Cooley Law School Opens Another Campus
Thomas M. Cooley Law School recently announced that it would be opening the doors of a new campus at Western Michigan University's Kalamazoo campus.
And while the news is rather exciting, it comes with a bit of an odd catch, students can only complete up to 60 (out of 90 required) credits at the Kalamazoo location. In order to complete their J.D., they'd have to go to another campus. Nevertheless, the national law school, that apart from its main campus in Lansing, Michigan, also has campuses in Auburn Hills and Grand Rapids, Michigan, as well as Tampa, Florida, is happy to finally be opening the Kalamazoo campus given the school's recent trouble with the ABA Accreditation Committee.
Controversy and a Campus
Cooley Law School is no stranger to trouble with the ABA, and is currently suing the organization for reputational harm. And while the ABA may have said okay to Thomas M. Cooley Law School opening a fifth location in Kalamazoo, Michigan, the school isn't giving up their lawsuit. One of the school's claims
That fight, unfortunately, hasn't fared so well thus far, as late last year, the school lost its motion for a preliminary injunction against the ABA for publishing a letter about the school's failing accreditation standards. And with the less than stellar bar passage rates, as Cooley Law School saw at the district court level, the truth hurts and shouldn't be withheld from prospective students.
However, the school isn't just going after the ABA for the reputational harm it has suffered, it also is claiming that the standards imposed by the ABA for accreditation are "illegally vague as a matter of law." The school also claims the ABA delayed the opening of the Kalamazoo campus.
The ABA's response has been clear that Cooley's case lacks merit.
Related Resources:
- Michael Cohen: Cooley Law School's Problem Right Now (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- Law School Wants to Stop ABA From Disclosing Accreditation Warning (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)
- UC Berkeley School of Law Wants to Rename Boalt Hall (FindLaw's Greedy Associates)