Subject: Formal Proposal for a New
Graduate Degree – Law J.D.
Binghamton University has begun the process of amending its master plan to
include first professional degrees. That
amendment is a logical and necessary step in the maturation of a public
doctoral research university with the mission to serve the public good
regionally, state-wide and nationally and that already has obtained a record of
academic excellence nationally and internationally. This step is in keeping with the MOU signed
with SUNY-system and in line with the 2007 New York State Commission on Higher
Education.
Specifically,
Binghamton University has proposed adding a law
school. The University has done considerable research on this idea, including
working with a consultant (a former law school dean recommended to us by the
American Bar Association), consulting with several administrators in public law
schools in the northeastern USA, and consulting with all of the
constituencies.
Adding
a law school now is the right move for Binghamton.
The primary reasons are: 1) It meets the university’s needs because it will
enhance and expand the university’s and the community’s intellectual richness,
2) it meets the central New York region’s needs because it will add
significantly to community public services through outreach activities and
substantially boost economic development, and 3) it meets New York State’s and
the nation’s needs because it will provide excellent and affordable legal
training, which will allow its graduates to consider employment in the public
sector and, in turn, draw talented and diverse individuals to public sector
work. Binghamton University’s goal is to provide an
excellent law program that develops leaders in the profession who, because
their education is affordable, can make choices about where in the legal
community they want to be leaders.
It
is not the University’s intent to create a large law school but rather a law
school with steady-state enrollment of about 550. Confirmed in the
administration’s consultations with current and former law school
administrators, this size is likely to maximize student-faculty interactions
and, thus, foster the intellectual and professional excellence that Binghamton University desires. By creating a
brand-new school, Binghamton
will be able to design at the outset a curriculum that rigorously integrates
the core of legal education with the set of professionalization skills required
of lawyers today, and so a curriculum aligned with the recommendations of the
recent Carnegie Foundation 2006 report on reform in legal education (Sullivan
et al.’s Educating Lawyers). In addition, Binghamton University
already has numerous faculty whose research interests involve them in legal
issues and the legal community and, thus, who will be a natural complement to
the law school. The University is confident that, in creating a brand-new
school, it will be able to hire an outstanding dean, faculty and staff who are
inspired by the opportunity to build a law school within this framework.
The
Letter of Intent to Propose a New Graduate Degree – Law J.D. was submitted on
3-17-08. The LOI provides additional rationale and market analysis.
The
following document (“formal proposal”) describes the degree program that the
law school would offer.
Appendix A: Cover
Sheet
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A. Name of institution:
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Binghamton University
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B. Campus President or Chief Academic Officer
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Name and title:
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Lois DeFleur, President
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Signature and date:
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C. Contact person, if
different
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Name and title:
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Mary Ann Swain, Provost & Vice
President
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Telephone :
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607-777-2141
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Fax:
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607-777-4831
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E-mail:
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mswain@binghamton.edu
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D. Proposed program title:
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Law J.D.
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E. Proposed degree or other award:
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Juris doctorate
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F. Proposed HEGIS
code:
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1401.00
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G. Total
program credits: 88
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H. If the program will be offered jointly with another
institution…: N.A.
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I. If the program will lead
to teacher certification as other than a classroom teacher, …: N.A.
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J.
If specialized accreditation will be sought indicate:
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Accrediting
group: American Bar Association
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Expected
date of accreditation: 2013
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K.
Anticipated enrollment:
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Initial:
115
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Maximum within first five
years: 550
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L.
If this program will be offered in a special format, please specify: N.A.
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M.
If this program will be offered in an atypical schedule …: N.A.
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N.
Brief Program Summary (max 300 words), describing academic content, structure
and duration.
Academic content: Proficiency
in law will be attained through classroom study, research and practicum.
Students will take core courses, such as constitutional law, contracts,
property law, torts, civil procedure, and legal writing. They may elect
specialized courses in fields such as tax, labor, corporate, international,
intellectual property, business, environmental, municipal and health law.
Because Legal Research and Writing has grown in
stature in the past decade, this will be introduced in the first year, with
additional offerings in subsequent semesters. Simulation courses will include
interviewing, counseling, negotiating and “alternative dispute resolution” or
mediation skills. Live client clinical opportunities will be offered in-house.
A set number of pro-bono service hours will be required for graduation.
