:University of Oregon School of Law

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Oregon Law was founded in 1884 in Portland, Oregon.Corning, Howard M. (1989) Dictionary of Oregon History. Binfords & Mort Publishing. p. 253. Richard R. Thornton organized the department that began as a two-year program with three classes per week.Horner, John B. (1919). Oregon: Her History, Her Great Men, Her Literature. The J.K. Gill Co.: Portland. p. 241. In 1906, the course of study was expanded to three years, and in April 1915, the school's board of regents ordered that the program be moved to Eugene as part of a consolidation program within the university. Though the school moved, some of the faculty remained in Portland and started the Northwest College of Law, now the Lewis & Clark Law School. In 1923, the school was approved by the American Bar Association (ABA), one of the first 39 schools to earn that distinction in the initial year of the ABA approval of law schools.[http://www.abanet.org/legaled/approvedlawschools/year.html ABA-Approved Law Schools by Year.] American Bar Association. Retrieved on February 28, 2008.

In 1931, Wayne Morse became dean.{{cite web|editor-last=Sol|editor-first =Credence|year=2008|url=http://www.law.uoregon.edu/ol/docs/OL2008ann.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110526094850/http://www.law.uoregon.edu/ol/docs/OL2008ann.pdf |archive-date=May 26, 2011|title=Oregon Law at 125|work=2008 Oregon Lawyer ANNUAL|pages=16–20|publisher=University of Oregon School of Law|access-date=2014-09-22}} Three years later, the law school organized a chapter of the national law school honor society, the Order of the Coif. In 1938, the law school moved to Fenton Hall. In 1939, the law school graduated Minoru Yasui, who later took his challenge to the military curfew on Japanese Americans during World War II all the way to the United States Supreme Court.

In 1941, Orlando John Hollis became acting dean. His appointment became permanent in 1945 when Morse resigned to run for the U.S. Senate. During the war years, many law students were called to service. In 1944, there were no graduating students; in 1945, only one student graduated. After the war's conclusion, the school admitted every returning veteran who sought a legal education: out of 26 students who graduated in 1948, 25 had served in World War II.

The post-war era was marked by the Oregon legislature's adoption of law professor Kenneth O'Connell's Oregon Revised Statutes. Professor O'Connell was appointed to the Oregon Supreme Court in 1958, and later became its chief justice.

During the 1960s, Professor (and later dean) Chapin Clark offered the school's first courses in environmental and natural resources law. Later that decade, Professor Jon Jacobson founded the school's Ocean and Coastal Law Center. In 1968, Eugene Scoles became dean.

In 1970, the law school moved into a new building, the Law Center. In 1974, the Wayne Morse Chair of Law and Politics was established as a "living memorial" to former dean and U.S. senator Wayne Morse.{{rp|19}} In 1977, Professor Hans A. Linde was appointed to the Oregon Supreme Court. In 1978, the school established the first-in-the-world Environmental Law Clinic.

During the 1980s, the Environmental Law Clinic doubled in size and was renamed the Pacific Northwest Natural Resources Clinic. In 1981, Professor Dave Frohnmayer became Oregon Attorney General. In 1982, students organized the first Public Interest Environmental Law Conference. In 1986, the Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation began publication.Michael D. Axline, Forward, 1 {{smallcaps|J. Envtl. L. & Litig.}} vii (1986)

In the new century, the school opened the Appropriate Dispute Resolution Program. In 2003, the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Program opened a fully staffed office. In 2004, the Center for Law and Entrepreneurship opened a Small Business Clinic to assist small and micro-businesses. The school also has started a program in Portland, which moved into Portland's White Stag Building in 2008. The Portland Program focuses on business law and related externships.

In the 2025 national report of best law schools released by US News & World Report, the University of Oregon School of Law is the only law school in the Pacific Northwest to boast four top-ranked specialty law rankings and is ranked #94 among the 195 Best Law Schools.[https://www.usnews.com/best-graduate-schools/top-law-schools/university-of-oregon-03135 America's Best Graduate Schools: School of Law: University of Oregon.] U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved on January 29, 2020.

