Brooklyn Law School
Encyclopedia
Brooklyn Law School is a law school
located in Brooklyn Heights, in Downtown Brooklyn
, New York
.
The year began with five students and ended with 28. In late 1901, the Board of Regents of the State of New York granted a charter to the Law School. The Law School became fully accredited by the American Bar Association through the Council of its Section on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar, and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. The Law School’s curriculum is registered with and approved by the New York State Education Department. Within one year, Brooklyn Law School’s enrollment had increased to 112.
From its earliest days, Brooklyn Law School opened its door to minorities, women, and immigrants, and it offered night classes for those with full-time jobs. Dean Richardson also allowed students who had trouble paying tuition to remain enrolled on credit. The school moved twice between 1901 and 1928, when it finally moved into the first building designed and built specifically for it on Pearl Street in downtown Brooklyn
. Though the school lacked a campus, dormitories, and a cafeteria, students could engage in a wide range of extracurricular activities.
World War II
struck Brooklyn Law School especially hard, and by 1943, enrollment was down to 174 students. St. Lawrence University
, which until then operated Brooklyn Law School and conferred its degrees, decided to shut down the school. Prominent alumni were galvanized into action and negotiated the repurchase of the school’s assets, ensuring that Brooklyn Law School would operate as an independent institution.
Similarly, the school repoted that 41% of 2006 graduates worked for firms of more than 100 lawyers. However, the 2007 Journal article pointed out that this percentage included temporary attorneys, who work on a contract basis - often for hourly wages and no benefits. Joan King, director of the school's career center, said the number of Brooklyn graduates who were contract attorneys was "minimal" but declined to give the Journal a number.
However, Joan King is regularly attacked on websites such as www.temporaryattorney.blogspot.com for exaggerating BLS job prospects and results.
The nine-month employment rate for the Class of 2009 was 91.3%. The median starting salary for graduates who reported their salary information to the law school was $160,000 at firms with more than 250 attorneys, $150,000 at firms with more than 100 attorneys but fewer than 250, $118,500 at firms with up to 100 attorneys, $81,250 for corporations, and $62,300 for judicial clerks. 54.5% of BLS '09 graduates found work at law firms and 47% at firms with more than 100 attorneys.
These "official" results from BLS admininistrators are not audited and widely disputed by BLS graduates, especially on the various temp attorney websites.
Brooklyn Law School’s academic and administrative buildings and ten student residences are located in Brooklyn Heights Historical District, across the Brooklyn Bridge
from Manhattan
, where many federal and state courts and corporate and public interest law offices are located.
Brooklyn Law School’s main academic building at 250 Joralemon Street houses classrooms, faculty offices, a conference center, dining hall, and a four-story law library with 550,000 volumes. The office building across the street at One Boerum Place houses many of the law school’s clinics, the student journals, the bookstore, and administrative offices.
Brooklyn Law School guarantees housing in its residences to all entering students, about 550 in all. The largest residence is Feil Hall, a 21-story building at 205 State Street. Designed by noted architect Robert A. M. Stern, Dean of the Yale School of Architecture, it accommodates about 360 students in 239 furnished apartments of varying sizes and includes a conference center and café.
All the student residences are within a short walk of the main building. In addition to Feil Hall, the law school owns and operates nine other residences, a combination of brownstones and apartment buildings, in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood.
The Law School is home to several well-known scholars, including torts expert Aaron Twerski
, who holds the Irwin and Jill Cohen Professor of Law Chair at the school and Rose L. Hoffer Professor of Law Elizabeth Schneider, an expert on gender, law and civil procedure. Both were highly ranked in Brian Leiter
’s survey of “Most Cited Law Professors by Specialty."
Other notables include professors Roberta Karmel who writes regular columns for The New York Law Journal, and Susan Herman, who is the president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
In recent years, the law school has hired a number of new junior faculty members whose work draws on a variety of influences to contribute scholarship in areas as diverse as copyfraud to law and religion, international business law, land use planning, and the secondary mortgage market.
All four student journals select new members based on writing ability and academic achievement. Each journal selects members by the membership competition submissions and grades received during the first year of law school. Each journal requires that its members be in the top 75% of their class.
to international law.
