The Williams College Law Society 2011 Spring Semester Report & 2011-12 Academic Year Plan Table of Contents I. Spring 2011-Semester Report II. 2011-2012 Preliminary Budget and Financial Report III. Preliminary Calendar and Events Plan IV. Alumni Relations Plan V. Public Relations Plan VI. Membership Plan VII. Programs & Planning Report a. Mock Trial b. Moot Court c. Law Journal d. Speaker Series e. Law Day f. Dinner/Lunch Series g. Community Outreach h. Mentorship Program VIII. Short term and long term goals for the 2011-2012 academic year Co-President & Founder: Emanuel McMiller Co-President & Founder: Dan Zhao Vice President: Ben Stone Secretary: Sharona Bollinger Director of Events: Madeline Vuong Director of Membership: Narah Moon Mock Trial Coordinator: Michelle Ryang Law Journal Editor-in-Chief: Jessica de la Cuesta
I. Spring 2011-Semester Report The Williams College Law Society was founded on January 2, 2011 by Dan Zhao and Emanuel McMiller as they were coming back from New York City after Winter Break on a Peter Pan Bus. Two weeks later, on January 19th, the Society was approved by student government, College Council. They selected a board of officers (Sharona, Malik, Cristina, Haotian, Michelle, Yang) and an academic advisor Alex Willingham. At the first meeting on January 24 th, over 40 people attended. The website was established on February 12 th, and has since had over 2000 views. On May 4 th, the merger of the Law Society and Mock Trial was approved by College Council. The law society has had various events and speakers throughout the year including Psychology Professor Kassin who spoke on interrogations and forced confessions, Political Science Professor Cheryl Shanks who spoke on international law, and Career Counselor Dawn Dellea who talked about LSAT s and the law school admission process, and a debate on healthcare that was led by Dan and Emanuel. The Law Society also celebrated its first Law Day with a viewing of the HBO Documentary The Senator s Bargain and a discussion on immigration law led by Professor Wong. Also in April, the law society started to organize a new law journal as well as a moot court team. At the end of the year, there were a few changes in leadership. On April 10 th, four new officers were selected including President Ben Stone, Membership Director Narah Moon, Events Director Madeline Vuong, and Editor-in-Chief Jessica de la Cuesta. At the end of the semester there were still 4 open positions on the board including public relations, treasurer, webmaster, and moot court coordinator. The constitution was substantially revised in order to accommodate the growth of the organization and to allow for the organizational changes. Throughout the year the Society has developed relations with many organizations including MCC, Legal Studies, Alumni Relations, OCC, the Political Science, Legal Studies, and other academic departments, and Campus Life. We hope to do the same next year, and bring together the different resources on campus in order to better serve our members. Quick stats from the Spring Semester Over 2000 views of the Law Society website Over 50 likes, 12800 post views, on the Facebook page Total membership is over 90 students. Over 2,200 views of the WSO page Average of 17 people attending our meetings (8 meetings) 22 Pre-frosh signed up during the Purple Key Fair in April, more are expected in the Fair during the fall of this year for the Class of 2015.
