Academic Calendar

Fall 2018 Semester

Note: Tuesdays at 12:30 p.m. in the Alcoa Room will be held for Faculty Enrichment, with specific programs to be announced.

Spring 2019 Semester

Note: Tuesdays at 12:30 p.m. in the Alcoa Room will be held for Faculty Enrichment, with specific programs to be announced.

2018-2019 Academic Calendar Download

Pitt Law Academy will be held on the following dates. Programmatic details for each Pitt Law Academy will be amended when available.

Fall 2018 semester

• September 6, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Room 107
  If I Knew Then What I Know Now: Thoughts from Prominent Lawyers on What They Should Have Done (and Not Done) when They Were in Law School
  
  Speakers:
  - Jeanne Marie Marquette, Partner, Olds Russ Marquette & Peace LLC
  - Hon. Hugh Fitzpatrick McGough, Judge, Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas
  - Tony J. Thompson, Partner, Meyer Unkovic & Scott LLP

• September 20, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  First-Year Law School Subjects in the “Real World”: Legislation and Regulation
  
  Speakers:
  - Vanessa N. Griffith, Staff Attorney, Western PA Justice at Work
  - Bryan Marco, Deputy Counsel, New Jersey Legislature, Office of Legislative Services
  - Laura Mullen, Senior Attorney, Argo AI
  - Endia J. Vereen, Associate, Sherrard, German & Kelly, P.C.

• October 18, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Stress, Mental Health, and Substance Abuse in Law School and the Legal Profession: Good Advice and Cautionary Tales
  
  Speakers:
  - Laurie J. Besden, Esq., Executive Director, Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of Pennsylvania, Inc.
  - Iru Brodie-Mends, LCSW, Interim Clinical Director and Senior Staff Counselor, University of Pittsburgh Counseling Center

• November 8, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Practicing and Promoting Civility: The Role of Lawyers and the Legal Profession
  
  Speakers:
  - Honorable Thomas M. Hardiman, Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
  - Edwin L. Edwards Jr., Of Counsel, Blank Rome LLP
  - Colleen Ramage Johnston, Founding Member, Johnston Lykos

Spring 2019 semester

• January 17, 2019, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  First-Year Law School Subjects in the “Real World”: Torts and Criminal Law
  
  Speakers:
  - Katie M. Charlton, District Attorney, Armstrong County
  - Jennifer L. Webster, Attorney, SPK, Swensen Perer Law Firm
  - Jason E. Hazlewood, Partner, Reed Smith
  - Frank Walker, Frank Walker Law

• February 7, 2019, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Empathy and Diversity: Working with Clients and Others from Different Backgrounds and Cultures​ 
  
  Speakers:
  - Stefan Dann, Associate, Metz Lewis Brodman Must O’Keefe LLC
  - Noah R. Jordan, Associate, Rothman Gordon
  - Shanicka L. Kennedy, Assistant United States Attorney, Western District of Pennsylvania
  - Charles T. Kotuby, Jr., Partner, Jones Day
  - Summer Lee, Representative, 34th District, Pennsylvania House of Representatives

• February 21, 2019, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  First-Year Law School Subjects in the “Real World”: Contracts and Property
  
  Speakers:
  - Erin McCurdy, Associate General Counsel, American Eagle Outfitters, Inc.
  - Kevin L. Miller, Chief Executive Officer, Legal Sifter
  - Kevin Quisenberry, Staff Attorney, Community Justice Project
  - Richard T. Ting, Partner, Vorys Sater Seymour and Pease LLP

• March 7, 2019, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  First-Year Law School Subjects in the “Real World”: Constitutional Law and Civil Procedure

• March 28, 2019, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  First-Year Law School Subjects in the “Real World”: Legal Analysis & Writing

Fall 2017 Semester

Spring 2018 Semester

2017-2018 Academic Calendar Download

This is the schedule for the 2017-18 year. For the current academic year, please see the second tab on this page.

Fall 2017 semester

• September 7, 2017, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  If I Only Knew Then What I Know Now: Thoughts From Prominent Lawyers on What They Should Have Done (and Not Done) When They Were in Law School To Prepare For Their Legal Careers
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Hal Coffey (President, Allegheny County Bar Association; attorney, Blumling & Gusky, LLP);
  ○ Glenn Mahone (Partner, Reed Smith);
  ○ Geovette Washington (Senior Vice Chancellor and Chief Legal Officer, University of Pittsburgh)

• September 28, 2017, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  How Do I Figure Out What Kind of Law I Want to Practice?
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Elizabeth Hughes (Assistant Counsel, UPMC)
  ○ Justine Kasznica (Partner, Baer Crossey McDemus LLC).

• October 19, 2017, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Public Service and Public Interest Careers
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Lourdes Sanchez Ridge (Solicitor and Chief Legal Officer, City of Pittsburgh)
  ○ Bret Grote (Founder and Legal Director, Abolitionist Law Center)
  ○ Rebecca Ross Haywood, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Western District of Pennsylvania 

• November 9, 2017, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Working in Private Law Firms: What's the Difference (Personally and Professionally) Between Small, Medium & Large Law Firms?
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Kimberly Kisner (Managing Member, Kisner Law Firm)
  ○ Stanley Levine (Founding Member and Executive Attorney, Campbell & Levine)
  ○ Bill Price (Partner, Clark Hill Thorp Reed)

Spring 2018 semester

• January 11, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Lawyers as Leaders
  
  Speakers:
  ○ The Honorable D. Michael Fisher, Senior Circuit Judge, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit; Distinguished Jurist in Residence, University of Pittsburgh School of Law;
  ○ David J. Hickton, Professor of Law, Policy, & Technology; Founding Director, University of Pittsburgh Institute for Cyber Law, Policy, & Security; former U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania

• February 1, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Work-Life Balance in the Legal Profession
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Matthew Feinman (Founder, Law Offices of Matthew S. Feinman)
  ○ Bruce Fox (Partner, Obermayer, Rebmann, Maxwell, & Hippel)
  ○ Laura Mullen, Esq. (Associate, Leech Tishman)
   

• February 22, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Being “the Other” in the Legal Profession: How Attorneys from Diverse and Non-Traditional Backgrounds Survive and Thrive 
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Blair Douglas, Esq. (Administrator, University of Pittsburgh Physician Scientist Training Program)
  ○ Alka A. Patel, JD, MBA (Deputy Director, Risk and Regulatory Services Innovation Center, Carnegie Mellon University)
  ○ Gerald “Robbie” Robinson III, Esq. (EQT Corporation)

• March 22, 2018, 3:30 p.m., Courtroom
  Stress, Substance Abuse, and Mental Health in the Legal Profession: Some Good Advice & Some Cautionary Tales
  
  Speakers:
  ○ Laurie J. Besden, Esq. (Executive Director, Lawyers Concerned for Lawyers of Pennsylvania, Inc.)
  ○ Dr. John D. Massella (Associate Professor and Clinician, Department Chair of the California University of PA Wellness Center)