By Sheila Pursglove
Legal News
Stevie (Barachkov) Swanson, an assistant – soon to be associate – professor at Cooley Law School where she teaches Property I and Property II, is passionate about helping the less fortunate.
“I was drawn to the law because I wanted to make the world a better place by actively effectuating positive change and assisting those that aspire to do the same,” she says. “I saw real estate law in the affordable housing context as a means of realizing my overall goals of being of service to the community.”
Before joining Cooley in 2006, Swanson was Director of Legal Services and Policy for Community Legal Resources in Detroit, an initiative of Michigan Legal Services that connects business lawyers to nonprofit organizations constructing affordable housing, attracting new businesses, feeding and sheltering the homeless and mentoring youth. She supervised the pro bono program, provided direct legal services to nonprofit corporations, and facilitated the Affordability Preservation Project for preserving affordable housing units.
A Virginia native who earned her bachelor’s degree from Yale and her law degree from the University of Michigan, Swanson served as a Visiting Clinical Assistant Professor/Transactional Attorney for the Urban Communities Clinic at the U-M Law School. She directly represented nonprofit corporations while supervising law students, and co-taught a corporate real estate transactions course specializing in affordable housing.
“Given these challenging economic times, and the state of the real estate market, there has never been a more important time for affordable housing and community economic development groups,” she says. “I commend organizations like the Urban Communities Clinic and Community Legal Resources for the valuable contributions they make in providing legal representation to non-profit organizations.”
Swanson’s dedication earned her a Special Tribute from the State of Michigan in July for Service to the Legal Profession and to the Community; and the 2010 Respect the Law Award from the Bloomfield Hills Optimists’ Club for outstanding community work with children in need.
In 2008, she was awarded the Great Deeds Award by Cooley’s Center for Ethics, Service, and Professionalism, after raising $800 on behalf of a Pontiac Northern High School student in need.
A faculty adviser to 10CORE, Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, and the ABA Law Student Division at the Auburn Hills Campus, Swanson involves her law students in charity efforts.
“I love Cooley because the school has a genuine commitment to service and actively encourages participation of its faculty and students in community service activities,” she says.
Among her many activities, she organized a Prom Dress/Tuxedo Drive for students at Pontiac Northern High School; organized drives to generate winter clothing, books, grocery store gift cards, backpacks and school supplies for homeless children in Macomb and Oakland counties; books for impoverished children in Pontiac; clothing for disadvantaged students at Pontiac Northern; and teddy bears, healthy snacks, and donations to CARE House, providing services to children who are victims of abuse. She and her students have been in involved in Adopt a Family, Make a Wish Foundation, Operation IRAQ PAC for troops, and many more charity drives.
Swanson, who previously served as a litigation contract associate with a firm in Lynchburg, Va., is a member of the Michigan Land Title Standards Committee, meeting about eight times a year to maintain and update the publication, currently in its 6th Edition.
A member of the American Bar Association, she sits on the Real Property Section and Affordable Housing and Community Development Section.
Swanson, whose article, “Sitting On Your Rights: Why the Statute of Limitations for Adverse Possession Should Not Protect Couch Potato Future Interest Holders,” will be published shortly by Florida Coastal Law Review, enjoys working at Cooley.
“The faculty, staff, and students are wonderful,” she says. “I also like that all Cooley professors have actually practiced the law and bring their practical expertise into the classroom. We, as a faculty, are invested in the success of our graduates. I hope my students leave my classes inspired to make valuable contributions to society, both as members of the bar and as private citizens.
“They had also better leave Property I knowing they need a survey before purchasing real estate and that they must do their due diligence before purchase as well. I love the challenge of creating ways to make complicated – and yes, occasionally dry – material interesting and memorable.”
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