My wife and I are back in Cincinnati after spending the spring semester at Pepperdine University School of Law. We had a spectacular time in every respect.
From my law school rankings work (What Law Schools Can Learn from Billy Beane and the Oakland Athletics, 82 Texas L. Rev. 1483 (2004); Ranking Law Schools: Using SSRN to Measure Scholarly Performance, 81 Ind. L.J. 83 (2006)), I knew that Pepperdine during the remarkable deanship of Ken Starr had made the biggest jump in the U.S. News rankings of any law school, moving from outside the Top 100 (2004) to the cusp of the Top 50 (54 in in the latest U.S. News rankings — tied for 7th among the 20 California law schools, after Stanford (3), UC-Berkeley (9), UCLA (16), USC (18), UC-Davis (23), and UC-Hastings (42)). Seeing the school up close convinces me that Top Law Schools is right in predicting that, "[w]ith its strong academic programs, knowledgeable faculty, and beautiful campus, Pepperdine Law School seems a likely candidate for a continued rankings boost."
The Pepperdine faculty is particularly strong, with world class senior scholars complemented by an incredibly promising junior faculty (with articles placed in the Georgetown Law Journal, Maryland Law Review, New York University Law Review, Northwestern Law Review, Utah Law Review, and Wake Forest Law Review this submission season), all of whom who are committed teachers. There is a vibrant intellectual life at the school, which I witnessed first hand at the robust faculty workshop series and two impressive law review symposia (Supreme Mistakes: The Most Maligned Decisions in Supreme Court History; Current and Future Trends in Transnational Litigation). But I was most struck by the palpable sense of community that permeates the building, a hallmark of its distinctive mission to integrate the Christian faith in all aspects of life at the school. I saw this play out in countless ways among faculty, students, and staff throughout the semester. Perhaps the best example is the Commissioning Service held for graduating 3Ls that I was honored to participate in — it was wonderful to hear the 1L, 2L, administration, faculty, and staff representatives, as well as the university president and law school dean, publicly thank the 3Ls for their contributions to the school and pray for their future success.
The beauty of the Pepperdine campus and Malibu is simply breathtaking. For eample, here is the view from the law school:
My wife and I cherished our time at the spectacular Pepperdine beach house — we hosted a steady stream of Cincinnati friends and family visitors, as well as gatherings of Southern California Tax Profs and my class.
We are happy to be home in Cincinnati and are looking forward to reconnecting with friends and colleagues during the Fall 2011 Semester. And we are grateful for the opportunity to return to Pepperdine for the Spring 2012 Semester for my third stint as the D & L Straus Distinguished Professor of Law.
