Professors Arthur Acevedo and William K. Ford have been granted tenure by the faculty and the Board of Trustees of The John Marshall Law School.
In addition, Professors Kevin Hopkins and Samuel Jones were promoted to full professor rank.
Arthur Acevedo
Acevedo joined the John Marshall faculty in 2007. He teaches Contracts, Corporations, Transactional Law and Tax. Previously he has been an assistant professor at the University of Baltimore School of Law; an adjunct professor at DePaul University; and a guest lecturer at IIT/Chicago-Kent College of Law.
Before moving into academia, Acevedo served in several corporate positions as a tax specialist and general counsel. He also was a revenue agent with the Internal Revenue Service.
Acevedo’s teaching style and willingness to assist students has led to his being named “Favorite Professor” in 2011, 2012 and 2013. He also served as the coach for John Marshall’s first place teams at the Albert R. Mugel National Tax Competition in 2012 and 2013.
He received a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from DePaul University, and a JD from DePaul University School of Law.
William K. Ford
Ford received a bachelor’s degree from California State University, Fullerton and a master’s degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara. He received a JD, Order of the Coif, from the University of Chicago in 2003. After law school, he worked for Los Angeles firm Irell & Manella, and then returned to the University of Chicago Law School as a Bigelow Teaching Fellow and Lecturer in Law.
Ford came to John Marshall as a visiting professor in 2006 and joined the full-time faculty in 2007. He teaches Computer and Video Game Law, Contracts, Constitutional Theory, Intellectual Property Survey and Right of Publicity and Protection of Personality. His latest projects are a new online course in Gaming Law, and a webcast series on video and board game issues.
“Professors Acevedo and Ford are highly regarded classroom teachers. Their scholarship agenda blends complex legal theory with meaningful applications to the practice of law,” said Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Ralph Ruebner.
Kevin Hopkins
Hopkins has been on the John Marshall faculty since 1996 and was granted tenure in 2001. He teaches Torts, and has been recognized with the “Favorite Professor” Award. Hopkins’ won the Georgetown University Law Center’s W.M. Keck Award for an essay on the legal billing system, and was a finalist in the 13th International Competition of Counsel’s Speeches competition. His current work focuses on “South Africa and HIV: Protecting Privacy Rights in a Crisis” and “Defamation and Media Defendants: Testing the Limits of First Amendment Protection for Matters of Private Concern.”
Hopkins was a visiting professor at Washington & Lee School of Law in Lexington, Va. He spent several summers teaching in China as part of John Marshall’s partnership with the State Intellectual Property Office in Beijing, and served as co-director of the law school’s Asian Alliance Program for several years. Hopkins is assisting the Illinois Judicial Ethics Committee in reviewing and comparing the Illinois Code of Judicial Conduct and the ABA Model Code of Judicial Conduct.
Hopkins received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Delaware; a master’s degree from Duke University where he was awarded the Z. Smith Reynolds Fellowship; and a JD degree from the College of William and Mary, Marshall-Wythe School of Law.
Samuel Jones
Jones joined the faculty in 2007 and was granted tenure in 2011. He teaches Contracts, Alternative Dispute Resolution, Criminal Law and Employment Law. For the fall 2013 semester, he is a visiting professor at the University of Florida Law School. Jones’ scholarship has focused primarily on international criminal law, with an emphasis on “just war” doctrine, moral and ethics philosophy, criminal law, and contracts.
He is the former special advisor to the chair of the Illinois Judicial Council; the recipient of the 2010 Illinois Judicial Council Chairperson’s Award; the 2010 Cook County Bar Association Presidential Award; and the 2010 John Marshall Law School Scholarly Achievement Award. He was selected by the Illinois Supreme Court to serve as guest faculty at its 2012 Judicial Education Conference.
Jones received a bachelor’s degree from Chaminade University of Honolulu, a JD degree cum laude from Texas Southern University Thurgood Marshall School of Law; and an LLM degree from Columbia University Law School.
“Professors Hopkins and Jones have contributed their knowledge and skills to the practicing bar and the judiciary in developing professionalism and ethics,” Ruebner said. “We are very proud of the accomplishments of all of our faculty at John Marshall.”
