Category: Law School News

One of the nation’s most hotly debated issues — income inequality — was the topic of this year’s Drake University Law School Constitutional Symposium. Drake hosted some of the country’s leading legal experts and activists to discuss this relevant topic during the April 14 conference, “Constitutionalism and the Poor."

Drake University students are taking an active role in creating a more sustainable future for Greater Des Moines. Working closely with the Greater Des Moines Partnership and the City of Des Moines, members of the Drake Law School class Sustainability and the Law have drafted changes to the Des Moines City code to ensure environmental friendliness and social responsibility, while promoting economic vitality. The students will present their proposals to the Greater Des Moines Partnership on Thursday, April 19 from 12:30–3:30 p.m., and to the Des Moines City Council on Monday, April 23 at 7:30 a.m.

Neil Hamilton, director of Drake University’s Agricultural Law Center, and Ed Cox, a fellow at center, recently received a grant from the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture and Iowa State University. The grant — totaling more than $41,000 — will go toward their project, Sustainable Agricultural Land Tenure (SALT) Initiative II. The project builds on the initial SALT Initiative led by Hamilton and Cox from 2009-2011.

New Leaders Council (NLC) is an organization, formed in 2005, dedicated to training and supporting the next generation of progressive political entrepreneurs.

The Drake University Law School Student Bar Associated (SBA) hosted the American Bar Association (ABA) Law Student Division (LSD) 8th Circuit Spring Meeting and Governor Election on Saturday February 11.

Six Drake Law students banded together to organize a rally and vigil to remember the life of teenager Trayvon Martin, and educate attendees about Iowa House File 2215, which introduced ‘stand your ground’ legislation, similar to that in Florida.

This year, more than 200 AAJ mock trial teams from law schools nationwide competed in fourteen regional competitions, with the winner of each region advancing to the national finals.

Many law students have the goal of becoming a legislator, but few realize this goal while still in law school. Senator Jack Whitver, a Drake Law 3L, has done just that.

Bill Kelly, LW’99, and Maj. Mike Wunn, JO’91, GR’01, LW’01, Drake graduates who were deployed to Afghanistan with the Iowa National Guard, spoke at Drake University on March 13 as part of The Principal Financial Group Center for Global Citizenship’s spring lecture series.

In response to a call by the Iowa Supreme Court’s Chief Justice and others for a greater focus on studying the Iowa Constitution, the Constitutional Law Center at Drake University Law School is pleased to announce a new program called the "Iowa Constitution Lecture Series." The school will host lectures annually by prominent experts about the Iowa Constitution.