wilhoit later brought this claim under a
new statute granting persons wrongfully convicted the right to receive compensation from
the state.
Judge E. Bay Mitchell, Presiding Judge Kenneth L. Buettner and Judge Robert Bell were
on the bench.
Judge E. Bay Mitchell, Presiding Judge Kenneth L. Buettner and Judge Robert Bell
Laura Hood, Henry Hood,’85, and Rose
Kuntz
Eugene Kuntz
Conference on
Natural Resources
Law and Policy
November 7, 2008
This year’s conference focused on an ethics
panel, led by OU Law Professor Michael
Scaperlanda. Some of the sessions covered
horizontal drilling and surface damage,
recent developments in energy law, capability
doctrine and lease maintenance,
teaching title and avoiding common title
traps and acquisition of water rights by the
oil and gas operator in Oklahoma.
The CLE, held at the Sheraton Oklahoma
City Hotel, was highlighted by a luncheon
where the Eugene Kuntz Award was
given to Chesapeake Energy Corporation’s
Senior Vice-President, Land and Legal
and General Counsel, Henry Hood. Hood
was introduced by emcee R. Clark Musser,
who is always an entertainer! Hood, a
1985 graduate of OU Law, has been at
Chesapeake since 1992. Today, more than
a thousand Chesapeake employees report
to Hood.
16 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter spring/summer • 2008/2009 2007

LAW
BRIEFS
OU College of Law Grads Pass Bar Exam
Results for the July 2008 Oklahoma Bar
Examination were announced and University
of Oklahoma College of Law graduates
once again enjoyed a high passage rate.
Statistics released by the Oklahoma Bar
Association indicated that 97 percent of
the OU graduates who took the exam were
successful. The overall passage rate, which
includes graduates from other Oklahoma
law schools as well as out-of-state schools,
was 91 percent. Individuals who graduated
from out-of-state schools passed at a rate of
77 percent, while 89 percent of the graduates
from the University of Tulsa (TU) passed
and 90 percent of the Oklahoma City University
(OCU) graduates were successful.
“Educating students is our purpose and
mission,” said Dean Andrew M. Coats.
“While we know that a sound legal education is a lot more than just the ability to pass
bar exams, these exams are the only objective tests of the effectiveness of our educational
efforts. We are gratified that the results demonstrate our students are receiving a first-class
legal education here at the University of Oklahoma College of Law.”
The Oklahoma Bar Examination is offered each year in February and in July. The
majority of aspiring attorneys take the July exam. This year, 339 people took the two-day
test administered on July 29-30, 2008.
The Admission Ceremony was held on Thursday, September 25 in the House of Representatives
Chamber at the State Capitol with the Supreme Court presiding. Graduates
of OCU took the Oath of Attorney at 9 a.m., OU Law graduates at 10 a.m. and graduates
from TU and out-of-state schools at 11 a.m.
Environmental Law
Society Cookie Sale
ELS seeks to understand environmental
issues of the day, and promotes the most
intelligent social response to those issues.
ELS is devoted to integrating the community’s
concerns with its own, as public and
community outreach is a crucial step in
building a healthy society. Additionally,
the Environmental Law Society seeks to
serve as a source of information regarding
environmental and natural resources law
and policy to the academic community and
the community at large.
Note the “ELS” on Danae Van Sickle’s
cookie!
Family Night
August 28, 2008
The Law School sponsored Family Night
for all 1Ls, their spouses and families. The
turn-out was extraordinary. 110 family
members and students attended, the most
ever. This is the third year this has been
held and it continues to grow. Dean Evans
conducted tours and a reception followed
in Sneed Lounge. Dean Evans opened the
evening with remarks about the OU Law
program.
Aaron Jackson, 2L, his wife Beth and their children Matthew and Mackenzie
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 17

LAW BRIEFS
New Staff
Member
Ms. Susan Wilson
started with us on
Monday, October
20, working in student
recruitment and
in our Pro Bono program.
Susan received
her undergraduate degree from OU and her
law degree from George Washington Law
School in Washington, D.C.
The selection committee, consisting of
Dean Liesa Richter, Professor Steve Gensler
and Dean David Poarch, chose Wilson
from an extensive group of applicants. Wilson
previously worked with college admissions
at Pittsburgh University for several
years. She is the sister of Jeb Boatman, ’03,
who graduated from here a few years ago.
Ms. Wilson’s office is in the Student
Services area and she is reporting to Dean
Richter in her recruiting efforts and to
Professor Judith Maute as she works on our
Pro Bono program.
P.A.W.S. Bake Sale
October 22, 2008
On the 22nd and the 23rd, P.A.W.S. sold
baked goods in the pit to raise money
for Second Chance Animal Sanctuary in
Norman. There were no animals around
to help, however. P.A.W.S., which, stands
for Progressive Animal Welfare Society,
advocates for animals through education,
legislation and direct care.
War and Law
October 16, 2008
OU Law’s Military Law Society presented
guest speaker Major General Timothy
E. Donovan, USMC (retired) in Sneed
Lounge. Donovan is a 1971 graduate of OU,
spent 34-plus years on active duty in the
Marines, served in Operations Desert Shield
and Desert Storm and his last position was
chief-of-staff for the Multi-National Forces
in Iraq, 2005-2006. He discussed his own
career, the role of leadership and military
legal issues, especially those concerning
JAG and civilian lawyers.
Conflict
Between Russia
and Georgia
September 11, 2008
Professor Peter Krug was guest speaker at
the Oklahoma International Law Society
meeting – he discussed the international
legal implications of the recent conflict
between superpower Russia and its neighboring
country Georgia.
18 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

LAW
BRIEFS
ACLU Issues Forum
October 29, 2008
Professors Rick Tepker and Brian McCall
answered many questions from the audience
regarding important issues related to
the Presidential elections.
Entertainment Law
October 28, 2008
Jay Shanker, entertainment lawyer with
McAfee and Taft, spoke to those interested
in becoming an entertainment or
sports attorney/agent. Attorney Shanker
has been a speaker at Coats Hall on several
past occasions – the classroom is almost
always filled for his talks.
Dean Evans and Sandy Host BLSA
and HALSA!
September 7 and October 3, 2008
The following photos of the HALSA gathering indicated that all were having a great time,
and the food was wonderful! The Evanses invited current students, alumni and Oklahoma
City resource people – all to network.
David Hale, his son Malachi, Dean Stan
Evans and Tyler Seña
First Thursday Film
Series
October 2, 2008
The series started this fall with the showing
of A Few Good Men – lead actors Tom
Cruise, Jack Nicholson and Demi Moore
provided the drama.
Work/Life
Balance
October 29, 2008
Members of the Oklahoma Bar Association
Work/Life Balance Committee spoke
to students on accomplishing professional
development and growth while also
achieving fulfillment in one’s personal life.
This is one of the OBA’s most pressing
and lasting topics and they want to impress
upon law students the importance of work/
life balance.
Kara Robison Bacon and son
Sooner Lawyer | spring/summer 2008 | 19

LAW BRIEFS
OBA Law Schools Committee
September 19, 2008
Associate Dean Murray Tabb led the agenda
for the Oklahoma Bar Association’s Law
Schools Committee in Sneed Lounge – speakers
Associate Dean Liesa Richter (Admissions),
Director Cheryl Wattley (Legal Clinic),
Assistant Dean Stan Evans (Student
Affairs), Director Katie Griffin and Associate
Director Marcus Bivines (Office of Professional
and Career Development), Director
Darin Fox (Law Library), Director Connie
Smothermon (Competitions) and Director
Steve Rice (Public Affairs and Editor, Sooner
Lawyer) caught the committee up on all
events and programming in their areas. The
committee then met with selected students
and faculty. Adjournment followed at 2 p.m.
Tom Walker, Justice Marian Opala, Assistant Dean David Poarch and Associate Dean Murray Tabb
Cleveland County
Judges Come to
Dinner
Legal Clinic Director Cheryl Wattley invited
all Cleveland County Judges to dinner at Coats
Hall, Sneed Lounge, on consecutive Wednesdays
in September (the 24th) and October (the 1st).
Half came the first Wednesday, and the remaining
half came in October. She also invited Clinic
students to participate, in that many of the
cases that the students work on are heard in the
Cleveland County courtrooms of these judges.
20 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Interested in International
Energy Negotiations
October 1, 2008
The Association of International Petroleum
Negotiators and The Energy and
Resources Law Student Association presented
speaker Eric Fry of Pioneer Natural
Resources, discussing the topic of International
Energy Negotiations at O’Connell’s,
on Campus Corner including a social hour
that followed.
Annual Red Mass
Profile of the Incoming 2008-
2009 Class
Applicants 1,137
Enrolled 178
Selectivity 28.7%
Top 25% LSAT 160
Average LSAT 157
Bottom 25% LSAT 154
Top 25% GPA 3.8
Average GPA 3.5
Bottom 25% GPA 3.3
Average Age 25
Minorities 23%
Women 48%
Men 52%
Number of undergraduate colleges and
universities represented in entering class 48
Percentage of merit scholarships 74%
Need-based scholarships and financial aid 89%
LAW
BRIEFS
September 21, 2008
Professor Drew Kershen was the
guest speaker – giving his reflections
on the scripture readings and how
they spoke to law and lawyering.
Professor Kershen was one of the
three professors who brought the
Red Mass to Norman 29 years ago.
The mass was held at St. Thomas
More University Parish.
The liturgy, known as the Red
Mass, continues an ancient English
tradition. The Red Mass was
celebrated at the beginning of the
Fall Court Term at Westminster. Its
name comes from the color of the An example of traditional red vestments
vestments worn by the celebrant and
the robes of the court officials who
attended. The liturgy asks God’s blessing for those who administer law.
After the Mass, Professors Owen Anderson, Katheleen Guzman, Drew Kershen, Steve
Knippenberg, Brian McCall, Bill McNichols, Meg Penrose, Michael Scaperlanda, Joe Thai
and Associate Law Library Director Joel Wegemer hosted a reception for lawyers and law
students at the church.
Haylie Treas
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 21

LAW BRIEFS
Number of Women in Law Schools Declining
Around Oklahoma and the U.S.
By Marie Price, The Journal Record
Reversing the boom that eventually
saw law school enrollments equally split
between men and women in the early
1990s, nationally the number of future
women attorneys is declining, and officials
with some Oklahoma law schools see a
similar pattern.
According to American Bar Association
data, the number of women enrolled
in law school dropped from 49 percent
to just below 47 percent over the past six
years.
At the University of Oklahoma College
of Law, since 2002 the percentage of
women law students has fluctuated from
56.6 percent that year to a low of 41.6 percent
in 2003. It now stands at 43.7 percent.
The percentage of women applying at OU
Law has ranged from a high of 44 percent
in 2002 to a low of 37.3 percent last year.
OU Law Dean Andrew Coats thinks
the changes in his school’s student population
are attributable largely to demographic
blips, and a general decline in law school
applications nationwide in recent years.
“We’ve been pretty consistent in
the number of female applicants over the
years,” Coats said. “We had a little bit of a
drop in 2006. But so much of these little,
fine things are just demographics.”
He said the fact that a large part of
OU’s applicants are younger students, right
out of college, may play a factor. Coats also
said that about 1,300 applicants to OU
Law School vie for about 165 places.
“If you look at our number of applicants,
it hasn’t changed very much,” Coats
said. “Neither has the percentage, really, of
admissions changed very much.”
Coats said it doesn’t appear that
women are any less interested in the law.
However, he said national studies
show a drop in women still practicing after
five years in the field.
“They begin to have families and
want to stay home and take care of them,”
Coats said.
He said law firms try to take steps to
address such issues.
“It may be that there is a real awareness
of how difficult and time consuming
and all encompassing the law practice is,”
he said. “Some may be just deciding that’s
more commitment to a professional life
than they like to make, when they have all
these other things they can do.”
Coats said that to attract women law
students OU does things such as tailoring
scholarships to them.
At the Oklahoma City University
School of Law, the percentage of entryclass
law students who are women has
ranged from a high of 43.6 percent in 2006
to a low of 37.3 percent in 2005. It currently
stands at 39.5 percent. The percentage
of women applicants has ranged between
about 36 percent and 39 percent in recent
years.
“I don’t know that there’s been a
perceptible change in our applicant pool
or in our entering classes,” said OCU Law
Dean Lawrence Hellman. “Just looking at
our numbers for the last five years, we’re
pretty steady, both in the representation
of women in our applicant pool and in our
student body.”
TU Law’s female entering-class enrollment
has fluctuated between a high of 43
percent in 2002 to a low of 32 percent in
2006. It currently sits at 42 percent.
“This year, we worked really hard on
encouraging women and really reaching
out, so we saw a 10-percent increase,”
Cordell said. “It’s still not as high as we
would like to see it, but it certainly made
us happy.”
Officials with all three schools said
they may have women faculty members,
students or alumni contact prospective
students about what they have to offer.∫
Martha Cordell, an assistant dean and
director of admissions at the University of
Tulsa College Of Law, said that TU has
seen a drop in women students.
22 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Moot Court Competition at OU College of Law
LAW
BRIEFS
October 20-24, 2008
Forty-four University of Oklahoma College
of Law students participated in the 2008
Calvert Intra-School Moot Court Competition
held October 20-24. The two-person
teams of second and third-year students
argued a case which was at the time pending
before the U.S. Supreme Court. Team
members must be knowledgeable about
all issues raised in the case and be prepared
to argue either side because they are
only given 15 minutes advance notice of
whether they will argue for the petitioner
or the respondent. The two surviving teams
met for the final round of oral arguments on
October 24 at noon in the Bell Courtroom
in Coats Hall, home of the College of Law.
The event was open to the public.
This annual competition is sponsored
by the College of Law Board of Advocates
and the Floyd Allen and Irma K. Calvert
Chair in Law and Liberty. The Board of
Advocates is a group of students, elected by
their peers, which provides opportunities
for students to develop their oral advocacy
skills and promotes participation in intraschool
and inter-school competitions.
The case argued in the competition,
Pleasant Grove City v. Summum, was
argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in
November. It is an appeal from a decision
of a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of
Appeals for the Tenth Circuit which ruled
in favor of a group named Summum to
erect its own monument of Seven Aphorisms
in a city park in Pleasant Grove,
Utah, the site of a long-standing display
of the Ten Commandments donated to
the city decades ago. The Supreme Court
reversed the Tenth Circuit ruling.
Ashleigh Boggs, student director of
the competition, was enthusiastic about
the week-long event. “The combination
of this year’s problem, the number of
teams signed up to participate and the
quality of the experienced advocates makes
for a great competition,” she stated. The
winning team received $1,000 and the
Recognition!
Over the summer, the best appellate briefs were chosen from each 1L section. Their names
are listed below. Because of timing, these students are not recognized in the Awards Day
program, so please congratulate them when you next see them.—Connie Smothermon
Section 1:
Nedra Georgeann Roye – 1st
Cullen Sweeney – 2nd
Section 2:
Jennifer Keitel – 1st
Emily Wilson – 2nd
Section 3:
Michael Brooks – 1st
Daniel Cooper – 2nd
Section 4:
Charlie Wolfe – 1st
Caleb Brown – 2nd
second-place team, $500. Local practicing
attorneys, state and federal judges and
faculty members served as judges for the
competition.
Professor Rick Tepker with Moot Court judges Michael Salem, ’75, Noma Gurich, ’78, and Judge
Charles Johnson, ’55
Jennifer Keitel and Emily Wilson, both 1Ls
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 23

LAW BRIEFS
OAWL Holds Annual
Charity Auction
November 6, 2008
Members of the Organization for the
Advancement of Women in Law (OAWL)
sponsored the 20th Annual OAWL Charity
Auction on Thursday, November 6 at
The Brewery in downtown Norman. All
proceeds from the event are donated to
the Norman Women’s Resource Center
(WRC). This year, more than $10,000 was
raised.
The evening kicked off at 6 p.m. with
music by Murphy’s Law, a band with OU
Law connections. The band is comprised
of Professor Randall Coyne on the drums,
Bob French, ’93, guitar, Jeremy Stillwell,
’06, keyboard, Steve Grunder, bass and
Steve Swim, guitar and vocals.
The auction began an hour later, with
auctioneer Paul Austin working the crowd
to get the most for each of the 60 auction
packages. OAWL members had solicited
donations from area businesses and law faculty
and staff. Auction items ranged from
autographed sports memorabilia, jewelry, a
theatre package and a weekend lake house
getaway to bowling with professors, lunch
with professors, dinner with professors and
golf with Dean Coats.
Professor Mary Sue Backus, OAWL
faculty advisor, said faculty packages have
always been among the most popular items
at the auction. “Over the past 20 years,
our annual donation has not only grown in
size, but in significance to the mission and
continued vitality of the Resource Center,”
stated Backus. “Our efforts truly make a
difference in the lives of the women and
children served by the Center here in our
own community.”
Professor Randy Coyne
Professor Mary Sue Backus
Two OU Law Alums
Inducted into the
2008 Oklahoma Hall
of Fame
November 12, 2008
Bill W. Burgess Jr., ’80, and Robert H.
Henry, ’77, were inducted into the Oklahoma
Hall of Fame at the Cox Convention
Center in Oklahoma City.
Induction into the Oklahoma Hall
of Fame is the
highest honor an
Oklahoman can
receive from the
state. Since the
Oklahoma Hall
of Fame’s inception
in 1927, 621
Bill Burgess, ’80
accomplished
individuals have
received this
commendation.
Busts and portraits
of Burgess
and Henry will
Robert Henry, ’77
be on display at
the Gaylord-Pickens Oklahoma Heritage
Museum in Oklahoma City. In addition,
they will be recognized on granite monuments
in the Heritage Plaza at the Oklahoma
State Fairgrounds.
Dean Andrew M. Coats was an
inductee in 2005.
Burgess is a senior partner of Burgess
& Hightower Law Firm in Lawton. Henry
is Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals
for the 10th Circuit.
24 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Successor to
Associate Dean for
Academics Murray
Tabb is Named
“At the end of last year, Dean Murray
Tabb decided not to continue as associate
dean for Academics into this school year,”
said Dean Coats. “He had served for six
years as associate dean for Admissions and
most recently two years as associate dean
for Academics. Dean Tabb has done an
extraordinarily fine job in both capacities.
We owe him our gratitude and appreciation
for all he has done. He will, no doubt,
serve again in an important position.”
Professor Mark Gillett has been
named associate dean for Academics starting
in the Spring 2009 Semester,” Coats
continued.
Gillett, who joined the OU Law faculty
in 1987, teaches such topics as wealth
transfer taxation, wills and trusts, estate
planning and fiduciary income tax. Prior
to joining the OU faculty, Gillett was a
partner in the Muscatine, Iowa, firm of
Stanley, Rehling and Lande. Admitted to
the Iowa Bar in 1978, Gillett is a member
of the American Bar Association.
He is the coauthor of software and
manuals for Federal Estate Tax Returns:
Calculations and Preparation; Fiduciary
Accounting for Trusts and Estates; Fiduciary
Income Tax Returns: Calculation and
Preparation; and Federal Gift Tax Returns:
Calculation and Preparations, published by
Warren, Gorham, and Lamont.
Gillett received his J.D. from Arizona
State University in 1977 and his LL.M.
from New York University in 1982.
Professor Murray Tabb
Professor Mark Gillett
LAW
BRIEFS
Visiting Scholar from
Brazil
Hirdan Katarina de Medeiros Costa is here
this year studying petroleum law under
Professor Owen Anderson. Hirdan is from
Brazil where she is working on a Ph.D. in
Law from the University of São Paulo. Her
undergraduate work also is in the area of
petroleum and gas law at the University of
Rio Grande do Norte, 2004, with a masters
degree on energy issues from the University
of São Paulo.
Hirdan has been a consultant ad hoc
in legislation and institutional reform for
the energy sector in Brazil while working
with Rio Grande do Norte State University.
She also has represented Petrobras
and the Energy Secretary of Rio Grande
do Norte. Hirdan is interested in consumers’
rights in the energy sector and has
worked with attorney Andre Elali, Natal,
Rio Grande do Norte in 2003 and 2004.
Hirdan has written many articles on
oil and gas conflicts, joint ventures, joint
operating agreements, globalization in the
oil sector, gas pipelines and the socioenvironmental
impacts generated by the
construction of gas pipelines in sensitive
tropical areas. She has won several awards
for her work in the energy sector, such as
an honorable mention for a paper delivered
at the Brazilian Institute of Studies
on Competition, Consumer Affairs and
International Trade in Sao Paulo, in 2005.
We have enjoyed her company this year.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 25

Now Find us appearing on the web at at law.ou.edu
26 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Public Service Fellowship
Please join the
in its effort to make a real and lasting difference.
• provide assistance to those members of society in need
of help
• place students in public interest fellowships with
organizations that provide legal services to the public,
particularly those serving underrepresented members of
society.
• provide opportunities for twenty students per year to
obtain public service experience and earn money to pay
for their own education.
For more information contact:
Katie Griffin, Director, Professional & Career Development
(405) 325-4035 • kgriffin@ou.edu
We need your help!
Bronze Sponsor
$250 annual gift for three years
Silver Sponsor
$500 annual gift for three years
Gold Sponsor
$1,000 annual gift for three years
Platinum Sponsor
$5,000 annual gift for three years
Fellowship Sponsor
$10,000 annual gift for three years
Thank You Donors:
Armand Paliotta
Karen & Andy Rieger
The West Law Firm—Terry W. West
Michael McBride III
Cherish and Matt Ralls
Dear Alumni and Friends:
Mindful of the ethical obligation of the legal profession to provide assistance to
those members of society in need of help, the University of Oklahoma College of
Law has established a Public Service Fellowship as part of the College’s Centennial
Campaign. The Public Service Fellowship seeks to place students in public interest
fellowships with organizations that provide legal services to the public, particularly
those serving underrepresented members of society.
Our mission is two-fold. First, we want to reinforce the ethical obligation we all
undertake as attorneys by providing opportunities for students to obtain experience,
particularly public service experience, in areas where they would not otherwise
be able to serve because there is no money to pay them. Secondly, in gaining that
experience, we want these students to earn money to pay for their own education.
Each summer, twenty students will receive a fellowship that will enable them
to spend their summers working for a public interest organization. The students will
receive meaningful stipends for their volunteer efforts during the course of the summer. Those selected for the program
will commit to a minimum of eight weeks of full-time volunteer service during the summer.
We need your help. Please join our Office of Professional & Career Development in its effort to make a real and
lasting difference. By committing to an annual gift, paid each year for three years, you will provide financial assistance
to students who demonstrate a sincere desire to pursue careers as public interest lawyers. We encourage you to give
meaningful consideration to this program by making a pledge.
Thank you. We truly appreciate your gift to help support our students at the University of Oklahoma College of
Law. We encourage you to make a difference by making a gift to the Public Service Fellowship. Help them learn by
giving back.
Sincerely yours,
Andrew M. Coats, Dean
Generations
Of Excellence
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 27

