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Vol. 3 • Issue 2 Center for Law, Health & Society | Georgia State University College of Law Spring 2010

w w w . l a w a n d h e a l t h . o r g

Interdisciplinary Education Conference

During the fall 2009 semester, two GSU law students partici-pated in an experimental course as part of a research studyon ethically difficult issues in biotechnology law and policy.The National Science Foundation (NSF) has funded theresearch study for three years. The study involves fourCenter faculty and is entitled “Ethically Contentious Researchand Innovation: An Interdisciplinary and InterinstitutionalExperiment in Ethics Education and Assessment.”

The NSF study tests a new interdisciplinary approach toresearching and developing policy resolutions for ethicsproblems in biotechnology law and policy. The problemsstudied in the course included the

NSF Funds Experimental Course on Ethics in Biotechnology

Continued on page 2Ranked 6th by

U.S. News &World Report

IN THIS ISSUE

Interdisciplinary Conference . . . . . . . .1

Ethics in Biotechnology . . . . . . . . . . .1

Director’s Message . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

Health Care Reform Debate . . . . . . . .3

Back to School . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Vatican Conference on Eugenics . . . . .4

Testimony on Human Rights . . . . . . .5

Atlanta’s Best Health Lawyer 2010 . . .5

HeLP Legal Services Clinic

HeLP Director Featured on TV . . . .6

Medical Student Perspective . . . . . .7

Health Disparities Research Fellow . . .7

Student Moot Court Teams . . . . . . . .9

Center Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Health Disparities Series . . . . . . . . . . .12

In increasing numbers, law schools areforming interdisciplinary partnershipswith health-related professional schools,such as medicine, social work, publichealth, nursing, and mental health, andwith health professionals in their commu-nities. This fall the Center for Law, Health& Society and the Health Law

Partnership hosted a successful conference,entitled “Interdisciplinary CollaborativeEducation: Partnerships Between LawSchools and the Health Professions,” toexplore the opportunities and challengesinherent in these collaborations.

These educational partnerships are locatedin various settings, Continued on page 8

PROFESSOR BERRY IS THE

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR FOR

THE NSF-FUNDED STUDY.

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prospect of bringing a Neanderthal tolife, using neuroimaging technology topredict dangerousness among K-12 andcollege students, restricting the patentingof human genes, and expanding the useof DNA databases for forensic identifica-tion purposes.

Students worked on the problems in twointerinstitutional teams. Law studentsMegan Daugherty and J. Aaron Brownteamed up with students from GeorgiaInstitute of Technology (bioengineeringand chemical and biomolecular engineeringPh.D. students and public policy M.S.students), Morehouse School of Medicine(biomedical science Ph.D. and Ph.D./M.D.students), and Emory University (bioscience Ph.D. students). Throughoutthe course, the student teams definedand investigated the problems and thendeveloped proposed policy resolutionsfor the problems.

The teams concluded their study of theproblems with presentations of proposedpolicy resolutions to policymakers, practitioners, and faculty. Students havealso been invited to present their resultson the Inside the Black Box radio showto undergraduate science and engineeringethics classes at Georgia Institute ofTechnology and to the IntellectualProperty Law Society at GSU Law (podcast available at http://smartech.gatech.edu/handle/1853/31358).

They were invited to attend the ABAIntellectual Property Roundtable onpatenting genes as guests of the host lawfirm in Atlanta.

The study also tests a new assessmentinstrument developed by the study’sresearchers to evaluate how effective thisapproach is in fostering problem-solvingskills among future professionals.

The principal investigator for the study is Roberta M. Berry, a faculty fellow withthe Center and a full-time faculty memberat Georgia Institute of Technology.Center faculty member Leslie Wolf is co-principal investigator for the study, andCenter Director Charity Scott and facultymember Paul Lombardo are members ofthe study’s Advisory Council. The study’sresearch team spans Georgia Institute ofTechnology, GSU College of Law,Morehouse School of Medicine, EmoryUniversity, Agnes Scott College, and UCLA.

