Clear Admit Law Admissions Portal » School: Tulane

Tulane Law School Blog Highlights New Orleans’ Courts

wplawadmin — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 16:00:17 +0000

In a recent post to the Tulane Law School blog, Assistant Director of Judicial Clerkships, Katie O’Leary, gave an overview of the many clerkship opportunities in Louisiana. While she pointed out that Tulane has many alumni around the country in judge positions, all of whom potential clerkship opportunities for Tulane students, O’Leary’s main focus was on the many courts located within a reasonable distance of Tulane campus. New Orleans, O’Leary points out, is home to the US District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, the US Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the Louisiana Supreme Court. O’Leary went on to say that “Tulane students are encouraged to witness our judicial process at work by observing arguments and trials as they happen, volunteering as summer judicial interns or receiving class credit through the Law School’s judicial externship program.” She also referred to a number of additional opportunities for students to interact with or encounter judges through a number of conferences in the city, including the Association of Administrative Law Judges Education conference planned for October.

Louisiana’s Law School Clinics in the Clear, State Senate Bill 549 Defeated

wplawadmin — Fri, 21 May 2010 17:00:35 +0000

Earlier this week, a bill that would prohibit all university law school clinics in Louisiana that receive state funding from suing private defendants for damages, challenging the state constitution, and filing suits against government organizations was rejected by a state Senate committee. Not a single vote was cast in favor of the bill, which was presented by Senator Robert Adley and heavily supported by lobbyists from the oil and chemical industries. If passed, the bill would have limited access to free legal services for many low-income Louisiana residents and would have made it more difficult for law schools to provide a well-rounded legal education.

Tulane University Law School was a specific target of the bill as a result of numerous suits filed by students participating in its Environmental Law Clinic. Interim Dean of the law school, Stephen Griffin said that if the bill were passed over half of Tulane’s law clinics would be shut down. In 1997, the clinic sued to block construction of a Shintech plastics plant in a poverty-stricken neighborhood of St. James Parish. While students didn’t get a victory in the courtroom, Shintech did relocate the plant to Baton Rouge. More recently, the Tulane clinic brought a suit against the US EPA and Louisiana state regulators that would oblige them to impose clean air regulations in the state’s capital. An amendment restricting Bill 549 to the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic was proposed but never adopted.

Carolyn Lamm, ABA President and an adamant supporter of the Louisiana law students who provided free legal services to the public, spoke out against the bill. In a May 12 statement she urged “the state legislature to consider that these law clinics represent the people of Louisiana who have very real and immediate problems but few resources to solve them. Depriving the poorest citizens of these vital services is an affront to their dignity, and for many, diminishes their very means of survival.” While Louisiana’s law clinics may be in the clear at the moment, law school clinics in Maryland, Michigan and New Jersey face similar challenges.

Tulane Law Names David Meyer Dean

wplawadmin — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 13:00:15 +0000

Last week Tulane University Law School announced that David Meyer will become the program’s 22^nd dean, beginning July 1.

A constitutional and family law scholar, Meyer is currently associate dean for academic affairs and a professor at the University of Illinois College of Law. As a student at the University of Michigan Law School, Meyer was the editor-in-chief of the program’s Law Review. Following graduation, he clerked at the U.S. Court of Appeals and for Justice Byron T. White on the U.S. Supreme Court.

Stephen Griffin, another constitutional law professor, has served as Tulane Law’s interim dean since July 2009 and said the appointment marks “a major step forward” for the law school. Tulane President Scott Cowen said Meyer’s selection was the end-result of a national search for an internationally renowned-scholar.

“(Meyer) also has vast experience working directly with students and external constituencies, something we feel is vital in shaping the future course of our nationally ranked law program,” Cowen said in the school’s press release.