The American Bar Association has granted UC Irvine’s law school full accreditation, according to the LA Times and a press release from the law school.
When the UC Irvine School of Law opened in 2009 it was the first public law school to open in almost 50 years in California. The founding dean is Erwin Chemerinsky, who came from Duke University.
“From the outset, our goal has been to build a top law school that emphasizes preparing students for the practice of law at the highest levels of the profession,” Chemerinsky said. “I am very proud that the decision by the ABA is at the earliest possible time under the ABA rules.”
Dean Chemerinsky continued with the following in the statement: “The ABA’s decision puts the official seal of approval on the hard work of scores of faculty, administrators, students, and supporters, both on campus and in the legal community. We are so grateful for the generosity and support we have received in building the University of California, Irvine School of Law.”
The UC Irvine School of Law was ranked seventh in a recent study of scholarly impact of faculty members. The school enters the list behind Yale, Harvard, Chicago, Stanford, Columbia and NYU.
The accreditation is effective immediately.