KU News Release

KU law school ranks 10th in nation for hands-on educational opportunities

LAWRENCE — The University of Kansas School of Law ranks 10th in the nation for the number of hands-on educational opportunities available to its students, according to the September issue of National Jurist Magazine.

Using data from the 2008 edition of the “Official Guide to ABA-Approved Law Schools,” the magazine ranked law schools offering the most clinical opportunities.

KU’s School of Law offers spots in clinical courses to 35.7 percent of its full-time students each year. However, with 11 clinics and externships to choose from, all law students who wish to enroll in one of the school’s programs are able to do so at least once.

“The ranking recognizes the diversity of clinical offerings available at KU,” said David Gottlieb, associate dean for clinical programs and professor of law. “Even though we do not have a large student body, we have managed to construct a world-class series of offerings.”

Clinical legal education programs permit law students to develop legal skills and learn professional values in actual practice settings. Clinical courses at KU come in two varieties. The “in-house” programs allow students to represent clients through law school offices under the supervision of full-time faculty and staff attorneys employed by the school. In the externship programs, students work for attorneys, judges or legislators. Externships also include a classroom component taught by a KU faculty member.

“I really think we are unusual in our diversity,” Gottlieb said. “We have students working in legislative offices, in courts, as defenders, as prosecutors, for small business entities and for those regulating business entities. Students can work under the supervision of faculty in the building or under the supervision of attorneys for government and nonprofit agencies. They can help others in the community or in places like New Orleans.”

A student in the Criminal Prosecution Clinic assisted the Franklin County Attorney’s Office with a child sex case in which the prosecution won one of the country’s first jury convictions under Jessica’s Law, which mandates a minimum sentence of 25 years for first-time child sex offenders.

A student in the Legislative Clinic helped Kansas lawmakers understand the impact a hotly contested immigration reform bill would have on the labor force and accessibility to public services such as shelters and clinics.

And students in the Family Health Care Legal Services Clinic assisted two indigent clients with divorces that allowed them to move from abusive situations to safe environments.

Similar success stories have come from the law school’s eight other clinics and externships: the Paul E. Wilson Defender Project, the Elder Law Externship, the Externship Clinic, the Judicial Clerkship Clinic, the Legal Aid Clinic, the Media Law Clinic, the Public Policy Clinic and the Tribal Judicial Support Clinic.

In addition to the immediate community impact and educational benefits of their work, the students’ efforts pay off when they leave law school.

“Students have made contacts that have been invaluable in securing future employment,” Gottlieb said. “Just as important, if not more, the experience helps students decide on the career paths that make sense, or do not make sense, in their lives.”

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The University of Kansas is a major comprehensive research and teaching university. University Relations is the central public relations office for KU's Lawrence campus.