II. Preliminary Budget & Financial Report General Expenses Publicity/Correspondence (Includes flyers, posters, banner) $100 Membership Events (Miscellaneous) $200 Website $17 Mock Trial Registration $350 Invitationals $150 per team (2 teams) Regionals $100 per team (2 teams) Travel/Lodging Expenses $400-500 ($70/day for zipcar X 3days X 2 cars =$420) ($200/night X 2 nights = $400) Moot Court Tournament Registration $100 per team (5 teams) Travel/Lodging Expenses $200-500 Law Journal Publication Expenses $71 per issue (4 issues, 40 copies per issue) Community Outreach/Dead Week Trip Travel/Lodging Expenses ($500 est.) Law Day Dinner $400 Speaker est. $2,000 Miscellaneous est. $200 Financial Report-In order to prepare for the coming year financially, we have decided to try to set up a financial and fundraising plan for the year. At the last officers meeting several fundraising ideas were put up on the board, but the two we have decided to go with are sponsorships and a bake sale. The bake sale would be organized by Michelle Ryang and Sharona Bollinger although anyone will be welcome to join. In terms of sponsorships, the Public Relations representative would be in charge of contacting local law firms or other businesses who would be willing to sponsor certain aspects of the Society or the Society as a whole. For instance, a business willing to sponsor the Mock Trial team, or an organization who would run an ad in the law journal. Several ways we could do this, is have logos on the bottom of law society shirts, on our website, or on event flyers and posters. One of the other concerns that was addressed was financial procedures. At the beginning of each semester, each committee and/or officer is required to formulate a budget specific to their individual mission at the beginning of the planning stage for the next semester. Also, every single item to be purchased by the Society has to be approved by both of the
Co-Presidents. And in order to make things less confusing, the treasurer is the only person who will contact Campus Life for reimbursement or P-Card. III. Preliminary Calendar & Events Plan September 13, Law Society Informational Meeting September 20, Guest Speaker-Dawn Dellea (OCC and Pre-Law) September 27, Ice Cream Social October 4, Guest Speaker-Cheryl Shanks (Legal Studies Department) (to be confirmed) October 11, General Meeting-Discussion October 18, Guest Speaker-Juan Baena (Alumni Relations workshop) (to be confirmed) October 25, General Meeting November 1, Guest Speaker-Rebecca Ohm (Libraries-Legal Resources) (to be confirmed) November 8, General Meeting-LSATs November 12, Law and the Movies November 15-General Meeting and Nominations November 29-Elections-Last Meeting of the Semester Winter Study January 10, General Meeting January 17, Guest Speaker January 24, Membership Event January 31, Guest Speaker January 27-31, Community Outreach project January 1-31, Transitional Period for New Officers Spring February 7, First Meeting of the Semester February 14, Membership Event February 21, Guest Speaker February 28, General Meeting March 6, Guest Speaker March 13, General Meeting April 3, General Meeting April 10, General Meeting April 17, Guest Speaker April 24, General Meeting, and Last Meeting of the year May 1, Law Day We will also be planning various other events throughout the year including dinners/lunches, membership events (i.e. pizza parties and study sessions), and perhaps various community events and fundraisers. Note that this calendar is preliminary and not set in stone.
IV. Alumni Relations Plan We hope to actively engage alumni who are in the legal field, have graduated from law, have relevant experience, or are passionate to contribute to our cause and current members of our organization. There are several aspects of how we hope to reach out to and engage alumni in our endeavors: guest speakers, guest coaches and judges for the mock trial and moot court teams and activities, alumni profiles in the law journal, and the Student-Alumni Mentorship Program. We also seek to eventually establish an internship program possibly within the next two years. Another aspect would be our spring break and dead week trips to relevant institutions or trips to moot court and mock trial competitions; we hope to seek alumni who are willing to host us. We plan to communicate with alumni at least once a month through an alumni listserv, monthly newsletters, and an end of the year progress report. The Secretary will be responsible for alumni relations planning and correspondence along with input from the Co-Presidents. V. Public Relations Plan The Executive Board has decided not to conduct a public relations campaign to reach out to student organizations this year in order to focus on our organizational setup, strategic planning, and logistical buildup. With the exception of specific events or opportunities other organizations proposed to the Law Society that were relevant and fiscally feasible, we focused mainly upon our own organization. We have relied on personal contacts and connections in order to reach out to other organizations and will largely expand our social network and contacts to other student groups on campus while keeping a personal but professional attitude. The basis for this decision was to focus on strengthening our organization internally before reaching out to other organizations. With regards to off-campus outside