RES GESTAE
The alumni magazine of the S.J. Quinney College of Law
Spring 2025 issue
Welcome to the newest issue of Res Gestae, Utah Law's alumni magazine!
In this issue, we talk with Denise Dragoo (JD '76), who helped draft the Utah Coal Mining and Reclamation Act and is a trailblazer in mining law.
We also feature Tomu Johnson (JD '11) and discuss his career in privacy law and his passion for mentoring law students.
Finally, we spotlight Michelle Oldroyd (JD ’00), the director of professional education at the Utah State Bar, and highlight the ways she coaches students and alumni and teaches the community about law.
Check out photos of our Alumni Awards and Golden Gavel Society celebrations, and read more about a new scholarship endowment in honor of Professor Jensie Anderson.
Denise Dragoo strikes pay dirt in environmental and natural resources career
Denise Dragoo (JD ’76) credits growing up in Colorado Springs, Colorado, as the impetus for pursuing a career in environmental and natural resources law. Surrounded by evidence of mining and its history, Dragoo became interested in this specialty, eventually becoming a trailblazer in her own right.
Read MoreBuilding and burnishing: Tomu Johnson serves privacy law clients through The Broad Axe
While earning his bachelor’s degree in political science and communication at the University of Utah, Tomu Johnson (JD ’11) was considering his next steps toward a career. He’d participated in debate during high school and realized those skills and interests might be worth cultivating.
Read More‘A tremendous responsibility’: Michelle Oldroyd cultivates connection through Utah State Bar
As a young child, Michelle Oldroyd (JD ’00) already knew she would be a lawyer, a history professor, and an entrepreneur—because the lawyers she knew growing up in Washington, D.C., had achieved these goals.
Read MoreLETTERS & CLASS NOTES
See photos from the 2025 Alumni Awards and Golden Gavel Society celebrations
May 15, 2025Utah Law honored alumni at its annual Alumni Awards on Friday, April 11, and recognized those who graduated at least 50 years ago at the Golden Gavel Society celebration on April 12.
From our senior director of development and alumni relations: Spring 2025
May 18, 2025I look forward to the spring semester each year because we welcome old friends to our Alumni Awards (which double as our class reunions) and our Golden Gavel Society celebration, and we also celebrate our new graduates at convocation! It’s rewarding to meet so many of you and catch up on your accomplishments.
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Explore how to get involved and give back to the S.J. Quinney College of Law.


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ABOUT RES GESTAE
Res Gestae is the quarterly alumni magazine of the University of Utah's S.J. Quinney College of Law—a place to celebrate the alumni, students and faculty who define the Utah Law community. You can learn more about the magazine, see our list of contributors, and explore previous issues here.