Contact: Darren Johnson, Director of Communications
(631) 421-2244, ext. 383, djohnson@tourolaw.edu

March 28, 2005

Presumed Innocence: Touro Hosts Jewish Law Symposium

Huntington, N.Y. – Touro Law Center and its Institute of Jewish Law will host a very special symposium, “The Function of Presumptions in Jewish and American Law – Are They Facts or Fictions? A Legal and Sociological Perspective,” on Tuesday, April 19, at 6 p.m. in the Faculty Conference Room. The event is free, but reservations are required. Call 631-421-2244 ext. 307.

The symposium will discuss the significance and underlying rationale of presumptions – for example, the “presumption of innocence,” “the presumption of parenthood” and the “presumption of life” – from a Jewish and American legal and a sociological perspective, and their use in court and in society at large.

Numerous presumptions are evidentiary devices used in civil and criminal cases. “They are for the most part rules based on conjectures, habits, human nature and past or present situations or status,” notes Dr. Chaim Povarsky, the event’s organizer. “Presumptions are an anomaly in the legal system, where courts normally scrutinize every piece of evidence to find the facts of the case. Nevertheless, courts apply presumptions as a matter of routine to decide parties’ rights and duties in a civil case and defendants’ guilt or innocence in a criminal case.”

Speakers include:

Dr. Povarsky, a Professor of Law at Touro Law Center and Director of its renowned Institute of Jewish Law. He earned his J.S.D. and LL.M. with highest honors at Tel-Aviv University School of Law and his bachelor's degree at Hebrew University Law School in Jerusalem. He has published extensively and lectured internationally on Jewish legal and philosophical issues.

Alan Hornstein, a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law at Touro Law Center. He received his J.D. from Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. He also received an M.A. from St. John's College in Maryland and Long Island University. He is a Professor of Law at the University of Maryland School of Law, where he also was an associate dean, and teaches Evidence at Touro.

Abbott Katz, a Professor and Deputy Chair of the Sociology Department at Touro College in New York City. He received his B.A. from Queens College and his M.A. and Ph.D. in Sociology at SUNY-Stony Brook.

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