Honor Roll of Donors - University of Miami - School of Law

CARLOS DE LA CRUZ
PHILANTHROPY
Carlos de la Cruz Mentschikoff Chair in Law
and Economics
Thanks to the generosity of Carlos M. de la Cruz, Sr., JD ’79, the de la Cruz-Mentschikoff Endowed Chair in Law
and Economics was established at the Law School in Soia Mentschikoff’s memory – a former dean at the UM Law
School. The de la Cruz-Mentschikoff Endowed Chair will focus on matters of business associations, planning,
commercial and international transactions, securities, and antitrust.
A graduate of UM Law, de la Cruz also graduated from the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School (BS in
'62, MBA in '63). He is a lifetime member and past chairman of the University of Miami's Board of Trustees, and
two years ago was appointed by the board to chair the Visiting Committee of the University of Miami School of
Law. He is a businessman and chairs the board of CC1 Companies, which include the Coca-Cola bottling companies
in Puerto Rico and Trinidad & Tobago. He has been very involved in community activities having chaired
the board of United Way of Miami-Dade County, and has been a member of the boards of Georgetown University,
Belen Jesuit Preparatory School, Florida International University Foundation, the Dade Foundation, the Business Assistance Center, and Miami
Partners for Progress. “This chair will renew and strengthen the Law School’s commitment to law and economics, and the path-breaking research
begun here years ago,” said former Acting Dean Paul R. Verkuil.
For more than twenty years, the
late Robert Bates Cole, a distinguished
and powerful Miami
attorney, served as counsel for the
University of Miami and helped
bring seven U.S. Supreme Court
justices to the University as part of
the Robert B. Cole Distinguished
Jurist Lectures. Upon his death in
1997, he left a portion of his estate
to the School of Law to create a
lecture series. Recently, his son,
Richard Cole, a managing partner
in the Miami office of Cole, Scott
RICHARD COLE & Kissane, PA, decided to establish
The Robert B. Cole Endowed
Lecture Series through his father’s
trust, which will enable the Law School to bring some of the most
exciting legal minds in the nation to campus. Cole and his firm will
provide the funding for the lecture series until the endowment starts to
produce sufficient income.
“Education is far from book learning,” said Richard Cole. “My dad
always believed that it entails the exchange of ideas and thoughts of
learned people from various viewpoints and perspectives. It is hoped
that this series of lectures will provide such discourse and enhance the
law students experience at this great university.”
The Miami Law Review will partner with the Cole Lecture Series in
providing each renowned lecturer the opportunity to publish his/her
remarks in the Law Review. The presence of these predominate legal
scholars, jurists, and government officials will help make the Law
Review more competitive with many of the leading national journals.
“
“All of us remember certain teachers that modified the way we analyze and make decisions. Soia Mentschikoff
was such a person - at least for me,” said Mr. de la Cruz. “Hopefully the recipients of the de la Cruz - Mentschikoff
Chair in Law and Economics will have the same effect on future generations of UM Law School students
who are studying the impact of the construction and interpretation of laws on economic activity.
The Robert B. Cole Endowed Lecture Series
Established at UM Law
“The partnership formed this year between the Cole Lecture Series
and the Miami Law Review will be invaluable to the future of our
organization,” said Mike Pieciak, JD ’09, who served as editor-in-chief
of the Miami Law Review last year. “The Lecture Series will allow the
Review to annually host preeminent legal scholars and subsequently
print their remarks. We are very grateful to the Cole family and look
forward to working with them to not only create a great event, but to
also honor the legacy of Robert Cole.”
In the past, the Cole Distinguished Jurist Lecture Series attracted
some of the most celebrated jurists in the nation. Among them were
United States Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, Chief
Justice William Rehnquist, Justice John Paul Stevens, Justice William
J. Brennan, Jr., Justice Harry a. Blackmun, Justice Antonin Scalia,
and Justice Sandra Day O’Connor.
The Cole family first created the Robert B. Cole Lecture
Series in the late 1980’s,” recalled Professor and
Dean Emerita Mary Doyle. “Through their generosity
we brought seven justices to the Law School in as
many years. Each Cole lecture was a wonderful occasion,
a chance to bring together students, alums and
faculty in an intellectually exciting way, and to portray
our law school as the vibrant place it is. I am heartened
to see the Cole family renew this opportunity for
the law school community.
The newly endowed Cole Lecture Series is expected to provide a forum
for distinguished legal scholars to share their thinking on important
issues. These prominent speakers will help to spark lively discussion
among faculty, students, and members of the bench and bar.
““
University of Miami School of Law 25