From the Dean

Challenging moments like these often reveal the character of the people who are in the middle of them. The Duke Law community has responded to these challenges with determination, courage, and compassion.

Dear Friends:

As lawyers, we often find ourselves in the middle of historic moments: landmark court battles; close, consequential elections; market-moving transactions. But this spring and summer, as we have faced not one, but two profound and destabilizing events at once, it has felt like the whole world is living through a historical moment of monumental importance.

The first, Covid-19, appeared at the beginning of the year, and by March had grown into the worst pandemic in a century. The shutdown of the global economy, which has left tens of millions of people out of work, has exacerbated inequalities that existed prior to the pandemic, creating widespread devastation and fear about the future. The second, the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police on May 25, led to mass demonstrations against police brutality and racial violence not seen in two generations.

What do these events have in common? The challenges they have created are universal. No one in the world is immune to the novel coronavirus, at least until we have a vaccine. And no one can ignore systemic racism and the need to reckon with how we have understood, tolerated, and contributed to it.

The response to Covid-19 at Duke was swift and aggressive. Thanks to contingency planning that began once the risk that the virus would disrupt the spring semester became clear, we were able to shift all of our instruction online in less than a week. Along with the university, we canceled our remaining spring semester events, including Reunion and graduation celebrations. These were difficult and at times painful decisions that upended our students’ educations and lives, but they were necessary for the safety of our community. (Read more, page 2.)

The disruptions have not been limited to the spring, of course. Our summer educational programs moved online or were canceled, as was summer employment for our students. In close consultation with the university, we have been making plans for returning to teaching and learning in the fall semester. As this issue of Duke Law Magazine goes to press we are preparing to offer a “hybrid” model for fall classes, with some small courses taught in the building but the majority online, as the best public health projections anticipate that Covid-19 will remain a very serious health threat. Our priority will continue to be to protect the health and safety of our entire community while also providing our students with an excellent learning experience.

Our response to the need to address systemic racism is only just beginning, and it will be a long-term process. We are at a crossroads as a nation, and I think it is important that we take the opportunity as a law school to look critically not only at our legal system but at ourselves. Black students and other students of color have told us about many painful experiences of feeling marginalized in our community. We need to commit ourselves to being worthy of the courage, generosity, and hope that it took to share those stories, and commit ourselves to genuine self-critique and change. As I wrote to Duke Law alumni in June, I want the Law School to be a place where people of all races, genders, and backgrounds can thrive, and I am committed to leading the listening, reflection, and action that are needed to ensure that happens.

It is fitting that this issue of Duke Law Magazine focuses on our clinical program. (Read more, page 34.) Since the first law school clinic in the nation was established at Duke in the 1930s, clinics have enabled students to apply their knowledge and skills to real-life challenges on behalf of clients who are otherwise shut out of the legal system. This has been true even during this pandemic, which has disproportionately affected communities of color and the poor. Even after our clinic offices closed in March, our student-attorneys continued to use their skills to help others. It is one way that we teach students live up to the highest ideals of the legal profession, and prepare them for the next historic challenge to come.

Challenging moments like these often reveal the character of the people who are in the middle of them. The Duke Law community has responded to these challenges with determination, courage, and compassion. We have seen students stepping forward to lead, demand change, and help each other succeed; faculty adapting to new circumstances and imparting their expertise on unsettling events; and staff working around the clock to provide support in response to unprecedented challenges. There have been many difficult days, and there will be more to come. But I am immensely proud to be a member of this community and grateful for its strength and support.

Thank you for your support of Duke Law School.

Warm Regards,

Kerry Abrams

James B. Duke and Benjamin N. Duke Dean and Professor of Law