Event Profile

2009 Annual Meeting

Date(s):
January 6 — 10, 2009
Venue:
San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina
333 W. Harbor Drive
San Diego, CA 92101-7700 
Website:
http://www.aals.org/events_am2009.php
Fee(s):
This event has a fee
Description:
Click Here to View 2009 Annual Meeting Brochure
Click Here to View 2009 Annual Meeting Program

Institutional Pluralism

The AALS is an association of self-governing intellectual communities.  Member schools are expected to adhere to our core values of teaching, scholarship, academic freedom, and diversity.  But within the wide space bounded by those values our members are very different kinds of institutions.  There are 72 state schools that play special roles in the legal communities of their sponsoring states.  There are 49 religiously affiliated law schools whose missions are defined or influenced by particular faiths.  There are law schools at historically black colleges and universities that have their own special commitments; and schools whose intellectual efforts are governed by a particular point of view (like law and economics) or directed at a particular subject matter (environmental law, or intellectual property).  This year’s theme focuses on the value of our institutional differences.

Institutional pluralism is a good thing for our students in the same way choices are good for consumers in other fields.  It may also contribute in an important way to a healthy intellectual life.  Progress in the life of the mind is a cultural achievement.  A community of scholars working on the same problem, or in the same idiom, may accomplish things a group of disconnected individuals could not.  (Think of the Manhattan Project, or fin de siècle Vienna.)  The Association should cherish the interests of its members in pursuing these ends.

 

At the same time there are powerful market and regulatory norms that push law schools toward uniformity.  The ABA accreditation process uses one set of standards that it asks all institutions to conform to.  The U.S. News ranking system uses another linear measure.  Law firms who hire our graduates rely on simple tools like rankings as an index of quality.  These forces may impede, or even frustrate, schools’ efforts to cultivate their own distinctive identities.  

 

The AALS might also want to reflect on the issue of institutional variety in its own affairs.  We now see, around AALS annual meetings, a number of parallel organizations concerned with particular points of view.  The Federalist Society and the Society of American Law Teachers are just two examples.  Should the Association (like some of its members) cultivate a particular set of interests or values, and leave it to other organizations to develop opposing points of view  Or is the proper analogy something more like Congress – a single body comprising different members but representing all possible approaches.


  • Individual Registration
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  • 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm AALS Exhibit Hall Open House
    Type: Exhibit Events

    "The Meeting Place"

  • 6:00 pm - 9:00 pm AALS Registration
    Type: AALS Registration

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm Boston College Law School Alumni and Faculty Reception
    Type: Member School Events

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 7:00 am - 8:00 pm AALS Registration
    Type: AALS Registration

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 7:30 am - 8:30 am Twelve Step Meeting
    Type: Resume

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 8:00 am - 5:00 pm AALS Exhibit Hall Open House
    Type: Exhibit Events

    "The Meeting Place"

  • 8:30 am - 5:00 pm Sections on Environmental Law and Natural Resources Law Joint Field Trip
    Type: Section Field Trips

    A Visit to Scripps Research Institute and the Scripps Institution of Oceanography Intersections of Science and Law: The Scripps Institution of Oceanography

  • 8:45 am - 5:00 pm Section on Socio-Economics, Co-Sponsored by Section on Women in Legal Education
    Type: Extended Program 3

    Socio-Economic Ways to a Just and Prosperous Society

  • 8:45 am - 5:00 pm Student Services
    Type: Extended Program 4

    Pluralism and the Student Services Professional

  • 8:45 am - 5:15 pm Section on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Issues
    Type: Section Call for Papers

    Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Across the Curriculum: The Challenges of Keeping Law Schools Current with Recent Developments in LGBT Issues

  • 9:00 am - 12:00 pm Academic Support and Teaching Methods Joint Program
    Type: Section Call for Papers

    Teaching to the Entire Class: Innovative and Effective Instruction to Engage Every Student

  • 9:00 am - 4:30 pm Institutional Advancement
    Type: Extended Program 1

    Sharing Best Practices in a Changing Field: An Opportunity for Deans, Advancement Professionals, and Faculty to Learn from Each Other

  • 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm Institutional Advancement Luncheon and Business Meeting
    Type: Section Programs

    Broadening Your Community of Support: Connecting Athletics and Academics: A Case Study for Communications, Alumni Relations and Development Professionals

  • 12:15 pm - 1:30 pm Clinical Legal Education Luncheon
    Type: Section Programs

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 12:15 pm - 1:30 pm Law Libraries Luncheon
    Type: Section Programs

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 12:15 pm - 1:30 pm Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Issues Luncheon
    Type: Section Programs

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 12:15 pm - 1:30 pm Student Services Luncheon
    Type: Section Programs

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 12:15 pm - 2:00 pm AALS Workshop Luncheon
    Type: Day-long Workshops

    Short description is not available at this time.

  • 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm Socio Economics Luncheon
    Type: Section Programs

    Short description is not available at this time.

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Ted Adams
Organization: IDW Publishing
Session: Art Law

Peter S. Adler
Organization: The Keystone Center

Susan K. Ahearn
Organization: Seattle University School of Law

Raquel E. Aldana
Organization: University of Nevada, Las Vegas, William S. Boyd School of Law

Lawrence A. Alexander
Organization: University of San Diego School of Law
Session: Scholarship

Gregory S. Alexander
Organization: Cornell Law School
Session: Property Law

Michèle Alexandre
Organization: The University of Memphis, Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law

Felipe Alfonso, III
Organization: University of Oregon School of Law

Deleso A. Alford
Organization: Florida A&M University College of Law

Michael Patrick Allen
Organization: Stetson University College of Law

Morris Altman
Organization: University of Saskatchewan Department of Economics

Alfred C. Aman
Organization: Suffolk University Law School

Jill C. Anderson
Organization: Western New England University School of Law

Jill C. Anderson
Organization: Western New England University School of Law
Session: Insurance Law

Penelope Andrews
Organization: Valparaiso University Law School

Penelope Andrews
Organization: City University of New York School of Law

Marguerite Angelari
Organization: Loyola University Chicago School of Law

John S. Applegate
Organization: Indiana University Maurer School of Law

Dennis B. Arnold
Organization: Gibson Dunn & Crutcher

Robert Ashford
Organization: Syracuse University College of Law