Struggling Law Schools Forced To Experiment

An idea that promised to solve at least some problems plaguing law schools has foundered, in the one top-tier school that tried to carry it out. A two-year JD program – an idea that was endorsed a couple of years ago by law school graduate Barack Obama, among others – has been dropped by Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, because their weren’t enough students who were interested. An article in the New York Times looks at this and numerous other ways that law schools, with mixed results, “are trying to push the boundaries of conventional legal education.” It’s a difficult challenge, with students balking at the required heavy investment of time and money, law firms and corporate legal departments wanting better and more practical training, and professors wanting six figure salaries.