Director’s MessageWhat emerges as a common theme inthis issue of our newsletter is the genuinely interdisciplinary nature ofhealth law research and education.Last fall, for example, we hosted aconference on interdisciplinary education that brought nearly 100legal and health-related faculty togetherto compare notes on teaching collabo-ratively to students from different professional backgrounds. RobertaBerry and Leslie Wolf are teaching anew, NSF-funded course on ethics inemerging biotechnologies whichenrolled graduate students from fourdifferent professional schools inAtlanta. Paul Lombardo traveled toRome to speak at a Vatican conferenceon new frontiers in genetics and the dangers of eugenics. A medical studentfrom Morehouse School of Medicinejoined the HeLP Legal Services Clinic forhis fourth-year elective rotation. And Ijust earned a master’s degree in the socialsciences field of conflict management.

Health law is a rich field of interdisci-plinary opportunities. In the 21st century, we owe it to our students toprepare them to work collaborativelywith colleagues from other professionalbackgrounds to address society’s criticalhealth challenges. And in the process, it isa lot of fun to get out of our legal silosand learn from those with different disciplinary points of view.

Best wishes,

Director, Center for Law, Health & Society

NSF Funds Experimental Course (continued from page 1)

LAW STUDENT J. AARON BROWN PROVIDES POLICY

PERSPECTIVES ON RESTRICTING THE PATENTING OF

HUMAN GENES.

Focus Areas in Health Law

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In the fall the Center hosted a Point-Counterpoint debate on health carereform prior to Congress passing reform

legislation this spring. The debate was co-sponsored by The Docket, the law studentnewspaper, and moderated by the Center’sassociate director, Jerri Nims Rooker.

Ms. Nims Rooker kicked off the programby stating that much of the current debateover reforming America’s health care system focuses on how to reduce the costof health care, increase patient access toneeded care, and maintain or improve thequality of care patients receive. After discussing examples of proposed reforms to meet these needs, she explained that “balancing the interdependent goals of accessto high-quality, affordable care is a primarychallenge currently facing policy makers.”

Second-year law student and DocketEditor-in-Chief Robert Bexley summed upthe current state of health care in the U.S.by quoting the Led Zeppelin lyric, “If itkeep on rainin’, the levee gonna break.”He discussed whether Americans are entitled to health care and who shouldpay for care, concluding with thoughts on

current reform proposals. He comparedthe right to health care to the right to callfiremen to extinguish a threatening fire.

Regarding proposed reforms, Mr. Bexley suggested that a combination of publichealth insurance offered by the federalgovernment to compete with privateinsurers, tighter regulation of the healthinsurance industry, and competitionencouraged by a health insurance market-place exchange would contribute towardsmending the ailing health care system.

Kevin Bradberry, a third-year law student,pointed out the need to tailor reform solutions to fix specific problems. He stated,“Operating on one’s foot won’t remedy a failing heart.” He reiterated the goals of

reform to lower costs, increase access,and raise quality.

Mr. Bradberry discussed using comprehen-sive tort reform, sound financing, and taxequity to lower costs. He stressed the needto reduce defensive medicine, restructurehealth care financing, and implement a taxbreak for individuals purchasing healthinsurance. He concluded that allowing thepurchase of insurance across state linescould increase access through competitionand that a “one size fits all solution” doesnot meet the needs of a diverse population.

A lively question-and-answer session followed the program.

“Balancing the interdependent goals

of access to high-quality, affordable

care is a primary challenge currently

facing policy makers.”

– Jerri Nims RookerASSOCIATE DIRECTOR NIMS

ROOKER INTRODUCES LAW

STUDENT KEVIN BRADBERRY.

“Changing a third of our economyrequires open debate and careful

deliberation,” said Bradberry. Bexleynoted that “the debate showed

how passionate people can cometogether for polite discourse on

such a sensitive topic.”

