Estate Gift Is the Latest in Couple's Long Record of Generosity

Professor Peter Knapp calls himself a "true believer" in the law school where he's taught for three decades.

"Mitchell Hamline is an essential part of the justice community in Minnesota and the Upper Midwest," Peter says. "It has been wonderful to be associated with this institution, and its predecessor institutions, over the last 30 years."

That's why Peter, who is acting as interim president and dean of the law school this academic year, and his wife, Court of Appeals Judge Lucinda Jesson, have established an unrestricted gift from their estate to help fund the school's nationally ranked clinical program.

Peter and Cindy have much in common beyond their four children. Both care deeply about Mitchell Hamline. Cindy served as an associate professor at Hamline University School of Law, where she founded the Health Law Institute, which plays a prominent role at Mitchell Hamline today. She began her teaching career as an adjunct at William Mitchell College of Law.

Peter considers working with clients to be the "heart and soul" of practicing law and sees the clinical program's hands-on approach as one of the most effective ways of teaching the law.

"When I talk to alums who were clinic students, the experience that stands out across their time here is the work they did in the clinic with their very first client," he says. "Sitting next to a student when they're representing that client in court, sitting next to the student while they're interviewing that client for the first time—all of that has been the most rewarding teaching that I've done here. I want that kind of opportunity to continue to be available."

The couple's estate gift will be directed toward the Rosalie Wahl '67 Law Clinic Endowment, which in turn funds the school's 13 clinics. The endowment's namesake, Rosalie Wahl, was a 1967 graduate of Mitchell Hamline predecessor school William Mitchell. Rosalie joined the school's faculty in 1971, helped establish the school's clinical program in 1973, and became the first woman appointed to the Minnesota Supreme Court in 1977.

"I knew Justice Wahl, I worked with her, and I thought the world of her. I can't think of any person I'd rather honor with this kind of gift," says Peter. Nor can his wife.

"Justice Wahl balanced justice, family, and teaching," Cindy explains. "She paved the road for so many of us."

Peter's gift isn't the first time he's given to Mitchell Hamline. His generosity includes giving back the increase in salary he receives for filling the interim president and dean role, more than 20 years of donating a portion of his payroll, and the royalties from a book he co-authored with Professor Roger Haydock.

"That has always been something I wanted to do because I could," he says. "I consider teaching here both an honor and a privilege. If I can help the work of the school by donating some of what I have, I am happy to do that."

The couple's gift will help ensure that Mitchell Hamline's efforts to provide real-world training to law students through the clinical program will continue into the future. Many alumni and friends of the school support Mitchell Hamline through this type of planned giving through their wills or living trusts, and you can too.

If Mitchell Hamline is already in your estate plan, thank you! We urge you to notify us of your gift so we can say thank you and document its use. However, we also respect those who wish to remain anonymous.

If you would like to learn more about including the law school in your will or other estate plan, we would be glad to assist you. Contact Leslie A. Wright at 651-290-6355 or leslie.wright@mitchellhamline.edu.