FEATURE
Taking the Reins
Taking the Reins
Alegal career was not always the
intended life path for Richard
D. Nix, ’85, who didn’t decide
to attend law school until his
senior year in college as he
was finishing his accounting
degree.
Up until that time Nix just assumed he would use
his undergraduate degree in accounting and go to work
for what was then known as the Big Eight accounting
firms. His work as a clerk at one of those accounting
firms during his junior and senior years in college made
it clear to him that he could better use his accounting
background in the legal world rather than the accounting
world.
Little did he know that he would one day be taking
over the reins of the state’s largest law firm, helping
guide it through a period of significant growth and
change.
At the time he joined McAfee & Taft in 1985, the
firm was comprised of nearly 50 lawyers and had one
office in downtown Oklahoma City. Now, two years
into his term as managing director, the firm has grown
to include nearly 150 lawyers, 130 staff members, and
offices in both Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Nix is only
the third managing director in the firm’s 57-year history.
“These are both exciting and challenging times to
be practicing law in Oklahoma, and there’s no place I’d
rather be than McAfee & Taft,” said Nix.
Thanks to the efforts of his predecessors and partners,
he says the firm is well-positioned to grow and
thrive in tough economic times as well as good. “The
last few years have been marked by unprecedented
growth for the firm, due in large part to the quality
and success of our clients, our demonstrated ability to
serve their comprehensive needs, and also the favor-
28 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
able economic climate,” he said. “But it’s really during
the tough economic times, when clients are faced with
really hard decisions and economic fortunes are on the
line that a firm really proves its worth. These are the
times we’ve been preparing for because these are the
times our clients rely on us the most.”
In addition to serving as the firm’s managing director,
Nix’s practice encompasses employee benefits
and taxation law. A frequent speaker at seminars and
conferences on employee benefits topics, including the
annual Southwest Benefits Association Intermediate
Level Training Seminar for Employee Benefits Practitioners
and Plan Sponsors. He has published several
articles and occasionally lectures at his alma mater, the
University of Oklahoma.
Nix’s contributions in the area of employee benefits
law have earned him inclusion in Best Lawyers in
America.
He is a member of the Oklahoma County Bar Association,
Oklahoma Bar Association and the American
Bar Association. He is a former secretary/treasurer of
the IRS Midstates EP/EO Council and a former board
member of the Southwest Benefits Association. He
was also one of seven lawyers worldwide to serve on
the 2007-2008 Edge Awards article review board for
Law Practice magazine. Edge Awards honor outstanding
articles most likely to have a practical influence
in shaping the future actions lawyers take to manage
their practices.
His current civic and nonprofit affiliations include
serving on the boards of Calm Waters Inc. and Sigma
Alpha Epsilon and on the board of trustees of OU
Medical Center.
In 2007, Nix was recognized for his professional and
civic contributions to the state by being named to the
Journal Record’s list of Leadership in Law honorees.
Richard D. Nix, ’85
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 29

FEATURE
30 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Oklahoma
Icon
Winfrey Houston, ’50
Winfrey Houston is an 83-yearold
retired attorney who knows
Stillwater, Oklahoma, downtown
Stillwater, Oklahoma and
maybe even the Oklahoma Bar
Association like the back of his
hand. Born and raised in the
Stillwater area, he graduated from Stillwater High in 1944 and
then enrolled at Oklahoma A&M College, more commonly called
Oklahoma State University today. As with many students in the
1940s, his college days were interrupted by a two-year service stint
in the U.S. Army Air Corps (today known as the Air Force).
Houston was in the first group of occupation forces in Germany
– spent a year there after training here in the U.S. for a year.
He returned home soon thereafter, finished school and graduated
in 1948 with a combined Bachelor of Arts degree in History and
Law. While Houston would describe himself as an Aggie at heart,
his dream to become a lawyer led him right down the road to OU
Law. In 1950 he earned his J.D. and married his OSU Sweetheart,
Barbara Lowrey. They first settled in Enid, where he began his law
career. It wasn’t long before they decided to return to Stillwater –
he developed a partnership to practice in the downtown area.
“I started on Eighth Street on the west side of Main,” says the
able lawyer. “My old-time partner was named Clee Fitzgerald,
’49, and Clee and I were together for a mere 22 years.” The young
Houston hit the street running in Cowboy country, establishing
himself as a general practice lawyer and working with other attorneys
on cases of all sorts. Houston served terms as a committee
member, vice president and eventually president of the Oklahoma
Bar Association. It is believed that Houston is Oklahoma’s longest
surviving OBA president! “Being president of the OBA was a very
distinct honor,” said Houston. “We had the responsibility of continuing
legal education by helping other lawyers specialize in certain
areas and keep up on changes in the law.”
Experience as an attorney and previous committee work –
lots of it – prepared Houston for one of his biggest challenges –
tackling Stillwater’s ancient hospital, which was built in the 1930s.
It was owned by the city at the time and was totally out-of-date.
“There was much pent-up desire for a new, modern hospital. I was
appointed to the first board to research the planning, design and
construction of a new, modern facility,” said Winfrey. It only took
six years to get the hospital up and running, and in 1976, the Stillwater
Medical Center opened. After the hospital, Houston started
on improving public housing in Stillwater. That took only five
years of committee meetings. Some of the housing is still in operation
today, such as the Roxy Webber Center, built in the 1980s.
Then it was on to revitalize downtown Stillwater! In the late
1970s and early 1980s, downtown Stillwater saw many vacancies.
Smaller businesses were closing when the big box stores began arriving
in town. He joined the Downtown Neighborhood Planning
Team. The group was made up of two banks and eight property
owners. Money was donated into an organization called Downtown
Stillwater Unlimited. Houston said, “When one of these businesses
would move away, if the building was vacant and no one
wanted to fill the vacancy, we would buy the building and then
look for someone to take it off our hands.” Houston said, amazingly,
that the group recycled more than eight buildings! And, the
downtown Main Street Mall is a result of these efforts.
Houston took on and helped save Stillwater’s old South High
School building and the equally old Stillwater Junior High building.
Today, thanks to the help of many individuals (including one
local benefactor whom Houston convinced to put in a large sum
of money), both buildings have new lives: the Junior High is the
Stillwater Civic Center and the high school structure became Stillwater’s
new library. The area surrounding the two renovated buildings
is known as the Centennial Cultural District.
In addition to everything else, Houston served as Stillwater’s
School District attorney for 30 years, was a City Commissioner for
three years. Local BancFirst executive Ken Starks calls Houston a
community icon. When you factor in all the OBA work, we call
him an Oklahoma icon.
By Steve Rice and Gail Banzet, of Stillwater Living Magazine
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 31

FEATURE
Into the Future with Oklahoma
by Susan Brassfield Cogan
Natalie Shirley , ’82
32 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009
Blackwell native Natalie Shirley, ’82,
returned to her roots last year when
she left her job as president of ICI Mutual
Insurance Group in Washington,
D.C., and accepted Governor Henry’s
offer to become Oklahoma’s Secretary
of Commerce and Tourism. This was
a radical change for her since she’d never held a political
office before.
She’s well-suited to the job. Under her leadership ICI
became the foremost insurer for investment companies,
providing insurance to a large portion of the industry.
Governor Henry praised her as an accomplished strategist
and an excellent problem-solver.
The cabinet Secretary of Commerce and Tourism
had been left vacant for nearly a year earlier when Kathy
Taylor resigned to successfully run for mayor of Tulsa.
Henry pointed out with pleasure that Shirley hit the
ground running in her new job.
She set three goals for the near future. First, to
grow high-quality, high-paying jobs which will exploit
the deep talent-pool in Oklahoma. Second, to provide
training to Oklahomans so that their skills match the
needs of business. She in particular wants to foster a love
of learning and life-long learning skills. And third, she
plans to use incentives to encourage new industries such
as biotech, computing and aerospace which will help
move Oklahoma to the global stage. Over time the business
sector in Oklahoma has become more diverse and
Shirley plans to work hard to continue to expand that
diversity.
Natalie Shirley always looks forward into the future
and has said that this is a dynamic and evolving time to
be in Oklahoma. She knows there is always room for
improvement, but says the fundamental building blocks
are in place.
Shirley and her husband, Russ Harrison, decided to
move to Oklahoma for the sake of their children. After
17 years of marriage they decided to adopt and now
are happy parents of a nine-year-old Creek Indian boy,
a 14-year-old Romanian girl and a 16-year-old Chinese
boy. She and her husband are very proud of what she
describes as their multicultural family.

Sooner Lawyer Author
by Jake Travis
Craig Key, ’92, who lost his re-election bid for associate district
judge of Lincoln County in November 2006, has written A Deadly
Game of Tug of War: The Kelsey Smith-Briggs Story (Morgan James
Publishing, 2007), to tell his side of the story in that case, providing
as much detail as possible.
Kelsey Smith-Briggs, age 2, died October 11, 2005, at her home
near Meeker after months of suffering broken bones, bruises and
other injuries. The tragedy exposed serious flaws in how the state
protects children because, at the time of her death, both the state Department
of Human Services and Judge Craig Key were overseeing
her care because of abuse allegations.
Key says, “I want to give people a chance to know the truth, because
at this point there are so many misconceptions regarding this
case.” He wrote the book because he thinks records on cases like this
should be released.
Kelsey died four months after Key returned her to her mother,
despite suspicions the mother, stepfather or others had abused her.
She was moved from mother to her paternal grandparents to her maternal
grandmother and back to her mother again while DHS investigators
tried to sort out whether abuse occurred. A caseworker visited
Kelsey’s home on a weekly basis and was there in the home shortly
before Kelsey’s death.
He says, “It’s extremely important that no other judge ever goes
through what I’ve gone through.”
Was his decision right Key wants readers to decide for themselves
and to decide where to put the blame.
Key said that he returned Kelsey to her mother because state law
gave him no other choice. He said that “when there is no evidence
to show the child is in imminent danger and a parent completes all
their obligations under DHS’s treatment plan, I’m required by law to
return the child to the parents. That’s exactly what I did — followed
the letter of the law.”
This book presents the evidence and testimony given during
court hearings on which Key’s decision was based. Through interviews
and additional research, Key reveals never-before-told facts
regarding both the maternal and paternal sides of Kelsey’s family.
“Kelsey Smith-Briggs taught us all a lesson,” Key said, “about
guarding and protecting our most vulnerable citizens against circumstances
over which they have no control.”
Key has returned to private practice in Chandler.
Craig Key, ’92
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 33

Advocating for Children
Sooner Lawyer Author
by Jake Travis
Denzil Garrison, ’53
Denzil Garrison, ’53, is the author of Honor Restored, (Tate
Publishing & Enterprises, 2006), a book about the trial and eventual
acquittal of Randy Herrod.
It was 1969 and it was Vietnam. Randy Herrod of Calvin, Oklahoma,
led a patrol of Marines to attack a village known to have been
occupied by Viet Cong sympathizers. Herrod, a lance corporal of Creek
Indian background, had built a reputation as a fighter and leader. He
had been approved for the Silver Star medal. In the book’s forward Oliver
North relates how Herrod saved his life twice in one night during
the war.
But after completing the attack on the village, Harrod and his fellow
Marines were accused of maliciously slaughtering 16 innocent women
and children.
Denzil Garrison was one of two principal volunteer attorneys who
travelled to Vietnam to successfully defend Herrod in a military trial.
The book chronicles separate trials of four members of the patrol,
the last of whom was Herrod. Two were convicted, one with a lifetime
sentence and one with a shorter sentence. One who posed as a pacifist,
firing over the heads of all enemy, was acquitted. A fifth patrol member
plea-bargained to testify against the other four.
Garrison, a Republican, was minority floor leader of the Oklahoma
Senate. He was joined on Herrod’s case by Gene Stipe of McAlester, a
Democrat who was a leader on the other side of the aisle in the Senate.
Two other Oklahoma attorneys, Harry Palmer, Jr. and Dick Miller II
of Poteau, helped prepare for a trial that they knew would be difficult
because in the earlier trials much of the blame for the deaths had been
laid on Herrod who was the patrol leader.
The Oklahoma attorneys brought along Dr. Hayden Donahue, a
psychiatrist who was director of the state Mental Health Department.
They were also supported by Carl Albert, speaker of the U.S. House of
Representatives.
After a 22-day trial, Harrod was acquitted of all charges. Two deciding
factors in Herrod’s acquittal were the fact that the patrol came
under enemy fire from a captured American machine gun and that the
Viet Cong had contact with some of the victims.
One of the men in Herrod’s patrol received 12 life sentences while
another received 14 five-year sentences. Stipe and Garrison wrote several
letters which eventually got the sentences of both men reduced to
one year, though each still received dishonorable discharges.
“I just got tired of reading tales about servicemen, told by people
who really didn’t like and admire them,” Garrison said. “I felt the infantry
man’s story should be told.”
34 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Working for the People
by Steve Rice
Ryan Kiesel, ’06
Following in the footsteps of many of his legislative predecessors,
State Representative Ryan Kiesel, ’06, tackled school and a legislative
workload at the same time.
Kiesel started law school in 2002 but temporarily left classes
after the spring semester in 2004 to campaign for and win a
seat in the Oklahoma House of Representatives representing
Seminole County. He returned to class in the summer of 2005
to complete his course work.
“I am so grateful to my family, especially my wife Allison,
for their encouragement and support throughout my law school
career,” said Kiesel.
Although law school can be very demanding, Kiesel said,
“Working for the people of House District 28 was always my top
priority.” Fellow legislators have noted that if Kiesel had a conflict
between class and the Legislature, he was a legislator first.
Kiesel’s dedication to legislative obligations didn’t stand in
the way of academic excellence. He earned a spot on the dean’s
list in each of his semesters and was the recipient of American
Jurisprudence Awards (first in the class) for Torts and Criminal
Procedure. After being elected, he earned two more American
Jurisprudence Awards in the areas of Evidence and Federal
Indian Law.
He is also the recipient of the Paul K. Frost Award for
Distinguished Academic Performance and commitment to
public service and served on the Oklahoma Law Review editorial
board.
Kiesel is a member of the Seminole Elks Lodge, the Black
Historical Research Project, Rotary International, the Seminole
and Wewoka Chambers of Commerce, and serves on the board
of directors of the Jasmine Moran Children’s Museum.
A native Oklahoman and a fifth generation Seminole
County resident, Kiesel was born in Oklahoma City. He is married
to Allison (Booth) of Wilburton. Allison is a pharmacist
practicing in Shawnee and a graduate from the OU College of
Pharmacy.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 35

FEATURE
“Be careful what you attempt . .
K
eep in mind Lou Kerr, OU Law
donor, didn’t know what she
wanted to be when she grew up.
“Growing up, all my friends knew
what they wanted to be,” she says.
“A nurse, a doctor, a fireman. I
was different. I wanted to do and
be everything.”
She never dreamed she’d be president of the Kerr
Foundation, Inc. One of the oldest philanthropic
organizations in Oklahoma, the Foundation is an
offshoot of one of the largest U.S.-based independent
oil and natural gas exploration and production companies,
Kerr-McGee Corporation, which was founded
in 1929.
The Foundation provides funding and support to
countless worthy causes both locally and nationally.
Over the years, the Foundation has given $25 million
to charities and projects benefitting the arts and media,
elder care, agriculture and historic preservation.
Oklahoma issues are not the Kerr Foundation’s
only focus. It also supports efforts that fit the Kerr
Foundation’s mission in states surrounding Oklahoma
as well as public policy programs in Washington, D.C.
One of those public policy groups is the National
Academy of Public Administration (NAPA), an organization
that Lou Kerr believes is the “best kept secret
around.” “It’s a think tank for cities and communities
across the nation,” says Mrs. Kerr. “The trustees and
members are the best in the business,” she says.
“Lou is a dynamo on every level – innovative,
energetic, practical and bold, all in the same package.
She is committed to helping every level of government
become more focused on results and delivering well on
what the public expects. And Lou doesn’t settle for
anything less,” said Jenna Dorn, President & CEO of
Philan
the National Academy of Public Administration
Lou Kerr is pleased that her children are interested
in someday taking the reins of the Kerr Foundation and
36 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
. you may succeed.”—Oklahoma City Philanthropist philanthropist Lou Kerr
that the Foundation is increasingly becoming involved
in medical research – especially cancer, heart disease,
and women’s issues.
Committed to creating more opportunities for
women, Kerr has also been involved in numerous organizations
and initiatives to advance women in business
and leadership positions. She is the chair of the Oklahoma
Chapter of the International Women’s Forum,
which she founded, and hosts an annual training and
mentoring seminar for future women leaders. She is an
appointee to the Oklahoma Commission on the Status
of Women, and also is a member of the Women’s Leadership
Board at the Kennedy School of Government at
Harvard University.
Kerr also is on the advisory board of the Women
Presidents Organization, helping to form the Oklahoma
City chapter of the national nonprofit membership
organization, which assists women who lead successful,
multimillion-dollar businesses to become even more
effective leaders and business owners.
A lifelong resident of Oklahoma City, at the age of
7 she and her brothers would gather stray balls around
the golf course near her family’s house and sell them
back to the golfers.
“I was just a raggedy little kid, but the golfers
bought them from me anyway,” Kerr laughs.
In the late 1960s, Kerr opened a successful boutique
and dress shop. In 1972, she married Robert Kerr,
Jr. son of oil magnate Robert S. Kerr who founded
Kerr-McGee.
“While we can give money to an organization, we
can’t take them under our wing forever. So we go in
and implement business structures and set up committees,
and help the organization stand on its own feet.
We’ve been able to stretch our dollars this way. I don’t
know if other foundations get involved personally, but
thropy
I’m a hands-on person. My desk shows it.”
Having a business background is essential for building
a successful philanthropic organization, she notes.
OU Law Donor!
“Philanthropy is more than not-for-profit. If you
don’t make profit, you won’t survive. To get exposure
for a public mission, you better know a lot about business.
In business, it used to be you survived for six years
and either went on or folded. In the nonprofit world,
it’s more like three years. It’s a simple formula — you
need more money going in than coming out. You have
to bring in funds, and have a significant funding base,
in order to accomplish your mission.
Any business owner must commit to giving back
to the community from the time they start their enterprises,
says Kerr. “You need to put something back in
the pot. You don’t need a lot of money to get involved.
You can join an advisory board or give informal advice
or become a mentor. You can’t give too much. Whatever
you can give — your time, or expertise, or your
financial commitment — as long as you’re involved
you’ll be happier because you’re doing something.”
by Sooner Lawyer Staff
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 37

FEATURE
Having it All
The family-friendly environment is part
of the culture at Hartzog, Conger,
Cason & Neville and one of the
main reasons that Laura McConnell-Corbyn,
’87, is practicing law in
Oklahoma City.
When McConnell-Corbyn first
started practicing law in Oklahoma, her children were
very young. Mothering young children and working on
a legal career often created conflicts.
“Many years ago my daughter wanted me to attend
a mother’s tea at the school,” she said.
The tea was at the same time that McConnell-
Corbyn was scheduled to be in court. She told the
judge about her conflict and he kindly allowed her to
attend.
Being able to attend the tea at her daughter’s
school is an example of the family-friendly environment
in the Oklahoma City legal community, said
McConnell-Corbyn, whose children are now aged 20
and 22.
“It is nice to have a supportive environment,” said
McConnell-Corbyn. “It is good both personally and
professionally.”
“We have judges in Oklahoma County who helped
me do what I needed to do to take care of my kids,” she
said. She had an opportunity to practice law in other
places, but chose Oklahoma City for its friendly atmosphere.
Hartzog, Conger, Cason & Neville is widely recognized
as one of the most prestigious law firms in
Oklahoma, representing a wide variety of clients. Over
three decades, they’ve grown into a well-organized firm
of more than thirty lawyers.
She’s one of Top 50 Lawyers listed in Oklahoma
Super Lawyers magazine for 2008 and she credits the
family-friendly environment as a big contributor to her
successful career.
She received a degree in biology from Oklahoma
Baptist University and her law degree from the University
of Oklahoma.
Her practice is in litigation, family law and employment
law. She has been with the firm since 1987.
Laura McConnell-Corbyn, ’87
38 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Sooner Lawyer Author
by Jake Travis
Dan Anderson and Laurence J. Yadon, ’74, are the authors
of 100 Oklahoma Outlaws, Gangsters, and Lawmen, 1839-1939 (Pelican
Publishing Company, 2007). The book was edited by former OU Law
professor Bob Smith.
Oklahoma, when it was known as Indian Territory and after statehood
in 1907, was a land where outlaws seemed to run wild, and enforcers
of the law had a hard time keeping them under control.
The book covers 100 years of history of outlaws and lawmen in Indian
Territory and, later, the state of Oklahoma from 1839 to 1939.
The authors feature known and lesser-known personalities on both
sides of the law. Some of the outlaws include Rufus Buck and his gang,
Thomas Starr, Belle Starr, Alvirado Hudson, Cattle Annie and Little
Britches, Bonnie and Clyde, Billy the Kid and his gang, Pretty Boy Floyd,
Cherokee Bill, Henry Starr, the Ma Barker gang, the Youngers, the Daltons,
the Doolins and many others. There is a profile of outlaws toward
the end of the book. Some of the lawmen featured in the book are William
Tilghman, James Franklin “Bud” Ledbetter, Chris Madsen, Judge
Isaac C. Parker and others.
Yadon is a genealogy buff and an amateur historian. He read more
than 120 books to research names, places and dates. He and Anderson
put together the names of outlaws and various bad guys that they thought
would make the most interesting read.
The book covers a period in Oklahoma history beginning with the
first recorded murders in the new Indian Territory in 1839, and ends
in 1939 when the last active member of the infamous Ma Barker Gang,
whose origins began in Tulsa, was killed.
Dan Anderson studied business at Northeastern Oklahoma A & M
College in Miami, Oklahoma and studied history at Tulsa Community
College. He is a former newswriter, photographer, feature writer and columnist.
In addition to journalism, he has been involved in private security,
has been a reserve police officer and a private investigator.
Laurence Yadon studied history at the University of Tulsa under William
Settle, the author of Jesse James Was His Name. He is the owner of
Mediation Dynamics, which specializes in mediation and arbitration. He
has co-authored three works about the American West since this book.
He graduated from the University of Oklahoma College of Law in 1974.
You will also enjoy Anderson and Yadon’s upcoming book Ten Deadly
Texans (Pelican Publishing Company, 2009). It is a collection of true
stories, tall tales and numerous anecdotes about ten of the most deadly
outlaws to cross the Texas line.
Laurence J. Yadon, ’74
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 39

