Section 17.01 Tennessee Law Schools

(a) Tennessee-Approved Law Schools Not Seeking ABA Accreditation. Tennessee law schools that are not ABA-accredited or seeking ABA accreditation and that are currently approved by this Board and such approval is not subject to obtaining full ABA accreditation (“Tennessee-Approved Law School”) shall remain approved so long as the school continues to comply with the requirements of this Rule as it may be amended and any standards adopted by the Board and approved by the Supreme Court.

(b) Law Schools in Tennessee Seeking ABA-Accreditation.

(1) The Board may recommend approval to the Supreme Court of any law school in Tennessee for the purpose of allowing its graduates to be eligible for admission in Tennessee if the law school is seeking provisional accreditation, and pending full accreditation by the ABA. The Supreme Court shall certify or deny the Board’s recommendation to approve the law school by written order.

(2) The recommendation of the Board to the Supreme Court shall be subject to a site evaluation as provided in section 17.03. Until the ABA grants such provisional accreditation, the law school shall be considered a Tennessee-Approved Law School, as provided herein.

(3) Law schools in Tennessee that are seeking provisional accreditation from the ABA but that are not yet provisionally approved are subject to all of the requirements of a Tennessee-Approved Law School.

(4) Graduates of law schools provisionally or fully accredited by the ABA (“ABA Law School”) are eligible to seek admission in Tennessee.

(c) Law Schools Seeking Approval of Substantial Change. Whether or not physically located in Tennessee, if an ABA Law School requests approval of a substantial change from the ABA for purposes of opening a law school branch in Tennessee or moving an ABA Law School to Tennessee, the branch or relocated law school shall be treated as a new law school in Tennessee seeking ABA accreditation as provided in paragraph (b), above.

(d) Graduates of Tennessee-Approved Law Schools. Graduates of Tennessee-Approved Law Schools are eligible to seek admission in Tennessee.

(e) Notices from the ABA Regarding Compliance with Standards or Status of Accreditation.

(1) Reporting Requirements for ABA Law Schools in Tennessee. Upon receipt of notice from the ABA that an ABA-accredited law school located in Tennessee is out of compliance with the ABA standards or that the accreditation status of the law school has changed, the law school shall furnish to the Board copies of the notice and such documentation as the Board may request, including self-study analyses and evaluation reports, prepared, completed or received in connection with such school’s accreditation status with the ABA. All documentation provided to the Board shall be confidential in order to ensure a frank, candid exchange of information.

(2) ABA Law Schools that are not approved for provisional accreditation by the ABA, do not achieve full accreditation or lose their ABA accreditation will not be recommended for approval to the Supreme Court by the Board until a new application or similar process for provisional or renewed accreditation has been initiated with the ABA, subject to a site evaluation as provided in section 17.03, below.

(f) Statement of Accreditation or Approval Status.

(1) In its catalogs or other informational material distributed to prospective students, a law school shall state whether it is accredited by the ABA or has been approved by the Board pursuant to section 17.01 of this Rule.

(2) Any law school in Tennessee that falsely advertises in its catalog or otherwise that it has been accredited by the ABA or approved by the Board shall be recognized by the Board as a substandard school and will be so classified and disapproved. Students of a substandard school shall not be eligible for admission in Tennessee.

(g) Substandard Law Schools.

(1) Any law school located in or seeking to locate in Tennessee (whether offering a full-time or part-time in-person or distance-learning curriculum), which permits the enrollment of students without first having obtained the written approval of the Supreme Court as provided in section 17.01, shall be classified as a substandard school.

(2) Any ABA-Accredited Law School or Tennessee-Approved Law School that loses its accreditation or provisional approval and does not seek reinstatement of such accreditation or provisional approval shall be classified as a substandard school.

(3) Graduates at law schools that are not ABA-accredited or Tennessee-Approved shall be barred from admission in Tennessee unless the student meets the requirements of section 2.02(d) or section 7.01 of this Rule. 17.02 Functions of the Board in Review and Regulation of Tennessee-Approved Law Schools. (a) For any Tennessee-Approved Law School as defined in section 17.01: (1) the Board shall determine whether the law school is effectively achieving its mission and objectives, which includes meeting educational standards similar to those defined in the ABA Standards and any standards adopted by this Board. Upon determination by the Board that the law school has met the required standards, the Board shall recommend provisional or continued approval of the law school to the Supreme Court; (2) the Board is authorized to make inquiry to the school and respond to inquiry by the school and to adopt such additional standards as in its judgment the educational needs of the school may justify, subject to the Supreme Court’s approval; (3) if the Board has reasonable cause to believe that a law school does not comply with the standards in section 17.02(a)(1) of this Rule, and/or the school is not effectively achieving its mission and objectives, it shall inform the school of its apparent noncompliance or failure to effectively achieve its mission or objectives and follow the procedures in sections 17.03 through 17.10 of this Rule; and (4) the Board is authorized to: (A) require a school to furnish such information, including periodic reports, as it deems reasonably appropriate for carrying out the Board’s responsibilities; and (B) investigate a law school in accordance with section 17.03 of this Rule, provided that such investigation shall be confidential to ensure a frank, candid exchange of information and evaluation.

(b) Self-Study.

(1) The dean and faculty of a Tennessee-Approved Law School shall develop and periodically revise a written self-study, including an evaluation of the following topics: (A) the continuing relevance of the school’s mission or objectives; (B) the effectiveness of the program of legal education; (C) the appropriateness of the school’s admission policies; (D) the significance of the trend in rates of graduation and attrition; (E) the significance of the trends in the pass/fail rate on the bar examination; (F) the strengths and weaknesses of the school’s policies; (G) goals to improve the educational program; and (H) means to accomplish unrealized goals.

(2) The self-study shall be completed every seven years or earlier upon written request of the Board.

(3) Certification of Compliance. The dean and the chairperson of the board of directors of the law school shall certify annually in writing to the Board that the school is effectively achieving its mission and objectives or, if not effectively achieving its mission or objectives, identify areas of noncompliance or other deficiencies, as well as its intention and plan of action to attain compliance.

(c) Investigation and Evaluation by the Board. The Board may visit, investigate, and/or evaluate a Tennessee-Approved Law School, from time to time, with respect to the adequacy of its facilities, faculty, and course of study. The refusal of any such school to cooperate or participate in the conduct of such evaluation shall be reported to the Supreme Court, which may, after hearing, take such actions as the facts may justify.