In 2011, BLS took home top international, national, and regional titles. Its teams won first place in the Irving R. Kaufman Memorial Moot Court Competition, were first place Champions in the Domenick L. Gabrielli National Family Law Competition, Semi-Finalists in the New York Region of the New York City Bar National Moot Court Competition, Semi-Finalists in the Phillip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (Students won Third Best Brief and Sixth Best Oralist), Semi-Finalists in the National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition (Students won Best Oralists in the Preliminary Rounds), Semi-Finalists in the Evan A. Evans Constitutional Law Moot Court Competition, were Semi-Finalists for the Navy JAG Corps Moot Court Competition, and Semi-Finalists in the Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition.
Brooklyn Law School offers students over 190 courses and seminars in the law.
The program facilitates specialized study in three subject areas: business law, intellectual property law, and refugee and immigration law.
in Los Angeles
, sponsors two summer abroad programs each year. Students study international and comparative law for two or three weeks in one of two locations: Beijing or Bologna.
Each year, the Law School selects two students to attend Bucerius Law School
during the fall semester while two Bucerius students study at Brooklyn Law School. The Bucerius Law School Program in International and Comparative Business Law is designed to develop and expand students' understanding of the forces that shape international business law and offers a unique opportunity to gain first-hand knowledge of German, European, and international law. Courses are taught in English by a combination of American law school professors and international professors of law.
The University of Essex exchange program allows two Brooklyn Law School students every semester to study at the University of Essex
while two English
students are chosen to study at the Law School for a full academic year. The focus of the program is on international human rights and European Union law.
Brooklyn Law School's exchange program with University College Cork (UCC) gives two Brooklyn Law School students each semester the opportunity to study at UCC, a college founded in 1845 with a Law Faculty that is the largest department in the University. Two Cork students spend an academic year at the Law School. Brooklyn Law School students have the ability to learn many legal subjects from an Irish law perspective, as well as many topics from an international and comparative stance.
Two Brooklyn Law School students have the option of studying in Hong Kong for a semester in exchange for two Hong Kong University students attending Brooklyn Law School for the year. Due to China's rapid social and economic development and Hong Kong's location in the Pacific Rim, the program courses focus mostly on Chinese commercial law, human-rights law and international corporate and financial law. Except for some courses offered in the LL.M. program (e.g., Chinese Law), the course instruction is in English.
Brooklyn Law School recently added this program to allow students to study law in Spanish from a Civil Law system perspective. The program highlights courses in tax law, law and economics, business law, law and finance, criminal law, and law and public policy.
Two Brooklyn Law School students in their second year also have the new opportunity to attend Tel Aviv University
, home of the Cegla Center for Interdisciplinary Research of the Law, in the Spring semester. Students will be able to take a variety of courses touching upon international and comparative law, as well as the option to study Hebrew.
Brooklyn Law School’s numerous student led organizations reflect the diversity of the student body.
Student Organizations Include:
New York City°N date=June 2009°W
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...
located in Brooklyn Heights, in Downtown Brooklyn
Downtown Brooklyn
Downtown Brooklyn is the third largest central business district in New York City , and is located in the northwestern section of the borough of Brooklyn...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
.
History
Founded in 1901 by William Payson Richardson and Norman P. Heffley, Brooklyn Law School was the first law school on Long Island. Using space provided by Heffley’s business school, the law school opened Sept. 30, 1901 with five faculty members (including Richardson as dean and Heffley as president) and two special lecturers.The year began with five students and ended with 28. In late 1901, the Board of Regents of the State of New York granted a charter to the Law School. The Law School became fully accredited by the American Bar Association through the Council of its Section on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar, and is a member of the Association of American Law Schools. The Law School’s curriculum is registered with and approved by the New York State Education Department. Within one year, Brooklyn Law School’s enrollment had increased to 112.
