???While New York State is cutting corners and slashing budgets, three of its universities are moving forward with plans to create new law schools and UB officials aren't happy about it.
???Officials from St. John Fisher College, Binghamton University and Stony Brook University are proceeding with plans to implement new law schools in a state that already has 15 institutes.
???In April 2008, St. John Fisher College reported that Sen. Joseph Robach had secured $2.25 million in support of a law school at the college, according to the St. John Fisher College Web site. However, the UB Law School has expressed opposition to these plans.
???Creating new law schools in New York, particularly at two other State University of New York (SUNY) schools, would take away funding from UB's law school, according to Vice President for External Affairs Ryan McPherson.
??The?UB Law School is nationally ranked and accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA), according the school's Web site.
???"SUNY has a law school. Those resources...for Stony Brook and Binghamton, or a private institution like St. John Fisher, would be much better invested in UB," McPherson said.
???Vice Dean for Administration of the UB Law School James Newton echoed McPherson's sentiment that state money would be better spent at UB.
???"Our Dean [Makau Mutua] has been very vocal in his opposition to the creation of new law schools in New York State," Newton said. "We are New York State's public law school and feel strongly that the best use of limited state and SUNY legal education resources is investment in UB law. Moreover, there is no market justification for a new law school, [at a] public or private institution in New York State."
???McPherson noted that the job market for lawyers in New York State has not expanded. There is not the same demand for lawyers as there is for other professions, like nursing and engineering, he explained.
???"Binghamton has moved forward with an engineering school and that makes a lot of sense," McPherson said. "There's a market out there for that."
???The employment of lawyers is expected to grow 11 percent between 2006 and 2016. However, competition for jobs is expected to remain intense because of the high number of law school graduates, according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics.
???Despite UB's opposition, some feel that the creation of new law schools is a logical next step for these institutions. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Binghamton University Mary Ann Swain said that a law school at Binghamton would complement the school's existing graduate programs in areas such as political science and sociology.
???"We have the experience of creating new academic programs of high quality, and can do so with a law school...Binghamton's law school will respond to a national study calling for substantial changes to improve legal education with more emphasis on critical thinking and professional experience," Swain said, citing a two-year study of law education done by The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
???According to Swain, approximately 225 Binghamton University graduates have enrolled in ABA-accredited law schools over the past several years, and Binghamton students have an 84 percent acceptance rate, compared to a national acceptance rate of 75 percent.
???"Pre-law students at Binghamton have voiced support for the development of a law school at this university. We expect some of our graduates to enroll and expect to attract other in-state and out-of-state students," Swain said. "When the program is fully enrolled, we expect around 550 students in the program."
???Swain feels that a law school at Binghamton will meet a growing need for lawyers in areas related to energy, the economy, international business and government.
???"The region will benefit from the intellectual capital provided by law faculty and law students; their availability for consultation, pro bono work, internships, legal seminars, workshops and so forth," Swain said. "The law school will also contribute to economic development by creating new jobs and increasing expenditures in the region and the state."
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
