The U.S. Supreme Court: A Conversation
Wednesday, June 19, 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
NACUA is pleased to welcome to the Opening Plenary session of our 53rd Annual Conference three distinguished legal practitioners and Supreme Court advocates for a conversation about the Court, its current Justices and their judicial philosophies, and cases relevant to higher education. The panel will examine how the philosophies of individual justices are reflected in the Court’s recent jurisprudence and have evolved during their service on the Court.
The session will also look ahead to possible changes in the composition of the Court and what those changes could mean for the Court’s jurisprudence in areas important to higher education and the nation. In particular, assuming the Court has rendered its decision by the date of the Annual Conference, the panel will focus on the Court’s holding and reasoning in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin and what that holding means for the future of constitutional race-conscious admissions programs at institutions of higher education.
WELCOME 1:00 p.m. – 1:15 p.m.Welcome & Opening Remarks — Dana Scaduto, General Counsel, Dickinson College; 2012-2013 NACUA President
Overview of the Annual Conference Program — William J. (Bill) Mullowney, Vice President for Policy and General Counsel, Valencia College; NACUA President-Elect and Chair, 2012-2013 Committee on Program for the Annual Conference
2012-2013 State of the Association Address — Kathleen Curry Santora, Chief Executive Officer, NACUA
OPENING PLENARY 1:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.Featuring:



- Beverly Ledbetter (Moderator), Vice President & General Counsel, Brown University
- Gregory Garre, Partner and Chair of Supreme Court and Appellate Practice Group, Latham & Watkins
- Douglas Hallward-Driemeier Partner, Ropes & Gray, LLP.
- Larry White, Vice President and General Counsel, University of Delaware
- Learn More >>
Beverly Ledbetter, (Moderator is Vice President and General Counsel at Brown University. Ms. Ledbetter has also served as legal counsel to the University of Oklahoma and general counsel to the Educational Advancement Foundation. She was also on the faculty at Harvard University’s Management Development Program and its Institute for School Law and has served as general counsel and member of the Executive Committee of the Rhode Island Black Lawyers Association. She received the Minority Counsel Award from the American Bar Association. Ms. Ledbetter is a past president of NACUA and a recipient of the Association’s Distinguished Service Award.
Gregory G. Garre is a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Latham & Watkins and serves as Global Chair of the firm’s Supreme Court and Appellate Practice Group. He handles a broad array of complex litigation matters at all levels of the federal and state court systems. Mr. Garre served as the 44th Solicitor General of the United States, having previously served as Principal Deputy Solicitor General and as an Assistant to the Solicitor General. He has argued 38 cases before the Supreme Court. In October 2012 he represented the University of Texas-Austin before the Court in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, defending the University’s diversity-conscious admissions plan as consistent with the principles set forth by the Supreme Court in Grutter v. Bollinger. In 2010 he argued before the Court on behalf of the University of California Hastings College of Law in the case of Christian Legal Society v. Martinez, which upheld the ability of public colleges and universities to require that campus recognized student organizations accept all interested students as members.
Douglas Hallward-Driemeier leads the appellate and Supreme Court practice at Ropes & Gray and has presented more than 40 appellate arguments, including before the U.S. Supreme Court and every federal circuit court of appeals. He has briefed and argued both civil and criminal matters covering a wide range of issues, and collaborates with colleagues across numerous practice areas. Mr. Hallward-Driemeier rejoined Ropes & Gray in 2010 after spending more than a decade handling civil appeals and Supreme Court litigation for the U.S. Department of Justice. Between 2004 and 2009, he was an assistant to the solicitor general, where he briefed and argued cases on behalf of the United States before the Supreme Court. He has argued thirteen cases before the Supreme Court and filed more than 150 briefs in that Court.
Lawrence White joined the University of Delaware as its first general counsel in 2009. He has worked for more than thirty years as a lawyer and administrator in the higher education and nonprofit sectors. At earlier stages in his career he served as University Counsel at Georgetown University; Deputy General Counsel to the University of Virginia; counsel to the Board of Regents of the University of Maryland System and Morgan State University, and Assistant Secretary and Associate Counsel at the American Association of University Professors. He is a member of the National Association of College and University Attorneys ("NACUA"), served as a NACUA director and officer, and in 2010 was selected as one of the recipients of NACUA's Distinguished Service Award.
Facing the Future in Higher Education Full Speed Ahead: The Evolution of College and University Counsel
Thursday, June 20, 8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.
Higher education is experiencing profound change – new business models, entrepreneurial ventures, demands for greater accountability and regulation, innovative methods of instructional delivery, globalization and technology to name just a few. How have these trends affected college and university counsel and how has our profession evolved as a result? What changes are needed in the profession and practice of higher education law to survive in this sea of change and thrive into the future? Five experienced General Counsel will challenge your assumptions and provide a provocative and insightful look into the future as they discuss trends and anticipate ways in which the role of counsel should and must change to prepare for the future.