FEATURE
Michael A. Cawley, ’72
“Energy crops represent an
important opportunity for
agricultural producers, rural
economies and producers and
users of transportation fuels. This
collaboration is an opportunity
to participate in the development
of new markets for agricultural
producers and to expand
agricultural production into nonproductive
or marginal lands using
environmentally beneficial crops
and practices.”—Michael A. Cawley
Michael A. Cawley, ’72, has
served as president and chief
executive officer of the Samuel
Roberts Noble Foundation,
Inc., a not-for-profit corporation
since February 1992,
after serving as executive vice
president of the Noble Foundation from January 1991.
He has served as a trustee of the Noble Foundation
since 1988. He also is a director of Noble Corporation
and Noble Energy, Inc. and is chairman of the board of
the University of Oklahoma Foundation.
The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, Inc.
headquartered in Ardmore, is a nonprofit organization
conducting agricultural, forage improvement and
plant biology research; assisting farmers and ranchers
through educational and consultative agricultural programs;
and providing grants to nonprofit charitable,
educational and health organizations.
Cawley received his B.A. in Economics in 1969
from the University of Oklahoma and received his
law degree from there in 1972. He was admitted to
the Oklahoma Bar that same year and practiced law
in Ardmore for 19 years. In 1992, he was appointed
president and CEO of the Noble Foundation.
In 2003 he was initiated into the University of
Oklahoma College of Law’s chapter of The Order of
the Coif as an honorary member. He is a trustee of the
Glen Foundation and the Merrick Foundation.
For more than five years prior to 1991, Mr. Cawley
was the president of Thompson & Cawley, a professional
corporation, an Ardmore law firm; and Mr.
Cawley currently serves as of counsel to the law firm
of Thompson, Cawley, Veazey & Burns, a professional
Philan
corporation. Mr. Cawley also is a director of Noble
Energy, Inc.
by Steve Rice
40 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation
“Lloyd Noble believed education
was one of the keys to a successful
life. The Samuel Roberts Noble
Foundation continues its founder’s
dedication to higher education
by offering multiple scholarship
programs, supporting important
research projects and assisting in the
construction of infrastructure. As
one of the premiere comprehensive
higher education institutions in
Oklahoma, OU provides countless
opportunities to better the lives of its
students and the Noble Foundation
is honored to support such a worthy
thropy
cause and continue Lloyd Noble’s
Lloyd Noble began his career
in 1921 when he borrowed
$15,000 from his mother
to buy his first oil drilling
rig. Through skill, luck, intelligence
and opportunity he ended up running
one of the most successful oil
companies in the country.
Noble founded the Samuel
Roberts Noble Foundation in 1945. He named it after
his father who he said was the most generous man he
had ever known.
Appalled at the poor farming
practices Noble saw in the 1920s
and 30s in Oklahoma and Texas, he
set up the foundation initially focusing
on agriculture in an attempt to
rejuvenate the state’s industry following
the devastation of the Dust
Bowl and World War II.
The foundation is separated
into three divisions — Agriculture, Plant Biology and
Forage Improvement. The Agricultural Division does
research and provides learning opportunities for regional
agricultural producers and other stewards of natural
resources to help them achieve their financial, production
and quality-of-life goals.
The Plant Biology Division conducts basic biochemical,
genetic and genomic
plant research for plant improvement,
enhancement of human and
animal health and production of
new plant products.
The Forage Improvement
Division develops new forage varieties,
integrating applied plant
breeding, molecular biology and genomics.
legacy of support.”—Michael A. Cawley
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 41

Sooner Lawyer Author
by Elvira Mashup
Greg Metzer, ’85
Greg Metzer, ’85, author of Rock Band Name Origins (McFarland,
2008), tells how some of the most popular rock bands, pop groups
and unusually dubbed solo artists of the 1960s-2000s got their names.
Does “Mythical Ethical Icicle Tricycle” sound like a great name for a
rock band Jerry Garcia didn’t think so and decided to call his band “The
Grateful Dead.” And the rest, as they say, is history.
The self-described “rock snob” got the idea for the book in 2006 while
listening to local radio show “Rick and Brad.” They were talking about
the name Nickelback, which came out of front man Chad Kroeger’s days
as a Starbucks cashier.
Fascinated, Metzer researched and wrote about 300 words on how
one of his favorite bands, the Eagles, picked their name.
“I’ve always wanted to write a book, and I finally found a subject that
interested me enough, and I thought other people would be interested in,
too,” he said.
Each chapter details the genesis of the band’s name along with its
best-known song, founding date, original and later members.
Through his research, he uncovered bizarre discarded names, odd
naming trends (Pearl Jam and other modern bands are secretive about
their name origins) and convoluted stories (he used a flowchart for
Heart).
Despite his own wealth of rock trivia factoids, Metzer found himself
learning something new with every story.
Some acts on the list, such as Milli Vanilli, were included “because of
strange names or a good story,” he said.
Others, including Spandau Ballet, had to be left out because Metzer
couldn’t uncover enough verifiable information or there were conflicting
reports.
Flaming Lips: Not from the Virgin Mary, as singer Wayne Coyne
would like people to believe. Rather, Metzer wrote: “The name simply
appealed to Wayne as a bit of psychedelic surrealism.”
Metzer discovered Alice in Chains once played under a moniker
that’s a four-letter word, which starts with the first letter of the Flaming
Lips.
Unlike the artists in his book — Milli Vanilli excluded — Metzer is a
lousy musician. If he were to ever form a band, he’d call it “The Greatest
Band of All Time.” “That way when the DJ announces the song, he’d have
to say, ‘Now, here’s the The Greatest Band of All Time.’ ”
“There have been great bands with lousy names and lousy bands
with great names,” Metzer said. “The talent of the band will override the
name of the band any day.”
42 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
BLSA Voices
By Christopher M. Staine, 2L
On February 28, 2008, The Black Law
Students Association (BLSA), Ada
Lois Sipuel Fisher Chapter of The
University of Oklahoma College of
Law hosted its 2008 Black History
Program. For this program I developed
a short documentary entitled “BLSA
Voices,” which included the interviews of André Caldwell,
’08, Jeremy Brown, 3L, and Olufunmike Owoso, 3L. The
purpose of this documentary was to highlight a few African
Americans who have placed their mark on society, thereby
creating a rippling effect that has given opportunities to
future generations that once were not available.
The documentary encompasses the responses to three
questions:
1. “What African American in history has influenced and
helped mold you into becoming the successful person that
you are today”
2. “How has this person influenced your overall outlook on
life”
3. “What mark do you plan to place on society in order to
add to the rippling effect”
The first mind I inquired into was André Caldwell, who
declared that Malcolm X was the African American that
had helped mold his life. He further mentioned that he has
applied Malcolm X’s “By Any Means Necessary” theory in
the context of reaching the goals that he has for his life and
doing what is necessary to reach those goals. André plans
to place his mark on society by advocating racial integration
and equality within the community.
The next person I interviewed was Jeremy Brown, and
he named David Walker as the African American that had
strongly influenced his life. Jeremy mentioned that his overall
outlook on life had been influenced by the courage that
David Walker possessed in advocating for the immediate
abolition of slavery. In three words Jeremy stated, “Don’t
shut up!” meaning that if there is an issue in the world, it is
imperative to speak on it and not let fear preclude us from
voicing our beliefs. Jeremy plans to add to the rippling
effect by showing young African Americans that there are
opportunities available for them to take advantage of, such
as getting a law degree.
Lastly, I had the pleasure of interviewing Olufunmike
Owoso, who stated that LeVar Burton was the African
“[I]f there is an issue in the world,
it is imperative to speak on it and
not let fear preclude us from voicing
our beliefs.”
American that had strongly influenced her life. Specifically,
she mentioned that through his production of Reading
Rainbow, she has gained a love of reading and learning about
different ideas and theories. Olufunmike plans to place her
mark on society by advocating for the rights of those who are
victims of human trafficking and assist in putting an end to
that entire industry.
The documentary concluded with the EPIC vision of
BLSA. “EPIC” is the acronym for Enhancing the Community
by Promoting political action, Investing in The University
of Oklahoma campus, and Creating an awareness of
issues significant to African Americans. This documentary
has allowed me to observe the different perspectives and
visions of various African American law school students,
and I would like to thank all of those who contributed to the
success of “BLSA Voices.”
Christopher M. Staine, 2L
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 43

FEATURE
Building Strong Connections
“I am gratified
to see American
Indian tribes
as a powerful
economic force in
Oklahoma.”
44 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Dana M. Deere, ’02, had never considered a
career in law until she took Native American
Studies courses at OU. The higher level
courses focused on tribal sovereignty and federal
Indian law. Since she is an enrolled member
of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, she grew
up aware of the unique status of tribal members
who could be a citizen of a tribe and simultaneously
a citizen of the United States.
After talking with her mentor and professor Gerry
Bread, she realized the only way she would ever completely
understand the function of tribal governments was to
study law. After getting her Bachelor’s in Education she
applied at the OU College of Law and was accepted.
After graduation she worked with Andrews Davis, PC
and then Legal Advocates, a group of Indian law attorneys
who work in their community and assist each other with
providing quality and affordable legal services to Indian
Country.
In 2007 Deere formed her own law firm. Over the
years she developed a strong tribal client base and wanted
to maintain her ideals in representing those clients. She
believes in building strong relationships with her tribal
clients and provides hands-on personal representation.
“My cultural and tribal affiliations provide me with
insight into the problems of my clients and help me form
personal connections with them.”
All of her clients are Indian tribes, tribal entities or
tribal businesses. Deere is the tribal attorney for the Kaw
Nation, Prosecutor for the Comanche Nation’s Children’s
Court, special judge for the Cheyenne and Arapaho
Tribes and general counsel for the Kiowa Comanche and
Apache Intertribal Land Use Committee.
On a daily basis she delves into corporate law, tax law,
employment law, gaming law, contract law and so on.
“I really enjoy working with tribes to pursue different
avenues of economic development no matter the enterprise
or project, i.e. gaming, housing or other businesses.”
she says. “I develop, review and coordinate contracts that
facilitate economic development. The creative possibilities
are limitless. Being a descendant of a tribe that had
a strong impact on Indian Territory prior to statehood, I
am gratified to see American Indian tribes as a powerful
economic force in Oklahoma.”
Deere finds the time to volunteer with Oklahoma
Lawyer’s for Children and represents abused and neglected
children. She is often appointed guardian ad litem in
juvenile cases to represent children’s rights.
“It is very rewarding to speak for a child’s right in a
court proceeding, especially in cases involving abused or
neglected children,” she says.
Originally from Eufaula, Deere grew up in Tulsa,
Oklahoma. Her tribal town is Alabama-Quassarte and
her stomping grounds are at Duck Creek.
Before coming to OU she attended the Institute of
American Indian Arts in Santa Fe, studying two dimensional
art and Native American literature. “I still paint
and write from time to time,” she says. “I consider myself
an artist at heart.”
Dana Deere lives in Norman with her husband. Three
of her four children still live at home.
by Susan Brassfield Cogan
Dana M. Deere, ’02
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 45

FEATURE
A
Champ
in More
Ways
Than
One
46 | Sooner Lawyer | spring/summer 2008
Noah Zuhdi, 3L, won the Oklahoma State
Lightweight title and had to hit the law
books the very next day to get ready for
finals. He became a professional boxer in
2007 and will finish law school this spring.
Zuhdi is 6-0 with six first-round knockouts.
His championship bout with George
Colbert was scheduled for six rounds but ended just shy of
two minutes into round one.
“I would say within the first 20 seconds I knew it was
going to be a good night,” Zuhdi said of the bout. “I was
going to do whatever I wanted to do. This was my fastest
fight yet.”
At Heritage Hall High School and later at St. Gregory’s
University, Zuhdi was an outstanding basketball player.
“I played ball through college. That’s my first love,”
Zuhdi said. “I have played since I can walk.” But when his
eligibility ran out it became clear he would not have a pro
career. He went into boxing and enrolled in law school
the same year.
Engaging in two incredibly demanding careers at the
same time requires enormous self-discipline.
“Balancing [law studies] with boxing doesn’t leave a
lot of free time,” he says. “Both are very demanding. In
both there is discipline. You have to sacrifice a lot and put
in hours of studying. They’re very similar.”
Zuhdi has the advantage of tremendous support
around him. First is his sparring partner Kyle Sherman.
“Kyle is just the toughest guy I know. He’s helped me
so much in and out of the ring,” Zuhdi said. “He’s just
one of those special guys you don’t find in this sport too
often.”
Also important is his coach, former World Lightweight
Champion Sean O’Grady. Zuhdi feels with O’Grady as his
coach he has a real shot at a world championship.
Most important of all, though, is his wife
Sara. “She has been awesome,” Zuhdi said.
“She understands the demands of sports
and school. I could not have asked for
more with the support and confidence she
gives.”
Noah Zuhdi doesn’t know right now if
he will practice law. Boxing is his #1 passion
at the moment. But for now his life is
balanced between his fists and his brain.
Noah Zuhdi, 3L
by Susan Brassfield Cogan

FEATURE
Sooner Lawyer Author
by Steve Rice
Larry Derryberry, ’63, a former Oklahoma legislator
and attorney general has created The Oklahoma Scranimal (Tate
Publishing, 2008) a children’s book, complete with a compact disc,
which draws on memories of his own youth spent on a leased tenant
farm in Jackson County near Altus.
Did you ever wonder what would happen if a tornado picked
up five farm animals and scrambled them into one The Scranimal
has parts of a cow, a horse, a pig, a sheep and a duck, all mixed up
in a storm on Papa Derryberry’s farm. Illustrated in vibrant colors
by Larry’s wife, Gale Derryberry, this book tells the story of five
farm animals having breakfast together when they are caught up in
a tornado. After the storm, the five animals are “stirred together like
a skillet full of scrambled eggs,” Derryberry writes.
For as long as he can remember, Larry Derryberry has loved
to tell stories to his four grandchildren. “We had horses, cows, big
chickens, a very mean bull, lizards and a snake that liked to sun
itself on a hay bale,” he said. And he admitted that, as he tells his
grandchildren these stories, he embellishes them greatly.
There were also fierce storms. “We had to watch for the tornadoes.
It was well before the days of television stations that watched
weather like hawks. We had a storm shelter, and my mother would
usher us in to safety. My dad would be the last to arrive.”
Derryberry loves music, and it is no surprise that the accompanying
CD is a musical feast. A professional music group plays in
the background. Six well-known Oklahoma personalities sing the
dialogue of the animals. Governor Brad Henry sings the saga of
the sheep. Bob Funk speaks the horse’s role. Jane Jayroe tells the
duck’s story. Gymnast Nadia Comaneci sings the cow’s tale. General
Tommy Franks contributes an inspirational passage. Coach Barry
Switzer lobbied to play the voice of the pig. He is a native of Arkansas,
a state known for its razorbacks. Who better to sing that role
Derryberry himself even sings a part.
“People are surprised when I tell them I’ve written a children’s
book,” Derryberry said with a laugh. “Most people thought I would
write about history, law and politics, my three great loves. But I love
being a storyteller for my grandchildren.”
Derryberry is the author of two other books for children, The
Lollipop Mine (2009) and The Scranimal-apolis 500 (2009).
Larry Derryberry, ’63
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 47

FEATURE
Meet the Staff
The Faculty Support Center
The Faculty Support Center (FSC) provides every
level of support needed by the faculty at the OU
College of Law. The FSC is comprised of an office
manager, Dawn Tomlins and two faculty assistants,
Misty Akins and Jennifer Karr.
Dawn has been at the Law School since April 1992, while
Misty has been here since April 2001. Jennifer was new on
board in June 2007.
The support staff provides assistance to professors in publishing
their scholarly works in various legal publications, as
well as assisting them with their academic teaching and their
academic governance activities. The FSC maintains a secure
area for all work requested. The support staff also serve as
liaison between students and their professors by distributing
(selling) supplemental materials created by their professor or
having their information available on-line. The FSC also
serves as an area in which to turn in student’s writing assignments
and to pick up handouts for class. The support staff also
is responsible for ordering textbooks required for each class.
Dawn Tomlins, Jennifer Karr and
Misty Akins
Postcards from traveling faculty
adorn the wall of Dawn Tomlin’s
office.
Andrew M. Coats Hall
48 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
The
Molly
practice
B. Neuman
of law
is a wonderful career
Molly B. Neuman, ’05, works for
Vincent Mesis, Jr., ’73, concentrating
for the most part on
guardian ad litem appointments
and family law, mostly in Kingfisher
and Canadian Counties.
A former assistant district
attorney in Canadian County, Neuman loved the field of
prosecution and learned a great deal about criminal law
under the mentorship of Mike Gahan, ’82, who received the
2008 ODAA Mitch Sperry Memorial Award for Outstanding
Prosecutor. He instilled in her a respect for the law and
the importance of preparation and attention to detail.
She always was fascinated with prosecution, and since
her husband was in law enforcement, it gave them a shared
interest.
“I wanted to have an active hand in seeing that justice
was served,” Neuman said. She was very impressed by Garfield
County District Attorney Cathy Stocker, ’75, who has an evenhanded,
fair-minded approach to prosecution. She worked for
Stocker as a legal intern her second year of law school and after
graduation.
In 2007 Neuman left the DA’s office. Her son was six
months old and she wanted to spend more time with her
family. It was a good move. Working part time for Mesis, she
discovered he values family and encourages his employees to
prioritize family first.
Now, no longer focused on criminal law, she could concentrate
on guardian ad litem work.
“I love children,” she says. “And have always been very
interested in practicing law that would benefit children.”
She had begun being involved in juvenile cases at the
DA’s office and now she enjoys representing children who
have been adjudicated deprived and taking appointments as
guardian ad litem in custody cases.
“It is very difficult, demanding and draining work,”
says Neuman, “but at the end of the day, if she can say she
helped a child, it was worth it.”
Her favorite cases are adoptions—a win, win, win
situation. In adoption cases a new family is created: parents
have a child they have wanted, a child has parents who can
care for and provide for him or her, and birth parents have
helped the child to have a family.
Neuman was elected for and attended 2007 OBA Leadership
Conference and is the 2009 Kingfisher County Bar
Molly B. Neuman, ’05
Association President. She serves on the OBA committees
on Professionalism and Work/Life Balance, areas which she
is passionate about.
She also is very involved with her church, where she is
the director of adult and children’s choirs (her undergraduate
degree was in vocal music education), and she volunteers
for youth and children’s ministries. She was a member of the
Ruth Bader Ginsburg American Inn of Court from 2005-
2008.
In June 2008, she and her husband rode in Free Wheel
Oklahoma, a week-long bike ride from Texas to Kansas,
and she ran her first half-marathon in November 2008. She
enjoys traveling, snow skiing, biking, camping, music and
anything else where she can spend time with her family.
She feels very fortunate to have a boss and job that
allow her time, and more importantly, the flexibility to be
very involved in church work, family life and community.
“The practice of law is a wonderful career and can be
very rewarding,” she says. “But for me it is just a piece of
my life — a tool I can use to pursue things I am passionate
about.”
She is married to Steve Neuman, an inspector for the
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and the Neumans
have one child, Will, who is two and a half, and are hoping
to expand their family soon. They live in Kingfisher.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 49

FEATURE
by Jonella Frank
Hard
Pays
Off
The first week of law school is a daunting
experience for most first-year students.
Everything is different. The building (Where
is classroom 2), the subject matter (Torts…
isn’t that a dessert), the Socratic method
(You mean I’m going to have to speak during
class), the other students (I don’t know
her first name…just Ms. Jones.) and the process of academic
evaluation (My grade for an entire semester depends on just
one exam).
Now imagine facing all those new experiences and
you’re six years younger than the average age of your firstyear
classmates. That was the first week at the OU College
of Law for Ruth Addison, ’07. However, for the then
18-year-old, the most intimidating part may have been
moving into a nearly-deserted dorm in May of 2004 and saying
goodbye to family members who brought her to Norman
from her home in Tulsa.
Ruth, currently 23 and an assistant district attorney for
Tulsa County, still remembers being scared at that point, but
maintains that her age was never really an issue for her in law
school. Of course, she was already used to being the youngest
person in her class. She was only 14 when she entered Oral
Roberts University as a freshman. Seven semesters later, she
graduated cum laude with a B.A. in government and a minor
in English literature.
As one of four children of Felicia and William Addison,
natives of Ghana, West Africa, Ruth grew up in Tulsa. Her
education through the sixth grade was a combination of
public education and home-schooling. After the sixth grade,
she stopped attending public school and for four years, William
Addison, a man with multiple degrees, including a J.D.
from ORU, was her teacher. In what she describes as a “very
accelerated program,” she was schooled six days a week, 12
months a year using a curriculum created by her father. Her
younger siblings followed the same program. Daniel, 21, is
studying at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Tennessee
and will earn his M.D. in May 2009, David, 20, is studying
at Langston University-Tulsa with a goal of becoming
a C.P.A. and Sarah, 11, is currently home-schooled and is
considering attending medical school like her big brother.
During her sophomore, junior and senior years in college,
Ruth worked 20 to 25 hours each week. She was a
receptionist for the ORU Housing Department and at the
same time, served as the sports information director for the
university’s men’s tennis team. During the fall of 2002, as
part of an internship for one of her government classes, she
worked as a campaign assistant for the Republican National
Committee and helped in gubernatorial and state legislative
races in Colorado.
During that same semester, Ruth became involved in
the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature, a student-run
mock government in which students from more than 15
universities and colleges in Oklahoma compete at the state
capitol for several days when the Oklahoma Legislature is in
50 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Ruth Addison, ’07
recess. She also was active in the French Club and during
the summer of 2003, was able to study in France for a few
weeks with other members of the group.
During her senior year, Ruth became involved in the
ORU Student Association and served as the Adopt-A-
Commuter Services Director. She assisted in creating and
coordinating a program to link commuter students with
on-campus students in an effort to increase the feeling of
community on the campus. In addition, she and two other
government students formed Alpha Phi Kappa, a pre-law
society which became the first of its kind to be associated
with the Christian Legal Society.
In May 2004, Ruth began the Early Admission Program
at the OU College of Law. Her father had prepped her for
law school, so she had some idea of what to expect. And, she
says with a smile, some of her friends helped her by giving
her the movie Legally Blonde.
In law school, Ruth says that although she was usually
“oblivious” to the age difference, during her second
semester, a rumor—that there was a first-year student who
was only 18—began to circulate. Classmates would ask, “Is
it you” She would answer honestly, but never brought up
the subject herself.
Assistant Dean Stan Evans, who describes Ruth as
“thoughtful, mature and intuitive” tells how he told Ruth he
would be “her father away from home.” Taking him at his
word, Ruth visited him in his office one day, and told him
she’d decided it was time for her to learn how to drive. She
was hoping that his “fatherly” attitude would include giving
driving lessons to her in his beloved BMW. She learned
quickly that it didn’t. Her real father and classmate Nathan
Corbett, ’07, acted as her driving instructors. After numerous
practice sessions in Tulsa with her father and parking
lots and a park nearby the College of Law with Nathan, she
successfully passed the driving test, got her driver’s license
and began making payments on a car.
After graduation from law school, while still studying
for the Oklahoma Bar Examination, Ruth started working
as an intern for the Tulsa County District Attorney’s
office. She began prosecuting misdemeanors in the Criminal
Division and later moved to the Juvenile Division. In
June 2008, she left the D.A.’s office and went to work with
Hiltgen & Brewer, P.C., in Oklahoma City. However, after
three months, she missed the fast pace of her prior job and
returned to the Juvenile Division of the Tulsa County District
Attorney’s office in October 2008.
Ruth prosecutes cases involving children who are
alleged to be deprived, delinquent, in need of supervision
or in need of mental health treatment. Her days are packed
with court appearances ranging from jury trials to show
cause hearings, to dispositional hearings and reviews. She
already has 12 jury trials under her belt. Some days, she feels
lucky if she has 20 minutes to grab a bite of lunch. But she
loves it. In her own words, she has a “passion” for the work
she does. That’s a passion for children and primarily, a passion
for justice.
She explained that she, like many of the children with
whom she comes into contact, didn’t come from a family
with a lot of money. “Where we come from, people don’t go
to college,” she said. “Many of the delinquents I see in court
live in the same area that I did growing up.” This is another
reason she reaches out to her community through her public
service. “I can tell them ‘I was no better off than you. You
can do it too. Just work hard. Hard work pays off,’” she said.
In her 23 years of life, she has already proven that statement.
Hard work has paid off for Ruth Addison.
When asked what the future might hold for her, she
relaxed and sat back in her chair. In the immediate future,
she thinks she might like to teach government or business law
as an adjunct professor. But one day, she would like to be a
judge. And that seems like the perfect job for a young woman
with a passion for justice who knows how to work hard.
Favorite TV Show: Grey’s Anatomy
Favorite Movie: Last of the Mohicans (from the book by
James Fenimore Cooper)
Favorite Book: Les Miserables by Victor Hugo
Favorite Food: Fried Plantains
Favorite Law Prof: Cheryl Wattley
Favorite Vacation Spot: Nice, France
Favorite Sports Team: NBA’s Boston Celtics
Favorite Place: Spain
Favorite Hobby: Hanging out with my family and friends
Most Like to Meet: President and Mrs. Obama
Favorite Quote: “The test of a first rate intelligence is
the ability to hold two opposed ideas
in the mind at the same time and still
retain the ability to function.”—F. Scott
Fitzgerald
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 51

