3/24/2023

A newly published list highlighting the 13 most influential people working in the legal profession in the First State demonstrates the deep ties Delaware Law School has to the community. From incoming Dean Todd J. Clark to alumnus David Weiss, the U.S. attorney for the district of Delaware, Delaware Law has important connections with the people and institutions doing important legal work in the First State.

The list of influential people, curated by DelawareOnline.com, the online publication of Delaware’s statewide daily newspaper, The News Journal, includes:

Todd J. Clark, who will start July 1 as dean of Delaware Law School. Clark comes to the law school from St. Thomas University College of Law in Florida, where he served as senior associate dean of Academic Affairs and professor of law. At Delaware Law, he will lead all aspects of the law school, from academics to operations to community engagement.

Daniel Atkins, executive director of the Community Legal Aid Society. A former adjunct professor at Delaware Law, Atkins also co-founded HELP: MLP and was its inaugural director until October 2022. Health, Education and Legal Assistance Project: A Medical-Legal Partnership at Delaware Law (HELP: MLP) improves the health and wellbeing of pregnant and parenting families in southeastern Pennsylvania by providing integrated civil legal services through public health partnerships that address harmful social and structural determinants of health.

Claudia Trupp, executive director of The Innocence Project. The project partners with the Innocence Delaware Legal clinic at Delaware Law to provide representation to people unjustly incarcerated in Delaware for crimes they did not commit.

Misty Seemans, Family Court supervisor for the Delaware Public Defender's Office. Seemans is an adjunct faculty member at Delaware Law, co-teaching trial methods. She also coaches the Moe Levine Intrascholastic Trial Advocacy Competition and participates in the Intensive Trial Advocacy Program.

David Weiss, the U.S. attorney for the district of Delaware is an alumnus of Delaware Law. Weiss graduated in 1984 and as U.S. attorney is the chief federal law enforcement officer for the state of Delaware. He has served in that role since 2018, and also served as the acting and interim U.S. attorney for the district of Delaware from 2009-2011.

Collins J. Seitz Jr., Delaware's Supreme Court chief justice. is currently partnering with Delaware Law for the April 14 diversity equity and inclusion symposium, Next Gen Lawyering: DEI, Professional Identity, and the Practice of Law. He will be a panelist for DEI as a Core Value of Law & Why Diversity Matters.

Alex Mackler, chief deputy attorney general of Delaware is also partnering with Delaware Law for the DEI symposium. A panelist for DEI in Law Practice, he will discuss best practices, cultural competency and effective lawyering.

Dwayne Bensing, legal director, Delaware Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is another DEI symposium panelist. His panel, DEI and Dignity, will focus on how the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging advance and protect the inherent and equal human dignity of all people.