Paul M. Hebert Law Center

Paul M. Hebert Law Center
Name	Paul M. Hebert Law Center
Established	1906
Type	Public
Parent	Louisiana State University
City	Baton Rouge
State	Louisiana
Country	United States
Dean	(varies)
Students	(varies)
Website	(omit)

Paul M. Hebert Law Center The Paul M. Hebert Law Center is the law school of Louisiana State University located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. It offers programs leading to the Juris Doctor and advanced law degrees and is situated within the legal, political, and cultural nexus of Louisiana's civil law tradition, the United States federal judiciary, and regional legal institutions such as the Louisiana Supreme Court and the United States District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana. The center has produced graduates who have served in offices including the United States Senate, the United States House of Representatives, state supreme courts, and executive agencies.

History

The law school's origins trace to initiatives at Louisiana State University in the early 20th century, contemporaneous with the expansion of professional schools at institutions such as Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, and Columbia Law School. During the 20th century the school navigated periods shaped by figures like Earl K. Long, Huey Long, and interactions with institutions such as Tulane University Law School and Southern University Law Center. The center underwent curricular and structural reforms parallel to national trends exemplified by the American Bar Association accreditation movement and developments at the Association of American Law Schools. In wartime eras the school, like peers at University of Virginia School of Law and Georgetown University Law Center, adjusted enrollment in response to events including World War II and the Vietnam War. The law center's naming honored jurist Paul M. Hebert and paralleled naming practices at schools like Stanford Law School and University of Chicago Law School.

Campus and Facilities

Located on the Louisiana State University campus in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the law center neighbors landmarks such as the LSU Greek Theatre, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center, and the Louisiana State Capitol. Facilities include law libraries comparable in role to the Library of Congress's specialized collections and mirror resources at institutions like the New York Public Library law collections and the Harlan F. Stone Library at Columbia University. The campus configuration aligns with legal clinics and moot courtrooms resembling those at Georgetown University Law Center and Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, and the building has hosted symposia with participants from the American Constitution Society, the Federalist Society, and state bar associations such as the Louisiana State Bar Association.

Academics and Programs

The center offers the Juris Doctor, Master of Laws, and joint degree options in partnership with units akin to the Paul M. Hebert Law Center's parent, similar to joint programs at Duke University School of Law and University of Pennsylvania Law School. Curricula reflect Louisiana's civil law heritage and include courses comparable to offerings at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne and McGill University Faculty of Law for mixed legal traditions. Specializations include areas paralleling programs at Harvard Law School (constitutional law), NYU School of Law (international law), and Georgetown University Law Center (tax law). The law center sponsors moot court competitions resembling the Philip C. Jessup International Law Moot Court Competition and trial advocacy programs like the National Trial Competition.

Admissions and Student Body

Admissions follow criteria used by schools such as University of Michigan Law School, University of California, Berkeley School of Law, and Vanderbilt University Law School, including evaluations of LSAT or GRE scores and undergraduate records from institutions like Louisiana State University, Southern University, Tulane University, and out-of-state colleges such as University of Texas at Austin and University of Florida. The student body contains candidates engaged in externships with offices like the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, clerkships with the Louisiana Supreme Court, and fellowships with organizations such as the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission. Student organizations mirror those at national schools, including chapters of the National Lawyers Guild, the American Bar Association student division, and the Federalist Society.

Faculty and Administration

Faculty have included scholars with backgrounds at institutions such as Harvard Law School, Yale Law School, Oxford University, Columbia Law School, and University of Chicago Law School, and have engaged with judicial figures from the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. Administration interacts with state leadership such as the Governor of Louisiana and university governance structures similar to those at University of California campuses and State University of New York institutions. Visiting professors have come from universities including Stanford University, Duke University, and Georgetown University, and faculty scholarship appears in journals like the Harvard Law Review, the Yale Law Journal, and the Columbia Law Review.

Clinical Programs and Centers

Clinical offerings provide experiential learning through clinics styled after those at University of Pennsylvania Law School and Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, with placements in public interest settings like the Legal Services Corporation and governmental placements such as the Department of Homeland Security. The center hosts centers and institutes engaging with subjects akin to the Energy Law Journal and collaborations resembling partnerships with the Tulane Energy Institute and international programs like those at The Hague Academy of International Law. Clinics include trial advocacy, civil litigation, and transactional clinics, preparing students for bar exams administered by entities like the National Conference of Bar Examiners and state boards such as the Louisiana Supreme Court Committee on Bar Admissions.

Notable Alumni and Faculty

Alumni have served in roles including seats in the United States Congress, on the Louisiana Supreme Court, and in cabinets modeled after officials in the United States Department of Justice and state executive offices. Graduates have connections to jurists like members of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, political figures akin to Bobby Jindal, John Bel Edwards, and attorneys who've appeared before the United States Supreme Court. Faculty and alumni include scholars and practitioners who have written in publications comparable to the Federal Reporter, the Louisiana Law Review, and national media outlets, and who have participated in organizations such as the American Bar Association and the Louisiana State Bar Association.

Category:Law schools in the United States Category:Louisiana State University