Student Spotlight: Delaney Hiegert advocates for equality

2L Delaney Hiegert (far right) participates in the San Francisco Pride parade. Pictured from left to right: 2L David Harris, the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law; 2L Derek Ha, the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law; 3L Hannah Hussey, Yale Law School; 3L Emily Merel, UCLA School of Law; 3L Alex Moody, the University of Michigan Law School; and 2L Delaney Hiegert, KU Law. Photo courtesy of Delaney Hiegert.

As a lesbian woman, LGBT+ activism and advocacy have been a part of Delaney Hiegert’s life since she came out.

Hiegert, a second-year KU Law student, is spending her summer as a law clerk at the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) in San Francisco.

“There’s really no words for how excited I was when I received the call that I got the job,” Hiegert said. “I never imagined I’d be working in San Francisco alongside attorneys responsible for the first state bill to protect LGBT+ youth from conversion therapy or who are representing some of the plaintiffs in the Trans Military Ban cases.”

Hiegert is one of six law clerks at the NCLR this summer. Each of the law clerks answer phone calls on the NCLR’s national helpline, which takes calls from LGBT+ community members or individuals with LGBT+ children who are seeking legal information and resources.

“It is such an amazing feeling to know you’ve helped someone handle a problem that was causing them genuine distress,” she said. “Though I’m not able to provide every caller with good news or even with a solid answer, I’m still able to listen to them and be empathetic to their situation. That is something I’m proud to do each day and is what makes this job truly rewarding.”

2L Delaney Hiegert holds a NCLR sign at the San Francisco Pride parade. Photo courtesy of Delaney Hiegert.

At her internship, she also assists staff attorneys with legal research, memos, and letters of support for policy initiatives that will benefit the LGBT+ community and other minority communities.

“Though it’s invigorating working at an organization that is actively fighting for LGBT+ equality, it’s also harrowing to see the breadth of challenges our community is still facing,” Hiegert said.

Hiegert applied for the internship after speaking with KU Law Associate Professor Kyle Velte, who served as a law clerk at the NCLR in 1997.

“Talking with Professor Velte is what initially got me interested in the job. Once I researched the position after our conversation, I realized this was basically my dream job,” Hiegert said.

Through her internship at the NCLR, Hiegert has solidified her intentions to pursue a career that incorporates LGBT+ advocacy through both litigation and policy.

National Center for Lesbian Rights attorneys and law clerks participate in the San Francisco Pride parade. Photo courtesy of Delaney Hiegert.

Hiegert is originally from Topeka. She earned an undergraduate degree from Newman University in Wichita, where she was actively involved with the university’s LGBT+ and ally organization, Kaleidoscope.

She elected to continue her education at KU Law because she felt most at home while visiting Green Hall.

“I loved that the school was set up in a way that made the faculty easily accessible. The environment felt friendly, and the students were all welcoming,” Hiegert said. “I am able to stay close to family while getting my degree, which is a nice bonus.”

Hiegert is the president of KU Law’s chapter of OUTLaws & Allies, a student group devoted to making KU Law a safe and welcoming place for LGBT+ students, staff, faculty and their allies. As president of the organization this year, Hiegert plans to incorporate programming for, “larger collaborative law school events that could help to foster an even more inclusive and diverse environment at KU.”

As a member of the organization last year, Hiegert enjoyed participating in OUTLaws & Allies events such as an annual tailgate with Lawrence High School’s Gay-Straight Alliance Club, a panel and movie screening of the film “Milk” in honor of National Coming Out Day, and a presentation about the ban on transgender military service by Emma Shinn.

Hiegert is also the vice president of the Dean’s Diversity Leadership Council, 2L Representative for the Black Law Students Association and Sergeant-at-Arms for the American Civil Liberties Union of KU.

— By Ashley Golledge

This post is the fifth in a series highlighting the diverse internships and jobs KU Law students and recent graduates are engaged in over the summer of 2019 and early in their careers. Check out earlier posts from this series about David BiegelSamantha Natera, Mohammad Hameed and Ellen Bertels.

KU Law professors help draft Kansas LLC statute revisions

Gov. Laura Kelly signs House Bill 2039. Pictured from left: William Quick, Gov. Laura Kelly, Webb Hecker, William Matthews. Photo courtesy of the Kansas Bar Association.

The state of Kansas recently enacted changes to the law related to limited liability companies, supported by a drafting team led by University of Kansas School of Law faculty, alumni and supporters.

