De Paul University College of Law - History

History

DePaul University College of Law was formed in 1912 when the Illinois College of Law (founded in 1897) affiliated with DePaul University. In 1912, DePaul awarded an LL.D., its first honorary degree, to the founder and then president of the Illinois College of Law, Howard N. Ogden.. In 1915, after the death of Ogden, complete ownership of the college transferred to DePaul.

In 1958, the College of Law moved from 64 East Lake Street to its new and current home in the Lewis Center at 25 East Jackson Boulevard. The 18-story Lewis Center, formerly known as the Kimball Building, was given to DePaul in 1955 by the Frank J. Lewis Foundation and was at that time the largest gift to the university.

In 1972, DePaul purchased the Finchley Building, which was renamed the Comeford J. O'Malley Place in 1980, in honor of Comeford O'Malley who served as president and chancellor of DePaul for many years. "O'Malley," as it is known by students, is located at 25 East Jackson Street, adjacent to the Lewis Center, and served to increase downtown campus space by 20 percent. That same year (1972), the College of Law opened its Legal Clinic.. A year later, in 1973, the school undertook a $2 million renovation in order to increase space by 50 percent, remodel both its buildings, and double the size of its law library collection..

By 1981, the school had awarded 8,670 J.D.s. That year, DePaul designated the Lewis Center and O'Malley Place as part of its official "Loop Campus." Today, the Loop Campus includes the College of Law and a number of programs and buildings not related to the College, including the DePaul Center (acquired in 1991 and connected to the Lewis Center and O'Malley Place by a pedestrian bridge), home to DePaul University's Kellstadt Graduate School of Business.

In 1985, DePaul established a Health Law Institute, the first of its kind in Chicago. The institute offered a master's degree in health law. Then, in 1989, DePaul completed its Lawyer Skills Center, which provided the college with a facility for teaching students trial practice and negotiation skills. A year later, in 1990, the school established its International Human Rights Law Institute, the first center of its kind in the Midwest.

In 1992, the College received a $1 million commitment from alumnus Robert A. Clifford, a prominent personal injury attorney in Chicago. The gift represented the largest gift in the school's history and was used for the establishment of the "Robert A. Clifford Chair in Tort Law and Social Policy." Today, the chair is held by Professor Stephan Landsman.

In 1994, the College began a $6 million renovation to its law library which was completed in 1996 and represented the largest construction project in the College's history.

In 1999, Professor M. Cherif Bassiouni was nominated for the 1999 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts behind the establishment of the International Criminal Court.