itle:  2024 Domestic Violence Awareness Month CLE:  True Crime in the Courtroom

Location:   Offered both online and in-person at Cambell Law School located at 225 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh NC 27603

Date:  Wednesday, October 30, 2024

Time:    3:00pm-7:30 p.m, with a half-hour dinner break beginning at 5pm.

• For In-Person Attendees
  • Check-in will begin at 2:45.
  • A buffet-style dinner will be served.

CLE Credit:  Approved for 4 hrs of General Credit

Cost:   This event is FREE for all attendees (both virtual and in-person)

Registration Links:      

• To attend virtually:  Registration for Zoom Webinar
• To attend in-person:  Registration to Attend In-Person at Campbell Law School
  • Note:  The deadline for in-person registration is Friday, October 25, 2024, at 5 p.m.  There is limited capacity, and it is first-come, first-served.

Sponsors:  Oak City Family Law and Wake Family Law Group are sponsors for this event.

Description:  This CLE event will feature Steve Epstein, author of Extreme Punishment:  The Shocking True Story of Acclaimed Law Professor Dan Markel’s Murder, providing an overview of the case, including the July 2014 murder, the joint police-FBI investigation, and four trials that ensued in a Tallahassee courtroom to hold every member of the conspiracy accountable.  He will also discuss the underlying dynamics of the divorce case between Prof. Markel and his wife Wendi—also an FSU law professor—that led inexorably to the tragic events whose aftermath is still playing out in legal proceedings 10 years later. Steve will explore how this case fits into the domestic violence laws of NC and how the case would play out with our current domestic violence statues. Steve will contrast the laws of the different states.  There will also be a presentation on recent updates to the case law affecting North Carolina domestic violence practice. The program will end with a panel of North Carolina judges discussing issues in domestic violence law.

Presenters:

Steven B. Epstein – Steve is a native of Long Island who graduated twice from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill—first with a bachelor’s degree in political science (1987) and then with a law degree (1990).  His career began as a law clerk to a federal judge and included a stint as a law professor at the University of Illinois.  He’s been a practicing lawyer for nearly 35 years and has tried dozens of cases before judges and juries across North Carolina and has handled numerous appeals in state and federal courts.  Since 2010, Steve’s been a partner at Poyner Spruill LLP, where his practice concentrates on family law.  He is the author of three true crime books, with a fourth set for release in early 2025. 

Miranda Dues – A graduate of both Campbell Law School and Campbell University, Miranda is a Staff Attorney on the domestic violence team at Legal Aid of North Carolina. Prior to joining LANC, Miranda practiced in the areas of criminal defense and appellate law. Miranda also holds an LL.M from Nottingham-Trent University, and her dissertation was focused on immigration issues facing North Korean refugees. She developed a particular interest in this topic during her time teaching in Seoul, Korea. In her spare time, Miranda enjoys traveling and hiking the National Parks with her husband and spending time with her three cats.

Trynity Ojeda – Trynity is a Staff Attorney with Legal Aid of North Carolina (LANC).  He works in LANC’s Raleigh Office in the DV Unit.  He worked with Marshall & Taylor, PLLC, before joining LANC in April 2024, and while at Campbell Law School, he was a student with the Gailor Family Law Litigation Clinic.  Trynity’s legal passion originated with the desire to empower clients to advocate for themselves despite the obstacles and challenges life may bring.  Trynity graduated from Campbell in 2023, and before law school, he obtained his master’s degree in clinical counseling with an emphasis on addictions from East Carolina University (ECU) in 2019.  He also obtained a bachelor’s in communication and psychology from ECU in 2016.

Chief District Court Judge Margaret Eagles – Wake County District Court

District Court Judge Sam Hamadani – Wake County District Court

District Court Judge Rashad Hauter – Wake County District Court

Date: 10/24/2024

Time: 12:00pm to 1:00pm

Description: This CLE presentation will explain and explore pro bono work that can be done in a few hours with no experience required.  Presenters will focus on the need for pro bono and provide an introduction and short training for two projects:  Lawyer on the Line- Housing Conditions and Remote Wills and Advance Directives.