LAW STUDENT ROBERT BEXLEY

After over 20 years as a faculty member, ProfessorCharity Scott returned to the classroom as a studentto earn a master of science degree in conflict management. In recent years, she has becomeincreasingly interested in alternative dispute resolution in health care settings.

She also has been motivated to learn more about how the social sciences field of conflict resolutionmight be adapted for law school education. InDecember 2009, Professor Scott received her master’sdegree from Kennesaw State University. She has puther education to immediate use by offering a newcourse on negotiation at the law school.

Professor Scott Heads Back to School

PROFESSOR CHARITY SCOTT RECEIVES

HER MSCM DEGREE FROM DR. DANIEL

PAPP, PRESIDENT OF KENNESAW STATE

UNIVERSITY.

“Conflict management is a natural

field to pair with law studies,” says

Scott. “Law schools historically have

tended to emphasize litigation as a

tool to resolve people’s problems.

I think we should focus more of

our teaching efforts on the art and

science of coming to agreement.”

Health Care Reform: Point-Counterpoint

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Professor Paul Lombardo inFebruary 2009 traveled toRome, where he was invitedto speak at a conference atthe Vatican on “New Frontiersof Genetics and the Dangerof Eugenics,” sponsored bythe Pontifical Academy forLife.

Professor Lombardo spokeabout the history of eugenics– a belief in the possibility of improving the human raceby weeding out those withwhat are considered undesirabletraits and encouraging pro-creation by those with desir-able traits – and the originsof the eugenics movement inEngland and the U.S.

He is the author of the critically praised book, ThreeGenerations, No Imbeciles:Eugenics, The SupremeCourt, and Buck v. Bell(2008, Johns Hopkins

University Press). This bookis the only fully documentedaccount ever written of Buckv. Bell, a notorious U.S.Supreme Court decision thatled to more than sixty thou-sand involuntary steriliza-tions of people described as“feebleminded and sociallyinadequate.”

Speaking to conference par-ticipants, Pope Benedict XVIcondemned genetic discrimi-nation and also said therewere worrying signs of anew type of eugenics basedon perfection and physicalbeauty. Reuters reported the pope’s explanation,“Certainly, the eugenisticand racial ideologies that inthe past humiliated man andprovoked immense sufferingare not being proposedagain, but a new mentality iscreeping in that tends to justify

a different consideration oflife and personal dignity...Soit tends to privilege thecapacity to operate, efficiency,perfection and physicalbeauty at the expense ofother types of existence considered unworthy.”

Following the conference,Professor Lombardo met and

shook hands with the popeand toured parts of theVatican a normal tourist wouldnever see. From a personalstandpoint, the trip was anopportunity to see Romeagain, a city he had first visited40 years ago as a student.

“It was wonderful to comeback to Rome,” saidProfessor Lombardo, whosewife Conni accompaniedhim on the trip. “You forgetthat Vatican City is tiny, butit’s still a sovereign nation.And you’re meeting a manwho is not only the spiritualleader of a billion people,

but also a head of state.Once you are inside the private rooms behind St.Peter’s, the pageantryreminds you at every stepwhat a unique opportunity it is.”

Paul Lombardo Speaks on Eugenics at Vatican Conference

PROFESSOR LOMBARDO MEETS POPE BENEDICT XVI.

CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS

“Vatican City is tiny, but it’s still a sovereignnation. And you’re meeting a man who

is not only the spiritual leader of a billion people, but also a head of state.”

Audio recordings of past Center events are available at www.lawandhealth.org. Click on “News & Events” and “Calendar of Events.”

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In December 2009, the U.S.Senate Judiciary Committee’sSubcommittee on HumanRights and the Law held ahearing on U.S. humanrights treaty implementation.It was the first Congressionalhearing on U.S. compliancewith its human rights treatyobligations. ProfessorJonathan Todres co-authoredwritten testimony on U.S.efforts to implement theOptional Protocol to theConvention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale ofChildren, Child Prostitution,and Child Pornography. TheU.S. ratified the OptionalProtocol in 2002.