From its earliest days, Brooklyn Law School opened its door to minorities, women, and immigrants, and it offered night classes for those with full-time jobs. Dean Richardson also allowed students who had trouble paying tuition to remain enrolled on credit. The school moved twice between 1901 and 1928, when it finally moved into the first building designed and built specifically for it on Pearl Street in downtown Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. Though the school lacked a campus, dormitories, and a cafeteria, students could engage in a wide range of extracurricular activities.
World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
struck Brooklyn Law School especially hard, and by 1943, enrollment was down to 174 students. St. Lawrence University
St. Lawrence University
St. Lawrence University is a four-year liberal arts college located in the village of Canton in Saint Lawrence County, New York, United States. It has roughly 2300 undergraduate and 100 graduate students, about equally split between male and female....
, which until then operated Brooklyn Law School and conferred its degrees, decided to shut down the school. Prominent alumni were galvanized into action and negotiated the repurchase of the school’s assets, ensuring that Brooklyn Law School would operate as an independent institution.
Rankings
- The 2011 edition of U.S. News ranked Brooklyn Law School 67th in its list of top 100 law schools.
- The 2009 Leiter Report ranked Brooklyn Law School 39th nationwide in Student Quality based on the 2008 entering class.
- In the 2008-2009 term, six alumni clerked with federal circuit judges, placing BLS 19th in the country, according to the 2009 Leiter Report ranking. Three worked for judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, two for the Eleventh Circuit, and one for the Third Circuit.
- The 2008 Leiter Report ranked Brooklyn 25th in the "Most 'Prestigious' Law Firm Placement" category.
Career Prospects
In 2007, Brooklyn Law School stated in its brochures that recent graduates working in private law firms earned a median salary of over $100,000. In October of that year, the Wall Street Journal reported that this figure was based on a survey of fewer than half of all graduates who were working in private law firms.Similarly, the school repoted that 41% of 2006 graduates worked for firms of more than 100 lawyers. However, the 2007 Journal article pointed out that this percentage included temporary attorneys, who work on a contract basis - often for hourly wages and no benefits. Joan King, director of the school's career center, said the number of Brooklyn graduates who were contract attorneys was "minimal" but declined to give the Journal a number.
However, Joan King is regularly attacked on websites such as www.temporaryattorney.blogspot.com for exaggerating BLS job prospects and results.
The nine-month employment rate for the Class of 2009 was 91.3%. The median starting salary for graduates who reported their salary information to the law school was $160,000 at firms with more than 250 attorneys, $150,000 at firms with more than 100 attorneys but fewer than 250, $118,500 at firms with up to 100 attorneys, $81,250 for corporations, and $62,300 for judicial clerks. 54.5% of BLS '09 graduates found work at law firms and 47% at firms with more than 100 attorneys.
These "official" results from BLS admininistrators are not audited and widely disputed by BLS graduates, especially on the various temp attorney websites.
Location and Facilities
Brooklyn Bridge
The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States. Completed in 1883, it connects the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Brooklyn by spanning the East River...
from Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, where many federal and state courts and corporate and public interest law offices are located.
Brooklyn Law School’s main academic building at 250 Joralemon Street houses classrooms, faculty offices, a conference center, dining hall, and a four-story law library with 550,000 volumes. The office building across the street at One Boerum Place houses many of the law school’s clinics, the student journals, the bookstore, and administrative offices.
Brooklyn Law School guarantees housing in its residences to all entering students, about 550 in all. The largest residence is Feil Hall, a 21-story building at 205 State Street. Designed by noted architect Robert A. M. Stern, Dean of the Yale School of Architecture, it accommodates about 360 students in 239 furnished apartments of varying sizes and includes a conference center and café.
All the student residences are within a short walk of the main building. In addition to Feil Hall, the law school owns and operates nine other residences, a combination of brownstones and apartment buildings, in the Brooklyn Heights neighborhood.
Faculty
Brooklyn Law School’s faculty includes sixty nine full-time professors and four emeriti faculty. It also draws on a large body of practitioners, public officials and judges as adjunct faculty to teach specialized courses in many areas of law, including trial advocacy, business crimes and corporate litigation, sports law, real estate development, and border and homeland security law. In addition, in any given semester, visiting professors come from all over the United States and from around the world to teach at the school.The Law School is home to several well-known scholars, including torts expert Aaron Twerski
Aaron Twerski
Professor Aaron D. Twerski is a professor at Brooklyn Law School, as well as a former Dean and professor of tort law at Hofstra University School of Law. He is a prolific scholar who served as co-reporter for the American Law Institute’s Restatement of Torts Third: Products Liability, receiving...