FEATURE
Coffee Leads
Oklahoma
by Jonella Frank
Glenn Coffee, OU Law ’92, a State
Senator from Oklahoma City has
become accustomed to hearing the
word “historic” used in conjunction
with his name and work in the Senate.
In 2006, election results left the
Senate split in a 24-24 tie and the Republican and Democrat caucuses
entered into a historic agreement to share power. As a result
of this agreement, Coffee was elected co-president pro tempore of
the Oklahoma State Senate for the 51st Legislature, sharing the
Senate’s top leadership post with Mike Morgan, a Democrat from
Stillwater. As part of that agreement, Coffee served as the president
pro tempore during the month of July 2007, making him the
first Republican in state history to lead the Senate.
Following the first session of operation under this powersharing
agreement, Coffee said the arrangement worked well. He
thanked Senator Morgan and all other members of the Senate for
striving to make the agreement work so well. “The tie could have
resulted in gridlock,” he said, “but instead the Senate had a very
successful legislative session for the people of Oklahoma.”
The 2008 election resulted in another history-making
situation—Republicans won the State Senate’s majority for the
first time in Oklahoma history. Coffee was unanimously voted to
be the next president pro tempore. And this time, the job is his
alone. As the president pro tempore, Coffee is third in the line of
succession as Governor. If Governor Brad Henry, ’88, and Lieutenant
Governor Jari Askins, ’80, are both out of state, he will
serve as acting governor.
Coffee, born in Lubbock, Texas, is a businessman and
attorney who, prior to his three years at the OU College of Law,
attended Northeastern State University, earning a B.A. in Political
Science in 1989. He is of counsel to Phillips Murrah, P.C.
in Oklahoma City and specializes in business, commercial and
electronic commerce law. He also serves as general counsel for a
family business, TVC Marketing Associates, Inc. which is a motor
club for professional truck drivers.
In explaining how his time is divided, Coffee said that from
January through May, he is “pretty much hopelessly devoted to the
Senate.” “I’m grateful that my colleagues at Phillips Murrah and
TVC understand this and make those allowances for me,” he commented.
“The summer, fall and early winter offer more flexibility
to make up for lost time with my non-legislative duties. My family
has been wonderfully supportive and patient with me, as well.”
Coffee has served in the State Senate since 1998 and has held
a number of leadership positions, including Republican caucus
chairman, assistant minority floor leader and minority floor leader.
He is an alumnus of Leadership Oklahoma City and Leadership
Oklahoma.
Coffee received Northeastern State University’s 2003 Citation
of Merit Young Alumnus Award and in 2006, was named by
the Journal Record as one of their “Achievers Under 40.” In 2007,
he was selected as one of 24 federal, state and local government
leaders from across the nation to receive the Aspen-Rodel Fellowship
in Public Leadership.
Coffee takes pride in public safety legislation, including
protections against the early release of violent offenders, which
he was “able to shepherd through the process and see become
law.” He stated, “I’m also proud of, and will continue to pursue,
legislative measures that make Oklahoma a more attractive and
profitable place to do business and grow jobs.”
Coffee lives in Oklahoma City with his wife Lisa and their
children, Collin, Blaine, Anna and Kate. “With four children
from high school to pre-school, there is always something going
on, and it’s always a priority to make as many of their football
games and school programs as possible,” he said.
52 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
State Senate
Glenn Coffee, ’92
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 53

FEATURE
by Jonella Frank
District Judge Susan Woodward Bragg, ’79
Leon Douglas “Doug” Bragg, Jr.
As all parents know, children watch adults, emulate
us and learn from us. It’s not unusual for children to
follow in our footsteps with similar interests, beliefs
and values. Apparently, the same principle holds true
when it comes to selecting a law school.
While reading through the roll of the first-year
class, I came across names of students whose parents,
grandparents and other relatives I knew to be graduates
of the University of Oklahoma College of Law.
Kathie Madden, admissions and recruitment coordinator, was able
to identify almost 20 first-year students who can be called OU
Law legacies. The second- and third-year classes each have more
than ten legacies.
Leon Douglas “Doug” Bragg, Jr. will graduate from the OU
College of Law in May 2009, thirty years almost to the day when
his mother, Susan Woodard Bragg, ’79, did the same. Bragg
explained that his mother was pregnant with him during her second
year in law school, and that although he seriously considered
several other law schools, it took only one visit to OU for him to
feel like he was home. “OU was just the perfect fit for me,” he
said.
Susan Bragg died in 2005, almost one year before Doug began
law school. However, in her 26 years as a lawyer, her achievements
make Doug proud. After graduation, she entered private
practice for a brief time in Oklahoma City and then went to work
for the Oklahoma County District Attorney until 1988 when she
was appointed as a special district judge in Oklahoma County. In
1995, Bragg returned to private practice until her election as a
district judge in 1998, making her one of the first female African
Americans to be elected to that position in Oklahoma.
Legacies of the OU College of Law
54 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Doug received a B.S. in criminal justice from Tennessee State
University and had been living and working in Tennessee for about
five years when he began to feel that he “had a greater purpose to
serve” and his desire to attend law school grew. He explained, “I’ve
always had a knack for arguing for the ‘little guy,’ even when all of
the world seems against him.”
His favorite part of attending law school is the “interaction
with so many brilliant and exceptional minds.” The competitions
program also is an important element in Doug’s law school
experience. His team in the Calvert Intra-School Moot Court
Competition advanced to the elite eight and in the Frederick
Douglass Moot Court Competition, his team took second place in
the regional competition and placed sixth at the national level. He
also has been active in the Sports and Entertainment Law Society,
Students for Access to Justice, Black Law Students Association,
Student Bar Association, ACLU and NAACP.
According to Assistant Dean for Students Stanley L. Evans,
when Doug graduates, he will be the first African American OU
College of Law legacy to do so. As he moves toward that day, Doug
laments that there wasn’t enough time to take all the classes that
interested him in addition to the required courses. However, he
said his biggest regret was “going through this entire process without
having my mother there to answer my questions and go through
it with me.”
In the same class is Belinda Howard, whose grandfather,
Joseph Howard, ’22, and father, Gene C. Howard, ’51, preceded
her at the College of Law. Her grandfather is deceased, but her
dad, a former president pro tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate,
practices law in Tulsa with the firm of Bonham & Howard. Belinda
completed her undergraduate studies at OU, receiving a degree in
public relations with a minor in business.
She had always been fascinated by the law and felt that law
school would be the right place for her. Belinda served as a class
officer and is a member of Phi Delta Phi Honor Society. She
worked as a clerk for Chief Judge Keith Rapp of the Oklahoma
Court of Civil Appeals and with the Bell Law Firm in Norman.
When asked about her favorite aspect of law school, she replied.
“The invaluable opportunities it has given me, such as the Oxford
program and my clerkship through the externship program.”
Another member of the class of 2009 (a 3L in law school
parlance), Matt Swain said, “I’ve always been interested in the
law. I grew up around attorneys and I knew from a young age that
I wanted to become an attorney.” Many of those attorneys were his
relatives. His father, Paul Swain, ’82, is a solo practitioner in Tulsa.
His grandfather, L.K. Smith, ’57, now deceased, was a partner in
the Tulsa firm of Boone, Smith, Davis, Hurst & Dickman. His
great-grandfather, L.K. Smith, Sr., ’30, also deceased, was among
the earliest lawyers in Swain’s family. However, the first family
member to be a lawyer was Matt’s great-great-grandfather, Orlando
Swain who served as a judge in Okmulgee County from 1926 until
1930. Matt commented, “He didn’t graduate from OU Law School
because OU didn’t have a law school at the time. He was admitted
to practice in Nebraska in 1896 and Oklahoma in 1901.”
In addition to Matt’s blood relatives who have attended law
school at the University of Oklahoma, his wife, Amanda Swain, is
a classmate. “I am so happy that we could experience law school
together,” he said. “Going through these three years together has
made it much easier than it would have been if only one of us was
in law school.”
Matt earned his B.A. from Wake Forest University. No other
law schools stood a chance with him. “I knew that not only did I
want to go to law school, I wanted to go to OU Law,” he explained.
“My grandfather always spoke so highly of the law school and he
was very proud to be an alumnus.” The L.K. Smith Courtroom is
testimony to his grandfather’s feeling about the law school. It was
made possible through a generous memorial gift from his family.
Matt is a board member of the Second Chance Animal Sanctuary
in Norman and has worked in the office of the Oklahoma
County district attorney. During his final semester, he will be working
in the OU Criminal Defense Clinic.
Second-year student Barbara Coke is a double legacy – both
parents are OU Law graduates. Mark Coke, ’75, is in private practice
in Altus, specializing in real estate, probate and estate planning.
Catherine Coke, ’75, is the city attorney for the City of Altus.
The two met in their second year of law school. Barbara explained,
“My mother’s last name was Codding, so she and Coke sat right
next to each other.” She added that they had a classmate named
Coe who “fortuitously did not sit between them.” The two married
at the end of their second year and upon graduation, moved to
Altus.
Barbara earned her psychology degree from OU in 2006 and
considered several possible careers, but said, “I was always fascinated
by the work my parents did, so I decided I’d pursue law. I am
very happy with my decision.”
She had her mind made up to attend law school at the University
of Kansas when the OU College of Law offered a scholarship
that was “too good to ignore.” Barbara added, “It wasn’t a tough
decision to choose OU over KU, though. I knew OU was a great
school and I was happy to stay close to my family and friends.”
She has found her law school classes to be more relevant and
interesting than her studies as an undergraduate. “I’ve learned to
prefer the Socratic method of learning because it fosters interesting
discussions in class,” commented Barbara. Not surprisingly, Barbara
listed final exams as her least favorite part of law school. In addition
to staying on top of her coursework and preparing for those
Legacies of the OU College of Law
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 55

FEATURE
R. Lindsay Bailey, ’76
Robert and Ben Bailey
Robert L. Bailey, ’48
inevitable final exams, she finds time to participate in Students for
Access to Justice, Environmental Law Society and Phi Delta Phi.
Yet another type of double legacy can be found in 2L Daniel
Pullin. His father, Gary Pullin, ’77, and Daniel’s wife, Tamara
Schiffner Pullin, ’01, came before him to OU Law. Gary practices
in Frisco, Texas with the Pullin Law Firm and Tamara is with the
Oklahoma City firm of McAfee & Taft.
Daniel attended OU as an undergraduate, earning degrees
in finance and accountancy. He later attended Harvard Business
School where he received his MBA. He has worked in management
consulting, private equity investment and strategy and business
development. Currently, in addition to being a law student,
Daniel is OU’s vice president for technology development and
business development.
He welcomes the opportunity to use all his degrees when he
graduates from law school. “I believe this combined exposure will
provide me important insight into commercial transactions and
economic development opportunities for Oklahoma,” he said.
“Additionally, my work at OU to commercialize intellectual property
has extensive legal components, so the pursuit of a legal education
improves my effectiveness in representing the university’s
intellectual property interests.”
Daniel mentioned the willingness and availability of the College
of Law’s faculty and staff to meet with students to discuss a
variety of topics. “While I would expect professors to be open to
dialogues pertaining to course material, I have been impressed by
the generosity of our professors who take a true interest in the lives
and careers of our students,” he said. “OU Law boasts not only an
accomplished faculty, but a caring one as well.”
Through a humorous incident in Torts II class, Daniel came to
realize that he was beginning to “think like a lawyer.” One morning
during a discussion of products liability litigation, his coffee cup
“sprung an embarrassing leak” and flooded his workspace. Using
his shirtsleeves and napkins supplied by classmates, Daniel cleaned
up the mess and immediately turned his attention to identifying
the manufacturer of the defective cup, scanned the elements for
a products liability cause of action and assessed his potential case.
“I then recalled the infamous McDonald’s hot coffee decision and
decided that the approach had run its course,” he explained.
First-year student Carrie Beth Swinford’s connections to OU
Law go back to its earliest days. William Braden Swinford, her
great-grandfather, was one of the first law professors, as evidenced
by the large photo of the class of 1930 hanging in the atrium of
Coats Hall. Her grandfather, John Walker Swinford, Sr., ’29, now
deceased, was a partner in the Oklahoma City firm of Crowe &
Dunlevy. Her father, John W. Swinford, Jr., ’69, practices in Oklahoma
City, primarily in bankruptcy and real estate law.
Carrie attended Washington and Lee University in Lexington,
Virginia, graduating with a B.A. in English. Because she enjoys
analytical thinking, particularly when she is able to articulate it in
writing, the decision to attend law school was an easy one. “Given
that my father is an attorney, law was the first arena I thought of
that would allow me to do that as a career,” she said. Carrie considered
no law schools other than OU. “I love Oklahoma and my
family is here. I am happy to be back home.”
Carrie echoes other students in praising the law faculty and
staff. “I have been so impressed with the professors’ genuine interest
in the well-being of their students,” she stated. “I have Dean Tabb
for torts this semester and I am surprised over and over again at how
willing he was to offer his time to help his students despite pulling
double-duty as both a dean and a professor.”
Legacies of the OU College of Law
56 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
The class of 2011 also has two sets of siblings who are OU
Law legacies. Robert L. Bailey II and Ben Bailey are following
in the footsteps of their father and grandfather. Their father, R.
Lindsay Bailey, ’76, practices law in Norman and performs at local
venues with Cleveland County District Judge Bill Hetherington as
the musical duo “Almost Outlaws.” Their grandfather, Robert L.
Bailey, ’48, is a retired Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals judge who
also served as the county attorney of Cleveland County and was a
member of the Oklahoma State Senate and the Oklahoma House
of Representatives.
Ben completed his undergraduate work at OU, majoring in
English writing. His decision to attend law school came easily.
He explained, “It seemed to be a logical extension of the many
things I had studied in my undergraduate degree.” Robert’s degree
in management information systems also came from OU. Prior to
applying for law school, he worked in real estate and banking. “My
business background allowed me to understand the need for good,
honest attorneys that a company could rely on,” he said. “Also,
having a few lawyers in the family helps.”
Ben originally considered attending law school elsewhere,
primarily the University of Texas or an east coast school, but OU
Law won him over. “Once I had a look at the facilities and met
the staff, I realized that OU Law could provide me with everything
an out-of-state J.D. could, except OU had the added benefits of
in-state tuition and acceptable living costs,” he said. Robert didn’t
even consider other schools, agreeing with his brother’s assessment
of the advantages of the OU College of Law.
Robert is enthusiastic about his law school experience. “My
professors are exceptional. I believe that part of student success in a
class does rest on the method of instruction. The Socratic method is
interesting and it takes a personable professor to pull it off in class,”
he said. Ben is pleased that law school has provided him with a
challenge. He explained that most of his undergraduate classes were
presented in a lecture format which he found to be dull. “The ease
at which I slid through them caused me to quickly lose interest,” he
commented. “Law school is an animal of a different breed.”
The other siblings in the first-year class are Lindsey Weber
Mulinix and Riley William Mulinix. They are the children of Russell
“Rusty” Mulinix, ’80, a partner in the Oklahoma City firm of
Mulinix, Ogden, Hall, Andrews & Ludlam, P.L.L.C. and co-owner
of Keller Williams Realty of Norman. Rusty’s maternal uncle, Fred
E. White was a 1958 OU Law graduate.
Lindsey attended Arizona State University where she earned
a B.A. in English Literature. Riley received a B.A. in History from
OU. For Lindsey, attending the OU College of Law wasn’t always
a “given” because she did look at other schools. She explained her
decision, “Dean Evans really convinced me that OU was where I
belonged. I also wanted to be around my family.” Riley, however,
didn’t consider other law schools because he wanted to remain in
Norman.
Riley enjoys learning the law and meeting interesting people.
His least favorite aspects of law school are “always being tired”
and the “Excedrin headaches” he gets from one class in particular.
However, he can be uplifted by the humor in one of his classes
when the professor says, “I made that up.”
Lindsey’s observations about the new experience of law school
will trigger memories in the minds of many law grads. The downside
for her is how time-consuming law school can be. “It’s hard to
find time to do anything else,” she said. However, that can be offset
by an “Aha!” moment. In describing this experience she stated,
“It’s the epiphany when it all starts to come together or at the very
least, make the slightest amount of sense.”
These students are representative of the many, who during the
100-year history of the University of Oklahoma College of Law,
followed the same educational path as a family member who came
before them. They will soon graduate and get on with the business
of living their lives, using their law degrees in a variety of pursuits.
They may be lawyers, judges, educators, politicians, civic leaders
or business executives. Even through diversity in careers and life
choices, one connection will remain—they are alumni of the University
of Oklahoma College of Law. And for some, their paths may
serve as a guide for a new generation of OU Law legacies.
Russell “Rusty” Mulinix, ’80
Lindsey and Riley Mulinix
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 57

FEATURE
Oklahoma Regent
G.T. Blankenship
G.T. Blankenship, ’54
Favorite Restaurant: Charleston’s
Favorite Movie: Twelve O’Clock High
Favorite Book: The Last Lion, Winston
Spencer Churchill Visions of Glory by
Willliam Manchester
Favorite Vacation Spot: Hawaii
Favorite TV Show: Meet The Press
Favorite Car: Lexus
Favorite Sport: Football
Favorite Team: OU
Favorite Law School Professor: Earl
Sneed
Favorite Politician: Ronald Reagan
GBy Steve Rice
G.T. Blankenship, ’54, – we have heard about this
gentleman for years around OU – it’s no wonder
his favorite sport is OU football (see his favorites
below). Throughout G.T.’s interview, I kept thinking about
how many great deals G.T. has been involved in. He’s had
as many deals go good as I’ve had go south (well, almost it
seems). G.T. is native Oklahoma City – his dad grew up on
a farm in Kansas and then feeling an urge to be an Okie,
headed south to Francis, Oklahoma, just outside of Ada. He
started an undertaking business. Fate had its way, though,
when G.T.’s dad became violently allergic to embalming
fluid. He quickly decided on another line of work – the oil
business. In 1926, the family oil business moved to Oklahoma
City.
Blankenship attended Classen High School, then was
transferred to Roswell, New Mexico to attend the New Mexico
Military Academy. The academy prepared G.T. well for
his tour with the Oklahoma National Guard (1948-1950).
His assignment was supply sergeant for the band! One day
after summer school at OU, G.T. made his first deal – he
signed up for pilot training. After leaving the recruitment
office, G.T. proffered a classic line, “I’ve gone and killed
myself.” Well, he didn’t kill himself and after the military,
he signed up for law school. After law school he re-entered
the military, this time in the JAG corps. He served 20
months at Presque Isle, Maine. The main industry in Presque
Isle is growing potatoes. It was so boring in PI, G.T. would
often end up talking to the potatoes. He also worked at
sharpening his law skills and deal making and then returned
to Oklahoma City.
In Oklahoma City, Blankenship entered in Big Deal
#2 – he joined a law firm. Along with his partners Joe Wolfe
and Ben Lampkin he specialized in personal injury.
Then G.T. made what many would think was a deal
with the devil – he ran for political office. His platform in
1960 was government reform – “U2 for G.T.” Serving three
terms in the legislature and under two different governors
– Edmondson and Bellmon – his most important achievement
was blowing the whistle on the Supreme Court, which
resulted in the resignation of one judge and the impeachment
and conviction of another. G.T. next ran for the office
of attorney general. He won, and served one term. He lost
his reelection bid, but still holds the distinction of being the
58 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
only Republican to serve as Oklahoma attorney general. The
loss was probably a good thing for him, because he returned
to full-time law practice and more deal making.
G.T. loved the oil business and enjoyed brokering oil
leases for others. He tried one more time for U.S. Congress
against Mickey Edwards. When he lost he promised Libby,
his wife of 57 years, that this was it. No more political
deals.
One day as he was driving down 63rd in Nichols Hills,
a deal centered on him – there were softball diamonds there
and G.T. saw it as the perfect location for a bank. This was
in the days long before branch banking. Bank charters were
not easy to come by. Nonetheless, with a deal on his mind,
he called Jack Coleman. Those softball fields would be the
perfect place for a bank and a small office building. Coleman
agreed and ground was broken. G.T. had hit a homerun on
those old softball fields even though it took three years to
get the bank charter. G.T. then set about to recruit local
businesses as stockholders and the Nichols Hills Bank and
Trust was born. G.T and Jack dealt their cards once again
and sold the bank in the early 1990s. It wasn’t long before
G.T. had become involved with another bank – The Bank of
Nichols Hills, affiliated with the parent bank in Ponca City.
G.T. was named chairman of the board and good friend Ken
Lawton was named president (Lawton came to G.T. with
the idea of starting another national bank anyway, so it was
a natural from the start).
One really good deal for G.T. has been his longtime
association with OU. Beginning in 1990, G.T. started what
amounts to a two-term (14 year) stint as an OU regent. In
fact, he was named chairman three times.
G.T. and Libby live in a beautiful town home, designed
by Blankenship himself. No yard, no worry. If they want to
head to Santa Fe and have some blue corn tortillas at The
Shed (my favorite Santa Fe restaurant too, G.T.), they go.
The Blankenships have three children – one each in Austin,
La Jolla and Tulsa – all great excuses for trips!
G.T. is wonderful to talk with – a great sense of humor
and a mind constantly tinkering with the possibilities of life
and a new deal to be made. Geez, I admire that quality. And
he pulls it off!
G. T. Blankenship sits at President Boren’s right at the table with other OU regents.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 59