Professor Todres explained,“As we said in our testimo-ny, there is great value inthe reporting process underhuman rights treaties. It is

a collaborative process thathelps identify what is workingwell and what else we needto do in order to stop human

rights abuses, such as thecommercial sexual exploitationof children.” The testimonyincluded recommendations

on ways the U.S. govern-ment can more effectivelyengage non-governmentalorganizations and the generalpublic to ensure that allindividuals reap the benefitsof human rights law.

The testimony was submittedon behalf of ECPAT-USA(which stands for End ChildProstitution and Trafficking),a leading non-governmentalorganization (NGO) workingto combat child traffickingand commercial sexualexploitation, and co-authoredby its Executive Director.Professor Todres first started volunteering withECPAT-USA as a law student.He currently serves as theorganization’s Child RightsAdvisor and works on various legislative and policyinitiatives for the NGO.

Congressional Testimony on Trafficking and Exploitation

Atlanta’s Best Health Care Lawyer in 2010

Faculty Fellow and Adjunct Facultymember Randall Hughes, J.D., wasnamed “Atlanta Health Care Lawyerof the Year” for 2010 in the publica-tion, The Best Lawyers in America.This prestigious honor is given to one

outstanding lawyer in each practicespecialty who is chosen through peer-reviewed surveys by professional

peers. Mr. Hughes received high ratingsfor his leadership, integrity, abilities,and professionalism from his peers inthe Atlanta health care law community.

Mr. Hughes is Of Counsel with BryanCave Powell Goldstein LLP. He servedas the head of Powell Goldstein’sAtlanta health care law department for many years until his retirement.His areas of expertise are wide-ranging,and include health care law and litigationinvolving not-for-profit hospitals, hospital authorities, certificates ofneed, medical staff disputes, healthcare reimbursement, regulatory compliance investigations, reviews and claim defense, medical malpractice,personal injury, insurance and generalbusiness litigation.

Mr. Hughes participates in both theHealth Law Partnership (HeLP) and theHeLP Legal Services Clinic at the lawschool, assisting in case acceptance. Healso teaches a course on Health Law:Regulation. GSU Law, the Center, HeLP,and the Clinic benefit greatly from hisexpertise and student mentoring.

Professor Todres co-authored written testimony on human trafficking and exploitation for the U.S. Senate Judiciary

Committee’s Subcommittee onHuman Rights and the Law.

“There is great value in the reporting processunder human rights

treaties. It is a collaborative process

that helps identify what is working well and

what else we need to do in order to stop

human rights abuses.”

“We all benefit greatly fromthe expertise that Randy

Hughes has developed overmany years as a top health

lawyer in Atlanta. This awardis a well-deserved honor foran exemplary health careattorney and colleague.”– Director Charity Scott

FACULTY FELLOW RANDALL L. HUGHES

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HeLP Director Featured on Local TV Program

The television talk show Law & Societyfeatured Professor Caley, Director of HeLP and Co-Associate Director of theHeLP Legal Services Clinic, in a 30-minuteinterview in January. Law & Society focus-

es on legal issuesthat affect viewersin all communities.Attorney AngieWright-Rheaveshosts the show,which airs on theAtlanta InterfaithBroadcasters station.

Professor Caley spoke about the focus andpurpose of the partnership, saying that thedriving idea behind HeLP is to improvelow-income children’s health and well-beingby providing legal assistance that canbroadly bedefined as povertylaw. Ms. Wright-Rheaves pointedout, “That reallyis an underservedpart of the com-munity – theworking poor.”Professor Caley

agreed and explained, “We’ve developeda lot of community resources because ofthe types of questions that families havecome to us with over the years. We’realways looking for new resources andprint a resource guide that we give tofamilies that they may find helpful atthe time or even down the road.”