, who holds the Irwin and Jill Cohen Professor of Law Chair at the school and Rose L. Hoffer Professor of Law Elizabeth Schneider, an expert on gender, law and civil procedure. Both were highly ranked in Brian Leiter
Brian Leiter
Brian Leiter is an American philosopher and legal scholar who is currently John Wilson Professor of Law at the University of Chicago Law School, and founder and Director of Chicago's new Center for Law, Philosophy, and Human Values and the editor of the Philosophical Gourmet Report. He taught from...
’s survey of “Most Cited Law Professors by Specialty."
Other notables include professors Roberta Karmel who writes regular columns for The New York Law Journal, and Susan Herman, who is the president of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).
In recent years, the law school has hired a number of new junior faculty members whose work draws on a variety of influences to contribute scholarship in areas as diverse as copyfraud to law and religion, international business law, land use planning, and the secondary mortgage market.
Journals
The Law School currently publishes four student-edited law journals: the Brooklyn Law Review, Brooklyn Journal of International Law, the Journal of Law and Policy, and the Brooklyn Journal of Corporate, Financial and Commercial Law. Over 290 second and third-year students have the opportunity to write for one of the journals.All four student journals select new members based on writing ability and academic achievement. Each journal selects members by the membership competition submissions and grades received during the first year of law school. Each journal requires that its members be in the top 75% of their class.
Moot Court
The Law School has both trial and appellate advocacy moot court divisions. Each year it enters approximately 30 teams in national moot court competitions. These competitions span all areas of the law, from family law to criminal procedure, from white-collar crimeWhite-collar crime
Within the field of criminology, white-collar crime has been defined by Edwin Sutherland as "a crime committed by a person of respectability and high social status in the course of his occupation" . Sutherland was a proponent of Symbolic Interactionism, and believed that criminal behavior was...
to international law.
In 2011, BLS took home top international, national, and regional titles. Its teams won first place in the Irving R. Kaufman Memorial Moot Court Competition, were first place Champions in the Domenick L. Gabrielli National Family Law Competition, Semi-Finalists in the New York Region of the New York City Bar National Moot Court Competition, Semi-Finalists in the Phillip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition (Students won Third Best Brief and Sixth Best Oralist), Semi-Finalists in the National Environmental Law Moot Court Competition (Students won Best Oralists in the Preliminary Rounds), Semi-Finalists in the Evan A. Evans Constitutional Law Moot Court Competition, were Semi-Finalists for the Navy JAG Corps Moot Court Competition, and Semi-Finalists in the Duberstein Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition.
Jerome Prince Evidence Competition
Each year Brooklyn Law School hosts the Jerome Prince Memorial Evidence Competition, a national moot court competition. Named in honor of the late BLS Dean and renowned evidence scholar, the competition draws over 30 law school teams from across the country. Many of the students from the Moot Court Honor Society are involved in the coordination of the Prince Competition, and a few students have an opportunity to work with faculty members to research and write the problem – an issue at the forefront of evidentiary law – that is used in the Competition.Academic Offerings
Centers
BLS centers focus on a specific area of the law, offering a range of programs, including named lectures, symposia, forums, and round table discussions that address emerging issues.- Dennis J. Block Center for the Study of International Business Law - Established by the Law School to study and shape international business law and policy.
- Center for Law Language and Cognition – Explores how developments in the cognitive sciences – including psychology, neuroscience and linguistics – have implications for the law at both theoretical and practical levels.
- Center for Health, Science and Public Policy - Provides students knowledge and skills necessary in health and science law.