organizations, we have created a PR campaign to reach out to local attorneys, local courts, District Attorney s office, and others to establish more resources for our members. We are also looking to find ways with which we can work more closely with certain academic/administrative departments including Alumni Relations, Office of Career Counseling, Political Science, and Legal Studies. VI. Membership Plan We decided that because Legal Studies 101 will have classes on Monday nights next year, and because of the turnout of members on Monday nights this year, we would move our meetings from Mondays at 8pm to Tuesdays at 7pm. We also decided that Paresky Auditorium was too big to hold most of our meetings, so we will be holding meetings in Paresky 220. Several ideas for activities during meetings next year include going over interesting issues in the congressional agenda or on the Supreme Court docket and addressing/debating them, and also having LSAT questions of the day or week. One of the things we want to do, next year is have a more active membership. With the creation of the Mock Trial and Moot Court teams, as well as the law journal, this gives
members an opportunity to become more involved in the organization. The membership section of the Constitution has also been revised in order to provide a better view of what it means to be a member. In terms of keeping people interested in the law society, one of the suggestions is to have a focus on issues rather specifically on law, as well as to focus on the effects and consequences of certain issues or laws. Also, because many of us are not from Williamstown or Massachusetts, it was suggested that having discussions on local or state politics might be a good way to get members involved in local political life. Next year we hope to have more student panels and discussions to order to provoke more engagement with members. We also are planning several membership events next year including an ice cream social at the beginning of the year, a pizza party, a law movies marathon, and possibly study sessions during reading period. We also discussed getting t-shirts, pens, and gavel pins for members. Although members would have to pay for t-shirts, the other items would be free. One main goal membership and public relations goal for the 2011-2012 year is to reach out to freshmen. We hope that by tabling in Paresky and Mission, heavily advertising events and meeting with flyers and posters, Facebook pages, visiting entries during snacks, and holding membership events (ice cream social, pizza party, law movie marathon, study session) we will be able to raise a lot of interest and reach our goal of having 50 active members next semester, and about 200-250 people on the Law Society listserv. We will need to find extremely dedicated and outgoing people, who can sell the Law Society at the Purple Key Fair during the fall, and throughout the membership campaign which will include the Purple Key Fair, Paresky and Mission tabling, and entry snacks visits. Narah Moon as Director of Membership will be responsible for organizing this campaign and all other membership activities but all officers and members will be expected to help in any way possible. VII. Programs Mock Trial- The Mock Trial team plans on sending two teams to compete next year. The main goal for the team this year is to select a core leadership and competitive team, to find a coach. Michelle Ryang is the current Mock Trial Coordinator Mock Trial calendar June 1, Registration is Open August 15, Mock Trial case is Available September 15, Organizational Meeting September 17-24, Tryouts September 27, Team and captain selections October 14-November 21, Invitationals (somewhere within this timeframe) February 4-27, Regionals (somewhere within this timeframe)
Moot Court- Next year will be the first year ever that Williams College will compete regionally and nationally in Moot Court. The Law Society hopes to send the maximum of 5 teams (two students each) to regionals, which will take place at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts. We hope that at least one of these teams will then advance to nationals, which will be held in January of 2012 at Chapman University School of Law in California. Emanuel McMiller is the acting Moot Court Coordinator. Below is the 2011-2012 Moot Court calendar. Moot Court Calendar Case is available now Registration on September 15, Organizational Meeting September 18-24, Tryouts October 1, Team Selection October 11, Briefs are due November 18-19, Regionals January 13-14, Nationals Law Journal- The Williams College Law Journal is the publication of the Law Society. The goals for the Law Journal this year are to publish three issues (fall, winter, and spring), to establish a core staff, and to gain a wide audience, not only on campus, but in the community, with alumni, and possibly at other undergraduate schools in the region. Jessica de la Cuesta is the current Editor-in Chief of the Law Journal. Below is the layout of the Journal and the 2011-2012 Law Journal calendar. Layout: Page 1- Letter from the Editor/ Letter from the Law Society Page 3- Table of Contents Pages 4-5 Law Society Update Pages Pages 6-8 Interview Page 9-18 Domestic Law 19-28 International Law 29-31 Book review 32-33 Law School update 34 Submission solicitation Law Journal Calendar September 15, Organizational Meeting September 23, Deadline for Submissions October 3, Release of the First Issue December 30, Deadline for Winter Submissions January 6, Release of Winter Issue April 27, Deadline for Spring Submissions May 4, Release of Spring Issue
