After many conversations with state attorneys general, assistant attorneys general, charitable sector participants, and academics, it became evident that there was a need for both the charitable sector and state offices to better understand the actual processes and policies behind charitable regulation. Thus, the Charities Project conceived the 2008 Charities Law Conference. The framework of the 2008 Charities Law Conference was designed to reflect the various junctures at which state Attorneys General may become involved with nonprofits and charities in their respective states, as well as within interstate charities matters. Nearly 150 officials, including representatives from 38 states and members of the nonprofit and charitable sector, attended the conference. The Charities Project hosted a two-hour “tool kit” session after the conclusion of the formal conference that provided information necessary for attorneys general to return to their states with the information and strategies necessary to initiate or upgrade their own charity oversight capacity.
In January 2009, in conjunction with the National Attorneys General Training and Research Institute, the Charities Project developed and hosted a two-and-a-half-day, invitation-only conference entitled “Fraud in the Charitable Sector: Prevention and Enforcement,” which featured attendees from 35 state offices. Intended to drill down on various aspects of fraud in the sector and enforcement by state attorneys’ general offices, topics for the conference included the scope and magnitude of fraud within charitable and nonprofit entities, types of fraud, and the realities of the life cycle of an investigation, from the perspectives of both the state attorney general and the regulated entity. The fraud conference addressed many of the overarching issues impacting such prevention and enforcement, including the state/federal relationships, multistate aspects of fraudulent activity, civil versus criminal enforcement, potential targets, and transparency concerns.
Home Foreclosure and Predatory Lending
Since 2005, Program personnel have worked closely with attorneys general to fashion responses to the home foreclosure crisis. In March of 2007, the issue of predatory lending was given special attention in the training sessions held at Columbia for the staffs of the newly elected attorneys general. In addition to projects in conjunction with offices of attorneys general, the Program has worked extensively with federal officials. In January and February 2008, Deputy Director Tam Ormiston met in Washington, D.C. with congressional leaders, Congressman Barney Frank and U.S. Senator Chris Dodd, to help broker discussions between state attorneys general and the federal government as they attempted to fashion legislation that would help keep people in their homes while being responsive to lender issues. In March 2009, Director James E. Tierney testified before the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection at the U.S. House of Representatives on the roles of federal and state regulators in protecting consumers from abusive lending practices. Click here to watch the testimony.
Labor Initiative
In response to a lack of institutionalized communication between states on labor issues, in September 2008 the Program hosted a small, 2-day working conference, featuring teams of two people each from eight states. By sharing experiences and discussing ways to enhance enforcement programs in their own states, attendees left the sessions with tangible solutions, new professional resources, and an in-depth understanding of the relationship between labor law and immigration law.
Consumer Protection and Antitrust
After the three-day Consumer and Antitrust Training session held in 2007 for the staff of newly elected attorneys general, in March 2008 the Program, in partnership with The Center for State Enforcement of Antitrust and Consumer Protection Laws, assembled small teams of experts to visit individual states, including New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. The success of these meetings resulted in a New England regional meeting on consumer protection issues in Concord, New Hampshire in July 2008. At the meeting, thirty state attorneys, investigators and other professionals discussed different approaches to office organization, opportunities for enhanced regional consumer cooperation, practical steps to deal with the impact of rising fuel prices, how to take better advantage of legal research materials, and advanced Internet investigative techniques. A similar meeting for consumer protection issues in mid-Atlantic states took place in Baltimore, Maryland in April 2009, with more meetings planned for the future.
Presidential Transition
In anticipation of a new presidential administration, the Program began months before the November 2008 elections to lay a base for increased cooperation between state attorneys general and the new Administration. Throughout the period between the election and the beginning of the new administration, program personnel and affiliates met with new appointees in order to established working relationships between attorneys general and new federal officials.
2006: Jim Tierney Awarded The Public Interest Professor of the Year Award
This student-selected award for Public Interest Professor of the Year is given to the faculty member or administrator who has most supported and inspired a significant portion of the public interest law student community and was this year conferred upon Jim Tierney for bringing an unmatched energy, humor, and knowledge to the classroom. Jim Tierney represents one of Columbia Law School's greatest assets. Jim's passion has been instrumental in creating the National State Attorneys General Program at Columbia, which reminds us that government service is manifestly a form of public service. In the classroom, Jim not only illuminates difficult legal issues, he inspires his students to pursue careers in the public sector. For his tireless commitment to his students, to the office of the State Attorney General, and to the protection of local communities, the students of Columbia Law School honor Professor Jim Tierney with the 2006 Public Interest Professor of the Year Award.
Also of note:
On April 6, 2006 Rhode Island Attorney General Patrick Lynch paid visit to Professor Tierney's Advanced Attorney General Seminar at Columbia Law School to share with the class his experience prosecuting white collar crime.
The Columbia Journal of Environmental Law Symposium Issue is now online! For proceedings from the September 2004 conference on "The Role of State Attorneys General in National Environmental Policy" and other past conferences, click here.
On February 10, 2006, North Carolina Attorney General Roy Cooper visited Columbia Law School to discuss his recently filed environmental litigation against the Tennessee Valley Authority (T.V.A.). General Cooper and his Chief of Staff met with interested students and with NAGP Director and Former Maine Attorney General James Tierney.
