Leaving a legacy
John La Fond helped lay the foundation for Seattle University School of Law, and now he is helping ensure its future. One of the law school's pioneering faculty members, he has made a $50,000 planned gift.
La Fond was one of the law school's earliest professors, joining the faculty in 1974. He moved in 1998 to the University of Missouri‑Kansas City School of Law. After retiring, he moved back to Tacoma, where the law school began. He remembers the early days of the law school and his colleagues with fondness.
"It was an extraordinary amount of work," he said. "It was a challenge and involved a lot of risk to establish a law school. But it was a lot of fun."
In addition to a professor's traditional teaching and scholarship, the early faculty members had management responsibilities, and they all played a role in making sure the law school flourished.
"I was very proud of the reputation and the institution we built," he said. "Seattle University was a worthy successor, and I pay attention to its continued development."
La Fond continues to keep up his casebook, "Criminal Law: Examples and Experiments." He is involved in many civic organizations in the Tacoma area, including serving as a founding member of the Citizen Review Panel, which advises the city of Tacoma on matters and policies involving the Tacoma Police Department.
His decision to include the law school in his estate planning reflects his roots at the law school, as well as his faith in what's ahead.
"I think we are obligated to leave the world a little better than we found it," he said.
For more information on planned gifts, visit www.law.seattleu.edu/Giving/Planned_Gifts.xml.
Founding professor John La Fond, second from right, posed with other early faculty when they celebrated the late Professor Tom Holdych’s retirement. With La Fond from left are Professors Bill Oltman, John Weaver, Shelly Frankel, Tom Holdych, former Dean Don Cohen, and Professor John Strait.