Aziz Huq (Chicago) has posted Property Against Legality: Takings After Cedar Point (Virginia Law Review) on SSRN. Here's the abstract:

The zealous defense of property is closely aligned with the rule of law in the American constitutional tradition. The Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment vindicates both property rights and the rule of law by prohibiting arbitrary, lawless state action. But the standard story linking property rights, legality, and a constraint on arbitrary governance is more commonly stipulated than analyzed. This Article uses a dramatic break in Takings jurisprudence, the Supreme Court’s June 2021 decision in Cedar Point Nursery v. Hassid, to closely scrutinize the relationship between legality and property rights. To that end, it offers first a careful analysis of the sharp rupture that Cedar Point makes in Takings jurisprudence. Not only is the Court’s result difficult to explain in terms of traditional legal methods, it also destabilizes a previously predictable litigation landscape and so engenders profound uncertainty on the ground. There is, further, no obvious way for the Court to restore stability and predictability to the doctrine. So Takings law will likely prompt confusion, not certainty, for the foreseeable future. As a result, a judicial vindication of property rights comes at the paradoxical cost of dramatically increasing the space for decisions unguided by law by one group of officials in the judiciary.

This close reading of Cedar Point invites more general analysis of the complex, nuanced relationship between the rule of law and property. Drawing on the general jurisprudential theories of H.L.A. Hart and others, the Article explores ways in which the rule of law can be incompletely realized in paradoxical and harmful ways. Placing property at the center of the rule of law, it shows, can be consistent with, or even an incitement to, serious derogation of the rule of law. Doing so can undermine rule-of-law goals, such as constraining arbitrary rule and fostering social welfare. This suggests a need to decenter property rights in accounts of the rule of law, and to explore, in more nuanced fashion, how the practice of judicial review mediates systemic values of legality and predictability.

April 3, 2022 | Permalink | Comments (0)

PropertyProfs, check out this King’s Law Journal book symposium on A Liberal Theory of Property, featuring reviews by leading English property scholars, followed by a response from the author, Hanoch Dagan (Tel-Aviv):

• Yael Lifshitz & Irit Samet: Introduction 
• Ben McFarlane: Property: Duties, Diversity, and Limits
• Aruna Nair: Property and Autonomy in the Marketplace: Freedom to Sell as Freedom of Exit
• Nick Sage: Liberalism and the Common Callings
• Katy Wells: Crucial Options: Dagan on Self-determination and Structural Pluralism 
• Author's Response: Liberal Property: Clarifications and Refinements

April 1, 2022 | Permalink | Comments (0)

This just in from the National Conference of Bar Examiners (NCBE):

I write because the National Conference of Bar Examiners has just released the proposed outlines of the content to be tested on the future bar exam, expected to launch in 2026. The outlines include Real Property (see p. 30-35) and touch on which subjects will be tested and at what depth (some topics will require more in-depth knowledge and some less).

NCBE is looking for public comment on the scope and depth of subjects to be tested. The deadline for public comments is April 18.

For followers of the blog, you are welcome to weigh in by providing comments through the official commenting portal at https://nextgenbarexam.ncbex.org/csopc-register/.

March 27, 2022 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Journal of Affordable Housing & Community Development Law

GUIDELINES FOR AUTHORS

The Journal of Affordable Housing & Community Development Law is the official publication of the Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law of the American Bar Association. The Journal is the nation's only law journal dedicated to affordable housing, fair housing and community development law. The Journal educates readers and provides a forum for discussion and resolution of problems in these fields by publishing articles from distinguished law professors, policy advocates and practitioners.

Article/Essay Length. The Journal welcomes essays (typically no longer than 6,000 words) or articles (typically 5,000 - 10,000 words). Generally, articles are more thoroughly researched and footnoted than essays.

Style. The writing should be appropriate for a readership that consists primarily of lawyers. Authors should avoid excess verbiage, long quotations and jargon. Authors should use gender-neutral language.

Footnotes. All references must be completely and accurately cited, using the citation style of the most recent edition of The Bluebook: A Uniform System of Citation.

Author Biography. Please include a brief description of your current professional affiliation.

