Annual Law School Awards, Fellowships,
and Honors
Bracewell & Giuliani Oral Advocacy
Awards Established by the Houston firm in 1988. Twenty-four
outstanding first-year oral advocates are selected to receive
a check and a certificate.
Mortimer Caplin Public Service Award
Established in 1992 by Mr. Caplin, '40, the Commissioner of the
Internal Revenue Service under President Kennedy, and given at
commencement to a graduating student who is entering a career
in the public service sector and who demonstrates the qualities
of leadership, integrity, and service to others.
Mortimer Caplin Public
Service Fellowship Provides summer fellowships to exceptional law students who accept low-paying or unpaid public service internships.
Edwin S. Cohen Tax Prize This monetary
prize is given annually to the graduating student who has demonstrated,
by the sustained excellence of his or her performance in tax courses,
superior scholarship in the tax area.
Claire Corcoran Award Presented
to one or two second-year students who have demonstrated the
most commitment to public interest work.
Hardy Cross Dillard Prize Established
in honor of Hardy Cross Dillard, retired Judge of the International
Court of Justice and former Dean and James Monroe Professor of
Law. This monetary prize and plaque are awarded to the author
of the best student note in a current volume of the Virginia
Journal of International Law.
Hardy Cross Dillard Scholarship To
an exceptional member of the entering class based on, in addition
to financial need, prior academic achievement, leadership, integrity,
service to others, success in endeavors outside the classroom,
and maturity. All applicants are considered for the scholarship;
no separate application is required.
Linda Fairstein Public Service Fellowship Provides summer fellowships to exceptional law students who accept low-paying or unpaid public service internships.
Carl M. Franklin Prize Established
at his 50th reunion in 1998 by Dr. Carl M. Franklin '48, the
award recognizes the student with the highest grade point average
at the end of his or her first year of law school. The winner
receives a cash award and a plaque recognizing this scholastic
achievement.
Robert E. Goldsten ('40) Award Established
by the man for whom it is named and given to the student who has,
in the opinion of the faculty, contributed the most to classroom
participation. The winner receives a certificate of recognition
at graduation and a lifetime membership in the University of Virginia
Alumni Association.
Eppa Hunton IV Memorial Book Award Established
in 1977 by the Richmond, Virginia law firm of Hunton & Williams,
in honor of Eppa Hunton IV, '27. The award is presented annually
to a third-year student who has demonstrated unusual aptitude
in litigation courses and shown a keen awareness and understanding
of the lawyer's ethical and professional responsibility.
Margaret G. Hyde Award Established in
1930 by Forrest J. Hyde, Jr., '15. Under the terms of the donation,
a monetary award is made to an outstanding member of the graduating
class whose scholarship, character, personality, activities in
the affairs of the school, and promise of efficiency have, in
the opinion of the law faculty, entitled him or her to special
recognition.
Jackson Walker LLP Award This monetary
award is presented by the Dallas law firm to the student who
has attained the highest grade point average in his or her class
after four semesters.
Robert F. Kennedy Award for Public Service Established in 1989 by the Student Legal Forum, a monetary
award is presented to the graduate who, during his or her Law
School years, best exemplifies the ideals of the late Senator
Kennedy through active and effective community service.
Kingdon Moot Court Prize To
the winners of the William Minor Lile Moot Court competition.
Herbert L. Kramer/Herbert Bangel Community
Service Award Established in 1989 by Herbert L. Kramer '52 and Herbert K. Bangel
'50. This monetary award is given annually to a third-year student
who has contributed the most to the community during his or her
stay in Law School.
Faculty Award for Academic
Excellence Presented to the student
who has had the most outstanding academic record during his
or her three years in Law School.
Law School Alumni Association Best Note Award Presented to the member of the graduating class who wrote the best note in a current issue of a Law School publication.
Thomas Marshall Miller Prize Established
by Emily Miller Danton in 1982 in memory of her father, Thomas
Marshall Miller, who attended the Law School, this monetary award
is given annually to an outstanding and deserving member of the
graduating class selected by the faculty.
