School of Law Alumni Fellows, 2001-2010
2010 - Lynn R. Johnson, '70
Lynn R. Johnson, '70, Mission Hills, Kansas, was honored as the Washburn University Alumni Fellow from the law school on October 22, 2010. Sponsored by the Washburn University deans and the Alumni Association, the Alumni Fellows program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their career fields. The Alumni Fellows program brings successful alumni to campus to meet with students, faculty, and other alumni and share their expertise formally and informally in the classroom and other campus settings.
Lynn Johnson is principal shareholder and president, Shamberg, Johnson & Bergman Chtd., Kansas City, Missouri. He joined the Kansas City, Kansas, law firm of Schnider, Shamberg & May immediately after graduation. The focus of his practice specializes in representing plaintiffs' significant and complicated personal injury and wrongful death litigation. Johnson represents plaintiffs in many states, but primarily practices in Kansas and Missouri.
As a student at Washburn University School of Law, Johnson was a member of the editorial board of the Washburn Law Journal, served on the executive council of the Washburn Student Bar Association, was a delegate to the American Bar Association, and treasurer and marshal of Phi Alpha Delta (PAD) legal fraternity.
Johnson is a life member of the Washburn Law School Alumni Association. He served as president, president-elect, and vice president of the board of governors, and was honored with the Washburn Law Distinguished Service Award in 2001. He served 1991-1999 as a trustee of the Washburn University Foundation. With his wife, Jacqueline Lovelace Johnson, he is a member of the Lincoln Society. Since 2006, Johnson has been a member of the board of advisors for the Center for Excellence in Advocacy. He established the Lynn R. Johnson Endowment Fund at Washburn Law in 1995.
Johnson currently is serving as chairman of the Kansas Association for Justice Foundation. For the past 25 years, he has been named to Best Lawyers in America and is listed in Missouri and Kansas Super Lawyers.
2009 - Paul Hoferer, '75
Washburn University School of Law alumnus Paul Hoferer, Topeka, Kansas, was honored as Washburn University Alumni Fellows on October 16, 2009. Sponsored by the Washburn University deans and the Alumni Association, the Alumni Fellows program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their career fields. The Alumni Fellows program brings successful alumni to campus to meet with students, faculty, and other alumni and share their expertise formally and informally in the classroom and other campus settings.
Paul Hoferer, '75, Topeka, is of counsel with Lathrop & Gage, where he specializes in railroad litigation. He is the 2009 School of Law Alumni Fellow.
His legal career began in 1975 when he joined the Santa Fe Railway law department in Topeka. In 1989, he was promoted to general attorney for Kansas and then in 1994, was promoted to assistant general counsel. Hoferer was named assistant vice president-claims and litigation counsel following the merger of Burlington Northern Railroad and The Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway Co. in 1995. In 2000, he was promoted to general counsel and then served since 2002 as vice president and general counsel. In addition to supervising in-house counsel and the general claims department, Hoferer was responsible for nearly 3,000 lawsuits handled by more than 100 law firms throughout the United States and Canada. He retired in 2008 after 43 years of service, including 33 years in the law department.
He served 2002-2003 as president of the National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel. In 2005, he testified as railroad industry spokesperson before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee concerning asbestos legislation. A member of the Association of American Railroads, he served 2007-2008 as chairman of the Public Safety Working Group; 2006-2007 as chairman of the Punitive Damages Working Group; 1997-1998 as chairman of the AAR General Claims Conference; and he has served since 1979 as an AAR Claim Agents School Instructor.
Hoferer was honored in 2006 with the Recognition of Excellence Award from the National Association of Railroad Trial Counsel. In 2000, he received the Paul C. Garrett Award for Meritorious Service to the AAR General Claims Conference. He serves on the Washburn University School of Law board of governors and with his wife, Jeanne (Smith) Hoferer, bba '80, is a member of the Lincoln Society.
2008 - Richard Hite, '53
Washburn University School of Law alumnus Richard Hite, Wichita, Kansas, was honored as a Washburn University Alumni Fellow on October 10, 2008. Sponsored by the Washburn University deans and the Alumni Association, the Alumni Fellows program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their career fields.
