Dead Hand Writing Competition
Description
The Probate, Trusts and Estates Section invites all eligible law students to showcase their writing skills and explore the laws of succession in the annual Dead Hand Writing Competition. The primary goals of the Competition are to generate interest in the practice area among law students and further scholarship on topics of interest to the Section. Winners will receive a cash prize.
2024-2025 Competition Information
Details regarding the 2024-2025 Competition will be announced this fall.
2023-2024 Competition Winner
For the 2023-2024 Competition, students were invited to learn about antemortem probate proceedings and trust validations by (1) exploring their advantages and disadvantages and (2) reviewing other states’ laws and commenting on their desirable or undesirable features. The writing prompt and submission details can be found here.
The Writing Competition Committee is pleased to announce the winner of the 2023-2024 Writing Competition, Anthony Rodriguez, University of Minnesota J.D. class of 2024! Click here to read Anthony’s submission.
Prior Winners
- 2022-2023: Jasmin Hernandez Du Bois, University of Minnesota J.D. class of 2024, and Sierra Grandy, University of Minnesota J.D. class of 2024
Judges Panel
Submissions are evaluated by a panel of judges consisting of members of the Writing Competition Committee and guest judges selected for their expertise in probate, trusts and estates law in Minnesota. We thank our 2023-2024 guest judges, Judge Michael K. Browne and Denise Rahne.
Judge Michael K. Browne
Judge Browne is a Hennepin County District Court Judge and is currently serving as the Presiding Judge in Probate/Mental Health Court. In addition to his work on the bench, Judge Browne serves as an adjunct professor and law student mentor. Before his appointment to the bench, Judge Browne practiced civil rights law, most recently for the City of Minneapolis.
Denise Rahne
Denise Rahne is a Partner at Robins Kaplan LLP where she Co-Chairs the Wealth Planning, Administration and Fiduciary Disputes Group. Denise serves corporate and individual clients in active and potential litigation involving estates, trusts, fiduciaries, shareholders and closely-held corporations. Denise is a Member of the Probate, Trusts and Estates Section Council and has a background in education as a former teacher and program leader.