W&M law professor among most influential people in legal education
National Jurist has named Professor Paul Marcus to its annual list of the “Most Influential People in Legal Education.” Marcus is the Haynes Professor of Law at William & Mary Law School and president of the Association of American Law Schools. According to the magazine, he “has influenced not only the legal profession in general but also thousands of students, lawyers, judges, and professors.”
The list “recognizes leaders who are shaping the future of law schools,” according to the announcement in the magazine’s winter issue.
Davison M. Douglas, dean of William & Mary Law School, said he was delighted to see Marcus receive recognition for his contributions. “Paul has done it all — scholar, teacher, community servant, dean, and now president of the AALS,” said Douglas. “I think the initiatives and discussions he will foster as president on topics such as equal access to justice will affect legal education and the profession for years to come.”
Marcus is an internationally known scholar of criminal law and procedure, comparative criminal justice, and jury behavior. He has written more than 50 law review articles and authored or co-authored eight books, including The Prosecution and Defense of Criminal Conspiracy Cases. In addition to his scholarship, he has given invited talks in 24 countries, most recently in Australia, Brazil and Spain. He regularly lectures on behalf of the Federal Judicial Center.
He began his academic career at the University of Illinois and later joined the faculty of the University of Arizona, where he was appointed dean of the College of Law at the age of 36. In 1992 he joined the William & Mary faculty as the Haynes Professor of Law and later served as acting dean for two years. A three-time winner of the Law School's Walter L. Williams, Jr., Memorial Teaching Award, he was appointed in 2007 as the Law School's first Herbert V. Kelley, Sr., Professor for Excellence in Teaching. In 2010 he received the State Council of Higher Education in Virginia Outstanding Faculty Award, the state's highest honor for professors, given to recognize excellence in teaching, research, and public service.
Marcus is founder and director of William & Mary Law School's Literature and the Law Program at the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail. He has been honored with the University of Arizona's Distinguished Citizen of the Year Award and William & Mary's Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award, which recognized him "for the spirit with which he gives of himself, especially to those in need."
