Olen York is First UA School of Law LL.M. Graduate

Akron, Ohio, May 17, 2005 — When Akron resident Olen York receives a master of laws (LL.M.) degree at The University of Akron School of Law's Sunday commencement, it will mark a milestone for both the student and the school.

York is the first graduate of the law school's LL.M. program in intellectual property. The program was launched in fall 2004 to serve an increasing demand for law expertise in a fast-growing and rapidly changing area of legal practice. It is the only LL.M. in IP Law offered in Ohio — and one of only 17 in the nation.

York is an associate patent attorney with the Patent, Copyright and Trademark Law Group of Akron, and has successfully prosecuted more than 30 patents. He received his Juris Doctor degree from The University of Akron School of Law in 2001, after earning a bachelor of science degree in chemistry from Marshall University in 1996.

A native of Chapmanville, W.Va., York and his wife, Amy, have one daughter.

One hundred and eighty-nine degrees will be conferred at The University of Akron School of Law 2005 commencement ceremony beginning at 2 p.m., May 22, in the E.J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall. Dennis W. Archer, immediate past president of the American Bar Association, will be the keynote speaker.

In their latest rankings, “National Jurist” and “Prelaw Insider” magazines rated UA's School of Law as the second “best value” juris doctor public school program in the United States, based on tuition, bar passage rates, employment rate, median grants, clinic slots and student-faculty ratio.

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