Clinics
In 2009, BLS' clinical program was ranked 28th in the nation. In 2010, The National Jurist ranked BLS fourth in the country for its public service work, largely influenced by its clinical program. The clinics specialize in the areas of bankruptcy, securities arbitration, immigration, criminal law, real estate practice, intellectual property, and mediation. Students represent individual clients, groups and businesses and appear in state, federal, and administrative courts, on both the trial and appellate levels. Approximately 75% of full-time students participate in at least one in-house clinic or externship prior to graduation. Of the 18 clinics, three are listed here.- The Brooklyn Law Incubator and Policy Clinic, (BLIP) functions like a law firm that represents Internet, new media, communications and other tech entrepreneurs and innovators on both business and policy advocacy. Students work with clients on transactional, litigation, policy and other advocacy projects and interact and strategize with members of the entrepreneurial, technology and financial communities, as well as with legislators, regulators and other policymakers.
- Capital Defender and Federal Habeas Clinic, affords students the opportunity to represent death row inmates (post-conviction) in other states and defendants in New York who have filed federal habeas corpus petitions. The work consists of filing petitions in the U.S. Supreme Court.
- The Investor Rights Clinic is part of BLS Legal Services, Inc., which is a not-for-profit organization that provides legal services to individuals who have disputes with their broker/broker-dealer as a consequence of broker misconduct. Disputes are typically resolved through negotiation, mediation or through a FINRA sponsored arbitration hearing. Clinic clients are low-moderate income earners with little or no investment experience and who may have been the victim of fraudulent practices.
Fellowship Programs
- International Business Law Fellowship - provides an educational experience for students interested in pursuing careers in the field.
- Sparer Public Interest Law Fellowship - places fellows in summer internships at public interest organizations across the United States and abroad.
- The Zaretsky Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Fellowship - offers a select path of study for a Law School student who has demonstrated outstanding academic achievement in either bankruptcy or commercial law, and is interested in pursuing a career in either of those fields.
LL.M. Degree Program
Brooklyn Law School offers an LL.M. program for foreign-trained lawyers:The program facilitates specialized study in three subject areas: business law, intellectual property law, and refugee and immigration law.
Joint Degree Programs
Brooklyn Law School offers five joint degree programs:- J.D./Masters of Business Administration - Brooklyn Law School and Baruch CollegeBaruch CollegeBernard M. Baruch College, more commonly known as Baruch College, is a constituent college of the City University of New York, located in the Flatiron district of Manhattan, New York City. With an acceptance rate of just 23%, Baruch is among the most competitive and diverse colleges in the nation...
jointly sponsor a program leading to the degrees of Juris DoctorJuris DoctorJuris Doctor is a professional doctorate and first professional graduate degree in law.The degree was first awarded by Harvard University in the United States in the late 19th century and was created as a modern version of the old European doctor of law degree Juris Doctor (see etymology and...
(J.D.) and a Master of Business AdministrationMaster of Business AdministrationThe Master of Business Administration is a :master's degree in business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines. The MBA designation originated in the United States, emerging from the late 19th century as the country industrialized and companies sought out...
(M.B.A.) in Business Administration and Policy. - J.D./Masters in City and Regional Planning - Brooklyn Law School and Pratt InstitutePratt InstitutePratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
jointly sponsor a program leading to the degrees of Juris Doctor (J.D.) and Master of ScienceMaster of ScienceA Master of Science is a postgraduate academic master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is typically studied for in the sciences including the social sciences.-Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay:...
(M.Sc.) in City and Regional Planning. - J.D./Masters in Library and Information Science - Brooklyn Law School and the Graduate School of Information and Library Science of Pratt Institute jointly sponsor a program leading to the degrees of Juris Doctor (J.D.) and Master of Science in Library and Information Science (M.Sc.).
- J.D./Masters in Political Science - Brooklyn Law School and Brooklyn College (City University of New YorkCity University of New YorkThe City University of New York is the public university system of New York City, with its administrative offices in Yorkville in Manhattan. It is the largest urban university in the United States, consisting of 23 institutions: 11 senior colleges, six community colleges, the William E...
