The new 2008 U.S. News & World Report Law School Rankings, scheduled to be officially released on Friday, have apparently leaked... Some websites have published the (still) unofficial rankings(http://www.lawschooldiscussion.org/prelaw/index.php/topic,85347.0.html, http://www.concurringopinions.com/archives/2007/03/us_news_ranking.html, http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2007_03_25-2007_03_31.shtml#1175026740)

The big news are:

1) Harvard goes up 1 position and now is #2, tied with Stanford.
2) NYU (#4) overtakes Columbia (now #5).
3) UPenn goes up 1 position and now is tied with UChicago.

Just copy pastin' from the sites ivan provided:

Top 100

1 100 Yale University (CT)
2 90 Harvard University (MA)
2 90 Stanford University (CA)
4 87 New York University
5 85 Columbia University (NY)
6 80 University of Chicago
6 80 University of Pennsylvania
8 78 University of California-Berkeley
8 78 University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
10 77 Duke University (NC)
10 77 University of Virginia
12 76 Northwestern University (IL)
13 74 Cornell University (NY)
14 72 Georgetown University (DC)
15 71 University of California-Los Angeles
16 69 University of Southern California (Gould)
16 69 Vanderbilt University (TN)
18 68 University of Texas-Austin
19 64 Washington University in St. Louis
20 63 Boston University
20 63 University of Minnesota-Twin Cities
22 62 Emory University (GA)
22 62 George Washington University (DC)
24 61 University of Iowa
25 60 Fordham University (NY)
25 60 University of Illinois-Urbana-Champaign
25 60 Washington and Lee University (VA)
28 59 Boston College
28 59 University of Notre Dame (IN)
28 59 University of Washington
31 58 College of William and Mary (Marshall-Wythe) (VA)
31 58 Ohio State University (Moritz)
31 58 University of Wisconsin-Madison
34 56 George Mason University (VA)
34 56 University of California-Davis
36 55 Indiana University-Bloomington
36 55 University of Alabama
36 55 University of California (Hastings)
36 55 University of Colorado-Boulder
36 55 University of Georgia
36 55 University of Maryland
36 55 University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill
36 55 Wake Forest University (NC)
44 54 Brigham Young University (Clark) (UT)
44 54 University of Arizona (Rogers)
46 53 Southern Methodist University (TX)
47 52 American University (Washington) (DC)
47 52 Tulane University (LA)
47 52 University of Connecticut
47 52 University of Florida (Levin)
51 Arizona State University (O'Connor)
52 Yeshiva University (Cardozo) (NY)
53 Baylor University (TX)
53 Case Western Reserve University (OH)
53 Florida State University
53 University of TennesseeKnoxville
57 University of Cincinnati
57 University of Pittsburgh
57 University of Utah (Quinney)
60 Brooklyn Law School (NY)
60 Illinois Institute of Technology (Chicago-Kent)
60 Temple University (Beasley) (PA)
60 University of Houston
60 University of Kentucky
60 Villanova University (PA)
66 Loyola Law School (CA)
66 Pepperdine University (CA)
66 University of Kansas
66 University of MissouriColumbia
70 Loyola University Chicago
70 Rutgers, the State University of New JerseyCamden
70 Seton Hall University (NJ)
70 St. John's University (NY)
70 University of Miami (FL)
70 University of New Mexico
70 University of Oklahoma
77 Rutgers, the State University of New JerseyNewark
77 University at BuffaloSUNY
77 University of Denver (Sturm)
77 University of NebraskaLincoln
77 University of Richmond (VA)
82 Georgia State University
82 Lewis and Clark College (Northwestern) (OR)
82 University of Oregon
85 Indiana UniversityIndianapolis
85 Northeastern University (MA)
85 Seattle University
85 St. Louis University
85 University of San Diego
85 University of Toledo (OH)
91 DePaul University (IL)
91 Louisiana State UniversityBaton Rouge
91 Pennsylvania State University (Dickinson)
91 Santa Clara University (CA)
91 University of Hawaii (Richardson)
91 University of South Carolina
97 Catholic University of America (Columbus) (DC)
97 Marquette University (WI)
97 University of Louisville (Brandeis) (KY)
100 Mercer University (GA)
100 Stetson University (FL)
100 University of NevadaLas Vegas (Boyd)
100 University of San Francisco
100 University of the Pacific (McGeorge) (CA)

Tier 3

Albany Law School-Union University (NY)
Cleveland State University (Cleveland-Marshall)
Creighton University (NE)
Drake University (IA)
Florida International University
Franklin Pierce Law Center (NH)
Gonzaga University (WA)
Hofstra University (NY)
Howard University (DC)
Loyola University New Orleans
Michigan State University
New York Law School
Pace University (NY)
Quinnipiac University (CT)
Samford University (Cumberland) (AL)
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale
Southwestern Law School (CA)
Suffolk University (MA)
Syracuse University (NY)
Texas Tech University
University of Akron (OH)
University of Arkansas-Fayetteville
University of Arkansas-Little Rock (Bowen)
University of Idaho
University of Maine
University of Memphis (Humphreys)
University of Mississippi
University of Missouri-Kansas City
University of Montana
University of St. Thomas (MN)
University of Wyoming
Vermont Law School
Washburn University (KS)
West Virginia University
William Mitchell College of Law (MN)

