Adjunct Faculty

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Adjunct Faculty

Florida State Law is proud to announce an unusually rich set of course offerings taught by adjunct professors. These instructors, though not on the regular faculty of the law school, bring a diversity of experiences and talents to the school and a very high degree of professional accomplishment and expertise.

Adjunct Professors: Spring 2010

Wendi Adelson — Asylum & Refugee Law

Susan Bodell — Florida Administrative Practice

Rocky M. Cabagnot — Poverty Law
Robert N. Clarke, Jr. — Florida Civil Practice
Valencia Davis — Criminal Pre-Trial Drafting

Tor Jensen-Friedman — Trial Practice
Dr. Mel Charles Hartsfield — Medical Malpractice

The Honorable Paul Hawkes — Workers' Compensation
William H. Hollimon — Copyright Law

Joseph Jacquot — Federal Legislative Practice
Laura D. Jones — Law and Social Science
Fred E. Karlinsky — Insurance Law: A Law & Economics Perspective
Patrick T. Kinni — Civil Pre-Trial Practice
Robert A. McNeely — Entertainment Law

Honorable Philip J. Padovano — Florida Appellate Practice

R. Scott Palmer — Antitrust Law
The Honorable Ricky Polston — Insurance Law
Capt. Alan S. Richard — Admiralty Law
The Honorable L. Clayton Roberts — State Constitutional Law
Gigi Rollini — Judicial Externship Perspectives
Maria A. Santoro — Mediation
Richard A. Tanner — Trial Practice
Herbert W.A. Thiele — Local Government Law
W. Robert Vezina — Construction Law
The Honorable James Robert Wolf — Local Government Law

Spring 2010 Courses for 2Ls and 3Ls

Wendi Adelson is program director for the Human Rights and Immigration Law Project at the Florida State University Center for the Advancement of Human Rights. She received her J.D. from the University of Miami School of Law, where she was a Reid Scholar, and an M.Phil. in International Relations from the University of Cambridge, where she was a Gates Cambridge Scholar. This spring, she is co-teaching Asylum & Refugee Law with Terry Coonan. For more information, e-mail Ms. Adelson.

Susan B. Bodell received her J.D. degree, with honors, from the University of Miami School of Law. She also holds a Master of Arts in English from the University of Miami, and a Master of Science in Library Science from Florida State University. She was a faculty member in the Department of English at the University of Miami from 1979 to 1985, and at Florida International University from 1985 until she left teaching to go to law school in 1990. From 1993 until she moved to Tallahassee in 1997, Ms. Bodell was an associate with the law firm of Spence Payne Masington Needle and Leeds in Miami, specializing in personal injury, medical malpractice and product liability. From 1997 to 1998, she served as a prosecuting attorney for the Agency for Health Care Administration, and in 2000 she joined the Administrative Law Section of the Office of the Attorney General, where she served as counsel to a number of professional regulatory boards of the Department of Health and other state agencies. Most recently, she served as a Legal Writing instructor at Florida State Law. This spring, Ms. Bodell will again teach Florida Administrative Practice.

Rocky M. Cabagnot is the directing attorney of the Revitalize Our Communities Project (ROCP), a collaborative partnership between Legal Services of North Florida (Tallahassee) and Three Rivers Legal Services (Gainesville). The ROCP provides direct legal and technical assistance to community development corporations, community land trusts and other community based organizations that have a mission of assisting low income people in north Florida. Prior to starting ROCP, Mr. Cabagnot served two years as an Equal Justice Works Fellow at Three Rivers Legal Services’ Lake City office where he developed a rural legal services and education project to serve the residents of four of the poorest counties in Florida (including hosting a weekly legal aid radio call in show). Mr. Cabagnot also served as an AmeriCorps Housing Attorney for Three Rivers Legal Services’ Gainesville office where he represented the interests of public housing tenants and other poor people facing evictions and other housing related problems. Mr. Cabagnot graduated with honors from the University of Florida Levin College of Law where he served as senior research editor of the Florida Law Review, research assistant to Dean Emeritus Jon Mills and president of the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association. Additionally, Mr. Cabagnot holds a Masters of Mass Communication from the University of Florida and a Bachelor of Arts (Political Science and Communication Studies) from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. This spring, he will teach Poverty Law. For more information, e-mail Rocky@LSNF.org.

Robert N. Clarke, Jr., a shareholder with the Ausley & McMullen firm in Tallahassee, will teach Florida Civil Practice, which he has taught many times at Florida State Law. He is a 1986 honors graduate of the law school and now practices in complex commercial litigation and administrative law in a variety of federal, state and administrative forums. For more information, call 850.425.5456 or e-mail rclarke@ausley.com.

