University of Mississippi School of Law

In 1854, the University of Mississippi School of Law was the fourth-supported law school in the country. This happened almost ten years after it opened its doors in 1848. The "Department of Law", as it was called, was created by the Mississippi legislature to address the need for law instruction. Here is a brief history of Mississippi's law school, written by Michael de L. Landon (professor emeritus of History) In the Lyceum, the University of Mississippi's first seven-member law class was formed in 1854. In 1860, the University of Mississippi had a growing enrollment. A newly acquired law library, purchased from Forbes Stearns, was also a reason for more space. To house the law program, William P. Avent, an Oxford banker, rented a building at Oxford Square's northwest corner. The law library was able to be moved into the Lyceum after the university was closed during the Civil War. It was also not destroyed by Union troops when they burned down the Square buildings in August 1864. The Lyceum's law program, under L.Q.C., was back in operation by 1866. Lamar. Lamar was dedicated to his students. Lamar would give lectures on texts and oral examinations and have students summarize cases for discussion in the next class. Many claims that Lamar pioneered case law as a method for studying, which was also used by Christopher C. Langdell (an innovative dean at Harvard Law) around the same period. Lamar was the first ex-university law professor to be elected to the United States Supreme Court in 1887. He served as Associate Justice until his death, in 1893. Lamar's efforts in unifying the U.S. post-1965 Civil War are the subject of President John F. Kennedy’s book "Profiles in Courage."