The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy of Law School Crisis - A Book Review

H-Law - A Division of H-Net: Humanities and Social Sciences Online, 2012

University of Arkansas Research Paper No. 14-04

21 Pages Posted: 22 Jan 2014 Last revised: 18 Apr 2014

Date Written: 2012

Abstract

Brian Z. Tamanaha’s book, Failing Law Schools, asserts and echoes criticisms of U.S. legal education, calling for the end of the required third year and of scholarly model of law teaching. In this book review, Steve Sheppard reads the historical record and statistical data and contends that Tamanaha’s arguments from history and policy fail. Sheppard charges Tamanaha with incomplete historical analysis, which leads to misleading conclusions. Specifically, the article details how Tamanaha’s acontextualism, analytical gaps, trouble with sources, and unsupported rhetoric lead the author to advocate remedies that fail to resolve real problems facing legal education. Sheppard provides data and history that are essential to a more contextual picture. The article concludes by explaining how Tamanaha’s proposals would harm not only law schools but also society at large, among other concerns, by limiting the quality of legal education available to the poor and the quality of the lawyer who would serve the poor and the middle class.

Keywords: Law School, Legal Education, Student Debt, Accreditation, Law Student, ABA Section of Legal Education, Scholarship Model, Scamblog, Critical Law School Studies, Scholarly Negligence, Professional School, Unitary Bar, Third Year, Legal Profession

Suggested Citation

Sheppard, Stephen M., The Self-Fulfilling Prophecy of Law School Crisis - A Book Review (2012). H-Law - A Division of H-Net: Humanities and Social Sciences Online, 2012, University of Arkansas Research Paper No. 14-04, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2382916

Stephen M. Sheppard (Contact Author)

St. Mary's University School of Law ( email )

One Camino Santa Maria
San Antonio, TX 78228-8602
United States

Do you have a job opening that you would like to promote on SSRN?

Paper statistics

Downloads
65
Abstract Views
577
Rank
689,328
PlumX Metrics