Professor Christine Bartholomew and Jennifer Scharf '05, co-directors of the Advocacy Institute.
New leadership for the Advocacy Institute
As UB Law looks to the start of a new academic year, its Advocacy Institute—the constellation of classroom and courtroom experiences that build students’ skills in the vital art of advocacy—is welcoming new leaders with deep roots in the craft.
The Institute will be co-led by Professor Christine Bartholomew, vice dean for student achievement and prior vice dean for academic affairs, who has served on the Institute’s board of directors for several years; and Jennifer Scharf ’05, vice dean for career services, known for her long-time work as an instructor and director of the trial advocacy program. They succeed faculty member Anthony O’Rourke, the law school’s Joseph W. Belluck and Laura L. Aswad Professor of Civil Justice.
In six years as the Institute’s director, O’Rourke solidified the program’s foundation, enhancing the law school's advocacy curriculum, securing physical space for the program in downtown Buffalo, and putting the Institute on firm financial footing with the launch of an endowment campaign totaling over $2 million. He also spearheaded the creation of a concentration in advocacy, available to students who complete a robust set of advocacy-related courses.
As the new co-directors of the Advocacy Institute, Bartholomew and Scharf will work together to further enhance the Institute’s nationwide reputation, expand community outreach, continue to elevate the advocacy curriculum, and amplify the Institute’s impact.
“Every program at the law school is interrelated with some other component,” Bartholomew says. “Nobody comes to law school being a perfect advocate. You have to know the law, but you also have to understand the rules of evidence, know the procedure that limits how you frame your arguments, put those pieces together, and find your own voice as a lawyer.”
Launched in 2014, the Advocacy Institute houses programs in trial advocacy, appellate advocacy and alternative dispute resolution. These programs are synergistic with the law school’s Innocence and Justice Project, directed by Associate Professor Alexandra Harrington. The Institute operates with guidance from its National Advisory Board, comprised of nationally recognized practitioners and jurists.
In addition to this new role, Scharf will continue to direct trial advocacy, now with logistical and strategic support from Lisa Bauer, assistant dean for career services and director of competitions. Lucinda Finley, Frank G. Raichle Professor of Trial and Appellate Advocacy, directs the appellate advocacy program, and clinical instructor and renown practitioner Steve Sugarman ’85 directs the mediation component.
School of Law faculty as well as a cadre of alumni, including preeminent lawyers and judges teach students advocacy skills. “This summer, we are bringing in a nationally recognized trainer,” Scharf says, “to help elevate our students’ competition experience and to enhance our results in competitions, but also to make our students better trial lawyers, which makes them better lawyers overall.”
The Institute will also encourage members of the judiciary to hold live court sessions in the law school’s Francis M. Letro Courtroom, Scharf says, and plans to join in initiatives to introduce local high school students to the justice system.
Nearly every law student takes an advocacy-related course, such as Trial Technique, Evidence, Appellate Advocacy, or Alternative Dispute Resolution. The School of Law’s trial teams offer students more advanced advocacy instruction. About two dozen students compete on a law school trial team each semester, representing UB Law and traveling to competitions nationwide and even globally. Dozens more compete with their classmates in the law school’s moot court competitions.
“For many, these experiences provide a critical advancement opportunity and exposure to potential employers,” Scharf says. “In fact, year over year, our trial team students have enjoyed a 100% employment rate. Coaches frequently hire the students they've coached after graduation or recommend them to professional colleagues,”
Bartholomew sees the Institute’s role as critical in creating a structured environment for advocacy training and preparing students to succeed. “We need to ensure students develop fundamental skills in advocacy,” she says. “These skills require practice, deliberate attention, and a degree of repetition—students need a recursive feedback loop. The Institute gives us a framework to make sure all the integrated components of advocacy are addressed, refined and evaluated.”