USC Law History
USC Law Timeline
- Beginnings
1896 :: 1898 :: 1900 :: 1901 - Building Permanence
1904 :: 1906 :: 1907 :: 1911 :: 1912 :: 1916 :: 1917 :: 1924 :: 1925 - Seeds of Excellence
1926 :: 1927 :: 1929 :: 1930 :: 1931 :: 1948 :: 1949 :: 1952 :: 1955 :: 1963 :: 1965 - Rise to National Prominence
1968 :: 1969 :: 1970 :: 1971 :: 1973 :: 1980 :: 1981 :: 1987 :: 1989 :: 1990 :: 1991 :: 1992 ::
1994 :: 1997 :: 1998 :: 1999 - Law in the New Millennium
2000 :: 2001 :: 2002 ::
2004 :: 2005 :: 2006
Los Angeles without lawyers: the idea may seem laughable, but it was once a very real concern. Only a century ago, university-educated attorneys had to be imported to handle the legal affairs of this booming frontier town of 100,000 people. With the nearest law school 400 miles to the north, a generation of Angelenos trained themselves for the bar the same way they might prepare to become blacksmiths: through apprenticeship. But while an ill-prepared smithy could ruin a horse, an ill-prepared attorney could ruin a business, a human life or even a whole community.
Celebrating 110 years, USC Law reflects on its present status as one of the nation’s leaders in legal education. This is the story of how a series of informal evening lectures, initiated in 1896 in the courtroom of one Judge David C. Morrison, grew into "a law school of permanent character," in the words of James Brown Scott, the Harvard- and Heidelberg-educated attorney who was the school’s founding preceptor and first dean. The story also details how the fledgling institution made diversity its earliest hallmark and how innovation was embraced every step of the way. It chronicles how generations of deans, faculty, students and alumni have brought honor upon their school through a century of professional achievements.
Like Los Angeles itself, USC Law has become a national player. In academic circles, it enjoys a reputation for intellectual vitality. Nearly half the faculty hold doctoral or master’s degrees in addition to their JDs. Uniquely multidisciplinary in character, the school has strong programs in law and economics, law and humanities and clinical legal education.
Its student body is equally exciting. Last year’s entering class of 196 was culled from more than 5,400 applicants. USC Law attracts graduates from more than 80 colleges and universities across the country and abroad. Diversity remains a trademark: nearly 40 percent of students self-identify as ethnic minority, and 50 percent are women. With a faculty-student ratio of about 15:1, USC Law retains the feeling of a tight-knit scholarly community where students, faculty and graduates build life-long bonds of personal and professional loyalty.
Gone are the peripatetic, makeshift quarters (which early in the school’s history had ranged from rented offices to an autopsy room in the USC Medical College). Today, USC Law’s spacious facilities do much to advance the legal learning process and promote intellectual inquiry. Besides plentiful classrooms and lecture halls, the school’s five-level Elvon and Mabel Musick Building encompasses a moot courtroom, a state-of-the-art law library, information technology and online research centers, clinical and journal offices, lounges and a cafeteria.
Philanthropy — much of it from alumni — has lifted the school to new heights. With a market value now exceeding $100 million, its endowment ranks among the nation’s 10 largest private law school endowments. Another key indicator of academic competitiveness is the number of chairs and professorships, which now total 37.
Also driving the school’s reputation are its graduates. Today as in years past, the accomplishments of USC Law alumni in private practice, public service, government, teaching, the judiciary and business add luster to USC’s name.
Over time, Scott’s words —"a law school of permanent character" — have taken on weightier meaning. When he spoke them in 1896, the school’s founder was invoking the idea of a properly chartered school, in contrast to the prevailing "study associations" that periodically formed and disbanded when apprentices were cramming for the state bar exam. A century later, the USC Law has proven to be far more than just "permanent": the emphasis now falls on the word "character."
Beginnings
1896
Los Angeles Law Students Association is formed. Eager law apprentices took the lead in promoting "organized" legal education in Los Angeles. In 1896, Judge David C. Morrison "threw open the doors of his courtroom" for 36 law apprentices — five of them women — to hear prominent local attorneys praise the concept of a formal law school. James Brown Scott (left), who was to head the nascent institution, exhorted the students to create a "law school of permanent character."
