Picture this You stand before the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. Its imposing presence speaks of a rich history. A history stretching back to the very birth of the American republic.
This isn’t just any law school. The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School boasts origins entwined with the founding fathers. In 1790 James Wilson a signer of the Declaration of Independence and a Supreme Court Justice delivered the first law lectures here. At the then College of Philadelphia. Wilson was considered the most learned legal scholar of his time. His lectures weren’t just about statutes. They delved into natural law common law international law and the very soul of the new American Constitution. President Washington Vice President Adams and numerous cabinet members attended. Imagine the intellectual electricity in that room.
These early lectures were more than just classes. Wilson supplemented them with mock courts and legislatures. Giving students practical experience. A brilliant man Wilson’s personal struggles sadly cut short his lectures. Yet his vision of legal education as a ‘historical science’ based on ‘metaphysics’ (essentially psychology) remains relevant today.
For over half a century after Wilson’s death legal education at Penn languished. That changed in 1850 when George Sharswood became Professor of Law. He launched a two-year course covering a broad range of legal topics. The Department of Law was formally established two years later. Sharswood became its Dean serving until joining the Pennsylvania Supreme Court. During Sharswood’s era both students and faculty were part-time. Professors were active practitioners balancing their careers with teaching. Students were either undergraduates or law office apprentices.
The school’s transformation into a modern professional school began with William Draper Lewis’s deanship from 1896 to 1914. Lewis abandoned his practice establishing a full-time faculty. Construction began on the Law School’s current building in 1898. By the end of Lewis’s tenure the full-time faculty had grown substantially. He pioneered the requirement of college degrees for admission a standard adopted by other top schools. Lewis also conceived the American Law Institute a crucial law reform body headquartered at the Law School until 1948.
The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s legacy continued under subsequent Deans including Owen J Roberts a former Supreme Court Justice. The school expanded its curriculum research and international programs. The school received a massive donation in 2019. Resulting in its current name and increased scholarship funds.
So next time you stand here remember the layers of history. The vision of its founders. And the enduring pursuit of justice that defines the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School. A place where legal minds have shaped not only American law but the world itself.