Michael H. Schill, dean of UCLA School of law and a nationally known scholar of property law, has been appointed as the next dean of the University of Chicago Law school. In a joint e-mail to law school faculty and staff, University President, Robert J. Zimmer and Provost, Thomas F. Rosenbaum wrote:
We are very confident that Mike will bring to the deanship the values, vision, aspirations, University-wide perspective and leadership to help ensure that the future of the Law School is as compelling as its past.
Other law school professors and faculty members expressed their enthusiasm regarding Schill’s appointment. “We hit the jackpot with Mike Schill,” said Eric Posner, the Kirkland and Ellis Professor of Law at the University of Chicago and chair of the search committee. Schill will succeed Saul Levmore, who is stepping down in order to devote more time to teaching, writing and other interests. Schill’s appointment begins Friday, January 1, 2010.
In addition to his tremendous scholarship, Schill brings with him a strong record of administrative experience. During his five years at UCLA, Schill recruited leading legal scholars, launched three new legal research centers and two academic specialization programs, and doubled alumni participation in fundraising.
Schill looks forward to serving as dean of the Chicago law school. “One of the things that most attracted me to the law school is that in a world where most law schools converge to a common model, the University of Chicago Law School remains distinctive,” said Schill. “It is an institution singularly committed to intellectual pursuit. The faculty, composed of many of the nation’s leading scholars, produces path-breaking scholarship that is academically rigorous, yet engages and influences the worlds of law, business and politics.”
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