LEGAL EDUCATION IN CLEVELAND B STATE REQUIREMENTS AND LOCAL FACILITIES EFORE taking the bar examinations in Ohio one who is not ad mitted to practice in another State must have studied law for three years and must have had a general education equivalent to a four-year high school course. He need not complete his high school course, or its equivalent, before commencing his legal studies. The applicant who studies in Cleveland may do so under the instruction of any attorney in Cleveland, or in any one of three law schools, viz., the Law School of Western Reserve University, the Cleveland Law School, and the John Marshall Law School. During the past four years 58 persons who gave Cleveland as their address have been admitted to take the bar examinations upon the certificate of an attorney that the applicant had completed some period of study under his direction. Of these, the greater number are now practising in Cleveland. In some instances the period of study under the attorney was the six-month period required of those who have taken the State bar examinations and failed. In others the period of study was one year, supplementary to a law school course of two years. Probably in few instances was the entire three-year period of study under the direction of the attorney certifying. In a few well-authenticated instances men who have studied for three years at a law school, but have been refused a certificate by the law school, have secured a certificate from an attorney in Cleveland or in some other part of the State and have, on the basis thereof, been permitted to take the bar examinations. In one instance a student who had been refused a certificate by a law school was certified by an attorney outside of Cleveland. The attorney stated that the student had studied law under his direction for three years, when, as a matter of fact, the student had been for three years in attendance at a law school in Cleveland, several hours' ride by rail from the city where the certifying attorney resided and conducted his practice. In the past four years 66 attorneys of Cleveland have certified that students under their direction have satisfactorily completed some period of legal studies as the basis for taking the bar examinations. Of these, three gave such certificates in 1917, 17 in 1918, 25 in 1919 (one certifying to two applicants and one to four), and 22 in 1920 (two certifying each to two applicants and one certifying who had also certified in 1918). Inquiry among these attorneys as to the course of study pursued under their direction resulted in the following information: In one instance an attempt was made to give a review course of six months for those who failed in the bar examinations. In one instance the attorney conducted an informal school for business men and certified two students who had done sufficient work to warrant, in his judgment, the certification. In one instance the student had taken a correspondence school course and also done bona fide work under the direction of the attorney certifying for three years. But it seems to be the view of many that an attorney is justified in certifying if he has personal knowledge that the student has actually pursued legal studies, and if the attorney has quizzed him at least once in regard to the subjects studied. It is the exception that a definite course is laid out by the attorney and the student pursues it under his immediate personal direction and is quizzed from week to week, or even from month to month. At least one attempt has been made by a correspondence school to secure for its students the certificate of an attorney that its students have (on the basis of the correspondence school course alone) satisfactorily completed a three-year course of legal study. In this instance the Supreme Court intimated that it would be improper for the attorney to give the certification, and he refused to do so. The Law School of Western Reserve University has been established since 1892. It now has 609 graduates, of which approximately 280 are practising law in Cleveland. It is at present contributing from 35 to 50 graduates a year, 75 per cent. of whom, it is estimated, remain in Cleveland for the practice of the law. The Cleveland Law School has been established since 1897, and during that time has been under the direction of Judge Willis Vickery. It has approximately 1,000 graduates, of which about one-third are estimated by Judge Vickery to be in practice, and of these by far the larger portion are engaged in practice in Cleveland. This school for the past two or three years has been graduating yearly between 70 and 80 students, by far the larger portion of whom remain in Cleveland for the practice of the law. The John Marshall Law School has been established since 1916 and has graduated 35 students, of whom about two-thirds are estimated to be in practice, and of these, all but two are in practice in Cleveland. |