Populist Outrage, Reckless Empirics: A Review of Failing Law Schools

Abstract

The authors of "The Economic Value of a Law Degree" (available at http://ssrn.com/abstract=2250585) review Brian Tamanaha's "Failing Law Schools."

The review focuses on problems with empirical claims in "Failing Law Schools" regarding outcomes for law graduates and also regarding law faculty compensation. The review also discusses Professor Tamanaha's proposals for reform of legal education in light of economic theory and the empirical economics literature, and finds reasons to doubt that Tamanaha's proposed reforms will have the effects he predicts.

Keywords: Economic value of a law degree, failing law schools, Tamanaha, labor economics, legal education, law school crisis, law school reform, Human Capital

JEL Classification: C1, I2, J24, J31, J44, J6, J7, K4, L31