April 6, 2009

Legal community explores future of advocacy education and honors innovators Roger Haydock and John Sonsteng

Approximately 200 alumni, attorneys, academics, and judges joined the William Mitchell community March 27 to explore the future of advocacy training and honor the pioneering contributions of Professor Roger Haydock and Professor John Sonsteng to practical legal education.

Laurence Rose, president and CEO of the national Institute for Trial Advocacy, and Julie McFarlane, professor of law at the University of Windsor and author of The New Lawyer, along with Mitchell Professors Carolyn Grose, Ann Juergens, Haydock, and Sonsteng and practitioners Jane Borden ’96, director of real estate at Target and Martin Lueck ’84, chairman, Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi, discussed the changing nature of the legal practice and implications for legal education at the inaugural Mitchell Meeting on the future of legal education.

Rose and Mcfarlane said William Mitchell, which has a 109-tradition of teaching practical wisdom, does a better job of integrating advocacy into the core curriculum than many schools, thanks in part to the innovative methods developed by Professors Haydock and Sonsteng. A reception honoring their contributions followed the conference.

In their more than 30 years at William Mitchell, Haydock and Sonsteng have revolutionized the way law students are taught. Their efforts have contributed greatly to defining William Mitchell’s distinct brand of practical legal education, and they have influenced how law schools across the nation teach legal practice skills. Haydock joined the faculty in 1972 as co-director of the college’s new clinical program. Sonsteng has been a faculty member since 1979. Together, they created more than 50 trial skills videotapes and manuals for the National Institute of Trial Advocacy and put together the college’s lawyering and advocacy classes.

Legal Practice Center
The heart of the Mitchell experience