1898
The Los Angeles Law School is incorporated. Its 11-member board of trustees included a woman, self-made agricultural magnate Harriett W.R. Strong.
1900
Program becomes affiliated with USC; the university awards degrees for study completed at the Los Angeles Law School. As early as 1885, USC officials had contemplated forming a law school. This affiliation realized the dream of early advocates Robert Widney (right) and George I. Cochran, both Los Angeles attorneys and USC trustees.
James Brown Scott’s premature resignation put the new law school’s "permanent character" to the test. There followed a succession of "annual deans": Lewis A. Groff (1900-01), George L. Sanders (1901-02) and Daniel M. Hammack (1902-04). Starting in 1900, the school moved six times in as many years.
1901
USC begins awarding law degrees. Gavin W. Craig receives the first diploma.
Building Permanence
1904
University of Wisconsin-educated contracts expert Frank M. Porter LLM ’10 is appointed dean. In his 23 years at the helm, Porter struggled to bring permanence to all aspects of law school life. He stabilized the faculty, strengthened academic standards and promoted a diverse student body.
1906
Frederick W. Houser ’00, one of the school’s first graduates, becomes the first alumnus to serve on the bench. After graduating, he spent a term in the California Assembly before his election to the Los Angeles County Superior Court in 1906; he later rose to the appellate court and the state supreme court.
1907
The USC Law gains approval by the American Bar Association and membership in American Association of Law Schools. These two bodies nationally accredit American law schools.
1911
Law school moves to Tajo Building. After 15 years of changing headquarters, USC Law found stability in this downtown building, at the corner of First Street and Broadway. The school remained at this site until 1925.
1912
Stare Decisis — the school’s yearbook — reflects an increasingly diverse and international student body. Japanese, Filipino, Armenian and Russian Jewish students are represented in photographs, along with women and the school’s second black student. The yearbook includes a section devoted exclusively to "co-education." A year earlier, students had founded Phi Delta Delta, the nation’s first women’s law student sorority.
1916
Mabel Walker Willebrandt ’16, LLM ’17, graduates. Arguably the most prominent American woman attorney from the 1920s through the ’40s, Willebrandt was Assistant Attorney General during the Harding administration.
1917
In less than two decades, USC Law student enrollment climbs to the top five in America. The student boom reflects the explosive growth of Los Angeles itself, a city of nearly 1 million inhabitants.
1924
You Chung Hong ’24, LLM ’25 graduates. Hong was the first Chinese American admitted to practice in California and went on to become the nation’s foremost Chinese civil rights attorney over the next four decades.
1925
Permanent USC Law building opens for classes on the University Park campus.
Seeds of Excellence
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Dean Frank M. Porter with prospective students |
1926
Property law expert William Burby joins USC Law faculty. The University of Michigan-trained lawyer set the tone for legal education for the next 35 years. Employing the Socratic and case methods, Professor Burby’s courses prepared three generations of USC Law students for real-world practice. His scholarly publications were mandatory reading for students and practitioners alike.
1927
Criminal law expert Justin Miller is appointed dean. During his three years in the position, the Stanford-educated dean recruited several important faculty members and advanced the school’s scholarly reputation.
In the same year, Southern California Law Review is first published. Edited and managed by law students, this flagship USC Law journal is known for publishing high quality, cutting-edge scholarship by nationally known academics. Today, the Review’s circulation is among the largest in the nation, and its articles among the most frequently cited. Also founded in 1927 was USC’s chapter of the Order of the Coif. Inclusion in this national legal honorary society testified to USC Law’s maturation in academic stature. The following year, students pioneered the practice of providing pro bono legal advice to the poor through the USC Legal Clinic.
1929
The predecessor to the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles is incorporated and USC Law houses its clinic. In its first year, 72 students, composing the entire third-year class, participated in the work.
1930
Washington University law school dean and criminal law expert William G. Hale is appointed dean. Despite the upheavals of the Depression and World War II, Hale’s deanship was one of remarkable stability. The core of his faculty — William Burby, Paul Jones, Robert Kingsley, Stanley Howell and Shelden Elliott — were in place throughout Hale’s 18-year tenure.
