Student Complaints: Standard 510 Information

Standard 510 requires that the College provide a method by which students may file complaints regarding issues that implicate compliance with the American Bar Association Standards and Rules of Procedure for Approval of Law Schools.

Any student who wishes to bring to the College’s attention a significant problem that directly implicates the College’s compliance with the ABA Standards and Rules of Procedures for Approval of Law Schools is invited to submit it in the form below or directly in writing to the Dean, Verna Williams. The form provided below for submission of complaints is created so that the authors of the complaints cannot be identified unless the authors disclose their identities.

If a student complained that his law school did not offer a class in Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility, this could implicate the school’s compliance with Standard 303(a)(1). However, a student’s complaint about her grade in a Legal Ethics/Professional Responsibility class would not implicate the school’s compliance with Standard 303(a)(1)

The complaint should describe the behavior, program, or process that potentially violates the Standards with enough information to permit the College to investigate. It should also explain how the behavior implicates the College’s compliance with a particular ABA Standard. Although students are welcome to submit complaints anonymously, students who wish to receive a personal response should include contact information.

The Dean will review submitted complaints and will keep a log of them. She will ask the appropriate senior staff member with the most knowledge about the subject of the complaint to investigate it. The investigation shall be concluded within 30 days of the receipt of the complaint. If a longer period is needed for a full investigation, this will be noted in the log. At the conclusion of the investigation, any necessary remedial actions will be instituted, and a written response will be sent to the complainant.

If the complainant believes that the response was inadequate, the student may file an appeal directly with Dean Verna Williams or it can be sent to her from the complaint form below. The appeal must be filed by the student within two weeks of the receipt of the response. The Dean will convene a subcommittee consisting of a faculty member, an administrator, and a student to review the complaint, the response, and the student’s appeal, and make a recommendation. She will then make a final decision on the matter.

All complaints, responses, appeals, and decisions submitted during the most recent accreditation period will be logged and maintained in a file in the Dean’s office. The record will include the resolution of the complaint. All records will be maintained for seven years.

The University of Cincinnati College of Law values input from students about their law school experience. Students who wish to make other types of complaints, suggestions, or provide other types of feedback are encouraged to discuss the matter directly with the faculty member, administrator, or staff person involved. The representatives of the Student Legal Education Committee are also available to discuss these matters with students and provide feedback to members of the College administration. Students may contact the Student Legal Education Committee through their student organization mailbox.