FEATURE
Court of Last Resort
The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals
Gary L. Lumpkin
Presiding Judge
Gary Lumpkin, ’74
60 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
By Steve Rice
Oklahoma’s judicial system is truly
unique in that it has two courts of last
resort, the Court of Criminal Appeals
and the Supreme Court. Texas and
Oklahoma are the only states with
this split system of courts of last resort.
Both of these allow for focus and
efficiency in the appeals process. These courts are currently
located in the state capitol building, but soon will be moving
to the old Oklahoma Historical Society building, a rather
majestic structure just southeast of the capitol. It is undergoing
a complete remodeling.
Appointed to the Court of Criminal Appeals by Governor
Henry Bellmon, Gary Lumpkin, ’74, commenced his
service on the court in January of 1989. Each of the five
judges on this court has two lawyers for assistance, and an
administrative assistant. An interesting note, the attorneys
that clerk for the appeals judges tend to follow this job as a
career path. It’s very interesting work – the Court receives
approximately 1,400 new cases filed each year and during
the last fiscal year disposed of 1,333 cases. In addition to the
cases disposed, the court entered 1,776 intermediate orders,
bringing the total number of matters disposed to 3,109. As
you can see, there is never an end to the work – it just keeps
piling on. Imagine that spindle in a restaurant – the one the
wait staff sticks a new order on – imagine that spindle with
3,000 cases and a disposition rate of 1,500. By the end of two
years, you could end up with 3,000 cases not resolved! In real
life, many of these have no need of a hearing, but one could
imagine this job as truly “never ending.”
Each judge also can hire or bring in law students to
help. This gives students an earnest look at life in the court
system.
Lumpkin is originally from Sentinel, Oklahoma, having
graduated from Weatherford High School in 1964, then
attending Northwestern Oklahoma State University in
Alva, and graduating from Southwestern OSU in Weatherford.
He received his J.D. from the University of Oklahoma
College of Law in 1974. Part of Gary’s life was spent in
Viet Nam, 18 months actually. Lumpkin served in the U.S.
Marine Corps from 1968-71 and became a Reserve Officer,
retiring a bird colonel in 1998 after 30 years of service. He
completed his military service as one of only two Marine
Reserve judges assigned to the Navy-Marine Corps Court of
Criminal Appeals, an intermediate federal appeals court.
After working as a staff attorney with the Oklahoma
Department of Consumer Affairs and a consultant with a
non-profit, he was appointed assistant district attorney of
Marshall County in 1976, and subsequently first assistant
D.A., 20th District. He then went to the bench, serving as
an associate district judge, then district judge of the 20th
Judicial District, 1982-1989. It was then that Governor
Bellmon appointed Gary to the Appeals Court.
Awards to Judge Lumpkin have been many. To name
just a few: Outstanding Young Man of America by the U.S.
Jaycees (1979), Outstanding Assistant District Attorney,
3rd Congressional District (1981), William J. Holloway,
Jr. Professionalism Award (1999) and 2007 Distinguished
Alumnus by Southwestern Oklahoma State University,
including its Hall of Fame.
Judge Lumpkin and his wife of 36 years, Barbara, have
one son, and are members of the Waterloo Road Baptist
Church in Edmond. Just recently, Judge Lumpkin and his
fellow judges were in session at the Bell Courtroom in Coats
Hall, hearing arguments for the direct appeal of Anthony
Sanchez vs. The State of Oklahoma. Sanchez was appealing his
convictions of first degree murder and first degree rape of OU
student Juli Buskin. The case is an interesting one for Judge
Lumpkin and the other four judges, because Anthony Sanchez
was identified through the use of DNA samples. There
were a number of issues which should have been of interest to
law students that the Court considered. These included the
requirement that Sanchez had to wear an electronic security
device during the trial, that there was error in qualifying the
jury for the death penalty, that there was an illegal search of
Sanchez for the purpose of taking a blood sample from him for
the DNA testing and that he had incompetent counsel for the
trial. Several other issues also were argued.
As one can witness from just this one case of 1,400 plus,
there is great responsibility on the shoulders of all criminal
appeals court judges. We are in good hands with Judge
Lumpkin.
Judge Lumpkin’s Favorites
Favorite Movie: Quiet Man
Favorite TV Show: Anything on the Travel Channel
and the Food Channel
Favorite Book: The Bible, and for a novel Goodbye
Darkness, A Memoir of the Pacific War, by
William Manchester
Favorite Food: Just about anything you place in front
of him! He tried food vendors in Vietnam during
the war!
Favorite Restaurant: Johnny Carino’s Italian
Restaurants
Favorite Vacations: Cruises, especially the one he
took to the Panama Canal
Favorite Car: Gary and his son love NASCAR Racing
Favorite Sport: College Football and College
Basketball
How Did Gary Meet His Wife While on military
leave from Vietnam, he went to Little Rock to
visit a friend and to go fishing. The friend set
him up with Barbara for the date.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 61

FEATURE
Kelli Masters, ’99
Twin Twirler!
Twin Twirler!
By Steve Rice and The Journal Record
As a freshman in high school, I was in the
band. Select freshman were asked each year
to carry all the batons of the band majorettes
– the twirlers! I got to carry the Swerk sisters
batons and I was always glowing with delight
– they were both pretty – tall brunettes, one
a freshman and one a senior. It made Friday
Night Lights somethin’ special. In reading about Kelli Masters,
I think she would fit in this same “band” category – I
would have loved to carry her batons too!
Maybe this will lend some support to my statement:
Kelli was Miss Oklahoma 1997, also talent winner in that
contest and she was Quality of Life Community Service
Award finalist at the Miss America pageant in 1998! She
also received the Gold Medal Letzeiser Award as Top
Senior Woman at OU and the Griffin Scholar Award for
Outstanding Journalism Student in 1995. In law school,
she was a member of Phi Delta Phi, an honorary fraternity.
A co-feature twirler for The Pride of Oklahoma Marching
Band (her twin sister, Kim, was the other feature twirler),
Kelli also was a member of the 1990 and 1993 U.S. Twirling
Teams. I didn’t even know we had Twirling Teams in the
U.S. You think they had freshman carrying their batons
As a youngster, Kelli had dreams of becoming a news
anchor. She pursued that dream by achieving her bachelor’s
degree in broadcast journalism from OU in 1995. To gain an
edge, Kelli decided to get a law degree.
“To my surprise I fell in love with the law and knew
that if I did not practice law, I would regret it,” said Kelli.
She actually paid for law school at OU through scholarship
money she had won in the Miss America and Miss Oklahoma
pageants. She obtained her J.D. in 1999.
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FEATURE
Today, Masters
is a partner
with Fellers, Snider,
Blankenship, Bailey
and Tippens
in Oklahoma City
and practices in the
areas of civil litigation
and non-profit/
tax-exempt organization
law. She also
has added athlete
representation to
her shingle and is
a certified National
Football League
contract advisor
Kelli Masters, ’99
and registered sports
agent.
“While I never would have anticipated it, this transition
into athlete representation, considering my background, my
goals and my experience and expertise, it all makes perfect
sense,” said Masters, who is a 12-time national champion
and five-time world champion in baton twirling.
Masters said she gained a lot from her experience as
Miss Oklahoma. “Besides earning scholarships to pay for law
school, I also gained a great deal of confidence. Although I
was accustomed to performing I had never been comfortable
speaking in public. As Miss Oklahoma, I had to overcome
that fear, especially when I was speaking up to 25 times per
week (more than 350 appearances in total). That confidence
has served me well as an attorney and agent.”
Kelli is active in Oklahoma City non-profit work and
serves on several boards now, including the YMCA of
Greater Oklahoma City Board of Directors.
Kevin Jairaj
Kelli’s Favorites
Favorite Movie: Serendipity, and just about any sports
movie
Favorite TV Show: TV Sportscenter I guess. I really
don’t watch anything non-sports-related.
Favorite Pastime: Running
Favorite Vacation Spot: Maui
Favorite Book: Anything by John Maxwell
Favorite Pro Bono Work: Non-profit organizations
Favorite Professor in Law School: Kent Meyers, Adjunct
Professor (Antitrust)
Favorite Sport: I have to say football and baseball
Favorite Pro Football Team: Grew up a Dallas Cowboys fan
Favorite Pro Sport: NFL and MLB
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 63

guest FEATURE
Lessons in Ethics
by Randall Turk
The subject of ethics might be considered
dull stuff, until a prison sentence results
from violating the public trust.
That is made crystal clear by Cynthia
Cooper, a former executive of Worldcom,
who recently spoke at a conference on
accounting ethics at the University of
Oklahoma’s Price College of Business.
WorldCom’s story is more relevant to Oklahomans
because the Mississippi-based company had a state connection
that provided instant access to the nationwide market.
In 1994, WorldCom acquired a ready-made long distance
network to compete with AT&T, Sprint and MCI.
WilTel, a subsidiary of the Williams Companies in
Tulsa, had 11,000 miles of fiber optic cable pulled through
abandoned pipelines. WorldCom purchased WilTel for $2.5
billion in cash.
Cooper, who formerly headed WorldCom’s internal
audit department, discussed how she and a colleague discovered
$3.8 billion in hidden leased line costs on the former
telephone giant’s books. She related management’s elaborate
scheme to represent the huge losses as capital assets on
the balance sheet in efforts to artificially prop up the company
stock, and her long ordeal to uncover the fraud. Cooper
said she was under tremendous pressure, as company officers
concealed information and repeatedly asked her to delay her
internal audit.
“Character is
not forged at
the crossroads
of some event,
but decision by
decision.”
A matter of principles
In 2002, Cooper helped federal investigators crack the
WorldCom fraud that ultimately led to the company’s collapse.
“I had to push past my fears and comfort zone to tell
64 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

guest FEATURE
June 23 - July 6, 2008 vol. 11 no. 13 Central oklahoma’s Business in Print and online www.okCBusiness.Com $2
subject of ethics might be
sidered dull stuff, until a prison
ence results from violating the
lic trust.
hat is made crystal clear by
thia Cooper, a former executive
orldcom, who recently spoke at
nference on accounting ethics at
University of Oklahoma’s Price
lege of Business.
orldCom’s story is more relt
to Oklahomans because the
sissippi-based company had
ate connection that provided
ant access to the nationwide
ket. In 1994, WorldCom
uired a ready-made long distance
ork to compete with AT&T,
nt and MCI. WilTel, a subsidiary
he Williams Companies in Tulsa,
11,000 miles of fiber optic cable
ed through abandoned pipelines.
rldCom purchased WilTel for
billion in cash.
ooper, who formerly headed
rldCom’s internal audit departt,
discussed how she and a colue
discovered $3.8 billion in hidleased
line costs on the former
phone giant’s books. She related
agement’s elaborate scheme to
esent the huge losses as capital
ts on the balance sheet in efforts
rtificially prop up the company
k, and her long ordeal to uncove
fraud. Cooper said she was
er tremendous pressure, as comy
officers concealed information
repeatedly asked her to delay
internal audit.
atter of principles
002, Cooper helped federal
stigators crack the WorldCom
d that ultimately led to the comy’s
collapse. “I had to push past
fears and comfort zone to tell
story,” she said. In 2002, Cooper
was listed as one of Time mage’s
“Person of
Year.”
ooper has
e written
traordinary
umstances,”
ok just
ased relating
WorldCom
erience. She
a person’s
ciples must
give way to
of managet
and intimion.
Character is not forged at the
sroads of some event, but deciby
decision,” Cooper said. “It’s
ortant to know the personal less
from the aftermath of fraud.”
n 1982, Bernie Ebbers had
Lesson in ethics
WorldCom’s former auditor unraveled company fraud,
led discussion at OU
by Randall TuRk
interests in seven Mississippi motels
when the government settled an
antitrust lawsuit resulting in the
patchwork of enterprises with
widely varying accounting and controls
systems. A classic entrepreneur,
breakup of AT&T. The telephone Ebbers would grow WorldCom
the story,” monopoly she was said. ordered In to 2002, lease Cooper into a company also with was $38 billion listed as one of
its phone lines in annual revenue and more than
Time magazine’s “Person of the Year.”
to competing 100,000 employees.
“Deregulation, Cooper has since
companies
written
that
Extraordinary Circumstances, a
internet mania, would resell long
Wall Street star
book just released distance relating telephone
service. Worldcom’s most significant mile-
conflicts of interest, her WorldCom experience. She
delusions says a person’s of quick principles Hundreds of must stone not occurred give in way 1998 when to the fear of management
riches and and low intimidation.
phone resellers three times its size. The $37 bil-
“mom and pop” company acquired MCI, a company
interest “Character rates created sprang up virtually
overnight. forged at U.S. the history, crossroads Cooper said. She of said some event,
lion merger was then the largest in
is not
the perfect storm.” Ebbers and four WorldCom, which expanded into
but decision by decision,” Cooper said. “It’s important to
Cynthia Cooper
investors put satellite and data transmission, at
their motels up one point was the second largest
know the personal lessons from the aftermath of fraud.”
as collateral for telephone company in the world.
In 1982, Bernie
a $650,000
Ebbers
loan
had
Cooper
interests
said she witnessed
in seven Mississippi
WorldCom. motels when the government Wall Street, its stock settled value growing an antitrust
to bankroll what would become WorldCom become a rising star on
The freewheeling Ebbers, who enormously. But as she soon determined,
of Ebbers AT&T. and other key The World- telephone
lawsuit was resulting elected WorldCom’s in the CEO, breakup set
out to buy other telephone reseller Com officials had little regard for
monopoly companies, was cobbling ordered together to a lease ethical its constraints phone posed lines by internal to competing
companies that would resell long distance telephone
service.
Hundreds of “mom and pop” phone resellers sprang
up virtually overnight. Ebbers and four investors put their
motels up as collateral for a $650,000 loan to bankroll what
would become WorldCom.
The freewheeling Ebbers, who was elected WorldCom’s
CEO, set out to buy other telephone reseller companies,
cobbling together a patchwork of enterprises with widely
varying accounting and controls systems. A classic entrepreneur,
Ebbers would grow WorldCom into a company
with $38 billion in annual revenue and more than 100,000
employees.
Cynthia Cooper recently spoke at a conference
on accounting ethics at the University of
Oklahoma’s Price College of Business.
Photo/Mark hancock
auditing controls.
In July 2002, WorldCom filed
the largest bankruptcy in corporate
history, listing $41 billion in debt
and $107 billion in assets. The
company’s stock, once $64 a share,
plummeted to 83 cents. More than
60,000 WorldCom employees were
laid off, their stock in the company
rendered worthless.
“Neither the fraud nor the
discovery of the fraud caused the
downfall of WorldCom,” Cooper
said. “The fraud simply masked the
true state of the business.”
An overbuilt telephone distribution
system and telecom companies
fighting for market share drove
down rates for telecom services, she
said. “Deregulation, Internet mania,
conflicts of interest, delusions of
quick riches and low interest rates
created the perfect storm.”
When the telecom industry
bubble burst, Cooper said, the sector
lost $2 trillion in market capitalization,
“twice that of the dot.com bubble.
In just two years, over 500,000
telecom workers lost their jobs.”
Prison sentences result
The reorganized WorldCom
emerged from bankruptcy a shadow
of itself and was renamed MCI. In
2005, the company was purchased
by Verizon Communications Inc.
Cooper was present at the
criminal trial of Ebbers, convicted
of conspiracy, securities fraud and
filing false statements with the
Securities and Exchange Commission.
Ebbers, who left WorldCom
owing the company $400 million
for personal investments secured
by WorldCom stock, was sentenced
to 25 years in prison. At that time,
Ebbers’ sentence set the record for
white-collar crime, Cooper said.
WorldCom CFO Scott Sullivan,
who pled guilty and agreed to cooperate
with the government investigation,
was sentenced to five years.
Several other WorldCom officers and
employees received lesser sentences
for their part in the subterfuge.
“This really is a story about people
who make choices,” Cooper said.
“You can give that choice away, but
nobody can take it from you.”
Wall Street star
Worldcom’s most significant milestone occurred in 1998
when the company acquired MCI, a company three
times its size. The $37 billion merger was then the largest
in U.S. history, Cooper said. She said WorldCom, which
expanded into satellite and data transmission, at one point
was the second largest telephone company in the world.
Cooper said she witnessed WorldCom become a rising
star on Wall Street, its stock value growing enormously. But
as she soon determined, Ebbers and other key WorldCom
officials had little regard for ethical constraints posed by
internal auditing controls.
In July 2002, WorldCom filed the largest bankruptcy in
corporate history, listing $41 billion in debt and $107 billion
in assets. The company’s stock, once $64 a share, plummeted
to 83 cents. More than 60,000 WorldCom employees were
laid off, their stock in the company rendered worthless.
“Neither the fraud nor the discovery of the fraud caused
the downfall of WorldCom,” Cooper said. “The fraud simply
masked the true state of the business.”
An overbuilt telephone distribution system and telecom
companies fighting for market share drove down rates for
telecom services, she said. “Deregulation, Internet mania,
conflicts of interest, delusions of quick riches and low interest
rates created the perfect storm.”
When the telecom industry bubble burst, Cooper said,
the sector lost $2 trillion in market capitalization, “twice
that of the dot.com bubble. In just two years, more than
500,000 telecom workers lost their jobs.”
Prison sentences result
The reorganized WorldCom emerged from bankruptcy
a shadow of itself and was renamed MCI. In 2005, the
company was purchased by Verizon Communications Inc.
Cooper was present at the criminal trial of Ebbers,
convicted of conspiracy, securities fraud and filing false
statements with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Ebbers, who left WorldCom owing the company $400 million
for personal investments secured by WorldCom stock,
was sentenced to 25 years in prison. At that time, Ebbers’
sentence set the record for white-collar crime, Cooper said.
WorldCom CFO Scott Sullivan, who pled guilty and
agreed to cooperate with the government investigation, was
sentenced to five years. Several other WorldCom officers
and employees received lesser sentences for their part in the
subterfuge.
“This really is a story about people who make choices,”
Cooper said. “You can give that choice away, but nobody
can take it from you.”
Original article appeared in OKCBusiness. Copyrighted by
Parkway Publishing, Inc. Republished with permission.
Photo by Mark Hancock.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 65

FEATURE
Jane Teixeira, ’05
In the summer of 2004, Jane did
a stint with the Arizona Heat
softball team. She bats left-handed,
hits well to the opposite field and that
summer hit close to .300. At Texas she
played right field.
66 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Jane Teixeira
was special
By Steve Rice
Jane Teixeira, ’05, was a special recruit at
OU Law. I met Jane while helping Dean
Tabb in the recruiting area way back in
2001. It was at a SWAPLA affair in the
University of Texas (at Austin) Student
Union. She walked up to the table in her
burnt orange and white UT softball hoodie.
We hit it off immediately. (I was a UT Austin grad and have
become a big fan of girl’s softball at OU. Yes, I root for OU
now—even over Texas . . .) Jane offered that she was soon
graduating and was looking for a place to go to law school.
She remembered fondly the times (at least four) that
she had been in Norman, playing against OU, right across
from the law school. She liked the small town look and feel
of Norman —even the weather. Jane picked up the propaganda
and next thing I new she was visiting with me as a
brand new 1L—UT hoodie and all! One thing about Jane
—she never shied away from letting you know just where she
went to college. “UT” might be on her briefcase, sweatshirt
or ball cap.
Fast forward to 2005—Teixeira is now heading to
Tuscon, Arizona with her OU J.D. in hand. After taking the
Arizona bar, she went on the market looking for work. She
landed a job as senior associate athletic director at Texas
A&M International–Laredo, Texas, an NCAA Division II
school. She also was head softball coach (Duh! Good move
Aggies!). Jane said that 51 percent of her time was directorrelated:
rules, eligibility and financial aid. Forty-nine percent
was coaching.
To give you just an inkling of Laredo weather, it’s sometimes
ranked just one or two places north of hell—dry wind,
humidity, dust, and real hot. When you factor in everything
miserable about the weather, Laredo is top 10 for awful!
Jane prospered though and after 15 months of Laredo, she
interviewed for assistant director of Membership Services at
NCAA headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana. The job was
hers.
As assistant director of Member Services, Jane oversees
Student Athlete Reinstatement—she works with students
who have put their eligibility in jeopardy. She supervises a
staff of 12. One of the more interesting parts of her job is
participating in the accreditation of athletic departments.
The NCAA Membership Committee sets up NCAA
rules and laws—Jane works in the framework of enforcing
those rules. To accomplish a peer review at a D-1 school,
a team of officials from other colleges review an entire
athletic department. Jane would be the NCAA representative
at one of those peer reviews. She uses her law degree a
lot—studying such things as the intent of new or existent
legislation. She tries to analyze from the eyes of the student
and the NCAA. At the NCAA, her work is divided as such:
thirty percent athletic services and seventy percent student
athlete reinstatement.
Another factor her division looks into is a student athlete’s
well-being—are they getting the right strength and,
conditioning and is it in the correct proportion to class time
Are the students being “abused” in any way All in all a very
interesting career position.
Jane said that maybe someday she might head west to
LA, maybe start an entertainment/sports law agency. One
item she could check off—she’s already experienced an
earthquake! In Indiana! Shook her right out of her bed. She
likes Indianapolis—Circle City, it’s called. The Indy 500 is
responsible for that little moniker. Yes, she’s been. “It’s fun,”
she said.
Jane Teixeira’s Favorites
Favorite Movie: Rent
Favorite TV Show: Private Practice, Grey’s Anatomy
Favorite Book: Become a Better You: 7 Keys to
Improving Your Life Every Day by Joel Osteen
Favorite Food: Good Mexican
Favorite Bar: “Six” on 4th Street in Austin
Favorite Vacations: Going to Europe
Favorite Car: Yellow Lamborghini Diablo
Favorite Sport: Football, UT Softball
Favorite Saying: Don’t drink from the membership
Kool Aide
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 67

FEATURE
U.S. District Judge Robin Cauthron:
“Being a federal judge is the
best job in the world. . .”
By Caroline Gilley
Robin Cauthron, ’77
The only time many of us come into contact
with judges is while watching the latest episode
of Law and Order. So it’s unlikely the average
Oklahoman has heard of U.S. District Judge
Robin Cauthron, ’77, which is unfortunate—she
has an inspiring career and has been a pioneer
for women in the legal professions.
In November 2008, Judge Cauthron stepped down as
chief judge of U.S. District Court for the Western District of
Oklahoma, a position to which she was elevated in November
2001. But prior to her promotion to chief judge, in 1991 she
was the first woman to be appointed to the federal district
bench in Oklahoma. And before that, her appointment as
U.S. magistrate judge in 1986 made her the first woman to
serve full-time in that capacity in the six-state Tenth Circuit.
A native of Edmond, Cauthron’s path to her current
position was not altogether direct. She received her B.A. at
the University of Oklahoma and, after college, taught 7th
and 8th grade English for three years while simultaneously
pursuing a graduate degree in education at Central State University
in Edmond, which she received in 1974.
But she soon realized teaching middle school English was
not for her, and, in 1974, began law school at OU. “I had
no idea what kind of law I wanted to practice at the time. I
just knew I didn’t want to go into tax law,” she notes, laughing.
After graduation, Cauthron had stints as a law clerk for
U.S. District Judge Ralph G. Thompson, a staff attorney for
Legal Services of Eastern Oklahoma, and a lawyer in private
practice. She began her career as a judge in 1983 when she
became special district judge of the 10th Judicial District in
McCurtain County.
In her current position as U.S. district judge, Cauthron
presides over both civil and criminal cases, with jurisdiction
over federal crimes. Most of the criminal cases that come
before her involve white-collar crimes or drugs. “With the
drug cases, I see people who have become involved with drugs
68 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

