Here are a few of the most important news stories you need to know from the past week.
For the last decade, AALS has kept the legal academy and supporters informed with our weekly Legal Education News Digest and Blogs Digest. These digests track important developments in legal education, the legal profession, and higher education on the federal level. They also highlight new programs, collaborations between schools, milestones, faculty accomplishments, awards, clinical activities, and special events. Sign up to receive these digests by email.
Law schools can share news and updates with the editors of the weekly digest here.
AALS Legal Education News Digest – Week Ending September 19, 2025
AALS Legal Education Blogs Digest – Week Ending September 19, 2025
Top stories from the past two weeks include:
- AALS President Austen Parrish and CEO Kellye Testy discuss the legal profession’s responsibility to protect judicial independence in a recent op-ed. In response to sustained attacks meant to delegitimize judges, Testy and Parrish emphasize the need for the legal profession as a whole to defend an impartial judiciary as the foundation of our legal system. (The Hill)
- Tennessee is the latest state to reconsider the ABA’s role as an accreditor for law schools. The Tennessee Supreme Court has asked for public opinion on reforms concerning lawyer licensure and law firm regulation. Florida, Texas and Ohio have made similar proposals, raising concerns for the legal profession about future license transfers and access to justice. (Reuters)
- Santa Clara Law has announced that they will provide a guaranteed $16,000 scholarship to all incoming students. As the federal government’s recent budget bill placed a new, lower cap on professional student borrowing, the scholarship guarantees that students will be able to cover the rest of their tuition entirely with federal loans. (Reuters)
Higher Education
- Universities are working to comply with an influx of policy changes affecting graduate programs. As the new academic year begins, universities are confronting policy changes including caps on federal loan borrowing, student visa complications, and cuts to federal research funding. Though many of the policy changes were enacted over the summer, universities are feeling the pressure now as budgetary and enrollment decisions are being made. (Diverse Issues in Higher Education)
- A growing number of universities guarantee students graduate school enrollment if they do not receive a job within six months of graduation. Universities are offering perks like graduate enrollment or employment within university staff to address growing concerns over unemployment rates and the value of an undergraduate degree. (Inside Higher Ed)
Law School Programs, Clinics and Milestones
- Florida State University Law professor Denise Harle discusses new First Amendment Legal Clinic. (Tallahassee Democrat)
- University of Maryland Law launches new Innocence Clinic. (Maryland the Daily Record)
- Stanford Law unveils artificial intelligence initiative aimed at supporting professional use. (Stanford Law School)