Renovations begin on UI law center in Boise
Renovations are slated to begin on the old Ada County Courthouse this month in preparation for the new Idaho Law and Justice Learning Center — the future home of the Boise-based University of Idaho College of Law.
The law school expects to move its second and third-year Boise law students from the UI Water Center to the historic building conveniently located between the Idaho State Capitol Building and Supreme Court by fall 2015.
“It’s important for the law school to have a strong presence in Boise because our faculty and students can influence and help provide support for the legislature and the courts,” said Mark Adams, UI College of Law dean. “It’s just a fantastic location in terms of providing opportunities.”
According to Lee Dillion, the law school’s associate dean of Boise programs, the new center is more than a relocation of the law school. He said the center will also house the Idaho State Law Library, provide judicial education to the city’s legal workers and offer civic education resources for the public.
The UI law school expanded its Boise law program last fall to include curriculum for second-year law students, effectively doubling its enrollment potential, and Dillion said the new center is better suited for an influx of students.
“We already have a pretty rich program down here,” Dillion said. “But we’re finding more and more students find the externships and clinics Boise can offer appealing — they want to be around these political, business interactions.”
Dillion said the concept of a robust Boise law center has been in the works for over a decade, and estimated about $7.5 million of state and university funding has gone into the planning over the years.
National Native American Construction, of Coeur d’ Alene, won the $3.16 million contract in December to lead the final phase and renovate the inside of the building to prepare for its fall opening.
Adams, who began his deanship last June, said the prospect of opening a new law center in the state’s capital was a selling point for him when he first applied for his position because it presented a challenge.
“I was attracted to the idea of trying to connect the two locations,” he said. “I’m not interested in being the dean of two law schools. We need to have one law school providing opportunities for our students in both areas.”
Adams said he plans to keep the two locations cohesive by investing in distance education technologies, encouraging faculty to teach at both locations and bringing the Boise and Moscow students together. He said there are already preliminary plans for an all-law school retreat in McCall.
The Moscow location will continue to place a strong emphasis on Native American and environmental law, while the students in Boise have greater access to public service and business legal opportunities, Adams said.
George Wood | Argonaut
Dillion said the informal, day-to-day happenings that occur around the center will be practical experiences for law students because it exposes them to their future employers and colleagues.
“It’s almost those serendipitous moments where students can go over to the Capitol and maybe pop into a hearing on a particular bill they’re interested in,” he said. “They can go over to the Supreme Court building and watch an appeal or they can walk a couple blocks more and watch a criminal or civil trial between classes.”
Although the center is expected to open in time for the fall 2015 semester, Dillion said he always has a backup plan, which includes staying at the UI Water Center until the building’s completion. For now, he said he has enjoyed watching the project come to fruition.
“We just can’t wait to get into that building,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll be on time and under budget.”
Amber Emery can be reached at [email protected]