#1 Oregon Law’s Legal Research and Writing Program, the foundation to every law student’s education, remained the top program in the country and is the only top-15 legal writing program in the Big Ten.

#7 With a focus on groundbreaking interdisciplinary research projects, Oregon Law’s Environmental and Natural Resources Law Center continues a legacy of national leadership.

#11 Oregon Law debuts in new national ranking: graduates in public interest jobs.

#12 Oregon Law’s award-winning Appropriate Dispute Resolution Center maintains its national reputation by providing students with an outstanding education with emphasis on skillful management of disputes, deals, and decision-making.

Best programs: Oregon Law named top in the state of Oregon for business/corporate law, contracts/commercial law, criminal law, dispute resolution, international law, legal writing, and tax law and is ranked #94 overall among the nation’s 195 Best Law Schools.

The program includes a master's of law degree (LL.M.) option.[http://llm.uoregon.edu/ Environmental and Natural Resources Law.] University of Oregon School of Law. Retrieved on February 28, 2012.[http://www.llm-guide.com/university/636/university-of-oregon LLM Guide: University of Oregon.] Pritzwalks. Retrieved on February 28, 2008.

The University of Oregon School of Law is known for possessing the nation's first public law school to establish an environmental law program.

The law school also houses a prominent Appropriate Dispute Resolution Center,  ranked 7th in the country in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report.

The law school's Legal Research and Writing (LRW) Program[http://www.law.uoregon.edu/lrw/ "Legal Research and Writing.] University of Oregon School of Law. also is well regarded and has been top ranked for over 15 years.

The School of Law is home to several legal journals.

• The Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation is a student-run law journal founded in 1986 and dedicated to the examination of environmental and natural resources law.{{Cite web|date=November 13, 2019|title=Journal of Environmental Law and Litigation|url=https://law.uoregon.edu/life-law/student-organizations-journals/journal-environmental-law-and-litigation|website=University of Oregon School of Law|language=en}}
• The Oregon Law Review is the flagship law review of the University of Oregon School of Law. It was founded in 1921{{Cite web|title=Oregon Law Review|url=https://home.heinonline.org/titles/Law-Journal-Library/Oregon-Law-Review/|website=Hein Online}} and originally run by the school faculty. From 1925{{Ndash}}1938 the Law Review served as the journal for the Oregon Bar Association.{{Cite journal|last1=University of Oregon|last2=School of Law|last3=Oregon Bar Association|last4=Oregon State Bar|date=1921|title=Oregon law review|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1761423|journal=Oregon Law Review|language=en|issn=0196-2043|oclc=1761423}} By 1967, the Law Review had been turned over to a student board of editors. Published on a biannual basis, it is the oldest continually published law journal in the Pacific Northwest.{{Cite web|date=November 13, 2019|title=Oregon Law Review|url=https://law.uoregon.edu/life-law/student-organizations-journals/oregon-law-review|website=University of Oregon School of Law|language=en}}
• The Oregon Review of International Law is a student-run journal founded in 1999 and published continually since.{{Cite web|title=Oregon Review of International Law|url=https://home.heinonline.org/titles/Law-Journal-Library/Oregon-Review-of-International-Law/|website=Hein Online}} It specializes in topics pertaining to international law and policy.{{Cite web|date=November 13, 2019|title=Oregon Review of International Law|url=https://law.uoregon.edu/life-law/student-organizations-journals/oregon-review-international-law|website=University of Oregon School of Law|language=en}}

More than 93% of Oregon Law's 2022 class is employed as of 10 months after graduation.{{Cite web|url=https://law.uoregon.edu/jd/class-profile|title=JD Class Profile|date=2019-07-29|website=School of Law|language=en|access-date=2020-01-30}}

