Miami Law's Litigation Skills Program offers its students rigorous, hands-on training, providing them with the practical skills necessary for competent professional legal service. Every semester, the program's top students are awarded scholarships and prizes. The following students were recognized this past fall:
Grace Castillo was the recipient of the Hon. Stanford Blake Award. This $500 cash prize is awarded each semester to a student in the Litigation Skills Program who has demonstrated excellence in trial advocacy.
Abigail Wettstein and Elizabeth Hendrickson were each awarded the John F. Evans Memorial Scholarship. The $2,500 scholarship was established in 1989 in memory of John F. Evans, a criminal defense attorney, former deputy chief of the U.S. State Department's Miami Strike Force, and founding partner of the law firm of Zuckerman, Spaeder, Taylor, and Evans. Each semester, it is given to a Litigation Skills student who has expressed an interest in trial practice.
Temur Andrianov was the recipient of the Honorable Theodore Klein Endowed Scholarship. The $3,500 scholarship was established in 2006 in memory of Theodore Klein, an outstanding lawyer, law professor, Federal Magistrate, and a leader among his peers. It is awarded each semester to a Litigation Skills student who has demonstrated financial need, ability, and excellence in oral and written advocacy and a strong commitment to public service.
The Director's Book Award for Excellence in Litigation Skills is awarded each semester by the Litigation Skills faculty to the top-performing students for their excellence in trial advocacy. The following received the award: Luis Ferro, Craig Kochheiser, Ximena Portocarrero, Brianna Vazquez, Jake Farbman, James Neary, Alexandra Buroz Morales, Nicole Vahlkamp, Connor Runnalls, and Kloee Ciuperger.
Evan Lowry was awarded the Kozyak, Tropin & Throckmorton Endowed Litigation Scholarship and Award. This $5,000 award provides financial assistance for students from underrepresented communities enrolled in the Litigation Skills Program. The recipients are selected by the Dean of the School of Law based upon the recommendations of the Director of the Litigation Skills Program.
Gabriela Ibanez was the recipient of the Marco A. Vazquez Memorial Scholarship. The $5,000 scholarship was established in 1996 in memory of Marco A. Vazquez, a 1993 graduate of Miami Law. The Marco A. Vazquez Scholarship is awarded each semester to an academically qualified law student who has completed the Litigation Skills Program and demonstrated financial need.
Julia Zayas and Nicole Vitt were awarded the Richard L. Lapidus Endowed Memorial Scholarship Fund for $5,000. It is awarded to a student who excels in the Litigation Skills program and understands legal ethics.
Eleanor Giist is the recipient of the John M. Hogan Fund for Public Interest Litigation for $5,000. To memorialize his life and legacy, the law firm of Holland & Knight established the John M. Hogan Fund for Public Interest Litigation at Miami Law. The fund provides scholarship assistance to Hogan Scholars—law students who are certified legal interns, with a preference given to students who wish to be placed at Legal Services of Greater Miami or the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office.
Abigail Wettstein is the recipient of the Thomas Ewald Memorial Award. This award is given to a student who scores the most points in Trial Skills and exemplifies the devotion to high standards and ethical conduct followed by Thomas Ewald. This award comes with a Montblanc pen – an homage to the late Ewald, a Miami Law trial advocacy professor known to carry the pen in his shirt pocket.
Read more about the Litigation Skills Program at Miami Law.
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