) jointly sponsor a program leading to the award of the degrees of Juris Doctor (J.D.) and Master of ArtsMaster of Arts (postgraduate)A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
(M.A.) in Political Science, with a concentration in Policy Analysis. - J.D./Master in Urban Planning - Brooklyn Law School and Hunter CollegeHunter CollegeHunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
's Graduate Program in the Department of Urban Planning (Urban Affairs and Planning) jointly sponsor a program leading to the degrees of Juris Doctor (J.D.) and Master of Urban Planning (M.U.P.).
Summer Abroad
Brooklyn Law School, in conjunction with Loyola Law SchoolLoyola Law School
Loyola Law School is the law school of Loyola Marymount University, a private Catholic university in the Jesuit and Marymount traditions, in Los Angeles, California. Loyola was established in 1920. Like Loyola University Chicago School of Law and Loyola University New Orleans College of Law , it...
in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, sponsors two summer abroad programs each year. Students study international and comparative law for two or three weeks in one of two locations: Beijing or Bologna.
- The Beijing Program is hosted at ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
’s University of International Business and Economics(UIBE). The program offers students the opportunity to study international bankruptcy and Chinese law. Courses are taught in English by faculty from BLS and Loyola, with lectures by members of UBIE’s Law Faculty. The program also allows time for visits to local cultural and legal institutions and for meeting Chinese law students. - The Bologna Program is hosted by the University of Bologna. Founded in the 11th century, it is the oldest university in Europe, and a center of law study since the Middle AgesMiddle AgesThe Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. Courses in international business law and comparative topics are taught by faculty from American and European law schools.
Semester Abroad
- Exchange Program with Bucerius Law School in Hamburg, Germany
Each year, the Law School selects two students to attend Bucerius Law School
Bucerius Law School
Bucerius Law School is a small, non-state university affiliated private law school located in Hamburg, Germany. The school is the first private law school in Germany and is often ranked as the best law school in the country. It admits 100 bachelor students per year, who achieve very high results in...
during the fall semester while two Bucerius students study at Brooklyn Law School. The Bucerius Law School Program in International and Comparative Business Law is designed to develop and expand students' understanding of the forces that shape international business law and offers a unique opportunity to gain first-hand knowledge of German, European, and international law. Courses are taught in English by a combination of American law school professors and international professors of law.
- Exchange Program with University of Essex in Colchester, England
The University of Essex exchange program allows two Brooklyn Law School students every semester to study at the University of Essex
University of Essex
The University of Essex is a British campus university whose original and largest campus is near the town of Colchester, England. Established in 1963 and receiving its Royal Charter in 1965...
while two English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
students are chosen to study at the Law School for a full academic year. The focus of the program is on international human rights and European Union law.
- Exchange Program with University College Cork in Cork, Ireland
Brooklyn Law School's exchange program with University College Cork (UCC) gives two Brooklyn Law School students each semester the opportunity to study at UCC, a college founded in 1845 with a Law Faculty that is the largest department in the University. Two Cork students spend an academic year at the Law School. Brooklyn Law School students have the ability to learn many legal subjects from an Irish law perspective, as well as many topics from an international and comparative stance.
- Exchange Program with Hong Kong University in Hong Kong, China
Two Brooklyn Law School students have the option of studying in Hong Kong for a semester in exchange for two Hong Kong University students attending Brooklyn Law School for the year. Due to China's rapid social and economic development and Hong Kong's location in the Pacific Rim, the program courses focus mostly on Chinese commercial law, human-rights law and international corporate and financial law. Except for some courses offered in the LL.M. program (e.g., Chinese Law), the course instruction is in English.
- Exchange Program with Universidad Torcuato Di Tello in Buenos Aires, Argentina
Brooklyn Law School recently added this program to allow students to study law in Spanish from a Civil Law system perspective. The program highlights courses in tax law, law and economics, business law, law and finance, criminal law, and law and public policy.
- Exchange Program with Tel Aviv University in Tel Aviv, Israel
Two Brooklyn Law School students in their second year also have the new opportunity to attend Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University is a public university located in Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel. With nearly 30,000 students, TAU is Israel's largest university.-History:...
, home of the Cegla Center for Interdisciplinary Research of the Law, in the Spring semester. Students will be able to take a variety of courses touching upon international and comparative law, as well as the option to study Hebrew.
