in France and four years' training in Germany, to which he might have added Spain's six years of university study for the degree of Licenciatura and an additional year for the degree of Doctor of Law. Of the three evils we have mentioned, the first two may be easily eradicated by proper legislation, first by an act expressly repealing the Act of 1867-68, and second by an act properly drawn or a rule properly enforced preventing attorneys from other jurisdiction from being entered on our rolls until they have complied with the requirements for the admission to the Bar in Tennessee. But as to the third evil, your Committee believes that legislation merely requiring a certain number of years or months of study of the law in a law office or in an accredited school or a rule of the Supreme Court requiring the same alone will not suffice to accomplish the result desired. In many of the States and most of the leading medical schools a very high standard of literary or adademic education is required of the applicant. In the medical department of the Vanderbilt University two years' academic education in college, or its equivalent, is required before the student is admitted to the medical school. A great percent of the leading medical schools require three years. The same may be said of the schools of Dentistry and of Divinity and of other professional schools, and, indeed, the same may be said of some of the leading law schools of the country. It is axiomatic that the broader and better the student's general and academic and literary education before beginning the study of law the more thoroughly he will master the legal principles and logic. Therefore, we respectfully submit to the consideration of the Association the question of the legal profession in Tennessee taking some action towards the betterment of and the raising to a higher standard the educational requirements other than legal for admission to the bar, and sincerely urge that some action be taken to that end; but in so far as this Committee has never before, to our knowledge, undertaken to consider this question, we think the form of action of the Association, if any, should be determined upon after an open discussion of the subject. Dean John H. Wigmore said before the Section of Legal Education of the American Bar Association, “The law as a profession has lost its prestige of lead BAR ASSOCIATION OF TENNESSEE Memphis, of which Mr. Charles M. Bryan is the head, and t More and more is being said each week in the legal public ership in public thought. It will never regain it so long as it declines to insist that its followers should have the best attainable education." Your Committee thinks that the literary or academic education of applicants for admission to the bar should receive the thought and consideration of the Bench and Bar as seriously as their legal education to the end that the prestige and standard of the profession be maintained. Another phase of legal education to which, so far as we have been able to learn, the Association and the Committees on Legal Education and Admission to the Bar have never directed any definite attention, on which the Association has certainly never adopted any course of action, and which we think is of vital importance and which should receive the attention of both our Committee and Association, is the Legal Clinic. As Dean W. R. Vance said in an address before the Minnesota Bar Association, “At the present time I think there is no man connected with a law school who is fair minded and reasonably intelligent who will not admit that the training of the law school is weak on the practice side." Doubtless there are but few graduates of the law schools who know how, the day they receive their diplomas, to institute a simple replevin suit in a Justice of the Peace's Court, much less draw a formal bill of exceptions or entry showing motion for new trial, appeal, etc., and other matters of procedure more complex. There are but two methods by which the law student can acquire this education, the Moot Court and the Legal Clinic. Medical schools have their Medical Clinics, Dental schools their Dental Clinics, and all other professional schools give their students education on the practical side of the profession. Some law schools do this by the Moot Court, the efficiency of which is usually limited. Some law schools also provide for their students to gain knowledge of procedure and practice through Legal Clinics, but most clinics are not for the benefit of the law student and are not founded and operated in any way in consideration of the law student, but as charitable institutions. There are four Legal Clinics in Tennessee, one at Chattanooga, of which Mr. R. T. Hudson is Superintendent; one at Knoxville, with which Mr. Malcolm C. McDermott is connected, which we are informed is operated partly by and partly for the benefit of the law students of the University of Tennessee ; another at the law student may learn practice and procedure is one of ti Respectfully submitted, GILES L. EVANS, Chairman; S. P. FITZHUGH. JUDGE JUDD: At the last meeting of this Association Memphis, of which Mr. Charles M. Bryan is the head, and the fourth at Nashville under the auspices of the Commercial Club of Nashville, the clinics at Chattanooga and Memphis being in fact just in process of formation. More and more is being said each week in the legal publications and by the leaders in thought concerning legal education urging the formation and maintenance of Legal Clinics, not only as charitable institutions, but from the student's point of view or as an essential step forward in legal education, a very able article of Dean Wigmore's having appeared in the May, 1917, Illinois Law Review, another by Mr. William V. Rowe in the April Illinois Law Review, 1917, and another by Mr. Reginald Heber Smith, counsel for the Boston Legal Aid Society, which we commend to the consideration of the members of this Association; and because we believe that the Legal Clinic in which the law student may learn practice and procedure is one of the means of helping to improve the administration of justice and the effective operation and enforcement of law, we have thus respectfully