The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at Oregon for the 2023–2024 academic year was $81,582 for non-residents and $68,706 for Oregon residents.{{cite web |title=2023–2024 Tuition and Fees |url=https://financialaid.uoregon.edu/cost_of_attendance_law}} The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $199,048 for non-residents and $170,167 for Oregon residents.{{cite web|url=http://www.lstscorereports.com/schools/oregon/costs/2013/ |title=Oregon Profile}}

The Public Interest Environmental Law Conference (PIELC) is a conference held annually on the first weekend in March at the University of Oregon School of Law in Eugene, Oregon, United States. The conference is a gathering of environmental activists, advocates, and students from across the United States and the world.{{cite web |title=PIELC website|url=http://www.pielc.org}}

PIELC is organized and hosted by the students involved in the environmental law society "Land Air Water" (LAW). Land Air Water is a student group at the University of Oregon School of Law. It is co-sponsored by Friends of Land Air Water, a University of Oregon/Land Air Water alumni group that helps advise the student organizers.

The conference has six to ten internationally recognized keynote addresses and over 120 panels. Notable keynoters include Ralph Nader,{{Citation |title=Ralph Nader Keynote Address: Public Interest Environmental Law Conference 2002 |url=https://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip_510-bc3st7fj86 |access-date=2025-03-11 |others=KBOO, Ralph Nader |place=Portland, Oregon |publisher=KBOO Community Radio |language=en}} Winona LaDuke,{{Cite journal |last=Strickland |first=Rennard |date=Spring 2010 |title=The Native Environmental Sovereignty Project |url=https://law.uoregon.edu/sites/default/files/15.7.5_nespsummarysheet.pdf |journal=}} and David Brower.{{Cite web |date=2020-11-23 |title=David Brower at the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference |url=https://direct.kboo.fm/media/94429-david-brower-public-interest-environmental-law-conference |access-date=2025-03-11 |website=KBOO |language=en}}

The conference has been held since 1983 and celebrated its 42nd anniversary in 2024.{{cite news |title=42 Years of PIELC |url=https://www.pielc.org/ |access-date=2012-03-03 |newspaper=Eugene Weekly}}

The conference is held on the first weekend in March. Early panels start Thursday afternoon, and the official opening is Thursday evening. It closes with a final address Sunday at noon. Typically, the conference has around 5,000 attendees.{{Citation needed|date=October 2013}}

The content of the conference is aimed at professional environmental activists, such as people that work in non-profit public interest organizations such as the Wilderness Society, the Sierra Club, and the Oregon Natural Desert Association and public interest environmental attorneys like Earthjustice, Natural Resources Defense Council, and private public interest attorneys. CLE credits are available.

The conference is also of interest to students of environmental law and environmental studies, and each year it hosts groups from around a dozen different schools.

The conference is unapologetically pro-public interest and pro-environment. It is a forum for the people who are actively enforcing environmental law and promoting environmental values to share experiences, strategies, and news.{{Citation needed|date=October 2013}}

