Albert S. Pergam Writing Competition

New York State Bar Association
Albert S. Pergam International Writing Competition Award

Law Students are cordially invited to submit to the International Section an article concerning any area of public or private international law or practice. All submissions will be reviewed by a committee of attorneys practicing international law, and a winner will be chosen based on a variety of factors,
including significance and timeliness of the subject matter, thoroughness of research and analysis, clarity of writing style, as well as the importance and originality of the topic to the understanding of private/public international law or comparative law.

The winner will receive:

  1. $2,000 USD; and
  2. Publication of the article (subject to editorial approval) in the New York International Law Review.

Learn More

Visit Section Website

New York State Bar Association, One Elk Street, Albany, NY 12207, PH: 800-582-2452

Akron Law Alumni Association seeks 2021/2022 Associate Student Director – Application Deadline: September 3, 2021, 5:00 p.m.

Message from Andreas Ellis, Director of Alumni and Development:

The Akron Law Alumni Association (“LAA”) Board of Directors has a dedicated position on its Board for an Associate Student Director.  This is a two-year appointment through June 30, 2023; the first year (2021/2022) as the Associate Student Director, and the second year (2022/2023) transitioning to the Student Director position.  The Board is seeking a 1L or 2L law student in good standing for the Associate Student Director position. 

This unique and valuable opportunity provides the Associate Student Director a chance to become involved in alumni leadership and activities with the Law School.  The Associate Student Director works with the Student Director to represent Akron Law students, and works with the Student Director and Board to identify ways in which students and alumni may work and communicate together for the benefit of both groups. 

The Associate Student Director serves in an ex-officio capacity and is expected to attend all Board meetings which are held at the School of Law on a bi-monthly basis throughout the year (i.e., October, December, February, April, June, and August.)  The Board meetings begin at 4:30 p.m., and generally last for one and a half hours.  The Associate Student Director is also expected to attend all LAA events (including but not limited to the Centennial Events (Kick-off and Keynote Speaker), the Holiday Party, the Akron Law Alumni Awards Breakfast, and any other event sponsored by the LAA.)

Applications for the 2021/2022 Associate Student Director to the LAA Board should include:

  • Why he or she wants to serve on the LAA Board;
  • Why the student believes that he or she should be selected for the position; and,
  • A copy of the student’s resume.  

The LAA Board’s Nominating Committee will review the applications and select students who will be invited to interview at a mutually agreeable time in mid-September 2020.  Students with questions should contact Andreas Ellis, Director of Alumni and Development, at ellis@uakron.edu or 330-972-5298.  Students interested in this position should e-mail their application materials to LauraLee Sales at lsales@uakron.edu by 5:00 p.m., Friday, September 3, 2021.

Good luck!

Student Director and Associate Student Director Responsibilities

Student Director Responsibilities:

  • Communicate student activities and general consensus to LAA Board at regularly scheduled meetings.
  • Take notes during LAA meetings, create meeting minutes, and forward minutes within 48 hours of the meetings to Project Coordinator, Alumni and Development for final edit and distribution.
  • On the day of the regularly scheduled LAA meeting, confer with Director of Alumni and Development to discuss Student Director topics to be presented at that meeting.
  • Attend SBA meetings and report information to LAA Board at next regularly scheduled Board meeting.
  • Promote to other law students and assist on LAA events and projects as instructed by the Director of Alumni and Development, including but not limited to:
    • Centennial Events
    • Holiday Reception
    • Cocktail Reception
    • Others (TBD)
  • Confer with Director and Project Coordinator, Alumni and Development to organize and promote lunchtime Q&A Panel betw 1L and Alumni

Associate Student Director Responsibilities:

  • Learn responsibilities of and assists the Student Director to orchestrate a smooth transition to the Student Director position the following year.

Student Organization Travel Policies

Below are the policies set by the University for Student Organization Travel. Note that these policies also apply to local events that don’t involve overnight stays. 

Students interested in traveling will be expected to abide by current CDC and University of Akron Covid-19 policies. 

Only requests submitted 30-business days or more in advance will be reviewed and considered for approval. Student organizations are strongly encouraged to submit requests as far in advance as possible. 

