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U.S. district judge to address law graduates |
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Kathleen M. Amerkhanian |
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May 1, 2008 |
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A total of 132 College of Law students will take one giant step closer to entering the legal profession during the College of Law commencement ceremony Sunday, May 4, at 1 p.m. in the Student Union Auditorium on Main Campus.
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| Farnan |
Joseph J. Farnan Jr., United States District Judge, will serve as keynote speaker at the ceremony. In the audience will be the Farnan’s son, Michael, who is a member of the class of 2008. Other speakers will include Jeanne M. Whalen, valedictorian of the class, outgoing Student Bar Association President Michael Riesen, and UT Professor Douglas Chapman.
“The class of 2008 is a special class,” said UT Law Dean Douglas Ray. “Its members have helped make this a better law school through their leadership in public service, moot court and trial advocacy, law review, student government and other student organizations. They are caring, committed people whose service and leadership will enrich their communities and serve their clients well.”
Farnan received his juris doctor from The University of Toledo College of Law in 1970. While at Toledo, he served as an editor of The University of Toledo Law Review and was awarded the alumni scholarship in recognition of academic achievement.
After graduating from UT, Farnan moved to Delaware and served as dean of students and director of the Criminal Justice Program from 1970 to 1973 at Wilmington University, where he taught as an adjunct faculty member until 1981. He also was in private practice and served as a part-time assistant public defender from 1972 to 1976.
In 1976, Farnan was appointed county attorney for New Castle County, Delaware. He served in that position until 1979 when he was appointed the chief deputy attorney general for the state of Delaware.
President Ronald Reagan appointed Farnan U.S. attorney for the District of Delaware in 1981. The UT graduate was responsible for the investigation and prosecution of Frank Sheeran, president of the Delaware Teamster Union, who admitted to the murder of Jimmy Hoffa.
In 1985, Reagan appointed Farnan to the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, where he served as chief judge from 1997 to 2000. He has presided over and decided high-profile corporate disputes and patent infringement actions, including the Pantry Pride/Revlon securities case, the Diet Coke pricing case, the DaimlerChrysler merger case and the Lipitor patent case. He now is presiding over the Intel antitrust case.
Farnan is a member of both the New Jersey Bar (1970) and the Delaware Bar (1972).
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