Speaker Series-One of the other programs that the Law Society has started is the speakers series. While often times the speakers range a wide variety of topics and issues, next year, we would like to have a general theme for a series of speakers. For instance, our main theme in the fall will have a focus primarily on the resources Williams has to offer to students interested in Law (i.e. Dawn Dellea at OCC, Juan Baena at Alumni Relations, Cheryl Shanks at Legal Studies, and Rebecca Ohm at Libraries). Dinner/Lunch Series- One of the goals is to bring law society members together with faculty, alumni, and legal professionals. One of the ways we hope to do this is by having small groups of students, an average of 10, sit down with a guest speaker and discuss either certain issues of the day, or different aspects of the legal field. We hope to eventually have one of these dinner each month but for now, we plan to have 2 per semester. This could also happen over lunch, and one of the ideas expressed was to have brownbag lunches, and invite a guest for an hour discussion. This program will be tested during the Fall Semester, and then if successful will occur on a regular basis in the Spring. Events Director Madeline Vuong will be responsible for overseeing this program. Law Day- Law Day, celebrated every May Day is the capstone event for the law society every year. This year we hope to reach out to the local schools by hosting events there, having a dinner with legal studies professors, inviting a guest speaker, as well as engaging Williams students with the law. We also hope that we might be able to get a Massachusetts Supreme Court justice to speak at the event. We will start planning for this event in the fall. Events Director Madeline Vuong will be responsible for setting up a committee to plan for the Law Day program. Community Outreach/Dead Week Trip- One of the most important aspects of not just a person in the legal profession, but also students at Williams, is giving back to the community. We will be looking for ways to reach out to the surrounding community this year through various legal activism and social justice organizations We are planning a trip to Boston during Dead Week. This trip will be for the purposes of touring the numerous law schools in the Boston area, as well as to spend some time volunteering for legal activist/social justice organizations in the urban area. There will be two groups of ten students each. Each group will probably have a different community outreach aspect. This will be an opportunity for students to explore the different aspects of Boston as a legal education mecca, as the capital of Massachusetts, and as a major urban city. If we cannot get the funding necessary for this trip, we will consider touring local law schools, such as Albany Law School, and doing a community project in Berkshire County. Vice President Ben Stone and Events Director Madeline Vuong will be in charge of planning for this event. Mentorship Program- Because Williams College is a small school, and does not have a law school, is not located near one, and did not have an organization for those interested in law before The Williams College Law Society was founded, it is harder for undergraduate students to have an aspect in how law school works. The mission of the law society is to help students considering law school, or a legal career and to bring students and alumni together. One of the best resources that Williams has is its extensive
alumni network. Our goal is to link members with various alumni who either share similar interests, or live in a similar geographical area. Although the mentorship program will likely not be in operation before the 2012-2013 academic year, we hope to run a small pilot program with a select number of students and alumni in the spring. Dan Zhao will be in charge of planning for the Mentorship Program once the reorganization of the OCC and Alumni Relations settles down. VIII. Goals for the 2011-2012 Academic Year Fall Semester Goals-Our short-term goals for next year include competing regionally in mock trial, competing regionally and potentially nationally in Moot Court, and having two successful issues of our law journal publication. We also have a membership goal of 50 active members (mostly freshmen), and about 200-300 people on our listserv this year. Spring Semester Goals-Our primary goal for the Spring includes having a successful Law Day Program, a successful Dead Week trip, as well as starting our dinner/lunch series, and having a successful test run of the mentoring program. Long term Goals-We also hope to use this year to plan for our longer-term goals for in 2012-2013 which include, having a community outreach aspect in the Berkshire area, hosting events with other law related student organizations in the region, connecting with more alumni, eventually setting up an mentorship/internship program, having more LSAT resources for students interested in applying to law school, and having more intellectual and diverse seminars and panels that engage our members. At the same time, we will seek to bring in more well-known speakers to the school for the whole community and student body from which to benefit and learn.