Mitsudoro Yamanaka receives his LLB degree.

Anna E. Wood completes her LLB degree. This was the same year that National Women’s Suffrage Association was established in an effort to gain women the right to vote, and fight for more equal economic, political and social reforms.

Dean Gantenbein who graduated from Oregon Law in 1891 (LLB) the head of his class serves from 1903-1915. It is at the end of his tenure that the UO regents decided to move the law school to Eugene. 

Under the leadership of the new dean, Edward W. Hope (1915-1919) The move to Eugene transformed the old-style school to the new standards which were being set in the country for legal education. These included stronger entrance requirements, a three-year curriculum, a full-time faculty, a better library, and a university environment. New students would enter after two years of college, rather than directly after high school.

Thus making the school one of the first 39 schools to earn that distinction in the initial year of the ABA approval of law schools.

His appointment became permanent in 1945 when Wayne Morse's obligation required him to be in Washington, DC for the US Senate.  Dean Hollis served 1941-44, 1945-1967. He became the University of Oregon’s acting president upon President Donald Erb’s sudden death.

During “The War Years” many law students were called to service. Between 1944 and 1945, there were only two graduates. 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.

Taught by professor and later, acting-dean Chapin Clark. Dean Clark, who later served as dean from 1974-1980, led the transformation of Oregon Law from a small state and local school to a national presence. An expert in property and natural resources law, he was instrumental in building the environmental and natural resources law program.

Dean Scoles served through 1974, at which point he rejoined the faculty and taught until his retirement in 1981. During his tenure, he oversaw the expansion of programming and move into a new building.

The joint UO-OSU Sea Grant Program was the first in the US, founded by Professor Jon L. Jacobson.

The law school moves from Fenton Hall into a new building located on the corner of 11th and Kincaid, near the University of Oregon Bookstore.

 

 

William “Grey Wolf” Johnson served as associate judge in 1980, and since 1988 has served a consecutive four 10-year terms as Chief Judge of the Umatilla Court.

The LRW program is started by faculty member and founding Director, Mary Lawrence.

Since U.S. News began ranking LRW programs in 2005, Oregon Law’s program has consistently been ranked among the top in the nations. In 2023-2024, it was ranked #1 in the nation, making this more than 14 consecutive years in the top 10.

Created by John Bonine, the clinical program uses law and citizen suit provisions to provide free legal representation to grassroots conservation organizations across the American West. During the 1980s, the Environmental Law Clinic doubled in size and was renamed the Pacific Northwest Natural Resources Clinic.

From its initial gathering of just 15 speakers and 75 participants, PIELC has grown to come the largest of its kind in the world. In 2011, PIELC won the American Bar Association’s Law Student Environment, Energy, and Resources Program of the Year Award for the 29th Annual PIELC Conference title “Turning the Tide: Creating a Clean and Green Future.”

After Dean Bell’s departure, Fred Merrill served as acting dean from 1985-1986. Dean Holland served through 1991.

The inaugural edition featured articles of interest to both practitioners and academicians in the fields of environmental and natural resource law.

The Oregon Review of International Law (ORIL) is a student-run journal of the University of Oregon School of Law that publishes articles by academics, practitioners, and students that address current legal topics in international law and policy.

The new $25 million center more than doubled the size of the previous building. A naming gift of $10 million from Phil Knight honored his father, William W. Knight (LLB ’32), a state legislator and publisher of the Oregonian newspaper.

The ADR program, which educates students in areas of negotiation, mediation and arbitration has been top ranked in the nation since 2007 by U.S. News and World Report. In 2023-2024, it was ranked 11th in the nation. In 2016, the ADR program was honored with the ADR Education Award from the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals.

Law students represent clients in contested restraining and stalking orders. In 2014, the clinic established Student Survivor Legal Services, the nation’s first on-campus legal office devoted entirely to serving campus survivors in civil, criminal, and campus disciplinary matters.

The fully staffed program opened with Professor Mary C. Wood as the first director. The ENR program has consistently ranked among the leading environmental law programs in the US for 14 years. In 2023-2024, the program was ranked #9 in the nation according to U.S. News and World Report.

This two-year, full-time program was ranked #9 in the nation by College Choice in 2018.

In 2016, the program received “Best LL.M. Programs: Law School Experience” and “Best LL.M. Programs: Top Value” by National Jurist. And in 2019, the LLM’s Appropriate Dispute Resolution program was ranked #9 globally by LLM Guide.

The law school begins a program in Portland, which moved into Portland's White Stag Building. The Portland Program focuses on business law and related externships. In 2015, the ABA Council on Legal Education granted acceptance to the University of Oregon School of Law’s request to launch a full-year “satellite campus,” the Portland Program. 

A renowned environmental law expert, Dean Burke is the first African-American woman to serve as dean of the School of Law.