LAW SCHOOL PROFILE
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University of Wisconsin Law School, Madison, WI [By Heather Jung] Established in 1868, University of Wisconsin Law School has a simple motto: law in action. According to Dean Kenneth Davis, the phrase refers to examining how new ideas and theories will affect us. The phrase was not coined at the school but, rather, in 1910 by then-dean of Harvard Law School Roscoe Pound. The philosophy permeates everything at the law school, from the classrooms to the clinical programs to the methods of teaching.
“Our rich ‘law-in-action’ tradition is an
Princeton Review) allows faculty to work closely
action method of learning. Dean Davis said
important part of who we are, and it will
with students and affords students the help and
he regularly hears from employers that
remain an important part of who we
attention they need.
students from the law school “seem better prepared to ‘hit the ground running’ than
become,” Davis said. “It is still flourishing and developing after all these years, and it
The law-in-action approach spills over onto
occupies a central position in our strategic
Wisconsin Law School’s clinical and skills-
plan. ‘Law in action’ gives us the focus to
training programs. Paired with what they learn
This is made evident by the class of 2005’s
confront the challenge of remaining one
in class, the information and skills students
93% employment rate. (Of the remaining
of the nation’s preeminent law schools.
gain from these hands-on programs make
7%, only 1% were unemployed, with 6% not
With your help, we will continue building
them well-rounded lawyers. Available clinics
seeking employment because they were in
our national reputation for excellence and
include (but are definitely not limited to):
grad school, raising families, or preparing
our commitment to the ‘law-in-action’ philosophy. It is a philosophy that has served
•
Persons (LAIP), the school’s largest
UW Law School graduates well over the past
clinical project, in which students work
century, and it is one that may prove even
with faculty members to provide legal
more relevant for tomorrow’s graduates
guidance to people incarcerated in
as they face an increasingly complex,
Wisconsin’s federal and state prisons.
competitive, and challenging world.” The law-in-action philosophy is most evident
•
who have completed their first year
curriculum. Classes go beyond surface
are chosen in a competitive application
knowledge, teaching students how the law
process. The program requires a
can both cause and reflect social change.
year-long commitment. Students
First-year classes teach the basics of the
assist incarcerated clients with family
law, while second- and third-year classes
concerns (such as divorce and child-
allow students to further explore the
custody cases) as well as “victim-
curriculum and hone the lawyering skills of
initiated communication involving felony
good attorneys.
curriculum, the school employs nationally renowned faculty whose diverse background and experience provide students with new ideas and ways of thinking with regard to stem-cell research, death row, and other controversial topics. Faculty members have worked with
The Family Law Project-Restorative Justice Project, through which students
in Wisconsin’s approach to its law school
In order to facilitate its law-in-action-based
Legal Assistance to Institutionalized
offenders and their victims.” •
The Innocence Project, which allows students, under the supervision of faculty members, to investigate and litigate claims of innocence from people incarcerated in prisons in Wisconsin and other states.
their counterparts.”
for the bar exam.) Of those employed, 57% were working in private practice, earning, on average, $89,666 per year. In the U.S. News & World Report’s 2008 listing of the top law schools in the country, the University of Wisconsin was ranked 31st. In 2006, the entering class (the class of 2009) had an average LSAT score of 161 and a median GPA of 3.53. The 283 admitted students represented 119 undergraduate institutions. In his letter to prospective students, Davis stresses the importance of the school’s location. As the capital city of Wisconsin, Madison affords students access to the state legislature as well as state and federal courts and an abundance of legal offices. On the Net University of Wisconsin Law School law.wisc.edu Law in Action law.wisc.edu/Davislawinactionessay.htm
members of Congress to draft legislation and
When they graduate, students are armed
with the European Union on monetary policy. A
with the practical, hands-on knowledge
City of Madison, Wisconsin
low student-faculty ratio (13:1 according to The
they have acquired through the law-in-
www.ci.madison.wi.us
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