Monroe Leigh Fellowship in International
Law Established in honor of Monroe Leigh '47, who
in a legal career that spanned six decades advised governments
and private companies and furthered the development of international
legal institutions as a scholar and public servant. The fellowship
provides a total of $10,000 for one or two students to
pursue a public international law project of their own choosing
during the summer following the first or second year, during
the fall and/or spring of the third academic year, or for a
postgraduate internship. Application information
National Association of Women Lawyers Award This honorary membership in the National Association of Women
Lawyers is awarded each year to an outstanding woman in the graduating
class.
John M. Olin Prize in Law and Economics A monetary award established by the John M. Olin Foundation given
each year at graduation for an outstanding paper that uses
law and economics methodology.
Powell Fellowship in Legal Services Established
in honor of Supreme Court Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr., the Powell
Fellowship awards $35,000 to a graduating student of the law
school or to a judicial clerk to enable him or her to work in
public interest law and to enhance the delivery of legal services
to the poor under the sponsorship of a public interest organization.
The award is made for one year with the expectation that it will
be renewed for a second year.
Pro Bono Award Recognizes
the student who exhibits the most extraordinary commitment to
pro bono legal service during his or her years at the Law School.
The award is the highest recognition offered through the Law
School's voluntary pro bono program, which encourages all students
to provide at least 75 hours of free legal services to the indigent
while at the law school.
Pro Bono Service Awards Presented
to graduates who have successfully fulfilled
the requirements of the Law School's Pro Bono program.
Mary Claiborne and Roy H. Ritter Prizes These four prizes for character, honor, and integrity were established
in 1983 by C. Willis Ritter, '65 to honor his parents. Under
the terms of the award, four monetary prizes are given annually
to two female and two male members of the second-year class.
The prize is applied against each recipient's tuition during
his or her final year of study. In addition, each recipient
is given an appropriate certificate and the names of the winners
also appear on a plaque in the library.
Contact Martha Ballenger for more information. Nomination
form (PDF - get
Acrobat Reader). Nominations are due in April.
Rosenbloom Award recognizes
an academically strong law student who has consistently volunteered
her/his time to provide academic assistance to a law student
or group of law students in need. The award carries a substantial
monetary amount. The 2004 honoree is Christopher Tyrrell (all
award winners). Contact Martha Ballenger in early spring for more
information. Nomination
form
Earle K. Shawe Labor Relations Award Established
in honor of the late Hardy C. Dillard, by Earle K. Shawe, '34.
Mr. Shawe is the founder and senior partner of Shawe & Rosenthal,
a Baltimore firm devoted exclusively to labor and employment law.
This monetary award is given to the graduating student who shows
the greatest promise of becoming a successful practitioner in
the field of labor relations.
James M. Shoemaker, Jr., Moot Court
Awards To the final round participants in the William
Minor Lile Moot Court competition.
James C. Slaughter Honor Award This monetary
award was established by the Textile Veterans Association in honor
of James C. Slaughter, '51, and is presented to an outstanding
member of the graduating class.
Stephen Pierre Traynor Award This award
for excellence in appellate advocacy was established in 1970 by
the late Roger J. Traynor, former Chief Justice of the California
Supreme Court, in memory of his son. The monetary award is presented
to the participant in the final round of the William Minor Lile
Moot Court Competition who, in the opinion of the judges of the
final round, presents the best oral argument.
Roger and Madeleine Traynor Prize Established
in 1980 by a gift from retired Chief Justice and Mrs. Traynor
of California, these prizes are awarded each year to acknowledge
the best written work by two graduating students. Each winner
receives an appropriate certificate and a monetary award.
Virginia Trial Lawyers Association Trial
Advocacy Award Presented to a graduating
student who best exemplifies the attributes of an effective trial
lawyer.
Virginia State Bar Family Law Book
Award Established by the Family Law Section of the Virginia
State Bar and the Virginia Chapter of the American Academy of
Matrimonial Lawyers, this award is presented to the graduating
student who has demonstrated the most promise and potential for
the practice of family law.
Z Society Shannon Award Presented
to the graduate with the highest overall academic record after
five semesters.