University of Virginia Law to launch new criminal justice reform project
RADIO IQ — The University of Virginia says it will launch a legal initiative early next year – a program that could keep more innocent people out of local jails, state and national prisons.
Read More about University of Virginia Law to launch new criminal justice reform projectLegal education experts discuss ABA report on diversity in the legal profession
REUTERS — A recent American Bar Association study found that the legal profession in America has remained overwhelmingly white and male over the last decade and that racial diversity among lawyers has actually regressed in some respects.
Read More about Legal education experts discuss ABA report on diversity in the legal professionLaw Students for Climate Accountability annual scorecard rates law firms representing corporate polluters
REUTERS — Despite mounting concerns over climate change, U.S. law firms are handling ever more deals and litigation for the fossil fuel industry, according to a law student group that aims to name and shame firms for their work on behalf of polluting companies.
Read More about Law Students for Climate Accountability annual scorecard rates law firms representing corporate pollutersLaw firm Steptoe & Johnson launches pre-law fellowship to improve pipeline to the legal profession
REUTERS — Steptoe & Johnson is the latest law firm to expand its diversity efforts to target aspiring lawyers before they ever set foot on a law school campus. The firm’s new Steptoe Pre-Law Fellowship, launched this month, brings on three recent college graduates with an interest in law as full-time employees for two years, letting them…
Read More about Law firm Steptoe & Johnson launches pre-law fellowship to improve pipeline to the legal professionCalifornia Western Law establishes unitary tenure track policy for faculty
CALIFORNIA WESTERN SCHOOL OF LAW — The California Western School of Law is pleased to announce that the faculty and Board of Trustees have voted to adopt a unitary tenure track. This change to the institution’s Faculty Bylaws creates opportunities for its clinical, Legal Skills, and other skills professors who were hired as full-time faculty to…
Read More about California Western Law establishes unitary tenure track policy for facultyOpinion: Law school enrollment growth will test the legal job market
ABOVE THE LAW — It is a hot time to be a lawyer with a little experience (at least if you have the right kind of experience). Salaries are up, and top firms are enticing laterals with perks that would have sounded comedic 10 years ago, including huge signing bonuses and indefinite work-from-home.
Read More about Opinion: Law school enrollment growth will test the legal job marketOpinion: William and Mary Law dean A. Benjamin Spencer encourages bar exam reforms, not elimination
BLOOMBERG LAW — Calls for eliminating bar exams to improve fairness and diversity in the legal profession are increasing, but A. Benjamin Spencer, dean of William & Mary Law School, argues that eliminating them is not the answer. They should be transformed into a more effective gauge of professional readiness, which, he contends, can be achieved…
Read More about Opinion: William and Mary Law dean A. Benjamin Spencer encourages bar exam reforms, not eliminationPodcast: Willamette Law dean Brian Gallini discusses alternative licensing for law school graduates
BLOOMBERG LAW — Several states opted to temporarily suspend their bar exams when the pandemic broke out last year. This led many in the legal community to question why the exam exists in the first place.Now at least one state is seriously considering alternative ways to certify new law school grads. The Oregon Supreme Court is…
Read More about Podcast: Willamette Law dean Brian Gallini discusses alternative licensing for law school graduatesABA honors Northwestern Law professor Joyce Hughes and Stanford Law professor Pamela Karlan with Margaret Brent Awards
ABA JOURNAL — The commission established the annual awards in 1991 to recognize and celebrate female lawyers who have achieved professional excellence within their specialty and helped pave the way for other women. It is named for Margaret Brent, who arrived in the colonies in 1638 and is recognized as the first female lawyer in North…
Read More about ABA honors Northwestern Law professor Joyce Hughes and Stanford Law professor Pamela Karlan with Margaret Brent AwardsArizona State University Law Post-Conviction Clinic receives state funding to assist with the expungement of marijuana offenses
ASU NEWS — When Arizona voters approved Proposition 207 last fall legalizing recreational marijuana, a provision in the law allowed expungement of marijuana offenses from criminal records. This fall, Arizona State University’s Post-Conviction Clinic in the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law will begin assisting eligible people to expunge those convictions. The clinic will partner with the Arizona Justice Project…
Read More about Arizona State University Law Post-Conviction Clinic receives state funding to assist with the expungement of marijuana offenses