Student Organizations
Student Organizations Include:
- Alternative Dispute Resolution Society (ADR)
- American Civil Liberties UnionAmerican Civil Liberties UnionThe American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
(ACLU) - Art Law Association (ALA)
- Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA)
- Black Law Students Association (BLSA)
- BLS Softball Organization
- Brooklyn Chess Society (BCS)
- Brooklyn Entertainment and Sports Law Society (BESLS)
- Brooklyn Law School Democrats
- Brooklyn Law School Food & Wine Club (BLS FWC)
- Brooklyn Law School Secular Legal Society
- Brooklyn Law Students for the Public Interest (BLSPI)
- Brooklyn Real Estate Society
- Business Law Association (BLA)
- Christian Legal Society (CLS)
- Civil Legal Advice and Resource Office Student Action Group (CLARO/SAG)
- Delta Theta PhiDelta Theta PhiDelta Theta Phi is a professional law fraternity and a member of the Professional Fraternity Association. The smallest of the three internationally recognized law fraternities , Delta Theta Phi is the only one of the three major law fraternities to charter chapters in the United States at...
(DTP) - Eastern European Law Students Association (EELSA)
- Environmental Law Society (ELS)
- Federalist Society
- Health Law and Policy Association (HLPA)
- Intellectual Property Law Association (IPLA)
- International Law Society (ILS)
- Irish Law Students Association
- Italian American Law Students Association (IALSA)
- Jewish Law Students Association (JLSA)
- Latin American Law Students Association (LALSA)
- Law and Education Resource Network (LERN)
- Law Students for Veterans' Rights
- Legal Association for Women (LAW)
- Muslim Law Student Association (MLSA)
- National Lawyers Guild (NLG)
- OutLaws
- Philosophy & Linguistics Society (PLS)
- Student Service Trip Association
- South Asian Law Students Association (SALSA)
- Student Animal Legal Defense Fund (SALDF)
- Student Bar Association (SBA)
- Suspension Representation Project (SRP)
- Tax Law Association
- Unemployment Action Center (UAC)
- Yearbook Committee
- Yoga Club
Former Deans
- William P. RichardsonWilliam P. RichardsonWilliam Pitt Richardson was a Republican politician from the state of Ohio, USA. He was Ohio Attorney General in 1865....
, dean from 1901-1945. - William B. Carswell, dean from 1945-1953.
- Jerome Prince, dean from 1953-1971.
- Raymond E. Lisle, dean from 1971-1977.
- I. Leo GlasserI. Leo GlasserIsrael Leo Glasser, also known as I. Leo Glasser or Leo Glasser, is a United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York.-Biography:...
, dean from 1977-1981. - David G. TragerDavid G. TragerDavid Gershon Trager was a United States federal judge.Born in Mount Vernon, New York, Trager received a B.A. from Columbia University in 1959 and an LL.B. from Harvard Law School in 1962. He was in private practice of law in New York City from 1963 to 1967, acting as assistant corporation counsel...
, dean from 1983-1993. - Joan G. Wexler, dean from 1994-2010.
Historically significant alumni
- Herman BadilloHerman BadilloHerman Badillo is a Bronx, New York politician who has been a borough president, United States Representative, and candidate for Mayor of New York City. He was the first Puerto Rican to be elected to these posts and be a mayoral candidate in the continental United States.-Early years:Badillo was...
, Bronx, New York politician has been a borough presidentBorough presidentBorough President is an elective office in each of the five boroughs of New York City.-Reasons for establishment:...
, United States Representative, and candidate for Mayor of New York CityMayor of New York CityThe Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
. The first Puerto Rican to be elected to these posts and to be a mayoral candidate in the U.S. (outside of Puerto Rico). - Bruce CutlerBruce CutlerBruce Cutler is an American criminal defense lawyer known for defending organized-crime defendants, and for media appearances as an actor, a legal commentator, and a reality-show attorney....
and Gerald ShargelGerald ShargelGerald Shargel is a high-profile defense attorney based in New York City who has been a member of the New York Bar since 1969. He has garnered attention as both a trial and appellate lawyer, representing white-collar clients and ordinary criminal defendants, but is most famous for, along with...
