In his role as chair of the Standards Review Committee of the American Bar Association, Santa Clara Law Dean Donald J. Polden is charged with leading a committee review of proposed changes in or additions to standards, interpretations and rules of procedure governing the accreditation of 200 American law schools.
In September 2008, the Council of the Section of the Legal Education and Admissions to the Bar began a comprehensive review of the ABA Standards and Rules of Procedure for the Approval of Law Schools. The Council is relying on the work of its Standards Review Committee to complete this project. Initial draft standards aren’t expected to be ready for outside review and comment until sometime in 2010, but early reactions from the law school community concerning some proposed changes have been "very, very mixed,” says Polden. He notes that the comprehensive review is occurring during "a very complicated time for the legal profession.”
For more information on the ABA’s self study program, see www.abajournal.com/magazine/self-study_program
ABOUT DONALD J. POLDEN
Donald Polden has served as Dean and Professor of Law at Santa Clara University since 2003. At Santa Clara, he teaches courses on corporate law and the law of nonprofit organizations. Before joining Santa Clara University School of Law, Polden was the dean and professor of law at University of Memphis School of Law, positions he held from 1993 to 2003. Dean Polden also taught law at Drake University and University of Louisville, practiced antitrust and corporate law in Iowa and clerked for a federal trial judge. He was elected to the American Law Institute in 1993, is a life member of the American Bar Foundation, and a Fellow in the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers. Dean Polden holds a B.BA from George Washington University, and earned a J.D., cum laude, from the Indiana University-Indianapolis Law School.
ABOUT SANTA CLARA LAW
Santa Clara University School of Law, founded in 1911 on the site of California’s oldest operating higher-education institution, is dedicated to educating lawyers who lead with a commitment to excellence, ethics, and social justice. One of the nation’s most diverse law schools, Santa Clara Law offers its 1,000 students an academically rigorous program, including graduate degrees in international law and intellectual property law; combined J.D./MBA and J.D./MSIS degrees; and certificates in intellectual property law, international law, and public interest and social justice law. Santa Clara Law is located in the world-class business center of Silicon Valley, and is distinguished nationally for our top-ranked program in intellectual property. For more information, see law.scu.edu.
