Ohio State University Moritz College of Law

Ohio State University Moritz College of Law
Parent school	Ohio State University
Established	1891; 133 years ago (1891)
School type	Public law school
Parent endowment	$7.4 billion
Dean	Kent Barnett
Location	Columbus, Ohio, United States 39°59′46″N 83°00′29″W / 39.99611°N 83.00806°W / 39.99611; -83.00806
Enrollment	532
Faculty	80
USNWR ranking	26th (tie) (2024)[1]
Bar pass rate	89.89% (2022 first-time takers)[2]
Website	moritzlaw.osu.edu
ABA profile	officialguide.lsac.org

The Michael E. Moritz College of Law is the law school of Ohio State University, a public land-grant research university in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1891, the school is located in Drinko Hall on the main campus of the Ohio State University in Columbus. The school is accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) and is a charter member of the Association of American Law Schools.

According to the college's official 2022 ABA-required disclosures, 83.51% of the Class of 2022 obtained full-time, long-term, and bar passage-required employment nine months after graduation, excluding solo-practitioners. This ranked Moritz first in Ohio for job placement of recent law graduates.^[3]

The board of trustees of the Ohio State University officially sanctioned a law school in June 1885 after approving a resolution introduced by trustee Peter H. Clark, an early African-American civil rights activist.^[4] However, it was not until October 1891 that the law school was formally opened to 33 students, including 1 woman, in the basement of the second Franklin County Courthouse.^[4] Marshall Jay Williams, a Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court served as the first dean of the law school and lectured for two years before resigning in 1893.^[4] In 1896, the University elevated the law school to its present-day College of Law status.

In 1903, the College of Law moved to Page Hall, its first permanent building on the main campus of the University (now home to the John Glenn College of Public Affairs), named in honor of Henry F. Page, a prominent Ohio attorney who had left his estate to the University.^[4] Over the next four decades, the College of Law experienced rapid growth under the successive leadership of deans William F. Hunter, Joseph H. Outhwaite, John Jay Adams and Herschel W. Arant.^[4] The College of Law continued under the successive leadership of deans Gregory H. Williams, Nancy H. Rogers, Alan C. Michaels, and Lincoln L. Davies.

The modern-day building that now houses the Moritz College of Law since 1958, Drinko Hall, is named after attorney and College of Law benefactor John Deaver Drinko, former Managing Partner of BakerHostetler in Cleveland, Ohio. Drinko graduated from the College of Law in 1944 and received a Distinguished Alumnus Award in 1991. In 2001, the College of Law received a $30 million donation from benefactor Michael E. Moritz, former partner of BakerHostetler in Columbus, Ohio. Moritz received his undergraduate degree from the Ohio State University Fisher College of Business in 1941 and law degree from the College of Law in 1944, where he graduated at the top of his class. At the time, it was the largest single gift to the Ohio State University (in 2011, the University received a $100 million gift from Les Wexner). The donation provided full-tuition grants with stipends to 30 law students, 4 endowed faculty chairs, 3 service awards for students, and a fund for use by the dean.^{[dead link][5]} The College of Law completed a supplemental campaign to raise an additional $30 million to match Moritz's gift and make further improvements.^{[dead link][6]}

For the class entering in 2023, Moritz College of Law accepted 33.08% of applicants, with 26.33% of those accepted enrolling. The average enrollee had a 165 LSAT score and 3.83 undergraduate GPA.^[7]

Above the Law ranked the Moritz College of Law as the 40th best law school in America in 2023.^[8] U.S. News & World Report ranked the Moritz College of Law's full-time Juris Doctor program tied for the 26th best law school in America in 2024 (down from 22nd in 2023).^[9]

According to professor Brian Leiter's "Scholarly Impact Score" that is based on about 500 participants and nearly 70,000 votes on paired comparisons, the Moritz College of Law faculty ranked tied for 32nd in scholarly impact in 2022.^[10] Specifically, professor and Heck-Faust Memorial Chair in Constitutional Law, Ruth Colker, was 18th of the top 20 most-cited legal scholars between 2016 and 2020 for critical theory in focusing on society and culture to attempt to reveal, critique, and challenge power structures.^[11]

The Ohio State Moritz College of Law publishes five legal journals:^[12]

