Alumni to be Honored with Paul Dean Award

October 10, 2012 —

John "Sean" Coffey

Stephanie Herseth Sandlin

Anita M. Josey-Herring

David "Duke" Reyes

R. Seth Williams

Georgetown University Law Center will honor five distinguished alumni with its annual Paul R. Dean Alumni Award. The award, named for former Law Center Dean Paul R. Dean, is given to outstanding alumni who have exhibited leadership to Georgetown Law and to the legal profession. It will be presented during the Law Center’s Reunion Weekend on October 20.

John “Sean” Coffey (L’87)

Coffey is a retired naval officer and former federal prosecutor who built a track record as one of the most successful trial attorneys in the U.S., leading teams that recovered almost $10 billion for his investor clients. He recently co-founded BlackRobe Capital Partners LLC, a private equity fund that invests in large-scale commercial litigation and arbitration claims. He previously served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, a litigation partner at Latham & Watkins LLP and a co-managing partner of the plaintiffs’ litigation firm Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann LLP. Coffey is a member of the Georgetown Law board of visitors and teaches trial practice as an adjunct professor at the Law Center.

Stephanie Herseth Sandlin (C’93, L’97, MA’98, PhD’03)

Herseth Sandlin served as a Democratic U.S. Representative for South Dakota’s at-large congressional district from 2004 to 2011. She recently joined Raven Industries as general counsel and vice president for corporate development. Herseth Sandlin has dedicated her professional career to advancing public policy in agriculture, renewable energy, rural economic development, food safety and nutrition. While serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, she was a member of the Agriculture Committee, Natural Resources Committee and Veterans’ Affairs Committee, as well as the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. She was also co-chair for the Blue Dog Coalition and a senior whip and co-chair of the Rural Working Group for the Democratic Caucus.

Anita M. Josey-Herring (L’87)

Josey-Herring was appointed as an associate judge of the District of Columbia Superior Court in 1997. She has served in the Civil, Criminal and Family Divisions of the Court and is a former presiding judge of the Family Court Division. Prior to joining the bench, she was a trial attorney and deputy director of the District of Columbia Public Defender Service. Josey-Herring is a member of several organizations, including the U.S. Supreme Court Bar and the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. She has been involved in numerous community volunteer activities and has received many awards and recognitions, including two resolutions from the District of Columbia City Council for distinguished service.

David “Duke” Reyes (L’82)

Reyes is the chief executive officer of Reyes Beverage Group and an owner and active partner in all Reyes Holdings, LLC operations. Reyes Holdings, LLC, the 16th largest private company in the U.S. with sales in excess of twenty billion dollars, is an international leader in the distribution of high quality beverage and food products. Reyes currently serves on the Georgetown University board of directors. He is a former member of the Georgetown University board of regents and the Georgetown University McDonough School of Business board of advisors.

R. Seth Williams (L’92)

Williams has served as the district attorney of the city of Philadelphia since 2010, after an historic election win in 2009 where he received more than 75% of the vote. He is the first African-American district attorney in both the city of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Prior to becoming district attorney, he was an assistant district attorney for 10 years. In 2005, he was appointed inspector general of the city of Philadelphia, a role he served until 2008 when he joined the law firm of Stradley, Ronon, Stevens & Young. Williams is an alumni interviewer for Georgetown Law, an adjunct professor at Villanova and Temple law schools and a major in the Judge Advocate General Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve.