Meet the Board: Nathan DeLadurantey

Over the next couple weeks, we'll be posting short snapshots of each new OBCLAA Board member. If you see a Board member working on a project that interests you, shoot him or her an e-mail and jump right in!

After serving two terms as Vice President, Nathan DeLadurantey (JD01A) is the OBCLAA President.

I currently reside in Southeastern Wisconsin (Go Packers!!!) with my wife and three children. The focus of my current practice is bankruptcy, foreclosure defense, and contract litigation -- a very busy area of practice in today's economy. In my few "spare" moments I enjoy reading, kayaking and working in my yard.

My chief goals are leading the Board in generating increased enrollment for the 2011 class, providing a network of employment opportunities for graduates, and increasing the number of graduates involved with the alumni association.

Questions? Ready to get involved? Nathan can be reached by e-mail at nathan@dela-law.com.

Meet the Board: Emily Younger

Over the next couple weeks, we'll be posting short snapshots of each new OBCLAA Board member. If you see a Board member working on a project that interests you, shoot him or her an e-mail and jump right in!

Emily Younger (JD99A) is the OBCLAA Secretary.

A native Californian, I live in Orange County, where I just started graduate studies in Spanish at the University of California, Irvine. On the legal side of things, I work as a contract research attorney and teach Legal Writing III for OBCL. This summer, I also took the opportunity to become an allied attorney with Alliance Defense Fund (If you can, do it! You will not be sorry.)

My goals this year are to maintain OBCLAA records, help with promotion and media (Facebook and this blog, specifically), and support the Tell Ten initiative with the goal of having a significantly larger-than-lately orientation class in 2011.

If you have any questions about Tell Ten or ideas for content on this blog, send me an e-mail at obclaasecretary@gmail.com. And, if you ever see an article or web site of interest to the OBCL community, feel free to post it (that means pictures, too!) to the OBCLAA Facebook page.

Meet the Board: Crystal Kinz

Over the next couple weeks, we'll be posting short snapshots of each new OBCLAA Board member. If you see a Board member working on a project that interests you, shoot him or her an e-mail and jump right in!

Crystal Kinz (P07) is the OBCLAA's Paralegal Liaison. Here are some thoughts from Crystal:

I reside in San Diego, CA. I completed the paralegal program in 2007 and was certified by the National Association of Legal Assistants in 2008. I am a freelance paralegal as well as working full-time in retail management.

My goals as the Paralegal Liaison this year are to

1. continue and improve in networking to the other paralegal alumni and students while providing updates on Alumni news, and

2. create and maintain a video networking site that will provide information and assistance to alumni members, students and prospective students.

I can be reached at crystalkinz@gmail.com.

Meet the Board: Anita Paulsson

Over the next couple weeks, we'll be posting short snapshots of each new OBCLAA Board member. If you see a Board member working on a project that interests you, shoot him or her an e-mail and jump right in!

Anita Paulsson (JD01A) is OBCLAA Treasurer.

A resident of Washington state, Anita is admitted to the bar in California and Washington. She does legal work part-time as an independent contractor and is finishing up a seasonal job as a baler operator.

Anita's two major goals for the Treasurer this year are

(1) to create a yearly budget, and

(2) to create a workable method of increasing and tracking the number of "dues-paying" alumni.

How to help? Of course, contributions are always welcome. Remember that donations to the OBCLAA are tax-deductible. Also, please send in your dues if you have not already done so, and feel free to contact your classmates and ask them if they have joined the Alumni Association.

If you have any questions about the office of Treasurer, alumni association dues, or how you can help, Anita can be reached by e-mail at anita.paulsson@gmail.com.

Submitting articles to law reviews

At the Alumni Association meeting, I gave a brief presentation on how to publish legal scholarship (i.e., navigating the law review submissions process). This blog post is a supplement to that presentation, featuring some links and resources related to law review submissions.

Helpful Articles and Guides to the Process
An excerpt from Eugene Volokh's excellent book on scholarly legal writing: http://www.law.ucla.edu/volokh/writing/a25.pdf.