FEATURE
Prior to her promotion
to Chief Judge, in 1991
she was the first woman
to be appointed to the
federal district bench
Oklahoma.
as a means to get by financially, to make quick and easy money. Often
they are trying to help their families, but they end up in prison instead.”
While the life of a judge can be disheartening at times, Cauthron also
sees incredible promise in some of the state’s younger citizens through
her involvement with the Oklahoma High School Mock Trial Program.
“The youth who participate in mock trial competitions are so bright and
so motivated. It’s good to see this during a week when I’m sentencing lots
of kids.”
When asked what she would do if she could change any social issue
in Oklahoma, she quickly replies “I would educate and employ people. I
would make certain that individuals have a way to make a living with selfrespect.”
And for Judge Cauthron’s future I hope to stay right here. Being
a federal judge is the best job in the world. Federal court enables you to
do a good job. It offers resources such as law clerks and libraries, and you
work on challenging, meaty cases tried by good lawyers.”
Photography by Ric Moore
Caroline Gilley is the director of Electronic Marketing,
Alumni and Parent Programs at the University of Vermont
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 69

FEATURE
format like page 49 of Henry issue
Oklahoma County Bar Association Feature
Charlie and the Community
A Look at Charles E. Geister III
Question: What does Jamie do
Is Gerry employed (I know she works!!)
Charlie Geister, ’80, believes working
with and serving our youth is
the best way for lawyers to give
back to the community.
Over the years, this veteran
Oklahoma City attorney has
donated many hours speaking
with and teaching kids ranging from kindergarten to
high school through programs sponsored by his church
and by the Oklahoma County Bar Association and the
Oklahoma Bar Association. He also has volunteered
his time and services representing minor children
through Oklahoma Lawyers for Children, among other
youth-related activities.
He has served as a judge for the Oklahoma High
School Mock Trial Program, regional law school mock
trial competitions and University of Oklahoma College
of Law Moot Court Competitions.
“It’s a true joy when students become interested in
what you have to say and want to learn more. And if just
one child is inspired by my presence in the classroom or
by my words, the time and effort has been well-spent,”
said Geister, a partner with Hartzog, Conger, Cason and
Neville LLP.
“I chose the legal profession because it is a serviceoriented,
challenging profession whose members are
given the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution
to society to address its problems and to help resolve its
disputes,” said Charlie.
After graduating with honors from the University of
Oklahoma College of Law, Geister began his legal career
in 1980 as an associate with Crowe and Dunlevy. He left
that firm two years later to become an associate and later
shareholder with Ryan, Corbyn and Geister and successor
firms. In 1998, he joined Hartzog, Conger, Cason and
Neville and focuses his practice on civil litigation with an
emphasis in business and insurance disputes.
His work in the field has earned him inclusion in the
Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA and Oklahoma
Super Lawyers.
Geister, who has held several leadership positions
with the Oklahoma County Bar Association, currently
is the group’s past-president. He also is a member of the
Oklahoma Bar Association and the American Bar Association.
Geister said the main influences in his life are his
wife of 31 years, Gerry, for her support and love and his
daughter Jamie.—Leadership in Law, the Journal Record
and Steve Rice
70 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009
Charlie Geister, ’80
Favorite Food: Rare Steak
Favorite Place to Eat: Boulevard Steakhouse
Favorite Place to Vacation: Disney World
Hobbies: Running, Reading and Crossword Puzzles
Favorite Professor in Law School: Peter Kutner
Favorite Movie: Forrest Gump
Favorite Book: Noble House by James Clavell
Favorite Car: Honda Pilot
Favorite TV Show: House
Favorite Quote: “Character is what you are in the
dark.”—Dwight L. Moody

FEATURE
The Comfort New York
University Scholars
In 2007, William Comfort, ’61, endowed a program for graduates of the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Two graduates are
selected every year to earn a masters of law. The endowment covers expenses related to attending New York University School of
Law in New York City. One of the requirements of the scholarships is that the graduates must return to Oklahoma to practice.
AComfort New York University scholar,
Brent Howard, ’08, is currently
seeking his LL.M. in Taxation at
New York University. Originally
from a small town (Friendship, population
16), living in New York City has been a great
change, but he has enjoyed the experience. “I have
tried to take advantage of all the City has to offer,
seeing some Broadway plays, going to a few museums
and just being a tourist, but I am ready to get back to
Oklahoma,” he said.
When asked about the program at NYU, Brent
acknowledged that he has been given a great opportunity,
learning at the foremost taxation program in
the nation.
“I have been interested in taxes since my first
accounting class in college, and with it being one
of the only two certainties in life, I knew it would
lead to a promising career. I just am ready to have
actual application of my knowledge, beyond the
classroom.”
After graduation in May, Brent plans to return
to Oklahoma to practice with a focus on corporate
transactions and estate planning. “The economic
downturn has really put a strain on the job market,
but with my emphasis and experience in business
and personal tax planning, I think I have put myself
in a good position for future practice,” he stated.
The second Comfort NYU Scholar for 2008-2009 is
Matthew Hickey, currently from Oklahoma City, where
he is employed as an associate with Crowe and Dunlevy.
His practice focuses on taxation, trusts and estates,
and corporation and securities law.
Bret Howard, ’08, (center) with his parents
Matthew Hickey, ’07
Hickey made the Dean’s List all six semesters at
OU Law and served as editor-in-chief of the Oklahoma
Law Review (2006-2007). He won Am Jur awards for
legal research and writing; criminal law; contracts;
wealth-transfer tax; wills and trusts; estate planning
and corporate tax. He also was a member of the Order
of the Coif. Before attending law school, Hickey
earned his B.A. in Bible and Theology from Wheaton
College in Wheaton, Illinois, in May 2003.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 71

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DONORS
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Mr. Joseph E. Landrum
Mr. Don R. Lane
Mrs. Josephine R. Lane
Mr. Keith Larkin
Mr. Cornelius Leader
Mr. Donald H. Lees
Ms. Deborrah L. Leitch
Mr. William L. Leonard
Ms. Diane Lewis
Ms. Patranell B. Lewis
Mr. Douglas M. Livingston
Mr. Nathan A. Lockhart
Mr. Ben Loring
Ms. Helen L Love
Mr. Timothy A. Lucas
Mr. Robert A. Manchester, IV
Mr. Jed L. Marcus
Mr. Michael L. Mason
Massey Family Foundation
Mr. Art G. Mata
Hon. Elizabeth M. Matchinski
Mrs. Rachel C. Mathis
Ms. Kevyn D. Mattax
Dr. Judith L. Maute
Mr. Jacob F. May, Jr.
Mr. Michael C. Mayhall
Ms. Vicky S. Mayhue
McAfee & Taft, P C
Mr. D. Michael McBride III
Mr. Matthew W. McCann
Ms. Marchi C. McCartney
Mrs. Michelle L. McCluer
Ms. Linda H. McGuire
Mr. Clark G. McKeever
Mr. Richard S. McLain
Mrs. Marci McLean
Mr. William J. McNichols
Mr. Denver W. Meacham, II
Judge Gordon R. Melson
Mr. Robert J. Mildfelt
Mr. Robert J. Miller
Miller Canfield Paddock & Stone PLC
Mr. E. Bay Mitchell, III
Mobile Insurance Agency of TX
Mr. Randall D. Mock
Ms. Sally Mock
Mr. Edward H. Moler
Judge C. Suzanne Mollison
Mr. Martin P. Moltz
Mr. Burford D. Monnet
Mr. Edward O. Monnet, Sr
Mr. Robert L. Moon
Mrs. Phyllis Morris
Ms. Louise R. Mount
Moyers, Martin, Santee, Imel & Tetrick
Ms. K. A. Mueller
Ms. Brooke S. Murphy
Mr. Donald H. Murphy
Mr. William W. Musser
Mr. William W. Nelson
Ms. Elizabeth J. Nevitt
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Mr. Charles E. Norman
Mr. Raymond D. North
Mr. Paul E. Northcutt
Mr. Larry Norton
Mr. Michael J. Novotny
Mr. R. Marc Nuttle
Mr. Thomas R. O’Carroll
Mr. William G. Odell
Oklahoma Bar Association
Oklahoma Bar Foundation Inc
Ms. Kimberly M. Okvist
Ms. Susan H. Oswalt
Mr. Steven L. Page
Mr. Armand Paliotta
Mr. David W. Parham
Dr. Jerry R. Parkinson
Mr. Michael D. Parks
Mr. William L. Patterson
Mr. Allen B. Pease
Perimeter Capital Partners LLC
Mr. Mark B. Perkins
Mr. Payton L. Phelps
Ms. Kendall L. Phillips
Mr. T. Ray Phillips, IV
Phillips Murrah P C
Mr. W. DeVier Pierson
Mr. David A. Poarch
Mr. George L. Porter, III
Mr. Al Pugh
Ms. Pamela Pursifull
Mr. Charles P. Rainbolt
Ms. Leigh A. Reaves
Mr. Todd A. Reed
Mr. Robert R. Reis
Mr. David C. Rex
Mr. A. Donald Rhoads
Mr. Michael W. Ridgeway
Mr. Theodore J. Riney
Mr. Ron Ripley
Mr. Ernest D. Roark, III
Mr. Dennis C. Roberts
Mr. John D. Robertson
Ms. Michelle M. Robertson
Mr. Bruce W. Robinett
Mr. William J. Robinson
Mr. Reid E. Robison
Ms. Michelle L. Robnett
Mr. Rick Rodgers
Mr. J. Hugh Roff, Jr.
Mr. Robert J. Ross
Mr. William J. Ross
Mr. Robert Ross
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 73

Thank You
DONORS
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Excellence in Law
74 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Getting To Know Our Faculty
darin fox David Swank Jonathan B. Forman
Darin Fox joined the law faculty in
2005 as director of the Law Library
and associate professor of Law.
Fox previously served at the University
of Southern California Law School from
1994 to 2004. From 2000 to 2004, he was
associate dean for Information Technology
and Law Library. From 1996 to 2000,
he served as director of Information
Technology, and from 1994-1995, he was
the computer services/systems librarian.
At USC, his responsibilities included library
and technology planning and teaching legal
research.
He teaches Advanced Legal Research
and team-teaches legal research in the first
year Legal Research, Writing and Advocacy
program.
Associate Professor Fox’s research
interests include the intersection of law
libraries and information technology.
Specifically, he is interested in how
technology is impacting information
delivery, research strategies and collection
policies.
He is a member of the American
Association of Law Libraries and the Mid-
America Association of Law Libraries.
Professor David Swank joined
the University of Oklahoma in
1963 as its legal counsel and
as assistant professor of law. Since
that time he has served OU Law
as associate professor, professor,
associate dean, dean of the College of
Law, director of the Law Center, and
interim president of the University of
Oklahoma.
Swank began his law career in
1959 as a partner in the firm of Swank
and Swank of Stillwater, Oklahoma. In
1961, he was named assistant county
attorney for Payne County, and in
1963, he became county attorney.
He has been active in working with
the Oklahoma Bar Association and the
Oklahoma Trial Lawyers Association.
He was the principal drafter of the
Oklahoma Discovery Code. Swank
has served as the university faculty
representative to the National
Collegiate Athletic Association and
the Big Eight Conference and was
vice president of the NCAA for seven
years. He also served on the NCAA
Executive Committee and in 1991 was
named to the NCAA Committee on
Infractions. He served as a member
of the NCAA Committee on Infractions
for nine years until August 1999, and
served as chair for seven years.
Swank was admitted to the
Oklahoma Bar in 1959 and is
a a fellow of the Oklahoma Bar
Foundation and a life member of
the Fellows of the American Bar
Foundation. In 1999-2000 and 2000-
2001 he was named by the students
as the College of Law’s Outstanding
Professor.
He is the coauthor of Criminal
Justice for the United States
Postal Inspector, with Robert E.L.
Richardson.
Jonathan B. Forman teaches
Individual Income Tax, Corporate
Tax, and Pension and Health Care
Benefits. Forman is also vice chair of
the board of trustees of the Oklahoma
Public Employees Retirement System
(OPERS). Prior to joining OU in 1985,
Forman began his law career in 1978
as a law clerk for Judge Robert J.
Yock of the U.S. Court of Claims in
Washington, D.C.
Forman is the author of Making
America Work (Urban Institute
Press, 2006), and he has written
more than 250 other publications.
He has a monthly column with
the Journal Record newspaper of
Oklahoma City, and he has published
op-eds in Barron’s, The Dallas
Morning News, The Cleveland Plain
Dealer, The Washington Times, The
Daily Oklahoman, Pensions and
Investments, and Tax Notes.
Forman was a founding member
of the Internal Revenue Service
Advisory Committee on Tax Exempt
and Government Entities (2001-2003).
He served as a member of the
board of trustees of the American
Tax Policy Institute from 1998-
2003. Forman is also a fellow of the
American College of Tax Counsel,
a fellows program associate of the
Employee Benefit Research Institute,
and a member of the National
Academy of Social Insurance, the
National Tax Association, and the
American Economic Association.
This fall he will be Professor in
Residence at the Internal Revenue
Service Office of Chief Counsel in
Washington D.C. for the 2009-2010
academic year.
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 75

Getting To Know Our Faculty
Randall coyne
Katheleen guzman
William M. TAbB
Professor Randall Coyne teaches
Criminal Law, Criminal Procedure,
Capital Punishment, Constitutional
Law and Legal Aspects of Terrorism. In
2003, he was selected as the Maurice
Merrill Professor of Law, a position
he relinquished in 2005 when he was
chosen to be the first holder of the
Frank and Edna Elkouri Professorship.
In 2008, Coyne was appointed Senior
Editor of the Amicus Journal.
In 1996, he co-authored “Report
Regarding the Implementation of
the American Bar Association’s
Recommendations and Resolutions
Concerning the Death Penalty and
Calling for a Moratorium on Executions,”
4 Geo. J. Fighting Poverty 1 (1996). This
comprehensive report served as the
scholarly basis for the A.B.A.’s February,
1997 call for a halt to executions
nationwide.
With Lyn Entzeroth, Coyne is
co-author of Capital Punishment and the
Judicial Process (third edition, 2006),
the first casebook devoted exclusively
to the death penalty. He is the author of
numerous law review articles.
During the 1996-97 academic year,
Coyne served on the defense team
in United States v. Timothy James
McVeigh. In 2005, he led the defense
team of a Muslim prisoner labeled an
“enemy combatant” and subjected to
indefinite confinement at Guantanamo.
Coyne was appointed to the Military
Commission Civilian Defense Counsel
panel in 2008 and presently represents
high value detainees.
Professor Coyne currently serves
on the national board of the ACLU.
He is a frequent consultant on capital
punishment and terrorism issues for
national news media and has been
interviewed on ABC News, NBC News,
CBS News, CNN, Fox News, Fox and
Friends, Dateline, Nightline, The O’Reilly
Factor and National Public Radio.
Professor Katheleen Guzman
served as visiting associate
Professor at OU during the
1993-94 academic year, and was hired
as a permanent member of the OU
law faculty in 1994. She has taught
property, wills and trusts, Indian
land titles, land use, and real estate
transactions, and was the associate
dean for academics and associate
director of the Law School from 2003
to 2006. She has earned teaching
awards within the college of law and
on main campus.
Guzman served as articles editor
for the Arkansas Law Review and
participated in the Georgetown
University Law Center Program in
International Law in 1989. Before
joining the OU faculty, Guzman
worked as a litigation associate for the
Philadelphia firm of Dilworth, Paxson,
Kalish, and Kauffman. She has been
visiting professor of law at Villanova.
A member of the Pennsylvania,
Tennessee, and Arkansas Bars,
Guzman lectures nationally on
property subjects for students
preparing for the bar examination,
and has actively contributed to
newsletters published by real property
and probate and trust law bars. More
extensive scholarship appears in law
reviews published by the University
of Arkansas, Washington University,
the University of California-Davis, the
University of Iowa, Arizona State, and
the University of Oklahoma. Guzman
is currently working on an Oklahoma
wills and trusts treatise with Professor
Mark Gillett.
William M. Tabb joined the
faculty at the University of
Oklahoma College of Law
in 1990, after teaching at Baylor
University Law School and the
University of Illinois College of Law.
He practiced law in Dallas, Texas
with the Strasburger and Price and
Johnson, Bromberg and Leeds law
firms.
Professor Tabb primarily teaches
Remedies, Torts and Environmental
Law and was named the first Sarkeys
Energy Center Fellow at the University
of Oklahoma. In 2006, he was
appointed as the associate dean for
academics and the deputy director
of the University of Oklahoma Law
Center after previously serving as
associate dean for students from
1998-2003. He also holds the Judge
Fred A. Daugherty Chair in Law.
He has received numerous honors
and awards for teaching, service and
scholarship
Professor Tabb has published
articles in many law review journals
and has written several books,
including Cases and Problems on
Remedies, with Professor Elaine
W. Shoben, Judge Jack Lehman
Professor of Law, University of
Nevada, Las Vegas and Professor
Rachel Janutis, Capital University,
by The Foundation Press, Inc. (4th
edition, 2007) and Environmental Law,
Policy and Practice with Marshall-
Wythe Foundation Professor Linda A.
Malone, College of William and Mary,
Marshall-Wythe School of Law, by
West Publishing (2007).
76 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

1940s
Clinton D. Dennis, ’48,
received the Oklahoma County
Bar Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
F. Carroll Freeman, ’48,
received the Oklahoma County
Bar Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
James Garrett, ’48, received the
Oklahoma County Bar Association
60-Year Membership
Award.
Bill A. Larson, ’48, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
Benjamin Lewis, ’48, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
Edward H. Moler, ’48, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
Wilbur Patton, ’48, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
Robert H. Warren, ’48,
received the Oklahoma County
Bar Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
Louis Borgman, ’49, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
James D. Foliart, ’49, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 60-Year Membership
Award.
1950s
John E. Green, ’57, was the
first recipient of the OBA Trailblazer
Award, given at the 2007
OBA Annual Meeting.
Richard Bailey, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
Bob E. Bennett, ’58, has
received the OBA’s 2008 Joe
Stamper Distinguished Service
Award.
Howard K. Berry, Jr., ’58,
received the Oklahoma County
Bar Association 50-Year
Membership Award. Additionally
Berry donated $200,000 to
fund the Howard K. Berry, Sr.
Award.
Sidney Catlett, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
Arnold Fagin, ’58, received the
Oklahoma County Bar Association
50-Year Membership
Award.
Charles Green, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
Paul Johanning, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
Thomas Kenan, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
Charles Payne, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
Kent Polley, ’58, received the
Oklahoma County Bar Association
50-Year Membership
Award.
Herbert D. Smith, ’58, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association 50-Year Membership
Award.
1960s
Patrick Sullivan, ’69, was
inducted into the Shawnee
High School Hall of Fame.
Kenneth N. McKinney, ’62,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record
newspaper.
Larry Derryberry, ’63, has published
a children’s book The
Oklahoma Scranimal. (Tate Publishing,
2008).
Scott Graham, ’63, received the
Distinguished Alumni Award
from the Oklahoma Military
Academy’s Alumni Association.
Richard McKnight, ’63,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record
newspaper.
Tom Criswell, ’64, with his wife
Dr. Reba Criswell has endowed
a scholarship for school counselors
at Southeastern Oklahoma
State University.
Frank Lee Hart, ’66, has been
inducted into the Hennessee,
Oklahoma High School Hall
of Fame.
John H. Tucker, ’66, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Fred Boettcher, ’67, has been
appointed to the board that
governs Oklahoma State University.
Michael E. Krasnow, ’67,
received the Oklahoma Bar
Association Professional Service
Award.
Clyde A. Muchmore, ’67, has
been named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” by Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Reid Robison, ’68, was named a
“local litigation star” by Benchmark
Litigation.
Don Holladay, ’69, has been
elected as a 2011 director of the
Oklahoma County Bar Association.
Don Rodolph, ’69, unsuccessfully
ran for the Ward 2, Clinton
City Council seat.
Mike Smith, ’69, is the new
executive director of the Interstate
Oil and Gas Compact
Commission.
1970s
Tony Benson, ’70, has been
appointed to serve on the Oklahoma
Tourism and Recreation
Commission.
Bill Conger, ’70, received the
Oklahoma County Bar Association
YLD Beacon Award and
has been named an Oklahoma
Super Lawyer by Oklahoma
Super Lawyer Magazine.
Michael R. Ford, ’70, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Robert D. Looney, Jr., ’70,
has been included in 2009 issue
of The Best Lawyers in America
guide.
alumniNOTES
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 77