The team drafted revisions to the state’s statutes governing LLCs on behalf of the Kansas Bar Association. The revisions amend the Kansas Revised Limited Liability Company Act and the Business Entity Standard Treatment Act.

KU Law Professor Webb Hecker
Webb Hecker

Recently retired KU Law Professor Webb Hecker chaired the drafting subcommittee, joined by Professor Virginia Harper Ho. They worked with attorneys William Matthews, L’97, and William Quick, along with Garrett Roe of the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office. The group was a subcommittee of the KBA Section on Corporation, Banking and Business Law.

The subcommittee recommended four significant changes for LLCs: establishing public benefit LLCs; adopting changes regarding series LLCs; allowing LLC divisions; and clarifying that default fiduciary duties apply to LLCs. Hecker and Matthews testified this spring in support of the revisions in the Judiciary Committees of the Kansas House.

KU Law Professor Virginia Harper Ho
Virginia Harper Ho

During the 2017 legislative session, Hecker, Harper Ho and the subcommittee provided research and testimony in support of allowing public benefit corporations in Kansas. Those companies are profit-oriented for shareholders, while also supporting a mission that provides public benefit, Hecker said. The law allowing public benefit corporations took effect in July 2017. The 2019 update extends that ability to LLCs.

“This bill does the same thing for limited liability companies – you can have limited liability companies that are for-profit but are also for the public good,” Hecker said.

The public benefit LLC and other revisions are based largely on Delaware law, considered the gold standard on business entity law. Kansas has patterned its business statutes on Delaware dating back to the 1940s or earlier, Hecker said. That’s because Delaware updates its statutes every year and has a special court to hear business cases.

“When Delaware updated its series LLC statute in a way we viewed as beneficial to Kansas, we decided to draft a bill adopting that change and also making other updates to the statute,” Hecker said. The revisions all follow Delaware law.

House Bill 2039 passed during the 2019 Kansas legislative session and was signed by Gov. Laura Kelly. It took effect on July 1, with the exception of the series LLC provisions, which take effect on July 1, 2020.

Hecker has researched, drafted and testified on business law in Kansas regularly since the late 1990s, when he pushed for the Revised Uniform Partnership Act to be adopted in the state. Hecker considers this work his lasting impact on the law. He retired from the KU Law faculty this summer, after 47 years of teaching business law.

— By Margaret Hair

KU Law professor explores energy and the environment during Hawaii residency

Professor Uma Outka holds a koa tree sapling in Hawaii.
Professor Uma Outka poses with a koa tree sapling on a service trip to Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge in Hawaii. The trip was part of Outka’s summer teaching residency.

A professor at the University of Kansas School of Law is digging in – sometimes literally – to the challenges of environmental protection during a teaching residency this summer.

KU Law Professor Uma Outka is spending six weeks as a Distinguished Scholar in Residence at the University of Hawai’i William S. Richardson School of Law in Honolulu.

“This is a very interesting time to be in Hawaii from an energy and environmental law perspective, as it was the first state to set a 100% renewable energy goal for its electricity sector,” Outka said.

During her residency, Outka is teaching a course on environmental justice, working on her own scholarship, and connecting with faculty members and attorneys involved in energy and environmental law.

In June, Outka joined the school’s Environmental Law Program on its annual education and service field trip for faculty, students and alumni to Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge.

Map of the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge on the Island of Hawai'i.
Map of the Hakalau Forest National Wildlife Refuge on the Island of Hawai’i.

During the trip, Outka and the rest of the environmental law team planted 521 native trees and understory plants as part of a massive restoration effort. The refuge was established in 1985 for the protection of endangered Hawaiian forest birds and their habitat on the windward slope of Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano on the Island of Hawai’i.

“The refuge is a clear example of the importance of the Endangered Species Act and the attention it brings to the need to protect threatened and endangered species of birds and plants from extinction,” Outka said.

The environmental law team joined Baron Horiuchi, an award-winning U.S. Fish and Wildlife horticulturalist who leads the restoration project. Horiuchi has lived in a remote area of the refuge since 1996. With volunteer support from teams like the one Outka joined, Horiuchi has planted over 500,000 native trees and plants for endangered bird habitats.

“The trip was eye-opening – I hadn’t fully appreciated how much work goes into restoring refuge land for native species,” Outka said. “It was a privilege to spend time alongside this dedicated expert planting in an area of Hakalau where the public is not allowed without permission.”

Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano on the Island of Hawai'i.
Professor Uma Outka traveled to a wildlife refuge on the windward slope of Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano on the Island of Hawai’i, for a service trip during her residency.

