UB's law school today will call to order the nation's only fully functional state court housed on a university campus.
For the first time since President William R. Greiner helped his fellow law faculty move the school to the North Campus 28 years ago, students in O'Brian Hall will be able to walk from class to courtroom. The UB Law Courtroom, commenced in July 2000 and completed for around $1 million, will allow students to witness proceedings in a technology-enhanced courtroom designed for both appellate and trial court usage.
"This will be an extraordinary educational opportunity for students," said Nils Olsen, dean of the law school, speaking at yesterday's opening ceremony held in the courtroom. Olsen said the new court would also provide a valuable service to the Buffalo community.
"We're using this teaching opportunity to leverage a great deal of public service," said Olsen. "The way our university truly benefits the community is when it's the product of our teaching and scholarship."
President Greiner commended Olsen's resourcefulness in revitalizing the oldest SUNY-funded building on campus through "creative re-use," citing the courtroom as an example of the university's drive for success independent of state funding.
"We have the capability, we have demonstrated that it can be done and it has been done handsomely," said Greiner. "It is a great example of how the university is going to go forward . we can and will build a great university together."
The courtroom, funded by the Office of the Provost (through a partnership with university facilities), state support and alumni contributions, houses two 85-seat lecture halls and three small classrooms, converted from a single oversized lecture hall, in addition to judge chambers, a jury deliberation room, a technology support room and seating for up to 100 spectators. Project architects designed the courtroom to incorporate traditional oak paneling (which matches law student lockers), but allowed for the increased use of technology found in a modern courtroom.
The Appellate Division of the State Supreme Court Fourth Department will hear a full calendar of 23 cases today, returning twice every year in addition to assigning a regular State Supreme Court justice to the campus, who Olsen said could be in place by as early as late November. Judge Eugene F. Pigott, presiding justice of the Appellate Division, was looking forward to seeing law students in the courtroom Friday.
"I think the things the students learn from us, and we learn from the students, will truly benefit the law school and the legal community in general," said Pigott.
Ilene Fleischmann, associate dean of alumni, public relations and communications for the law school, said the courtroom project started a few years ago, with some alumni wanting to see the school move into its former downtown home, near the city's courts. Fleischmann believes the university will benefit more from the regular presence of a state court.
"The best law schools are parts of universities, not isolated entities," said Fleischmann. "We decided that if the law school couldn't go downtown to the courts, the courts could come here."
In contrast to other law schools, which often have students observing either moot or the occasional real legal proceedings in nearby courthouses, UB's courtroom will "have real court here, we're part of the real system. We're going to have real assigned judges coming on a regular basis," said Fleischmann.
Judge Vincent E. Doyle Jr., administrative judge of the Supreme Court Eighth Judicial Division, said that while the program has some initial logistics still to be worked out, a mutual education could be the benefit of an on-campus court.
"If it works the way we hope, this'll be going on [so that] classes can take a break, and see that what they've learned over there is what's going on here," said Doyle. "[Students] challenge the court to be on its toes, and they learn by having the smartest, most up-to-date judges presiding."
Norman Pecora, a 1931 graduate of UB's law school, was one of the project's largest financial contributors and the new judge's chambers are duly named after him. Pecora attended classes in downtown Buffalo across from the county hall, along with a class of 100 law students.
Due to the school's proximity to city and county courts, Pecora feels his generation of UB law students were better prepared for the reality of courtroom proceedings - a circumstance he hopes will be improved by the opening of North Campus' court.
Pecora gave to the courtroom out of his gratitude to the school that he says shaped his life.
"I don't donate because I feel that I'm obligated, but because my heart made me," said Pecora. "This is a matter of redeeming, to give back part of what they gave me."
"In those times, we didn't have so much to help us. This will help all of these kids."
