Ethics Programs
Ethics and Professionalism Library
Cooley's Ethics and Professionalism Library maintains over 2950 titles and 4670 volumes of ethics materials. The Ethics and Professionalism Library is open to students, faculty, and attorneys to promote the research and study of ethics and professionalism.
Professor Peter Kempel oversees the Ethics and Professionalism Library and has continued to collect items on ethics and professionalism. Among them, the book entitled Reflection of a Lawyer's Soul: The Institutional Experience of Professionalism at the Thomas M. Cooley Law School, comprises a response to the Carnegie Report on Educating Lawyers and showcases Cooley's implementation of the very proposals that report set forth for law schools. Royalties from the sale of the book are contributed by all authors to the Center for Ethics.
^ top of page
Ethics in the Curriculum
The Center works with Cooley faculty to find interesting and probative methods of incorporating ethics into the required and elective courses in both the JD and LLM programs. Faculty members have designed and teach elective courses based in ethics, conflict resolution, and pro bono including:
Ethics in Advanced Appellate Techniques
Negotiation and Confrontation
Negotiation National Team
Advanced Professional Ethics
Advanced Business Mediation
Cultural Competency in the Legal Profession
Facilitative Mediation
Professionalism Portfolio Project
Pathway to Success: Your Career and Portfolio
Standards and Ethics of Tax Practice
Advanced Practice Skills – Mediation Training
Advanced Practice Skills – Domestic Mediation
Advanced Practice Skills – Multiple Party Dispute Resolution
Alternative Dispute Resolution
Facilitative Mediation Directed Study
Client Counseling Competition
Interviewing and Counseling
Access to Justice Clinic
The 60+ Elderlaw Clinic and all other indigent-based clinics.
^ top of page
Enforcing Student Conduct
Codes
Students engaging in unethical or unprofessional conduct are investigated, counseled, and sanctioned, as appropriate. Along with faculty, Cooley students also serve as counselors, prosecutors, and judges in Honor Code cases. They also assist in enforcing the Honor Code through their service as exam proctors for first term exams.
Reports of Honor Code violations and Disciplinary Procedure violations are investigated by "investigating deans" designated for each campus: Martha Moore at Ann Arbor, Lisa Halushka at Auburn Hills, Tracey Brame at Grand Rapids, Cynthia Ward at Lansing, and Jeff Martlew at Tampa Bay. The work of the investigating deans is supported and complemented by the Honor Council, Discipline Board, Office of Law School Advocate, and Office of Student Assistance. Professor Nancy Wonch is the Chair of the Honor Council.
Most of our students are honorable and our statistics bear this out with violations amounting to less than 1% of the total student enrollment. Dean Cynthia Ward, on behalf of the Dean of Students Office, in cooperation with the Exams and Grade Appeals Office, organizes student exam proctors at each campus who are second and third year students to assist in administering mid-term and final exams for first year students. Student Exam Proctors assist regular exam proctors prior to the start of the exam and at the end of the exam when time has been called. Our Student Exam Proctors volunteer their time; they are not paid.
The Student Exam Proctor program has been very successful. It is important for students to see other students enforcing the Honor Code. The work of student exam proctors before the exam and after the exam is visible and impressive. Most allegations of suspected Honor Code violations involve conduct that occurs right before the start or right after time is called at the end of an exam. In 2008, we had fifteen reports of student writing before time and writing after time was called. We want to eliminate these reports. In Lansing, there were no reports of writing over time during Trinity 2009 first term exams where we had student exam proctors present for the first time.
^ top of page
Integrity in Our
Communities Speaker Series
The Center brings nationally and locally recognized speakers to each campus each term to talk with our students, staff, and faculty about issues, trials, and lawsuits touching on ethical and professionalism matters. Students, faculty, and staff gather to hear speakers talk openly about challenges they have faced, and their personal and professional ethics that guided them through.
Since the series' inception in Hilary 2007, presenters have included: Chief Judge of the Michigan Court of Appeals William Whitbeck, nationally-recognized criminal defense attorney Frank Reynolds, former State Bar of Michigan President and State Board of Education member and practicing attorney Reginald Turner, Michigan Supreme Court Justice Cavanagh, former State Bar of Michigan President Jon Muth, Federal Magistrate Scoville, Retired Grand Rapids City Attorney Phil Balkema, Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Marilyn Kelly, State Bar President Ed Pappas, Judges Leo Bowman and Denise Page Hood, and chief public defender in Washtenaw County Lloyd Powell.
Click here to see a list of featured
speakers.
^ top of page
Ethics Speakers' Bureau
Cooley staff and faculty make themselves available to train and educate groups outside the school interested in ethics and professionalism, such as lawyers, paralegals, students, business owners and executives, local governments, and public interest groups. If you are interested in having a speaker for your organization who can speak about legal ethics and professionalism, please contact Kathy Lawrence at Cooley Law School at (517) 371-5140 or at lawrenck@cooley.edu.
^ top of page
|
Alumni Community