The academic community at Quinnipiac University School of Law is responding to a tragic loss with a program designed to help others in the form of a student-support fund in memory of the late attorney Thomas J. Ullmann.

Ullmann, who died suddenly in a hiking accident last year, was a well-known teacher at Quinnipiac, a former chief public defender in New Haven and a member of the Connecticut Law Tribune editorial board remembered for having a smile for everyone he met and an impact on countless lives.

“While I never had the pleasure of watching him teach, I have heard from people who had him in class who said he struck a kind of balance between specific technical skill building and inspiration,” said Quinnipiac Law Dean Jennifer Gerarda Brown. “He taught trial advocacy, and of course you have to be very precise in the courtroom and in treatment of witnesses, but you have to balance that technical mastery with a kind of larger sense of enthusiasm and inspiration for the law. That's the main thing I've heard from people, is that Tom Ullmann always struck that balance in a way that was great for our students.”