The Law Alumni Society is a group of friends and alumni of the University of Arkansas who undertake projects to support the goals of the School of Law. Each year, the society co-sponsors the Alumni Reunion Weekend in Fayetteville and the Alumni Luncheon held in conjunction with the Arkansas Bar Association annual meeting in Hot Springs. These events provide opportunities to engage and reconnect with friends and fellow alumni.

Any graduate from the School of Law who has joined the Arkansas Alumni Association is automatically a member of the Law Alumni Society, which is led by a board of directors. Each board member is selected for a three-year term, and the officers are elected by the board members to serve one-year terms. The board sponsors three awards to recognize alumni and friends for their service to the legal community and law school, which are presented during the Alumni Luncheon.

Law Alumni Society 2020-21 Board of Directors

Officers

President Kristin L. Pawlik (term ends 2021)

Kristin L. Pawlik (J.D. ’99) is a native of Bentonville and began practicing law in Benton County in 1999. She worked for the Public Defender’s Office in the 19th Judicial District for more than four years, most recently as chief feputy public defender. She joined Miller, Butler, Schneider, Pawlik ,and Rozzell in October of 2003 and became a partner in 2008. Her primary practice areas are domestic relations, family law, criminal defense, and employment law.

She has served on the Law Alumni Society Board since July 2018 and was the inaugural chair of the Awards Committee. She belongs to the Arkansas Bar Association where she was elected to the House of Delegates and the Benton County Bar Association where she served as president in 2007. She is also a member of the Arkansas Trial Lawyers Association and the Arkansas Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers. In 2009, the Arkansas Access to Justice Commission named her Arkansas Pro Bono Attorney of the Year.

Vice President Blake Pennington (term ends 2022)

Blake Pennington (J.D. ’08) grew up in Bryant, Arkansas, and moved to Fayetteville in 2001 to attend the University of Arkansas. He received a bachelor’s degree in business administration, magna cum laude, from the Sam M. Walton College of Business in 2005 and graduated from the University of Arkansas School of Law in 2008. He has been a member of the Law Alumni Society Board since July 2019.

Prior to joining the City Attorney’s Office in January of 2014, He was in private practice in Northwest Arkansas. He is a member of the International Municipal Lawyers Association, the Washington County Bar Association, the Arkansas City Attorneys Association, the Rotary Club of Fayetteville, and the Board of Directors of Peace at Home Family Shelter. He is also a past Fayetteville Planning Commissioner and former chairman of the Fayetteville Telecommunications Board.

Secretary/Treasurer Geoffrey Kearney (term ends 2021)

Geoffrey D. Kearney (J.D. ’12) is a senior associate at Foland, Wickens, Roper, Hofer, and Crawford PC, a civil litigation firm in Kansas City, Missouri, where he relocated after completing a clerkship with Chief Judge Lavenski R. Smith (J.D. ’87) of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. He is excited to engage with the law school community and to serve as the secretary/treasurer of the Law Alumni Society Board. He is a graduate of Harvard University and the University of Arkansas Clinton School of Public Service and a proud native of Pine Bluff.

Members

Name	Term Ends
Bob Balfe ‘94	2023
Jana Carter ‘99	2021
Tim Cheatham '89	2021
Suzanne Clark ‘08	2023
Lance Cox ‘98	2022
West Doss ‘86	2023
Margaret Foster ‘88	2023
Amy Freedman ‘01	2021
Audra Hamilton ‘96	2021
Hadley Hindmarsh ‘07	2023
Torri Jacobus ‘05	2021
Gary Jefferson ‘73	2022
Katie Rose Martin ‘19	2023
John Martin ’80	2023
Jeff Pence ’72	2023
Tennille Webb ’10	2023