Features - Richmond Law Magazine - University of Richmond

Dean of Richmond Law, Jacob Rooksby, sits in his Airstream trailer.

New Dean

Meet Jacob Rooksby, the law dean with a big heart

Richmond Law’s new dean fosters academic growth with humanity, a method he’s found to cultivate professional and legal excellence.

A graphic featuring the western district of Virginia.

Magistrate Judges

Law Spiders lead Virginia’s Western District as magistrate judges

There are three magistrate judges in the U.S. District Court’s Western District of Virginia. All of them are graduates of University of Richmond School of Law.

An illustration depicting a cutaway of a tenement building showing all of the various inhabitants.

Wealth Inequality

Richmond Law professor analyzes the legal moves that keep low- and high-income families separated

In this adapted excerpt from the recently published book The House That Family Money Built, Allison Tait explores how changes to South Dakota law helped reshape the way money moves in America.

Dean of Richmond Law, Jacob Rooksby, with Dean of the Robins School of Business, Stacie Petter, and the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, Jennifer Cavenaugh.

Acts Of Service

Richmond Law’s new dean ‘leads from the middle’

Richmond Law Dean Jacob Rooksby shared his take on leadership as an act of empowerment in an article published by Santa Clara Law Review in 2022.

Dean of Richmond Law, Jacob Rooksby, talking with students in the Law School Commons.

Leadership

Empower the expert in the classroom, says Richmond Law Dean Jacob Rooksby

Your Leadership Podcast asked Richmond Law Dean Jacob Rooksby about his approach to leadership. Here’s how he responded.

A photo of Wendy Perdue in her office. She is smiling at the camera and wearing a blue jacket.

Fond Farewell

Wendy Perdue’s final call

After 15 years leading Richmond Law, Wendy Perdue is stepping down as dean. She leaves a legacy of putting students at the forefront of every decision.

Philanthropy

Carrying forward a legacy

An anonymous six-figure gift launched a new endowed faculty position in honor of Oliver Hill.

An illustration of a lawyer walking across a bridge as another lawyer walks up the steps of a courthouse.

Fellowship

Across the bridge

Four of the inaugural recipients of the Bridge to Practice Fellowship reflect on the program’s lasting impact on their careers.

Danielle Stokes poses in front of the Virginia Science Museum.

Energy Law

Danielle Stokes and the energy discussion

“I want to see the world in the way it could be,” Stokes, ’13, a Richmond Law professor, says. “Striving for an ideal — that’s my why.”

An illustration of a librarian (in silhouette) blocking a badly rendered AI version of justice from entering the law library.

Careers

Beyond the page

How three alumni are shaping the next generation of libraries in the burgeoning world of AI.

A portrait of Lara Ballout, ’24 and L’27, in the Law School.

Student Support

The mentorship web

As a 1L, Lara Ballout, ’24 and L’27, was eager to learn, uncertain of her path, and brimming with questions. Everywhere she turned, she found mentors with answers.

A portrait of Corinna Lain. She is looking at the camera and wearing a black suite and white shirt. She is posed in front of a library of law books.

Lethal Injection

‘The heart stops reluctantly’

In Secrets of the Killing State, Corinna Lain pulls back the curtain on more than 45 years of lethal injection in the U.S.