Law School papers

The first lectures in the College of Law were given at the University of Minnesota on September 11, 1888 by Dean William S. Pattee to 27 students in the Hermean room in the basement of Old Main. In 1889, the first law school was erected on campus (now known as Pattee Hall) and by 1894, the College of Law enrolled 320 students, employed 14 lecturers and offered three courses of study, a two-year program offered in the day, a three-year program in the evening, and a one-year graduate course. The first graduating class of three students was in 1889. In 1929, the Law School moved into a new building, renamed Fraser Hall in honor of Everett Fraser, dean of the Law School, 1920-1948.

In 1930, a new curriculum was introduced for the Law School. Known as the Minnesota Plan, all students were required to complete two years of pre-legal college education, focusing on the liberal arts, and then complete four years of study in the Law School, leading to the LL. B. Previously, students were required to complete the two-year prerequisite work and three years in the Law School. In 1967, the Law School adopted the J.D. degree for all graduates.

After 10 years of negotiations with the Minnesota Legislature, a new law building was constructed on the West Bankcampus in the mid 1970s, opening in 1978. In 2001, the building was expanded and renamed Walter F. Mondale Hall, in honor of Walter F. Mondale, a University of Minnesota alumnus and former Vice President of the United States (1976-1980).