The Dickinson School of Law of the Pennsylvania University

First-year students at Penn State Dickinson are required to take seven credits of courses involving legal analysis, research, and writing. They take two Legal Analysis & Writing (“LAW”) courses (three credits in the Fall semester and two credits in the Spring semester) and two separately graded legal research courses (one credit each semester). In the Fall semester, the LAW course focuses on objective writing and consists of a series of analytical, writing, and editing exercises, culminating in an open research memorandum. In the Spring semester, the LAW courses include statutory interpretation, persuasive writing, and oral advocacy. This year each LAW section averaged twenty students and each legal research section averaged ten students. The LAW professors schedule mandatory conferences with each student throughout each semester and, in keeping with the student-centered philosophy of Penn State Dickinson, each LAW professor maintains an “open door” policy. In addition, the legal writing program is supported by a writing specialist who has a J.D. degree and an M.A. in English. Students are encouraged to make appointments with the writing specialist to receive additional one-on-one feedback on written assignments. Further, second-year students are required to take an appellate practice course that is taught by a tenured professor. In the appellate practice course, students draft an appellate brief and present an oral argument to a three-member panel of judges – one faculty member and two outside judges.

The LAW courses are taught by five, full-time professors who have six to twenty-five years of practice experience. Most of them have advanced degrees other than the J.D. degree and have clerked for federal judges. The legal research courses are taught by four tenured or tenure-track librarians with J.D. degrees. LAW professors currently have renewable contracts, but the law school’s faculty has voted to consider a tenure-track option for LAW professors. Currently, after three two-year terms, LAW professors are eligible for seven-year renewable contracts and sabbaticals. LAW professors may vote in faculty meetings on all matters except the hiring and promotion of tenure-track professors, and they serve on faculty committees. Although the teaching of Legal Analysis and Writing is their primary responsibility, they may also teach substantive courses and coach moot court teams. As do all members of the faculty, they receive travel/development funds and summer research stipends.

For additional information about the program, please contact Jane Muller-Peterson at jxm636@psu.edu.