The Bench & Bar magazine is published to provide members of the KBA with information that will increase their knowledge of the law, improve the practice of law, and assist in improving the quality of legal services for the citizenry.
Issue link: https://kentuckybenchandbar.epubxp.com/i/382597
By the time Megan McKay stepped foot inside NKU Chase College of Law in Au- gust 2012, she already had her eye on the prize – to be- come a trial at- torney. Yet since complet- ing a battery of rigorous substantive legal courses, skills courses including trial team, and field placements with the Fayette County Com- monwealth Attorney's Office and the Ken- tucky Supreme Court, becoming a trial at- torney is no longer enough for McKay. Now, she wants to become an advocate. Today, as this Georgetown College gradu- ate prepares to enter her third and final year of law school, she celebrates her first win at the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Ap- peals and is well on her way to becoming a trusted advocate for her clients. At the urging of Kentucky Supreme Court Justice Michelle Keller '90, McKay enrolled to earn course credit in the Constitutional Litigation Clinic where she would have a chance to represent prisoners and former offenders in Ohio state and federal courts. The clinic, housed in the Ohio Justice & Policy Center ("OJPC") in Cincinnati, offers eight Chase students experience handling all aspects of civil rights cases, from client interviews through trials and appellate brief writing and argument. "I really love helping law students get the confidence they need to hit the ground running, by becoming practice-ready by the time they graduate. There is no substi- tute for live client experience," said David Singleton, executive director of the OJPC and NKU Chase Law Professor. Regarding his work mentoring McKay, he added, "Simulation is helpful and students can learn a lot from those experiences. But see- ing that she can do it, and do it well and even win, will be the confidence she needs to carry with her for the rest of her life. She has the skills. That's what keeps me going." Though McKay was not scheduled to begin work in the clinic until this fall and is still a year away from being eligible to sit for the bar exam, Professor Singleton selected her to parachute into the clinic this summer to present an oral argument on behalf of the OJPC and client, Phillip Cordell, before a three-judge panel of the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. Cordell filed suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 al- leging that Deputy Sheriff Glen McKinney ran afoul of the U.S. Constitution's guaran- tees under the Eighth Amendment when he slammed Cordell, who was hand-cuffed and restrained, headfirst into a concrete wall. The district court rejected Cordell's suit, granting summary judgment and quali- fied immunity to Deputy McKinney. The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed, holding that a genuine dispute as to several material facts exists, and if Cordell's version of events is credited, a reasonable jury could conclude that Deputy McKinney in- flicted serious pain upon Cordell with mali- cious and sadistic intent. "On June 25, 2014, I argued before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of my client, Mr. Cordell. I thought that was the best day of my life," McKay said, "until July 16, when I read the opinion reversing the District Court's decision in favor of my client, Mr. Cordell – that was the best day of my life! I advocated for someone before the court and I made a difference." "The formula of combining live-client expe- r iential learning opportunities with tenure- track law professors with a passion for teaching is apparently working," said Dean J effrey A. Standen. "The students in the Constitutional Litigation Clinic have won three out of four oral arguments before the U .S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals." NKU CHASE LAW PROFESSOR, STUDENTS CELEBRATE FREEDOM WITH WASHINGTON PARK WIN With the assistance of several Chase stu- dents, NKU Chase Assistant Professor of Law Jennifer Kinsley successfully chal- lenged a series of special rules for Washington Park adopted by the Cincinnati Board of Park Commis- sioners. Washing- ton Park is locat- ed in the Over- the-Rhine section of downtown Cincinnati. Kinsley and her team represented three low-in- come residents of Over-the-Rhine who were directly affected by the special rules. The case was filed in 2012, and following an undisclosed monetary settlement with the city, settled on July 14, 2014. Continue reading (bit.ly/1rE7FUp) 26 B&B; • 9.14 NKU CHASE NKU CHASE STUDENT ADVOCATE 1-0 IN U.S. SIXTH CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS C O L U M N S Chaselaw.nku.edu • Facebook: NKUChaseLaw • Twit- ter: NKUChaseLaw • YouTube: NKU Chase Law • LinkedIn: Northern Kentucky University – Salmon P. Chase College of Law • LinkedIn Group: NKU Salmon P. Chase College of Law Alumni Gary M. Weiss E-mail: Trialweiss@aol.com When it's a question of persuasion... Gary Weiss has a passion to come to the right result. Listed in Best Lawyers in America; Personal Injury Legal Malpractice And now one of only eight Kentucky lawyers named for mediation/arbitration One of few mediators who maintains an active practice so he knows the present value of cases Principal Address Louisville Tele: (502) 493-1394 Mediation trialweiss1@yahoo.com