In a new study examining
where partners at the largest U.S. law firms went to school, the University of
San Francisco School of Law is ranked fourth for the San Francisco region.
The comprehensive national survey, conducted by Ted Seto, a professor of taxation at Loyola Law School, Los
Angeles, ranks partner-producing law schools for the largest law firms in 11
geographic regions. For the San Francisco legal market, USF came in fourth on
the list, following the University of California, Hastings College of the Law, the
University of California, Berkeley School of Law, and Harvard Law School,
respectively.
“What the study shows for
students is the extent to which law schools have established feeder
relationships,” Seto told The National Jurist. “The single most important
finding is that hiring is local — intensely local.”
Jeffrey Brand, dean of USF’s
School of Law, said the study highlights the school’s deep connections to San
Francisco through its alumni community. USF law students benefit from
externships in law firms and with judges, or by representing a variety of
clients through the School of Law’s clinics and centers, which focus on human
rights, intellectual property rights, technology, juvenile justice, death
penalty law, and more.
“USF’s high ranking as a
partner-producing law school comes as no surprise. It’s consistent with our
100-year tradition of educating skilled legal professionals in San Francisco,”
Brand said. “Our students benefit from a vast and close-knit network of alumni,
including partners in most of the major law firms in the region, as well as
judges, general counsels, business leaders, and public officials.”