Featuring:




- William J. Mullowney (Moderator), Vice President for Policy and General Counsel, Valencia College
- José D. Padilla, Vice President and General Counsel, DePaul University
- Nancy E. Tribbensee, Senior Vice President for Academic, Legal and External Affairs, Arizona University System
- Wendy S. White, Senior Vice President and General Counsel, University of Pennsylvania
- David Williams, Vice Chancellor for Athletics and University Affairs and Athletics Director, Vanderbilt University
- Learn More >>
Bill Mullowney serves as Vice President for Policy and General Counsel for Valencia Community College in Orlando, Florida. He serves as Valencia's lobbyist and legislative counsel to the executive and legislative branches of the State of Florida. He also serves as Program Chair for the annual Community College Conference on Legal Issues. Prior to his position at Valencia, Mr. Mullowney served as General Counsel at Whittier College in California and before that as University Ombudsman at the University of Miami. While at Whittier, Mr. Mullowney was an Adjunct Professor of Law at the Whittier Law School, where he taught classes in Sports Law and Higher Education Law. While at Miami, he launched the university's Student Honor Code and served as an Associate Faculty Master at the Hecht Residential College. Mr. Mullowney is a member of the Florida Bar and the State Bar of California. He recently completed his second elected term of service on the Board of Directors of NACUA, serving on its Executive Committee as Secretary and as Chair of its Committee on Board Operations. He is currently the association's President-Elect. He also serves on the Boards of the Florida Community Colleges Activities Association, the Florida Association of Community Colleges (FACC), and the Florida Bar's Education Law Committee.
José Padilla joined DePaul University as its Vice President and General Counsel in May, 2005. Before DePaul, Mr. Padilla worked for Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT), a Chicago research university, as an attorney and federal lobbyist. In December, 2010, the Secretary of the United States Department of Education, Arne Duncan, appointed Mr. Padilla to a three year term as a member of the National Board of the Fund for Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE). Mr. Padilla spent seven years in Washington, D.C. From 1990 to 1993, he was a lawyer/legislative assistant to the late Senator Lloyd Bentsen (D-TX). From 1993 to 1997, Mr. Padilla was a senior political appointee in the Clinton Administration, serving as Assistant Commissioner for Congressional and Public Affairs at the United States Customs Service, then a bureau of the United States Treasury Department. Mr. Padilla has also worked on public policy issues affecting higher education. The University of Michigan retained him to represent it before Congress and Hispanic groups with respect to the Gratz and Grutter affirmative action cases in the United States Supreme Court. Mr. Padilla graduated from the University of Michigan Law School in 1983 and from the University of Toledo in 1980 with a degree in elementary education. He is a former member of the NACUA Board of Directors and belongs to the Illinois State and American Bar Associations. He is also a director of the Alumni Association of the University of Michigan and the Better Government Association in Chicago. In the October, 2010 edition of Hispanic Business magazine, Mr. Padilla was named one of a 100 influential Hispanics in the nation for 2010. In 2006, the Latino Law Students Association of the University of Michigan Law School honored Mr. Padilla with the J.T. Canales Award for distinction as a Latino alumnus of the Law School.
Dr. Nancy E. Tribbensee, Senior Vice President for Academic, Legal and External Affairs for the Arizona University System, is the chief legal advisor to the Arizona Board of Regents. In coordination with university attorneys, she analyzes legal issues arising from Board and university initiatives. She also chairs the Legal Affairs Council and represents the Board in interactions with the Office of the Attorney General, bond counsel, financial consultants, and other external constituencies. Nancy was previously at Arizona State University where she started in 1989 and became General Counsel in 2006. While at Arizona State she taught Law of Higher Education and Law for Student Affairs Administrators. Prior to that she was an Associate at Evans, Kitchel & Jenckes, P.C. in Phoenix, Arizona. Nancy currently serves as Secretary to the NACUA Board of Directors. She holds a BA, MA, JD, and Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Arizona State University.
Wendy White is the Senior Vice President and General Counsel of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Medicine. Previously, Ms. White held the positions of Vice President and General Counsel (2001-2003) and Deputy General Counsel of the University (1999-2001). She formerly was a partner in the law firm of Shea & Gardner in Washington, D.C., during the period 1981 - 1999, where she specialized in issues relating to non-profit institutions, labor and employment, products liability and commercial litigation. In addition, Ms. White served as Associate Counsel to the President of the United States in 1996-1997. Ms. White attended Goucher College (A.B., magna cum laude, 1972) where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. She received her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania (J.D., magna cum laude), was an editor of the Law Review and a member of Order of the Coif. Ms. White is a member of the American Law Institute, the Board of Governors of the NASDAQ LLC, NASDAQ OMX PHLX, Inc., and NASDAQ OMX BX, Inc., and the Board of the National Association of College and University Attorneys. She is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar and the District of Columbia Bar. Ms. White is a frequent speaker on labor and employment, higher education and ethics issues.
