Boston University School of Law
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Boston University School of Law (BU Law) is the law school affiliated with Boston University. Located in the heart of Boston University's campus on Commonwealth Avenue in Boston, Massachusetts, BU Law is housed in the tallest law school building in the United States and the tallest academic building on campus. It is a member of the Association of American Law Schools and a charter member of the American Bar Association. BU Law students come from 46 states, 14 countries and more than 238 colleges and universities around the world.
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[edit] History
The Boston University School of Law was founded in 1872 by a group of educators, lawyers, law teachers and jurists united by two beliefs; first, that a superior legal education requires instruction in the theory, analysis and practice of law; and second, that educational opportunities should be available to anyone, with merit as the only test.
BU Law's first homes were 36 Bromfield Street, 18–20 Beacon Street and 10 Ashburton Place. In 1895 the University Trustees acquired 11 Ashburton Place, which was refurbished and named Isaac Rich Hall in honor of the third founder of Boston University. The dedication speaker was Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. whose historic speech "The Path of the Law" was delivered in 1897. Isaac Rich Hall housed BU Law until 1964.
In 1964 BU Law occupied the bottom half of the current building, 765 Commonwealth Avenue on the Charles River Campus, colloquially known as the "Law Tower." BU Law shared the Law Tower with the School of Education for some years but now occupies the entire building overlooking the Charles River.
[edit] Building
The Law Education Tower is the tallest academic building on campus. It was built in 1961, in the Brutalist architectural style, matching the nearby George Sherman Union, built two years later, and the Mugar Memorial Library, constructed in 1966.
[edit] Curriculum
Boston University School of Law offers a broad selection of legal classes and seminars (approximately 150) with a student to faculty ratio at 12:1.
BU Law offers joint degrees with the Boston University Graduate School of Management (JD/MBA), the Boston University College of Communication (J.D./M.S.), the Boston University School of Public Health (J.D./M.P.H.), and the Boston University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (J.D./M.A.)
In addition to J.D. and joint degree programs, Boston University School of Law offers LL.M. programs in American Law, Banking and Financial Law, Intellectual Property, and Taxation, as well as several J.D./LL.M. programs.
[edit] Centers and Institutes
- American Society for Law, Medicine, and Ethics
- Institute for Business Law and Technology
- Institute of Jewish Law
- The International Distance (Internet) Legislative Drafting Program
- Morin Center for Banking and Financial Law
- N. Neal Pike Institute on Law and Disability
[edit] Publications
- Boston University Law Review
- American Journal of Law & Medicine
- Annual Review of Banking & Financial Law
- Boston University International Law Journal
- Journal of Science & Technology Law
- Public Interest Law Journal
[edit] Rankings
BU Law is ranked #21 among American law schools by the 2009 U.S. News & World Report usnews.com.
In addition, according to The Princeton Review's annual guide, The Best Law Schools, BU Law ranks #1 for teaching quality and is ranked #6 for Best Career Prospects.
[edit] Notable alumni
- Main article: BU Law notable alumni
- Nathan Abbott, LLB 1881, founding Dean of Stanford Law School
- Carolyn E. Arch, LLB 1963, first African-American woman appointed Assistant U.S. Attorney in the State of New Jersey
- F. Lee Bailey, LLB 1960, 1966, disbarred criminal defense lawyer; represented O.J. Simpson, among others
- Consuelo Northrup Bailey, LLB 1925, first woman elected as lieutenant governor in the United States
- Edward W. Brooke, LLB 1948, LLM 1949, Attorney General of Massachusetts; first African American elected to the Senate by popular vote; one of only five African Americans to serve in the US Senate; awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
- Thomas E. Burke, LLB 1896, Olympic gold medalist in the 100- and 400-meter running events.
- Martha Coakley, JD 1979, first woman elected Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
- William S. Cohen, LLB 1965, U.S. Secretary of Defense and US Senator from Maine
- Austin Barclay Fletcher, LLB 1879; 1880 Prominent New York lawyer and Boston University Trustee. Namesake of The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University.
- Dr. Barbara C. Jordan, JD 1959, first African-American woman elected to the U.S. Congress from a southern state, awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994, first woman to deliver a keynote address at the Democratic National Convention in 1976
- Richard Graber, JD 1981, US Ambassador to the Czech Republic (September 2006 - Present).* Wendy Kaminer, JD 1975 writer and social critic
- David E. Kelley, JD 1983, writer of L.A. Law, Ally McBeal, The Practice, and Boston Legal, among others.
- Takeo Kikuchi, LLB 1877, founder and first president of Tokyo’s Chuo University
- Gary F. Locke, JD 1975, Governor of Washington, and the first Asian-American governor in the mainland U.S.
- F. Bradford Morse, LLB 1949, director of the United Nations Development Program
- Robert T. Stafford, LLB 1938; HON 1959, U.S. Senator, father of the Stafford Loan program and the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act)
- Juan R. Torruella, JD 1957, first Hispanic to serve on the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- Clifton Reginald Wharton, Sr., LLB 1920, first African-American Foreign Service Officer in the U.S. Department of State; the first black diplomat to become ambassador by rising through the ranks of the Foreign Service rather than by political appointment; and the first black diplomat to lead a U.S. delegation to a European country.
- Owen D. Young, LLB 1896, founder of RCA, 1929 Time Magazine's Man of the Year Chairman and CEO of General Electric
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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