{{Main|List of University of Oregon alumni}}

• Ann Aiken (1979) – Senior Judge, former Chief Judge, United States District Court for the District of Oregon{{cite web|title=Ann Aiken|url=http://law.uoregon.edu/ol/summer2012/judicial-externships/|website=law.uoregon.edu|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117063726/https://law.uoregon.edu/ol/summer2012/judicial-externships|archive-date=January 17, 2013|access-date=March 30, 2018}}
• Robert C. Belloni (1951) – former Judge, United States District Court for the District of Oregon{{cite web|title=Robert C. Belloni|url=http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/nGetInfo?jid=151&cid=999&ctype=na&instate=na|publisher=Federal Judicial Center|access-date=5 March 2013}}
• Suzanne Bonamici (1983) – member, United States House of Representatives{{cite web|title=Suzanne Bonamici|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=B001278|publisher=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date=5 March 2013}}
• David V. Brewer (1977) – Associate Justice of the Oregon Supreme Court{{Cite web|url=http://votesmart.org/candidate/biography/139753/david-brewer#.Uc--0T4Y1F8|title = The Voter's Self Defense System}}
• William G. East (1932) – former Judge, United States District Court for the District of Oregon{{cite web|title=William G. East|url=http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/nGetInfo?jid=677&cid=138&ctype=dc&instate=or|publisher=Federal Judicial Center|access-date=5 March 2013}}
• William A. Ekwall (1912) – former member, United States House of Representatives; former Judge, United States Customs Court{{cite web|title=William A. Ekwall|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=E000098|publisher=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date=6 March 2013}}
• Edward N. Fadeley (1957) – former Justice, Oregon Supreme Court; former president, Oregon State Senate{{Cite web |url=https://giving.uoregon.edu/s/1540/17/interior.aspx?sid=1540&gid=2&pgid=252&cid=14028&ecid=14028&crid=0&calpgid=3331&calcid=7115 |title=University of Oregon Foundation |publisher=University of Oregon |access-date=2021-11-27}}
• Jack Faust (1958) – Portland First Citizen, former TV broadcaster{{cite web|title=Jack Faust|url=http://www.schwabe.com/showattorney.aspx?Show=9433|publisher=Schwabe, Williamson & Wyatt|access-date=6 March 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120227012242/http://www.schwabe.com/showattorney.aspx?Show=9433|archive-date=27 February 2012|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}
• John Frohnmayer (1972) – former chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts{{Cite web |url=https://around.uoregon.edu/content/john-frohnmayer-discuss-ethics-and-truth-zoom-talk |title=John Frohnmayer to discuss ethics and truth in Zoom talk |date=23 April 2020 |publisher=University of Oregon |access-date=2021-11-27}}
• Helen J. Frye (1966) – former Judge, United States District Court for the District of Oregon{{cite web|title=Helen J. Frye|url=http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/nGetInfo?jid=803&cid=138&ctype=dc&instate=or|publisher=Federal Judicial Center|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Alfred Goodwin (1951) – Senior Judge, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals{{cite web|title=Alfred Goodwin|url=http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/nGetInfo?jid=883&cid=999&ctype=na&instate=na|publisher=Federal Judicial Center|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Bert E. Haney (1903) – former Judge, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals{{cite web|title=Bert E. Haney|url=http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/nGetInfo?jid=967&cid=21&ctype=ac&instate=09|publisher=Federal Judicial Center|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Arthur D. Hay (1911) – former Justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite web|title=Arthur D. Hay|url=http://www.oregon.gov/SOLL/Pages/ojd_historyjustice_biographies/a_d_hay_bio.aspx|publisher=State of Oregon Law Library|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Donald Hodel (1960) – former secretary of energy and Secretary of the Interior; former president, Christian Coalition; former president and CEO, Focus on the Family{{cite web|title=Donald Hodel|url=http://www.nndb.com/people/709/000061526/|publisher=Notable Names Data Base|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Mustafa T. Kasubhai (1996) – District Judge, United States District for the District of Oregon.{{cite web|title=Champion for Equality and Access to Justice, Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, JD ’96 Confirmed to Federal Bench|url=https://law.uoregon.edu/champion-equality-and-access-justice-judge-mustafa-kasubhai-jd-96-confirmed-federal-bench|access-date=2024-11-22}}
• Earl C. Latourette (1912) – former chief justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite book |url=https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/11434 |publisher=University of Oregon |type=Yearbook |title=1913 Oregana |date=1912 |page=47 |access-date=2021-11-27}}
