Stanford Law School

Stanford Law School
Parent school Stanford University
Established 1893[1]
School type Private
Parent endowment $16.5 billion[2]
Dean Larry Kramer
Location Stanford, California, US
Enrollment 571[1]
Faculty 87 (Full- and part-time)[1]
USNWR ranking 3[1]
Bar pass rate 94% (ABA profile)
Annual tuition $46,581[1]
Website www.law.stanford.edu
ABA profile Stanford Law School

Stanford Law School (also known as Stanford Law or SLS) is a graduate school at Stanford University located in the area known as the Silicon Valley, near Palo Alto, California in the United States. The Law School was established in 1893 when former President Benjamin Harrison joined the faculty as the first professor of law. It employs more than 50 faculty and hosts over 500 students who are working towards their Juris Doctor (J.D.) or other graduate legal degrees such as the Master of Laws (LL.M.) and the Doctor of the Science of Law (J.S.D.), giving it the smallest student body of any law school in the top 25 of the U.S. News & World Report annual ranking.

With a small average class size of just 170, Stanford Law School has been ranked in the top three in the U.S. News & World Report overall rankings of law schools since 1992. Stanford Law School was ranked second in 1999/2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, and 2009 behind Yale Law School and third in 2005, 2006, 2010, 2011 and 2012 behind Yale and Harvard Law Schools.[3] SLS is considered particularly prestigious in the spaces of Intellectual Property and Constitutional Law, and maintains the nation's first Supreme Court litigation clinic.[4] With Harvard and Yale, it recently enacted "grade reform," eliminating traditional letter grades for students.

Stanford Law graduates include several of the first women to occupy Chief Justice or Associate Justice posts on supreme courts: current Chief Justice of New Zealand Sian Elias, retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, and the late Chief Justice of Washington Barbara Durham. Other justices of supreme courts who graduated from Stanford Law include the late Chief Justice of the United States William Rehnquist, current Montana Supreme Court Justice Brian Morris, retired Chief Justice of California Ronald M. George, retired California Supreme Court Justice Carlos R. Moreno, and the late California Supreme Court Justice Frank K. Richardson.

Contents

History

Stanford first offered a curriculum in legal studies in 1893, when the university hired its first two law professors: former President Benjamin Harrison giving lectures on Constitutional and International Law,[5] and Nathan Abbott. Abbott was given control over the program, and assembled a small faculty over the next few years. The law department was almost exclusively composed of undergraduates at this time, and included a large number of students who might not have been welcome at more traditional law schools at the time, including women and Hispanic, Chinese and Japanese students.

In 1900, the department moved from its original location in Encina Hall to the northeast side of the Inner Quadrangle. The new facilities were much larger and included Stanford’s first law library. Beginning to focus more on professional training, the school implemented its first three year curriculum, and became one of 27 charter members of the Association of American Law Schools (AALS).[6] In 1901 the school awarded its first professional degree.

Starting in 1908, the law department began its transition into an exclusively professional school when Stanford's Board of Trustees passed a resolution in 1908 to officially change its name to law school. Eight years later Frederic Campbell Woodward would be appointed the first dean of the school, and in 1923 the school was accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA).[7] Stanford's law program officially transitioned into a modern professional school in 1924 when it began requiring a bachelor's degree for admission.

The 1940s and 1950s brought a great deal of change for the law school. Even though World War II caused the school's enrollment to drop to less than 30 students, the school made quick efforts at expansion once the war ended in 1945. A move to a new location in the Outer Quadrangle, and the 1948 opening of the law school dormitory Crothers Hall (the result of a donation by Stanford law graduate George E. Crothers), allowed the school to grow, while the publication of the Stanford Law Review started building the school a national reputation. The decision that Stanford should remain a small law school with a very limited enrollment was made during this period. For the third time in its history, the law school relocated in the 1970s, this time to its current location in the Crown Quadrangle.

In the 1960s and 1970s, the law school aimed to become more diverse. A great deal of new and progressive student organizations established themselves, several of which focused on legal issues which largely affected Chicanos and women. The first female and black professors were hired at the school during this period, and the school sought to academically diversify its student body by collaborating with the Stanford Business School to create a joint-degree program. In March 2011, Stanford was listed with an "A-" in the "Diversity Honor Roll" by The National Jurist: The Magazine for Law Students.[8]

Earning national recognition in the 1980s and 1990s, the law school made efforts to make its curriculum more progressive. Classes were offered focusing on law relating to technology, the environment, and intellectual property, and international law, allowing students to specialize in emerging legal fields. Additionally, the school’s clinical program was established starting with the public interest East Palo Alto Community Law Project. By the dawn of the 21st century, the law school had created many new opportunities for its students to specialize and get involved in community projects. Over the past few years, a new focus on inderdisciplinary education has emerged.[9]

Academics and admissions

Stanford Law School has a small student body, and a very low student to faculty ratio. Class sizes are among the smallest of any top law school, with first-year classes of approximately 170 students.[10]

The academic program is flexible and includes a diverse array of courses and clinics. As first years, students take courses in criminal law, civil procedure, constitutional law, contracts, torts, property, and legal research and writing. Upper level courses range from business law to international law and include a growing clinical program. The Supreme Court Clinic has successfully brought over twenty cases before the Court, making it one of the most active Supreme Court practices of any kind.[11] Because of its proximity to other top academic programs on campus, there has been a growing focus on joint degree programs and classes with other professional schools, such as business, medicine, and education.

