Lawsuit Filed Over St. Thomas Expulsions
A recently filed law suit claims that the St. Thomas University School of Law of Miami has hit on a simple but effective means of improving its bar exam passage rate: it accepts weak applicants -- and cashes their tuition checks -- but then expels them before they can take the exam.
The National Law Journal reports that a former St. Thomas student is suing the school for pursuing a "scheme" whereby it accepted large numbers of students and then expelled anyone who failed to maintain an adequate grade point average. The lawsuit claims that St. Thomas has expelled almost one-third of its first- and second-year students, based on grading practices that violate the school's own policies.
The lawyer representing the plaintiff characterized the practice as "culling" students. He argued that the school should never have accepted students who did not have "a reasonable prospect of completing law school" in the first place.
A St. Thomas spokesman said the lawsuit is unfounded. He said that only 12 per cent of the class in question had been expelled for poor academic performance, adding that a 12 per cent attrition rate is typical for a school of St. Thomas' standing.
St. Thomas' bar exam passage rate rose from 57 per cent in 2004 to 61.5 per cent in 2005. The average rate for all Florida law schools was 76 per cent in 2004 and 73 per cent in 2005.
Source: "Law School Sued Over Expelling Students," by Leigh Jones. The National Law Journal, August 16, 2006.
The National Law Journal reports that a former St. Thomas student is suing the school for pursuing a "scheme" whereby it accepted large numbers of students and then expelled anyone who failed to maintain an adequate grade point average. The lawsuit claims that St. Thomas has expelled almost one-third of its first- and second-year students, based on grading practices that violate the school's own policies.
The lawyer representing the plaintiff characterized the practice as "culling" students. He argued that the school should never have accepted students who did not have "a reasonable prospect of completing law school" in the first place.
A St. Thomas spokesman said the lawsuit is unfounded. He said that only 12 per cent of the class in question had been expelled for poor academic performance, adding that a 12 per cent attrition rate is typical for a school of St. Thomas' standing.
St. Thomas' bar exam passage rate rose from 57 per cent in 2004 to 61.5 per cent in 2005. The average rate for all Florida law schools was 76 per cent in 2004 and 73 per cent in 2005.
Source: "Law School Sued Over Expelling Students," by Leigh Jones. The National Law Journal, August 16, 2006.
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