Sep. 23, 2024

LLM Alumni Spotlight — Meet Mnotho Ngcobo

Growing up in South Africa, Mnotho Ngcobo, ’22, always knew he wanted to work in the U.S., though he was unsure of whether he wanted to pursue a profession in the field of law or education. As a Mizzou Law LLM graduate, and newly appointed assistant professor of law at the University of Louisville Louis D. Brandeis School of Law, Ngcobo found a way to do both. “I used to tell my friends to enjoy our time together because one day, I’d leave for the U.S.,” Ngcobo said. “When applying for college, I chose between a Bachelor of Laws…

Sep. 23, 2024

LLM Alumni Spotlight — Meet Jose Abel Quezada

Jose Abel Quezada, ’24, has known that he wanted to dedicate his life to solving legal disputes with alternative dispute resolution (ADR) since he began his career as a law clerk working on complex arbitration cases. Now working in ADR as an associate at Cacheaux, Cavasos & Newton in his native Monterrey, Mexico, Quezada can point back to that earlier time as a turning point in his career path. “I realized the potential of ADR in solving legal disputes; considering litigation is overall useful but it is definitely not always the best way to solve a dispute,” Quezada said. “I…

Feb. 13, 2023

Mizzou Law Launches Online LLM Program in Spanish

Mizzou Law and the MU Center for Study of Dispute Resolution (CSDR) have a history of setting precedent. With that history, and some fortuitous timing, the center at Mizzou Law launched the first fully online, asynchronous LLM program in dispute resolution just before the pandemic began in 2020. The program was intended to make the LLM accessible to those who could not afford or were not able to come to Columbia for the residential program. Just four years later, Mizzou Law is now offering that same trailblazing asynchronous LLM program in dispute resolution taught entirely in Spanish. “We identified two…

Sep. 28, 2021

LLM Alumna Spotlight — Tojan Rahhal

The fields of engineering and dispute resolution may not seem to be a natural combination. For Tojan Rahhal, ’20, however, the LLM in Dispute Resolution program at the University of Missouri School of Law was the perfect transition to prepare her for a leadership position in the engineering field. Now serving as CEO and President of Engineering World Health, Rahhal says that the LLM program inspired her to “think outside of the box,” and encouraged her to leverage her skillset to her current position. Rahhal first came to Mizzou for a position at the College of Engineering.  She had previously…

Sep. 28, 2021

LLM Alumnus Spotlight — Sentebale Makara

Living in his home of Johannesburg, South Africa, Sentebale Makara, ’11, is enjoying a flourishing career as the director at the law firm Norton Rose Fulbright South Africa. He specializes in construction, engineering, mining and energy disputes with experience in arbitration procedures and alternative dispute resolution. Makara attributes much of his success to his time at Mizzou Law, where he earned his LLM in Dispute Resolution. “As a direct result of the opportunities and doors opened by the LLM program, I am today a qualified mediator,” Makara said. During his time at Mizzou, Makara said he gained confidence in his…

Sep. 28, 2021

LLM Alumnus Spotlight — Jose Rodriguez

Nearly a decade ago, Jose Dario Rodriguez, LLM ’15, realized the importance of commercial relations and the need to use alternative mechanisms for dispute resolution. Now serving as legal counsel of international contractor China Harbour Engineering Company Ltd. in Panama, Rodriguez credits his move to Columbia, Missouri to learn at one of the top dispute resolution centers in the world with gaining those necessary skills and knowledge. “I chose the University of Missouri beyond any other school, after a long research time, finding that Mizzou Law is not only one of the top five dispute resolution programs in United States,…

Aug. 17, 2021

LLM Alumna Spotlight: Hong Hu

After her family was involved in a land dispute resolved by court-supervised mediation when she was young, Hong Hu, LLM ’01, was inspired to pursue a career in dispute resolution. “That is probably where the initial motivation [to pursue ADR] came from,” Hong said. Thanks to her talent, hard work, and education at the University of Missouri, Hong now serves as general counsel for a large, multinational corporation in the Asia region. Hong graduated from Peking University School of Law with both an LLB and LLM before attending Mizzou for her Master of Laws degree in dispute resolution. Before moving…

Aug. 17, 2021

LLM Alumna Spotlight: Kemi Sanni

With both of her parents attending the University of Missouri for graduate school, and because of the school’s world-renowned alternative dispute resolution (ADR) program, Kemi Sanni, LLM ’08, knew Mizzou was for her. “My parents always had great things to say about Mizzou and how embracing it is with the many diverse students who attended the school,” Sanni said. “I never applied to any other schools.” Her choice to apply only to Mizzou led to her current role as ADR Programs Manager at the District Court of Maryland in Baltimore. Sanni obtained her LLB at Ahmadu Bello University in Nigeria…

Aug. 17, 2021

LLM Alumna Spotlight: Kuenzang Dolma

When joining the faculty of the only law school in her native country of Bhutan, Kuenzang Dolma (LLM ‘20) knew she needed to advance her knowledge of dispute resolution. This is because, as a new member of the teaching faculty at the Jigme Singye Wangchuck School of Law, Dolma was tasked with developing and leading the school’s new Alternative Dispute Resolution Clinic. After deliberation, Dolma chose one of the leading alternative dispute resolution (ADR) programs in the world at the University of Missouri School of Law. “My experience at Mizzou Law was very enriching,” Dolma said. “It was…

Feb. 26, 2021

Featured LLM Alumnus: Mohan Peddinti

After receiving his Bachelor of Laws degree from NALSAR, University of Law in Hyderabad, India, and completing two years in a corporate legal role at Dr. Reddy’s, Mohan Srimat Tirumala Peddinti packed his bags and moved over 8,000 miles to Columbia, Mo., in August 2006 to pursue his LLM degree at the University of Missouri School of Law. “Mizzou Law is renowned for its dispute resolution program and is one of the leading institutions in the ADR field,” Mohan said. “Hence, the choice was quite straightforward.” Mohan cited his interest in alternative dispute resolution methodology, especially negotiation, as reasons for…