Richard Hite, who received his juris doctor degree from Washburn Law in 1953, is a partner in the law firm of Hite, Fanning & Honeyman LLP. He specializes in business, commercial and oil and gas litigation and serves as counsel in arbitration and mediation and as an arbitrator and mediator.
Hite is chairman of the Kansas Supreme Court Nominating Commission and a past president of the National Conference of Commissioners on Uniform State Laws. He also served as president of the Kansas Association of Defense Counsel and was chairman of the bench and bar committee of the Wichita Bar Association; chairman of the litigation section and chairman of the legislative committee of the Kansas Bar Association; chairman of the House of Delegates select committee; and a State delegate of the American Bar Association. Since 1977, he has been a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, where he served as State chairman and as chairman of the Committee on Special Problems in the Administration of Justice. He also served as chairman of the boards of directors for Via Christi Health System, Via Christi Regional Medical Center and St. Francis Regional Medical Center.
His many honors include the Distinguished Alumni Award (2007) and Distinguished Service Award (1994) from the Washburn University School of Law; William Kahrs Lifetime Achievement Award from the Kansas Association of Defense Counsel (2004); Lifetime Achievement Award from the Wichita Bar Association (2004); Phil Lewis Medal of Distinction from the Kansas Bar Association (1995); Howard Kline Distinguished Service Award from the Wichita Bar Association (1993); and Outstanding Service Awards from the Kansas Bar Association (1973, 1988).
He served as president the Washburn Law School Association board of governors, was active in the School of Law Campaign 2000 and is an emeriti trustee of the Washburn Endowment Association. As a student, he joined Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity.
Other 2008 Washburn University Alumni Fellow honorees are Barbara Davison (School of Business); Karla Hedquist (College of Arts and Sciences); Pamela Johnson-Betts (School of Applied Studies); Carol Lynch-Perry (School of Nursing); John McConnell (College of Arts and Sciences); and Kirk Romary (College of Arts and Sciences).
2007 - Michael J. Manning, '69
Washburn University School of Law alumnus Michael J. Manning, Chevy Chase, Maryland, was honored as a Washburn University Alumni Fellow in October 2008. Sponsored by the Washburn University deans and the Alumni Association, the Alumni Fellows program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their career fields.
Manning is a partner with Fulbright & Jaworski LLP in Washington, D.C. He was named in Best Lawyers in America, 2006-2008, in area of energy law. Mannings rofessional and community service includes: Energy Bar Association, president (2007-0808), president-elect, vice president and board of directors; Foundation of the Energy Law Journal, board of directors; Charitable Foundation of the Energy Bar Association, board of directors; National Cathedral School, vice president, Parent Association; Landon School, Bethesda, Maryland, president, Fathers Club and board of directors.
Manning observed that "I had the good fortune to be taught by professors who had expertise in the subject matter and who were, or had been, engaged in the practice of law for many years. Washburn gave me an introduction to the legislative process and also encouraged volunteerism and participation in organizations such as the student government and bar association, neighborhood legal services and other activities."
2006 - David A. Fenley, '79
October 27, 2006, David A. Fenley '79, was recognized as the Washburn University Alumni Fellow for the School of Law, during a luncheon at the Bradbury Thompson Alumni Center. The Alumni Fellow Award recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their careers. Fellows are invited back to campus to interact directly with students and faculty. Prior to the awards luncheon, Fenley gave a presentation to law school students on urban redevelopment, focusing on the H&R Block project his firm handled in Kansas City, Missouri. After his presentation with law students, he gave a presentation to a business and finance class in the School of Business.
Fenley received his B.B.A., cum laude, in 1976 and his J.D., with honors, in 1979, from Washburn University. In law school he served on the editorial board as assistant notes editor of the Washburn Law Journal. In 1980, he became a certified public accountant, in Missouri.
Fenley is chairman and partner in the law firm of Blackwell Sanders Peper Martin LLP, Kansas City, Missouri. The firm is one of the leading commercial law firms in the Midwest. In 1980 Fenley joined the firm as an associate, became partner in 1985 and was named chairman in 2000. He has been listed in Best Lawyers in America, Real Estate in 1997-1998, 1999-2000, 2001-2002, 2003-2004, 2005-2006.