David Williams II is Vice Chancellor of University Affairs and Athletics and Director of Athletics at Vanderbilt University. He oversees Student Athletics, the fourteen-member General Counsel Office, the Office of Risk Management, the University’s Compliance and Conflict of Interest Committee, and the operations of the University’s Board of Trust. Williams is a member of the State Bars of Tennessee, Michigan, and the District of Columbia. He serves on three NACUA committees and recently completed two terms as a board member. In addition, he is an active member of the American Bar Association, serves on three NCAA Committees and the NCAA General Counsel Advisory Board. He served two three-year terms as a member of the Nashville Branch of the Atlanta Federal Reserve Board and two one-year terms as Chair. He is active in the Nashville community as a board member of many nonprofit organizations. Williams has written, lectured, and participated in many seminars on topics of tax law, sports law, law and education and legal history. He has taught at the Law Schools of the University of Detroit, Capital University, The Ohio State University and Vanderbilt. He directed The Ohio State University Law Program in Oxford, England in 1992 and 1995. A native of Detroit, Michigan, Williams received a Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts from Northern Michigan University; a Master of Business Administration and a Doctor of Jurisprudence from the University of Detroit; and an LL.M. (Taxation) from New York University.
Computer Resource Session with Barron Henley & Paul Unger
NACUA welcomes computer gurus Barron K. Henley and Paul J. Unger of Affinity Consulting Group for six computer and law office technology sessions. Attorneys with over 20 years of teaching and consulting on the application of legal technology in law offices, Mr. Henley and Mr. Unger will be leading six sessions designed to keep members up to date on new technology and how to apply it in their higher education practice.
- Friday, June 21
- 9:15 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Legal Technology Tips, Tricks, Gadgets and Other Cool Stuff
- 11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Cloud Computing for Lawyers: Pros, Cons, Ethical Issues, and Options
- 2:00 p.m. – 3:15 p.m. Sanity Software: The Case for Practice Management Software
- 3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. Automation Tools for Legal Drafting Best Practices
- Saturday, June 22
- 9:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. iPads for College and University Lawyers (Part I)
- 10:45 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. iPads for College and University Lawyers (Part II)
Featuring:
Barron K. Henley, Esq. is one of the managing partners of Affinity's Columbus Ohio office. He is an attorney with 15 years of experience in legal technology. Together with Paul Unger, Barron founded Henley March & Unger Consulting, Inc. (now Affinity-Columbus) in 1998. He received his B.S./B.A. (marketing and economics) and J.D. from The Ohio State University and is a member of the American, Ohio and Columbus Bar Associations, and the Worthington Estate planning Council. Mr. Henley is a member of the ABA Law practice Management Section and the Technology Committee, the Visioneer Legal Advisory Board, and the Columbus Bar Association Law 2010 Committee. He's also a member and former Chair of the Ohio State Bar Association Law Office Automation & Technology Committee. Barron is one of the most renowned experts on Microsoft Word, Adobe Acrobat and HotDocs. In fact, he heads Affinity's HotDocs document assembly and software training departments. A frequent speaker, Barron teaches CLE classes covering practice management, document management, file management, server and personal computer issues, remote access, mobile lawyering, scanning and imaging, legal paper reduction strategies, electronics case filing, Word, Excel, Outlook, Wordperfect, HotDocs document assembly, Adobe Acrobat, malpractice avoidance, and many other topics. He has spoken at state and local bar association throughout the U.S. as well as the annual ABA Tech Show.
Paul J. Unger is one of the managing partners of Affinity's Columbus Ohio office. He is a 1994 graduate of Capital University Law School. He is an attorney and founding member of HMU Consulting, Inc. (now Affinity-Columbus). Prior to forming HMU with Barron Henley, Paul was Vice President of a Columbus-based technology consulting firm. He spent five years at Clark, Perdue, Roberts & Scott Co., L.P.A., limiting his practice to civil litigation. Mr. Unger now specializes in trial presentation & litigation technology consulting, document and case management software, paperless office strategies, and legal-specific software training for law firms and legal departments throughout the Midwest. He has provided trial presentation consultation for 300+ cases. Mr. Unger is a member of The American Society of Trial Consultants, the American Bar Association, the Ohio and Columbus Bar Associations, and the Ohio Association for Justice and the Central Ohio Association for Justice. He is very active in the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association, and recently served as the Chair of ABA TECHSHOW 2011. He is also an Adjunct Professor for Capital University Law School's Paralegal Program. Mr. Unger is a national speaker and frequent lecturer for CLE programs. He is the author of Adobe Acrobat for Law Firms, PowerPoint for Legal Professionals, and co-author of Microsoft Word for Legal Professionals, all manuals designed to maximize the use of legal-specific features.