Law Schools

Kagan’s Civil Procedure Class Was ‘Nothing Short of Terrifying,’ Blogger Says

U.S. Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan is being praised for healing rifts as dean of Harvard Law School, but she also has a tough side, as Above the Law blogger Elie Mystal can attest. Mystal took Kagan’s civil procedure class and learned that Kagan doesn’t have much patience for students…

May 14, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Would-Be Law Student Quits Tuition Contest Because of Mean-Spirited Blog Comments

The higher-education savings company Upromise released its top 10 finalists in a $10,000 Tuition Tales contest Wednesday, but would-be law student Sarah Allen was not among them. Allen’s video explaining her pursuit of a debt-free life—and a debt-free legal education—is no longer on the Upromise site. Her blog, Going to…

May 13, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

Debate on Bill to Rein In Tulane Law Clinic Comes at ‘Absurd’ Time, Critic Says

Updated: A bill being debated this week in Louisiana to rein in law school clinics couldn’t come at a worse time, according to a blogger and a newspaper editorial. The bill affects all clinics, but it is aimed specifically at the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic, the Associated Press reports. It…

May 12, 2010 1:06 PM CDT

Lawyers—Especially Men—May Be Too Optimistic About Case Outcomes, Survey Says

When asked to predict the outcome of civil and criminal cases, lawyers are often too optimistic. That’s the result of a survey co-authored by Elizabeth Loftus, a University of California-Irvine psychologist and law professor, along with other academics, published this month in the American Psychological Association’s Psychology, Public Policy &…

May 11, 2010 8:21 PM CDT

Triple Vision for Attorney Dad About to See His 3 Kids, All 26, Earn DePaul JDs

Many a proud parent is watching a child graduate from law school this month after years of hard work and hefty expense. But for attorney Daniel Formeller it will be a scene played out in triplicate. All three of his 26-year-old triplets will earn their juris doctor degrees this weekend…

May 11, 2010 6:07 PM CDT

Were 16 Law Schools Too Revealing in Disclosures to U.S. News?

Did 16 law schools commit rankings malpractice via disclosures to U.S. News & World Report? That is the question posed by TaxProf Blog. The 16 schools disclosed figures for the percentage of their students who were employed at graduation, even though they would have been better off allowing the magazine…

May 11, 2010 3:35 PM CDT

Student’s Prizewinning Law Review Article Ignites Texas Tax Debate

Nikki Laing is no ordinary law student. And her upcoming Baylor Law Review article is more than a bit unusual, too. At 35, she is the mother of an 11-year-old and has already put together a successful small business. Plus, she is not only an accountant but last year scored…

May 10, 2010 8:21 PM CDT

School-Sponsored MSU Student Blog Gives Applicants Snapshots of Law School Life

Hey, prospective legal eagles. Want to know what law school is really like? A new student blog at the Michigan State University College of Law may not provide all the answers. However, Kristen Flory, director of the school’s marketing and communications department, promoted the idea and apparently sees Spartan bLAWg…

May 10, 2010 7:15 PM CDT

Foster Kid Cited in ‘It Takes a Village’ Overcomes Odds, Graduates from Law School

Jelani Freeman had a tough life with six moves as a foster child, but his determination to succeed got a mention in the 2006 edition of Hillary Clinton’s book, It Takes a Village. Now Freeman is graduating from Howard University Law School in what he describes as “a collective achievement,”…

May 7, 2010 1:35 PM CDT

As ‘Troubling Indicators’ Mount for 2010 Law Grads, an ABA Expert Issues a Warning

The chairman of an ABA commission studying the impact of the economic downturn on the legal profession has some advice for would-be law students: You may want to reconsider. Allan Tanenbaum, chairman of the ABA Commission on the Impact of the Economic Crisis on the Profession and Legal Needs, spoke…

May 6, 2010 12:35 PM CDT

2 Weeks from JD, Law Student Notches 4th Circuit Appellate Win

Dean Razavi hasn’t yet received his juris doctor degree, let alone started practice at Katten Muchin Rosenman. But the soon-to-be graduate of the University of Virginia School of Law has already scored his first major litigation victory, winning an ineffective assistance of counsel case in which he made the oral…

May 5, 2010 11:29 PM CDT

Law Dean Boycotts US News Rankings

The law school rankings by U.S. News & World Report has all zeros and “not availables” for St. Thomas University School of Law in Florida. The reason: The school’s dean, Al Garcia, is the only educator who decided to boycott the law school rankings, the Daily Business Review reports. “I…

May 5, 2010 10:30 AM CDT

More Law Schools Offer Online LLM Programs

Three more law schools are planning to offer online master of laws programs beginning next fall. Kaplan Legal Education is working with two of the schools, Loyola University Chicago School of Law and Southwestern University School of Law, to develop the online technology for their LLM programs, the National Law…

May 4, 2010 1:00 PM CDT

Would-Be Law Student Sets Up Paypal Account, Asks for Tuition Donations

Would-be law student Sarah Allen believes in a debt-free life, but it’s hard to square that vision with her desire to attend law school at the University of North Carolina, where the three-year education will cost about $105,000. So Allen has set up a PayPal account and is appealing to…

May 4, 2010 12:35 PM CDT

Eyes Widen as Above the Law Blogger Attends NALP Panel on Online Rumor Mills

Fellow attendees stared at him as though he had three heads and vampire fangs when he went to a National Association for Law Placement program this morning on navigating online rumor mills, says Above the Law blogger Elie Mystal. But there is no silver bullet that can kill the insider…

May 1, 2010 12:01 AM CDT