Students run about thirty student organizations and publish seven legal journals. The most influential journal is the Stanford Law Review. Advocacy skills are tested in the Kirkwood Moot Court competition.

Robert Crown Law Library at Stanford holds 500,000 books, 360,000 microform and audiovisual items, and more than 8,000 current serial subscriptions.

Stanford Law School adopted a reformed grading system that no longer utilizes traditional letter grades in August 2008, joining Yale Law School, the University of California, Berkeley School of Law and Harvard Law School. Students now receive one of four grades: honors, pass, restricted credit, or no credit, instead of the traditional A+ to F grades.[12]

Stanford has a chapter of the Order of the Coif, a national law school honorary society founded for the purposes of encouraging legal scholarship and advancing the ethical standards of the legal profession.[13]

Between 4,000 and 5,000 students apply for admission each year. Selection is intense: the median undergraduate grade point average of students is around 3.9 and the median LSAT 170.[14] Beyond numbers, Stanford places considerable emphasis on factors such as extracurricular activities, work experience, and prior graduate study. About three quarters of the members of each entering class have one year or more of prior work experience – often in politics, nonprofits, teaching, banking, or consulting – and over a quarter have completed another graduate degree. In 2006, Stanford Law School's acceptance rate was 8.7%, one of the lowest in the nation.[15] The Law School also accepts a small number of transfers each year.

Bar passage rates

Based on a 2001-2007 6 year average, the California State Bar passage rate for Stanford Law students was 88.8%.[16] The July 2010 test saw passing scores from 98% of first-time takers from Stanford Law.[17]

Post-graduation employment

Based on a 2001-2007 6 year average, 98.7% of Stanford Law graduates were employed 9 months after graduation.[16]

Programs and centers

In January 2011, Stanford was given an "A" (#4) in the "Best Public Interest Law Schools" listing by The National Jurist: The Magazine for Law Students.[18]

Notable alumni

The Law School has a distinguished history of producing leaders in the judiciary, academia, corporate law, finance, government, and the public interest. Upon graduation, most students join law firms or clerk for a judge. About 25% of each graduating class clerks.[19] Stanford alumni practice in 50 countries and 49 states, and are partners at 94 of the 100 largest law firms in the United States.[20] Despite its small size, recently, Stanford has produced the fourth most professors of law in the country[21] and the fourth most clerks to the Supreme Court.[22]

Notable faculty

When assessed by academic peers, the law faculty is ranked one of the three most accomplished in the country.[25] In 2006, the National Law Journal included six Stanford faculty – professors Jeffrey Fisher, Joseph Grundfest, Mark Lemley, Lawrence Lessig, Kathleen Sullivan, and lecturer Thomas Goldstein – on its list of the 100 most influential lawyers in the country.[26]

Popular culture

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "U.S. News & World Report, Best Law Schools: Stanford University". http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/law-school-03014. Retrieved April 14, 2011. 
  2. ^ As of September 26, 2011. "Stanford Management Company announces 2011 results". Stanford Report. http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/september/stanford-financial-results-092611.html. Retrieved September 29, 2011. 
  3. ^ Ranking of Top Law Schools 1987 – 2009 by U.S. News & World Report
  4. ^ Supreme Court Litigation Clinic
  5. ^ [1]
  6. ^ AALS Member Schools
  7. ^ "ABA-Approved Law Schools by Year". ABA website. http://www.americanbar.org/groups/legal_education/resources/aba_approved_law_schools/by_year_approved.html. Retrieved April 20, 2011. 
  8. ^ Larsen, Rebecca (March 2011), "Most Diverse Law Schools (Diversity Honor Roll)", The National Jurist (San Diego, California: Cypress Magazines) 20 (6): 30–37, http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/cypress/nationaljurist0311/#/32 
  9. ^ History of Stanford Law School
  10. ^ [2]
  11. ^ Falcone, Michael (March 15, 2006). "Stanford Law Students Get Early Supreme Court Duty". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/15/education/15stanford.html?ex=1300078800&en=166193a56fba80c8&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss. 
  12. ^ [3]
  13. ^ Order of the Coif member schools
  14. ^ [4]
  15. ^ [5]
  16. ^ a b "Internet Legal Research Group: Stanford Law School, 2009 profile". http://www.ilrg.com/rankings/law/view.php/91. Retrieved April 13, 2011. 
  17. ^ CA State Bar General Statistics Report January 18, 2011
  18. ^ Weyenberg, Michelle (January 2011), "Best Law Schools for Public Interest", The National Jurist (San Diego, California: Cypress Magazines) 20 (4): 24–28, http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/cypress/nationaljurist0111/index.php#/24 
  19. ^ [6]
  20. ^ [7]
  21. ^ [8]
  22. ^ [9]
  23. ^ USD School of Law Press Release, June 1, 2011
  24. ^ [10]
  25. ^ Welcome to Brian Leiter's Law School Rankings
  26. ^ Profiles in Power

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