This Week in Legal Education News

Over the last decade, AALS has kept law school leadership, faculty, and staff informed with its weekly Legal Education News Digest and Blogs Digest. Sign up to receive these digests by email. 

To keep law school faculty and staff up to date with the latest legal education news, we collect articles on new programs, collaborations with other schools, faculty accomplishments, awards, clinical activities, and special events. You can share news and updates with the editors of the weekly digest here. With the launch of our online platform LENS, we will be sharing a weekly roundup of legal education news, highlighting the most important stories.  

AALS Legal Education News Digest – Week Ending April 4, 2025 
AALS Legal Education Blogs Digest– Week Ending April 4, 2025  

Here are a few articles of note from the past week: 

• Law deans warn that the closure of the US Education Department will cause harm to law students. Delays in disbursement of federal loans could lead to issues with law school financing and increased interest rates for private student loans. (Reuters)
• A US House of Representatives committee is investigating a Northwestern Law legal clinic over their representation of protestors. The committee has requested information on budgets and policies for all of Northwestern Law’s clinics. Northwestern has responded to the probe by stating that clinics support a wide range of clients and that the clients do not necessarily reflect the views of the university. (Reuters)
• Clinical Legal Education Association and the AALS Section on Clinical Legal Education have released a joint statement on congressional attacks on academic freedom. The statement condemns actions taken against law schools clinics stating that these attacks threaten Constitutional rights and academic freedom. (CLEA)

Law School Programs and Clinics

• Arizona State University Law launches Center for Intellectual Property Law. (AZ Big Media)
• UC Berkeley Law to open Global Rights Innovation Lab Clinic. (The Daily Californian)
• University of Kansas Law hosts Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program. (The University of Kansas)
• Ohio State University Law Small Business Development Center offers free legal clinic for entrepreneurs.(Chillicothe Gazette)

Higher Education

• As the Trump Administration aims to make major federal budget cuts to education more than 20 lawsuits have been filed against the federal government. The lawsuits largely focus on the deportation of foreign students for protest activity, but also include cuts to teacher training programs and the dismantling of the US Education Department. (The Hill)
• The US Education Department has proposed regulatory changes to student aid programs. The agency seeks feedback on changes to Public Service Loan Forgiveness and income-driven repayment plans which would limit eligibility for borrowers. (Higher Ed Dive)