The Legal Impact

The Shifting Political Landscape is Drawing More Individuals to Public Service Lawyering

While almost half of beginning law students say they want to work in public service, by graduation those percentages fall dramatically. Still, the trend is changing: these days more newly-minted lawyers are choosing careers in government and the nonprofit sector, as the ever-shifting political landscape draws an increased number of individuals to consider public service lawyering.  

Legal Practices are Learning that Training in AI has Never Been More Important

With Artificial Intelligence increasingly used in legal practice, our guest today says it’s time for everyone - from first year law students to the most senior law firm partners - to be trained on AI. We’re talking on “The Legal Impact” with Robert Lucic. He’s an attorney at Sheehan Phinney Bass & Green, a major firm with offices around New England. Bob is also President-Elect of the New Hampshire Bar, and chairs the Bar’s Special Committee on Artificial Intelligence. At the UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, Bob serves on its Rudman Center’s Board of Advisors. 

Diving Deep into the NH Constitution

Bryan Rome, a second-year student at the UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law, was given the chance to teach New Hampshire’s legal community a thing or two about the state’s unique constitution.

In this latest episode of The Legal Impact, Rome explains how his research project with the Rudman Center Summer Fellowship Program allowed him to reveal long-forgotten aspects of this vital founding document. 

Passports, Trans Rights, and the Supreme Court

In November, the U.S. Supreme Court gave a temporary “green light” to a Trump Administration policy concerning transgender Americans and their passports. The State Department will now only issue passports that match the applicant's sex as shown on their birth certificates. 

Trade, Tariffs, and the Courts

Trade, tariffs, and the courts: On this month’s episode of The Legal Impact, we examine the arguments behind a US Supreme Court case over extensive tariffs put in place by the Trump Administration in early 2025. Lower courts have ruled that the White House overstepped its authority under the law it used to justify the tariffs. But even if the Administration loses before the High Court, it has other legal tools at its disposal that it can use to impose tariffs, which may be less vulnerable to lawsuits.

 

The Risk Collaborative - Navigating Risk Around the Globe

Our guest on The Legal Impact is UNH Franklin Pierce School of Law alumna Sabrina Segal. She’s Director of The Risk Collaborative, an initiative that fosters partnership, knowledge-sharing and advocacy among non-profits, non-governmental organizations, and funders. From the tiny charity in your community to global NGOs like Save the Children, Segal helps them craft a system for assessing, planning, and managing risk -- all on a shoestring budget.

AI & the Role of the Library

In an era of instant information, where Artificial Intelligence will not just answer your question but write the essay for you - what is the role of the law library?  Or even…books? We find out, on the latest episode of “The Legal Impact.” Our guests are two longtime law librarians at UNH-Franklin Pierce School of Law: Susan Drisko Zago, Professor and Law Library Director, and Kathy Fletcher, reference and public service librarian. Listen in, as they reflect on the massive shifts they’ve seen in legal research and library practice, and how all these changes may affect the next generation of lawyers.  

Reviving the "Alliance for Progress"

On this episode of The Legal Impact, Professor Stanley Kowalski recalls President John F. Kennedy's South American initiative called the "Alliance for Progress," unveiled sixty years ago. Kowalski says it's time to revive this effort, but updated for our times: promoting a stable, prosperous Latin America through technology transfer and intellectual property. 

 

Remembering David Souter's Impressive Legals Career in NH

This month on The Legal Impact, we remember former U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter, who died in May. We'll hear about Souter's impressive legal career in NH, long before he went to Washington...also, why his appointment to the High Court didn't turn out to be the  "slam-dunk" for conservatives...that was predicted.

The Daniel Webster Scholar Honors Program

The Daniel Webster Scholar Honors program: UNH-Franklin Pierce School of Law's unique approach toward training lawyers who are ready to practice on day one after graduation. Over the 20 years since its launch, the DWS program has drawn national attention and praise. In this episode of The Legal Impact, we talk with Courtney Brooks, the Associate Dean for Faculty, a professor of law, and Director of the Daniel Webster Scholar Honors program.