The National Law Journal reports today:
"A snapshot of application totals at several top law schools across the country shows a 4.6% drop for this year's class, indicating a third consecutive year of decreases in the number of people applying to juris doctor programs nationwide.
Nine out of 10 top-tier schools surveyed by The National Law Journal reported a downturn in applications for the new school year compared with 2005, when all law schools accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) received 6.3% fewer applications than in 2004, according to the Law School Admission Council (LSAC).
In 2004, when the total number of applicants was 95,800, all schools received 4.8% fewer applications, which marked the first year of application declines since 1997.
The trend likely will not pinch top schools or elite law firms, but observers say it could have a trickle-down effect.
"Lower-tiered law schools could find, with fewer applicants, that they're forced to admit those who they normally wouldn't," said Michael Schill, dean of the University of California, Los Angeles, School of Law (UCLA). His school experienced a 7.6% drop in applications this year. "
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