Valencia Davis currently serves as senior staff attorney for Florida Supreme Court Justice Jorge Labarga. She previously served as an assistant state attorney in the First Judicial Circuit, where she handled a broad variety of criminal cases. From 2004 through 2006, Ms. Davis served as Legal Research and Writing instructor at Florida State Law, and in the summer 2008 taught Legal Research and Writing in the Summer for Undergraduates Program. She earned her J.D. from the University of Nebraska. This spring, Ms. Davis will teach Criminal Pre-Trial Drafting. For more information, e-mail davisv@flcourts.org.

Tor Jensen-Friedman is an assistant state attorney, focusing mainly on felony domestic violence cases, but has trial experience with a broad range of other felony/misdemeanor prosecutions. Since 2007, he has served as a coach of the Florida State Law Mock Trial Team. He earned his J.D. from Florida State Law. This spring, Mr. Friedman will teach Trial Practice. For more information, e-mail Tor@torfriedman.com.

Dr. Mel Charles Hartsfield is dean of the Florida State University College of Medicine, Tallahassee Regional Campus, and is certified by the American Board of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Hartsfield has extensive experience in the public health and medical emergency fields. He earned his J.D. from Florida State and his M.D. from the University of Florida. This spring he will teach Medical Malpractice. For more information, e-mail mel.hartsfield@med.fsu.edu.

The Honorable Paul M. Hawkes will teach Workers’ Compensation during the spring of 2010. Judge Hawkes serves on the First District Court of Appeal and previously worked for the Florida state legislature, governor and in private practice. He graduated with honors from Florida State Law, where he served as the research editor of the Florida State University Law Review. For more information, call 850.487.1000 or e-mail Judge Hawkes.

Bill Hollimon is a shareholder at Pennington, Moore, Wilkinson, Bell & Dunlap. He has practiced law in Tallahassee since 1996, working on all aspects of patent, trademark and copyright law. Mr. Hollimon received his J.D. and M.B.A. from Florida State Law in 1996. He is teaching Copyright Law this spring. For more information, e-mail bhollimon@penningtonlaw.com.

Joe Jacquot is deputy attorney general for Florida and chief of staff for Attorney General Bill McCollum. Prior to his appointment, Mr. Jacquot served as the deputy chief counsel of the Senate Judiciary Committee (2005-2006). Mr. Jacquot served as the lead counsel on the Comprehensive Immigration Reform legislation and he worked to enact a number of laws including the REAL ID Act and the Violence Against Women Act of 2005. He will teach Federal Legislative Practice this spring. For more information, e-mail Mr. Jacquot.

Laura Jones is a 2000 graduate of Florida State Law, graduating first in her class and serving on the editorial board of the Law Review. Since her graduation, she has clerked for Judge Lanier Anderson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and has served many times as an adjunct for the law school. This spring, she will teach Law and Social Science. For more information, e-mail Ms. Jones.

Fred Karlinsky will co-teach a seminar on Law and Economics of Insurance with Professor Falaschetti. Mr. Karlinsky is a shareholder with Colodny, Fass, Talenfeld, Karlinsky & Abate, PA. His practice focuses on the areas of insurance law and administrative law. Mr. Karlinsky has been involved in revisions to the Florida automobile insurance law, worker’s compensation laws and medical malpractice laws. Mr. Karlinsky earned his J.D. from Florida State Law in 1992. For more information, e-mail Mr. Karlinsky.

Patrick T. Kinni will again teach Civil Pre-Trial Practice. He is a senior assistant attorney in the Leon County Attorney’s office, where he has litigated at the trial and appellate levels various issues of interest to local governments. Mr. Kinni received his J.D. from Nova Southeastern University School of Law in 1989. For more information, call 850.606.2500 or e-mail Mr. Kinni.

Robert A. McNeely, the managing shareholder in The McNeely Law Firm, will reprise his popular Entertainment Law course this spring. Mr. McNeely is an alumnus who has worked and published on topics in the areas of entertainment law, family law, legislative practice, intellectual property and appellate practice. For more information, contact Mr. McNeely via e-mail.

The Honorable Philip J. Padovano of the First District Court of Appeal will teach Florida Appellate Practice. Judge Padovano has taught Trial Practice at Florida State Law in the past. He also has taught many lectures for CLE seminars on statutory interpretation and evidence. Judge Padovano earned his J.D. from Stetson University College of Law in 1973 and practiced law for 15 years prior to becoming a judge. For more information, contact Judge Padovano at padovanp@1dca.org.