Fenley has more than 25 years experience in commercial real estate development and financing incentives. He guides developers, lending institutions and governmental agencies in the design, implementation and financing of private/public partnerships for urban core development and redevelopment. He has negotiated financing structures that enabled state and local tax incentive programs to operate with financial products offered by lending institutions.
Fenley is a member of the Kansas City Metropolitan, Missouri, and American Bar Associations, as well as a member of the ABA Real Property, Probate & Trust Law, and Taxation Sections; American College of Real Estate Lawyers; and the Lawyers Association of Kansas City.
Fenley sits on the Washburn University School of Law Alumni Association Board of Governors and has since 2002. He also serves on the board of advisors of the Washburn University School of Law Business & Transactional Law Center. He established the David and Hannah Fenley professorship in the law school Business & Transactional Law Center.
2005 - The Honorable Kay McFarland, '64
Chief Justice Kay McFarland '64, received the Washburn University Alumni Fellow Award for the School of Law on October 14, 2005. The Alumni Fellow Award recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their careers. Fellows are invited back to campus to interact directly with students and faculty. Justice McFarland received the Alumni Fellows Award at a luncheon that day, as other members of the Kansas Supreme Court looked on. Prior to the awards luncheon, McFarland addressed a group of law school students in Robinson Courtroom and Bianchino Technology Center at the law school. She spoke to the group about her career, how she ultimately arrived in the position of Chief Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court and her many firsts and obstacles she encountered as a woman not only in the private practice of law, but also in the court system. McFarland's remarks were given with a good dose of humor. The audience was intrigued by her accomplishments and were equally entertained by her wit and sense of humor.
Justice McFarland has held the position of Chief Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court since 1995. She is the first woman to serve in that capacity. In fact, her career has been a remarkable series of "firsts." Following law school, she was in private practice in Topeka until 1971, when she challenged the incumbent judge of the Shawnee County probate and juvenile courts and won the election. She was the first woman elected to a judgeship in Shawnee County. She delivered the court reforms pledged in her campaign and reduced serious juvenile offenses by more than half in the two years she held the office. In 1973, she became Judge of the newly created Fifth Division of the District Court in Topeka, thereby becoming the first woman to be a District Judge in the history of Kansas. She was appointed by the governor to be a Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court in 1977, and she remained the only woman to hold that office until the appointment of Justice Marla Luckert in January 2003.
2004 - Sue Jean White, '80
Sue Jean White '80 received the 2004 Alumni Fellow Award from Washburn University. The award is presented to alumni of Washburn University who have achieved notable success in their chosen career fields. This program brings successful alumni back to campus to share their expertise formally and informally in the classroom and other campus settings. During her time at Washburn, White attended and participated in Professor Steve Ramirez's Corporate Federal Law class and met with Professor Pierce's Oil and Gas class. White also held a question and answer session with students on Friday morning, October 29, 2004 over breakfast.
White is General Counsel of Shell Chemical and recently assumed the duties of the Shell Oil Company Corporate Secretary's office. She also manages the financial accounting activities for Shell Legal-U.S. After graduation White clerked for Judge Dale Saffels for two years. White then joined Shell Oil Company in 1982, where she started in the Exploration & Production legal department as an oil and gas attorney where she bought and sold oil and gas properties (300 transactions in three years). After five years, White moved to the Corporate Legal Department to the mergers and acquisition section, where she specialized in transactional work, including buying and selling a number of chemical properties. She did a short stint in Chemical Legal before returning to Corporate for another four years.
White now oversees the legal work for the $5 billion base chemical company. She is also responsible for the management of Shell Oil's corporate secretary office, which maintains the corporate books and records of Shell Oil Company and all of its U.S. sub- sidiaries. Ms. White has a staff of twelve attorneys, nine legal assistants/analysts, one financial manager and five administrative assistants reporting directly to her, and an additional twenty other attorneys within Shell Legal Ser vices-US who handle chemical legal work for which she is responsible to the client. White is a member of the Shell Oil Company Legal Leadership Team, and sponsors cost management initiatives for Shell Legal Services-US, which has 239 attorneys, legal assistants and administrative personnel.
