Fellows Program

fellows


Get Involved. Stay Involved.

 


RPTE Welcomes the 2014-2016
Class of Fellows!

The Section is excited to announce the 2014-2016 class of RPTE Fellows! There was a record number of 50 applications submitted, all of which were outstanding. After much discussion, the following individuals have been chosen to represent the Section for the 2014-2016 bar years:

Trust & Estate Fellows

Marissa Dungey
Withers Bergman LLP
New Haven, CT

Toni Ann Kruse
McDermott, Will & Emery
New York, NY

Jonathan ("JP") Lee
Sojourner, Caughman & Thomas
Columbia, SC

Raj Malviya
Miller Johnson
Grand Rapids, MI

Chasity Sharp Grice
Sharp Legal Group, Inc.
Memphis, TN

 

Real Property Fellows

Jamie Ackerman
Zucker, Goldberg & Ackerman
Mountainside, NJ

Sue Elliott
Martin & Bochnewich
Indian Wells, CA

Jane Mansell
McDonalds Corporation
Oak Brook, IL

Christopher Odinet
Southern University
Law Center
Baton Rouge, LA

Kim Sandher
Rao & Pierce
Seattle, WA

 


The Section also sends a huge thank you to the 2014 selection committee: Ryan Walsh, Kathy Law, Rana Salti, Hugh Drake, Liz Ochoa, Robert Nemzin, Orlando Lucero, Jo Ann Englehardt, Joey Lubinski and Marjorie Bardwell.

 

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About the Fellows Program

The ABA Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Fellows Program encourages the active involvement and participation of young lawyers in Section activities. The goal of the program is to give young lawyers an opportunity to become involved in the substantive work of the RPTE Section, while developing into future leaders.

RPTE Fellows are assigned to work with a substantive Committee Chair, who serve as mentors and help expose them to all aspects of committee membership; get involved in substantive projects, which could include writing for a RPTE publication; become Section liaisons to the ABA Young Lawyers Division or local bar associations; become active members of the Membership Committee; and attend important Section leadership meetings.

 

RPTE Fellows will:

  • Be assigned to work with a substantive Committee Chair, who will serve as a mentor and help expose you to all aspects of committee membership
  • Get involved in a substantive project, which could include writing for a RPTE publication
  • Become a Section liaison to the ABA Young Lawyers Division or your local bar association
  • Become an active member of the Membership Committee
  • Attend important Section leadership meetings

The Fellowship appointment is for two years. To be considered for selection, a person must (1) have practiced in the trusts and estates or real property area for at least one year, (2) be younger than 36 years of age or have been admitted to the bar less than 10 years, and (3) have demonstrated leadership at the state or local bar level or in the ABA Young Lawyers Division. Applicants need not be ABA or RPTE members, yet we require accepted Fellows to become dues paying members of both the ABA and RPTE.  All Fellows will receive reimbursement of up to $2,000 annually to attend Section meetings.

The Section promotes full and equal participation in our membership, the association, our profession, and the justice system by all persons. As such, we are committed to ensuring that no less than half of the Fellows chosen each year are diverse.

Questions about the Fellows Program? Contact Monica Larys at monica.larys@americanbar.org for more information.  


What Our Fellows Say

Soo LeeSoo Yeon Lee
Real Property Fellow, 2012-2014

I highly recommend the Fellows Program to any young lawyer. It has given me enormous opportunities to get to know and work with nationally well-known practitioners across the country, speak on topics of my interests and practice area, get firsthand experience in the operations of the Section, and most importantly, get to meet the mentor the Section hand-picked for me, and develop a nurturing relationship with people who have helped and continue to help me grow - not only the substantive area of my practice, but also as a bar leader - it is truly amazing to be part of the leadership of the Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law.

 

 

Keya Koul

Keya Koul
Real Property Fellow, 2012-2014

I have had appointments through the ABA Young Lawyers Division (YLD) for the past three years, but as I prepare to age out of YLD, I wanted to find a home in the larger association. The RPTE Fellowship Program has given me that home. During and after the 2012 Fall Leadership Meeting, I reached out to several Section leaders in order to get more involved and hit the ground running- everyone has been very responsive to my requests to get involved. All in all, my experience so far with the RPTE Fellowship Program has been an amazing one, and I look forward to everything the Section has to offer in the years to come.

