On September 17, 2022, Professor Heidi Gorovitz Robertson was an invited guest speaker at the National Association of Royalty Owners 2022 Convention at the Pritchard Laughlin Center in Cambridge, Ohio.  Her presentation, entitled Forced Unitization, Who Decides and at What Cost in Ohio?described the hows, whens, and whys of forced pooling and unitization in Ohio.  It explained the rights holders’ role — and the various stumbling blocks and pitfalls of the Ohio unitization process from the perspective of landowners and rights holders.  

Robertson is the Steven W. Percy Distinguished Professor of Law at the College of Law, and Professor of Environmental Studies at the College of Education and Public Affairs, Cleveland State University.

Professor Karin Mika has published an article titled Obergefell v. Hodges—and the Use of Oral Argument and Storytelling to Reinforce Competencies in the Legal Writing Classroom. The article describes how having first year students listen to Supreme Court arguments on meaningful contemporary legal issues reinforces skills learned in Legal Writing and humanizes the otherwise mundane task of learning legal analysis. The article also references how the background “human” stories that brought litigants to the courtroom increases empathy.

The citation is: Karin Mika, Obergefell v. Hodges—and the Use of Oral Argument and Storytelling to Reinforce Competencies in the Legal Writing Classroom, 29 Persps. 36 (2022).

Professor Shih-Chun Steven Chien presented a forthcoming article in a workshop discussion at the Criminal Justice Ethics Schmooze in June. The event was co-sponsored by Brooklyn Law School’s Center for Criminal Justice, Fordham Law School’s Stein Center for Legal Ethics, Hofstra Law School’s Monroe H. Freedman Institute for the Study of Legal Ethics, New York Law School’s Institute for Professional Ethics and Criminal Justice Institute, and Touro Law Center. Professor Chien’s article, forthcoming in the Minnesota Journal of International Law, is titled “Cultivating Sense: Cultural Change in the Prosecutor’s Office.”

Professor Chien also presented his empirical research regarding comparative prosecutorial reforms in the United States and Taiwan in a conference organized by the National Chengchi University in Taiwan. The paper will be included in The Handbook of Taiwanese Law and Society Study.

Professor Shih-Chun Steven Chien has published an article in the University of Pennsylvania Asian Law Review discussing Taiwan’s use of a Miranda-like interrogation system. The article convey a cautionary tale from the Taiwan experience. It explains that under “Taiwan’s abbreviated Miranda system, suspects are encouraged to cooperate and give statements under the perception that they have been, and will continue to be, treated with politeness, dignity, and respect.” The article identifies concerns that “police and prosecutors can utilize the appearance of fair procedure (providing dignity, respect, and voice to suspects) by manipulating the Miranda mechanism to build rapport with suspects and distract them from the actual consequences of their full cooperation.” The article also explores “the effectiveness of alternative innovations beyond Miranda that could potentially reduce false confessions and minimize the risks caused by current interrogation practices.” 

The article citation is: Shih-Chun Steven Chien, Miranda in Taiwan: Why It Failed and Why We Should Care, 17 University of Pennsylvania Asian Law Review 1 (2022) (lead article).

Professor Shih-Chun Steven Chien has co-authored an article published in the Howard Law Journal.  The article, co-authored with Stephen Daniels (Senior Research Professor, American Bar Foundation), explores the “progressive prosecutor” movement.  Using data from the Law School Survey of Student Engagement, the article “investigates the importance of student motivations for attending law school and the connections to students’ career aspirations – in particular, the expectation of working as a prosecutor.” The article proposes “several policy recommendations about potential collaborations between prosecutors and law schools and between prosecutors and non-profits that may expand the presently small pool of potential hires,” and “discusses the importance of experiential learning opportunities that connect law students with reform prosecutors and the criminal justice system.” 

The article citation is: Shih-Chun Steven Chien & Stephen Daniels, Who Wants to be a Prosecutor? And Why Care? Law Students’ Career Aspirations and Reform Prosecutors’ Goals, 65 Howard Law Journal 173 (2021).

Professor Christa Laser’s law review article, “The Scope of IPR Estoppel,” is cited by Apple in its petition asking the Supreme Court to intervene in its $1 billion legal dispute with CalTech. Professor Laser’s article is Christa Laser, The Scope of IPR Estoppel: A Statutory, Historical, and Normative Analysis, 70 Fla. L. Rev. 1127 (2018). 

The petition was highlighted by Professor Dennis Crouch in a PatentlyO blog post. The blog post points out that “Apple’s petition relies heavily on the work of Cleveland-Marshall Prof. Christa Laser and her 2018 Florida Law Review article,” while the opposing view is articulated by Professor Greg Dolin (University of Baltimore), who “penned a responsive article concluding that Laser’s approach is too narrow.”

Professor Milena Sterio co-authored a blog post with Professor Yvonne Dutton on the topic of “The War in Ukraine and the Legitimacy of the International Criminal Court” on Just Security, one of the most prominent blogs dedicated to discussions of national security law and international law.  The post is available here: https://www.justsecurity.org/82889/the-war-in-ukraine-and-the-legitimacy-of-the-international-criminal-court/

Professor Sterio also participated in a series of virtual trainings for Ukrainian government officials and civil society organizations’ representatives from August 28-September 2, on international criminal law, transitional justice, and human rights documentation.  The trainings were organized by the Public International Law and Policy Group.

Finally, Professor Sterio participated as panelist in a panel discussion entitled “How is Europe Handling the Ukrainina Crisis” on August 22. The panel discussion was organized by the Plus Institute, an Austrian NGO based in Vienna, Austria.

Professor Milena Sterio participated in the International Humanitarian Law Roundtable in Chautauqua, New York, on August 28-30.  The IHL Roundtable is an annual conference convening academics, experts and practitioners in the field of international criminal law.  Professor Sterio moderated the Katherine B. Fite lecture, with lecturer Brenda Hollis, former Chief Prosecutor at the Cambodia Tribunal and currently the lead investigator at the International Criminal Court for its Ukraine investigation.  In addition, Professor Sterio served as Co-Chair of one of three conference subgroups, on the Use of Mercenaries and Irregular Forces in International Armed Conflict.  

Legal educator-in-residence Howard Katz made several presentations at the Southeastern Association of Law Schools (SEALS) annual conference from July 28 to August 1 in Miramar Beach, Florida. He spoke at two sessions for newer professors about teaching: one on feedback and assessment in large classes, the other on course design and teaching methods. He contributed to a discussion group about reimagining the law school curriculum. In addition to making the case for courses such as public benefits law, public policy analysis, data analysis, and negotiation, he made the larger point that designing the curriculum of the future is not just about adding courses or adding to courses; it involves rethinking the curriculum to do more than one kind of law school early on, so different students can thrive. Howard also was part of a coaching session for teaching candidates who will be going onto the market this coming fall.