Presenters:

Allison Constance: Allison joined Legal Aid of North Carolina as Director of Pro Bono Programs in 2023. She worked as Director of Pro Bono Initiatives at UNC School of Law from 2016-2023, where she also served as an adjunct professor. She began her career as an attorney at North Carolina Prisoner Legal Services, Inc., following her graduation from UNC School of Law in 2009. 

Hannah Guerrier: Hannah joined the Legal Aid of North Carolina Pro Bono Programs team as a supervising attorney in 2023. She also serves as the Community Engagement Manager for the Charlotte office. She’s been with Legal Aid of North Carolina since 2016, serving first as a staff attorney and then a supervising attorney in the Charlotte office Housing Unit. She earned her JD from Georgetown Law and her bachelor’s from Duke University.

Approved for 1hr of General Credit

Registration Link: https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/1251171007178015584.

Date: 10/03/2024

Time: 12:00pm to 1:30pm

Description: This CLE is designed to provide attorneys, paralegals, and advocates a deeper dive into writing Reasonable Accommodation Requests under the Fair Housing Act and enforcing violations of the Fair Housing Act if a Reasonable Accommodation Request is improperly denied. Reasonable Accommodations are a powerful tool to enable persons with disabilities to access and preserve housing. The presentation will provide a brief overview of the Fair Housing Act and explain Reasonable Accommodations and best practices for drafting and securing Reasonable Accommodations. The presentation will also provide procedural, substantive, and practical information about renewing reasonable accommodation requests through demand letters, as well as enforcing Fair Housing violations through the administrative complaint process. Assisting clients with seeking a Reasonable Accommodation is a wonderful opportunity for pro bono attorneys to provide a meaningful legal service and support persons with disabilities to have equal access to housing. Knowledge about the administrative complaint process enables advocates to know “what comes next?” if a reasonable accommodation is denied. 

Presenters:

Lauren Brasil: Lauren Brasil is a Co-Director and Managing Attorney with Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Fair Housing Project. Ms. Brasil represents victims of housing discrimination across the State in fair housing administrative proceedings before the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and State and local administrative agencies, as well as in State and federal court. She has presented at fair housing seminars for housing consumers, advocates, attorneys, and housing providers. Ms. Brasil is a member of the North Carolina State Bar. She earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology at Lehigh University and her J.D. at Temple University School of Law.

Hope Williams: Hope Williams is a supervising attorney at Legal Aid of North Carolina’s Fair Housing Project where she represents victims of housing discrimination across the State. Hope has worked at Legal Aid of North Carolina since 2006, and previously was a staff attorney at Texas RioGrande Legal Aid. Before joining the Fair Housing Project, Hope handled special education cases for students in public schools and immigration cases for victims of domestic violence and trafficking. She also spent several years at Legal Aid’s Centralized Intake Unit where she advised clients in a wide range of civil law matters and supervised Legal Aid’s Fair Housing intake and advice cases. Hope graduated from The University of Texas School of Law and got her undergraduate degree in History at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Approved for 1.5hrs of General Credit

Date: 09/26/2024

Time: 12:00pm to 1:00pm

Description: Many North Carolina residents purchase their automobiles from businesses referred to as “Buy Here, Pay Here” car dealerships. These businesses are notorious for a repossession scam in which they illicitly repossess vehicles a few months after the sale, even when the purchaser is making payments in accordance with the sale agreement. This scam has two premises: the BHPH business model is based on collecting the downpayment on the same car multiple times; the BHPH business depends on North Carolinians not having access to legal assistance. This CLE will explore the ways in which attorneys can use the law to protect North Carolinians from repossession exploitation.

Presenter: Jack Lloyd

Jack Lloyd is a supervising attorney with LANC’s Economic Justice Initiative, a litigation team focused on consumer advocacy. With more than twenty years of litigation experience, Jack supports complex litigation through all stages of the litigation process, and practices at all levels of state court, including appellate work. Jack served as an Advisory Member to the North Carolina State Bar’s Ethics Committee for the past six years.

Approved for 1hr of General Credit