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Former Supreme Court justice to address Akron Law grads

This year’s keynote speaker for the University of Akron School of Law commencement ceremony is former Ohio Supreme Court Justice and current Jones Day partner Yvette McGee Brown. (Photo courtesy of Yvette McGee Brown).

SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter

Published: May 14, 2021

Educators and administrators at The University of Akron School of Law are gearing up for their first large in-person event in more than a year as they prepare to welcome hundreds at this year’s commencement.
About 100 graduating law students are expected to participate in the May 16 ceremony, which will take place outdoors at the university’s InfoCision Stadium to allow graduates, guests and speakers to adhere to social distancing guidelines.
“Each graduate will be able to invite up to four guests,” said Akron Law Dean Christopher J. (C.J.) Peters. “We also expect to have about 30 people on stage, including myself, university president Gary Miller, members of the board of trustees, faculty members and our keynote speaker.
“Everyone on stage will be socially distanced, as will the graduates, who will be seated on the field. Guests will be distributed in their own pods around the stands,” said Peters. “There are no COVID testing or vaccination requirements, but everyone except the person speaking will have to wear masks throughout the ceremony.”
Peters will serve as emcee at the ceremony, introducing the keynote speaker and other participants and delivering his own remarks to the graduates.
He said he plans to congratulate students on overcoming the challenges they’ve faced over the past 14 months.
“I think this class has faced as much adversity as any graduating class in the 100-year history of our law school,” said Peters. “Between the COVID-19 pandemic, the unrest around racial injustice and political polarization in our country, it’s been a very difficult time.”
This year’s keynote speaker is former Ohio Supreme Court Justice and current Jones Day partner Yvette McGee Brown.
“Former Justice McGee Brown is someone who has been on our list to invite for several years; we are very grateful that she was available,” said Peters. “She’s had a distinguished and lengthy career in public service and private practice, so I’m very interested to hear what she has to say to our graduates.”
McGee Brown said she’s excited to address the graduates and “discuss the importance of our profession and the rule of law.
“I am so proud to be a lawyer,” said McGee Brown. “My overall message to the students will be to have confidence in themselves as they step out on their journeys.
“Law school gives you the basics, but you have to hone your craft and decide what area of law will be your focus.
“It’s key that they develop a solid reputation,” she said. “I will tell them that their word should be their bond because if people can’t trust you, it will be a very lonely career.”
Born and raised in Columbus, McGee Brown’s career is one marked by a series of firsts and a number of challenges.
The daughter of a single mother, she and her two brothers grew up in the inner city, watching their mother struggle to make ends meet.
“I give a great deal of credit to my mother and grandmother, who grew up in the Jim Crow South and always encouraged me to focus on education and learn everything that I could,” said McGee Brown.
“My mother’s life was very hard and I knew I wanted more, but I wasn’t sure what that looked like.”
The answer came to her while attending Ohio University, where she received her undergraduate degree in journalism/public relations.
“One of my professors suggested I go to law school and that changed my life,” she said. “The legal profession turned out to be more than I ever could have hoped for. It allowed me to provide for my family and put three kids through college.”
After earning her juris doctorate from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, McGee Brown began her career as an assistant attorney general for the state of Ohio.
In 1992, she became the first African American woman to be elected to the Franklin County Common Pleas Court. Later she blazed a trail to the Ohio Supreme Court as the first Black woman on the bench in 2011.
McGee Brown has been a partner at Jones Day for eight years and focuses on litigation and appellate matters. She is also the Partner-In-Charge of Diversity, Inclusion and Advancement at the global law firm.
The founding president of the Center for Child and Family Advocacy at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, she serves on the national council for The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. She also sits on the board of Encova Insurance, Claremont McKenna College and the African American Leadership Academy.
She is a former chair of the United Way of Central Ohio, The Ohio State University Alumni Association and the YWCA Columbus board of directors and a past board member of Ohio University, M/I Homes, Fifth Third Bank of Central Ohio and the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption.
McGee Brown also holds honorary degrees from Urbana University, Ohio Dominican University and Wilberforce University and has been inducted into the Ohio Women’s Hall of Fame and the Central Ohio Business Hall of Fame.
She and her husband, Tony, a retired high school teacher, have three adult children and two grandchildren.
“I think every generation has their challenges,” said McGee Brown. “While I may mention some of the issues these graduates have had to overcome, it will not be my focus.
“Regardless of what is going on around them, these students need to realize that the world is counting on them to use their legal skills for good. Whether you are a federalist or an ACS lawyer, the rule of law is paramount. Just because we may interpret statutes differently, it does not make us bad people. We are simply people who disagree on the application of the law. That’s why we have judges and courts.
“My wish for these graduates is that they have people in their lives who think they are wrong 100% of the time because this will help them develop their arguments and broaden their horizons.”
The Akron Law graduation ceremony gets underway at 2 p.m. on May 16 at InfoCision Stadium and marks the law school’s 96th commencement.


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