Tier 4

Appalachian School of Law (VA)
Ave Maria School of Law (MI)
Barry University (FL)
California Western School of Law
Campbell University (Wiggins) (NC)
Capital University (OH)
Chapman University (CA)
CUNY-Queens College
Duquesne University (PA)
Florida Coastal School of Law
Golden Gate University (CA)
Hamline University (MN)
John Marshall Law School (IL)
Mississippi College
New England School of Law (MA)
North Carolina Central University
Northern Illinois University
Northern Kentucky University (Chase)
Nova Southeastern University (Broad) (FL)
Ohio Northern University (Pettit)
Oklahoma City University
Regent University (VA)
Roger Williams University (Papitto) (RI)
South Texas College of Law
Southern University (LA)
St. Mary's University (TX)
St. Thomas University (FL)
Texas Southern University (Marshall)
Texas Wesleyan University
Thomas Jefferson School of Law (CA)
Thomas M. Cooley Law School (MI)
Touro College (Fuchsberg) (NY)
University of Baltimore
University of Dayton (OH)
University of Detroit Mercy
University of North Dakota
University of South Dakota
University of the District of Columbia (Clarke)
University of Tulsa (OK)
Valparaiso University (IN)
Wayne State University (MI)
Western New England College (MA)
Whittier Law School (CA)
Widener University (DE)
Willamette University (Collins) (OR)

For a comparison between the 2007 and 2008 rankings, click on

http://taxprof.typepad.com/.shared/image.html?/photos/uncategorized/2007/03/28/2008_10_2.jpg

Fordham moves up 7 places to 25.

I have got through NYU...and I feel elated that NYU is ranked 4th! this surely calls for raising a toast! 3 cheers!

great news for NYU, am glad :) bad news for CLS... aie

oh I forgot to add that I'm happy HLS is going up +1 ! :)

not very helpful comments I admit.

is there any explanation abt these changes by USnews?

I try not to pay to much attention to external rankings just because it is a tiring and unfulfilling way to live. I am interested in what made CLS slip below NYC, however. When I was there last year a few prominent faculty members left (notably, Waldron who attracts a lot of LLM students) and I wonder if that was the cause. If so, it is interesting how only a few people can change the rankings.

No idea... I suppose we will know more about the methodology on Friday, when the magazine is published...

No idea... I suppose we will know more about the methodology on Friday, when the magazine is published...

Do you think they would specifically name professors who have left as causing the change in rankings?
I am interested because I know one professor left due to a disagreement with the Dean and am wondering whether this change in ranking may put the Dean's job on the line.

I don´t know, but there is a very interesting paper available on SSRN:

http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=937017

Personally speaking, I think a school won´t be better or worse because US News says so. Having said that, there is one good thing about rankings: they enhance competition among schools and forces them to invest in professors, premises, etc.

I read this paper. The author is a Harvard graduate whose only goal is to promote Harvard and to "prove" that HLS is the best law school in the world.

It's fascinating. Only data in favor of this argument are really considered here! His methodology is a complete farce. Awesome!

Many papers have been published on the USNews methodology and, interestingly, nobody has come to the same conclusions

By the way, I confess that its quite difficult for me to understand why Columbia is now #5 Has NYU experienced significant changes during the past year or is it just a good way to sell magazines?

The paper´s fun, huh?
Without the data, it is impossible to say. NYU may have improved or CLS might have fallen behind.

The only thing I can point to is the three professors who left CLS. For my small part, I am not sure I would have gone to CLS but for Waldron.
That being said, I thought the rankings went largely on LSAT scores but I haven't researched the methodology - that is how rankings are done in the UK (but not on LSAT, of course). Also, I would be interested to see whether the admission rates have changed since last time I check NYU admitted 20% of applicants whereas CLS admitted 14%.
Oh gd, this is so boring. I can't believe I am getting involved in this. My only interest is the people involved - if the Dean gets fired that would be news indeed.

The USNews "Top 10" has never been the same in two consecutive years

Why? That is the question.

Maybe USNews needs to "create" some changes each year

To answer your question, in the 2008 ranking, NYU admitted 21.1% of applicants whereas CLS admitted 14.7%.

the USNEWS 2008 rankings are already available for sale in Barnes & Nobles.

The USNews "Top 10" has never been the same in two consecutive years

Why? That is the question.

Maybe USNews needs to "create" some changes each year

Other rankings:

DISPUTE RESOLUTION

1. Pepperdine University
2. University of Missouri
3. Hamline University/ Harvard
5. Ohio State University
6. Marquette University
7. Yeshiva University
8. PennState University/ University of Oregon
10. Fordham/ Georgetown

IP Law

1. UC Berkeley
2. Stanford
3. GWU
4. CLS/ Duke/ Franklin Pierce Law Center/ Yeshiva
8. Santa Clara Univ./ Univ. of Houston
10. BU

International Law

1. NYU
2. CLS
3. Georgetown/ HLS
5. American University
6. YLS
7. UMich
8. GWU
9. UC Berkeley
10. UVirginia

Tax Law

1. NYU
2. Florida
3. Georgetown
4. NWU
5. HLS
6. Miami
7. UCLA
8. BU
9. UTexas
10. San Diego/ UVirginia/ YLS

Does anybody have the rankings for corporate law?