Working with the school’s environmental law program, Outka has made connections for her work in energy, environmental law and climate policy. The University of Hawai’i has strong faculty involvement in the Academy of Environmental Law of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). KU Law recently became an institutional member of that organization.

“I am learning more about how KU Law faculty members working in environmental and international law can engage with a truly international cohort of scholars focused on the environment,” Outka said.

Uma Outka
Uma Outka

Outka’s current research focuses on the effects of energy law on low-income households. Continuing that research in Hawaii – a state with a 100% renewable energy goal, affordable housing issues and income disparity – is helpful in considering how equity concerns overlap with energy reform, Outka said.

“Home energy bills are a strain for many low-income households, and there is potential in clean energy reform efforts to mitigate this burden in many ways,” she said.

Outka was honored this year with the 2019 Immel Award for Teaching Excellence for her record of teaching at KU Law in the areas of environmental law, energy law, property and related courses. She was also recognized this year with the William R. Scott Law Professorship, which recognizes a faculty member’s record of scholarship, concern for students, colleagues and the law school, and service to the University, professional organizations, and communities at the local, state, national and international levels.

Her most recent article, titled “100 Percent Renewable,” examines corporate pledges and state energy laws. It appears in the Utah Law Review.

— By Margaret Hair

Elder Law Field Placement Program is a ‘particularly rewarding’ experience

Rising 3L John Schoen participated in KU Law’s Elder Law Field Placement Program. Photo by Ashley Golledge.

At the beginning of my 2L year, I began to look at what type of law I would be interested in practicing after graduation. I liked the idea of doing estate planning and the accompanying work that goes along with that planning. I took Professor Reaves’ Elder Law class in the fall. That course provided a good overview of  the programs and benefits that are available to older clients. 

In the spring, I structured my schedule so that I could spend Fridays in an externship with the Kansas Legal Services office in Kansas City, Kansas. KLS is funded by several different state and federal funding allocations. Some of that funding is specifically allocated for older clients (over 60 years of age). As an “Elder Law” extern, I was assigned to those cases funded for elder clients. That provided me with the opportunity to work a wide variety of issues. I drafted wills and Powers of Attorney, wrote land transfer deeds, gave advice on elder care and Medicaid considerations, and provided statutory guidance. 

Although I was not an expert on any of these topics, I was assigned to an experienced lawyer in the office who provided necessary guidance as I worked through each issue. It was an excellent opportunity to practice transactional law while under the direct supervision of experienced lawyers. My time at KLS included the opportunity to interview clients at senior centers around the metro with my advising attorney. Those interviews covered a myriad of issues and allowed face to face interactions to deal with those issues. It was particularly rewarding when we could prepare the appropriate legal documents on site and meet their legal needs in a single visit.

While I worked on Elder Law issues with my advising attorney, I also had the opportunity to learn from lawyers in the other specialties at KLS. That gave me the opportunity to observe court cases and participate in conferences for a wide variety of legal issues. I also gained an appreciation for the complexities of operating a law office under the budget constraints and requirements of different government programs. 

The field placement experience provided me with a broad overview of the type of legal issues that elder clients face and the legal documents that support responsible later life planning. I didn’t specifically build estate plans while in the field placement but the interviews that I did and the documents I drafted gave me a solid background on many of the components of an estate plan. I’ll take Professor Donaldson’s Estate Planning Principles and Practice classes during my 3L year and expect to incorporate many of the things that I’ve learned in the elder law field placement.

—  John Schoen is a rising 3L at the University of Kansas School of Law.

Student Spotlight: Ellen Bertels serves state of Kansas

Ellen Bertels (center) and ACLU attorneys exit a federal courthouse in Wichita. Photo by Thad Allton/Topeka Capital-Journal.

Kansan Ellen Bertels finds reward in the opportunity to help those in need in her home state.

Bertels is spending her summer as a summer clerk at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation of Kansas in Wichita. The ACLU Foundation of Kansas is an organization dedicated to protecting civil rights and liberties for Kansans.

“The ACLU of Kansas is the preeminent public interest impact litigation group in Kansas,” Bertels said. “Their attorneys get to work on the forefront of state and federal law all around the state. I was so excited when I saw there was a 1L position where I could research Constitutional law and work directly with social and public policy issues in my home state.”

Bertels, a rising 2L from Overland Park, aspires to make a difference for Kansans.