Structure: Students will
generally enroll fulltime and complete the degree in three years. During the
first year, or year and a half, students will take core courses, such as
constitutional law, contracts, property law, torts, civil procedure, and
legal writing. In the remaining time,
they may elect specialized courses in fields such as tax, labor, corporate,
international, intellectual property, business, environmental, municipal and
health law. As per the American Bar Association’s Survey of Law School Curricula, credit
hours required for graduation will be 88 units, with at least half in the
required curriculum.
Duration: 3 years for full-time students;
approximately 5-6 years for part-time students.
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B. Document
Describing the Proposed Program
B.1. Full description of program
B.1-a. Purpose: To prepare graduates to lead efforts in public and/or
private practice of law.
B.1-b. Content and Structure
Content: The specific curriculum and graduation requirements of
the law school will be set by the founding dean and faculty and aligned with
the accreditation requirements of the American Bar Association (ABA). The
required courses will include contracts, torts, criminal law, constitutional
law, civil procedure, real property, legal research and writing, professional
responsibility and an advanced writing seminar or project. In addition, the J.D. program will require
classroom instruction in legal history, philosophy, public policy and
international and comparative legal perspectives, though that instruction may
take place in the context of other courses, rather than stand-alone courses. Law students will be required to satisfy a
community service requirement and to complete a substantial experiential
learning course, such as an in-house clinic, credit-bearing internship, or
simulation offering.
Ethics Training: Ethics training
will be imbedded in courses and experiential learning through thoughtful
integration and scaffolding across the curriculum.
Structure: Students will achieve the learning outcomes by
completing a rigorous required and elective curriculum, totaling 88 credit
hours over three years of study, that combines traditional law school
instruction in core subjects; practical and professional skills training in
clinical, internship simulation and class settings; challenging instruction in
legal research and writing through first-year and advanced writing classes and
seminars; and opportunities for study of the historical, philosophical and
policy underpinnings of the law; and international and comparative perspectives
on U.S. law.
B.1-c. Prospective catalog course
descriptions.
The curriculum will be
aligned with accreditation requirements of the American Bar Association and
best practice recommendations of the Carnegie Foundation 2006 report on reform
in legal education (Sullivan et el.’s Educating Lawyers). However, detailed
descriptions must await the arrival and agreement of the founding dean and
faculty.
Required courses: General descriptions of the required courses that the
law program will offer are provided below, and the total will be a minimum of
44 credits in the 88-credit degree program.
Contracts: A one or two
semester offering aggregating four to six units in which the students study
basic contract principles and remedies, both at common law and under the
Uniform Commercial Code.
Torts: A one or two semester
offering aggregating four to six units in which the students study common law
and statutory principles dealing with the resolution and recompense of civil
wrongs, including those stemming from negligent, reckless and intentional
misconduct and from the concept of strict liability.
Criminal Law: A one semester
offering aggregating three or four units in which the students study the
principles of criminal culpability.
Constitutional Law: A one or
two semester offering aggregating four to six units in which the students study
the United States Constitution, particularly its assignment and reservation of
powers and rights among the federal government, the states and the people.
Civil Procedure: A one or two
semester offering aggregating four to six units in which the students study the
procedural rules that govern the resolution of disputes in the trial courts, as
well as principles of alternative dispute resolution.
Real Property: A one or two
semester offering aggregating four to six units in which the students study the
common law and statutory rules governing the ownership and conveyance of
different sorts of interests in real estate.
Legal Research and Writing: A
two or three semester offering aggregating between five and nine units in which
the students hone their writing skills by drafting legal documents of various
types, learn to do effective legal research and develop their advocacy skills
through a moot court experience.
Professional Responsibility:
A second or third year required course of either two or three units in which
the student learns the rules of professional responsibility that govern lawyers
in their professional relationships.
In addition to these required
courses, the law program will offer a range of elective courses, to be
determined by the dean and founding faculty.
It will also offer
experiential training through an in-house clinical program, in which
upper-level students practice law under faculty supervision in the
representation of real clients who otherwise would lack legal representation;
through simulation classes, such as trial advocacy, client counseling and
negotiation, in which students simulate various roles that lawyers have in public
and private practice; and through internship placements, in which students earn
academic credit for well-supervised placements in quality law offices,
primarily in the public sector. These courses will be offered for 4-6 units,
with a maximum of 20 units counting toward the 88 credits required for
graduation.
