Law Schools

Website Uses Student E-Mail Spam to Rank Top Party Law Schools

The Website SubtleDig has named Arizona State University College of Law the top party school, mainly based on a mass e-mail sent to law students. The e-mail asked law students about their general happiness, how often they went out, their drug and alcohol consumption, and their dating success, SubtleDig explains.…

May 12, 2009 3:07 PM CDT

Law Schools Hail Drinker Biddle Plan to Pay Less, Train More

There is no substitute for on-the-job training, and Drinker Biddle & Reath’s plan to pay new associates less and train them more is “a courageous step,” according to one law school administrator, Elaine Petrossian, assistant dean of the Office of Career Strategy and Advancement at Villanova University School of Law,…

May 12, 2009 1:51 PM CDT

Justice Scalia Tells Law Student Why She Probably Won’t Be His Law Clerk

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia was his usual blunt self last month when he responded to a law student’s question on how to become “outrageously successful” despite a lack of connections and elite degrees. At first, Scalia gave the American University law student some general advice, the New York…

May 12, 2009 12:20 PM CDT

US News ‘Investigating’ Brooklyn Law School’s Ranking

Brooklyn Law School’s ranking by U.S. News & World Report is in doubt after rival schools pointed out that the school was notably absent in the magazine’s first-ever inclusion of part-time law school stats. “We’re still investigating the Brooklyn situation,” Bob Morse, the director of data research at the magazine,…

May 11, 2009 3:00 PM CDT

Replacing Souter? Today’s News: Conservatives Rev Up, Yet Pick Isn’t Near

Washington Post: “Lopsided Fight Over High Court Shapes Up” Associated Press: “White House: No Supreme Court nominee next week” Bloomberg: “Obama Top Court List Led by Women Judges, Politicians” Christian Science Monitor: “Hispanics push Obama for a Supreme Court seat” New York Times: “Choosing a New Justice” (editorial) Washington Post…

May 9, 2009 12:02 AM CDT

Derivatives Regulation Becomes a Popular Law School Offering

The financial meltdown has spurred interest in derivatives classes among law students interested in learning about the origins of the crisis and hoping to tap into an expanding job market for lawyers well-versed in financial regulations. New York Law School has seen so much interest in its derivatives course that…

May 8, 2009 3:18 PM CDT

Downturn’s Losers: BigLaw, ‘Entitled’ Associates, Top Schools

The downturn has likely ended the traditional BigLaw model that produces $160,000 starting salaries and relies on elite law schools to supply new associates. The situation is so bleak, according to Indiana University law professor William Henderson, that some law firm hiring managers believe associate start dates will be pushed…

May 7, 2009 3:12 PM CDT

U of Denver Law Prof Dies Today After Bicycle Accident

An assistant professor at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law died today after a bicycle accident early yesterday. After initially saying in an e-mail to students that 32-year-old Erik Bluemel had been assaulted, law school officials later announced that police had determined he had a bicycle accident early…

May 6, 2009 10:15 PM CDT

Stanford Law School Is No. 1 in Blogger’s ‘Success Rankings’

Stanford Law School has the best success rate for its graduates, according to a ranking developed by a blogger using law school statistics from U.S. News & World Report. TaxProf Blog used data for law graduates employed nine months after graduation, students employed at graduation, and graduates passing the bar,…

May 6, 2009 12:25 PM CDT

10th Circuit Judge Michael McConnell to Step Down, Will Teach at Stanford

A constitutional law scholar has suddenly announced that he plans to step down from his lifetime appointment to the Denver-based 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and return to academia. Michael McConnell, 53, a constitutional scholar who formerly taught at the University of Chicago and the University of Utah, now…

May 6, 2009 1:29 AM CDT

Judicial Clerkships Becoming More Scarce and More Difficult to Attain

New law grads who think they can find refuge in a government job in a tight employment market may be in for disappointment, according to a career services official at the University of Kansas School of Law. Todd Rogers, assistant dean of career services, told the Kansas City Star that…

May 4, 2009 6:14 PM CDT

Blog Questions ‘Rankings Malpractice’ by Law Schools

Sixty-four law schools didn’t disclose the percentage of their 2007 class employed at graduation for a ranking done by U.S. News & World Report, opting instead for an automatic calculation. Another 23 law schools that did report the employment-at-graduation numbers likely would have been better off keeping them secret, TaxProf…

May 4, 2009 11:49 AM CDT

Stroock Deferral Options for New Grads: $50K to Delay, $75K to Go Away

In an innovative approach to the problem of too many lawyers and too little work, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan is offering multiple deferral options to its incoming class of fall associates. A letter sent on Tuesday by the firm to graduating law students previously offered jobs as Stroock associates…

May 1, 2009 9:14 PM CDT

Running for Election Requires Attorney to Disclose Client List, Law Dean Says

Should a lawyer running for election as city attorney have to disclose to the public a list of the clients he represented in private practice? There’s only one answer to that question: Yes, writes Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the new law school at the University of California at Irvine, in…

May 1, 2009 6:56 PM CDT

To Defer or Not to Defer? Like a Day Off, Late Job Start May Not Be a Career Plus

The disastrous economy is creating new career issues for fledgling legal eagles seeking to soar as law firm associates. But the overall problem is still the same: How to look out for one’s own interests yet score points with the firm as a dedicated young attorney ready, willing and able…

Apr 30, 2009 5:31 PM CDT