R. Scott Palmer will teach Antitrust Law. He is special counsel for Antitrust Enforcement and chief of the Mortgage Task Force in the Florida Attorney General’s Office. From 1997-2007, he headed the Antitrust Practice at Berman DeValerio; from 1988-1997, he served in the Economic Crimes Division of the Attorney General’s Office, where he oversaw its complex litigation; and from 1982-1986, he was the chief prosecutor of the Statewide Grand Jury, responsible for the prosecution of multi-circuit organized crime cases. Mr. Palmer earned his J.D. (with honors) from the University of Miami and his B.A. from the University of Michigan. For more information, contact Mr. Palmer at scott.palmer@myfloridalegal.com.

The Honorable Ricky Polston of the Florida Supreme Court will again teach Insurance Law. Justice Polston, a Florida State Law alumnus, has previously taught State Constitutional Law, Insurance Law and Accounting for Lawyers. He is a certified public accountant and was previously a certified circuit court mediator. Prior to becoming a judge, he practiced public accounting for seven years as audit manager with Deloitte Haskins & Sells, C.P.A.s, and law for 14 years (commercial litigation in federal and state courts throughout Florida). For more information, call 850.487.1000 ext. 151 or e-mail Justice Polston.

Alan S. Richard is a captain with the Division of Law Enforcement for the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission and is a 1994 graduate with highest honors from the Florida State Law. He is teaching Admiralty Law, a topic on which he has published extensively and taught previously at the law school. As a student, he was a member of the Florida State University Law Review and the Journal of Land Use & Environmental Law, and graduated as a member of the Order of the Coif. For more information, call 850.488.5600 or e-mail Captain Richard.

The Honorable Clay Roberts will team teach State Constitutional Law with Professor D’Alemberte. In January 2007, he was appointed to the First District Court of Appeal. Previously, he served as the executive deputy attorney general and is a graduate of the United States Military Academy and Florida State Law. He is admitted to practice before the state courts of Florida, the U.S. District Courts in Florida, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court. For more information, call 850.487.1000 or e-mail Judge Roberts.

Gigi Rollini is an attorney for Holland & Knight LLP, where she practices in the areas of Florida administrative law, utility regulation and appellate law. Ms. Rollini graduated magna cum laude from Florida State Law and served as senior articles editor for the Florida State University Law Review. She also interned for the Honorable Robert L. Hinkle at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida. After law school, she worked as senior law clerk to the Honorable Robert T. Benton, II at the Florida First District Court of Appeal. Ms. Rollini will teach Judicial Externship Perspectives. For more information, please e-mail gigi.rollini@hklaw.com.

Maria A. Santoro will teach Mediation. Ms. Santoro is managing partner of the Tallahassee office of George Hartz, where she specializes in health care and commercial litigation matters. An active participant in numerous law reform efforts, including the Florida Supreme Court Task Force on Complex Litigation, Ms. Santoro earned her J.D. from Thomas Cooley in 1986 and her B.A. from Florida State in 1982. For more information, call 850.224.5252 or e-mail Ms. Santoro.

Richard A. Tanner will teach Trial Practice during the spring. Mr. Tanner is the managing partner of the Tallahassee branch of deBeaubien, Knight, Simmons, Mantzaris & Neal. He has successfully litigated numerous criminal and civil trials and has served as an arbitrator and mediator. Mr. Tanner also has served as the moderator of CLE programs run by The Florida Bar and has given several CLE lectures on trial practice topics. Mr. Tanner earned his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law in 1969. For more information, call 850.201.3655 or e-mail Mr. Tanner.

Herbert W.A. Thiele will co-teach Local Government Law with the Honorable James Wolf. Mr. Thiele has served as Leon County attorney since 1990 and was city attorney of Delray Beach from 1981-1990. He earned his B.A. from Notre Dame in 1975 and J.D. from University of Florida in 1978. For more information, call 850.606.2500 or e-mail Mr. Thiele.

Rob Vezina will teach Construction Law in the spring. Mr. Vezina received his J.D. from Duke in 1981 and is a named partner of the leading firm dealing with construction law in North Florida. He has litigated numerous construction law cases. For more information, call 850.224.6205 or e-mail Mr. Vezina.

The Honorable James Robert Wolf, a judge on the Florida First District Court of Appeal, will co-teach Local Government Law with Herbert Thiele. Judge Wolf's strong background in state and local government law includes serving as an assistant state attorney, assistant city attorney for West Palm Beach, general counsel to the Florida League of Cities, and in private practice representing local governments. Judge Wolf graduated from the University of Miami School of Law in 1975. For more information, call 850.922.6998 ext. 162 or e-mail Judge Wolf.

Please click here for biographical information about previous adjuncts.