Student organizations and their members wishing to travel to an in-person event that does not have a virtual alternative, will need to do the following: One Day Travel with Two or Less Overnight Experiences

  1. Submit a travel request to the appropriate department authorized to approve your student organization travel (Clubs Sports, SOuRCe, School of Law).
  2. Complete the corresponding Emergency Contact and Travel Waiver documents.
  3. Each individual intending to travel will upload their Covid-19 vaccine record to  Med-Proctor following these instructions.

a. If a Covid-19 vaccine record has not been uploaded to Med-Proctor, the student(s) will need to either, submit proof of vaccine status to Med-Proctor two weeks before planned departure date, or schedule a Covid-19 test no earlier than 72-hours prior to planned departure, and submit a negative test result to the appropriate department that approves travel requests in order to be authorized.

  1. Students are responsible for understanding the requirements set by the host of the event since these will likely reflect any current health orders in that respective state or city.
  2. Receive Campus Advisor approval for travel plans.

Travel with Three or more Overnight Experiences

  1. All the above
  2. Provide a written plan to the appropriate office indicating plans for an unexpected sickness, or a Covid-19 positive test result while traveling. This plan should also include identifying a location where a Covid-19 test can be completed while traveling, and the link to plans and/or requirements set by the host of the event since these will likely reflect any current health orders in that respective state or city.

 UA generally will not pay for quarantine periods required by the city/state/municipality. The traveler may be responsible for any additional travel costs outside of the approved travel.  

The above policies are subject to change based on recommendations from the University of Akron planning committees related to Covid-19.Updated 8.17.21

Ohio Bar Admissions Workshop and Ohio Bar Application Process

Below is important information for those who plan to take the Ohio Bar Exam:

  • Bar Admissions Workshop – Tuesday, September 14, 2021

We will hold an Ohio Bar Admissions Workshop on Tuesday, September 14, 2021, from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m. in The Brennan Courtroom (L180). Our speaker will be Tiffany Kline, Assistant Director of Bar Admissions for the Supreme Court of Ohio. Those in their second calendar year of law school, and two-year international students who are in their first year at Akron Law should plan to attend.

  • Ohio Bar Admissions Process and Important Dates

The Ohio Bar Admissions process involves two steps. Step one is the submission of the Application to Register as a Candidate for Admission to the Practice of Law. Step Two is the Application to take the bar exam on a particular date.

  • Deadline for Application to Register as a Candidate for Admission to the Practice of Law (Character and Fitness Application):

If you are in your second calendar year of law school, or are a two-year international student in your first year of law school, the deadline to submit a timely Application to Register as a Candidate for Admission to the Practice of Law (what the Bar Admissions Office commonly calls the Character and Fitness Application) is November 15, 2021. Information on this application can be found here: Application to Resister as a Candidate.

We will have your Certificate of Dean and a fingerprint card available for you to pick up in late September or early October. We will notify you when those are available to be picked up.

  • Application to Apply for the February 2022 or July 2022 Bar Exam:

If you plan to take the February 2022 Bar Exam, the deadline to submit a timely application is November 1, 2021. If you plan to take the July 2022 Bar Exam, the deadline to submit a timely application is April 1, 2022. Information on the application can be found here:  Application to take the Bar Exam.

For those taking the February 2022 Bar Exam, we will mail your Law School Character Certificate to the address that you have on file with the University of Akron. We expect to send those out the first week of October. We will send your Final Law School Certificate, including the Substance Abuse Certification (if we have a record showing that you’ve fulfilled that requirement), directly to the Bar Admissions Office after your degree is conferred in January 2022.

For those taking the July 2022 Bar Exam, we will provide further information as to how we will make your Law School Character Certificate available to you; however, we will send your Final Law School Certificate, including the Substance Abuse Certification (if we have a record showing that you’ve fulfilled that requirement), directly to the Bar Admissions Office after your degree is conferred in May 2022.

Please consult the Ohio Office of Bar Admissions website for additional information and a list of all deadlines: Ohio Office of Bar Admissions

  • MPRE:

Information about the Multi-State Professional Responsibility Exam, can be found here: MPRE

  • Other Jurisdictions:

      If you plan to take the bar exam in another jurisdiction, please consult the bar admissions website for that jurisdiction and forward me any forms that you need to have completed.

As always, please let me know if you have any questions.

Charles W. Oldfield | Assistant Dean of Student Affairs
Director of Legal Writing
The University of Akron School of Law
C. Blake McDowell Law Center
Akron, OH  44325-2901
T: 330.972.6750
E: cwo@uakron.edu
W: uakron.edu/law