• The Ohio State Law Journal was founded in 1935 as the "Law Journal of the Student Bar Association" and was originally a "section" of the Student Bar Association and funded by student contributions. Robert E. Leach '35, former Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court, was the first editor of the Law Journal. Today, the journal is edited by students and publishes six issues each year. In April 2012, OSLJ launched Furthermore, an online supplement to the print version, which in 2019 became Ohio State Law Journal Online. According to Bepress and its ExpressO Top 100 Law Review Rankings, the Ohio State Law Journal is the most popular law review accessed by authors on its online submission delivery service for legal scholars.^[13]
• The Ohio State Technology Law Journal (published semiannually; interdisciplinary journal focused on the intersection of technology and the law; faculty-edited in collaboration with student editors).^[14]
• The Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution (sponsored quarterly journal of the American Bar Association focusing on alternative dispute resolution; student-edited; founded in 1985).^[15]
• The Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law (published semiannually; peer-evaluated, faculty-student cooperative venture).^[16]
• The Ohio State Business Law Journal (published semiannually; student run; focuses on legal issues facing entrepreneurs, small business owners, and venture capitalists).^[17]

The Moot Court & Lawyering Skills Program includes intramural competitions and inter-scholastic teams covering various areas of the law. The Moot Court and Lawyering Skills Governing Board is responsible for organizing and administering four intramural competitions: the Herman Moot Court Competition, Colley Trial Practice Competition, the Representation in Mediation Competition, and the Lawrence Negotiations Competition. The Moot Court Board is a student-run organization that oversees and assists various Moot Court teams that compete nationally against other schools.^[18]

The Drug Enforcement and Policy Center examines the impact of modern drug laws, policies and enforcement on personal freedoms and human well-being, giving sustained attention to analyzing the rapid evolution of marijuana laws and the impacts of reform efforts. The center focuses on promoting and supporting interdisciplinary, evidence-based research, scholarship, education, community outreach and public engagement on the myriad issues and societal impacts surrounding the reform of criminal and civil laws prohibiting or regulating the use and distribution of traditionally illicit drugs.

The center was founded in 2017 following a $4.5 million gift from the Koch Foundation.^[19] The center also received a $5 million gift from John Menard Jr.

In 2022, the overall bar examination passage rate for Moritz College of Law first-time examination takers was 89.89%. The Ultimate Bar Pass Rate, which the ABA defines as the passage rate for graduates who sat for bar examinations within two years of graduating, was 97% for the class of 2020.^[2]

According to the College of Law's official 2022 ABA-required disclosures, 83.51% of the Class of 2022 obtained full-time, long-term, bar passage-required employment nine months after graduation, excluding solo-practitioners.^[3] Moritz College of Law ranked 24th out of 201 ABA-approved law schools in terms of the percentage of 2016 graduates with non-school-funded, full-time, long-term, bar passage required jobs nine months after graduation.^[20]

The College of Law's Law School Transparency under-employment score is 3.4%, indicating the percentage of the Class of 2021 unemployed, pursuing an additional degree, or working in a non-professional, short-term, or part-time job nine months after graduation.^[21]

Ohio was the main employment destination for 2021 Moritz College of Law graduates, with 66% of employed 2021 graduates working in the state.^[3]

The total cost of attendance (indicating the cost of tuition, fees, and living expenses) at the College of Law for the 2022–2023 academic year is estimated at $53,849 for Ohio residents and $69,101 for non-residents.^[22] Moritz College of Law's in-state tuition and fees on average increased by 2.27% annually over the past five years while its non-resident tuition and fees on average increased by 1.67% over the past five years.^[22]

The Law School Transparency estimated debt-financed cost of attendance for three years is $194,717.^[22] The average indebtedness of the 67% of 2021 College of Law graduates who took out loans was $83,831.^[22]

As of 2022, 33.9% of student receive a full-tuition scholarship, the highest percentage among all American law schools.^[23]

The Moritz Merit Scholarship Fund was established in 2001 by Michael E. Moritz '61. The Fund provides for 30 annual full tuition plus stipend scholarships. The scholarships are designed to attract and train a select group of students with outstanding academic and personal histories in a variety of areas including academia, business, law, government, and public interest. In recent years, the Moritz family has criticized Ohio State for not providing the full 30 scholarships, mismanaging the investments and using the scholarship fund to pay for university operating expenses in violation of the endowment agreement.^[24]

