Twenty-one members of the Class of 2019 selected for Order of the Coif

Brandy Drinnon
Brandy Drinnon

Sep 13, 2019, 5:34 PM

Twenty-one members of the Class of 2019 have been selected to join the Order of the Coif. Vanderbilt’s new Order of the Coif members were announced by Amanda Rose, professor of law, who is president of the Vanderbilt Law School Chapter of the Order of the Coif.

Members of the Order of the Coif are selected by faculty approval and represent the top 10 percent of their graduating class. New members from the Class of 2019 include:

  • Maura C. Allen of Boulder, Colorado. She earned her B.A. at Bowdoin College. She is a law clerk for Judge Paul D. Borman of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, after which she will join Hogan Lovells US in New York.
  • Michael J. Balent of Ivyland, Pennsylvania. He earned his B.A. at the University of Delaware. He is an associate with Dechert in Philadelphia.
  • Matthew V. Brandys of Geneva, Illinois. He earned his B.A. at the University of Miami (Ohio). He is an associate with Kirkland & Ellis in Chicago.
  • Jesse Thomas Clay of San Carlos, California. He earned his B.S. at Clemson University. He is a clerk for Judge John B. Nalbandian of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Covington, Kentucky.
  • Griffin R. Farha of Washington, D.C. He earned his B.A. at Lehigh University. He is an associate with Williams & Connolly in Washington and will serve as a clerk for Judge Kent A. Jordan of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Wilmington, Delaware, in 2021-22 and for Judge Richard J. Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in Washington in 2022-23.
  • Emily McCaslin Felvey of Dallas, Texas. She earned her B.S. at Wake Forest University. She is an associate with Baker Botts in Dallas.
  • Hannah J. Frank of Loveland, Colorado. She earned her B.A. at Lewis and Clark College. She is a clerk for Judge Stephen A. Higginson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans.
  • Sarah R. Grimsdale of Lafayette, Colorado. She earned her B.A. at the University of Colorado. She is an associate with Latham & Watkins in Washington, D.C.
  • Nigel P. Halliday of Nashville. He earned his B.A. at Hendrix College. He is a clerk for Judge Tu Pham of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee in Memphis.
  • Meredith M. Havekost of Clive, Iowa. She earned her B.S. at Saint Louis University. She is a clerk for Judge Lance M. Africk of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans.
  • Steffen Carlton Lake of Madison, Wisconsin. He earned his B.S. at Creighton University. He is an associate with Fish & Richardson in Atlanta.
  • Emiliya Maxim Lamm of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She earned her B.S. at Denison University. She is an associate with Gibson Dunn in Washington, D.C.
  • Joshua B. Landis of Hamilton, Massachusetts. He earned his B.S. at Vanderbilt University. He is a clerk for Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Washington, D.C.
  • Daniel Levine of Washington, D.C. He earned his B.A. at Kenyon College. He is an associate with Hogan Lovells US in Washington, D.C.
  • Colin J. Martindale of Minneapolis, Minnesota. He earned his B.A. at the University of Wisconsin. He is a clerk for Judge Claria Horn Boom ’94 of the U.S. Districts Courts for the Eastern and Western Districts of Kentucky in Lexington.
  • Clayton Masterman of Golden Valley, Arizona. He earned his B.A. at Vassar College and earned a Ph.D. in law and economics at Vanderbilt Law School. He is a clerk for Judge Gregg J. Costa of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Houston and will serve as a clerk for Judge David B. Sentelle of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Washington in 2020-21.
  • Breanna C. Philips of Issaquah, Washington. She earned her B.A. at the University of Washington, Seattle. She is an associate at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett in Palo Alto and will serve as a clerk for Judge Michael H. Park of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New York in 2020-21.
  • William D. Pugh of Irondale, Alabama. He is a clerk to Vice Chancellor Joseph R. Slights III of the Delaware Court of Chancery in Dover.
  • Joseph Grant Sims of Bowling Green, Kentucky. He earned his B.S. at Birmingham-Southern College. He is an associate with Ropes & Gray in New York.
  • Lauren M. Stern of Fort Mitchell, Kentucky. She earned her B.A. at the University of Louisville. She is an associate with Jones Day in Columbus, Ohio.
  • Timothy Nathan Townsend of Nashville. He earned his B.S. at Grove City College. He is a clerk for Judge David Porter of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia.

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