UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN LAW SCHOOL

The 'University of Michigan Law School', located in Ann Arbor, is a unit of the University of Michigan. The Law School, founded in 1859, currently has an enrollment of approximately 1,200 students, most of whom are earning the degrees of Juris Doctor (J.D.) or Master of Laws (LLM). As of 2004, the Law School's faculty includes 72 full-time professors and 42 visiting or adjunct professors. For decades, Michigan Law has been regarded as one of the top law schools in the country. According to the 2008 edition of ''U.S. News and World Report'' graduate school rankings, it is ranked 8th overall.
One in five applicants to Michigan Law gain acceptance. The class of 2009 at Michigan possesses a median LSAT score of 168, and a median GPA of 3.67. 98% of the graduating class of 2006 was employed by graduation day, earning a median starting salary of $125,000. Additionally, 750 employers were present in Ann Arbor for the Law School’s Early Interview Week in August of 2006. Since 1991, Michigan Law has been the top public law school for United States Supreme Court Clerkships, placing 23 graduates in this position.

Contents

History of Michigan Law School

The University of Michigan Law Quad

Publications

Moot court competitions

Affirmative Action litigation

Notable alumni

References

See also

External links

Notes

History of Michigan Law School

Michigan Law School was founded in 1859. Unlike other law schools whose programs developed slowly, Michigan quickly rose to national prominence. By 1870, Michigan was the largest law school in the country. The Law School boasts a long history of graduating women and minorities. In 1870 Gabrial Hargo graduated from Michigan as the second African American to graduate from a US law school. The school continued this tradition in 1871 when Sarah Killgore, a Michigan Law graduate, became the first woman to pass the bar. ^[1]

The University of Michigan Law Quad

The Romanesque buildings that comprise the Law Quadrangle are the foundation of one of the most picturesque law campuses in the nation. Built between 1924 and 1933 the four original buildings comprising the Cook Law Quadrangle were constructed using funds donated by William Cook, an alumnus of the school. The original buildings were: (1) Hutchins Hall, the main academic building named for former Dean of the Law School and President of the University, Harry Burns Hutchins; (2) The Legal Research Building, likely the largest building in the world devoted exclusively to a law library; (3) The John Cook Dormitory, providing housing for 352 students; and (4) The Lawyer’s Club, a meeting space for the residents of the Quad, highlighted by a Great Lounge, and a stunning dining room with a high-vaulted ceiling, an oak floor, and dark oak paneling.^[2] In 2007, the University of Michigan Reading Room was named 94th on a list of "American's Favorite Buildings."^[3] The building is one of only three law buildings on the list.

Publications

Michigan Law School students publish six well-regarded law journals including the ''Michigan Law Review'', the sixth oldest legal journal in the U.S. The other law journals include:

★ ''University of Michigan Journal of Law Reform''

★ ''Michigan Journal of International Law''

★ ''Michigan Journal of Gender & Law''

★ ''Michigan Journal of Race & Law''

★ ''Michigan Telecommunications and Technology Law Review''

Moot court competitions

Michigan Law School students may compete in intramural and extramural moot court competitions, the oldest of which is the Henry M. Campbell Moot Court Competition. The Campbell Competition has been an annual event at the Law School for more than eighty years, and winning it is one of the highest honors a UM law student can achieve.
Michigan Law's moot court competitions are:

★ Henry M. Campbell Moot Court Competition

★ Herbert J. Wechsler Criminal Moot Court Competition

★ Entertainment Media and Arts Moot Court Competition

★ Environmental Law Moot Court Competition

★ Jessup International Moot Court Competition

★ Native American Law Students Association Moot Court Competition

Affirmative Action litigation

In 2003, the United States Supreme Court upheld the University of Michigan Law School's affirmative action policy. In its opinion in Grutter v. Bollinger, the Court held that the United States Constitution permits the Law School to use racial background as a criterion in deciding whether or not to admit an applicant. However, voters in the State of Michigan made affirmative action illegal by passing Proposal 2 (Michigan Civil Rights Initiative) in November 2006, a state-wide referendum amending the Michigan Constitution. The amendment, however, contains an exception for actions that are mandated by federal law or that are necessary in order for an institution to receive federal funding. The legality of Proposal 2 is the subject of pending litigation. The Dean of the Law School, however, has publicly stated that while the Law School "will carefully monitor developments in the courts," the Law School "will modify [its] admissions process, . . . so that the factors listed in Proposal 2 will have no effect on decisionmaking."

Notable alumni

★ Ronald J. Allen (LAW: J.D. 1973) Northwestern University Professor of Law, named, in 2007, one of only four Americans to be designated as a Yangtze River Scholar, China's highest academic award, which was formerly only for Nobel Laureates. Allen is the first law professor to earn the award, which usually goes to scientists or economists.