Manuscript Preparation. Use footnotes rather than embedded citations; number pages; italicize rather than underline; use Word, WordPerfect, or an IBM-compatible program; and submit the manuscripts as e-mail attachments.

Prior Publication. Simultaneous submission of manuscripts to other publications is discouraged and must be brought to the attention of the editor of the Journal. Unless otherwise clearly noted, all manuscripts are expected to be original.

Copyright. The American Bar Association retains the copyright to all material published in Journal of Affordable Housing & Community Development Law. Authors are asked to sign a copyright agreement that grants to the ABA the exclusive right of first publication, the nonexclusive right to reprint, and the right to use the work in other ABA media-including electronic, print, and other. Special arrangements, although discouraged, can be made for authors who must retain copyright to their articles.

Send Manuscripts to Anika Singh Lemar, Editor-in-Chief, anika.lemar@yale.edu<mailto:anika.lemar@yale.edu>

March 4, 2022 | Permalink | Comments (0)

February 13, 2022 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Today we're delighted to welcome friend of the blog Mark Roark (Southern) who recently wrote a book review about Gustav Muller and Sue-Marie Viljoen's new title, Property in Housing (Juta 2021):

Can a House Divided Stand? A Thought Experiment in Housing and Property Rights

Book Review of Gustav Muller and Sue-Marie Viljoen, Property in Housing (Juta 2021) 

Reviewer: Marc L. Roark

The proverb is Gospel: “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” Jesus, Abraham Lincoln, even George Costanza has uttered these words to reflect the reality that things so tightly intertwined cannot exist at odds with one another. 

And thus, the South African Constitution (along with many other Constitutions around the world) present us with a conundrum.  If housing is a subset of property does a right to housing strengthen the law of property or challenge is normative force? Gustav Muller (University of Pretoria) and Sue-Mari Viljoen (University of the Western Cape) take on this central question in their comprehensive treatment of South African housing law, Property in Housing (JUTA Press 2021).  To wit, Muller and Viljoen’s book focuses on a central problem that housing faces around the world in western democracies: how can a right to housing co-exist where rights in property preempt their force?  In legal systems where property remains the default position for allocating rights to place (including rights to housing), Muller and Viljoen explore what room remains for housing norms absent direct legislative intervention.  The short answer by Muller and Viljoen – some.

What makes this problem so important is that South African courts have attempted to square these two rights by locating a right to housing within the right to property. What has emerged is a complicated framework where rights to housing are treated on their “property-ness” or their “non-propertyness” for determining how courts allocate claims by potential housing occupiers.  In answering that question, Muller and Viljoen have delivered what I believe is the most thorough treatment of housing through the lens of property rights available today.  Aligning housing rights objectives within the South African Constitution, they analyze whether courts pin accessibility, habitability, service provision, habitability, affordability, geographic location, or cultural adequacy as constitutional claims that can stand up to the challenges of private property law or as co-rivalrous claims that require a sorting of interests.  In particular, the theme of fragmentation emerges as a dominant concept in the constitutional application of these attributes of a housing right.  In many cases, Muller and Viljoen’s analysis of the right to housing is that its existence can often be found in the liminal spaces between where property law and housing law do not quite meet up, forcing jurists to account for human rights in housing as they sort out property claims by home occupiers, owners, and neighbors. 

Within this context, the South African background of Dutch/ British Imperialism and its lingering effects through apartheid remain present as background context for the way property law continues to reaffirm past harms.  The visible remnant of these policies remain on the landscape of South Africa as the country remains a place where informal settlements become the de facto resort when affordable housing isn’t available for people of color, and where established property holders can assert claims to space behind privatized communities.  These glimpses of property law on the ground through eviction actions and a body of South African property law lays open the landscape of what human rights to housing in conflict with property law faces up to. Muller and Viljoen provide the legal context needed to understand how property law can continue to memorialize unjust regimes many years after its formal end.

In short, I highly recommend this treatment of Housing and Property rights for anyone interested in understanding the role of property rights and housing in context.  The book’s thought experiment successfully finds some room for housing in the property context, while pointing to inadequacies of property to deliver some of the basic features we expect a constitutional right in housing to carry out. 

