UofL names new law school dean

The University of Louisville will welcome a new Louis D. Brandeis School of Law dean effective January 1, 2018, subject to approval by the university's Board of Trustees.

The university announced April 27 that Colin Crawford will be the next dean.

He is currently the Robert C. Cudd Professor of Environment Law at Tulane University. He also directs Tulane’s International Development Studies in the School of Liberal Arts and the Payson Graduate Program in Global Development in the School of Law.

“I look forward to Colin’s arrival,” said Acting Provost Dale Billingsley. “His extensive research, global view and focus on finding solutions to important and current legal issues are a perfect fit for UofL.”

[caption id="attachment_36639" align="alignleft" width="229"] Lars Smith[/caption]

Until Crawford officially begins his new role, law professor Lars Smith will lead the school July 1 to Dec. 31, 2017, as interim dean. Smith is associate dean for academic affairs and the Samuel J. Stallings Professor of Law for the school. He received the Distinguished Faculty Award in 2011 and has traveled and taught widely, focusing on intellectual property law. 

"I am grateful to Professor Smith for his willingness to take on this assignment and have every confidence that the school is in good hands as it transitions to the deanship of Colin Crawford," Billingsley said. 

Crawford, a native of Denver, joined Tulane in 2010. He previously taught at Georgia State University College of Law where he founded and co-directed the Center for the Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth. He has been a visiting professor at many universities, including the University of the Andes in Bogotá, Colombia; the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil; the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, also in Brazil; and the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.

He was a Fulbright scholar at the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. During the current spring semester, he is visiting at the Carlos III University in Madrid, Spain, where he holds that university’s Santander Chair of Excellence.

“I am honored and delighted to be able to join the University of Louisville community as the next dean of the Brandeis School of Law. Louisville and Brandeis have long and impressive traditions, and I look forward to building upon the solid foundation laid by my predecessors,” Crawford said. “For me, this is a homecoming of sorts. My father was born and partly raised in western Kentucky and the state has always had a special place in my heart. So the chance to work with Louisville faculty, staff, students, alums and the larger community is an unparalleled and very special opportunity indeed.”

Crawford earned a bachelor’s degree from Columbia University, a bachelor’s and a master’s degree from University of Cambridge and a law degree from Harvard University.

He is an expert in international development and law and has lectured and written worldwide on environmental and urban issues and related topics. His teaching and research focus is on land-use issues, particularly comparative and cross-cultural environmental justice concerns, with an emphasis on Latin America and the Caribbean.

In a note to the campus community that announced Crawford's appointment, Billingsley thanked Susan Duncan who has served as interim dean of the law school for the past five years.

"Many changes and improvements were accomplished during her tenure as dean. We wish her the very best as she takes on a new challenge as dean of the University of Mississippi School of Law," Billingsley said.