In the same year, Manuel Ruiz Jr. ’30, USC Law’s first known Latino alumnus, graduates. Ruiz was considered the "California dean of Mexican American lawyers." He was appointed by President Nixon to the U.S. Commission of Civil Rights, and he authored numerous works, including the seminal Mexican American Legal Heritage in the Southwest.
1931
Edwin Jefferson ’31 graduates. Jefferson is representative of a group of black graduates who rose to leadership positions in Los Angeles during the first half of the 20th century. He was appointed to the bench in 1940. Other early outstanding African-American alumni include David Williams ’37, who became a federal judge; Bert McDonald ’23 (with mother, right), the first black lawyer in the Los Angeles City Attorney’s office; and Crispus Attucks Wright ’38, who together with McDonald, Williams and others founded the John M. Langston Bar Association in 1943 (other bar associations had racial restrictions).
1948
USC Law graduate Shelden Elliott ’31, LLM ’32 is appointed dean. On the faculty since his graduation, Elliott was former director of the Legal Clinic and an expert in legislation, administrative law and procedure.
In the same year, the USC Institute on Federal Taxation is first held. The flagship of USC Law’s fleet of continuing legal education programs, the Institute on Federal Taxation is one of only three such law school-sponsored institutes in the country today.
1949
First William Green Hale Moot Court competition. Named after the retired dean, this inaugural forensic competition pitted student-advocates on either side of a custody decree dispute and a full faith and credit matter. Arguing before five California justices, Philip Jones ’49 took the first prize. Jones himself later advanced to the bench. The competition was founded by William P. Hogoboom ’49, another future judge, and Jerome L. Doff ’49.
1952
USC Law professor Robert Kingsley is named dean. Educated at Harvard and the University of Minnesota, the criminal law and domestic relations expert had been on USC Law’s faculty since 1928. His 11-year tenure in the dean’s office witnessed the first stirrings of active philanthropy. Kingsley later became a judge of the California Court of Appeal.
1955
Legion Lex is founded. This active and successful volunteer fund-raising support group for USC Law has, over the past 45 years, generated millions of dollars in annual contributions. Legion Lex has helped erect buildings, supported faculty research and teaching, and provided student scholarships.
1963
USC Law professor Orrin B. Evans is appointed dean. The former University of Missouri professor and university counsel joined USC’s faculty in 1947 as an expert on real estate and insurance law. During his five years as dean, Evans helped usher in USC Law's signature emphasis on interdisciplinary study.
In the same year, the Western Center on Law and Poverty is established in the law school building. As part of the War on Poverty, it supported local legal services programs, law reform litigation, and representation for organizations. Early leaders included professors Martin Levine, founding executive director, Michael Shapiro, Gary Bellow, Derrick Bell, and Earl Johnson.
1965
"Law, Language, and Ethics" first offered. This signature course, required of all first-year law students, transformed the way law is taught at USC. Drawing on fields such as philosophy, psychology and economics, the course encourages students to examine legal issues in a comprehensive context. Its introduction in 1965 anticipated the school’s current faculty, many of whom have interdisciplinary interests and expertise.
Rise to National Prominence
1968
Judicial administration expert Dorothy W. Nelson LLM ’56 (left) becomes the first woman dean of a leading American law school. In 1957, a year after completing her advanced legal degree at USC, Nelson joined the faculty. A decade later, she succeeded Orrin B. Evans as dean, leading the school until 1980, when she was appointed to the bench. Nelson remains a judge on the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
In the same year, the Board of Councilors is first convened. Culled from a distinguished list of lawyers specializing in a wide variety of legal areas, this board provides crucial insight and advice to both the USC Law dean and the university president.
1969
The Black Law Students Association is founded.
1970
Chicano Law Students Association is founded. In the same year, USC Law moves into its current headquarters, the Elvon and Mabel Musick Building. Named in honor of Elvon Musick, the five-level, 88,000-square-foot facility provided state-of-the-art resources, including a computerized library.
1971
Asian Law Students Association is founded.
1973
Exchange program with Caltech begins, enabling professors at both institutions to co-teach and co-author works in law, economics and political science. The partnership evolved into the Program in Law and Rational Choice in 1992, allowing for enhanced interaction between the schools, joint faculty workshops, and a joint-degree program.