The Robert K. Barton Memorial Scholarship Fund was established in 1968 by golf legend and Ohio State University alumnus Jack Nicklaus. The Scholarship was established in memory of his good friend and Moritz College of Law alumnus Robert K. Barton '62, one of central Ohio's top amateur golfers and law partner of former Ohio Governor and fellow Moritz alumnus John W. Bricker. Barton, his wife Linda, and another couple were killed when their private plane crashed en route to watch Nicklaus play in the 1966 Masters Tournament.^[25]

The Moritz College of Law has 80 faculty members. Notable current and former faculty members include:

• Michelle Alexander, former professor, human rights advocate, and author of The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness
• Christopher M. Fairman (deceased), former C. William O'Neill Professor in Law and Judicial Administration
• Edward Foley, theorist of the blue shift and former Ohio solicitor general
• E. Gordon Gee, former faculty and president emeritus of the university
• Joan Krauskopf, retired 1997, professor emeritus of law
• Alan C. Michaels, former dean and former Edwin M. Cooperman chair in Law
• Mary Ellen O'Connell, former William B. Saxbe Designated Professor of Law
• John Quigley, President's Club Professor Emeritus of Law
• Nancy H. Rogers, former dean, former professor, emeritus Michael E. Moritz Chair in Alternative Dispute Resolution and Ohio attorney general
• Peter M. Shane, Jacob E. Davis and Jacob E. Davis II chair in law
• Philip C. Sorensen (deceased), former professor emeritus of law and 27th lieutenant governor of Nebraska
• Peter Swire, former C. William O'Neil Professor in Law and Judicial Administration

The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law has approximately 10,000 alumni across the United States. Selected notable alumni include:

• Dora Sandoe Bachman (1893), first woman graduate, suffragist and school official in Columbus
• John W. Bricker (1920), 54th Governor of Ohio and United States Senator from Ohio; proposed Bricker Amendment to U.S. Constitution
• John W. Creighton Jr. (1957), President and CEO of the Weyerhaeuser Company
• Ann Donnelly (1984), United States District Judge for the Eastern District of New York
• Bruce Downey (1973), chairman and CEO of Barr Pharmaceuticals
• Robert Duncan (1952), first African-American United States District Judge for Ohio and Ohio Supreme Court Justice
• William Miller Drennen (1938), Chief Judge of the United States Tax Court
• Israel Moore Foster (1898), United States Congressman from Ohio; proposed Child Labor Amendment to U.S. Constitution
• William Isaac (1969), Chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
• Robert E. Leach (1935), Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court
• Yvette McGee Brown (1985), first African-American female justice of the Ohio Supreme Court
• Howard Metzenbaum (1941), United States Senator from Ohio; introduced WARN Act
• Nick Mileti (1956), founder and owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers and owner of the Cleveland Indians
• Erin Moriarty (1977), Emmy Award-winning journalist for CBS News and 48 Hours
• Thomas J. Moyer (1964), Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court
• William Moore McCulloch (1925), United States Congressman from Ohio; key supporter of the Civil Rights Act of 1964
• Willian Natcher (1933), longest-serving United States Congressman from Kentucky; Presidential Citizens Medal recipient
• C. William O'Neill (1942), 59th Governor of Ohio and Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court
• Michael Oxley (1969), United States Congressman from Ohio; introduced Sarbanes–Oxley Act
• Donald Clinton Power (1926), chairman and CEO of GTE Corporation
• Brian Sandoval (1989), 29th Governor of Nevada and United States District Judge for the District of Nevada
• William Saxbe (1948), 70th United States Attorney General and United States Senator from Ohio
• Don W. Sears (1948), Dean and Professor Emeritus of Law at the University of Colorado Law School
• Zack Space (1986), United States Congressman from Ohio
• Jeffrey Sutton (1990), United States Court of Appeals Judge for the Sixth Circuit
• Gregory J. Vincent (1987), President of Hobart and William Smith Colleges
• George Voinovich (1961), 65th Governor of Ohio and United States Senator from Ohio

• Official website