Boards/Committees

William C. Burton
Partner, Sagat/Burton LLP.

William C. Burton is a named partner in the law firm of Sagat/Burton LLP, 245 Park Avenue, New York. His practice is devoted to lobbying at the federal and state levels. He has served as a New York State Assistant Attorney General and an Assistant New York State Special Prosecutor. For fifteen years he was Director of Government Affairs for Continental Insurance in New York City. He is the author of Burton's Legal Thesaurus, a nationally known legal reference tool . The book is now in its fourth edition and celebrated its 25th anniversary.

Former Chief Judge Richard Posner (1993-2000)
US Court of Appeals for the 7th Circ. and Honorary Board Member

Following his graduation from Harvard Law School, Judge Posner clerked for Justice William J. Brennan Jr. From 1963-65, he was assistant to Commissioner Philip Elman of the Federal Trade Commission. Prior to going to Stanford Law School in 1968 as associate professor, Judge Posner served as general counsel of the President's Task Force on Communications Policy. He first came to the Law School in 1969, and was Lee and Brena Freeman Professor of Law prior to his appointment in 1981 as a judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He was the chief judge of the court from 1993 to 2000.

Judge Alex Kozinski
US Court of Appeals for the 9th Circ.

Judge Alex Kozinski (born July 23, 1950) is a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Appointed by President Ronald Reagan on November 7, 1985, Kozinski has won supporters from the left and the right with his common-sense decisions and libertarian instinct. His writing is clear and often humorous, and has been featured in mainstream publications such as Forbes and Slate.

Judge Judith S. Kaye
Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals

Judith Kaye served as Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals for 15 years until her retirement in 2008, longer than any other Chief Judge in New York's history. She was first appointed in 1983 by Governor Mario Cuomo as an associate judge of the Court of Appeals and was the first woman ever to serve on New York's highest court. Since 2009, she has been Of Counsel for the Litigation Group of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP.

Justice Carol A. Corrigan
Supreme Court, California

Carol A. Corrigan (born August 16, 1948, in Stockton, California) is a Justice of the California Supreme Court. On December 9, 2005, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger nominated her to the Supreme Court of California to replace Justice Janice Rogers Brown, who resigned to accept an appointment to the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. She was confirmed in this position January 4, 2006.

Senator John Cornyn
United States Senator for Texas

Senator Cornyn was first elected to the Senate in 2002 and previously served in Texas as a district judge, a member of the Texas Supreme Court, and as Texas Attorney General. In 2008, Texans overwhelmingly re-elected Senator John Cornyn to represent them for a second six-year term in the U.S. Senate. Sen. Cornyn currently sits on the Senate Finance, Judiciary and Budget Committees. He serves as the top Republican on the Judiciary Committee's Immigration, Refugees and Border Security subcommittee.

Senator Robert P. Casey, Jr.
United States Senator from Pennsylvania

Senator Bob Casey (born April 13, 1960) is the senior U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania and has been serving since 2007. He is a member of the Democratic Party. From 2005 to 2006 he served as Pennsylvania Treasurer and from 1997 to 2005 as the Pennsylvania Auditor General. He is the son of former Governor Bob Casey, Sr.

Spencer Bachus
United States Congressman from Alabama

Spencer Bachus serves in the US House of Representatives from the Sixth District of Alabama. He is the Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee. He previously served in the Alabama State Senate.

Thomas L. Sager
Senior Vice President and General Counsel
E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company

Thomas L. Sager (born May 25, 1950, in Winchester, MA) is senior vice president and general counsel, DuPont Legal. Mr. Sager received his Juris Doctor from Wake Forest University School of Law in 1976. He serves as a board member for many prominent foundations and institutes and has been recently recognized by The National Law Journal as one of the 40 most influential attorneys in the past decade.

Dennis Smith
Former Senator and Member of the Judiciary Committee, Missouri Legislature

Dennis W. Smith has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance since its inception in May 1994. He is responsible for the strategic development of the company, as well as overall management and business implementation, and serves as chief spokesman.

Larry C. Smith
Executive Director, Association of Legal Administrators (ALA)

Larry C. Smith serves as Executive Director of the Association of Legal Administrators (ALA), working with a board of directors to oversee all aspects of its strategy and operations, including nearly 10,000 members and nearly 100 chapters. Mr. Smith's expertise includes more than 25 years of experience in law and management, including serving as Director of the American Bar Association Law Practice Management Section.

Stephen R. Mysliwiec
Partner, DLA Piper

Stephen Mysliwiec has more than 25 years of trial and appellate experience in the federal and state courts, arbitration, and mediation. He has extensive experience in insurance coverage, suretyship, construction defect, and product liability litigation. Mr. Mysliwiec is active in the firm's litigation, real estate, and construction training programs, and he has written and lectured on a number of construction and insurance topics. He is a frequent lecturer on litigation and insurance issues.

Virgina Wise, Esq. Chair

Virginia Wise, Chair of the Board, is presently a lecturer on law at Harvard Law School and an adjunct professor at Simmons College Graduate School of Library and Information Science. Ms. Wise previously taught at the University of Michigan School of Library and Information Science, Boston University Law School, and as a visiting professor at the University of Washington.

Anne E. Kringel, Esq. Vice Chair

Anne E. Kringel is Senior Lecturer on Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. She is also the Legal Writing Director. She serves as a member of the Academic Board on the Burton Awards and is also the Chair of the "Outstanding Contributions to Legal Writing Education Committee" which selects one individual who has had a demonstrable impact on legal writing.

Grace Tonner, Esq.

Grace Tonner is a founding faculty member of the School of Law, University of California, Irvine and Associate Dean of Lawyering Skills. Prior to serving in this position she was Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Michigan Law School's Legal Practice Program. Her emphasis throughout her career has been in teaching the fine details and techniques in writing and research.

Judge Forstenzer

Honorable Edward Forstenzer, judge on the Superior Court of California;

William Ryan

William Ryan, member of the Department of Homeland Security, former Chair, White House Plain Language Committee, and direct descendant of Noah Webster.