Tribute
Boston College Law School’s George Brown, an influential scholar, teacher, and admired legal authority, passed away on March 12. He retired in 2021 after nearly five decades at BC Law, while continuing to research and publish in law reviews as the Emeritus Robert F. Drinan, SJ, Professor of Law.
Brown was long recognized for his influential scholarship in government ethics, public corruption, and federal-state relations. He published some 45 scholarly articles, and his work was cited more than 500 times in court opinions and law review articles, including by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia in an influential dissent from a denial of certiorari in Sorich v. US (2009).
“He’s brilliant and self-effacing, so that most people would not know that he was a Sears Prize winner at Harvard Law School,” Brown’s longtime friend and colleague, Professor Zygmunt Plater, told BC Law Magazine in 2022.
Other colleagues expressed similar sentiments. “He was the model of intellectual humility, brilliance, responsibility, and integrity. And he had an incredible work ethic,” said Professor Mary Bilder. Professor Kent Greenfield called him a paragon of integrity. “He had a quiet authority and a biting wit that made him a wonderful colleague. His intelligence and knowledge were surpassed only by his wisdom and strength of character.”
Rappaport Center Brings Major Speakers to Campus
The Rappaport Center for Law and Public Policy welcomed several notable speakers to campus this spring. February Rappaport Senior Fellow in Residence Danielle Sered, founder and executive director of Common Justice, delivered the community address “Freedom Work in Troubled Times: The Role of Criminal Justice in Building and Sustaining a Multiracial Democracy.” Kim Janey, former Boston mayor and the president and CEO of Economic Mobility Pathways, engaged in a fireside chat on the themes of Professor Patricia McCoy’s Sharing Risk: The Path to Economic Well-Being for All. April Rappaport Senior Fellow Alex Peña ’18, executive VP for the Partnership for New York City, delivered a community address on “Legitimacy by Design: Governing in an age of Distrust.” The center also engaged the candidates for Norfolk District Attorney in a forum on issues of public safety, accountability, and community trust.
BC Law Climbs in Rankings
Boston College Law School moved up another five spots to #20 in the US News and World Report’s latest edition of best law schools. This marks an increase of 17 spots since 2022, and the School’s highest ranking in US News since its all-time high of #19 in 1993. The Law School also moved up four spots in tax to #8. BC Law’s improvements in employment rates, bar passage, and admissions metrics were once again the primary drivers of its higher score.