Regarding the advocacy component of the partnership, Professor Caleyexplained that while legal issues can be handled individually, certain issues benefit from a more systemic approach.She said that one goal of a class sheteaches called Health Legislation andAdvocacy “is exposing law and othergraduate students to the fact that most of our law now comes through the legislative process and we need topay attention to and understand thatprocess.”

The host recalled recently speakingwith a legislator who said that a small number of the current state legislators are lawyers. This can result in laws being made, as Ms.Wright-Rheaves expressed, “by peoplewho intend to do the right thing” but perhaps do not know the legalmechanism. Professor Caley and Ms. Wright-Rheaves agreed that “it’s good to have lawyers to help with the process and understand what the actual implications are.”PROFESSOR CALEY HOST WRIGHT-RHEAVES

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This year HeLP legal offices began serving as sites for anew elective rotation for fourth-year medical studentsfrom Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta.

The partnership welcomed fourth-year medical studentOmari Hodge in February for a four-week rotation as part of the new elective, “Law and Medicine: TheHealth Law Partnership, Medical-Legal Partnershipsand Interdisciplinary Learning to Assist Under-servedFamilies.” Mr. Hodge spent his time working withHeLP’s low-income clients at HeLP’s hospital-basedoffices and at the Clinic on the law school campus. He worked with law students enrolled in the Clinicand in Professor Caley’s legislative advocacy course.

“Working with HeLP showed me that the health care teamgoes way beyond the four walls of a hospital,” says Hodge.“I learned to use tools that you can’t find in any medicalbag. I believe that integrating law and medicine will helpbring about positive changes to our health care system.”

Dr. David Levine, Associate Professor of ClinicalPediatrics at Morehouse School of Medicine developedthe elective collaboratively with Professors Lisa Blissand Sylvia Caley at the HeLP Legal Services Clinic.

The new alliance will allow fourth-year medical studentsto interact with second- and third-year law students on joint coursework. The medical students contributevaluable medical information to law students, while atthe same time learning about the legal issues that canaffect patient care.

“The law students have learned so much by having Omariat the Clinic. They worked together with Omari to helpprepare a child’s SSI case for hearing later in the semester,”said Professor Bliss. “This interdisciplinary teamworkbenefits the students as well as the Clinic clients.”

A Medical Student’sPerspective on Workingwith Law Students

MEDICAL STUDENT OMARI HODGE

“Working with

HeLP showed me

that the health care

team goes way

beyond the four

walls of a hospital,”

says Hodge.

Katharine Sullivan, J.D.,joined the Center for Law,Health & Society as aResearch Fellow for the fallsemester. Ms. Sullivan is arecent graduate of ColumbiaLaw School. She earned herundergraduate degree inEnglish and politics from

the University of Virginia.Ms. Sullivan worked withProfessor Charity Scott on a research project involvinghealth equity. Poorer health,as well as less access tohealth care, is well documented amongAmericans from lowersocioeconomic and racialminority backgrounds,according to Professor Scott.Their research surveyed legal

measures that states haveadopted to remedy thesehealth disparities.

“Katie was a wonderfuladdition to our researchteam,” said Professor Scott.Ms. Sullivan also workedwith Meredith Carr, a third-

year GSU law student whois Professor Scott’s graduateresearch assistant. Onefocus of the research wasdisparities in obesity ratesamong children from different racial and ethnicbackgrounds.

In January, Ms. Sullivanjoined Kilpatrick StocktonLLP in Atlanta as an associ-ate in their intellectualproperty group.

“Health care professionals alone cannot solve the problem of health disparities,” says Sullivan.

“Lawyers can and should play a major role in addressing this societal challenge.”

Health DisparitiesResearch Fellow

KATHARINE SULLIVAN, J.D.