Here are two great introductions (aimed at current law students but generally applicable to anyone new to the process) on how to start submitting to law reviews: a blog post and an article.
Several law school libraries have created helpful guides to the process (although sometimes internal links are restricted to students/staff/faculty):
Harvard
Georgetown
University of Washington

There is also a journal-by-journal guide to law review submission policies available to download at SSRN. The only problem with the guide is that it is if anything too detailed.

Links for Submitting Articles
Northern Kentucky University Guide - This website lists submission information for law reviews. Most of the law reviews listed here accept submissions via email (although some of the journals require online submissions through their own websites – links are provided where that is necessary).

Law Journal Rankings - This site provides a fairly exhaustive list of law reviews and journals. It also will rank the journals in terms of their impact factor.

ExpressO – The submissions service that virtually every law review accepts. You don’t have to send the emails to submit your article if you’re willing to pay a nominal fee to have ExpressO submit for you. (Of course, if you’re submitting to a lot of law reviews – and if you’re not a tenured professor with really impressive credentials and good name recognition, you should be – the cost will add up.)

Meet the Board: Caleb Harlin

Over the next couple weeks, we'll be posting short snapshots of each new OBCLAA Board member. If you see a Board member working on a project that interests you, shoot him or her an e-mail and jump right in!

Caleb Harlin (JD05B) is the chairman of the National Association & Accreditation Committee. Here are some thoughts from Caleb:

I am currently residing in Muskogee, Oklahoma. For employment, I am working part time for Mark Meuser and occasionally for other Oak Brook alums. For pleasure, I play the piano, run long distance races, play chess, compose music, take pictures, and travel.

As chairman of the National Association and Accreditation committee, I have three primary objectives this year:

1) research and update U.S. and international accreditation standards;
2) research the ramifications of seeking approval/accreditation from legal associations at a local and national level; and
3) assist petition efforts by Oak Brook students or graduates who wish to challenge resistant state bars.

I believe that the first and second goals are achievable this year, while the third goal will be an ongoing effort that I will pass on to a future chairman.

Volunteers can make a big difference in this committee's success, and have a big impact on the marketability of our school. Researching bar requirements in your jurisdiction would be very helpful. We need coordination so that we do not duplicate efforts unnecessarily. Another big help will be in the area of researching the specific requirements for local and national legal associations whose endorsement of Oak Brook would enhance our impact without diminishing our standards. A final area of this field is in the area of long-term vision. If there are students who feel called to challenge their state or provincial bar association requirements, I want this committee to be a resource from the very earliest stages of the process.

I can best be reached for NAA committee purposes at this e-mail address: caleb.harlin@wybark.com.

I look forward to a productive year.

2010 Alumni Association Meeting Pictures

I'm sure that everyone who attended will agree that our time in Tahoe was refreshing, energizing, and simply a great time overall. Here are a few pictures from the weekend.

Jack Stuart flew over Lake Tahoe in his T-38 on Monday morning.

OBCLAA Board 2010-2011

More Tahoe updates coming soon, but, for now, congratulations to the OBCLAA Board for 2010-2011!!!

Here's the lineup:

President: Nathan DeLadurantey
Vice President: Paul Harman
Treasurer: Anita Paulsson
Secretary: Emily Younger
College Liaison: Brian Hutchins
Student Liaison: Kaitlin Showerman
Paralegal Liaison: Crystal Kinz
Student Affairs: Jordana Ward
Alumni Relations: Christopher Martens
National Association & Accreditation: Caleb Harlin
Promotion & Media: Mark Bigger

This year's breakout sessions

Our Lake Tahoe retreat is less than a week away! We have a fantastic weekend planned - our biggest and most exciting yet.

Every year, we try to find people to handle breakout sessions on topics of value to the Oak Brook community. Here are our breakout sessions for this year:

- Hanging Shingles: On Your Own, But Not Alone. The resources you need and the strategies to succeed in your own law practice.

- Voices in the Wilderness: Worldview and Written Scholarship. How can we advocate for truth in academia and the public square? Learn how to find opportunities to make an impact on law and public policy in print.

- Lawyers without Borders: OBCL beyond California. Graduates share their experience and insights on federal practice and working outside of California.