PreLaw magazine has recognized the UALR William H. Bowen School of Law as one of the nation’s most innovative law schools in its 2012 Back to School edition.

The story, which focuses on the top 20 law schools for innovation, features Bowen’s two-part Legal Skills program. This required set of courses allows students to develop and use various lawyering skills. In the required Lawyering Skills I course, students may choose either the litigation track or transactional track.

“We have always been at the forefront of skills training,” said Interim Dean Paula Casey. “Our students are required to take Legal Skills II, a class that culminates in their preparing and staging a mock trial. This series of courses prepares our students by showing them exactly what they will face when the time comes to work on a client’s behalf.”

Attorneys who work in the courtroom on behalf of clients each day lead skills courses. Their experiences are valuable for students for a number of reasons, Casey said.

“They have the capacity to tell our students what happens in the real world,” she said. “Their professionalism – and willingness to share the experiences with our students – helps make Bowen graduates even stronger advocates in the courtroom.”

National Jurist – a partner magazine of preLaw – is targeted at undergraduate students interested in pursuing a legal career.