alumniNOTES
Eric Eissenstat, ’83, director
and shareholder with Fellers
Snider Law Firm in Oklahoma
City, received The Mona
Lombard Service to Children
Award. Mona Lombard was
one of the first volunteers and
board member of Oklahoma
Lawyers for Children. OLFC
annually presents this award
to the attorney who has best
exemplified Mona’s spirit representing
children in the past year.
Eissenstat, the OLFC incoming Chairman, was honored
with this award for his dedication to a case seeking termination
of parental rights based on an allegation of heinous and
shocking abuse. Since beginning work on the case in 2006,
Mr. Eissenstat has invested more than 300 pro-bono hours on
the case.
Lynnwood R. Moore, Jr., ’70,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record
newspaper.
Robert D. Nelon, ’71, has been
included in 2009 issue of The
Best Lawyers in America guide.
Jesse W. Beck, Jr., ’71, joined
the law firm of Gungol Jackson
in their new Oklahoma City
office.
Catherine L. Campbell, ’71,
joined the law firm of Phillips
Murrah, P.C.
Terry W. Tippens, ’71, has
been named an Oklahoma Super
Lawyer in the 2008 issue of Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Also voted the Oklahoma City
Best Lawyers “Bet-the-Company
Litigator of the Year” for 2009.
Len Cason, ’72, has been named
an Oklahoma Super Lawyer by
Oklahoma Super Lawyers Magazine.
Gary R. McSpadden, ’72, has
been named an Oklahoma Super
Lawyer in the 2008 issue of Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Drew Neville, ’72, has written
Jack’s 45th, published by the
Oklahoma Heritage Association.
and has been named an Oklahoma
Super Lawyer by Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Reuben Davis, ’73, has joined
the new Tulsa office of McAfee
& Taft.
Don E. DeSpain, ’73, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Curtis S. Fallgatter, ’73, has
been included in The Best Lawyers
in America guide for the
second year in a row, for criminal
defense.
James W. Sharrock, ’73,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record
newspaper.
Warren F. Bickford, ’74, has
been named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” in the 2008
issue of Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Curtis M. Long, ’74, has been
named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” in the 2008
issue of Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Justice Steven Taylor, ’74, has
been elected to vice chief justice
of the Oklahoma Supreme
Court.
Michael Warwick, ’74, has
been chosen to serve as the City
of Shawnee’s new legal adviser.
John F. Fischer, ’75, was
retained by the voters as a judge
on the Oklahoma Court of Civil
Appeals.
John Hermes, ’75, was named a
“local litigation star” by Benchmark
Litigation.
David Hopper, ’75, unsuccessfully
ran Oklahoma State House
District 45.
John Kenney ’75, was named a
“local litigation star” by Benchmark
Litigation.
Michael E. Smith, ’75, was
awarded a Band 2 ranking in
Energy & Natural Resources
Law in Oklahoma. Additionally,
Smith has joined the law
firm of Gungol Jackson in their
new Oklahoma City office.
Laurence Yadon, ’75, has coauthored
100 Texas Outlaws and
Lawmen, 1835-1935 (Pelican,
2008)
Doyle Argo, ’76, has received
the OBA’s 2008 Judicial Excellence
Award.
Dale Elsener, ’76, has joined
the law firm of Baker, Logsdon,
Schulte and Gibson.
John B. Heatly, ’76, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper
and a Special Recognition
Award from the Oklahoma
County Bar Association.
James H. Lockhart, ’76, joined
the law firm of Gungol Jackson
in their new Oklahoma City
office.
Michael M. Stewart, ’76, has
been named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” by Oklahoma
Magazine.
Judge Robin Cauthron, ’77,
was honored at a ceremony at
the federal courthouse.
Bryan Dixon, ’77, is 2008-2009
president-elect of the Oklahoma
County Bar Association.
Judge Robert H. Henry, ’77,
has been named a distinguished
federal judge and is chairman of
the OU International Programs
Center Board of Visitors.
Joseph Bocock, ’78, was named
a “local litigation star” by Benchmark
Litigation.
Noma D. Gurich, ’78, has been
named Woman of the Year by
the Journal Record.
Cynthia C. Ottaway, ’78, has
been selected to serve on the
executive committee of the firm
of Crowe & Dunlevy and has
been named one of the “Top 25
Female Oklahoma Lawyers” by
Oklahoma Magazine.
Michael S. Laird, ’79, has been
named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” by Oklahoma
Magazine.
78 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Charlie Laster, ’79, successfully
ran for re-election to the Oklahoma
State Senate.
Judy Hamilton Morse, ’79,
received the Oklahoma Bar
Association’s Neil E. Bogan Professionalism
Award, has been
elected as 2011 director of the
Oklahoma County Bar Association
and has been named one of
the “Top 25 Female Oklahoma
Lawyers” by Oklahoma Magazine.
John Leo Wagner, ’79, has been
elected president of the International
Academy of Mediators.
1980s
Lewis N. Carter, ’80, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Mark D. Christiansen, ’80, has
been named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” by Oklahoma
Magazine.
Charles E. Geister III, ’80,
has been named an Oklahoma
Super Lawyer by Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Reggie N. Whitten, ’80,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record
newspaper.
Jim Calloway, ’81, author of
the blog, “Jim Calloway’s Practice
Tips” was selected as one of
the top 100 law bloggers by the
American Bar Association.
Bert Marshall, ’81, has become
president of Blue Cross and Blue
Shield of Oklahoma.
John David Miller, ’81, has
retired after 25 years as district
judge in Pontotoc County.
Brian W. Pierson, ’81, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Karen S. Rieger, ’81, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
James E. Britton, ’82, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
David D. Hunt, II, ’82, has
joined the law firm of Gable-
Gotwals as a shareholder.
Jake Jones, ’82, has joined the
law firm of Driskill and Jones.
J. Mark Lovelace, ’82, has
coauthored Oklahoma Lending
Law, a Guide for Commercial
Lenders, a book sponsored by
the Oklahoma Bar Association.
It is available on the OBA website.
D. Keith McFall, ’82, has joined
the law firm of McAfee & Taft.
Steven C. Davis, ’83, has been
named an Oklahoma Super
Lawyer by Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Eric Eissenstat, ’83, has been
named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” in the 2008
issue of Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine. He has also received
the Mona Lambird Service to
Children Award.
Neal Tomlins, ’83, has been
included in 2009 issue of Best
Lawyers in America guide.
Renee DeMoss, ’84, has
received the OBA’s 2008 Alma
Wilson Award.
Susan Walker, ’84, has joined
the new Tulsa office of McAfee
& Taft.
David R. Cordell, ’85, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Bob Hughey, ’85, was selected
by Governor Brad Henry to be
Canadian County associate district
judge.
Richard Nix, ’85, will manage
the new Tulsa office of McAfee
& Taft.
J. Ray Oujesky, ’85, has joined
Chesapeake Energy Corporation
as senior attorney in its
Fort Worth, Texas office.
Andrew Tevington, ’85, has
published Our Faiths: A Peace
Offering, a compilation of his
newspaper columns.
Chip Garrett, ’86, has been
hired as an assistant district
attorney for Wagoner County.
Sally Hasenfratz, ’86, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
John D. Robertson, ’86, has
been named an Oklahoma Super
Lawyer by Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Larry G. Ball, ’87, has been
included in 2009 issue of The
Best Lawyers in America guide.
Tod J. Barrett, ’87, unsuccessfully
ran for Oklahoma House of
Representatives, District 44.
Michael Entz, ’87, has opened
a law office in Weatherford,
Oklahoma.
Daniel J. Glover, ’87, received
the Leadership in Law Award
from the Journal Record newspaper.
Victor E. Morgan, ’87, has been
named an Oklahoma Super Lawyer
in the 2008 issue of Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Malcolm E. Rosser, IV, ’87,
has been named an Oklahoma
Super Lawyer in the 2008
issue of Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Barry Smith, ’87, has joined
the new Tulsa office of McAfee
& Taft.
Charles Greenough, ’87, has
joined the new Tulsa office of
McAfee & Taft.
Laura McConnell-Corbyn, ’87,
has been named an Oklahoma
Super Lawyer by Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Kevin R. Donelson, ’88, has
been named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” in the 2008
issue of Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Jon A. Epstein, ’88, has been
included in 2009 issue of The
Best Lawyers in America guide.
Tracy Pierce Nester, ’88,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record.
John D. Russell, ’83, has been
named one of the “Top 50
Oklahoma Lawyers” in the 2008
issue of Oklahoma Super Lawyers
Magazine.
Lisa K. Hammand, ’88, has
been elected as a 2011 director
of the Oklahoma County Bar
Association.
LeAnne Burnett, ’89, has been
named one of the “Top 25
Female Oklahoma Lawyers” by
Oklahoma Super Lawyers Magazine.
Jean Ann Hudson, ’89, was
promoted to deputy city attor-
alumniNOTES
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 79

alumniNOTES
Ralph G. Thompson, ’61, U.S.
District Judge, retired, has been
named to the International Institute
for Conflict Prevention and
Resolution’s Panel of Distinguished
Neutrals. Judge Thompson
has become associated with Honorable
William Webster, former
U.S. Circuit Judge and Director
of the FBI and CIA, in arbitration
and as co-members of the Council
of Federal Arbitration, Inc., a group of 30 former federal
judges. By appointment of Governor Brad Henry, he serves
as a Commissioner of the national Uniform Law Commission
and continues, in his 28th year, teaching trial advocacy at
Harvard Law School.
ney in the Tulsa City Attorney’s
office.
C. Steven Kessinger, ’89, was
sworn in as special district judge
in Pontotoc County District
Court, September 3, 2008.
Lou Ann Moudy, ’89, has been
elected by the OBA to serve on
its Board of Governors.
Steven W. Soule, ’89, has been
included in 2009 issue of The
Best Lawyers in America guide.
1990s
Tammy D. Barrett, ’90, has
joined the GableGotwals Tulsa
office as of counsel.
Michael Mullins, ’90, received
the Oklahoma County Bar
Association Friends of the YLD
Award.
Samson “Sam” Buck, ’91,
successfully ran for the Oklahoma
House of Representatives.
Richard M. Carson, ’91, has
joined the GableGotwals Tulsa
office as of counsel.
Benton Wheatley, ’91, has
been elected to membership in
the Fellows of the Texas Bar
Association for outstanding
professional achievements and
commitment improving of the
Texas State justice system.
Kirk Olson, ’92, received the
Leadership in Law Award from
the Journal Record newspaper.
Glenn Coffee, ’92, has been
selected to be the next president
pro tempore of the Oklahoma
State Senate.
Melanie Jester, ’92, has
received the Oklahoma County
Bar Association’s 2008 Golden
Gavel Award.
Donelle H. Ratheal, ’92,
received the Leadership in Law
Award from the Journal Record
newspaper.
Paul Vrana, ’92, is a partner
in Jackson Walker, Houston,
Texas. He was named as one of
the Top Lawyers in Houston by
H Texas Magazine.
Rochelle Taylor Curley, ’93, a
circuit court judge in Sarasota,
Florida, has been assigned to the
Criminal Division as of January
2009.
D. Michael McBride, III, ’93,
has been selected general counsel
by the Federal Bar Association
National Board of Directors
Jon Parsley, ’94, was sworn
in as the new Oklahoma Bar
Association president in January
2009.
Nicole Scott, ’94, is the new
Republican staff director of the
House Agriculture Committee.
Jeffrey C. Baum, ’95, has joined
the Tulsa law firm of Richards
& Connor.
Bryan N. B. King, ’95, has
been named an “Oklahoma Rising
Star” in the 2008 issue of
Oklahoma Super Lawyers Magazine.
A. Kyle Swisher, ’97, has
rejoined the firm of Robenstein,
McCormick and Pitts.
Jeff Todd, ’97, was named a
“local litigation star” by Benchmark
Litigation.
Susanna Gattoni Voegeli, ’97,
has rejoined the firm of Hall,
Estill, Hardwick, Gable, Golden
& Nelson, P.C. as a shareholder.
Brooks A. Richardson, ’98,
has been named an “Oklahoma
Rising Star” in the 2008 issue of
Oklahoma Super Lawyers Magazine.
Rob Johnson, ’99, unsuccessfully
ran for Corporation Commissioner.
2000s
Stacy Acord, ’00, has been
named an “Achiever under 40”
by the Journal Record.
Adam W. Childers, ’00, has
joined the law firm of Crowe &
Dunlevy.
Brandon L. Buchanan, ’00, has
become a shareholder of the law
firm of McAfee & Taft.
Travis A. Fulkerson, ’00, has
been named an “Oklahoma Rising
Star” in the 2008 issue of
Oklahoma Super Lawyers Magazine.
Chris J. Kirt, ’00, has joined
the law firm of Crowe & Dunlevy.
Kimberly E. Marchant, ’00, has
joined the law firm of Miller
Dollarhide.
David M. Sullivan, ’00, has
joined the law firm of Crowe &
Dunlevy.
Anthony Sykes, ’00, has been
chosen to serve as majority whip
in the Oklahoma State Senate.
Christopher B. Woods, ’00, has
joined the law firm of Crowe &
Dunlevy.
Jennifer Beth Rader, ’01, has
become a shareholder of the law
firm of McAfee and Taft.
Kenneth A. Tillotson, ’01, has
joined the law firm of Phillips,
McFall, McCaffrey, McVay &
Murrah, P.C.
Julie Austin-Dewbery, ’02, has
been elected to serve as president
of the Carter County Bar
Association.
Matthew J. Ballard, ’02, has
joined the Tulsa law firm
Rosenstein, Fist & Ringold as
an associate attorney.
80 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Sheila Diane Barnes, ’02, married
Preston Barrett Stinson on
September 21, 2008.
Tod Blasdel, ’02, has been
elected as 2011 director of the
Oklahoma County Bar Association.
Lance E. Leffel, ’02, has been
named an “Oklahoma Rising
Star” in the 2008 issue of Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Mary Lockhart, ’02, has joined
the staff of the Tulsa City
Attorney’s office as an assistant
city attorney.
Brian Bush, ’03, has been
named managing director of
Oklahoma Christian University’s
Academy of Leadership
and Liberty.
Lucas Green, ’03, married
Amanda Maxfield, ’04 on May
3, 2008.
Robert “Bobby” Wegener, ’03,
has been appointed Oklahoma
Energy Secretary by Governor
Brad Henry.
Sarah Brune, ’04, and John
Edwards, ’05 honeymooned in
South Africa.
Chad Collins, ’04, married
Paige Harvey September 30,
2007.
Bonner J. Gonzalez, ’04, has
joined the law firm of McAfee
& Taft.
Regina M. Marsh, ’04, has been
named an “Oklahoma Rising
Star” in the 2008 issue of Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Amanda Maxfield, ’04, married,
Lucas Green, ’03 on May
3, 2008.
Nick V. Merkley, ’04, has been
named an “Oklahoma Rising
Star” in the 2008 issue of Oklahoma
Super Lawyers Magazine.
Lincoln McElroy, ’04, has
joined the law firm of McAfee
& Taft.
John Veazey, ’04, will serve as
Law Day chairman of the Carter
County Bar Association.
John Edwards, ’05, and Sarah
Brune, ’04, honeymooned in
South Africa.
Erin M. Moore, ’05, has been
named as a partner in the law
firm of Helms & Underwood.
Jason Reese, ’05, has announced
his candidacy for Oklahoma
Labor Commissioner in 2010.
Elizabeth A. Wellington, ’05,
has been named an “Oklahoma
Rising Star” in the 2008 issue of
Oklahoma Super Lawyers Magazine.
N’kem House, ’06, has joined
the law firm of Crowe & Dunlevy.
Justin L. Pyas, ’06, married
Lisa Margarita Gerber on June
14, 2008.
Johnathan L. Rogers, ’06, has
joined the law firm of Hall,
Estill, Hardwick, Gable, Golden
& Nelson, P.C.
Joshua L. Edwards, ’07, has
joined the law firm of Phillips,
McFall, McCaffrey, McVay &
Murrah, P.C.
J. Kacey Goss, ’07, became
an associate with the Andrews
Davis law firm.
Kristopher Jarvis, ’07, married
Jessica Cardenas on May 10,
2008.
Myron K. Stout, ’07, has joined
the law firm of Phillips, McFall,
McCaffrey, McVay & Murrah,
P.C.
Lauren L. Symcox, ’07, has
joined the law firm of Phillips,
McFall, McCaffrey, McVay &
Murrah, P.C.
Patrick R. Wyrick, ’07, has
joined GableGotwals as an
associate.
Matthew W. Brockman, ’08,
has joined the law firm of Hartzog,
Conger, Cason and Neville.
Christopher L. Carter, ’08, has
joined the law firm of Hall,
Estill, Hardwick, Gable, Golden
and Nelson, P.C.
Tom Ellis, ’08, has joined
the law firm of LeForce &
McCombs, P.C.
Rachel Kirk Evans, ’08, has
joined the law firm of McAfee
& Taft.
Teena S. Kauser, ’08, has
joined the law firm of Conner
& Winters, LLP.
Andrew S. Long, ’08, has
joined the law firm of McAfee
and Taft.
Jean C. Lopez, ’08, has joined
the law firm of Hall, Estill,
Hardwick, Gable, Golden and
Nelson, P.C.
Matthew B. Patterson, ’08, has
joined the Edwards Law Firm in
McAlester.
Kristin M. Simpsen, ’08, has
joined the law firm of McAfee
& Taft.
Aaron Stiles, ’08, unsuccessfully
ran for State House District
45.
Elizabeth Frame, ’09, and
Christopher Ellison, ’09, will
be married in May 2009.
alumniNOTES
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 81

WEREMEMBER
Thomas D. Haines, Jr. ’88, passed away January 8, 2008, in
Roswell, New Mexico. In July 2008, he was posthumously honored
by the State Bar of New Mexico for exceptional service to the
public and the legal profession. Haines received the Justice
Pamela B. Minzner Professionalism Award, the most prestigious
award given by the State Bar. The award recognizes attorneys or
judges who, over long and distinguished legal careers, have, by
their ethical and personal conduct, exemplified for their fellow
attorneys the epitome of professionalism. The State Bar is pleased
to honor Haines’ memory with this special award in recognition of
his exemplary career and dedication to the New Mexico Chaves
County Bar Association, his community and legal profession. He
received his Bachelor of Science degree in political science from
Oklahoma State University in 1979 and was a member of the OSU
marching band. He was a member of the George L. Reese, Jr., American Inn of Court. He also
served on the Medical Legal Panel of New Mexico, and was a member of the Continuing Legal
Education Committee of the Young Lawyers Division of the State of New Mexico. He served on
the Chaves County Bar Association Law Day Committee and was a contributing editor to the
New Mexico Tort and Worker’s Compensation Reporter. He was also a contributing editor to the
Employment Law Desk Book for New Mexico Employers, published by M. Lee Smith Publishers,
L.L.C. (1997). He was a past distinguished secretary 1993-1995 and president 1998-1999 of the
Roswell Kiwanis Club.
1940s
Dr. U.V. Jones, ’41, died May
17, 2008. Jones served as county
attorney for Kiowa County, as a
corporate attorney for Anderson
Pritchard and as a private
attorney. His last 30 years were
spent in academics as a law
librarian, a professor of law and
a professor of legal research and
writing.
Thomas C. Smith, Jr., ’47,
died March 31, 2008. Stationed
in North Africa during
World War II, Smith entered
private practice after the war,
completing his interrupted
studies in law. Forty years later,
he was selected as special district
judge for Oklahoma County and
later district judge for Oklahoma
County.
James W. Rodgers, Jr., ’48,
a World War II veteran and
a staunch, long-time supporter
of the American Legion, was a
respected attorney in Holdenville
for nearly 50 years.
McCurtain Scott, ’48, grandson
of the renowned chief of the
Choctaw Nation Green McCurtain,
Scott was a highly respected
trust attorney and banker
with the Pittsburgh National
Bank. He was a World War II
veteran and for a time, he was
an attorney for the Cincinnati
Reds baseball team.
Louis G. Borgman, ’49, Stationed
in Burma during World
War II, Borgman served as a
pilot in the U.S. Air Force.
After a brief stint as assistant
district attorney in Logan County,
he entered private business,
co-managing Sooner Placement
Service.
1950s
William Fulton, ’50, died
October 30, 2008. A former
district attorney in Okmulgee,
Fulton also worked as an
insurance adjuster and assisted
his brother Bill in a furniture
business.
David Kline, ’50, died July 22,
2008. A former bankruptcy judge
for the Western District Federal
Court, he became the president
of the National Association
of Bankruptcy Judges and was
largely responsible for rewriting
the bankruptcy statutes.
George Ford Short, ’50, died
April 7, 2008. He was a partner
in the firm of Short, Barnes,
Wiggins and Margo. He was
a former vice president of the
Oklahoma Bar Association and
served on its Board of Governors
and Professional Responsibility
Committee.
Charles E. Norman, ’53, died
January 2, 2009 in Tulsa. A
former Tulsa city attorney,
Norman was awarded the 2005
J. Paschal Twyman Award for
outstanding leadership and
service beyond the call of duty
to the University of Tulsa where
he served as chairman of the
Board of Trustees.
John Denny Montgomery,
Sr., ’55, died June 28, 2008 in
Norman. He served two years
in the Korean conflict and after
the war practiced law in Hobart
for 50 years. He was a third
generation Rotary President.
Jerome (Jerry) Blumenthal,
’56, of Oklahoma City, died
April 17, 2008.
Larry McLane, ’58, died
February 24, 2008. A veteran
of the Korean War, McLane
was a CPA and practiced law
in the firm of Fellers, Snider,
Baggett and McLane and later
82 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

in the Houston office of Peat,
Marwick, Mitchell.
James Winson Summerlin,
’58, died February 29, 2008.
He served four years in the
Army during the Korean war.
He was widely respected for his
expertise in rural water districts
and municipal law.
James William Connor, ’58,
died March 17, 2008. He served
as assistant county attorney in
Bartlesville and at the Oklahoma
House of Representatives for
District 10. He was selected
outstanding legislator each year
he was in office.
Bobby Jim Cooper, ’59, died
April 21, 2008 in Oklahoma
City. He was a partner in the
law firm of Butler, Rinehart
and Morrison. He was active in
the American Bar Association
and the Oklahoma State Bar
Association. He was an adjunct
professor at the OU Law School
and the OCU Law School.
1960s
Gene Paul Morrell, ’62, died
March 3, 2008. A former
director of the U.S. Office of Oil
and Gas and director of the U.S.
Oil Import Program. He went
to the private sector in 1972,
eventually becoming chairman
of the board of PetroUnited
Terminals, Inc. and Chairman
of UER International Ltd.
Leslie Lynn Conner Jr.,’63,
passed away March 13, 2009
in Oklahoma City. He was the
head of Conner & Little for
many years and later joined
Little & Morgan. He was a
judge, arbitrator, mediator,
fact-finder, hearing officer and
hearing examiner. Conner was
on the Heritage Hall School
board of trustees and First State
Bank of Jones, Oklahoma board
of directors.
Larry B. Lucas, ’63, died
February 22, 2008. He practiced
law in Poteau and was a rancher.
He achieved the rank of Eagle
Scout and remained involved
with Boy Scouts throughout his
life. He also served on the board
of the Oklahoma Attorney
Mutual Insurance Company.
1970s
Michael M. Stewart, ’76 died
December 2, 2008. He was an
officer in the U.S Navy from
1970 to 1973. He was president
of Crowe & Dunlevy from 2000-
2002. He was also a civic leader
in Oklahoma City.
Danny Miller Corn, ’77
died November 12, 2008. He
practiced law in Oklahoma City
for more than 30 years. In 1994
he ran as an Independent U.S.
Senate candidate.
Judge Denton Delaplane
Gossett, ’78, died February 24,
2008. In 1965 he was given
a lifetime appointment as a
federal administrative law judge
with the Bureau of Hearings and
Appeals, Health and Human
Services Department and was
eventually appointed chief judge
at the Oklahoma City office.
1980s
Robert Wayne Beal, ’84, died
April 15, 2008 at his home in
Chickasha. He served as the
assistant district attorney for
Comanche County and Grady
County.
Rena Janet (Jacobsma)
Warren, ’87, she was prosecutor
for the Comanche County
District Attorney’s office. She
also served as the first assistant
DA for Custer County and later
Beckham County and Jackson
County.
WEREMEMBER
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 83

WEREMEMBER, continued
Kay Elaine York Lierman, ’87,
passed away in December, 2008. A
former teacher, guidance director
and curriculum administrator,
Lierman worked at the Department of
Environmental Quality until 1997.
Allen Core, ’88, passed away October
17, 2008 in Hominy, Oklahoma.
1990s
Philip Arthur Ramirez, ’91, died
suddenly April 23, 2008 in his home
in Guymon. Ramirez worked for many
years in Dallas at the firm Brown,
Moroney, Oakes and Hartline. He
had recently returned to Guymon to
help care for his parents.
Bill Powell Guest, ’94, died September
20, 2008 in Oklahoma City. At one
time an adjunct professor at the OU
College of Law, Guest worked for the
law firm of Day, Edwards, Propester
& Christenson, primarily in securities
litigation and arbitration. He was
voted a Super Lawyer by his peers for
the last two years.
84 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