Program requirements beyond specific
courses:
Advanced Writing Requirement: Students will be expected to complete a second or
third year writing experience in which the student demonstrates his or her
mastery of legal research and writing through a major writing project in
connection with a seminar, internship, independent study, moot court, law
review or other supervised writing experience.
Experiential Placement Requirement: Students will be expected to complete a substantial
experiential placement. That requirement may be satisfied via participation in
an in-house clinical program or through internship placements.
Community Service Requirement: Students will be expected to complete a community
service requirement to be developed by the faculty.
All of the above courses and
experiential training will be aligned with accreditation requirements of the
American Bar Association.
B.1-d. Requirements for admission to the program
Standard admission: Admission to the program is competitive, with
admissions decisions made by an admissions committee based on criteria to be
developed and approved by the law faculty.
Those criteria are expected to include, among other things, educational
performance and accomplishments, performance on the law school admission test
(LSAT), significant experience in the workplace, community service
contributions, extracurricular activities and interests, letters of
recommendation, and a statement of the reasons for the applicant’s interest in
pursing a program of legal education. To be eligible to apply, an applicant
must have received (or expect to receive prior to law school matriculation) a
bachelor’s degree and a score on the law school admission test (LSAT).
Combined degrees program: Highly qualified undergraduate students at Binghamton University will be eligible to apply and
gain admission in the law J.D. program under a multi-award program. Students in
the accelerated law program must choose a major that, along with general
education courses, can be completed in three years at Binghamton University.
Under this procedure, electing students who are selected may begin in the J.D.
program after three years of undergraduate education, using their first year of
law school work to complete their bachelor’s degree at the Binghamton University.
Of course, Binghamton
students who choose not to apply in this way may seek admission to the J.D.
program in the regular way. Details of the specific combined degrees programs
will be provided in a subsequent, separate application to SUNY through the “multi-award”
registration process.
Dual degrees programs: A joint JD-MBA program at
Binghamton University would be attractive to many
potential students. Other possible joint degrees would be JD-MPA (Public
Administration at Binghamton University specializes in community and not-for
profit organizations), JD-MSW (Social Work provides a generalist foundation)
and JD-MS Nursing (Nursing at Binghamton
University includes a
specialization in Nurse Administrator). Details
of the specific dual degrees programs will be provided in a subsequent,
separate application to SUNY through the “multi-award” registration process.
B.1-e. Requirements for degree completion
To graduate, a student must be
admitted to the law school, complete all required courses (described above),
complete the community service requirement, complete the experiential learning
requirement and have earned a total of 88 hours that are creditable towards his
or her law degree. Most grades will be reported using the standard procedure of
law schools, with grades ranging from A to F.
Some courses will only be graded as Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory; and after
the first year, a student may elect to take two courses as S/U, excluding those
that only have that grading procedure. A student receiving D+ or below in a
first-year course must either repeat the course or take a course designated by
the dean of students to remedy the gap in the student’s legal education. A
student will be disqualified from the J.D. program for scholastic deficiency:
a) if at the end of the first year of the law program or any subsequent
semester, the student’s cumulative grade-point average is less than 2.30, or b)
if in the judgment of the faculty, the student’s work at any time is markedly
unsatisfactory (e.g., in each of two successive semesters, the GPA per semester
is below 2.30). The requirements described above are fairly typical of law
schools.
B.2.
SAMPLE SEMESTER BY SEMESTER BREAKDOWN OF COURSES TO BE TAKEN (SEE APPENDIX F)
B.3. LIST OF COURSES TO BE TAUGHT IN FIRST THREE
YEARS
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Course list
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Fall
1st yr
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Spring 1st yr
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Fall 2nd yr
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Spring 2nd yr
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Fall 3rd yr
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Spring 3rd yr
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Contracts – part A
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x
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x
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x
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Contracts – part B
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x
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x
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x
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Civil procedure – part A
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x
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x
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x
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Civil procedure – part B
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x
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x
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x
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Research & writing – part A
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x
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x
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x
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Research & writing – part B
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x
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x
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x
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Real property
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x
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x
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x
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Torts
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x
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x
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x
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Criminal law
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x
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x
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x
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Constitutional law
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x
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x
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x
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Evidence
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x
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x
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Criminal procedure
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x
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x
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Comparative law
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x
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Trust & estates
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x
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Administrative law
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x
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x
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Business association
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x
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x
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Copyright & trade
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