UW-Madison narrows search for Law School dean

The University of Wisconsin–Madison has narrowed its search for dean of the UW Law School, naming three finalists for the position.

Faculty, academic staff, students and members of the Wisconsin legal community comprised a 16-member search-and-screen committee that made its recommendations to Chancellor Biddy Martin and Provost Paul M. DeLuca Jr.

The committee was chaired by law professor and associate dean Kathryn Hendley.

The finalists are:

• Nicholas W. Allard, partner at Patton Boggs in Washington, D.C. Allard is chair of the law firm’s lobbying, political and elections law practice.

Allard has been an adjunct professor at George Mason University School of Law, Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business and Georgetown University Law Center.

He earned his law degree from Yale University, was a Rhodes Scholar earning a master’s degree from Oxford University and received a bachelor’s degree from Princeton University.

• Gene Nichol, professor and director of the Center on Poverty, Work and Opportunity at the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Nichol was president of the College of William & Mary from 2005-08 and earlier served as dean of the University of North Carolina School of Law and dean of the University of Colorado Law School.

He earned his law degree from the University of Texas and has a bachelor’s degree from Oklahoma State University, where he also played varsity football.

• Margaret Raymond, William G. Hammond professor of law at the University of Iowa College of Law.

Raymond has been a professor at the University of Iowa since 1995, serving in a number of campus leadership roles, including president of the University Faculty Senate.

Raymond earned her law degree from Columbia University and has a bachelor’s degree from Carleton College. She served as a clerk to the late Justice Thurgood Marshall of the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge James L. Oakes of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Campus visits by the finalists are expected to begin in the coming weeks; visits will include meetings with campus administrators and governance groups. More information will be announced as the visits are scheduled.

Following the visits, Martin and DeLuca will make a decision, with the goal of having the permanent dean start in time for the fall semester.

The new dean will succeed Ken Davis, dean since 1997, who said last fall he was stepping down and returning to the faculty. Davis is the school’s second longest-serving dean.

The UW Law School was founded in 1868 and is known for its “law in action” approach to teaching law in which students learn the fundamentals of the law, as well as its role in society.

The dean will be expected to lead the advancement of the school through its legal education programs and research initiatives, and by building strong internal and external communities to support the school’s continued success and growth.

The dean serves as the chief academic and executive officer of the school, with responsibility for faculty and staff development, personnel oversight, fundraising, budget planning and management, curriculum and student academic affairs.