BOOKS
Antonin Scalia’s Jurisprudence
Text and Tradition
Ralph A. Rossum
Lionized by the right and demonized by the left, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia is the high court’s
quintessential conservative. Witty, outspoken, often abrasive, he is widely regarded as the most controversial
member of the Court. This book is the first comprehensive, reasoned, and sympathetic analysis of how Scalia has
decided cases during his entire twenty-year Supreme Court tenure. Ralph Rossum focuses on Scalia’s more than
600 Supreme Court opinions and dissents—carefully wrought, passionately argued and filled with well-turned
phrases—which portray him as an eloquent defender of an “original meaning” jurisprudence.
“An insightful examination that captures the intellectual flair that Justice Scalia brings to his interpretive
quest.”—Kenneth W. Starr, author of First Among Equals: The Supreme Court in American Life
University Press of Kansas
Alternative Oklahoma
Contrarian Views of the Sooner State
Edited by Davis D. Joyce
Foreword by Fred R. Harris
Joyce presents fourteen essays that interpret Oklahoma’s unique populist past and address current political and
social issues. Scholars and political activists speak their minds on subjects ranging from gender, race and religion
to popular music, the energy industry and economics. These decidedly contrarian Sooner voices reflect the
progressive, libertarian and even radical viewpoints that influenced the state’s creation.
University of Oklahoma Press
The Constitution and 9/11
Recurring Threats to America’s Freedoms
by Louis Fisher
Government surveillance. Suspension of habeas corpus. Secret tribunals. Most Americans would recognize
these controversial topics from today’s headlines. Unfortunately, as Louis Fisher reminds us, such violations of
freedom have been with us throughout our history—and continue to threaten the Constitution and the rights
that it protects. Fisher focuses especially on how the Bush administration’s responses to 9/11 have damaged our
constitutional culture and values, threatened individual liberties, and challenged the essential nature of our
government’s system of checks and balances. His close analysis of five topics—the resurrection of military tribunals,
the Guantánamo detainees, the state secrets privilege, NSA surveillance, and extraordinary rendition—places
into sharp relief the gradual but relentless erosion of fundamental rights along with an enormous expansion and
concentration of presidential power in the post-9/11 era.
University Press of Kansas
Oklahoma... Where the West Remains
A Centennial Journey in Music and Story
Edna Mae Holden, R.W. Hampton, Rich O’Brien
Oklahoma...Where The West Remains, has been named this year’s Outstanding Traditional Western Album by the
National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. A four-year project from conception to realization, this album is a
monumental journey in story and song recorded with the Enid, Oklahoma Symphony Orchestra to commemorate
the 2007 Centennial of Oklahoma’s statehood. Hampton and friends take the listener on a hundred-year musical
and factual journey, visiting the Native Americans, Buffalo Soldiers, Cattle Drovers, Ranch Hands, Settlers and
Seekers, Industrialists and Artisans, Cowboys and Characters that formed the fabric of the Sooner State.
www.wherethewestremains.com
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 85

Queen’s Court
Judicial Power in the Rehnquist Era
by Nancy Maveety
As frequent swing vote and centrist voice, Justice Sandra Day O’Connor helped shape many of the Supreme
Court’s landmark decisions and opinions under the leadership of William Rehnquist. Indeed, many argue that
her overall impact and influence was greater than that of the Chief Justice himself.
Queen’s Court is a look beyond the conventional wisdom that O’Connor’s centrism gave her de facto control
over a court notorious for its disunity, providing instead a more precise and systematic analysis of her influence.
Maveety describes the attributes that distinguish this Court from its predecessors and suggests how O’Connor’s
five years on the Burger Court foreshadowed her emergence as an accommodationist.
“An excellent and incisive account of how Sandra Day O’Connor became the least predictable and most
influential judge on the Rehnquist Court.”—Judith A. Baer, author of Our Lives Before the Law
University Press of Kansas
Cricket in the Web
The 1949 Unsolved Murder that Unraveled Politics in New Mexico
by Paula Moore
Ovida “Cricket” Coogler was last seen alive entering a mysterious car on the morning of March 31, 1949.
Seventeen days later, her body was found in a hastily dug grave near Mesquite, New Mexico. The discovery
of the eighteen-year-old waitress’s body launched a series of court inquiries and trials that would reshape the
direction of New Mexico politics, expose political corruption and spawn generations of rumors.
Containing elements of mystery, conflict, power, fear, sex and politics, the Coogler case has outlasted the
brief amount of attention that most local unsolved murders receive. In this exhaustively researched study of the
murder and its aftermath, Paula Moore provides the first objective account to examine the infamous murder and
the events that unfolded in its wake.
University of New Mexico Press
Bush, the Detainees, and the Constitution
The Battle over Presidential Power in the War on Terror
by Howard Ball
The infamous detainees of Guantánamo have come to symbolize a host of controversial policies and powers
claimed by President George W. Bush in the so-called war on terror. Designated as “enemy combatants,” a vaguely
defined and previously unrecognized category in the international laws of war, they have been at the center of a
legal firestorm challenging the Bush administration’s conduct of the war. Ball describes how the administration
repeatedly found ways to evade both the letter and spirit of the Court’s decisions through new legislation,
presidential signing statements and even redefinition of the status of the detainees.
Ball reminds us once again that, in a time of war, there will always be a great tension between the need
for security and the constitutional protection of due process. Ultimately, he tells a troubling story about the
relationship between absolute presidential power and the principles of representative government.
University Press of Kansas
Jack’s 45th
by Drew Neville
Jack’s 45th presents a unique blend of family history, the history of Oklahoma and of World War II. The book
follows the footsteps of Jack Neville from Adair, Oklahoma, through the battles of Oklahoma’s famous 45th
Infantry Division Thunderbirds. Author Neville also tells of the life and times of those who worked and waited
in Oklahoma City for the war to end.
Oklahoma Heritage Association
86 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Country Lawyer
The Life and Times of James F. Howell
by David C. Craighead
Foreword by David Boren
Born in rural Wewoka during the Great Depression, James F. Howell, ’63, began his education at Justice
Elementary, a mostly Native American grammar school.
At Wewoka High School, Eastern Oklahoma State A&M College and Oklahoma Baptist University,
Howell demonstrated his athletic ability playing center on the basketball team. During college, he struggled
with choosing between becoming a preacher or a lawyer, eventually choosing the latter. After earning his law
degree at the University of Oklahoma he embarked on a long career in the legal profession and civic leadership,
including 16 years as a member of the Oklahoma State Senate, earning many significant honors along the way.
Oklahoma Heritage Association
Oklahoma Rough Rider
Billy McGinty’s Own Story
Edited by Jim Fulbright and Albert Stehno
This is the firsthand testimony of Billy McGinty, a veteran cowboy and one of Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders.
He participated in the battle of Las Guasimas, the attack on San Juan Heights and the siege of Santiago; later, he
performed in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show and won the Cowboy Hall of Fame’s Great Westerner award. Editors
Jim Fulbright, a former broadcast journalist, and Albert Stehno, a rancher and historian, enhance McGinty’s
writings with comments providing historical context. They also have added a summary of McGinty’s later years as
leader of the McGinty Cowboy Band whose music was a precursor of modern-day Country-Western. An absolute
must-read for fans of true-life American West exploits, tales and legends.— Midwest Book Review
University of Oklahoma Press
Legacies of Camelot
Stewart and Lee Udall, American Culture, and the Arts
by Boyd Finch
Foreword by Tom Udall
“An intimate portrait of Stewart and Lee Udall, an American canvas painted with considerable perception,
sympathy and candor.”—N. Scott Momaday, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of House Made of Dawn
Selected as secretary of the Interior by President John F. Kennedy, Stewart Udall promoted the partnership
between government and the arts during the Kennedy-Johnson years. Writing with an eye for telling detail,
Finch describes the Udalls’ personal contacts with some of the most significant figures of the mid-twentieth
century, from Frost and Sandburg, to Khrushchev and Stegner. Dozens of photos put readers into the
Washington whirl that we now call Camelot.
University of Oklahoma Press
George Miksch Sutton
Artist, Scientist, and Teacher
by Jerome A. Jackson
Foreword by Tom Udall
This book is the first biography of the distinguished ornithologist George Miksch Sutton (1898–1982) who is
revered by bird lovers everywhere for his beautiful paintings. A Victorian gentleman, adventurer and raconteur,
he was trained in the sciences but felt equally at home in the arts. Jackson depicts a Renaissance man whose
life was, more than a search for birds, a quest for knowledge through science and art in the service of humanity.
This account fills in details missing from Sutton’s autobiography, Bird Student. Gracing the book are fifty
reproductions of Sutton’s art—twenty-eight in full color—including early, unpublished or obscure works along
with non-avian subjects.
University of Oklahoma Press
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 87

Intelligence Matters
The CIA, the FBI, Saudi Arabia, and the
Failure of America’s War on Terror
by Bob Graham with Jeff Nussbaum
“In this insider’s report, Senator Bob Graham reveals faults in America’s national security network severe enough
to raise fundamental questions about the competence and honesty of public officials in the CIA, the FBI, and the
White House.” As a result of his Senate work, Graham has become convinced that the attacks of September 11
could have been avoided, and that the Bush administration’s war on terrorism has failed to address the immediate
danger posed by al-Qaeda, Hezbollah and Hamas in Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen and Somalia. His book is a
reminder that at the highest levels of national security, now more than ever, intelligence matters.
University Press of Kansas
More Grace than Glamour
My Life As Miss America And Beyond
Jane Jayroe and Bob Burke
This is the story of one of Oklahoma’s favorite daughters. Jane Jayroe was crowned Miss America in 1966 at
age 19. After a year of rigorous schedules, responsibilities and commitments as Miss America, Jane returned to a
life of her own. Her personal life included marriage, motherhood, divorce and ultimately finding the love of her
husband, real estate broker Gerald Gamble, in the early 1990s. Her successful professional career includes being
a spokesperson, actress, television news anchor and host and Oklahoma Secretary of Tourism. Her commitment
to public service in order to better the life of Oklahomans is immeasurable. Jayroe has worked with author and
historian Bob Burke to share her life with all its ups and downs.
Oklahoma Heritage Association
Myth of the Hanging Tree
Stories of Crime and Punishment in Territorial New Mexico
by Robert J. Tórrez
The haunting specter of hanging trees holds a powerful sway on the American imagination, conjuring images
of rough-and-tumble frontier towns struggling to impose law and order in a land where violence was endemic.
In this thoughtful study, Tórrez examines several fascinating criminal cases that reveal the harsh and often
gruesome realities of the role hangings, legal or otherwise, played in the administration of frontier justice.
In tracing territorial New Mexico’s efforts to enforce law, Tórrez challenges the myths and popular
perceptions about hangings and lynchings in this corner of the Wild West.
“. . . a fascinating . . . highly readable book that underscores the gruesome realities of public
hangings . . .”—Tucson Citizen
University of New Mexico Press
The Supreme Court
An Essential History
by Peter Charles Hoffer, Williamjames Hull Hoffer and N. E. H. Hull
The Supreme Court chronicles the evolution of this institution while demonstrating how the justices have shaped
the law and how the law that the Court makes has shaped our nation, with an emphasis on how the Court
responded—or failed to respond—to the plight of the underdog. Each chapter covers the Court’s years under a
specific Chief Justice, focusing on cases that are the most reflective of the way the Court saw the law and the world
and that had the most impact on the lives of ordinary Americans. Fair-minded and sharply insightful, The Supreme
Court portrays an institution defined by eloquent and pedestrian decisions and by justices ranging from brilliant
and wise to slow-witted and expedient. An epic and essential story, it illuminates the Court’s role in our lives and
its place in our history.
University Press of Kansas
88 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

10 Oklahoma
Womenby Susan
Ada Lois Sipuel Fisher
Born in Chickasha, Oklahoma in 1924, Ada Lois
1
Angie Debo
Angie Debo came to Oklahoma in a covered wagon
Sipuel, ’52, grew up during some
with her mother and younger brother ten years after
the Land Run of 1889.
of the worst race-hatred and rigid
segregation in the history of the
U.S. The courage she demonstrated when
hoped to see Indians but didn’t see anyone but white settlers.
She was educated in a one-room rural school near
she applied to the OU College of Law in
1945 is awe-inspiring. At that time it was
Marshall, Oklahoma Territory. Although she’d been a
literally against the law for black students
teacher since the age of 16, she didn’t graduate from high
to attend class with white students. Her
school until the age of 23 because the town didn’t have a
admittance into the school would have
high school until then. She graduated from the University
of Oklahoma in 1918 and entered the University of
subjected then-president George Lynn
Cross to a fine of $50 for every day she
Chicago for her masters degree. Since women were not
attended. Though Cross admitted there
allowed to enter the history field she took her degree in
was no academic reason to reject her, she
International Relations.
was refused admittance.
Her doctoral thesis, The Rise and Fall
Fisher filed a lawsuit supported by
of the Choctaw Republic, was published
hundreds of small donations from across
by the OU Press and won the John H.
the state. No less than Thurgood Marshall,
Dunning Prize of the American Historical
Association. Because of that, the OU
working for the NAACP, represented her. Together they
fought the case all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Press offered Debo a contract to pursue
Four years later, now married and pregnant, Ada
the new field of American Indian history.
Lois Sipuel Fisher enrolled in the OU College of Law
Debo’s devotion to historical accuracy
and began her studies which she completed in 1952. In
turned out to be a snag in her career. Her
spite of physical danger and officially sanctioned humiliation—she
was given a chair labeled “colored” and re-
first book for the OU Press, And Still the
Waters Run, gave a very unflattering account
of Oklahoma history, including
quired to eat in a roped-off section of the cafeteria—she
was determined to finish her degree and do well. Some
severe injustices perpetrated by several
of her fellow students and professors embraced and befriended
her, even slipping under the barrier to have
prominent citizens and government leaders.
The OU Press backed out of its contract and the book
lunch with her when the guards weren’t looking.
was eventually published by Princeton University Press.
After graduation she returned to Chickasha to
And Still the Waters Run and The Road to Disappearance:
practice law before becoming professor and head of
A History of the Creek Indians were both cited as evidence
the Social Studies Department at Langston University
in federal court cases involving Indian land rights.
where she remained for 35 years. In 1968 she earned
During her long career she wrote nine books and
a Master’s Degree in History from OU. After retirement
she worked as an attorney for a large African
hundreds of articles, mostly on Native American history.
Though Angie Debo’s work won numerous awards, the
American-owned computer company. In 1991 she was
state of Oklahoma ignored her achievements until the
awarded an Honorary Doctorate by OU. In 1992 Governor
David Walters appointed her to the University of
1980s when she was in her 90s. Her portrait now hangs
in the capitol and she was inducted into the Oklahoma
“Because
Oklahoma Board of Regents. She died in 1995.
I am
Historians
a
Hall
woman.
of Fame. She died in 1988.
. .
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 89
Angie Debo by Charles Banks Wilson
Brassfield Cogan
She mentioned in her diary at the time that she
2

FEATURE
Molly Shi Boren
S.E. Hinton
Most prominently known
as the first lady of the
University of Oklahoma,
Molly Shi Boren,
’74, is, in her own way, very much
a leader.
Born in Ada, Oklahoma, Boren
3earned a Master’s Degree in
English in 1971 and a juris doctorate
in 1974 from OU Law. She
practiced law for a while in Ada
before being appointed as one of
the youngest district judges in
Oklahoma history in 1975. She
left that position in 1977 to become first lady of Oklahoma
by marrying then-governor David Boren.
The first woman to serve on the Oklahoma Bar
Association board of trustees, Boren was also the first
woman elected to the Ada Chamber of Commerce
board of directors.
Boren’s interests currently center around the beautification
of the University of Oklahoma
Norman campus and OU Health Sciences
Center campus.
Joy Harjo
Poet, musician, artist and singer Joy
4
Harjo is an enrolled member of the
Muscogee (Creek) Nation.
Her seven books of poetry have
won numerous awards including The Arrell
Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award,
the Oklahoma Book Award and the Willliam
Carlos Williams Award from the Poetry Society of
America. She has written an award-winning children’s
book, The Good Luck Cat (Harcourt) and has a forthcoming
book of stories from W. W. Norton. She and her
band Joy Harjo and Poetic Justice have a new music CD
of original songs called Native Joy for Real.
Harjo has travelled the world performing her poetry
and music from Madras, India, to the Ford Theatre in Los
Angeles. She has been featured on Bill Moyers, The Power
of the Word series and The Garrison Keillor Show.
She is currently the Joseph Russo endowed professor
at the University of New Mexico and lives part time in
Honolulu, Hawaii.
Photo: Langton Publishing
Photo by Paul Abdoo
The Outsiders was published in 1967 when S.E.
Hinton was only 19.
Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, she began her
writing career while she was still in high school.
Books aimed at teens during the 1960s were boring
and simplistic. She wanted to read something that actually
reflected her life and realized she would have
to write the stories herself. Since all her protagonists
are male and the books are written in the first person,
her publishers suggested she use only her first initials.
She has kept the name because
it helps separate her public persona
from her private life.
The Outsiders was followed
by Rumble Fish (1968), That
was Then, This is Now (1971),
Tex (1979) and Taming the Star
Runner (1988). She has written
two books for small children,
Big David, Little David (1995)
and The Puppy 5Sister (1995).
In 2004 Hinton wrote her first
book for adults, Hawkes Harbor.
In 1988 she was the first
recipient of the Margaret A.
Edwards Award and in 1997 received the Arrell Gibson
Lifetime Achievement Award from the Oklahoma
Center for the Book.
An intensely private person, Hinton still lives in
Tulsa with her husband and son.
I must make
unusual efforts to
succeed.
If I fail . . .
90 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009

Jane Jayroe
Former Miss America Jane Jayroe was born in Clinton,
Oklahoma and grew up in Sentinel and Laverne.
6She was a Homecoming Queen who won
several beauty pageants as a teenager, eventually
becoming Miss Oklahoma City, then Miss Oklahoma
and finally Miss America in 1967.
She became a news anchor for KOCO in Oklahoma
City and later for KXAS in Dallas/Fort Worth. While in
Texas she was the first female to be awarded “Outstanding
News Personality” for the Dallas area and
eventually won several journalism awards for
her work in broadcasting. Later she co-hosted
the popular Discover Oklahoma television
show and eventually was named Secretary of
Tourism by Governor Frank Keating.
Jayroe is the author of numerous articles
and co-wrote More Grace than Glamour (see
page 88), her autobiography. For the Oklahoma
Centennial Year, she drew on her deep
love for Oklahoma to write the text to Oklahoma
3, a beautiful book of photographs by
David Fitzgerald.
Jayroe was inducted into the Oklahoma
Hall of Fame in 2007.
Wilma Mankiller
Principal Chief for ten years from
7
FEATURE
Wilma Mankiller has been inducted into the National
Women’s Hall of Fame, has been honored by Oklahoma
State University with the Henry G. Bennett Distinguished
Service award and has received the nation’s highest civilian
honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Kate Barnard
Born in Nebraska in 1875, Kate Barnard grew up
around Newalla and Oklahoma City. More than
any other woman, she had the greatest impact
on the founding of the state of Oklahoma.
Barnard started her career as a school teacher, but
quickly tired of that and took several clerical positions
in the Oklahoma Territorial government. Her interest
in charity work and advocacy 8for the poor started early
and in 1906 she entered politics.
She attended the Constitutional Convention and
was influential in the establishment of laws against
child labor, pensions for widows and the establishment
of the office of commissioner of charities and
corrections. Impressed with her passion and the intelligence
of her suggestions, the Democratic Party
endorsed her to run for the position of commissioner,
the only public office open to women
who were legally prohibited from voting.
Nevertheless she became the first woman to be
elected to a major state office. Her accomplishments
include persuading the legislature to pass
laws making education compulsory, prohibiting
child labor and launching
a juvenile justice system.
Most importantly she reformed
the prison system
which at the time allowed
forced labor and even
torture.
During her second
term in office she
discovered the plight of
Indian children whose
oil wealth was being
plundered by their white
guardians. When she
championed their cause she was destroyed politically
and the legislature defunded her office.
Her health broken, she died alone in an Oklahoma
City hotel room. She was buried in a grave that was
unmarked until the 1980s.
In 2001 Kate Barnard was honored with a bronze
statue in the state Capitol.
1985 to 1995, Mankiller was born in
Tahlequah. In 1956 her family was
relocated to San Francisco by the
Bureau of Indian Affairs. Desperately unhappy
in San Francisco, she eventually became
director of the Native American Youth Center
in East Oakland where her natural leadership
skills began to emerge.
Mankiller returned to Oklahoma in the 1970s
where she worked on various community development
projects including a community-based renovation
of a water system that revitalized the town of Bell,
Oklahoma.
In 1983 she ran for deputy chief against strong opposition
based on the fact that she was a woman. In spite
of facing threats and intimidation she was successfully
elected alongside Principal Chief Ross Swimmer. When
Swimmer resigned to head the BIA, Mankiller stepped
into his position. In 1987 she was elected Principal Chief
in her own right and re-elected in 1995 with 82 percent
of the vote. In 1995 she resigned due to health issues.
No one will say “She doesn’t have what it takes.”
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 91

FEATURE
Juanita Kidd Stout
Shannon Lucid
Juanita 9Kidd was born with a brilliant mind avid
for learning. The child of teachers, she learned
to read at the age of three. Born in
Wewoka, Oklahoma, her only educational
option was segregated schools where
she was always a star pupil. At the age of
16 she left Oklahoma to go to Lincoln University
in Jefferson, Missouri because she
could not get an advanced education in her
home state.
She earned a Bachelors in Music at a
time when only two percent of African
Americans had four-year college degrees.
Three years later she married Charles Stout
who used his Army GI education allowance
to put her through law school at Howard
University in Washington D.C. In 1959 after a few
years in private practice, Stout was appointed to fill a
vacancy on the municipal court, by Pennsylvania Governor
David L. Lawrence, making her the first African
American woman to sit on the bench in Philadelphia.
A short time later she was elected to a ten-year
term and after that was elected to two ten-year terms
on the Court of Common Pleas. In 1988 she was appointed
to the Pennsylvania State Supreme Court.
In the mid-1960s she became famous for the tough
sentences she gave to juvenile offenders and was very
outspoken against gang violence, deadbeat dads and
exclusion of blacks from juries. Even her critics considered
her tough but fair. She was a great proponent
of education and often included educational requirements
as a part of a defendant’s probation.
Over her lifetime and even posthumously, she garnered
many awards. She received the Henry G. Bennett
Distinguished Service Award, was named Justice
of the Year by the National Association of Women
Judges, was recognized as a distinguished Daughter
of Pennsylvania and was inducted into the Oklahoma
Hall of Fame. She died of leukemia in 1998.
Shannon Lucid was a teenager when the flight
10
of Sputnik spurred the U.S. manned space program
and the space age began. Shannon wanted
to be part of it.
Though as the daughter of missionaries she was
born in Shanghai, China, she grew up in Bethany,
Oklahoma which she still considers her home. She
earned her Bachelors in Chemistry from the University
of Oklahoma in 1963, her Masters of Science from
OU in 1970 and her doctorate in biochemistry in 1973.
She is also a skilled pilot.
In 1978 Lucid was selected to join NASA’s first astronaut
class that included women.
After a long period of intense training
she finally began to fly space
missions in 1985. She flew a total
of five missions.
Her most famous mission is
the last one. After a year of training
in Star City, Russia, she spent six
months on Russia’s Mir space lab.
For 11 years she held the record for
most hours in orbit by a woman.
Dr. Lucid still works for NASA,
previously as chief scientist at
NASA headquarters where she
helped develop and communicate NASA’s science and
research objectives. Most recently she worked at the
Johnson Space Center in Houston as part of Mission
Control.
For her work on Mir the Russians awarded her the
Order of Friendship Medal which is the highest Russian
award that can be given to a non-citizen. She is
the only woman to receive the Congressional Space
Medal of Honor which was given to her by President
Bill Clinton.
They will say, “Women don’t have what it
takes.” ~Clare Boothe Luce
. . . and clearly they do
92 | Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009
Sooner Lawyer | fall/winter • 2008/2009 | 92

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