February 3, 2022 in Books | Permalink | Comments (0)

This just in from our friends at William & Mary:

WALDO CHAIR IN PROPERTY RIGHTS LAW

William & Mary Law School seeks applications from distinguished scholars for the Joseph T. Waldo Chair in Property Rights Law. Candidates should have an outstanding record in scholarship, teaching, and service, with a focus in their scholarship on the role of property rights in the constitutional or common law order and should currently hold a faculty appointment with tenure.

The holder of the Waldo Chair will be responsible for directing the Law School’s Property Rights Project, which includes the annual Brigham-Kanner Property Rights Conference, the annual Property Rights Journal, and other activities that promote discourse on the relationship of property rights to fundamental liberties and societal well-being.

For questions about the Waldo Chair or to begin the application process, contact Lynda Butler, Chancellor Professor of Law, Emerita, and Chair of the Waldo Chair Subcommittee, atwmlawappts@wm.edu and include “Waldo Chair” in the subject line. For more information about William & Mary and faculty positions, see https://jobs.wm.edu/postings/40644.

November 2, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Ezra Rosser (American) just shared his new book, A Nation Within: Navajo Land and Economic Development (Cambridge University Press 2021). The book's summary is as follows:

In A Nation Within, Ezra Rosser explores the connection between land-use patterns and development in the Navajo Nation. Roughly the size of Ireland or West Virginia, the Navajo reservation has seen successive waves of natural resource-based development over the last century: grazing and over-grazing, oil and gas, uranium, and coal; yet Navajos continue to suffer from high levels of unemployment and poverty. Rosser shows the connection between the exploitation of these resources and the growth of the tribal government before turning to contemporary land use and development challenges. He argues that, in addition to the political challenges associated with any significant change, external pressures and internal corruption have made it difficult for the tribe to implement land reforms that could help provide space for economic development that would benefit the Navajo Nation and Navajo tribal members.

October 24, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Juliet Moringiello (Widener-Commonwealth) and Chris Odinet (Iowa) have posted The Property Law of Tokens (Florida Law Review) on SSRN. Here's the abstract:

Non-fungible tokens—or NFTs, as they are better known—have taken the world by storm. The idea behind an NFT is that by owning a certain thing (specifically, a digital token that is tracked on a blockchain), one can hold property rights in something else (either a real or intangible asset). In the early part of 2021, NFTs for items ranging from a gif of a pop-tart cat with a rainbow tail, to Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey’s first tweet, to a New York Times column (about NFTs!) have sold for millions of dollars over the internet. Promoters assert that NFTs are the “future of digital property,” and that they herald a day when “government will lose its unique power to mint currency and protect property.” And these promoters reach beyond the typical crypto crowd. Giants of finance and industry are promising to extend the use of NFTs to securities, industrial assets, and real estate in the coming years. Moreover, this crypto token craze comes at a time when the American Law Institute and the Uniform Law Commission are in the midst of recommending revisions to U.S. commercial law to accommodate the digital age. In this Article, we take a more sober look at the tokenization phenomenon and, in doing so, describe what exactly it means when it comes to property rights. What can a purchaser of a token expect? How is a token actually connected to the underlying asset, if at all? What does the law—not the hype—have to say about it? We show that tokenization under the law actually has a long history, backed by practical economic considerations and animated by strong theoretical underpinnings. We also show that NFTs have neither of these attributes. Additionally, our Article surveys a dataset of terms of service from the most prominent NFT platforms in order to exploit both their disconnect from real legal effects and their puzzlingly contradictory promises about the relationships between buyers, seller, and the platform. Our project aims not only to inform current commercial law reform efforts, but it also offers a policy prescription for policing the NFT market.

September 28, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

AALS Section on State and Local Government Law
2022 AALS Annual Meeting
Call for Proposals

Program Description: The AALS Sections on State and Local Government Law and Community Economic Development are seeking speakers for our joint main program at the 2022 AALS Annual Virtual Meeting, “Progressive Perspectives on Local Economic Development Moving Forward.”  This program will explore new ideas for local governments to consider with respect to economic development in a post-pandemic era. The session will focus on law reform and scholarship that seeks to build forward-looking movements that create inclusive economic development, and considers the relevance of core legal tensions concerning regionalism and localism, the limits of government intervention in the economy, impacts of market forces on policy, and similarities and differences to past periods of local growth. The program is intended to be broad in focus. Potential topics include: 

• What economic development structures did COVID-19 expose as not meeting community needs? How did plans change at the time during the COVID-19 pandemic and how does that inform what should be done for the future (in a progressive, big thinking way)?   
• How might contested relations between states and localities limit new ideas about local economic development?  

