Jacksonville University College of Law opened its doors to an intentionally small class of 14 students — seven women and seven men — selected from a pool of several hundred candidates, according to Nick Allard, the law school’s founding dean. It’s the first new law school in the state of Florida in more than 20 years.
“Our first students were chosen because their strong qualifications demonstrate they are able to perform well in law school, graduate, pass the bar exam and land jobs that return the investment of time, effort and resources that they, their families, the University and the entire Jacksonville community are making in their legal education,” Allard said. “Our inaugural class holds a unique and unprecedented opportunity both to learn and to help us to shape the future of the College of Law.”
Allard was announced as dean on July 19. He comes from a senior counsel position at Dentons, the largest law firm in the world and previously served as dean and president at Brooklyn Law School.
Last week, the 14 students were welcomed in a convocation ceremony, where Allard discussed the goals for the law program and its new students.
“We will equip them to adapt to the ever-changing nature of what lawyers do to advance law and justice,” Allard said. “And as I said to our ‘Fab Fourteen’ at their convocation ceremony, our future is in their hands, as much as theirs is in our hands.”
The law school is operating out of the VyStar Tower, located in downtown Jacksonville. Plans are to be there for two years, and the university is already in talks with the city to determine the law school’s final location.
The establishment of the law school was announced in February 2022, along with a $5 million commitment from the mayor’s office. The school will use the money to cover initial startup costs, but is continuing to pursue aggressive fundraising efforts.
