I had three majors at St. Olaf: history, American studies, and urban studies. I thought I wanted to go to law school, and that history was a good major for that purpose. During the first semester of my senior year, I had the privilege to study on a St. Olaf term abroad at Oxford as an affiliated student at St. Peter’s College of the University of Oxford. I had never traveled anyplace before other than as a junior in high school on a spring break trip to Washington, D.C. and New York City sponsored by the Des Moines United Nations Association. Four busloads of Des Moines high school juniors traveled the 24 hours to the East Coast and the 24 hours back to Des Moines. The first time I flew on a jumbo jet was from Chicago to London for my term abroad. The first time I traveled on a passenger train was in England.
I studied ancient and medieval history for my major tutorial at Oxford and political philosophy of 16th and 17th century British legal history for my minor tutorial. I read texts for my minor tutorial that Oxford law students read for their law Tripos. My minor tutorial solidified my desire to go to law school — and the entire Oxford experience, plus the travel I was able to undertake in Europe (a mini–grand tour by first-class Eurail Pass and backpack), opened up the world to me and my desire to become involved in some kind of international law. When I returned to the U.S. after my term abroad at Oxford, I was an Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM) Student Research Fellow at the Newberry Library in Chicago for my senior year J-term. I completed an independent research project for history credit that was a capstone for my three majors: “The History of American Urban Planning: A Case Study of Chicago, Illinois.”
In law school I took the two international law courses that were offered: Comparative Law and International Business Transactions. I earned the top grade in International Business Transactions for the best research paper and oral presentation titled “The Private International Grain Trade.” I credit the writing I did for my history major and my independent research project at the Newberry Library for instilling in me the research and writing skills that enabled me to earn this top grade.
“What I ended up doing vocationally — teaching international commercial law subjects in law schools in the UK and a college of business administration in the U.S. — I trace back to my St. Olaf term abroad at Oxford, which opened up the world to me.”
After practicing law for five years in private practice in Des Moines, I earned a Master of Laws (LLM) degree in international business legal studies from an English university. My LLM thesis, “The Application of EEC Regulation 2641/84 on Illicit Commercial Practices with Special Reference to the USA,” was awarded First Class Honors and was published by the International Law Section of the American Bar Association. Again, I credit my St. Olaf experience with giving me the ability to succeed at this level.
After earning my LLM degree, I practiced law privately in New York City, where I was able to use my advanced law degree. I then moved to London and re-qualified as an English barrister and practiced law privately in London. However, I ended up on the law faculty at a university in Scotland where I was in charge of an LLM program in international commercial law; then on the business faculty of a university in Wisconsin where I taught international business law; and then on the law faculty of a university in England where I was in charge of LLM programs in commercial law, international commercial law, and international trade law. What I ended up doing vocationally — teaching international commercial law subjects in law schools in the UK and a college of business administration in the U.S. — I trace back to my St. Olaf term abroad at Oxford, which opened up the world to me. I also trace my vocation to my favorite professor at St. Olaf, the late Professor Emeritus of History Erling Jorstad ’52, who encouraged every one of his students to dream and to succeed as high as they could go, whatever vocation they sought.
“The one thing about the St. Olaf experience that has contributed to my vocation as a lawyer (an attorney in the U.S. and barrister in the UK and Ireland) is the sense of ethics and morals that St. Olaf instills in each and every graduate of the college.”
Although I am writing about vocation, I cannot omit writing something about the extra-curricular activities I enjoyed at St. Olaf that also added positively to my experience. I was a member of Chapel Choir under the direction of the late Professor Emeritus of Music Robert Scholz ’61. He took a personal interest in each and every one of the members of the choir. I looked forward to our thrice-weekly rehearsals in the balcony of Boe Chapel at the end of a day of classes. Dr. Scholz took me aside after one rehearsal near the end of my sophomore year and asked what my major was. I told him history, because I wanted to go to law school. He suggested I consider changing my major to music performance (voice) because he thought if I earned a Master of Music (voice) after St. Olaf that I could sing opera in Europe. I politely said I might be the first singing judge in America, but that music was my avocation, not my vocation. I deeply appreciated the fact that he spotted a vocation he thought I could peruse other than law. I also enjoyed the St. Olaf Student Congregation and was treasurer my junior year as well as membership in Alpha Phi Omega Service Fraternity.
Attorneys take an oath to support the U.S. Constitution and the constitution of the state in which they are admitted to practice law. That oath is sacred. Attorneys are also governed by professional ethics — codes of professional responsibility promulgated by each state in which an attorney is admitted to practice law. The one thing about the St. Olaf experience that has contributed to my vocation as a lawyer (an attorney in the U.S. and barrister in the UK and Ireland) is the sense of ethics and morals that St. Olaf instills in each and every graduate of the college. We alumni have a strong sense of what is right and wrong and what is moral and just. I never have to think about that objectively in my vocation as a lawyer because it has been instilled within me subjectively by my St. Olaf experience.
Fram! Fram!