This past August, the LMU Loyola Law School announced a gift of $3.5 million to endow the Therese Maynard Chair in Business Law, honoring Therese Maynard, a leading expert in the field. Maynard currently holds the Leonard Cohen Chair for Law and Business. This new chair is the first endowed chair at Loyola Law School to be named for a woman.
Over a decade ago, Maynard created the law school’s Transactional Lawyering Institute, which provides experiential learning opportunities to students interested in practicing transactional business law. She also is the author of two important books in her field, including “Mergers and Acquisitions: Cases, Materials and Problems.”
“When I consider what it takes to be a true professional, it’s the continually renewed commitment to go out and make the world a better place” Maynard said.
Maynard sees the new chair as enhancing the law school’s commitment to social justice. “I would like to see the position filled by someone who is committed to empowering entrepreneurs from under-resourced groups — providing access to the capital and the tools they need to generate wealth for their communities.”
“The essence of a good lawyer is the instinct to solve problems and the desire to help others,” Maynard said. “When I consider what it takes to be a true professional, it’s the continually renewed commitment to go out and make the world a better place.”
The endowment is funded by corporate lawyer Marty Willhite, LLS ’97, Maynard’s ex-student, and his family.
To learn more about the Therese Maynard Chair in Business Law, contact Melissa Bersofsky, executive director of Development, Principal Gifts, at Melissa.Bersofsky@lmu.edu.