It will come as scant surprise to our throngs of loyal readers (especially to those readers who thronged to this post) that the New York Times is again covering the implosion of the law school bubble.
In Monday’s Opinionator column, Stanley Fish reviews Brian Tamanaha’s new book, Failing Law Schools, (available now as a pre-order to an 8/1/12 release). As the book’s title indicates, this is hardly a paean to the virtues of postgraduate legal academia. Fish begins his review by noting that the core theme here is familiar fare–much covered and much debated in the media and blogosphere.
Then Fish quickly turns to what’s different about the Tamanaha’s take, namely (1) the author’s insider status as a former professor and dean and (2) the breadth of issues he formerly participated in but now declaims.
We’re rapidly hitting the pre-order button on Amazon, and sometime in August we’ll share with you any keen insights we discern in the book’s 216 pages (and eight illustrations). In the meantime, here’s a quick peek at the table of contents…and the layers of interlocking dysfunction it suggests in how schools market, price, teach, and are ranked.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
ONE: The Department of Justice Sues the ABA
TWO: Why Is Law School Three Years?
THREE: Faculty Fight against Changes in ABA Standards
FOUR: Teaching Load Down, Salary Up
FIVE: The Cost and Consequences of Academic Pursuits
SIX: More Professors, More Revenues Needed
SEVEN: The Ranking Made Us Do It
EIGHT: Detrimental Developments in Legal Academia
NINE: Raising Tuition, Rising Debt
TEN: Why Tuition Has Gone up So Quickly
ELEVEN: Is Law School Worth the Cost?
TWELVE: Warning Signs for Students
THIRTEEN: Alarms for Law Schools
FOURTEEN: Going Forward