ASL Professor Mark "Buzz" Belleville to Moderate Environmental Panel

On March 25^th, at 12:00 PM noon, student groups on campus at the Appalachian School of Law that are concerned with Environmental and Natural Resource Law will be hosting a panel discussion in the Appellate Court Room.  The event is joint-hosted by the Environmental Law Society, Student Bar Association and the Appalachian Natural Resource Journal of Law. The event will entail a live panel discussion with various professional speakers in the fields- regarding hot topics that affect the area of practice and our immediate surrounding region. ASL’s own Professor Mark Bellville, a longtime scholar in the fields of related academia, will moderate the discussion.

 This is an event inspired by the active groups on campus to create the related campus awareness about the fields, and also to provide a networking opportunity at the following reception from 1:00 PM to 2:00PM in the Second Floor Booth Center Classroom.  Food and drinks will be served. The groups have targeted this event as an annual opportunity for ASL students and future classes interested in the related fields.

ASL Charter Class Alum Jeff Campbell to Seek House Seat

Reported by tricities.com:

http://www.tricities.com/swvatoday/news/smyth_county/article_54d2a394-90e5-11e2-9775-001a4bcf6878.html

Former Saltville mayor and councilman, Jeff Campbell, 46, is seeking the Republican nomination for the 6th District seat in the Virginia House of Delegates in the June 11 Republican primary election.
Campbell filed the necessary declaration of candidacy and voter petitions on Tuesday, March 12, becoming the first candidate to qualify candidacy with the filing.

Campbell is a lifelong resident of Smyth County and an attorney whose office is located in Marion. He has been active in public service for more than 20 years either in an elected or appointed capacity.
Campbell was elected to Saltville Town Council in 1998 and elected mayor in 2004, serving until 2010. The biggest issue during his service with the town, he said, was – and still is – the economy.
“Saltville was in a state of economic decline, and still is, but it has improved to some extent,” Campbell said. People were driving elsewhere to work and shop and the town council worked to try and re-establish the local economy, he said, hiring an economic developer just for Saltville which helped fill five empty buildings and create jobs by the time he left office. “The tide had turned,” he said, with businesses coming in and storefronts opening up in the downtown area.

Campbell ran an unsuccessful campaign against longtime Commonwealth’s Attorney Roy Evans in 2011 with a platform of change.

“I felt there needed to be some changes in the office in choice and use of plea bargains,” Campbell said, saying that people went to the polls and voted and a majority obviously didn’t agree with him.
If elected to the Virginia House of Delegates, Campbell promises an active and accessible constituency office with a primary focus on economic development, educational opportunity and public safety.

Working on jobs for people of the 6th District – and particularly Smyth County - will be his primary focus, he said.

“I can think of no other governmental function that so positively affects a community and its people than the location or relocation of a new industry, within its borders, bringing with it job opportunities and economic prospects that promote the public welfare and create a better way of life for the residents,” he said. “Our government must make this the number one priority for the citizens of the 6th District, and I pledge to work tirelessly in Richmond to bring the good paying jobs in the Commonwealth back home.”

In addition to 12 years of elected service in Saltville, Campbell has actively served the community on the Saltville Industrial Development Authority and was a founding board member of the Smyth County Tourism Association. He has been a past Rotarian and member of Ruritan, and has been actively involved in Little League and youth recreation as a coach and organizer.

Campbell served for eight years in the United States Army Reserve. He is a 1992 graduate of Emory & Henry College and member of the charter class of the Appalachian School of Law.

Campbell and his wife of 23 years, Carie, reside at 705 1st Avenue, Saltville, with their four children

ASL Students Visit Virginia City Hybrid Energy Center

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On March 15^th, ASL’s Natural Resources Law Program visited the Virginia Hybrid Energy Center in Virginia City, Virginia.  ASL continues its commitment to developing a nationally recognized natural resources law program.  This hands-on field experience was part of Buzz Bellville’s Sustainable Energy Law class and Professor Patrick Baker’s Coal and Hard Mineral Law class.   

 

 

ASL's Energy & Mineral Law Society Host Black Lung CLE

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On March 16, ASL hosted the first annual Black Lung Conference, which was organized entirely by students in the Energy & Mineral Law Society. 38 attorneys, along with government officials, a physician, and a retired judge, gathered in Grundy to learn about the state and federal Black Lung claims processes.

"I'm proud of the EMLS for organizing this conference, and proud of the school for stepping to the forefront in promoting continuing legal education in Appalachia. I'm glad I chose to come to ASL, a school where students have opportunities to take the lead and design conferences from the ground up, shaping the future of legal education in the region. I'm especially humbled at what we were able to accomplish, and am already looking forward to next year's event." said Matt Harden ASL EMLS President.