Law Schools

Law school leader among four deans dismissed from Florida A&M

The dean of Florida A&M University’s College of Law was dismissed this week after less than 18 months on the job. Angela Feleccia Epps was replaced on an interim basis by LeRoy Pernell, a FAMU law professor who previously served as the school’s dean, the Tallahassee Democrat reports. Epps did…

May 3, 2017 3:41 PM CDT

Trump and the Constitution: Law course explores the limits of executive power

A new course at the University of Washington: “Executive Power and its Limits,” seeks to provide students with the tools—and critical thinking skills—needed to analyze the Constitution and Donald Trump’s presidency. Kathryn Watts, one of two professors teaching the course, says administrators responded to student demand when they created the class, and it filled quickly upon being announced.

May 1, 2017 2:50 AM CDT

Arizona Summit offers stipend for at-risk grads to put off exam and get extra bar prep

What may be a career saver for some law students has come under fire from some law school critics who see it as a way to change the bar-passage rates law schools are required to report under ABA accreditation standards. The cynical view is that money spent on the pilot program could be a cost of doing business for the law school, which has 279 students and charges $45,424 for annual, full-time tuition.

May 1, 2017 1:00 AM CDT

Digital collection of Jefferson’s books may reveal his ideals about legal education

Digital versions of Thomas Jefferson’s collection of law books will soon be available online for free nearly 200 years after he founded the University of Virginia. The collection, referred to as the 1828 Catalogue, reflects the year a university librarian assembled a book inventory, according to the law school’s special…

Apr 28, 2017 1:30 PM CDT

Still no federal loans for Charlotte School of Law students; state AG opens civil investigation

Despite reported assurances to the contrary, Charlotte School of Law students say they have received no federal loan money for the spring 2017 semester. Meanwhile, the North Carolina attorney general’s office is investigating the troubled school under the state’s civil consumer protection laws.

Apr 27, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

Closing of Whittier Law School illustrates ‘generational wealth shifting,’ professor says

Many law schools missed a “unique opportunity” to shed retirement-age faculty during the economic downturn, a Pepperdine law professor stated in a blog post. Instead, law schools shifted the economic pain to junior faculty, who were laid off, and students, who paid high tuition even as loosened admission requirements increased…

Apr 25, 2017 8:00 AM CDT

Conservatives seek to stop law school’s civil rights center from filing lawsuits

The Center for Civil Rights at the University of North Carolina’s law school will be barred from filing lawsuits if conservatives on the university’s policy-making board get their way. Conservatives say lawsuits depart from the university’s educational mission, but former law dean Gene Nichol sees another motivation, The Associated Press…

Apr 24, 2017 4:23 PM CDT

Law dean sues University of Cincinnati over ouster, seeks reinstatement

Jennifer Bard, the University of Cincinnati College of Law dean who in March was placed on administrative leave after faculty members discussed a vote of no confidence, has filed a lawsuit against the university. The federal complaint (PDF), filed Friday in the Southern District of Ohio, alleges denial of due…

Apr 24, 2017 3:02 PM CDT

Faced with dwindling admissions, some law schools seek out overachieving 1Ls

Updated and corrected: Law schools are increasingly interested in taking transfer students to bring in more revenue, higher education consultants say, and it’s become a seller’s market for first-year students at the top of their class: They can easily move to a higher-ranked school, or stay put and get bigger…

Apr 21, 2017 4:15 PM CDT

Whittier Law to close; profs fighting to keep it open

Whittier Law School will close, it was announced Wednesday, and a group of law professors there have filed a temporary restraining order motion asking the Los Angeles County Superior Court to halt the decision.

Apr 20, 2017 1:25 PM CDT

Accuser gets $1.7M from UC Berkeley in settlement over unwanted touching

Updated: The University of California at Berkeley has reached a settlement with its former law dean and an executive assistant who claimed unwanted touching by the dean and a lack of appropriate action by the school. The deal resolves tenure proceedings against the former dean, Sujit Choudhry, and the sexual…

Apr 17, 2017 10:38 AM CDT

Interim dean at Charlotte School of Law resigns after less than a month on the job

The interim dean of Charlotte School of Law abruptly resigned on Thursday after he worked in the position less than a month. D. Scott Broyles announced his decision in a short email to faculty and students, Above the Law reports. He will remain at the school as a faculty member.…

Apr 13, 2017 1:04 PM CDT

Number of LSAT test-takers is up, but the surge isn’t helping law schools

The number of people who take the LSAT has increased for the last three tests. But the surge is not yet benefiting law schools. The number of people who take the test, when compared to the year before, increased 5.4 percent in February, 7.6 percent in December, and 1 percent…

Apr 11, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

Two UC Irvine law profs announce they are running for Congress

Katie Porter. Two law professors at the University of California at Irvine, both Democrats, have announced they are running for Congress in a bid to unseat the Republican incumbent, Mimi Walters. The first law professor to announce, Katie Porter, is an expert in consumer law and bankruptcy who co-wrote a…

Apr 6, 2017 7:00 AM CDT

ABA House rejects bar exam proposal

The ABA House of Delegates voted against a proposal to tighten bar-passage rate standards for accredited law schools.

Apr 1, 2017 1:30 AM CDT