, criminal defense lawyers known for defending high-profile defendants including John GottiJohn GottiJohn Joseph Gotti, Jr was an American mobster who became the Boss of the Gambino crime family in New York City. Gotti grew up in poverty. He and his brothers turned to a life of crime at an early age... - David DinkinsDavid DinkinsDavid Norman Dinkins is a former politician from New York City. He was the Mayor of New York City from 1990 through 1993; he was the first and is, to date, the only African American to hold that office.-Early life:...
, Mayor of New York CityMayor of New York CityThe Mayor of the City of New York is head of the executive branch of New York City's government. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property, police and fire protection, most public agencies, and enforces all city and state laws within New York City.The budget overseen by the...
from 1990 through 1993, was the first African AmericanAfrican AmericanAfrican Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
to hold that office. - Frieda B. HennockFrieda B. HennockFrieda Barkin Hennock was born in the city of Kovel now in Ukraine. She received an LL.B from Brooklyn Law School in 1924. Between 1926 and 1948 she worked as a lawyer in New York State....
’24, first woman Federal Communications Commissioner. - Irving "Swifty" Lazar, talent agent and deal-maker. Dubbed "swifty" by Humphrey BogartHumphrey BogartHumphrey DeForest Bogart was an American actor. He is widely regarded as a cultural icon.The American Film Institute ranked Bogart as the greatest male star in the history of American cinema....
when he put together three major deals for Bogart in a single day. - Geraldo RiveraGeraldo RiveraGeraldo Rivera is an American attorney, journalist, author, reporter, and former talk show host...
, host of the newsmagazineNewsmagazineA news magazine is a typed, printed, and published piece of paper, magazine or a radio or television program, usually weekly, featuring articles or segments on current events...
program Geraldo at LargeGeraldo at LargeGeraldo at Large is a United States television newsmagazine, hosted by Fox News correspondent-at-large and former talk show host Geraldo Rivera.-History:...
, who appears regularly on Fox News ChannelFox News ChannelFox News Channel , often called Fox News, is a cable and satellite television news channel owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a subsidiary of News Corporation...
. - Larry A. Silverstein, billionaire real estate investor and developer in New York City.
- Percy SuttonPercy SuttonPercy Ellis Sutton was a prominent black American political and business leader. A civil-rights activist and lawyer, he was also a Freedom Rider and the legal representative for Malcolm X...
, civil rights activist, lawyer and entrepreneurEntrepreneurAn entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
. - Hy ZaretHy ZaretHy Zaret was an American Tin Pan Alley lyricist and composer best known as the co-author of the 1955 hit "Unchained Melody", one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century.-Biography:...
, lyricist and composer best known as the co-author of the 1955 hit "Unchained MelodyUnchained Melody"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. It has become one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, by some counts having spawned over 500 versions in hundreds of different languages....
" - Leonard GarmentLeonard GarmentLeonard Garment was acting Special Counsel to U.S. President Richard Nixon for the last two years of his presidency.Garment was born in Brooklyn, New York. In 1949, Garment joined the law firm of Mudge, Stern, Baldwin, and Todd. He became the head of litigation and a partner in the late fifties...
, '49, acting special counsel to U.S. President Richard NixonRichard NixonRichard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
and 2005 National Medal of ArtsNational Medal of ArtsThe National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. It is the highest honor conferred to an individual artist on behalf of the people. Honorees are selected by the National Endowment for the...
recipient. - Mickey MarcusMickey MarcusDavid Daniel "Mickey" Marcus was a United States Army colonel who assisted Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, and who became Israel's first general . He was killed by friendly fire, when he was mistaken for an enemy infiltrator while returning to Israeli positions at night.Marcus is the best...
'34, Colonel in the U.S. Army, first General of the Israeli Army - Mahsa Saeidi-Azcuy, contestant on The Apprentice, Season 10 and prosecutorProsecutorThe prosecutor is the chief legal representative of the prosecution in countries with either the common law adversarial system, or the civil law inquisitorial system...
External links
- Brooklaw.edu – Official website
New York City°N date=June 2009°W