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Dean Henry H. Perritt, Jr.'s introduction from the Chicago-Kent viewbook (1999)
Chicago-Kent has a long tradition of connecting the theoretical to the practical, of integrating scholarship and teaching to prepare our students for the practice of law. Not only are members of our faculty outstanding scholars and instructors, but our research and writing program, law offices clinical program, and the use of computers in legal studies are models for the rest of the nation.
Now, as ever, we are ahead of the times, acting on new legal developments influenced by the global sweep of the law and advances in science and technology. The international and technological challenges we address do not make the basic principles of contract, tort, property, criminal law, constitutional law, and procedure any less relevant. Indeed, they may a sound understanding of them even more critical. They are foundations on which new doctrinal interpretations and institutional arrangements are built.
Chicago-Kent's position on the frontier of the legal profession has led naturally to three new initiatives. One facilitates the real-world use of theories originating in laboratories and law school seminars at intersections of law, science and technology. Another explores new roles for international law and institutions in expanding trade and advancing human rights. A third helps define the role of the Internet in the rule of law.
These initiatives provide the framework for activities like "Project Bosnia," which I began elsewhere in 1996 and now includes Chicago-Kent. It involves dozens of law students, faculty members, and others in establishing a rule of law in Central and Eastern Europe by using the Internet to connect diverse legal institutions. The project is special to me because of the intensity of the relationships I had with students. We interacted as equals and colleagues. We established trust. We formed friendships.
We seek that kind of relationship with you at Chicago-Kent in the context of our commitment to professional excellence and intellectual depth.