David A. Brennen
2024-2025 Council Chair
This is an exciting time to assume the role of Chair of the Council for the Section of Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar. First, this past Summer the Section welcomed a new Managing Director – Dean Jennifer Rosato Perea. Director Rosato Perea is the first woman and the first Latina to lead the Section. Having served as Dean at three different United States based law schools, including at one law school that was then newly accredited by the Council, Director Rosato Perea has the experience and background that will serve her well in this new role. We on the Council are thrilled to have her on board.
A second reason for excitement within the Council is the work we are doing in terms of thinking about the future of legal education and what role the Council, as an accrediting body, can and should play in that future. As an example, over the past decade, a worldwide pandemic opened our eyes to the many possibilities for legal education – especially online delivery. Thus, the Council is considering whether and how to adjust its accreditation standards in order to allow further innovation and development in the area of online delivery of legal education. Another occurrence from the past decade is the Supreme Court’s decision in the SFFA v. Harvard/UNC opinion on the extent to which race may be considered in college, and hence law school, admissions. As a result, the Council is exploring how its standards should be adjusted in response to that opinion. Finally, given the many complexities in modern society, it is imperative that the Council continuously do a cost benefit analysis of its accreditation role. That is, we must always weigh the benefit gained from imposing yet one more rule, or retaining existing ones, against the impact of the rule on the cost to operate a law school. As an entity that cares deeply about legal education and its role in improving justice, it is important that the Council addresses these issues thoughtfully and deliberately.
Overall, my hope as Council Chair is that we remain focused on what’s important about legal education and consider ways in which we can facilitate those important aspects. Our accredited law school members are diverse in many ways. Some have religious missions. Some are state affiliated, while others are private. Some are university based, while others are stand-alone. As a result, our standards should be structured in a way that permits these diverse institutions to thrive in terms of innovative educational delivery while simultaneously protecting the interests of students and the public in terms of cost and quality. The members of the Council - who include members of the public and young people, along with judges, lawyers and academics – are committed to providing a fair, effective and efficient accreditation system for American law schools that promotes quality legal education. I invite each of you who cares about legal education to join us on the Council as we explore how best to move forward in this important mission. One way to assist is by participating in the Notice and Comment process as new standards and interpretations are proposed. If you are a legal professional or legal academic, another way to assist is to volunteer to serve on a law school site visit team. As long as we work together, we will continue to have a legal education system that is the envy of many worldwide.