The 800 Pound Gorilla of the Southwest
Written: Nov 22 '04 (Updated Dec 22 '04)
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Pros: This law school is considered one of the top public law schools in the country.
Cons: It is large enough to get lost in, but has ample resources.
The Bottom Line: UT Law School is considered tops in its region and one of the premiere public law schools. Especially if you have state residency, it's a relative bargain to boot.
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| mht's Full Review: The University of Texas School of Law |
Found in the largest university in America, U. of Texas School of Law is generally considered tops in the southwest region of the country. While the title says gorilla, perhaps it'd be more apropos to call them a "Longhorn" (the school mascot) instead. As a state school, they draw heavily from in-state. At the same time, they can be considered a "national" school in their overall stature.
Living nearby, I've been to the school a bunch of times, and have communicated with a number of faculty, students and staff. I've also studied their website with some depth. Yours truly also has the privilege of serving as a Visiting Scholar.
Serious Research
UT is considered a top-flight research law school. They like to be called the "Harvard of the Southwest". As would be expected from a highly regarded research faculty, the UT law faculty have published copiously. A perusal of the faculty biographical sketches confirms this expectation.
They've Got the Powers
Dean William Powers steers this lawschool powerhouse. A magna cum laude Harvard Law grad., he came to UT after working at UW (Washington, affectionately known as U. Dub). He has been recognized by UT as a Master Teacher, which is not to be taken for granted when there's so much emphasis on research. Dean Powers notes at the end of his CV that he is also an elder at a Presbyterian church.
Big
If you're looking for a small, cozy law school...try again. By law school standards, over 1400 law students is definitely among the largest. Campbell law school, among various examples, is much smaller. So if big scares you, steer clear of this Longhorn.
Leiter or Heavier?
UT Prof. Leiter, a law and philosophy (jurisprudential) scholar, has his own law school rankings. It is based on factors such as quantity of law review publications by faculty. Prof. Leiter, who served recently as a Visiting Professor at Yale Law School, provides much valuable information along with the rankings. For example, he includes things like: a) where faculty have moved (i.e. from Law School A to Law School B) and b) tips on gaining a faculty position. Prof. Leiter taught at U. of San Diego Law School previously and recently turned down an offer from U. Pennsylvania School of Law.
Resources Galore
The University of Texas is loaded. The fact that the UT system, according to a study published by the Chronicle of Higher Education a few years ago, had the 4th largest endowment in the United States sure helps a lot. According to this article, it was #2 behind the University of California in endowment size among state systems overall. UT-Austin is the only law school for the entire UT system. One can contrast this state of affairs with California, which has a number of UC law schools (such as UCLA, Berkeley, Davis).
Connecting Further South
They have a strong Latin American program that has grown in recent years. UT has dedicated an Institute along these lines that has ties with other parts of the University. The Inter-American system itself, under the auspices of the OAS, has grown and developed over the years. Given my own research in this area, this strength is personally appealing.
Hispanic Haven
UT prides itself on being ranked as the #1 law school for hispanics. Located on the edge of Mexico, Texas once was part of Mexico. A hispanic UT student (not law) recently told me that hispanics now constitute a majority in the Lone Star state. Even among the law schools located in areas with heavy hispanic concentration (now the largest minority ethnicity in the entire U.S.), UT was chosen as numero uno. Fluency in Spanish isn't a rare thing at this law school.
C'mon In to the Library
One of the advantages of its size and ample resources is that it has a library that is stocked with one of the best collections around. The art and other decorations in the library are also plentiful.
UT's Library is not only public, it is open to the public. A homeless guy is using it for his appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court. Granted this homeless guy graduated from law school before messing up his life, but the point is, the library is wide open. As a contrast, other law school libraries restrict their usage to students, staff, alumni, profs. or special guests.
I've personally started to use the library for research. Indeed, I'm trying to get a few articles together to send out to academic legal journals. Thus far, the library staff has been quite helpful. For this process, I imagine that at least the bulk of the sources I would rely on can come from the UT Law Library (Tarlton).
Texas-Sized
In Texas, people like to talk about "Texas-size" this and that...whether one is talking about a steak or a pick-up truck. Along these lines, UT Law doesn't disappoint. It is not only Texas-sized literally, but also in the esteem that legal types have for it. While it is an enviable bargain for Texas residents, out-of-state folks may find a lot of bang for the buck in it, most especially if one stays in the Southwest but by no means limited solely to the Sunbelt.
While it still eyes a spot in the consensus Top 10 or 12 (and yes, law schools generally care a bunch about prestige), it is considered somewhere around the top 15 (depending on the ranking system though). That's about where the popular but sometimes protested U.S. News rankings likes to place them (although Prof. Leiter's study certainly disagrees). Regardless, it is widely regarded as a top-flight research law school, worthy of the title "The 800 pound gorilla (or Longhorn) of the Southwest".
Recommended:
Yes
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mht
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Member: Morse Tan, Esq.
Location: Jacksonville, Florida, USA
Reviews written: 115
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