• What is the role of regionalism as a concept and regional institutions in practice in fostering/frustrating local economic development?   
• How can economic development tools and process be used to address past economic inequality and ensure future equitable distribution of economic growth?  
• How does resiliency fit into the conversation around economic development?  

Submission Guidelines: If you are interested in participating, please send a 250-500 word abstract of your proposal. Scholarship associated with the proposal may be at any stage of the publication process from work-in-progress to completed article, but if already completed, scholarship may not be published prior to the Annual Meeting. We welcome legal scholarship across a wide variety of methodological approaches and encourage untenured scholars in particular to submit their work. Each potential speaker may submit only one abstract for consideration. Abstracts must be submitted by Friday, August 20, 2021. Abstracts should be submitted electronically in Microsoft Word format to both Kellen Zale (kbzale@central.uh.edu)and Ted De Barbeiri (edeba@albanylaw.edu). The subject line should read “AALS 2022Joint Program Submission: Local Economic Development.” Submissions will reviewed by members of both Sections’ Executive Committees, and the selected presenters will be notified by early September. Speakers are responsible for paying their own registration fees (AALS will be offering school-wide registration again this year).

August 4, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University seeks to fill one or more tenure-track positions.  We will consider all subject areas but primarily seek candidates with research and teaching interests in Torts, Property, and other first year courses such as Contracts, Criminal Law, and Civil Procedure. The Law School is particularly interested in faculty members who also have research and teaching interests in Environmental Law, Bankruptcy and/or Commercial Law. All candidates must have a strong commitment to serious scholarship. We are particularly interested in candidates who willenhance the diversity of our faculty.

As a leading national and regional educational institution, Hofstra Law is a distinguished center of legal scholarship in the service of justice and is committed to serving its local communities (which include Americans from a wide range of ethnic backgrounds and range from extraordinary affluence to entrenched suburban poverty), participating in the national scholarly dialogue, and educating attorneys for the local bar as well as the broader national  community. Hofstra Law recently completed a successful multiyear capital campaign and the University has recently opened new schools of medicine, public health and engineering. 

Candidates should send a cover letter and resume, including a description of areas of interest, and copies of representative works to Professor Linda Galler, Chair of the Faculty Appointments Committee, LawSchoolFacultyJobs@hofstra.edu.

Hofstra University is an equal opportunity employer, committed to fostering diversity in its faculty, administrative staff and student body, and encourages applications from the entire spectrum of a diverse community.

July 16, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Just in from Danielle O'Onfro (WashU):

WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW invites applications from entry-level or junior lateral candidates for tenure-track positions, to begin in the fall of 2022. We will consider candidates in all subject areas, but we are particularly interested in private law, including property, torts, and contracts, as well as evidence, civil procedure, and other areas of teaching need.

We are also searching for candidates at all levels whose scholarly agendas sit at the intersection of race, law, and social inequality, and who would be hired in connection with Washington University’s Race and Ethnicity Cluster Hire Initiative. More information about this initiative is available at https://provost.wustl.edu/programs-initiatives/faculty-diversity/race-and-ethnicity-cluster-hire-initiative/ and at https://source.wustl.edu/2021/06/first-race-and-ethnicity-cluster-hires-arrive-at-washington-university/.

Candidates must have at a minimum a JD, a PhD, or the equivalent in a related field. In addition, candidates should have strong scholarly potential and a commitment to excellence in teaching. Duties will include teaching assigned courses, researching and publishing scholarly work, advising students, and participating in law school and university service. The strong candidate will demonstrate the ability to create inclusive classrooms and environments in which all students can learn and thrive. The committee will be reviewing applications submitted through the AALS Faculty Appointments Register but we are also willing to consider materials submitted outside of the FAR process.

