Oak Brook College of Law

I'm impressed with Oak Brook College of Law's baby bar and Cal bar passing rates. The admission office is very friendly and reliable as well. They have proven to be very qualified in what they are doing.

However, one thing that I failed to get was to get further information from graduates. The office said that it is confidential and I respect that.

If you know anybody who graduated from Oak Brook and have passed the Cal bar exam, please have him or her contact me or discuss via this board. Highly appreciated.

Thanks,
Jane

 

OBCL students have a discussion group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/obcl

You can try to get some feedback from there,
from previous or current students.

Good luck.




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Jonathan Liu
http://www.geocities.com/liu_jonathan/distance.html

 

From the feedback I get, the only reason people don't choose them is some level of discomfort with their strong evangelical Christian stance. This used to be very clear on their website and materials; I haven't checked lately (When I was a speaker at the National Home School Legal Defense Fund convention, at Pat Robertson's Regent University a couple of years ago, they had a strong presence there and were clearly heroes to all. One speaker predicted that there would be more than a few congresspeople and at least one president with an Oak Brook law degree in the next few decades.)

 

Dr. Bear,
Thank you very much for your reply. I have no problem with their strong evangelical perspective. In fact, I believe it sets a very high moral standard which is lacking in most DL schools.

We'll see who's going to be the next U.S. president graduated from OBCL. (I hope it'd be me. Aha!)

Thank you,
Jane

 

Thank you very much, Jonathan. Are you one of the members as well?

Thank you,
Jane

 

I am curious, which high moral standard(s) does Oak Brook uphold that other DL schools do not? And how is it upheld--conversely, how is it not upheld elsewhere?

Rich Douglas

 

Good question, Rich. Perhaps Dr. Bear could help answering that? He mentioned something about "heroes in them all."

I'm sold on their patriotic missions as stated in their prospectus. Not all DL schools have strong and patriotic goals and objectives, that's what I meant earlier. (Most DL schools have professional objectives, but rarely patriotic.)

Thanks,
Jane

 

As a condition of enrollment, a student has to attend some type of Christian retreat session. That's probably where some of the moral/patriotic/whatever stuff comes into it.

Though I don't subscribe to Oak Brook's religious and political orientation, my guess is that getting together a group of very like-minded students helps to build a sense of common purpose that at some level translates into a higher level of success on the bar exam as a group.

This would be the same, I think, at a (now purely hypothetical) left-leaning DL law school with a public interest law mission, assuming the academic component was as well-designed as Oak Brook's apparently is.

 

According to Oak Brook's student prospectus, the code of conduct includes the normal expectations for honesty and avoidance of plagiarism; plus restrictions against the use of tobacco, alcohol, drugs, profanity, pornography, immodest dress and a lack of humility.

Assuming prospective students have no problems with the rules (or can hide their nicotine patch under their long-sleeve shirts for a week), I wonder what graduates do with their completed JDs. It's my understanding that most legal jobs involve being hired by another attorney, and the FIRST question every attorney seems to ask is "where did you go to school." Also, the biggest club these folks belong to is their bar association, and this is a club that excludes graduates of otherwise accredited correspondence schools.

I'm by no means trying to slam Oak Brook -- I looked into attending there myself and think their program and baby-bar pass rates are admirable. But I mentioned the program to an attorney friend who recently graduated from a traditional law school, and she deeply questioned the ability of a distance-school graduate to find a decent job as an attorney.

I would love to hear that this weren't the case -- any thoughts?

 

David Yamada writes, "This would be the same, I think, at a (now purely hypothetical) left-leaning DL law school with a public interest law mission, assuming the academic component was as well-designed as Oak Brook's apparently is."

This is exactly the situation (sense of community, common purpose, etc.) in the left-leaning law world, with the New College School of Law here in San Francisco.

Historical trivia: The previous job of Les Carr, founder of Columbia Pacific U and Columbia Commonwealth U, was as president of New College, which he shepherded through its first regional accreditation process.

