University President John T. Casteen III announced the selection of University Law Prof. John C. Jeffries Jr. as the new dean of the Law School yesterday.
A national search committee composed of faculty, students and alumni selected Jeffries. After considering roughly 90 candidates, the committee selected 15 for interviews before unanimously recommending Jeffries for the position.
He will take the place of Robert E. Scott on July 1. Scott has been the Law School dean since 1991.
During Scott's tenure, the school has seen the most successful fund-raising campaign in the history of American law schools, netting more than $202 million over seven years.
"I am absolutely delighted with the announcement," Scott said. "I don't know anyone more qualified to serve as dean."
After graduating summa cum laude from Yale University in 1970, Jeffries attended the University's Law School, where he served as editor-in-chief of the Virginia Law Review.
Jeffries began teaching criminal law at the University in 1975.
"Mr. Jeffries became the consensus choice because he is a distinguished leader, ... a widely respected teacher, ... and one of the foremost legal scholars in the country," Casteen said.
Jeffries served as academic associate dean from 1994 to 1999, administering the school's curriculum and academic policies, and as acting dean in fall 1999. He currently is the Emerson Spies Professor and the William L. Matheson and Robert M. Morgenthau Distinguished Professor.
Jeffries also is the author or co-author of several leading casebooks, articles and other scholarly publications.
At the beginning of the law dean search process, many students were concerned their issues would not be addressed. Some even felt that the decision was "preordained" by the search committee, said John Adams, first-year Law student and secretary of the Student Bar Association.
"But most of the students are pleased with Jeffries being picked," Adams said. "In a purely academic sense, Jeffries has a resume that can't be beat."
"His love for the institution is boundless," second-year SBA member Kendall Day said. "I feel very good about [the decision] ... I think he'll do a good job."
But other law students said they believe Jeffries' connections within the University gave him advantages over the other candidates. He has friends among University administration and the Board of Visitors.
There was a perception that the search committee was "really not in touch with the student population" and that the decision was a "foregone conclusion," third-year law student Nina Allen said.
Before the selection, students were allowed to meet with the final two candidates, Jeffries and Elizabeth Garrett, who is deputy dean at the University of Chicago.
But the "entire process was still pretty opaque," third-year SBA member Meredith Moss said.
"I think that student involvement went a long way towards giving students a sense that their concerns were important in the decision making process," Moss said. "Jeffries' commitment to the University is unquestionable"
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