Stetson Lawyer; 1968 vol. 11 no. 2 March

r^aum&i VOLUME II, No. 2 ST. PETERSBURG, FLORIDA March, 1968 DILLON SUCCEEDS SEBRINC AS DEAN, SEPTEMBER 1 Has Been Associated With The College Since 1954 As Student, Librarian, Professor And Assistant Dean Richard T. Dillon, '57, presently Assistant Dean and Professor of Law, will become the new dean of Stetson College of Law, September I, the effective date of the resignation of Justice Harold L. Sebring, dean since 1955. Dillon was elected to the position by the Trustees of Stetson University, February 16, upon the recommendation of President Paul Geren. Richard T. Dillon The retiring dean will remain at The College of Law to teach and write in his favorite fields—state constitutional law and state and local taxation. Uniquely Experienced Professor Dillon will enter his new office fully indoctrinated in Stetson's policies and traditions and uniquely experienced to deal with the particular problems of the law school. He was a member of the first class enrolled on the St. Petersburg campus and has been with the school as student, teacher or administrator during every phase of its rebirth and development since its removal from DeLand to its present site. Immediately following his graduation from the College in 1957, Dillon was named its librarian and an assistant professor of law. Impressed by the organizational and administrative ability he displayed in putting the Charles A. Dana library (completed in 1958) on an operational basis, and in arranging institutes and seminars as chairman of the faculty committee on continuing legal education, Dean Sebring named the young teacher assistant dean in 1959. He has held this post continuously since that time and the title of Professor of Law since 1962. Although he will be only 41 when he assumes the parietal duties of the College in September, the dean-to-be is a man of proven scholarship and rich in practical experience. Through the years he has acquired a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, with a major in accounting, a Juris Doctor, and a Master of Laws, always standing at the top or near the top of his class in academic achievement. Of his record at New York University, Robert McKay, distinguished dean of the law school, remarked: "Mr. Dillon's work for the LL.M. was completed with one of the highest averages ever to be achieved in that particular program ... we are all most enthusiastic about him." Before entering Stetson in 1954, he had owned and operated a retail and wholesale drugs and sundries business, and a real estate brokerage firm and taught liberal arts and business subjects at the Stenotype Institute of Tampa. Excelled Academically At Stetson, he excelled academically and established himself as a leader in student affairs, while supporting himself and his family by continuing to teach simultaneously at not one, but two institutions of higher learning—Florida Centra! College and the University of Tampa. During his teaching years at Stetson, he has been a lecturer for the Tampa Bar Review and the Bay Area Law Review and appeared on legal institute programs in most of the leading cities in Florida. At the national level he has served three terms as a member of the Bar Admis sions Committee of the Association of American Law Schools. President Geren's selection of the man to succeed Dean Sebring is heartily endorsed by all members of the Stetson family. Immediately following Dean Se- bring's announcement this fall that he intended to retire September I, 1968, the faculty unanimously recommended to the President that Professor Dillon be appointed to fill the vacancy. Between that time and his appointment, in response to a request by the President of the Stetson Lawyers Association for suggestions as to who could best "fill Dean Sebring's shoes," scores of alumni from all over the country and several leading educators and friends indicated that Professor Dillon was "the man." (More on page 4). Statement By Dillon I am very pleased to have the opportunity to serve my alma mater as its next dean. During the administration of the present Dean, Justice Harold L. Sebring, the law school has made remarkable progress. Stetson University, alumni, and friends and supporters of the College of Law can take great pride in the record of achievement of the school and in the national reputation it has earned under his leadership. Commencing September 1, I will make every effort to continue the administration of the College in the fine tradition already established by him. BRIEFING. The Dean Designate (left) gets breakdown of already approved budget for 1968- 69 from Dean Sebring and Business Manager Unger.