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including in-house clinics, externship programs, and interdisci-plinary classrooms. They all share a common interest in creating experiential learning opportunities. In clinical education settings, these partnerships often show students how combining the expertise of lawyers in a cooperative environment with health care providers can improve the health and well-being of clients.

Colleagues from innovative programs across the country and asfar away as Israel gathered to share their perspectives on creat-ing collaborative learning environments. The audience includedprofessionals who engage or plan to engage in interdisciplinarycollaborative education, including law school faculty, both clini-cal and non-clinical; faculty from health-related disciplines; andprofessionals working in law or health-related fields.

Three plenary sessions focused on experiential learning ininterdisciplinary settings, designing curricula, and addressingissues in ethics and professionalism. Each plenary session wasfollowed by small group breakout sessions for participants todiscuss issues raised in the plenary presentation.

Professor Lisa Bliss, a conference organizer, stated, “Thesmall breakout sessions were a wonderful opportunity for participants to engage in focused conversation abouttheir experiences. They were enriched by the diversity of the professions represented, including individuals from law, health care, public health, and social work.”Colleagues thinking of creating an interdisciplinary programfound it very valuable to hear about “lessons learned” byearly adopters.

In addition to the plenary session and small group experiences,three concurrent sessions offered in-depth discussions on teaching advocacy, research and scholarship, and educatinghealth professionals about the law.

Professor Sylvia Caley, a conference organizer, summed up the feedback received on conference evaluations whenshe said, “Gathering with like-minded professionals committed to nurturing the development of interdisciplinaryproblem-solving was a motivating experience – one worthyof repeating.”

Interdisciplinary Education Conference (Continued from page 1)

PROFESSOR SYLVIA CALEY PROFESSOR LISA BLISS

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Two student teams from GSULaw competed in the 2009National Health Law Moot

Court competition hosted by SouthernIllinois University School of Law inCarbondale, Illinois. One team wassponsored by the Student Health LawAssociation (SHLA), and the otherteam was sponsored by the lawschool’s Moot Court program. Thecompetition included 28 teams from23 universities.

Teams argued a hypothetical casebefore the U.S. Supreme Court involvinga hospital’s attempt to “repatriate”an injured, undocumented patient toher home country, over the objectionsof her guardian, due to the hospital’sfinancial concern. EMTALA, alsoknown as the Patient Anti-DumpingAct, is a federal law requiring hospitalsto treat all patients suffering frommedical emergencies, regardless oftheir ability to pay. There is a juris-dictional split regarding the scope ofa hospital’s EMTALA obligations.

The SHLA team, comprised of OlgaDashevskaya, Megan Daugherty, andShari Gunnin and coached by LatishaJohnson, represented the Petitioner intheir brief, a woman severely injuredin an automobile accident who istaken to a hospital and is seekingcontinued treatment under EMTALA.

Due to their extensive research andcollaborative work, they excelled atthe written portion of the competitionby receiving high scores on theirbrief.

The Moot Court team consisted ofMorgan Leigh, Courtney BrooksNoce, and Courtney Spicer and wascoached by David Purvis. CourtneyBrooks Noce finished twelfth out ofover seventy participants in the oralarguments, and the team advanced tothe second round of 16 teams in thecompetition. The team performedwell in oral arguments due to theirintense practice schedule. In eachpractice round, they recorded questionsfrom the bench and then applied thefeedback they received at the nextpractice.

Both teams are grateful to the manyfellow law students, law professors,and alumni who took time out oftheir busy schedules to bench thepractice rounds and provide feedback.The teams gained valuable experienceand honed skills in both brief writingand public speaking. The competitorsand coaches agree that the memoriesand the strong friendships that developedwere among the best parts of theexperience.