“The more familiar I become with the practice of law in Kansas and the more compassionate people I meet advocating for underserved and underrepresented Kansans, the more sure I am that I want to stay in Kansas and follow in their footsteps,” she said.

At her internship, Bertels attends hearings, depositions and client meetings; conducts research; helps draft deposition and direct examination questions; reviews and analyzes discovery documents as they come in; and interviews potential clients. Bertels enjoys the quick pace of her office’s workflow and the opportunity to do new things each day.

“It is really rewarding to get to do work that serves communities all across the state of Kansas,” she said.

Rising 2L Ellen Bertels is spending her summer as a summer clerk at the ACLU Foundation of Kansas in Wichita. Photo by Ashley Golledge.

Bertels was pleasantly surprised by how involved she gets to be with supervising attorneys and their work at her internship.

“It’s challenging, but it’s also a real privilege to be in the middle of it after only one year of law school,” she said.

Bertels earned undergraduate degrees in English and Italian from the University of Kansas. She decided to stay in Lawrence for an additional three years to pursue her legal education after receiving, “incredible support from staff and faculty at KU before even submitting an application.”

“I knew that there were so many opportunities for me to get involved — clinics, research, publications, student groups — and that I wasn’t precluded from doing any of them based on the size of the student body or because of an overly competitive culture among the students,” Bertels said.

Bertels is the president of the Public Interest Law Society; the vice president of KU’s chapter of the American Constitution Society; a KU Law Student Ambassador; a research assistant for 1L Lawyering classes with Professor Pamela Keller; and a member of both Women in Law and OUTLaws & Allies.

She looks forward to the opportunity to pursue clinical opportunities at KU Law and experience other forms of public interest litigation. Ultimately, Bertels plans to pursue a career in her home state as a litigator or trial attorney with a focus on public interest work.

“Kansas is wonderful, but there is so much work to be done to make it a safe and equitable place for everyone,” Bertels said.

— By Ashley Golledge

This post is the fourth in a series highlighting the diverse internships and jobs KU Law students and recent graduates are engaged in over the summer of 2019 and early in their careers. Check out earlier posts from this series about David Biegel, Samantha Natera and Mohammad Hameed.

Alumnus commits gift to establish public interest law fund

Donald Giffin
Donald Giffin, L’53. Photo courtesy of Spencer Fane, LLP.

A law school alumnus has pledged to support students pursuing public interest work at the University of Kansas School of Law.

The planned estate gift by Donald Giffin, L’53, is a percentage of investments with a maximum value not to exceed $1 million. The gift will go toward establishing the Donald and Esther Atha Giffin Public Interest Law Fund. The fund will provide support that may include scholarships, stipends, awards, fellowships and research assistantships for KU Law students pursuing public interest law.

Donald Giffin said he hopes the gift will allow KU Law students “to study public interest law and to become interested in it, despite the cost of obtaining an education in law.”

Giffin had followed the work of the Arthur Liman Center for Public Interest Law at Yale Law School, and wanted to support interest in work that’s “compassionate and considerate to all members of society” at KU Law, he said.

Stephen Mazza, dean of the law school, expressed his gratitude for the gift.

“The Giffin family’s commitment to supporting education and opportunities for future Jayhawk lawyers is admirable. This latest gift will open doors for students wanting to pursue public interest law, regardless of their resources,” Mazza said.

Donald Giffin, center, talks with fellow KU Law alumni at the 2018 50/50+ Reunion Dinner.
Donald Giffin, center, talks with KU Law alumni at the 2018 50/50+ Reunion Dinner. Photo by Earl Richardson.

Giffin has been a consistent supporter of the law school as an alumnus. He has been part of the school’s Board of Governors for nearly 30 years, including time as the president of the board and as a senior governor. In 2007, Giffin received the Distinguished Alumni Award, the law school’s highest honor. He is a recipient of the James Woods Green Medallion and previously was an advisor and supporter for the school’s LL.M. in Elder Law program.

During his time as a student at KU Law, Giffin was a founder and editor in chief of the Kansas Law Review, and a member of Phi Delta Phi legal fraternity and Order of the Coif. Giffin also holds a bachelor’s degree from KU and an LL.M. from Yale Law School.

“My legal education has been very good to me,” Giffin said. “I’ve appreciated it and been able to use it throughout my life, and I’ve been very grateful for it.”

Giffin is a retired partner at Spencer Fane, LLP, where he practiced business litigation and alternative dispute resolution, concentrating in the areas of civil litigation, antitrust litigation and officers, and directors and professional liability law.

Make a gift.

— By Margaret Hair