University of Alabama School of Law

University of Alabama School of Law
Parent school	University of Alabama
Established	1872
School type	Public
Dean	Mark E. Brandon [1]
Location	Tuscaloosa, Alabama, U.S. 33°12′39″N 87°32′46″W / 33.210941°N 87.546186°WCoordinates: 33°12′39″N 87°32′46″W / 33.210941°N 87.546186°W
Enrollment	520 (approx.)
Faculty	50 full-time; 40 adjunct
USNWR ranking	28 [2]
Bar pass rate	97% (Official ABA Data)
Website	www.law.ua.edu
ABA profile

The University of Alabama School of Law (also known as Alabama Law) located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama is a nationally ranked top-tier law school (First Tier) ^[3] and the only public law school in the state. In total, it is one of five law schools in the state, and one of three that are ABA accredited. According to Alabama's official 2013 ABA-required disclosures, 70.5% of the Class of 2013 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required employment nine months after graduation.^[4]

The diverse student body, of approximately 520, represent 174 undergraduate institutions from 23 states and Canada. Of the incoming class of 2012, approximately 40% were female and 15% were minority students.^[5]

Academics

The School of Law offers the Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree, as well as an International LL.M., an LL.M. in Taxation, and an LL.M. in Business Transactions. A joint J.D./M.B.A. program is also available. Students may also pursue a number of graduate degrees through established dual enrollment programs for M.A. or Ph.D. in Political Science, M.P.A., Ph.D. in Economics, or LL.M. in Taxation. In addition, a Certificate in Public Interest Law is available through the Public Interest Institute.

Admissions have become increasingly selective with the median LSAT and undergrad GPAs, of the 2013 incoming class, reaching 164 and 3.86, respectively. The 75% to 25% range for these metrics was from 166-157 and 3.94 to 3.42.^[6]

Law clinics

Students are guaranteed an opportunity to participate in at least one of the school's seven law clinics.^[7]

• Capital Defense Clinic provide assistance to counsel in capital cases.
• Civil Law Clinic handles over 200 cases a year.
• Community Development Clinic helps community organizations with everything from tax exemption to licensing requirements.
• Criminal Defense Clinic defends over 100 indigent clients a year through the Public Defender's Office.
• Domestic Violence Clinic provides free legal aid in civil matters such as divorce, custody, orders for protection from abuse.
• Elder Law Clinic represents seniors over 60 in a range of matters including Medicare/Medicaid, durable powers of attorney, protection from abuse, etc.
• Mediation Law Clinic trains students to mediate and settle family-related legal disputes.

Publications

In 2007 Jarvis & Coleman ranked the Alabama Law Review (ALR) 36th "on the basis of the prominence of their lead article authors."^[8] This represents an incredible 63 position improvement from the rankings of ten years prior. A year before, ExpressO, UC Berkeley's manuscript submission service, ranked the ALR at 22nd, in terms of "number of manuscripts received."^[9] Washington and Lee's methods rank ALR significantly lower at 57th, by the number of citations from other journals, and 75th according to their composite scoring.^[10] However, these too show a significant improvement of 41 and 47 positions, respectively, over the preceding 6 years.

• Alabama Civil Rights & Civil Liberties Law Review^[11]
• Alabama Law Review^[12]
• Journal of the Legal Profession^[13]
• Law & Psychology Review^[14]

Approximately 40% of students graduate with journal experience. This is a slightly lower percentage than many of Alabama's peer schools, but nonetheless above the national average.

Employment

According to Alabama's official 2013 ABA-required disclosures, 70.5% of the Class of 2013 obtained full-time, long-term, JD-required employment nine months after graduation.^[4] Alabama's Law School Transparency under-employment score is 8.4%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2013 unemployed, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short-term, or part-time job nine months after graduation.^[15]

ABA Employment Summary for 2013 Graduates [16]
Employment Status			Percentage
Employed - Bar Passage Required			72.29%
Employed - J.D. Advantage			16.27%
Employed - Professional Position			1.2%
Employed - Non-Professional Position			3.01%
Employed - Undeterminable			0.0%
Pursuing Graduate Degree Full Time			2.41%
Unemployed - Start Date Deferred			0.1%
Unemployed - Not Seeking			1.81%
Unemployed - Seeking			1.2%
Employment Status Unknown			1.81%
Total of 166 Graduates

Costs

The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at Alabama for the 2013-2014 academic year is $24,060 for residents and $37,810 for nonresidents.^[17] The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $151,398 for residents and $206,077 for nonresidents.^[18]

