Minnesota Law

Fall 2021
Issues/Contents
Faculty Focus

Faculty News, Awards & Grants

University President Joan T.A. Gabel bestows the Regents Medal on Professor Susan Wolf

Susan Wolf was named a Regents Professor by the University of Minnesota Board of Regents in June. The designation is the highest level of recognition given to faculty by the University. Wolf is also the McKnight Presidential Professor of Law, Medicine & Public Policy; Faegre Baker Daniels Professor of Law; and Professor of Medicine. She is chair of the Consortium on Law and Values in Health, Environment & the Life Sciences and founding director of the Joint Degree Program in Law, Science & Technology.

Tom Cotter was appointed the Law School’s associate dean of research and planning. Cotter joined the Law School in 2006. His teaching and scholarship focus on intellectual property law, antitrust, and law and economics. He is a prolific scholar who has written many books and articles, including those published in theCalifornia Law Review, the Georgetown Law Journal, the Iowa Law Review, the Minnesota Law Review, and others.

Allan Erbsen was named the Popham, Haik, Schnobrich/ Lindquist & Vennum Professor of Law. Erbsen teaches and writes in the areas of civil procedure and federal courts. The Popham, Haik, Schnobrich/Lindquist & Vennum Professorship was created in 1987 and was previously held by Professor Emeritus Fred Morrison

Jill Hasday, Distinguished McKnight University Professor, last May testified virtually before the Minnesota Public Safety and Judiciary Conference Committee in support of legislation to prohibit employers from asking job applicants about their pay history. 

Kristin Hickman’s article with Gerald Kerska ’17 “Restoring the Lost Anti-Injunction Act” (103 Va.L. Rev. 1683, 2017), was cited by Justice Elena Kagan for a unanimous U.S. Supreme Court in its May 2021 opinion in CIC Services, LLC v. Internal Revenue Service. The article, and a subsequent amicus brief filed by Hickman in the case, offered extensive statutory and historical analysis in favor of reading the Anti-Injunction Act narrowly to allow the taxpayer’s case to proceed. 

Joan Howland, associate dean for information and technology, was named the 2021 recipient of the prestigious Robert J. Kutak Award. The annual award honors an individual who has made significant contributions to the collaboration of the academy, the bench, and the bar. In addition, Howland received the American Association of Law Libraries 2021 Joseph L. Andrews Legal Literature Award for herwork co-editingAcademic Law Libraries Within the Changing Landscape of Legal Education: A Primer for Deans and Provosts. 

Howland was also elected to the board of governors of the International Association of Law Schools. 

William McGeveran was named the Gray, Plant, Mooty, Mooty & Bennett Professor of Law. McGeveran joined the Law School in 2006. He specializes in information law, including data privacy, intellec- tual property, communications and technology, and free speech. The Gray, Plant, Mooty, Mooty & Bennett Professorship was estab- lished in 1986 and was most recently held by Professor Emeritus Stephen Befort ’74 

Alan Rozenshtein was selected to serve a five-year term on the Council on Foreign Relations as part of a program for early-career professionals. The Stephen M. Kellen Term Member Program provides young professionals in government, media, nongovern- mental organizations, law, business, finance, and academia the opportu- nity to participate in a sustained conversation on international affairs and U.S. foreign policy. 

Francis Shen’s law review article “Sorting Guilty Minds” was cited by Justice Brett Kavanaugh in a dissenting opinion in a U.S. Supreme Court case, Borden v. United States (decided June 10, 2021). The article, co-authored with colleagues from the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Law and Neuroscience, is part of Shen’s extensive work at the intersection of psychology, neuroscience, and criminal mental states. 

Michael Tonry was awarded a Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship. The highly competitive annual national fellowship was awarded to 174 American and Canadian scholars, writers, and artists selected from nearly 3,000 applicants. Tonry plans to research and write on the influence of frontier values on the American justice system. Professor Tonry plans to retire and assume emeritus status at the end of this year after more than 30 years of teaching at Minnesota Law. 

Christopher Turoski was elected president of the National Association of Patent Practitioners. (NAPP), a nonprofit trade organization dedicated to supporting patent practitioners in patent prosecution matters. For more than 25 years, NAPP served as the organization of choice for patent prosecution professionals across the nation. 

Next