1980
USC-educated constitutional law expert Scott H. Bice ’68 is named dean. The second-longest serving dean in the school’s history, Bice returned to teaching after his 20-year tenure ended on June 30, 2000, becoming the Robert C. Packard Professor of Law. On his watch, USC Law became international in its scope, nearly doubled in physical size and completed three major capital campaigns.
1981
Post-Conviction Justice Project is founded. The program gives students real-world training as advocates for prison inmate
1987
The Public Interest Law Foundation is founded. Concerned about insufficient funds for public interest legal services, a group of law students levied a self-imposed $30 annual tax. With nearly 100 percent student participation and broad support from staff, faculty and graduates, the foundation subsidizes hundreds of student-advocates serving the elderly, abused and neglected children, homeless families and other vulnerable populations.
1989
Children’s Legal Issues Clinic founded. For a decade, students have represented minors in legal proceedings dealing with dependency and neglect, abuse, guardianship and school administrative matters.
1990
The Musick Building’s new wing opens. Adding 62,000 square feet to the 1970 facility, this expansion yielded the Ackerman Moot Courtroom, new seminar classrooms, offices for student organizations and clinical programs, lounges and a cafeteria, computer and video labs and a greatly enlarged law library.
1991
Pacific Center for Health Policy and Ethics is founded. Sponsored jointly with the Keck School of Medicine of USC, the Pacific Center brings together international scholars and public dignitaries in teaching and research concerning social, ethical and legal issues in health care.
1992
Southern California Interdisciplinary Law Journal is founded. This student-managed publication focuses on the scholarly work of legal academics, economists, physicians, anthropologists and experts in other fields who analyze law from their particular perspectives. The Southern California Review of Law and Social Justice, inaugurated in 1991, explores legal issues relating to gender and society. It is later re-named Southern California Review of Law and Social Justice
1994
Law Library embraces information technology: its card catalog goes online. The following year, USC Law publicly launches its Website.
1997
USC Law unveils its first multi-media classrooms. One-third of library carrels are now wired to accommodate personal laptop computers.
1998
Small Business Clinic is founded. Law students offer consultation services on employment issues to small businesses and nonprofits.
In the same year, the USC Center for Communications Law and Policy opens. The interdisciplinary program is jointly sponsored by USC Annenberg School for Communication, USC Annenberg Center for Communication and USC Law.
1999
New law student services go online, including class registration, grade notification and on-campus employer interview sign-ups. Email discussion lists supplement classroom teaching in many courses.
Law in the New Millennium
2000
May 15, Matthew L. Spitzer ’77 is named dean, effective July 1, 2000. June 10, USC Law celebrates its centennial.
The Center for the Study of Law and Politics is created: A unique network of inter-connected scholars, drawn from diverse disciplines such as law, political science, economics, public administration, psychology, and communications.
2001
Two new interdisciplinary institutes formed. The Center in Law, Economics and Organization works to improve understanding of how economics, law and organizations interact; and draws upon the resources of USC Law, the Marshall School of Business and the College of Letters, Arts and Science’s department of economics. The Center in Law, History and Culture, another partnership with the College, is devoted to encouraging the study of law as an historical and cultural institution.
2002
Graduate and International Programs are launched with an inaugural class of 12 students. Now the Master of Laws and Master of Comparative Law programs include 65 international students from dozens of countries on five continents.
2004
The Initiative and Referendum Institute — the nation’s most prominent educational and research organization focused on direct democracy — moves to USC Law and joins the Center for the Study of Law and Politics.
2005
A joint project of USC Law and the College, the Center in Law and Philosophy is formed to promote interdisciplinary scholarship in legal, moral, and political philosophy.
Intellectual Property and Technology Law Clinic is founded. The clinic is a joint project of USC Law, USC Annenberg Center for Communication and USC Information Services Division.
In the same year, a new café and refurbished law library open to students for the fall semester. The library features a new multimedia room and computer lab; roomy study tables with Internet plug-ins; and new carpeting, lighting, wood and glass paneling, and furniture, which are both beautiful and functional.
2006
Office of Public Service is formed to expand opportunities for pro bono legal work, internships and service-learning programs.