• Malcolm F. Marsh (1954) – senior judge, United States District Court for the District of Oregon{{cite web|title=Malcolm F. Marsh|url=http://www.fjc.gov/servlet/nGetInfo?jid=1483&cid=138&ctype=dc&instate=or|publisher=Federal Judicial Center|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Yōsuke Matsuoka (1900) – Foreign Minister of Japan{{cite news |url=https://oregonnews.uoregon.edu/lccn/sn83045782/1900-05-27/ed-1/seq-24/ |title=Fourteen New Lawyers: Class of 1900 in University of Oregon Pass Examination |date=1900-05-27 |page=24 |newspaper=The Sunday Oregonian |access-date=2021-11-27}}
• Julius L. Meier (1895) – former governor of Oregon{{cite web|title=Julius L. Meier|url=http://www.nga.org/cms/home/governors/past-governors-bios/page_oregon/col2-content/main-content-list/title_meier_julius.html|publisher=National Governors Association|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Hardy Myers (1964) – former Oregon attorney general{{cite web|title=Hardy Myers |url=http://www.ncvli.org/myers.html |publisher=Lewis & Clark College |access-date=7 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081015115450/http://www.ncvli.org/myers.html |archive-date=October 15, 2008 }}
• Edwin J. Peterson (1957) – former chief justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite web|title=Edwin J. Peterson|url=http://www.willamette.edu/wucl/faculty/profiles/peterson/|publisher=Willamette College of Law|access-date=7 March 2013}}
• Raymond F. Rees, (1976) United States Army major general, acting Chief of the National Guard Bureau, Adjutant General of OregonCliff Collins, Profiles in the Law, Oregon State Bar Bulletin, [http://www.osbar.org/publications/bulletin/06febmar/profiles.html Maj. Gen. Raymond (Fred) Rees: General Practice], December, 2005
• R. William Riggs (1968) – former justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite journal|last=Riggs|first=R. William|year=2003|title=A Proposal for Change|url=http://willamette.edu/law/pdf/review/39-4/riggs.pdf|journal=Willamette Law Review|edition=Fall|volume=39|issue=4|page=1439|access-date=April 5, 2018}}
• Fred Risser (1952) – Wisconsin state senator and longest-serving state legislator in American history
• Ellen Rosenblum (1975) – Oregon attorney general; former judge, Oregon Court of Appeals.
• David Schuman (1984) – former judge, Oregon Court of Appeals; former associate dean and professor at the University of Oregon School of Law{{cite web|title=David Schuman|url=http://courts.oregon.gov/COA/judgebios/schumanbio.page|publisher=Oregon Judicial Department.|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Frederick Steiwer (1908) – former United States senator from Oregon{{cite web|title=Frederick Steiwer|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=S000848|publisher=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Jacob Tanzer (1959) – former justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite web|title=Jacob Tanzer|url=http://www.whoislog.info/profile/jacob-tanzer.html|publisher=whoislaw|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Thomas Tongue (1937) – former justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite book |url=https://scholarsbank.uoregon.edu/xmlui/handle/1794/12036 |type=Yearbook |date=1937 |publisher=University of Oregon |title=1937 Oregana |page=41 |access-date=2021-11-27}}
• Richard Unis (1953) – former justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{Cite web|date=February 18, 2016|title=Richard Louis Unis|url=https://obits.oregonlive.com/us/obituaries/oregon/name/richard-unis-obituary?id=21372289|access-date=January 11, 2022|website=OregonLive Obituaries}}
• Martha Lee Walters (1977) – justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite web|title=Martha Lee Walters|url=http://courts.oregon.gov/Supreme/BioWalters.page|publisher=Oregon Judicial Department.|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Harold Warner (1916) – former chief justice, Oregon Supreme Court{{cite web|title=Harold Warner|url=http://www.whoislog.info/profile/harold-j-warner.html|publisher=whoislaw|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Wendell Wyatt (1941) – former member, United States House of Representatives{{cite web|title=Wendell Wyatt|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=W000778|publisher=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Ron Wyden (1974) – United States senator from Oregon{{cite web|title=Ron Wyden|url=http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=w000779|publisher=Biographical Directory of the United States Congress|access-date=12 March 2013}}
• Minoru Yasui (1939) – namesake for ''Yasui v. United States'{{cite web|title=Minoru Yasui|url=http://www.ohs.org/education/oregonhistory/Oregon-Biographies-Minoru-Yasui.cfm|publisher=Presented by Oregon Historical Society|access-date=12 March 2013}}

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Category:Environmental law schools

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