 

These thoughts came to my mind as well. I contacted their Admission Director, who is also a graduate of Oak Brook CL, to find some answers. He said, "I have never had a client ask me about my law school. Fellow lawyers often do, but as long as you are competent in practice, they are quite
accepting. (I'm sure there would be exceptions, but I have not run into any
as of yet.)"

We'll see what other attorneys have to say.

Thanks,
Jane

 

Um. The law is a funny thing. It has its own principals and methods of thought. I am a little disturbed by the notion that there is a "Christian" or "patriotic" approach to American jurisprudence. One of the foundational concepts underlying all legal practice in the United States is that the party's religion has NOTHING to do with how the law applies to him. One can be a hard shell Baptist, a Reform Jew, a zen Buddist or an agnostic. One can be a Republican, a Democrat, a liberal or a conservative. It should make NO difference whatever in his legal relationships, rights, and duties.
BTW, I didn't know that Regent U belonged to Pat Roberts. I heard someplace that his organization reprinted "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion". I hope it isn't true.
Nosborne

 

I'm under the impression that the graduates of OBCL should behave in accordance to Christian values (humility, honesty, etc.). The legal approaches taught should not be any different from those taught in other schools.

Jane

 

That's an interesting argument and one that I'm sure is quite true once an attorney has a viable practice. But I wonder how valid it is to assume that most new attorneys would immediately be launching their own practices, as opposed to working in a larger firm where senior partners are concerned about the firm's image both with clients and with legal peers.

As an aside, I've had occassion twice in my life to hire attorneys, and both times I knew where they went to school and how long they had been practicing. Of course, that may speak more profoundly about my suspicious nature than it does anything else

 

As long as the legal teaching is solid, i don't see the harm of a Christian or patriotic approach. After all, I really don't expect the law schools at Notre Dame or Boston College (Jesuit schools) to be religion-free zones.


Bruce

 

I suppose that there needn't be really any HARM in a Christian approach to legal education so long as it is understood that legal ethics are different than Christian ethics. I went to a public law school and had to learn that legal ethics are very different, sometimes, from common decency!
Nosborne

 

John, I wonder if New College or some other politically left school will try the DL approach for a J.D. program.

Given the fact that exorbitant student loan levels at residential law schools are making it difficult for law school graduates to practice in legal aid, non-profits, and government service, there may be a market for this type of program.

 

Any examples of how legal ethics are very different from common decency? I am under the impression that "it is hard to become a good lawyer while at the same time practicing common decency?" Is that what you're implying? Pls enlighten.

Thanks.
Jane

 

In actuality, most lawyers do not face compelling, gut-wrenching ethical issues of the nature regularly featured on "The Practice" and other lawyer TV shows on a daily basis.

What can be difficult, however, is constantly being part of the adversary process, esp. when you know that your side is the weaker one yet you are obliged as a matter of ethics to advocate vigorously on your client's behalf. It can pressure otherwise decent people to act like complete jerks; it can cause complete jerks to act like even bigger jerks; it can lead to nasty, sometimes loaded or unfair characterizations of the other side; and it can promote unnecessarily confrontational behavior.

None of these qualities are necessary to the functioning of a good, fair, and equitable legal system, but the culture of the legal profession has gone downhill over the past 20-25 years and has promoted these lousy attitudes and behaviors.

 

At Regent's law school (which has a close relationship with Oak Brook), it seems to me that the Evangelical stance is crucial to what they do. They write, for instance, that it is "the integration of Christian Principles into our curriculum (and) this balance of professional legal training and the affirmation of biblical principles that enables our graduates to provide excellent legal counsel to their clients. "

As for financial aid, "if God has called you, the challenge will provide an opportunity for God to show His faithfulness while building your faith and deepening your relationship with Him...."

What does God have to do with financial aid? Well, "Throughout the Bible, it is evidenced that the Lord uses our handling of personal finances as a measure of our trust and obedience to Him... This area is of extreme importance to God. One thing is certain: if God has called you to Regent University and you are following His principles of money management, then God will supply all of your needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus."

Would a prosecutor who takes every word of the Bible literally, as these people do, insist, for instance, that a person who gathers sticks on the Sabbath day be stoned to death (Numbers 15:32 -36 )