RUTGERS LAW SCHOOL, the largest public law school in the northeast, invites applications and nominations for the position of Dean of the Law School. Rutgers Law School is looking for a dynamic leader whose skills and energy will focus on building and aligning the faculty, the staff, the student body, and external legal partners to prepare excellent and engaged lawyers for the future.

Now is an exciting time in the history of legal education at Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Rutgers Law School offers students, alumni, attorneys, and the public a rich array of services and opportunities from its two well-established New Jersey locations at Camden and Newark, and it adjoins two of the nation’s largest, most dynamic legal markets (New York City and Philadelphia). Rutgers is well-recognized for its tradition of academic excellence, opportunity, inclusion, and affordability. Rutgers Law School is committed to scholarly distinction and engagement with the major legal issues and concerns facing our host communities, the region, country, and world. The faculty has acted on its commitment to equity and to scholarly excellence by creating a unitary tenure-track structure for full-time faculty. Rutgers Law School has a long-standing and steadfast commitment to social justice and public service, carried out through a myriad of programs, and projects that provide legal services to individuals in need: locally, nationally, and globally. The law school is committed to excellence in practice: both the legal writing and clinical programs are annually ranked within the top #15 in the nation. The law school is also highly ranked for its part-time program. As one of the largest law schools in the nation, Rutgers Law School delivers a comprehensive enhanced curriculum, an extensive alumni association, and a heightened national profile befitting the law school of a major public research university.

Rutgers Law School as a single entity was created in 2015 by merger into one entity of the University’s two previously autonomous schools, located in Newark (established in 1908) and Camden (established in.  1950). Approved by the ABA in 2015, the merged Rutgers Law School has 1,346 students who attend from around the country and the world, and over 20,000 alumni, among whom are United States Senators, federal and state Supreme Court Justices, state legislators, state Attorneys General, frontline social justice and criminal justice reform advocates, small firm lawyers, and partners at many of the most prominent law firms in New York, Philadelphia, New Jersey, and the nation. Rutgers Law School has been developing a sophisticated distance learning technology infrastructure; currently, some courses are accessible simultaneously on both campuses.

The dean of Rutgers Law School will be a creative, dynamic and ambitious leader with a track record of distinguished administrative accomplishments. This person will prioritize enhancing academic success of the students and scholarly achievement of the faculty; will possess a real commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion; and will demonstrate a genuine understanding and appreciation of social justice and the public service mission of the institution to its host communities. The dean will also have a proven success in and aptitude for alumni relations and development. They also will possess strong financial and administrative experience including managing a financial budget and an effective administrative team. In addition, the successful candidate will have a sophisticated understanding of and vision for Rutgers Law School’s role in the changing landscape of legal education and legal practice.

At minimum, applicants will possess a J.D. degree and will have an outstanding record of accomplishment in the legal academy, the practice of law, the judiciary or government service, demonstrating a level of intellectual leadership, commitment to scholarship—including publicly engaged scholarship—and accomplishment warranting appointment at the rank of tenured professor. The successful candidate will be a proven leader, manager or administrator, and will demonstrate commitment to social justice and diversity.

All applications, nominations and inquiries are invited. Applications should include, as separate documents, a CV or resume and a letter of interest addressing the themes in the leadership profile:

https://www.wittkieffer.com/position/22751-dean-of-rutgers-law-school/

For fullest consideration, candidate materials should be received by November 21, 2022.

Application materials should be submitted using WittKieffer’s candidate portal:

https://apptrkr.com/3554747

Nominations and inquiries can be directed to:

Werner Boel and Ashlee Winters Musser

Rutgerslawdean@wittkieffer.com

It is university policy to provide equal employment opportunity to all its employees and applicants for employment regardless of their race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partnership or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability status, liability for military service, protected veteran status, affectional or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including the refusal to submit to genetic testing), or any other category protected by law. As an institution, we value diversity of background and opinion, and prohibit discrimination or harassment on the basis of any legally protected class in the areas of hiring, recruitment, promotion, transfer, demotion, training, compensation, pay, fringe benefits, layoff, termination or any other terms and conditions of employment. For additional information please see the Non-Discrimination Statement.