Title

UGA LAW GRADUATES RECEIVE SCHOOL'S MOST PRESTIGIOUS HONOR

Abstract

Wednesday, April 19, 2000

WRITER: Matt Haney, (706) 542-5172

CONTACT: Kathy R. Pharr, (706) 542-5172, pharr@arches.uga.edu

UGA LAW GRADUATES RECEIVE SCHOOL'S MOST PRESTIGIOUS HONOR

ATHENS, Ga. - Highest academic honors were recently bestowed upon 22 graduates of the University of Georgia School of Law when they were inducted into the law school's chapter of the Order of the Coif. Coif membership, the legal profession's equivalent of Phi Beta Kappa, is reserved for those who graduate in the top 10 percent of their class and is the highest academic honor in legal education.

"The Order of the Coif is a national legal society with chapters at the most prestigious U.S. law schools," said Martin Professor Jim Smith, Coif secretary, who presided over the induction ceremony. "Election to the Order is the highest accolade a law student may achieve, equivalent to membership in Phi Beta Kappa for undergraduates. The legal community recognizes membership in the Order as a badge of academic excellence."

This year's inductees are: John P. Almeida of Danvers, MA; Kenneth D. Bassinger of Mandeville, LA; Keith R. Blackwell of Ball Ground; Robert C. Davis III of Atlanta; J. Clay Fuller of Dalton; Donna L. Keeton of Florence AL; Elizabeth McClure Kelley of Bradenton, FL; Michael B. Kent, Jr. of Sharpsburg; Jason M. King of Marietta; Justin D. LeBlanc of Portland, ME; John H. Longwell of Short Hills, NJ; Mary Frances Mackin of Atlanta; Jonathan L. Neville of Lilburn; Sean J. Reynolds of Powder Springs; Kristen Gartman Rogers of Mobile, AL; Malane Toft Spears of Stone Mountain; G. Alan Spencer of Smithfield, VA; Andrew T. Starr of Amherst, MA; Wesley C. Taulbee of Statesboro; Ryan K. Walsh of Atlanta; Elizabeth A. Weeks of Athens; and Stacy B. Williams of Marietta.

# #

COinS