Notable alumni

• Mo Brooks, United States Representative from Alabama's 5th congressional district (2011–present)^[19]
• Edward B. Almon, United States Representative from Alabama (1915–1933)^[20]
• James B. Allen, United States Senator from Alabama (1969–1978)^[21]
• Mel Allen, sportscaster best known as the "Voice of the New York Yankees" and first host of This Week in Baseball^[22]
• John W. Abercrombie, United States Congressman from Alabama (1913–1917) and President of the University of Alabama (1902–1911)^[23]
• Spencer Bachus, United States Congressman from Alabama's 6th Congressional District (1993–present)^[24]
• Samuel A. Beatty, Associate Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court (1976-1989)
• Hugo Black, U.S. Senator, Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, (1937-1971)^[25]
• Emmett Ripley Cox, United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit,^[26]
• Catherine Crosby, Miss Alabama 2003
• Morris Dees, Southern Poverty Law Center founder
• Paul DeMarco, Alabama Representative
• Mark Everett Fuller (J.D., in 1985), Federal Judge.^[27]
• Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat for Humanity
• Perry O. Hooper, Sr., 27th chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court^[28]
• Frank Minis Johnson, United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit^[29]
• Maud McLure Kelly, first woman to practice law in Alabama^[30]
• Claude R. Kirk, Jr., (Class of 1949) former governor of Florida
• Bert Nettles (Class of 1960), Republican member of the Alabama House of Representatives from 1969 to 1974 from Mobile; lawyer in Birmingham^[31]
• Shorty Price, perennial candidate for Governor of Alabama
• Bill Baxley, former Attorney General and Lieutenant Governor of Alabama, and noted Civil Rights lawyer^[32]
• Jeff Sessions, U.S. Senator^[33]
• Steadman S. Shealy, starting quarterback on Alabama's 1978 and 1979 national championship teams^[34]
• Robert Smith Vance, United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit^[35]
• George Wallace, former governor of Alabama^[36]

References

1. http://www.law.ua.edu/blog/news/brandon-named-dean-of-alabama-law/
2. http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandreviews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/university-of-alabama-03001
3. "Best Graduate Schools; University of Alabama". US News & World Report. Retrieved 2011-05-14.
4. "Employment Statistics" (PDF).
5. "Quick Facts". UA School of Law. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
6. "The University of Alabama School of Law, ABA Law School Data" (PDF). ABA. Retrieved 2014-07-23.
7. "Academics; Law Clinics". The University of Alabama School of Law. Retrieved 2010-08-28.
8. "Ranking Law Reviews by Author Prominence -- Ten Years Later" (PDF). Law Library Journal. p. 577.
9. "2006 Top 100 Law Reviews". Bepress.
10. "Law Journals: Submissions and Ranking". Washington and Lee University School of Law.
11. "Alabama Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Law Review". University of Alabama School of Law. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
12. "Alabama Law Review". University of Alabama School of Law. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
13. "Journal of the Legal Profession". University of Alabama School of Law. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
14. "Law & Psychology Review". University of Alabama School of Law. Retrieved 13 October 2015.
15. "University of Alabama Profile".
16. "ABA School Employment Summary Reports".
17. "Tuition and Expenses".
18. "University of Alabama Profile".
19. "Mo Brooks". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
20. "Edward B. Almon". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
21. "James Allen". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
22. "Mel Allen". NNDB Soylent Communications. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
23. "John W. Abercrombie". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
24. "Spencer Bachus". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
25. "Hugo Black". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
26. "Emmett Ripley Cox". Biographical Directory of Federal Judges. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
27. "Fuller, Mark E.". United States Federal Courts. 2008. Retrieved 2008-05-17.
28. "[Perry O. Hooper, Sr.". Alabama Department of Archives and History. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
29. "Frank Minis Johnson". Alabama Department of Archives and History. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
30. Pruitt, Paul McWhorter, Jr. (March 13, 2007). "Maud McLure Kelly". Encyclopedia of Alabama. Retrieved February 29, 2016.
31. "Oral History Interview with Bert Nettles, July 13, 1974". docsouth.unc.edu. Retrieved May 27, 2014.
32. "Bill Baxley". NNDB Soylent Communications. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
33. "Jeff Sessions". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
34. "Steadman S. Shealy". Shealy, Crum & Pike, P.C. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
35. "Robert Smith Vance". Biographical Directory of Federal Judges. Retrieved 15 December 2012.
36. "George Wallace". National Governors Association. Retrieved 15 December 2012.

External links

• Official website