In this week's National Law Journal, Reality's Knocking:  The Recession Is Forcing Schools to Bow to Reality, by Karen Sloan:

The movement to incorporate practical skills into legal education isn't new, but legal educators and researchers report that the floundering economy is increasing incentives for law schools to revamp their curricula to prepare students for the realities of the legal profession. …

Graduates face stiff competition for law firm positions, and clients are balking at footing the bill to train new attorneys. Consequently, law school leaders consider it more important than ever to send students into the profession armed with practical skills, not just extensive knowledge of case law and legal theory. More law schools are modifying coursework and adding practical classes to help students develop the skills past graduates have had the luxury of learning on the job. In that vein, a growing number of law schools are emphasizing teamwork, leadership, professional judgment and the ability to view issues from the clients' perspective.

"I think we are at a moment of historical change across the landscape of legal education," said Washington and Lee Dean Rodney A. Smolla. "When we look back at this period in five to 10 years, we will mark it as the time when the whole mission of law schools made a fundamental turn." …

[T]confluence of the Carnegie report and the harsh economy has built momentum for change. "I do see more and more emphasis on curriculum than I've ever seen before," said Bill Henderson, a professor at Indiana University Maurer School of Law – Bloomington. "Almost every [legal education] program I've gone to in the last three years has focused on curriculum improvement. In order to justify their high tuition, schools need to speak to the labor market."

The legal labor market is saying that it's no longer willing to pay top dollar to recent graduates who lack work experience. Law firms including Washington's Howrey and Philadelphia's Drinker Biddle & Reath recently announced apprenticeship programs wherein starting associates earn less and spend a significant amount of time training and shadowing partners.

Law school deans are getting the message that firms want students who know more than just how to think like lawyers.