2003 - Donald W. Rupert, '76
Donald W. Rupert '76 received the Washburn University Alumni Fellow Award for the School of Law on October 24, 2003. Rupert is a partner in the Chicago office of Mayer, Brown, Rowe & Maw, a multinational law firm with more than 1,300 attorneys in seven time zones who advise many of the world's largest commercial and financial institutions, multi-lateral organizations and national governments. Rupert's 27-year career has centered on intellectual property law with an emphasis on complex technology matters, including patent, copyright and trademark infringement. The Alumni Fellow Award recognizes distinguished alumni who have achieved notable success in their chosen career fields.
2002 - Michael C. Manning, '77
Michael Manning '77 has had a storybook career. Two popular books describing his work as lead counsel for cases of national significance prove that.
The first of these books, Inside Job, relates to litigation against New York mob-related money broker Mario Renda. In 1984, the FDIC chose Manning to head its litigation against Renda. Under his leadership, successful civil and criminal prosecutions were carried out in New York, Florida, Kansas, California, and Hawaii.
In 1989, Manning was lead counsel in MDL-834--the notorious Lincoln Savings/Charles Keating cases. The largest commercial litigation in U.S. history at that time, the Keating cases involved over 51,000,000 pages of documents and over 600 depositions. Manning's team collected nearly $300 million and coordinated dozens of related criminal and administrative matters. Trust Me is the story of those cases.
In October 2002, the Washburn Alumni Association named Manning an Alumni Fellow. The Fellows program recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves in their careers and invites them back to Washburn to interact with students and faculty in the classroom and other academic settings.
During his visit, Manning was keynote speaker at the dedication of the new Robinson Courtroom and Bianchino Technology Center. An expert on the use of technology in the courtroom, Manning described how computer-age technology has made it possible to have "paperless trials." He noted that the Bianchino Technology Center put Washburn Law on the educational cutting edge. "Students who use the state-of-the-art technology here will be well prepared to meet the challenges of 21st century litigation," he said.
In addition to his presentation at the dedication ceremony, Mr. Manning talked informally with students and faculty, sharing insights about current law practice and his vision for the future of the legal profession.
Manning credits Washburn University School of Law for setting him on the right career path. "The law school provided me with a great basis for a career in litigation," he said. His first job after law school was with Kansas City-based Morrison and Hecker, a firm that stresses the same important principles he learned at Washburn, dedication and loyalty to the client. "They gave me great training as a young litigation associate, and I was put on some very exciting cases that turned out well for our clients," he recalled. "One of my venerated senior partners told me, 'The best way to develop new work for new clients is to do good work, cost effectively, for your old clients.' He was right." Today, Manning is lead partner for Stinson Morrison Hecker's Phoenix office.
Manning has received numerous other honors during his career. In 1994, National Law Journal included him in its triennial selection of the "100 Most Influential Lawyers in America." GQ Magazine described him as "a passionate, outspoken, crusading, relentless, righteous workaholic with a brilliant legal mind."
In addition to his professional work, Manning is active in local, state, and national organizations. He is a board member and past president of the FBI Citizens Academy; chairman of the advisory board of LIFE TEEN, INC., a Phoenix-based charity which, through spiritual development, helps teens cope with the special challenges they face; and board member of the Make A Wish Foundation of Central & Southern Arizona.
2001 - Paul Hulsey, '76
Paul Hulsey, JD '76, was honored by the Law School as an Alumni Fellow at a luncheon on Friday, October 5, 2001, in the Ruth Garvey Fink Convocation Hall in the Bradbury Thompson Center.
Mr. Hulsey has been a senior litigation partner with Ness, Motley, Loadholt, Richardson & Poole in Charleston, S.C., since 1986. He is responsible for managing the firm's toxic environmental and commercial litigation in the Midwest as well as for developing and managing the firm's business in Puerto Rico and Latin America. He is fluent in Spanish. At Washburn, he was a member of Phi Delta Phi and was the associate notes editor for the Washburn Law Journal. Originally from Colorado Springs, Mr. Hulsey's undergraduate degree is from Kansas Wesleyan University. He is admitted to the bars of Kansas, South Carolina, and Puerto Rico. He was lead trial counsel in the largest civil RICO verdict in the nation and in the first tobacco medical monitoring case. He and his wife, Belinda, married in 1972, have two sons, Brett and Blaine.
During his visit to the Law School, Mr. Hulsey lectured on environmental litigation in Professor Myrl Duncan's Environmental Law class and visited with faculty during an informal reception.