Litigation Update

December 22, 2012

“More than fifteen law schools (including California Western School of Law, Golden Gate University School of Law, the University of San Francisco School of Law School, and Southwestern Law School) have been sued by graduates claiming that they were misled by allegedly inaccurate post-graduate employment statistics.  Similar suits could potentially be filed against virtually every school because they rest on a reporting methodology imposed upon the schools by the American Bar Association that counted graduates as “employed” when they held part-time or non-legal jobs.

There is no factual basis for the lawsuit that has been filed against Thomas Jefferson School of Law.  TJSL has consistently striven to provide accurate employment statistics in the manner and format required by NALP (the National Association for Law Placement) and the American Bar Association (ABA).  If a trial is someday necessary, TJSL is confident that a fact-finder will conclude that TJSL accurately reported its post-graduate employment statistics.  Perhaps most importantly, TJSL is now acknowledged as a leader in reporting transparency and innovation. 

In this time of limited judicial resources and budgets, we are saddened that Judge Pressman denied TJSL’s motion for summary judgment despite uncontested evidence that the original plaintiff was offered a full-time position as an associate in a law firm within nine months of graduating from law school.  Importantly, the court’s decision was not a factual determination that plaintiffs’ allegations have any merit.  It simply allows plaintiffs to proceed with discovery.  Four substantively identical cases against other schools in other jurisdictions have been dismissed prior to trial, and this one should be as well.”

ABA Journal: Plaintiff Turned Down Full-time Job After passing the bar

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