The Ave Maria School of Law, founded in 1999, is a fully ABA accredited Roman Catholic law school, located in Naples, Florida. ^[1] In the 2008-2009 academic year, there were over 330 students enrolled from a variety of states, countries, and undergraduate institutions.^[2]

Ave Maria espouses a natural law philosophy and teaches law within the context of the Catholic intellectual tradition. The curriculum of Ave Maria School of Law includes a three-semester Research, Writing and Advocacy Program as well as several required courses that focus on law and ethics.^[3]

Contents 1 History 2 Ranking 3 References 4 External links

[edit] History

Tom Monaghan, founder of Domino's Pizza and former owner of the Detroit Tigers, supports the school through his Ave Maria Foundation and serves as the chairman of the board of governors of the school, which also includes Adam Cardinal Maida, and Michael Uhlmann and included before their deaths Bowie Kuhn and John Cardinal O'Connor.^[4]

Ave Maria's beginnings lie in discussions between former Oakland County prosecutor Dick Thompson and Monaghan. In 1998, several professors left University of Detroit Mercy School of Law after a dispute regarding the invitation of a pro-choice Michigan Supreme Court justice to give the oath at the end of the school's Red Mass, providing a core faculty. The school currently has thirty-four professors including Robert Bork (former United States Supreme Court nominee), several visiting professors, and eight esteemed legal writing professors.

Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia assisted Ave Maria's leadership in developing the school's curriculum, and in 1999 Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas delivered the school's first annual Ave Maria Lecture.

[edit] Ranking

The 2010 Princeton Review Law School Rankings places the Ave Maria School of law in first place for most interesting professors as rated by students. Ave Maria tied the University of Chicago in this category ^[5].

In 2003, the graduating class passed the Michigan bar examination at a rate of 93% among first-time takers, which was the top rate in Michigan. In 2004, the school had 100% Michigan bar passage rate, and in 2006, the passing rate was 96%, which is the highest overall among Michigan law schools. Ave Maria's Moot court team has won top honors four out of the last 6 years.^[6]

Ave Maria graduates have secured 54 judicial clerkships – 44 of these with federal courts.^[7]

Ave Maria increased enrollment in its entering class of 2009. The class of 2012 has 209 students from 38 states and 148 undergraduate institutions ^[8].

[edit] References

1. ^ American Bar Association Grants Full Accreditation to Ave Maria School of Law [1]
2. ^ [2]
3. ^ [Curriculum https://www.avemarialaw.edu/index.cfm?event=academics.curriculum]
4. ^ Board of Governors List (https://www.avemarialaw.edu/index.cfm?event=admin.BOG)
5. ^ http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2009/10/princeton-review-2.html
6. ^ http://www.avemarialaw.edu/index.cfm?event=academics.MootCourt
7. ^ http://www.avemarialaw.edu/index.cfm?event=about.value
8. ^ http://www.avemarialaw.edu/index.cfm?event=admissions.profiles

• "Premier National Catholic Law School to be Established in the Ann Arbor Area," Ave Maria School of Law media release, April 7, 1999

• "Ave Maria founder Tom Monaghan is a man of faith, plans and action," Marci Elliott, Naples Daily News, April 13, 2003. Archived at Catholic Education Resource Center, accessed October 9, 2006

[edit] External links

• Ave Maria School of Law