Students Compete in Health Law Moot Court CompetitionBY MEGAN DAUGHERTY (1L), OLGA DASHEVSKAYA (3L), AND DAVID PURVIS (3L)

SHLA MOOT COURT TEAM MEMBERS MEGAN

DAUGHERTY, SHARI GUNNIN, AND OLGA

DASHEVSKAYA

“The Health Law Moot CourtCompetition was an invaluablelearning experience. The mostimportant lesson that I learnedwas the necessity to formulate

an argument tailored to myclient’s story because, as lawyers,our main function is to give a

voice to our clients.” – Olga Dashevskaya (3L)

MOOT COURT BOARD TEAM MEMBERS COURTNEY

SPICER, DAVID PURVIS (COACH), AND MORGAN

LEIGH. NOT PICTURED: COURTNEY BROOKS NOCE

THE STUDENTS PRACTICED THEIR ORAL ARGUMENTS WITH FACULTY AND ALUMNI.

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Roberta BerryProfessor Berry’s chapter, “The Posthumanist Challenge to a Partly Naturalized Virtue Ethics,” waspublished in The Normativity of the Natural: Human Goods, Human Virtues, and Human Flourishing(Springer, 2009). In fall 2009, she conducted the first experimental, interdisciplinary and interinstitu-tional problem-based course under a three-year NSF grant for which she serves as principal investigator.The course enrolled graduate and professional students in science, engineering, medicine, law, andpublic policy from four Atlanta-area institutions.

Lisa BlissProfessor Bliss was elected to the Board of Directors of the Clinical Legal Education Association. Sheserved as moderator for a plenary session on “The Challenges of Crafting an Educational Curriculumin Interdisciplinary Settings,” and as moderator and presenter for a concurrent session on “Educatingand Training Partnering Health Professionals,” at the Interdisciplinary Collaborative EducationConference hosted by GSU Law. She also co-presented “Collaborative Learning Across DisciplinesThrough Clinics” at the AALS Annual Conference on Clinical Legal Education in Cleveland, Ohio.

Sylvia CaleyProfessor Caley taught International and Comparative Public Health Law at the law school’s studyabroad program in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. While there, she presented the HeLP model to members of the federal judiciary. Professor Caley helped design, organize, and facilitate the InterdisciplinaryCollaborative Education conference hosted by GSU Law, the Center, and HeLP. She also made presentations at annual meetings sponsored by the AALS Clinical Education, the National Center for Medical-Legal Partnership, and the National Legal Aid and Defender Association.

Paul LombardoProfessor Lombardo was honored at the Library of Virginia Literary Awards for his book ThreeGenerations, No Imbeciles and won the Patricia Morgan Faculty Scholarship Award at Georgia State.He spoke at the University of Minnesota, Hamline University, the University of Maryland, WilliamMitchell Law School, Washington and Lee University and Oglethorpe University. He traveled toMunich, Germany for the 2009 Benzene Symposium where he completed his service on the ethics panel of the Shanghai Health Study.

Jerri Nims RookerJerri Nims Rooker was elected to the Board of Directors of the Georgia Asylum and Immigration Network,which provides free legal services to individuals seeking political asylum or similar legal status. Shemoderated a discussion on human trafficking at a screening of “We Were Free” sponsored by law student groups. She provided research during the Georgia legislature’s 2009 session on how a proposedSenate bill providing a means to adopt human embryos would relate to Georgia adoption law.

Center Highlights

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Rebecca PropstMs. Propst completed her work as the Health Disparities Fellow with the Health Law Partnership(HeLP) under the Georgia Health Equity Initiative. During the one-year fellowship, Ms. Propst handled100 civil law cases for low-income patients and families receiving care at Hughes Spalding Children’sHospital. The outcomes of Ms. Propst’s work include improved housing conditions, maintenance ofpublic benefits and subsidies, improved access to educational services, and increased family stability.Ms. Propst represented HeLP at the Atlanta Bar Association’s Celebrating Service Pro Bono Fair.

