The Red Velvet Lawyer

10,000  Page Views Friends, family, and colleagues: Another milestone reached! Some time this morning -- while I was creating my latest profile of a distinguished ASL alumnus now serving the public interest -- you pushed to over 10,000 my total page views for the blog I launched in March. I truly appreciate your interest in this aspect of my "voice."  I enjoy communicating with you, and I want to serve your needs. Let me know what else I can do to make your student or law practice lives easier or more informed.   Feel free to send me suggested topics. Love you!

Distinguished Alumni of the  Appalachian School of Law:   Commonwealth's Attorney  Gerald Arrington Gerald D. Arrington serves as the Commonwealth’s Attorney for Buchanan County, Virginia. As Commonwealth’s Attorney, he is the county’s top prosecutor and prosecutes its most important and highest profile cases, including murder, robberies, multi-count drug indictments, and crimes against children. Gerald grew up and lives in the small community of Breaks, Virginia, near The Breaks Interstate Park , about 35 minutes from the law school campus. He lives with his wife and two sons. He graduated from the University of Virginia’s College at Wise in 2001, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Government. During his college career, he worked two jobs to help pay for his education and served as a co-captain for the college’s mock trial team. In 2004, he graduated magna cum laude from the Appalachian School of Law in Grundy, Virginia.

LSAC Applicant/Applications Data by Geographic Region --Fall 2012 to Fall 2013 -- As I mentioned in my last posting, Joan Van Tol, General Counsel for the Law School Admission Council (LSAC), gave a presentation at the conference of the Midwest Association of Pre-law Advisors (MAPLA) about trends in law school applications.  I described the LSAC data on the historic cycles in applications here . I discussed the conference generally here . Today, I'll describe the LSAC data presented on two maps of the U.S. divided into ten regions: Where are ABA Law School Applicants Coming From?  YTD Change Fall 2012 to Fall 2013; and, Where are ABA Law School Applications Going To?  Percent Change Fall 2012 to Fall 2013. LSAC Geographic Regions for Reporting: The ten LSAC regions are: New England (Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island); Northeast (New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania); Midsouth (Maryland,

LSAC Data on Trends in  LSAT Tests Administered,  ABA Applicants, and  First-Year Law School Matriculants  -- 1968 to 2013 --  At the conference of the Midwest Association of Pre-Law Advisors (MAPLA), which I first discussed  here , LSAC General Counsel, Joan Van Tol, presented new data on applications to law school through August 2013. I emailed her this morning asking her to provide a link to her slides, if possible.  She advises that they have not been posted, but should eventually appear on the PLANC website. I plan to continue to blog on the extremely helpful data provided at this conference by several speakers. Van Tol began with a slide showing a graph with three trend lines for the period of 1968 through the admissions year 2012-2013: for LSAT tests administered;  for ABA applicants; and  for first-year law students.    Most strikingly, the graph shows that legal education has seen three large cycles in the volume of LSATs administered and ABA app

Distinguished Alumni of the Appalachian School of Law:  Kathryn "Katie" Emily Mooney,  Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Kathryn "Katie" Emily Mooney began working as an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney in the Tazewell County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s Office immediately after graduating from law school. As an Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney, Katie carries a large caseload of a variety of criminal matters. She serves as co-lead counsel over prosecutions in Tazewell County General District Court; Tazewell County Circuit Court, and the Tazewell County Juvenile & Domestic Relations Court. Katie also serves as a TRIAD representative for the Tazewell County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office. As a TRIAD member she facilitates the cooperation between law enforcement agencies, hospitals, senior citizens, senior organizations and the community with the goal of reducing crimes against vulnerable senior citizens.  Along with her c

Distinguished Alumni of the Appalachian School of Law:   Justin J. Marcum, W.V. House of Delegates In January 2012, West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin appointed Justin J. Marcum to the 20th District of the West Virginia House of Delegates , comprising Mingo and Wayne Counties, for the remainder of the term of resigning Delegate K. Steve Kominar. He ran as a Democrat in the last successful run for the office in 2012.  He ran against ASL law student, Nathan Brown.   At the time of the appointment, the Governor remarked: “Justin is a young man who has displayed a passion for public service,” Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin said. “As an Assistant County Prosecutor as well as an elected member of the West Virginia Democratic State Executive Committee, 6th district, Justin has shown he values the ability and the rewards of working for the benefit of others. Such a trait will serve the people of the 20th Delegate District well.” He serves on the following committees

Distinguished Alumni of the Appalachian School of Law:  Assistant  U.S. Attorney M. Suzanne Kerney-Quillen M. Suzanne Kerney-Quillen is an Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Tennessee in the Greeneville branch office. Suzanne represents the United States in a variety of criminal cases in the Greeneville Division of district, which covers the ten northeastern-most counties in Tennessee. The photo captures her swearing-in ceremony as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia on November 9, 2011.  This ceremony occurred on the 100th Anniversary of the dedication of the Federal Courthouse  in Big Stone Gap, Virginia. Her great-grandfather helped build this courthouse, so she chose that date and location for her swearing-in ceremony. Suzanne graduated magna cum laude from King University in Bristol, Tennessee, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Music. In 2003, she graduated cum laude from Appalachian Schoo