Wayne Law to honor three at 13th annual gala

Wayne State University Law School students, alumni and friends once again will meet to honor the legal community's finest as they attend the 13th annual Treasure of Detroit Gala from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. at the Detroit Institute of Arts this Saturday, March 27. Since its inception in 1998 the Treasure of Detroit has become Wayne Law's premiere event for honoring those who have made a lasting contribution to the growth and success of the Law School as well as to the practice of law. Honorees at this year's Gala include longtime activist and civil rights attorney Dean A. Robb, '49, former Wayne Law Dean and Professor Joan Mahoney, '75, and former Wayne Law Professor Lawrence C. Mann, '80. "We are thrilled to honor Dean Robb, Joan Mahoney and Larry Mann at this year's Treasure of Detroit Gala," said Wayne Law Dean Ackerman. "They have made immeasurable contributions to the profession of law and to this Law School, personally providing leadership and expertise to many Wayne Law students, alumni and friends. I look forward to celebrating their contributions to the legal profession at the Detroit Institute of Arts on March 27." Joan Mahoney earned an A.B. and A.M. from the University of Chicago, a J.D. from Wayne Law, and a Ph.D. from Cambridge University. After law school, she practiced with the Detroit law firm Honigman, Miller, Schwartz, and Cohn LLP and worked in legal services in New York before beginning her teaching career. Mahoney spent 14 years on the law faculty of the University of Missouri-Kansas City and was a member of the faculty of Western New England College of Law, serving as its dean from 1994-96, prior to joining Wayne Law as dean in 1998. She began as a member of the Wayne Law faculty that same year, teaching Constitutional Law, Legal History, and Family Law courses. In 2003, she stepped down from the deanship and continued teaching until announcing her retirement in 2009. Mahoney has published numerous articles and book chapters on topics relating to constitutional law, legal history, comparative civil liberties and bioethics. Her scholarly interests include legal history, reproductive technology and children's rights. Lawrence Mann earned his J.D. from Wayne Law. He practices in litigation areas including commercial and product liability defense and has taken cases to verdict in state and federal courts of seven states, including Michigan, Missouri, Alabama, Texas, Wisconsin, Washington and South Carolina and has defended clients in class action litigation. In addition to his legal practice, Mann served until December 2008 as a tenured associate professor at Wayne Law where he taught courses in Evidence, Civil Procedure, Trial Advocacy, Torts and Products Liability. He has also served as special counselor on products liability to then-Governor James J. Blanchard and as special master for a class action, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan. Following law school, he served as a law clerk to U.S. District Court Judge Horace Gilmore. A sought-after speaker, Mann has presented and been a featured speaker for a variety of organizations nationwide, as well as in the Netherlands and Russia. He also serves as a mediator for a variety of cases including those involving catastrophic injury and death. Dean Robb earned a B.S. from the University of Illinois and a J.D. from Wayne Law. He served as a founding partner of Goodman, Crochett, Eden & Robb in Detroit--the first interracial law firm in the United States--from 1949-1971. Since then, he has practiced law in Traverse City and Sutton Bay. Robb is the founder and past president of Trial Lawyers for Public Justice. He has served as a governor of the Sixth Circuit, American Trial Lawyers Association (ATLA); a president of the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association; a co-chair for the ATLA National Committee on Civil Rights; a chair of the ATLA Railroad Law Section; and a chair of the Detroit Bar Association, Negligence Law Committee. He is a life member of the NAACP and a former nominee to the Michigan Supreme Court. A well-known civil rights supporter, advocate and attorney, Robb has received numerous awards and honors. Some of those awards include: Champion of Justice (MTLA 1998); Champion of Justice (State Bar of Michigan 1994); Outstanding Lawyer Alumni of Wayne State University (1975); and the Outstanding Achievement Award (State Bar Of Michigan, Negligence Section 2009). He has also been listed numerous times in Best Lawyers in America. This year's event is hosted by Wayne Law, the Wayne Law Board of Visitors and the Wayne Law Alumni Association. The Wayne Law Class of 1969 will serve as Official Event Hosts and the Wayne Law Class of 1970 will serve as the Reunion Class of the Decades. Wayne Law Professor Alan Schenk will serve as Honorary Faculty Chair. The evening will begin with an Alumni Reunion Reception and silent auction at 5:30 p.m., with dinner, an awards program and dancing taking place thereafter. The Sun Messengers, an eight-piece, horn-driven R&B show-band based in Detroit, will provide music. Reserve tickets for Treasure of Detroit at www.specialevents. wayne.edu/treasure2010. For additional information regarding sponsorship opportunities, contact Mary Hollens, senior director of Development and Alumni Relations, at (313) 577-4141 or am2674@wayne.edu. % Published: Wed, Mar 24, 2010

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