Candidates who are not applying through the FAR process may submit applications directly to Professor Daniel Epps, Chair of the Appointments Committee, Washington University School of Law, by emailing them to lawappts@wustl.edu. Although there is no deadline, applications from candidates not participating in the FAR process will have the best chance of full consideration if they are received by August 18, 2021. Application materials should include a cover letter, a resume which includes at least three references, and a job-talk paper if available.

Washington University in St. Louis is committed to the principles and practices of equal employment opportunity. It is the University’s policy to recruit, hire, train, and promote without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, protected veteran status, disability, or genetic information.

July 1, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

The Association for Law, Property & Society (ALPS) is an organization for those  engaged in scholarship on all aspects of property law and society.  Its annual  meeting brings  together scholars  from different disciplines and  from around  the world to discuss their work and to foster dialogue among those working in  property law,  policy,  planning,  social  scientific  field  studies,  modeling,  and  theory. This year, the ALPS annual meeting is going all virtual and all day! 

For 24-hours on Friday, May 28, 2021, and Saturday, May 29, 2021, ALPS will  be hosting a virtual conference for property scholars  from around the world.   The conference will begin at 7:00am (New Orleans, GMT - 5) / 1:00pm (Belfast,  GMT + 1) / 8:00pm (Beijing, GMT + 8) on Friday, May 28, and will end at 7:00am  (New  Orleans)  /  1:00pm  (Belfast) /  8:00pm  (Beijing) on  Saturday,  May  29.   

There is no cost to register.  A limited number of previously unpublished papers  will be presented throughout the 24-hour conference.  Given the dynamics of this 24-hour  virtual  conference—cutting  across  time  zones  and  spanning  around  the globe—selected papers will be scheduled based primarily on the  time  availability  of  presenters;  papers will  not  be  slotted  thematically.  This  virtual  conference  will  be  a  novel,  exciting,  informative  “round-the-clock”  discussion of property! 

Anyone interested in attending  the conference and/or submitting a work-in progress for consideration to present at the 24-Hour Virtual ALPS Conference  must  compete  this  registration  form by  Friday,  April  16,  2021.  If  you  are  submitting a work-in-progress  to present,  you must upload  your abstract by  Friday, April 16, 2021 following the instructions on the registration form.  

Questions? Email  Jess  Shoemaker  or  Sally  Richardson  at ALPSConference2021@gmail.com.

April 7, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

UMKC Seeks Visiting Professor

The University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law is hiring a visiting associate professor in Property, Real Estate Transactions, Fair and Affordable Housing, and related subjects which will begin in Fall 2021, with the further opportunity to apply for a tenure-track position beginning in Fall 2022. A J.D. or equivalent degree is required.  Previous teaching experience is strongly preferred. Applications must come through the UMKC Human Resources portal at https://info.umkc.edu/hr/careers/academic-positions/. 

UMKC School of Law has a tradition of strong scholarship and engagement in the field of property, as well as outstanding training for students as part of our J.D. and LL.M. emphasis in Urban, Land Use, and Environmental Law. The School of Law boasts an extraordinary relationship with the local bench, bar, and civic community, providing opportunities for research and service in cutting-edge entrepreneurial urban development.  Service to the community is supported through two clinics focused on property law: an abandoned housing clinic and a tenant eviction defense initiative. 

UMKC is the urban law school of the University of Missouri System and is located on a beautifully landscaped campus in the Country Club Plaza area of Kansas City, Missouri. It is the only law school in a diverse and vibrant metropolitan area of more than two million people and offers courses leading to J.D. or LL.M. degrees for approximately 450 students. It benefits from its metropolitan location, a university with opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration, a dedicated faculty and staff, and strong community and alumni support.

Equal Opportunity is and shall be provided for all employees and applicants for employment on the basis of their demonstrated ability and competence without unlawful discrimination on the basis of their race, color, national origin, ancestry, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression,  age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable state or federal law. This policy shall not be interpreted in such a manner as to violate the legal rights of religious organizations or the recruiting rights of military organizations associated with the Armed Forces or the Department of Homeland Security of the United States. For more information, call the Vice Chancellor - Human Resources at 816-235-1621.   Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the duties and functions of this job. If you believe you may have difficulty performing any of the duties or functions of this job, please contact the Office of Affirmative Action at (816) 235-1323.