called the Association's attention to its consideration, at the risk of making our report seem tedious and unnecessarily long. Respectfully submitted, GILES L. EVANS, Chairman; S. P. FITZHUGH. THE PRESIDENT: Before discussing the matter suggested by Mr. Evans, we wish to hear from Judge Judd. JUDGE JUDD: At the last meeting of this Association at Memphis a years ago, among other things that we did this resolution was introduced as the result of some considerable discussion by myself and probably others in reference to the subject legal education and admission to the bar. The resolution is as follows: "Be it resolved by the Bar Association of Tennessee that the Justices of the Supreme Court of Tennessee be, and they are hereby respectfully requested and urged to amend the rules governing the admission of attorneys to the practice of law, so as to require that all applicants of the session of the Court, and he never took the matter u for that reason, therefore, this Committee never appeared t fore the Supreme Court, to ask its action in accordance wi the Bar Association's instructions. My brother Evans, w was the draftsman of our report on Legal Education and A mission to the Bar, and which is signed by him as Chairma Judge Burroughs and myself, did not know at the time drafted the report the facts that I am now developing befo the Association. But this is the explanation, gentlemen, an shall have a high school education, or its equivalent, and shall The statute, Gentlemen of the Association, which enables the Supreme Court to control this matter, is the Act referred to in the report which has just been referred to the Associa tion providing for the admission to the Bar under the supervision and control of the Supreme Court. It enables the Supreme Court to make rules and regulations in reference to the admission and enables the Supreme Court to appoint our Board of Law Examiners, which have been appointed and are now in active operation, and it is only through the examina. tion by these commissioners, or law examiners, appointed by the Court, in their report to the Supreme Court, that a man can now be admitted to the Bar of this State. I should add that this resolution requires a committee to be appointed, and so on, to present this matter to the Supreme Court. The President of our Association appointed on that Committee T. A. Wright, Robt. F. Spraggins, and your speaker. When the Supreme Court met last December I wrote to each of these gentlemen, and asked them if it would be convenient for them for me to meet them at Nashville some time soon, and for us to present the matter to the Supreme Court, and they replied that it would. I therefore saw the Chief Justice of the Court and asked him to appoint a time when it would suit the convenience of the Court for this matter to be presented, say. ing to him that it was necessary for me to notify the other members of the Committee to meet me there for that purpose. He readily assented, and said that he would consult the other members of the Court and fix a time. However, it so happened that Judge Neil, the Chief Justice, was taken sick, broken down from over-labor, and disease, and he was compelled to leave the bench, and went to Florida, as was stated in the papers, for a vacation. I thought of course that he would probably be back in time to take the matter up again, but he wasn't. He came back during the last week or two or three along with the action of the Association on that report of ou that we have submitted, I ask the Association to continue th Committee for the next meeting of the Supreme Court, und the authority herein contained, that we may perform the plea are of this Bar in that behalf, MR. PERES: I move that the Committee be continued, wit directions to pursue the line suggested at the last meeting. This motion was seconded, and upon being submitted å vote was unanimously carried. THE PRESIDENT: What is the further pleasure of the A sociation with respect to this matter of Legal Education an Admission to the Bar, particularly with reference to the repo MR. JORDAN STOKES: I move the adoption of the repor THE PRESIDENT: And the acceptance of the recomme dations This motion was duly seconded, and upon being submitu to a vote was unanimously adopted. THE PRESIDENT: Another Committee report required The report was thereupon read by Judge Pitts, as follows: Association: of the session of the Court, and he never took the matter up; for that reason, therefore, this Committee never appeared before the Supreme Court, to ask its action in accordance with the Bar Association's instructions. My brother Evans, who was the draftsman of our report on Legal Education and Ad. mission to the Bar, and which is signed by him as Chairman, Judge Burroughs and myself, did not know at the time he drafted the report the facts that I am now developing before the Association. But this is the explanation, gentlemen, and along with the action of the Association on that report of ours that we have submitted, I ask the Association to continue this Committee for the next meeting of the Supreme Court, under the authority herein contained, that we may perform the pleasure of this Bar in that behalf. MR. PERES: I move that the Committee 'be continued, with directions to pursue the line suggested at the last meeting. This motion was seconded, and upon being submitted to å vote was unanimously carried. THE PRESIDENT: What is the further pleasure of the Association with respect to this matter of Legal Education and Admission to the Bar, particularly with reference to the report made by the regular committee ! MR. JORDAN STOKES: I move the adoption of the report, Mr. President. THE PRESIDENT: And the acceptance of the recommendations. This motion was duly seconded, and upon being submitted to a vote was unanimously adopted. THE PRESIDENT: Another Committee report required to be presented this afternoon is that on Constitutional Amendments. Judge J. H. Malone is unavoidably absent, and the President has requested Judge Pitts, being present, to read that report prepared by Judge Malone. The report was thereupon read by Judge Pitts, as follows: Association : |
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