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ASU Law School Building to Break Ground in the Downtown District

Summary: On November 13, the groundbreaking for Arizona State University’s brand new law school building will be held, according to a release from ASU.

On November 13, the groundbreaking for Arizona State University’s brand new law school building will be held, according to a release from ASU.

The building will cost $129 million. The groundbreaking will occur at Taylor and First streets.

ASU President Michael M. Crow, retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor and Doug Sylvester, dean of the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, Phoenix Mayor Greg Stanton and Michael Nowakowski, Phoenix councilman, will attend the event.

“The Arizona Center for Law and Society is another wonderful addition to our growing campus in the heart of Phoenix,” Crow said. “Having the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law in downtown Phoenix fits perfectly with ASU’s mission of building strong learning and career connections with media, health care, corporate and government organizations for the more than 11,500 students at the downtown campus.”

The new building will be called the Arizona Center for Law and Society and construction started back in July. Classes will start being held at the location in August of 2016. Right now, the college of law operates in Armstrong Hall on the Tempe campus.

The City of Phoenix is funding the project for the new building. Phoenix has provided the land and $12 million. The rest of the funding is coming from private donations and construction bonds through the school.

To read more about the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, click here.

“This could not have been possible without the generosity of our alumni and connected legal communities,” Sylvester said. “We are particularly honored that long-time Phoenix attorney Leo Beus and his wife, Annette, recently made a $10 million contribution to the building’s capital campaign. ”

“Not only will the new law school have state-of-the-art learning facilities, it will also provide our students with incredible opportunities,” Sylvester said. “The downtown location is near the courts and the city’s legal district, which will prove invaluable to our students in the form of internships, externships and networking.”

Also relocating following construction will be the Ross-Blakley Law Library, which is housed in a separate location on the Tempe campus.

The first teaching law firm associated with a law school will also be housed in the new building. It will be called the ASU Alumni Law Group .

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Image credit: KTAR

Jim Vassallo: Jim is a freelance writer based out of the suburbs of Philadelphia in New Jersey. Jim earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications and minor in Journalism from Rowan University in 2008. While in school he was the Assistant Sports Director at WGLS for two years and the Sports Director for one year. He also covered the football, baseball, softball and both basketball teams for the school newspaper 'The Whit.' Jim lives in New Jersey with his wife Nicole, son Tony and dog Phoebe.

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