Charity ScottProfessor Scott earned a master of science in conflict management (MSCM) from Kennesaw StateUniversity. She hopes to use the degree to improve dispute resolution in health care settings as wellas increase opportunities for experiential learning for law students. She helped organize theInterdisciplinary Collaborative Education conference hosted by GSU Law and moderated twopanels. She gave a series of talks on health-care decision-making in fall 2009, and published “BabyDoe at Twenty Five” in the GSU Law Review.

Jonathan TodresProfessor Todres authored several articles including “Taking Prevention Seriously: Developing aComprehensive Response to Child Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation” in the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law (Vol. 43, No. 1, 2010), “Beyond the Case Method: Teaching TransactionalLaw Skills in the Classroom” in the Journal of Law Medicine & Ethics (Vol. 37, No. 2, 2009), and“Inextricably Linked: An International Human Rights Perspective on Child Health and Education”in Childhood Education (Vol. 85, No. 5, 2009). He also presented papers on children’s rights atGeorgetown University Law Center, the University of Iowa, and University of Connecticut.

Leslie WolfProfessor Wolf spoke on IRB review of community-based participatory research at the Community-BasedParticipatory Research Workshop: Challenges and Solutions for Researchers and Community Leaderssponsored by the University of Houston and Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethicsin Houston. She presented her paper, “Stored Biological Materials and Research: Reconciling Law,Ethics, and Practice,” at an international conference on biobanking in Leuven, Belgium. She also gavea presentation, “Regulating Controversy: Overseeing Human Embryonic Stem Cell Research,” atthe Atlanta Conference on Science and Innovation.

Join GHLNAny College of Law graduate may join the GraduateHealth Law Network (GHLN). Our graduates participate in social and professional networks, CLE programs, and the Center’s Mentor Program for law students. Go to www.lawandhealth.org and click on“Students and Alumni” and then “Graduate Network.”

Become a Friend of the CenterAnyone may become a Friend of the Center. Go towww.lawandhealth.org and click on “Contact Us”and then “Join Our Network.” It is free to receiveour newsletter and updates about our events andactivities.

Events Center Faculty & StaffCharity ScottDirector and Professor

Jerri Nims RookerAssociate Director

Paul A. LombardoProfessor

Jonathan TodresAssociate Professor

Leslie E. WolfAssociate Professor

Amy GroverAdministrative Coordinator

HeLP Legal Services ClinicLisa A. BlissAssistant Clinical Professor and co-Associate Director of Clinic

Sylvia B. CaleyDirector of HeLP, Assistant Clinical Professor,and co-Associate Director of Clinic

Rebecca PropstHealth Disparities Fellow / Staff Attorney

Shamecia PowersAdministrative Coordinator

Faculty FellowsRoberta M. BerryGeorgia Institute of Technology

Randall L. HughesOf Counsel, Bryan Cave Powell Goldstein LLP

w w w . l a w a n d h e a l t h . o r g

Non-Profit OrganizationU.S. Postage

PAIDAtlanta, GeorgiaPermit No. 152

Working with the law . . .To promote society’s health

Georgia State University College of LawCenter for Law, Health & SocietyP.O. Box 4037Atlanta, Georgia 30302-4037

“The Interplay Between Race and Health:Racial Disparities in Infant Health”

Noontime speaker series with a special screening of the PBS documentary “UnnaturalCauses: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?”

March 25, 2010Race, Stress, and Social Support: Addressingthe Crisis in Black Infant Mortality

April 6, 2010What Causes Racial Disparities in Very Pre-term Birth? Personal and BiosocialPerspectives

April 14, 2010Social Determinants of Health and Equity: Addressing the Root Causes ofHealth Disparities

Location and time for each program:11:45 am – 1:00 pmGeorgia State University College of Law, Room 170140 Decatur Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30303

Co-sponsored by the Black Law Students Association, Child Advocacy Society, LawStudents for Reproductive Justice, Public Interest Law Association, and StudentHealth Law Association. For more information, visit http://lawandhealth.org.