★ Edgardo Angara (LAW: LLM 1964) Secretary of Agriculture (emeritus) of the Philippines.

★ Prudence Carter Beatty, (LAW: J.D. 1968) US Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of New York

★ Steven G. Bradbury (LAW: J.D. 1988), Acting Assistant Attorney General (Office of Legal Counsel)

★ Mike Cox (LAW: J.D. 1989), current Michigan Attorney General

★ Ann Coulter (LAW: J.D. 1988), Political personality

★ Clarence Darrow, (LAW: DNG) Defense lawyer in the Scopes Trial

★ Harry M. Daugherty (LAW: LL.B. 1880), Republican party "boss"

★ William Rufus Day (LAW: LL.B. 1870), United States Secretary of State, 1898; United States Supreme Court Associate Justice, 1903-1922

★ Harry T. Edwards (LAW: J.D. 1965), Chief Judge of the United States Circuit Court for the District of Columbia

★ Larry Elder (LAW: J.D. 1977), Radio and television talk show host

★ Barry Fink (LAW: J.D.) American Century Investments a $106 billion asset management company, hired Mr. Fink as Chief Operating Officer in 2007. Mr. Fink will a director of the American Century Cos. Inc. board.

★ Harold E. Ford, Jr. (LAW: J.D. 1996), U.S. Representative from Tennessee, 1997-2007.

★ Ralph M. Freeman, Judge, U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, 1954-1990

★ John J. Gardner (1845–1921) represented New Jersey's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1885 to 1893, and was mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey.^[4]

★ Richard Gephardt (LAW: J.D. 1965), U.S. Representative from Missouri, 1977-2005

★ James P. Hoffa (LAW: LL.B. 1966) President of International Brotherhood of Teamsters

★ Amalya Lyle Kearse(LAW: J.D. 1962), Judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit

★ J. Thomas McCarthy, (LAW: J.D. 1963) Author of McCarthy's Treatise on Trademark and Unfair Competition

★ Charles Edward Merrill, (LAW: 1906-1907), Co-Founded stock brokerage firm Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER) with Edmund C. Lynch. Worked at Merrill Lynch 1914-56

★ Frank Murphy (LAW: LL.B. 1914), United States Attorney General, 1939, and United States Supreme Court Associate Justice, 1940-1949

★ Rob Portman (LAW: J.D. 1984), Director of the Office of Management and Budget

★ Richard Riordan (LAW: J.D. 1956), Los Angeles Mayor, 1993-2001

★ Ken Salazar (LAW: J.D. 1981) U.S. Senator from Colorado

★ George Sutherland, United States Supreme Court Justice

★ Masaaki Tanaka, (LAW: LLM) in 2007 it was announced that the Board of Directors of UnionBanCal had approved his appointment as President and Chief Executive Officer of UnionBanCal Corporation and its principal subsidiary, Union Bank of California (NYSE:UB). Based in San Francisco, UnionBanCal Corporation is a bank holding company with assets of $52.6 billion at December 31, 2006. Its principal subsidiary, Union Bank of California, N.A. had 321 banking offices in California, Oregon and Washington, and 2 international offices at December 31, 2006.

★ Larry D. Thompson (LAW: J.D. 1974), Former Deputy Attorney General of the United States

★ Moses Fleetwood "Fleet" Walker''' (October 7, 1857–May 11, 1924) was a baseball player and author who is credited with being the first African-American to play professional baseball at the major league level.

★ Ralph C. Wilson, Jr., (LAW: ) owner of Buffalo Bills football team.

★ Roxanne Wilson, (LAW: J.D. 2003), an appellate attorney and candidate in ''The Apprentice 5''

★ Sam Zell (AB 1963;LAW: J.D. 1966) - Real estate developer and founder of Equity Office Properties or EOP, second in size only to the United States Government in value of property owned. Formerly Chairman of NAREIT or National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts.

★ Bob Woodruff (LAW: J.D. 1987), journalist and news anchor for ABC News

References

1. [1]
2. [2]
3. [3]
4. John James Gardnre, ''Biographical Directory of the United States Congress''. Accessed August 27, 2007.

See also

★ List of University of Michigan people - People associated with the school are marked with ''LAW''

★ Law School Alumni in Government & Public Service

★ Law School Alumni Legislators

★ Catherine MacKinnon - Elizabeth A. Long Professor of Law

External links

★ University of Michigan Law School

★ A virtual tour of the Law Quad

★ 3d Law School Building in Google Earth

Notes

# University of Michigan: Diversity Research & Resources, Proposal 2 Information. Link to UM wesbite
# Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action v. Granholm, No. 2:06-cv-15024 (E.D. Mi.) (Lawson); Nos. 06-2640, 06-2642 (6th Cir. 2007). Link to Sixth Circuit decision setting aside order of preliminary injunction
# January 10, 2007 statement by Dean Evan Caminker. See statement here