For more information, contact Professor Julie Cheslik, cheslikj@umkc.edu

March 7, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Peter Gerhart, a friend to all of us and a longtime professor and former dean at the Case Western Reserve University School of Law, passed away on February 7, 2021. To honor his memory and the many contributions he made to property law, we highlight this 2015 symposium, hosted by the Texas A&M University Journal of Property Law, on his book Property Law and Social Morality (Cambridge University Press 2013):

February 16, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Blog readers will doubtlessly be interested in a recent symposium hosted by the Law and Political Economy Project and centered on the new book A Liberal Theory of Property by Hanoch Dagan (Tel-Aviv University).

The symposium features reviews by David Singh Grewal & Jedediah Britton-Purdy, Nestor Davidson, Rashmi Dyal-Chand, Katharina Pistor, Ezra Rosser, and Lua Yuille.

Hanoch's reply, which is now available on SSRN (https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3779397),  recaps the book’s core thesis and then addresses the reviewers’ two main challenges: whether liberal property is potentially self-destructive, and whether it might be a distracting utopia.

February 7, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Daniel R. Mandelker (Washington University) has posted Billboards, Signs, Free Speech, and the First Amendment on SSRN. Here's the abstact:

This Article reviews the competing demands free speech law makes when applied to sign and billboard ordinances. It describes the free speech doctrines that apply, explains ambiguities and conflicts, and makes recommendations for sign regulations that can avoid constitutional problems. The Article first explains how state courts decided the constitutionality of billboard controls before free speech law applied. It then describes the litigation problems municipalities face in sign litigation, and considers the overbreadth and severability doctrines that litigants can use to strike sign ordinances down. Ordinances that regulate signs typically regulate commercial speech. The Article explains the criteria the Supreme Court adopted for laws that regulate commercial speech, and how the Court liberally applied these criteria in a case upholding an ordinance that prohibited billboards. Lower court cases that applied this case are discussed next. They followed the Supreme Court’s approach in billboard cases but sometimes added new requirements. The Article then describes the free speech time, place, and manner rules that are an alternative to commercial speech doctrine, and how courts apply these rules to sign ordinances. Regulations for digital billboards are discussed next. The Article concludes by discussing the constitutional protections courts provide for noncommercial speech, and the constitutional restrictions they require for signs that regulate content.

February 1, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

Check out Sara Bronin's (Connecticut) JOT review of Lisa Alexander's (Texas A&M) article, Community in Property: Lessons From Tiny Homes Villages, 104 Minn. L. Rev. 385 (2019). Cribbing from the JOT intro:

Our nation’s housing situation gets worse by the day. Even before the pandemic, subprime lending, exclusionary zoning, and modern-day redlining forced millions of households into unstable, unsafe, or unaffordable living situations. Now, with the pandemic wiping away jobs, we appear to be on the verge of an unprecedented national housing crisis that will start when the evictions and mortgage relief end. We need creative solutions now more than ever.

That’s why Lisa Alexander’s most recent law review article, Community in Property: Lessons from Tiny Homes Villages, is such a timely, significant contribution.

Check out the rest here!

January 11, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

For all you aspiring property law profs out there, come hang out with a bunch of wonderful people here in Iowa City!:

Iowa Law Faculty Fellowship 

The University of Iowa College of Law seeks applicants for the Iowa Law Faculty Fellowship.  This program provides research opportunities, faculty mentoring, and career development for promising legal scholars and teachers.  The Iowa Law Faculty Fellowship combines law teaching with scholarly research and writing, especially research with an interdisciplinary focus and reach, and aims to further the University of Iowa’s goal of recruiting and retaining a more diverse campus community of faculty, staff and students. 

The University of Iowa has long had a commitment to increasing diversity in the legal profession.  The Iowa Law Faculty Fellowship is a successor to the Faculty Fellows program, which provided aspiring legal academics with an opportunity to develop their scholarship and teaching, and ultimately seek long-term academic positions. 

Iowa Law is especially well known for its strong focus on law teaching, exceptionally comprehensive law library, and collaborative atmosphere.  The University of Iowa itself is a major public research university located in Iowa City, a quintessential college town brimming with writers, students, and scholars.   

