Ranking Law Schools' Special Programs

Abstract

Although general law school rankings have been widely criticized, little has been said about specialty rankings. This paper serves that need by exploring largely-ignored implications inherent in US News’ evolving methodology for determining such rankings.

Beyond criteria intended to determine specialty rankings, this paper examines criteria that affect their value. In particular, it identifies quantitative factors that warrant increased skepticism among those who already hold rankings in low esteem and calls for more disclosure with regard to those factors.

Keywords: law school rankings, specialty rankings, IP rank

JEL Classification: I20, K10