 

Timnetra BurrussTimnetra Burruss
Real Property Fellow, 2011-2013

My RPTE Fellowship has been a great experience and has given me opportunities to become involved in the Section that I likely would not have had without being a Fellow. The Fellows program allows young lawyers to become actively involved in the Section from day one and provides encouragement and support during the Fellowship term to engage in substantive work, expand your professional network, and gain new perspectives regarding issues affecting your practice area. One of the most rewarding aspects of my Fellowship was learning through regular conversations how issues in other practice areas overlap or affect my practice area. The structure of the program gives you time to really meet people, learn what they do, and converse about issues that affect your practice areas. You also get opportunities to propose new ideas to Section leadership, present at CLE meetings or on calls, and contribute to the work accomplished by your smaller substantive group or the larger Section. My experience during my Fellowship term was extremely rewarding and I look forward to remaining actively involved in the Section in the future.



Troy Rule

Troy Rule
Real Property Fellow, 2011-2013

The RPTE Fellows Program is the single best way for young Section members to expand their network of national contacts, learn about the Section’s structure and purposes, and gain access to Section leadership opportunities that are available nowhere else. As a law professor, I recognize that staying informed about trends in the legal services industry and within my substantive teaching areas is crucial if I am to adequately prepare my students to practice law. My RPTE Fellowship has already enabled me to make useful connections and gain perspectives that will enhance my teaching and academic career well into the future.

 

 

Javier TapiaJavier Tapia
Trust & Estates Fellow, 2011-2013

Serving as a RPTE Fellow has allowed me to meet some of the leading practitioners and leaders in the trust and estates field throughout the country. To be able to consider such figures as professional contacts is a tremendous resource for a young attorney, and it has proven to be one of the most valuable aspects of serving as a Section Fellow. I would certainly encourage any young attorneys interested in RPTE to get involved by applying to be a Section Fellow. I look forward to making myself available as a resource to future Fellows, and salute the hard work that the Section staff does in making the Fellowship experience possible.



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The 2013-2015 Class of Fellows

Trust & Estate Fellows
Real Property Fellows
Elizabeth Glasgow
Venable LLP
Los Angeles, CA

Vanesa Hernandez
Maynard, Cooper & Gale, P.C.
Birmingham, AL
 
Eric Hooper
Moore, Clarke, DuVall & Rodgers, P.C.
Albany, GA
 
Laura Lattman
The Lattman Law Firm, L.L.C.
New York, NY
 
Tiffany Harper
Polsinelli PC
Chicago, IL
 
Joanne Crum
Lemery Greisler LLC
Albany, NY
 
Karen Nashiwa
Folawn Alterman & Richardson LLP
Portland, OR
 
Donald Rencher
Michigan State Housing Development Authority
Detroit, MI

 

Updates on our Fellows:

The Section sends a huge congratulations to Keya Koul on being awarded a finalist for the 2013 ABA YLD National Outstanding Young Lawyer of the Year Award! Learn more about this award in this link. 

 

2012-2014 Fellow Keya Koul sat on a panel of affiliate leaders at the 2013 ABA Young Lawyers Division Spring Conference in Minneapolis on Saturday May 18. The panel discussion was entitled "Fitting In: How Affiliates Work with Parent, National and Local Bar Associations." Keya is the current Chair of the State Bar of New Mexico Young Lawyers Division.  She sat on the panel with other affiliate leaders from across the country to discuss how affiliates work with their parent bar associations, national bar associations, including the ABA YLD, as well as other local young lawyer bar associations to accomplish public and member service projects. Keya also received the 2013-2014 ABA Presidential Appointment to the Center for Racial and Ethnic Diversity. Congratulations, Keya!

 

At the ABA Young Lawyers Division's Spring Conference in Minneapolis, on May 17, 2013, Fellow Sorell Negro participated in a CLE panel that discussed hot topics in land use and environmental law. Sorell presented on new land use regulations pertaining to natural gas development and coastal adaptation to sea level rise, and new takings issues that have arisen or may arise with respect to these emerging areas of land use law. This presentation included a discussion of takings issues with regard to ordering the dismantling of seawalls, which Sorell analyzed in an article published in the Ocean and Coastal Law Journal last year entitled, "Built Seawalls: A Protected Investment or Subordinate to the Public Trust?"

 

2012-2014 Real Property Felllow Sorell Negro will be receiving the 'Up and Comer" award from the ABA State and Local Government Law Section at the 2013 ABA Annual Meeting in San Francisco. Congrats, Sorell!

 

Download 2012-2014 Fellow Keya Koul's thoughts on "Life After the ABA YLD - Placing Affiliate Leaders in the Big Bar" in this link.

 

Related Pages:

 

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If you're already an ABA member, simply add the Section of Real Property, Trust and Estate Law to your membership. The Section dues are $70 annually. Use your ABA membership ID to log in to the ABA website. If you need help with your password, or to join the Section by phone or mail, contact the ABA Service Center at 800-285-2221 to speak with a membership representative. You must first be a member of the ABA to join the Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section.

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