Iowa Law Faculty Fellows concentrate on those aspects of academic life that are most likely to be helpful in preparing for a faculty career in legal education.  Typically, faculty fellows teach one course during the academic year, with the remainder of the fellow’s time devoted to research and development of one or more major works of scholarship.  The fellow works closely with a primary faculty mentor and advisory team of faculty members.  Faculty fellows participate fully in the life of the College, but will have limited service assignments so as to permit the fellow to concentrate on teaching and scholarship.  Fellows will be expected to contribute to diversity, equity, and inclusion goals at the College and University.    

The Iowa Law Faculty Fellowship does not have a specific subject matter focus, but prioritizes applicants who seek to conduct interdisciplinary research that connects with other fields of study at the University of Iowa.  Selection criteria include the potential for legal teaching and scholarship, interdisciplinarity of research, contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion, and the degree to which the applicant’s research proposal aligns with institutional resources and opportunities. 

Initial Faculty Fellowship appointments are for one year and can be renewed once.  Fellows will be appointed at the rank of Visiting Assistant Professor of Law.  Most Faculty Fellows will serve for two years and participate in the law hiring market during the second year of the fellowship.  The salary for the 2021-22 Academic Year will be competitive with well-regarded law fellowship and VAP programs.  In addition, Faculty Fellows will be provided with research support including research, travel funds and the opportunity to hire law student research assistants.  Fellows will be expected to be in full-time residence at Iowa Law during the academic year.

To apply for the Iowa Law Faculty Fellowship program, an applicant should submit the following through Jobs@Iowa:

• cover letter, including a description of the applicant’s contributions to diversity, equity and inclusion and research plan to be carried out during the fellowship.
• resume
• graduate and professional transcripts (including law school transcripts)
• academic writing sample
• three letters of reference providing support for the applicant’s potential as a legal scholar and teacher

Educational qualifications:

• A JD or equivalent, or Ph.D. from a relevant field of study.

Required qualifications

• Strong potential for legal teaching
• Strong potential for legal scholarship
• Demonstrated contributions to diversity, equity and inclusion
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills

Desired qualifications:

• A demonstrated ability to conduct interdisciplinary research
• Alignment between the proposed research plan and collegiate and university resources and opportunities.

Review of applications will begin immediately and will continue until the position is filled.  For fullest consideration, submit applications before February 15, 2021.  For more information, please contact Adrien Wing, chair of the Faculty Appointments Committee, at adrien-wing@uiowa.edu.

The University of Iowa is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment free from discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, age, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, religion, associational preference, status as a qualified individual with a disability, or status as a protected veteran. The University also affirms its commitment to providing equal opportunities and equal access to University facilities. Women and Minorities are encouraged to apply for all employment vacancies. For additional information on nondiscrimination policies, contact the Coordinator of Title IX and Section 504, and the ADA in The Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity, 319/335-0705 (voice) or 319/335-0697 (text), The University of Iowa, 202 Jessup Hall, Iowa City, Iowa, 52242-1316.

Persons with disabilities may contact University Human Resources/Faculty and Staff Disability Services, (319) 335-2660 or fsds@uiowa.edu, to inquire or discuss accommodation needs.

Prospective employees may review the University Campus Security Policy and the latest annual crime statistics by contacting the Department of Public Safety at 319/335-5022.

January 4, 2021 | Permalink | Comments (0)

This just in from Bernadette Atuahene (Chicago-Kent):

Like #BlackLivesMatter, #BlackHomesMatter is more than a moment — it’s a movement.

The virtual #BlackHomesMatter event will take place on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021, 6PM ET. Click here for information on how to join.

The City of Detroit and Wayne County have stolen tens of thousands of homes and generations of wealth from Detroit homeowners.

Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, Dr. Cornel West, and Rev. Dr. William Barber II will speak out against Detroit’s illegally inflated property taxes, which have caused the greatest number of property tax foreclosures in any city since the Great Depression.

Join us to call on Michigan’s Governor, Gretchen Whitmer, to investigate and end this injustice and create a plan to compensate Detroit homeowners who have overpaid or lost their homes.

The event will end with a performance from Detroit's legendary gospel artists, The Clark Sisters.

This event will be livestreamed on YouTube. Register here for the event.

December 18, 2020 | Permalink | Comments (0)