October 14, 2009

Mitchell honors outstanding alumni at DeParcq Leadership Dinner

Retired Chief Justice Douglas K. Amdahl ’51 and Jessie R. Nicholson ’85 received alumni awards for their outstanding achievements at the Annual Leadership Dinner in honor of William H. DeParcq on Sept. 30, 2009.

Named for the prominent Minnesota personal injury lawyer who died in 1988, the dinner honors William Mitchell alumni and friends who have generously contributed to the college. DeParcq ’30, was a founder of Minnesota’s Courage Foundation (now known as Courage Center), a state representative, member of the Minnesota Judicial Council, and dean of the International Academy of Trial Lawyers and made one of the largest gifts in the history of the law school.

Retired Chief Justice Douglas K. Amdahl received the Hon. Warren E. Burger Distinguished Alumni Award, honoring the 15th Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court who graduated from William Mitchell in 1931. Historically, Mitchell’s Distinguished Alumni Award has been bestowed upon graduates who demonstrate the highest values and ethical standards in achieving professional distinction and lasting contributions to their field of endeavor. It also recognizes professional accomplishments of a distinctly creative or challenging nature, plus outstanding leadership within the profession.

Jessie R. Nicholson, director and chief executive officer of Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services, received the Honorable Ronald E. Hachey ’43 Outstanding Alumni Award, established in 1981 in honor of the late Mitchell board chairman, professor, director of alumni affairs, and dedicated Mitchell supporter. The award signifies the college’s highest individual alumni honor and recognizes exemplary professional accomplishment plus demonstrated commitment to the school, including significant involvement with programs and services in support of students and/or alumni, dedicated service on the board of trustees and/or the alumni association or noted participation as a member of the faculty or staff.

Chief Justice Douglas Amdahl: The best of the legal profession

Colleagues call retired Chief Justice Douglas K. Amdahl “the best of the legal profession.” During his almost three decades on the bench, including seven years as chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court, Amdahl led the establishment of Minnesota’s Court of Appeals and oversaw the construction of the Minnesota Judicial Center and the unification of the state’s trial court judges.

He served on William Mitchell’s board of trustees, taught at the law school, and always made time to mentor and help others, such as his former judicial clerks, Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Eric Magnuson ’76 and retired Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Sam Hanson ’65.

“He’s always one of the first people I would go to to talk about any career issue and I’ve always felt like I tried to model after him in terms of what it means to show character in this profession,” Hanson said.

Justice Amdahl received the Hon. Ronald E. Hachey Alumni Award in 1984.

Jessie Nicholson: Championing representation for all

Jessie Nicholson always knew that she wanted to give back. Inspired by the associate pastor at her church, Judge William Parker, Iowa’s first African American judge, Nicholson took a job at Southern Minnesota Regional Legal Services (SMRLS). More than two decades later, she leads the organization as its chief executive officer. She’s the first African American woman to head a legal aid organization in the upper Midwest—and one of only eight in the country.

Her work touches the lives of thousands of people in 33 Minnesota counties. She gives them meaningful access to legal services and a voice.

“I have the opportunity to help new lawyers coming into legal services, to instill some of those basic values of dignity and respect for all persons in the legal system,” Nicholson says. “That’s important.”

Nicholson received William Mitchell’s Anderson Trailblazer Award in 2008 for her dedication, personal resolve, and leadership skills. The award is named for James P. Anderson, the college’s first African American graduate who graduated in 1903.