By Walter Villa, Special to STU
Connecting a spiritual life with the practice of law.
The ability to do that at his new post is a big reason why highly accomplished professor David K. DeWolf is at St. Thomas University this school year.
Professor David K. DeWolf
Professor DeWolf, who was recently appointed President-elect of the Catholic Bar Association, is thrilled to have made the move from Spokane, Washington to Miami Gardens to serve as a Visiting Professor at STU’s Benjamin L. Crump College of Law.
After musing about leaving the “upper-left corner of the map for the lower-right corner,” DeWolf spoke on what he has seen on campus and relayed a conversation he had with STU President David A. Armstrong, J.D.
“David Armstrong talks about St. Thomas being a family, and there is certainly something to that,” DeWolf said.
“But I also appreciate that St. Thomas strives to live up to what it means to be a Catholic law school.
“From my first real interview with (Tarlika Nunez-Navarro, the Dean of the Benjamin L. Crump College of Law), it was apparent that, ‘Hey, we’re a Catholic law school. Let’s live up to that.’”
In a far-ranging interview with this reporter, Professor DeWolf illustrated the importance of STU leadership understanding and embracing the university’s mission.
“My analogy is: You go to a Chinese restaurant, and you discover that they have the menu from Denny’s,” DeWolf said. “You ask the waiter, ‘What’s going on?,’ and he says, ‘Well, most of our customers are not Chinese.’
“I say to him: ‘I’m not Chinese, either. But I picked this restaurant because it was a Chinese place. I don’t understand why you call yourself a Chinese restaurant if you don’t do anything that reflects that identity.’”
Translation: Professor DeWolf is at STU’s College of Law because it strives to teach in a way that is consistent with Catholic values and ethics.
“(STU) is not just for Catholics,” DeWolf said. “It’s the richness of the Catholic tradition that will help (students) look at their lives and determine what’s worth doing.”
Because the aforementioned values have aligned, STU’s law school students will benefit this school year from the experience of Professor DeWolf, who is a graduate of Stanford University and Yale Law School.
He also clerked for the Honorable Stephen Bistline of the Idaho Supreme Court.
Beyond that, DeWolf is a Senior Fellow at Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture. He has also written a briefing book for public-school administrators: Teaching the Controversy: Darwinism, Design and the Public School Curriculum.
In addition, DeWolf was a full-time law-school professor at Gonzaga University for 28 years.
He “retired” in May of 2016, becoming Professor Emeritus at Gonzaga.
But, as DeWolf, 75, puts it, he has “more left in the tank,” which is why he was receptive to the words of former Gonzaga School of Law dean Daniel J. Morrissey, who told him about STU.
In essence, Morrissey – a former professor at STU – sold DeWolf on his new venture.
“(Morrissey) had an enjoyable time teaching at STU,” DeWolf said. “He told me about the need for professors at STU because of the growth of the law school.”
As for becoming President-elect of the Catholic Bar Association, it is an honor that falls perfectly in line with DeWolf’s core beliefs.
The Catholic Bar is a national organization. It is a community of legal professionals that educates, organizes, and inspires its members to uphold and bear witness to the Catholic Faith in the study and practice of law.
DeWolf said the idea to start the Catholic Bar Association began 10 years ago.
“Most people are familiar with the Catholic Medical Association,” DeWolf said. “It’s been around for (92) years, and it has members all around the country.
“But a bunch of us noticed that there was no national organization for Catholic lawyers. I was one of the people involved in launching the (Catholic Bar Association). I was asked a couple of years ago to join the Board of Directors, and I will presumably be elected as our president at our annual conference in October.”
It is yet another feather in the cap of DeWolf, who is now back where he is most comfortable – on a college campus, teaching the lawyers of tomorrow.
Professor DeWolf said his STU students have been receptive to the knowledge he has to share as he is teaching a course on torts and another on contracts.
He has written a book on each of those subjects, so, again, a perfect fit.
Not surprisingly given his expertise, DeWolf heard from STU the next day after sending a resume. He was interviewed 24 hours later, and he received an offer the following day.
“I enjoy teaching first-year students particularly, and I have about 60 students in each class,” DeWolf said. “It’s great to be back in the classroom. It’s been a gratifying experience (at STU).”
Indeed, Professor DeWolf, who had never been to Miami prior to arriving at STU, said that once the cold weather hits Spokane in November and December, he will “thank his lucky stars” that he made the move to sunny South Florida.
STU students will surely have the same emotion, thanking their lucky stars that DeWolf is their professor.
