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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowThe annual ranking that law schools love to hate was released March 11, and it may stir more emotions than usual in Indiana since none of the state’s law school placed in the top 25.
US News & World Report has published its rankings of the 2015 Best Law Schools in the country. Nationwide, 145 made the list with titans Yale University filling the No. 1 spot followed by Harvard University and Stanford University sharing the No. 2 position.
University of Notre Dame is the first law school in Indiana to pierce the 2015 rankings at No. 26. This is down from its 2014 place at No. 23. Indiana University Maurer School of Law shared the No. 29 slot with the University of Georgia. In 2014, IU Maurer was ranked at No. 25.
Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law leaped to No. 87 from No. 98 one year ago. Six schools tied for the No. 87 spot, including Michigan State University and University of Louisville.
IU McKinney placed at No. 8 in the legal writing category and No. 10 in the health care law division.
University of Valparaiso Law School’s retained its listing as “rank not published” because its placement fell below the cutoff line.
The yearly ranking by the news magazine has drawn sharp criticism from the American Bar Association Task Force on the Future of Legal Education.
In its final report and recommendations released in January 2014, the task force, led by retired Indiana Chief Justice Randall Shepard, called on US News & World Report to adjust the methodology for determining the rankings. The task force recommended the magazine stop using law school expenditures and make sure its criteria for ranking “does not promote conduct damaging to the interests of law students and the system of legal education.”
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