The decision to halt plans for a law school in Bangor, Maine, came five weeks after the Maine Supreme Judicial Court for the second time unanimously turned down the university’s request to allow the graduates of its proposed law school to take the Maine bar exam.
The court requires that those taking the bar exam be graduates of a law school accredited by the American Bar Association or a similar state organization or have been admitted to the bar in another state.
“We are grateful to the Supreme Judicial Court for its careful review of our petition, and, we have decided at this time not to pursue a law school,” Husson President Robert Clark said in a press release.
Clark, who took over the Husson presidency in January, inherited the proposal for the law school from his predecessor William Beardsley. Beardsley is running for the Republican nomination for governor.
The American Bar Association, which accredits the majority of the nation’s law schools, requires that law schools have a tenure track for its professors. Husson did away with tenure about 15 years ago.
University officials said repeatedly that the proposed law school did not intend to seek accreditation from the American Bar Association.
Husson proposed a three-year program with tuition set at approximately $18,000 a year, the same as in-state tuition at the Maine School of Law in Portland. Spokeswoman Julie Green said Husson spent about $300,000 in its pursuit of a law school.
According to the release, the University will continue to offer undergraduate and graduate degrees in Criminal Justice and undergraduate degrees in Paralegal Studies through the School of Business.
